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The Providence Festival of Cyclocross offered a second day of racing, but you’d never know it looking at the podium. In the men’s race, Tim Johnson and Jamey Driscoll of CyclocrossWorld-Cannondale took another 1-2 finish, with Chris Jones (Champion Systems) finishing strong to claim another third place. On the women’s side, the top four from yesterday kept their finishing order as well, with Luna’s Katerina Nash proving once again she’s one of the strongest women in the States if not the world. Photos from the Day 2 racing are here.

The sixth race in the Verge New England Championship Cyclo-Cross Series ended the same way as the fifth, with Tim Johnson (Cannondale/cyclocrossworld.com) and Katerina Nash (Luna Pro Team) on the top step of the podium. The Providence Festival of Cyclocross presented by Interbike was billed as a marquee event with courses reminiscent of the National Championship courses from 2005 and 2006 at the same venue and it did not disappoint. With several challenging and spectator friendly features and over 1400 participants in addition to the Interbike Outdoor Demo East, Roger Williams Park showed itself to be a true Mecca of New England cyclocross.

The women’s race was a match for the previous day’s with Katerina Nash making her presence felt by taking the lead from the opening gun and not relenting until raising her hands at the finish line. Local favorite Mary McConneloug (Kenda-Seven-NoTubes) once again ran out of time, closing the gap to 22 seconds at the end of the race. Once again, Amy Dombrowski (Richard Sachs-RGM-Radix) held on for third with Pro Women’s Meredith Miller fourth. The biggest battle of the day was for fifth place where upstart elite rider Andrea Smith (Minuteman Road Club) put out a massive sprint, leaving behind Lyne Bessete (October Factory Racing), Kelli Emmett (Giant Bicycles) and Maureen Bruno-Roy (MM Racing p/b Seven Cycles). The news was not all bad for Bruno-Roy though, as her eighth place was enough to push her past the absent Natasha Elliott for the Verge Series Leader’s jersey.

In the men’s field, there was a hard start from Elite and U-23 Series leaders Dan Timmerman (Richard Sachs-RGM-Radix) and Luke Keough (Champion Systems) who were 1-2 onto the dirt in the holeshot.  It looked like there was mutiny afoot as Team Fuji rider Davide Frattini pulled through in the first lap, attacking and creating a gap though the BJ’s Wholesale Club barriers.  However, the duo from Cannondale/cyclocrossworld.com, Tim Johnson and Jamey Driscoll, were able to take control with Johnson resuming his role on the front, pushing a group of eight on the finishing straight. Champion System’s Chris Jones continued to make waves by attacking, forcing Johnson to chase, bringing Driscoll, Timmerman and Jerome Townsend (BikeReg.com-Joe’s Garage-IF) with him. Timmerman looked to be in a rough spot and fell away from the group shortly after. Driscoll, on the other hand, was just heating up, attacking the group of four and quickly gaining a ten-second gap. The chase proved to be too hot for Townsend, who fell back leaving Johnson to attack Jones in hope of bridging to his teammate. Once he made contact, there was no stopping the two New England cross veterans. The only separation between them came when Driscoll bobbled on the bell lap, allowing Johnson to solo in to victory.

The race for third was hot with Timmerman needing a podium finish to retain his leader’s jersey. At five to go, Timmerman and Townsend caught the seemingly struggling Jones. Timmerman got clear with four to go, racing like a true champion in defense of his Verge Series Leader’s jersey. Jones would not relent and caught the Sachs rider at the California Giant Bowl with two to go. The two matched each other move for move until Timmerman tripped up on the stairs, allowing Jones a gap. A dyed in the wool roadie, Jones threw down the gauntlet on the pavement, emphatically finishing third for the second time this weekend. Timmerman’s fourth place cost him the Series Leader’s jersey but his effort gained him the admiration of the fans. Johnson’s third consecutive Series victory earned him the right to pull on the Verge NECCS Leader’s Jersey.

The Elite Masters was more racing at its finest with all the big names flying their flags. Mark McCormack (Team Fuji) jumped out to an early lead before being caught by Masters National Champ Roger Aspholm (Westwood Velo) and series leader Johnny Bold (Corner Cycle).  The three riders held off a chase group of six until three laps to go when McCormack fell off the pace and the group was reorganized with Bold’s teammate, Kevin Hines (Corner Cycle) and Saturday’s bronze medalist, Jon Cariveau (Moots). Bold was eventually shelled off the back of this group, leaving Hines, Cariveau and Aspholm to battle at the front. With a third of a lap to go, Aspholm turned up the pressure, taking a small lead. Cariveau, who was right at home on the technical wooded section before the finish, leapfrogged Aspholm before the drop to the pavement to take the victory. Hines rounded out the podium in third. His teammate, Bold, finished fourth and retained the leader’s jersey.

The U-19′s kept up the bar with another three-way battle for the victory. It came down to a sprint between Jesse Keough (CLNoonan/KAM/Coast to Coast) and Clif Bar Development Cyclocross Team riders Nate Morse and Curtis White. Keough was able to take the win and the Series Leader’s jersey. Morse held on for second despite finishing with a flat rear tire.

The Verge New England Championship Cyclo-Cross Series will be contested over 7 weekends in 2009, starting with the New England Cross-toberfest of Cycling:  3 straight weekends of UCI calendar racing to be held in Williston VT, Gloucester MA, and Providence RI.  After a weekend of much needed rest, the series will continue with stops in New Gloucester ME on Oct 24, Northampton MA on Nov 7, Sterling MA on Nov 28, and the series finale in Warwick RI on Dec 5. For more information on the series: http://www.cycle-smart.com/neccs.

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