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Compton solos to fifth straight 'cross crown
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Katie Compton (Spike Shooter) raced to her fifth national cyclocross title on Sunday in a chilly, windswept Kansas City.
The course was dry, the temperature low and the wind brisk as the women lined up at Tiffany Springs Park. Rebecca Wellons (Ridley Factory Team) scored the hole shot with Compton second and Deidre Winfield (Velo Bella–Kona) third. The defending champ hovered in second place on the climb, then went to the front and gave it the gas.
1994 Seattle, Washington Shari Kain
1995 Leicester, Massachusetts Jan Bolland
1996 Seattle, Washington Shari Kain
1997 Lakewood, Colorado Alison Dunlap
1998 Fort Devens, Massachusetts Alison Dunlap
1999 San Francisco, California Alison Dunlap
2000 Kansas City, Kansas Alison Dunlap
2001 Baltimore, Maryland Alison Dunlap
2002 Napa, California Anne Grande
2003 Portland, Oregon Alison Dunlap
2004 Portland, Oregon Katie Compton
2005 Providence, Rhode Island Katie Compton
2006 Providence, Rhode Island Katie Compton
2007 Kansas City, Missouri Katie Compton
2008 Kansas City, Missouri Katie Compton
In short order a loosely knit six-rider group formed: Compton, Georgia Gould (Luna), Rachel Lloyd (California Giant Berry), under-23 champ Amy Dombroski (Velo Bella-Kona), Laura Van Gilder (C3-Sollay) and 30-34 champ Maureen Bruno-Roy (MM Racing-Seven Cycles).
In most of her previous Nationals wins, Compton has attacked from the gun. This time she waited until part way up the first hill.
"I think she was waiting to see if someone was going to do something. It wasn't that bad, I was like, 'I'm going to go around her if she keeps going this slow, because everyone was right there,'"Gould said. "But then she kind of picked it up ... and I had a little mistake there and after that she just opened it up more."
Compton quickly took a handful of seconds over Gould, who in turn held a similar gap over Lloyd, and then methodically set about padding her advantage over the course of the five-lap race.
"It was hard," Compton said. "The uphill section lasts a lot longer, it kind of saps the power out of you, so I just tried to stay consistent and try to kind of ride like it was a World Cup just so I could get the effort in my legs, I didn't want to settle in I know Georgia is riding well and any little mistake and she could catch me."
Compton did not enjoy the company of her new friend, an SRM power meter that she has been watching during races this season. The battery was dead on the start line so she removed the head unit.
With a lap and a half to race, Compton, who won her first national championship in 2004, was clearly in the driver’s seat. Gould clung grimly to second, with Lloyd third and trying to close.
A half-lap later, Compton held a double-digit margin over the pursuit, and it was looking like the race was for second place between Gould and Lloyd.
The defending champ crossed the line alone to add to her stars-and-stripes jersey collection, and Gould held on to take the runner-up spot ahead of Lloyd.
The tightest race of the day was for the last two spots on the five-women podium. Dombroski and Van Gilder managed to gap Bruno-Roy on the last lap, and Van Gilder won the sprint for fourth.
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