Yeah! Here we go! With the Cross Crusade finished it's time for the annual visit from the USGP of Cyclocross. This is one of the most entertaining races on the Oregon cycling calendar, with top pros from across the country descending on Portland for two days of racing before heading over to Bend for the National Championships.
Both days of the USGP are filled with racing in all categories and several of us Portobellos raced on the sweet course out at PIR! The course was incredibly muddy in a few spots, including shin deep mud that was completely unrideable during the morning races. However, most of the course was wide open and fast, which made for really fun riding.
Once our races were over, we took a well deserved break and watched the Elite Men and Women battle it out. All of the favorites for Nationals were in the hunt for the podium at least one of the days, and many Portland locals put in great showings.
Sue Butler is always a crowd favorite and she did not disappoint on Saturday! She rode an outstanding race and crossed the line in third place behind Luna teammates Katerina Nash and Georgia Gould.
Speaking of crowd favorites, Jeremy Powers really stole the show. Not only did he win both days in the Mens Elite races, but he bunny-hopped the barriers pretty much every time he came to them.
But the rider who got the biggest cheers, despite his performance, had to be Chris Horner. He was decked out in his Radio Shack kit and attacking the course. Although he didn't crack the top ten on Saturday, and he didn't race on Sunday, it was great to see him out there.
