National-level cyclo-cross racing returns to Colorado’s Front Range this weekend as the second round of the Crank Brothers U.S. Gran Prix of Cyclocross lands in Longmont and Boulder, 30 minutes north of Denver. Round 3 of the USGP, the Xilinx Cup, will be held Saturday in Longmont, with round 4, the Boulder Cup, slated Sunday in the talent-rich racing community of Boulder.

This weekend marks the first national-level cyclo-cross event held in Boulder, home of VeloNews, since the November 2000 round of the former SuperCup, when then-national champion Marc Gullickson defeated Tim Johnson. Gullickson has since retired, but Johnson (Cannondale-cyclocrossworld.com), who went on to win the 2000 national championship in Kansas City, returns to Colorado sitting second in the USGP series after twice finishing second to Kona’s Ryan Trebon, winner of the inaugural Crank Brothers series two years ago.

Trebon, who ceded the series leadership to Kona teammate Barry Wicks last season in order to race in Europe, has stated that he intends to race the full six-race USGP series this year. Aided by selfless teamwork from Wicks, Trebon has taken a commanding lead in the opening rounds of this year’s series. But Trebon, last year’s runner-up at the national championships, will likely face his biggest challenge thus far this season in Todd Wells, the only man to beat him at the national championship in Providence, Rhode Island, last December. Like Trebon, the reigning national cross-country champion, and Wicks, the reigning national short-track champion, Wells (GT) spends his summers racing on the national mountain-bike circuit.

Though not in prime form, Wells competed at the October 7-8 round of USGP racing in Gloucester, Massachusetts, finishing 10th and seventh, respectively. But coming off a trip to the Pan American cross-country championship the following weekend, Wells appears to be returning to condition, with a December peak in mind. Wells took fifth and fourth respectively behind Trebon at the October 21-22 UCI rounds of the 2006 Verge MAC Cyclocross Series in Delaware and more recently won the UCI ’cross event held last weekend in Boulder, well ahead of Danish national champion Joachim Parbo and local Jonathan Baker (Harshman Wealth-Primus Mootry).

"I felt good, but it's hard to measure without guys like [Ryan] Trebon here," Wells told VeloNews following Sunday’s win at the Boulder Reservoir. "We'll see how I'm going next weekend."

Trebon, meanwhile, said the national champ is his primary concern this weekend, citing Wells’s advantage at altitude. Wells lives in Durango, Colorado, at 6512 feet, while Boulder sits at 5430 feet above sea level. Trebon lives at sea level in Ventura, California.

"Todd is racing more so he’s only going to get faster, especially at altitude," Trebon said. "When Todd is going good he’s good. I don’t ever discount him in a race, but it’s not just him, there’s Barry and Tim. It’s mostly Tim who has been consistently finishing second in the last few races."

Given Wicks’s renowned ability to take the hole shot from the gun and Trebon’s proclivity to ride off the front of the field, spectators should expect to see Kona’s "Twin Towers" at the front of the race, likely joined by Wells and Johnson, and perhaps Parbo and Baker. And although Johnson has been unable to defeat Trebon thus far this season, might Wells’s presence open the door for the 2000 national champ to slip away and take a repeat win in Boulder? Not necessarily, said Trebon.

"That’s why I have Barry," Trebon said. "It’s always the two of us against someone else. If it’s two on two, that’s no big deal. Then you don’t have to cover every move, you have someone else working. You can split up the responsibilities for it. I’m feeling pretty good, so I’ll just go out there and race like I always do and try to put it to everybody."

Asked if there are any other riders he will keep an eye on, Trebon mentioned Geoff Kabush, his fellow cross-country competitor and Canadian national ’cross champ, who skipped the opening weekend of the USGP due to his recent wedding.

"Geoff Kabush is one of those guys kind of like Adam Craig. He can not ride for a month and still be really fast," Trebon said. "There are a few people you don’t give freedom to, because you know the quality of rider they are."

One rider expected to draw attention is ProTour veteran Freddie Rodriguez (Davitamon-Lotto), who will make his cyclo-cross debut in Longmont. Rodriguez will race alongside Davitamon teammate Chris Horner (Specialized), who placed a respectable 11th at the round 2 event in Gloucester, his best-yet ’cross result at the national level.

On Saturday night, Rodriguez and series organizers are hosting a fundraising event to benefit the Fast Freddie Foundation and The Family Learning Center of Boulder at Boulder Beer Company and Pub. The event will feature a raffle of cycling prizes from the USGP series sponsors including a Ridley Crosswind with SRAM Rival components, Mavic wheels and Crank Brothers Pedals, a Yakima roof rack system, and more. Tickets are $20 at the door and include one free beer and a raffle ticket.

"I’m really excited to be in Colorado to race in the Crank Brothers U.S. Gran Prix of Cyclocross and sincerely thank the organizers for planning this event to support both the Fast Freddie Foundation and The Family Learning Center," said Rodriguez.

On the women’s side, Johnson’s wife, Lyne Bessette (cyclocrossworld.com), winner of 14 events last year and the overall champion of the USGP series, has found a worthy opponent in two-time defending national champion Katie Compton (Spike). No longer bound to rules that kept the sighted pilot of a Paralympic tandem away from professional UCI races, Compton missed the opening weekend of the USGP, but defeated Bessette, the Canadian national champ, twice in their first two meetings in Delaware — once by a large margin and once in a two-up sprint for the finish line. If both riders are healthy, a fierce battle is expected, although Compton may be hampered by the recent theft of her Primus Mootry racing bikes. Spike bicycle sponsor Raleigh has provided her with two bikes for this weekend’s racing, according to team director Bill Ramsay.

Bessette has also found a noteworthy rival in Luna’s Georgia Gould, who holds the series lead. Bessette topped Gould at the opening round of the USGP in Gloucester, but Gould out-sprinted the Canadian champ the following day, with Luna teammate Katerina Nash taking third and fourth places on the weekend. And although Gould and Bessette are tied in points, series rules state: "In the event of a tie on individual classification, the best placing in the most recent event shall be decisive."

Gould finished third behind Compton and Bessette twice in Delaware, and finished 36 seconds behind Compton last weekend in Boulder. After nearly winning the category 3 men's race, Compton took the early lead over Gould and never relinquished it.

"I'm gearing towards the Portland USGP weekend and nationals," Compton said after the race. "[This] weekend's races will be a great test for me, having Lyne Bessette and Katrina Nash here."

With the top American elite man, woman, under-23 and junior racer from the series automatically selected to USA Cycling’s world championship squad, competition is expected to be fierce in the U23 and junior categories. Surprisingly, last year’s junior series winner, national junior champion Danny Summerhill (TIAA-CREF-Clif Bar), sits fifth in this year’s series rankings, behind teammate Jim Lennon. In between the two TIAA-CREF-Clif Bar riders are Gloucester opening-day winner Alex Coelho (Hot Tubes Development Cycling), Sean Worsech (Rad Racing) and Jerome Townsend (Alan). With altitude expected to play a factor, Colorado residents Lennon, Coelho and Summerhill should have the advantage.

In the under-23 series, last year’s series winner, six-time national champ Jesse Anthony (Clif Bar) sits second behind round-two winner Jamey Driscoll (FiordiFrutta).

Check back with velonews.com all weekend for race reports, photos and videos from USGP racing.