Trebon, Wicks will get national test at USGP Mercer Cup

Nov 14, 2009 by editor

This weekend’s USGP Mercer Cup in New Jersey will give Kona-FSA riders and double Cross Crusade winners Ryan Trebon and Barry Wicks the opportunity to test their form against the best competition in the country.

Wicks and Trebon tore through the Cross Crusade for two wins each. Trebon won the opener at Alpenrose and appeared to be in good form to defend his national champion’s jersey this December in Bend, riding at the front of most of the NACT events and winning the Oct. 24 USGP race in Kentucky. But he’s been sitting out the national races for the past three weeks while recovering from a nasty crash at the second day of the Kentucky USGP race on Oct. 25.

Wicks used the break from the national scene to rake in back-to-back wins at the Cross Crusade Halloween weekend doubleheader in Astoria. And Trebon also seems back in top form after tearing through both the singlespeed and men’s A fields at Cross Crusade #7 last weekend at Portland International Raceway.

But the welcome back to the national stage may fall short of friendly for the Kona duo.

The Cannondale-Cyclocrossworld.com powerhouse squad will be figuring to continue the dominance it established in the Kona boys’ absence. The green-and-black Cannondale kits have been hogging the podiums at national races. The proof is in the results: Jeremy Powers and Jamey Driscoll are tied for the lead of USA Cycling’s rankings, Driscoll goes into this weekend wearing the white leader’s jersey for the USGP, and Tim Johnson is in the red leader’s jersey for the North American Cyclocross Trophy series. Although missing Powers this weekend due to illness, Driscoll and Johnson should be more than able to put everyone in the hurt locker. Specialized’s Todd Wells, a mountain bike pro and former Olympian, should also be returning to the elite men’s field after recovering from injury.

The course at Mercer County Park in West Windsor, New Jersey, should be well-saturated after Friday’s typhoon like weather forced organizers to cancel the pre-riding and number pick-up events. Saturday’s forecast calls for less extreme conditions.

And if that’s not enough excitement, Portland’s Sue Butler (Monavie Cannondale) winner of her one and only Cross Crusade Nov. 1, will face off in the elite women’s field. Plus, local junior cyclocross racers Kolben Preble (Hammer Velo) and newly minted OBRA champ Andrew Bennett (Team Redline) will be battling in the Junior 17-18 category for top placings and points toward selection to the USA Cycling junior worlds team.

It should make for a very interesting weekend in New Jersey and a great preamble for the USGP Stanley Portland Cup Dec. 5 and 6 at PIR.

Stay tuned for more coverage as the weekend progresses.