Lievin World Cup Cross - 2008

Nobody said that World Cups were easy and Lievin surely was not. The weather wasn't a big factor in the race, but the course certainly was.

The course started with a long road section followed by a triple step climb. The first step was steep enough to rid any momentum the riders had from the downhill, the second hit the riders like a sledgehammer at about 40 degrees and the third threw in an jab for the knockout. A root filled off-camber downhill brought the riders to another more gradual climb. Then a flat stretch gave the riders a second to think about what was coming, which was 2 hills in a row, making the Gloucester horseshoes look like thimbles. The first up was rideable, the second only by a few elite racers. A quick turn took the riders past the pits to another gradual climb, then down a couple of steep drops, the first off-camber, the second into a muddy field making a turn at speed. Another short power-climb became a run-up for many of the earlier races and took everything the riders could throw at it in the later races and another drop off took them back to the grass where some long windy turns on the grass were followed by a quick rise up to the road to reach the finish line.

In the Junior race, David Larsen was the sole Canadian and he was tangled at the start, bending his derailleur hanger too far from the pits to try running. The race was won by a Arnaud Jouffroy from France, warming up the local crowds with something to cheer about.

The Espoirs were up next and another French rider tried to continue the momentum of his junior comrad. Aurelien Duval tried to hold the lead until Niels Albert took over and dominated from the 3rd lap.

On lap 2, a Dutch rider tangled with the snow fencing and then with Kyle Douglas, knocking Douglas to the ground out the back. After fighting back in, he worked with Shaun Adamson from Alberta for a bit as he tried to move back up, before getting lapped by Niels with 3 laps to go.

Wendy Simms had her best placing in a World Cup, taking a pull in the lead and then relaxed back into the group and riding steadily to place 5th. At the front, Hanka Kupfernagel took on current World Champion Salvetat from France. To the French crowd's dismay, Kupfernagel held off Salvetat for the win by 12 seconds. Another pair of French riders worked together to chase the leaders and hold off Simms. On this course two years ago, Wendy placed 27th, so today's result stands as testament to the improvements she has made to her fitness and skill level.

In the elite race, Mourey took the lead in the first lap, pushed the pace and broke off a lead group and kept Sven Nys from getting on board. Lars Boom and Bart Wellens were the only ones to stay with him, and had he not crashed with a couple of laps to go and had a slow change in the pits, he would have been a strong contender for the win, but that was not to be. Boom took advantage of Mourey's crash to attack and gap Wellens, and eventually the win.

Osmond Bakker rode strong and showcased the benefits of coming over early and doing alot of racing in Europe. Aaron Schooler rode strong and with borrowed equipment being pulled right behind Bakker. National Champ, Mike Garrigan showed the effects of jet lag and lack of racing with a lack lustre performance.

An American fan brought the cash prime over, offering a 10 euro bill out to the riders. As the French crowd was somewhat amused, or confused, the fan waved the bills as he yelled "Go racer, racer, racer". Many of the top riders have supporters clubs who bus together to the races and carry flags with their local riders' face on it along with their national flag and jackets with the riders' name. An American family on the course suggested the American/Canadian fans who were onsite should be in supporters shirts as well and so the Kyle Douglas Supporters Club has been formed.

While there was press and cameras everywhere, there didn't seem to be much coverage in France anyways. However the sports pages in Belgium had Boom on the front page the next day, along with other articles about selections to Worlds, etc.