Noble Goes Wire-to-Wire to Win Silver Goose Cyclocross C2 – Report, Results, Photos

In our course preview for the 2018 Silver Goose Cyclocross, we noted that the tight, muddy start was likely to cause things to jam up early in the race.

After her win on Saturday in the C2 Silver Goose race, it was as if Ellen Noble (Trek Factory Racing CX) had written that preview.

“I knew there would probably be a little bit of carnage at the front,” she said. “And there was. I was happy to get away and kind of play my own game.”

As she has done all season, Noble started fast, taking the holeshot and leading the 50-women-strong field into the first few muddy corners. In the first minutes of the race, one of the women expected to challenge her, Maghalie Rochette (CX Fever p/b Specialized) dropped her chain trying to make a “sketchy pass.”

It appeared Noble’s plan was the right one.

By the time Noble reached the technical set of ups and downs, she had a five-second gap on Kaitie Keough (Cannondale p/b CyclocrossWorld) and the other chasers. At the end of the first lap, it grew to nine.

Keough and the rest of the field would not get any closer for the rest of the race. After a perfect six-for-six October, Noble kicked off November with her seventh-straight victory.

Go from Go

Holeshots are a clear strength for Ellen Noble, and on Saturday, she again unleashed her powerful start from the whistle. She took the lead off the pavement and onto the muddy set of turns near the Little Lake Park baseball diamond.

After the race, Noble said her goal was to avoid the potential carnage. That carnage came to fruition when Rochette tried to move up a spot or two using what she called “a sketchy pass.”

Sketchy it was and during the attempt, Rochette dropped her chain and in the process dropped all the way back to 18th place.

“It was a little bit of confirmation I had made the right choice,” Noble said. “I wanted a lead at the start because I knew that sort of stuff could happen and it keeps you out of the way.”

After Rochette’s mechanical, Keough, Jenn Jackson (AWI Racing p/b the Crank and Sprocket), Courtenay McFadden (Pivot Cycles/Maxxis p/b Stan’s/DNA Cycling) and others stepped up as the riders to chase Noble. Noble, however, already had a five-second lead when the field hit the technical sector of the course for the first time.

Noble’s lead grew to nine seconds at the end of the first lap. McFadden and Keough were together in the chase, and Jenn Jackson (AWI Racing p/b the Crank and Sprocket), Katie Clouse (Alpha Bicycle – Groove Subaru) and Rebecca Fahringer (Kona Maxxis Shimano) chased behind them.

In the second lap, Keough took over second and took up the chase of Noble. She actually shaved a second off the Trek Factory rider’s time, and two laps into the five-lap race, Keough was only chasing eight seconds. With the mud and damp conditions, it seemed Keough had a shot and making it a two-woman race.

Noble Pulls Away

One could conclude that Noble knew Keough was closing the gap because she was absolutely dominant the third time around the course. Noble extended her lead on Keough by 10 seconds in Lap 3, essentially putting the race out of reach—barring a mechanical or crash, of course.

Behind the two leaders, Rochette started slowly charging through the field after her early mishap. Her second lap was the fastest of all riders and her third lap was third fastest. After three laps she sat in fourth, just behind McFadden.

The rest of the race belonged to Ellen Noble. She stayed on the gas in Lap 4 and measured her effort in the final lap to take home a comfortable margin of victory ahead of Sunday’s Pan-American Championships.

“I was able to kind of control my effort, and that worked out, so I’m pretty happy,” Noble said about the win.

With Katie Compton staying in Europe, a second Women’s Pan-American Champion will finally be crowned in year five of the event. Noble commented on heading into the race as the favorite.

“I thrive under pressure,” Noble said. “Maybe there’s pressure, but I don’t know. The thing is, it’s anyone’s race because Compton’s not going to be there. There shouldn’t be any pressure because it would be a win for anyone.”

Keough held on to take second and Rochette rolled all the way back to take third.

Clara Honsinger (Team S&M CX) and McFadden rounded out the wide-angle podium.

Winner interview and full results are below.

Elite Women Results: 2018 Silver Goose CX

Place	Bib	Name	Team	Country	Time
1	2	NOBLE, Ellen	TREK FACTORY RACING CX	USA	47:59:00
2	1	KEOUGH, Kaitlin	CANNONDALE/CYCLOCROSSWORLD.COM	USA	48:09:00
3	3	ROCHETTE, Maghalie	CX FEVER P/B SPECIALIZED	CAN	48:19:00
4	5	HONSINGER, Clara	TEAM S&M CX	USA	48:24:00
5	4	FAHRINGER, Rebecca	KONA MAXXIS SHIMANO	USA	48:26:00
6	8	MCFADDEN, Courtenay	PIVOT MAXXIS PB STANS - DNA CYCLING	USA	48:59:00
7	9	CLOUSE, Katie	ALPHA BICYCLE GROOVE SUBARU	USA	49:11:00
8	27	JACKSON, Jenn	AWI RACING P/B THE CRANK AND SPROCKET	CAN	49:22:00
9	23	WALTER, Sandra	LIV CYCLING CANADA	CAN	49:42:00
10	6	RUNNELS, Samantha	SQUID SQUAD	USA	50:05:00
11	7	WEST, Ruby	SPECIALIZED - TENSPEED HERO	CAN	50:50:00
12	11	ZAVETA, Erica	GARNEAU-EASTON P/B TRANSITIONS LIFECARE	USA	51:41:00
13	15	NUSS, Raylyn	GATEWAY HARLEY-DAVIDSON TREK	USA	52:09:00
14	14	GILLIGAN, Dana	MACOGEP-ARGON18-GIRONDINS DE BORDEAUX P/P MAZDA	CAN	52:10:00
15	20	STURM, Sarah	SPECIALIZED TEN SPEED HERO	USA	52:14:00
16	21	RATHBUN, Laurel	DONNELLY CYCLING	USA	52:15:00
17	19	ELLIOTT, Natasha	VAN DESSEL P/B HYPERTHREADS	CAN	52:15:00
18	12	MALIK, Jennifer	CARPE DIEM RACING	USA	52:37:00
19	13	VALLIERES MILL, Magdeleine	QUEBECOR / STINGRAY	CAN	52:39:00
20	18	WERNER, Emily	AMY D FOUNDATION	USA	52:49:00
21	31	RUSSENBERGER, Sophie	TEAM S&M CX	USA	52:59:00
22	35	JOHNSTON, Emilly	NAKED FACTORY RACING	CAN	53:32:00
23	24	LEONARD, Erica	HIGHGATE RACING P/B D'ORNELLAS BIKE SHOP	CAN	53:50:00
24	17	KELLY, Siobhan	BLACK DOG RACING	CAN	53:56:00
25	10	NAUMAN, Amanda	SDG - MUSCLE MONSTER	USA	53:59:00
26	22	COOGAN CISEK, Corey	AMY D FOUNDATION	USA	54:08:00
27	16	TAPIAS, Natalie	JAM / NCC	USA	54:22:00
28	30	PICIGA, Natascha	GIANT TORONTO PB LIV	CAN	54:24:00
29	26	LAWSON, Kelly	HARDWOOD NEXT WAVE CYCLING TEAM	CAN	55:37:00
30	29	KOENIG, Shantel	REDBIKE	CAN	55:48:00
31	25	SCHAPPERT, Anna	DARK RED RACING	CAN	56:20:00
32	42	MITCHELL, Ellie	NWCX PROJECT	USA	56:21:00
33	38	TOOLEY, Bridget	GARNEAU-EASTON P/B TRANSITIONS LIFECARE	USA	56:43:00
34	44	WEIDINGER, Chelsea	INDEPENDENT	USA	56:53:00
35	40	MCDICKEN, Kathryn	ASU DEVO	USA	57:54:00
36	28	SCHMIDTMANN, Petra	VAN DESSEL FACTORY TEAM	USA	@2Lap
37	34	RAMSAY, Turner	ALPHA BICYCLE CO.- GROOVE SUBARU	USA	@2Lap
38	50	BRADBURY, Nicole	NCCH PB FRANKLIN TEMPLETON INVESTMENTS	CAN	@2Lap
39	33	DINAN, Clio	INDEPENDENT	USA	@2Lap
40	46	WALCROFT, Katelyn	HARDWOOD NEXT WAVE CYCLING TEAM	CAN	@2Lap
41	32	SHIKAZE, Kaitlyn	CYCLEPATH OAKVILLE RACE TEAM	CAN	@3Lap
42	45	WENDLAND, Jodi	THE CYCLERY	CAN	@3Lap
43	41	STEL, Jocelyn	GIANT TORONTO PB LIV	CAN	@3Lap
44	39	STECIUK, Claire	HARDWOOD NEXT WAVE	CAN	@3Lap
45	49	MESSIER, Jill	WEST OF QUEBEC WHEELERS	CAN	@3Lap
46	36	REID, Carys	HARDWOOD NEXT WAVE CYCLING TEAM	CAN	@3Lap
47	47	COLES, Nicola	EURO-SPORTS	CAN	@4Lap
48	37	HOTCHKISS, Sophie	CLPT	CAN	@4Lap
DNF	48	SIFTON, Evelyn	INDEPENDENT	CAN
DNF	43	WRIGHT, Téa	BOULDER JUNIOR CYCLING	USA