September 30, 2018 (Iowa City, Iowa) – The third and final day of Jingle Cross continued with cloudy skies and the threat of more rain looming over the Johnson County Fairgrounds. A day after Toon Aerts and Kaitie Keough took victories in the Telenet UCI Cyclo-Cross World Cup, amateur and Elite riders lined up to take one last shot at the Jingle Cross podium.

In the UCI C1 Elite Women’s race, Evie Richards (Trek Factory Racing CX) set the early pace, pulling Katerina Nash (Clif Pro Team) and Maghalie Rochette (CXFever p/b Specialized) clear of the rest of the field. Despite her quick start, yesterday’s second-place effort in the World Cup began to take its toll on Richards, and she started to fade. She first lost contact with Rochette and Nash before being caught by her teammate Ellen Noble. The early race leader would eventually finish fifth. Back up front, Rochette and Nash extended their lead, and going into the penultimate lap Nash opened a 10-second gap over her breakaway companion. Nash would continue to increase her lead, crossing the line 29 seconds clear of Rochette. Ellen Noble held off a mid-race surge by yesterday’s World Cup winner Kaitie Keough (Cannondale/Cyclocrossworld.com) to capture the final podium spot.

“I was surprised that we got away so quickly, but Maghalie pushed the pace early on,” said Nash. “I don’t know what lap, but on the run-up, I just felt good, and I could sense that she was starting to slow down just a little bit. So, I pushed it up the hill, and I had to keep pushing all the way to the end. I wanted to win yesterday and was disappointed, so I’m really excited. I will take a win when I can and today was awesome.”

The 2018 edition of Jingle Cross came to a close with the UCI C1 Elite Men’s event. It didn’t take long for Belgian Nicolas Cleppe (Telenet Fidea Lions) to stamp his authority on the day as he powered clear of teammate Jim Aernouts. Behind Aernouts, a chase group containing Thijs Aerts (Tele-net Fidea Lions), Kerry Werner (Kona Maxxis Shimano), Michael Boros (Creafin – Tuvsud) and Sieben Wouters (Creafin – Tuvsud) formed, eventually reeling in Aernouts. With Wouters pushing the pace, the group shattered, with Aerts and Werner falling back. As the laps counted down, the rain returned, making the final two laps slick and treacherous. The conditions didn’t affect Cleppe as he continued to push the pace, crossing the line in 1:04:39. Wouters out sprinted his teammate Boros for second, with Aernouts in fourth.

“In the first laps, my teammate Aernouts made the tempo and I followed,” said Cleppe. “The second or the third around, I was in the lead position and I was able to ride tempo – one hard enough for the whole race. In the head, it was concentration, concentration, concentration all the way to the finish. I won the race, and I am very happy.”

Kerry Werner would finish the day as the top American in sixth.

“It’s always great when these guys come over here to the U.S. It’s always a learning experience,” said Werner.  “I found myself on the front row, like the fourth guy to get called up. Usually, I can get a good start if I get clipped in, so I got the pedal and went for it. I just about had the holeshot, was second wheel. I was feeling pretty good, really good technically, so I slotted myself in the front pretty early. With four to go, I think I was still in a group for three, and then they started to pull away. I was making some small mistakes that were causing me to get gapped. And then I was in no man’s land. With three to go, I just put my head down and tried to hold on for sixth place.”

Results

Women
1. Katerina Nash (Cliff Pro Team) 44:43
2. Maghalie Rochette (CXFever p/b Specialized) 45:12
3. Ellen Noble (Trek Factory Racing CX) 45:47
4. Kaitlin Keough (Cannondale/Cyclocrossworld.com) 46:02
5. Evie Richards (Trek Factory Racing CX) 46:28
6. Sunny Gilbert (Van Dessel Factory Team) 47:01
7. Clara Honsinger (Team S&M CX) 47:15
8. Rebecca Fahringer (Kona Maxxis Shimano) 47:26
9. Manon Bakker (Experza-footlogix) 48:06
10. Katie Clouse (Alpha Bicycle Co.- Groove Subaru) 48:16

Men
1. Nicolas Cleppe (Telenet Fidea Lions) 1:04:39
2. Sieben Wouters (Creafin – Tuvsud) 1:05:37
3. Michael Boros (CCreafin – Tuvsud) 1:05:38
4. Jim Aernouts (Telenet Fidea Lions) 1:05:38
5. Thijs Aerts (Telenet Fidea Lions) 1:06:25
6. Kerry Werner (Kona Maxxis Shimano) 1:06:36
7. Michael van den Ham (Garneau-Easton p/b Transitions) 1:06:54
8. Curtis White (Cannondale/Cyclocrossworld.com) 1:06:59
9. Jack Kisseberth (Garneau-Easton p/b Transitions) 1:07:26
10. Alois Falenta (Team Cross UCI Safir Ganova) 1:08:09