At the halfway point for the 2010 NACT series, the standings are extremely close with the Castelli leaders’ jerseys up for grabs. The nationwide series has completed four of eight races, with a tight points race shaping up as the series heads to Colorado for a weekend of racing on October 30-31 in Boulder and Broomfield.
On the men’s side, the domination by five-time French national champion Francis Mourey (Francaise Des Jeux) during the opening weekend in Seattle mid-September has created a substantial points gap. Mourey exhibited his sprinting prowess at the season-opening StarCrossed by besting breakaway companion Ryan Trebon (KONA). The next day at Rad Racing GP Jonathan Page (Planet Bike) couldn’t match Mourey’s explosive power, and the Frenchman soloed to his second win in as many days.
The second weekend of NACT racing, on October 2nd and 3rd at the Great Brewer’s Gran Prix of Gloucester, saw split victories by Cannondale-cyclocrossworld.com team members Jeremy Powers and Tim Johnson. Powers captured the honors on Day 1 with Johnson taking second, while Johnson returned the favor on Day 2. The resulting points split allowed Mourey to retain the leadership with 120 points despite his return to the European ’cross circuit. Johnson and Powers are tied for second position (100 points) and Trebon in a close fourth with 97 points. As a result, the red Castelli jersey won’t be passed on until the next round of NACT racing.
On the women’s side, current leader Wendy Simms (Ridley) benefited from consistent placings and Seattle dominator Katerina Nash’s (Luna Pro Team) decision to sit out the Gloucester weekend. Nash won both StarCrossed and the Rad Racing GP in convincing fashion, with Simms solidly in second on both occasions. Neither Meredith Miller’s (California Giant-Specialized) victory on Day 2 in Gloucester, nor her second place to Laura van Gilder (Mellow Mushroom) on Day 1, gave her enough points to compensate for not starting the season in Seattle. As a result, the women’s leader board has Simms at the top with 123 points, Nash in a close second at 120 and Miller, van Gilder and 2009 NACT series champion Natasha Elliott (Garneau Club) tied for third with 100 points each.
Simms commented “I am really excited to be wearing the NACT leader’s jersey, and my goal is definitely to hang on to it for my new sponsor, Ridley. I can remember being nine months pregnant last year checking out the photos of the pink NACT heavyweight belt thinking – I want that.”
Describing her motivation for focusing on the NACT title Simms said, “The equal series prize money for women was also great incentive to focus on the NACT series this year. The race promoters have always been super supportive of women’s racing, so it’s nice to finally be able to show my appreciation and focus on a North American goal instead of having one foot on home soil and the other in Europe.” (See CXM’s profile of Wendy Simms here)
The race for the overall series title may remain tight until the finale weekend November 20-21 in Southampton, NY, thanks to a rule change instituted for 2010. The final series championship is based on a rider’s best six of eight race results to account for any illness, injury or mechanical difficulties that can occur over the 10-week season. Once the final race is completed and the standings are tabulated, the winner could be a surprise.
Men’s Series Standings:
| Place | Rider | Team | Total Pts |
| 1 | MOUREY Francis | Francaise Des Jeux | 120 |
| 3 | JOHNSON Tim | Cannondale-Cyclocrossworld.Com | 100 |
| 2 | POWERS Jeremy | Cannondale-Cyclocrossworld.Com | 100 |
| 4 | TREBON Ryan | Kona | 97 |
| 5 | HEULE Christian | Vc Gippingen | 60 |
| 6 | PAGE Jonathan | Planet Bike | 60 |
| 7 | DRISCOLL Jamey | Cannondale/Cyclocrossworld.Com | 50 |
| 8 | ST JOHN Derrick | Garneau Club Chaussure Ogilvy | 44 |
| 9 | CRAIG Adam | Giant | 43 |
| 10 | SCHOUTEN Tristan | Cyclocrossracing.Com/Blue/Rolf Prima | 39 |
| 11 | FRATTINI Davide | Hudz-Subaru | 38 |
| 12 | DAMIANI Luca | Kenda P/B Geargrinder | 33 |
| 13 | SCHERZ Valentin | Cyfac-Champion System P/B Revolution Wheelworks | 32 |
| 14 | WICKS Barry | Kona | 32 |
| 15 | WEIGHALL Nicholas | California Giant/Specialized | 30 |
| 16 | ANTHONY Jesse | California Giant-Specialized | 28 |
| 17 | LINDINE Justin | Bikereg.Com / Joe’S Garage / Scott | 26 |
| 18 | WELLS Jake | Hudz-Subaru | 24 |
| 19 | KABUSH Geoff | Maxxis-Rocky Mountain | 20 |
| 20 | TOWNSEND Jerome | Bikereg.Com / Joe’S Garage / Scott | 14 |
| 21 | MCNICHOLAS Dylan | Pedros | 12 |
| 22 | RICHEY Craig | Cyclocrossracing.Com P/B Blue | 12 |
| 23 | MCGRATH Adam | Feedback Sports-Van Dessle | 10 |
| 24 | SCHOOLER Aaron | Team H&R Block | 10 |
| 25 | DECKER Carl | Giant | 8 |
| 26 | MYERSON Adam | Team Mountain Khakis Fueled By Jittery Joe’S | 6 |
| 27 | BABCOCK Sean | Kona | 6 |
| 28 | WELLS Troy | Cliff Bar | 6 |
| 29 | KEOUGH Luke | Champion System p/b Keough Cyclocross | 1 |
| 30 | FISHER Steve | Rad Racing NW | 1 |
| 31 | TRACE Tyler | Trek Red Truck | 1 |
| 32 | WONG Philip | Antero Resources – Seaside Cycle | 1 |
Women’s Series Standings:
| 1 | SIMMS Wendy | Ridley | 123 |
| 2 | NASH Katerina | Luna Pro Team | 120 |
| 3 | MILLER Meredith | California Giant/Specialized | 100 |
| 4 | VAN GILDER Laura | C3 Athletes Serving Athletes | 100 |
| 5 | ELLIOTT Natasha | Garneau Club | 100 |
| 6 | BUTLER Susan | Hudz-Subaru | 60 |
| 7 | ANNIS Sally | Crossresults.Com P/B Jra Cycles | 44 |
| 8 | DYCK Mical | Trek Canada / Terrascape Racing | 43 |
| 9 | HASKELL Devon | Bike Station Aptos | 38 |
| 10 | SMITH Andrea | Ladiesfirst Racing | 30 |
| 11 | STUDLEY Kari | Redline | 30 |
| 12 | BRUNO ROY Maureen | Bob’s Red Mill P/B Seven Cycles | 28 |
| 13 | ANTONNEAU Kaitlin | Cannondale-Cyclocrossworld.Com | 24 |
| 14 | PENNINGTON Alice | Team S&M | 24 |
| 15 | WILLIAMS Wendy | River City Bicycles | 24 |
| 16 | BRESNICK-ZOCCHI Sara | Crossresults.Com/Pedalpowercoaching.Com | 22 |
| 17 | SHERWIN Kathy | Hudz-Subaru | 22 |
| 18 | DOMBROSKI Amy | Luna Pro Team | 20 |
| 19 | HOWE Barbara | Ibis And The Danger Twins | 20 |
| 20 | KEMMERER Arley | C3 – Athletes Serving Athletes | 17 |
| 21 | KOONS Linnea | Embrocation Cycling Journal | 14 |
| 22 | MAILE Sarah | Ventana Mountain Bikes | 14 |
| 23 | ANTHONY Crystal | Ladiesfirst Racing | 12 |
| 24 | BARNHOLT Kerry | Scott Ritchey | 10 |
| 25 | BLATT Rebecca | Silver Bull/Central Wheel | 6 |
| 26 | BISHOP Serena | Sunnyside Sports | 5 |
| 27 | CUTLER Jessica | Cucina Fresca | 4 |
| 28 | D’AMBRUOSO Ann | Ladiesfirst Racing | 4 |
| 29 | BENJAMIN Kelly | KCCK | 2 |
| 30 | GAERTNER Jennifer | Riverstone CDA | 2 |
| 31 | GAVIN Kristin | Team CF | 1 |
| 32 | MARKHAM Kristin Jo | Team Kenda | 1 |
About NACT
Created in 2008, the NACT series is comprised of “the classic cyclocross races” across North America showcasing the best ‘cross courses and attracting internationally ranked competitors. The overall series winnings combined with daily prizes make it the richest cyclocross series in North America.
For NACT information: http://nacyclocross.com
2010 Schedule
9/18 – Star Crossed p/b Stanley – A brand of PMI - Seattle, WA
9/19 – Rad Racing Gran Prix p/b Hammer Nutrition - Seattle, WA
10/2-3 – Great Brews Gran Prix of Gloucester – Gloucester, MA
10/30 – Pedal to Properties Colorado Cross Classic – Boulder, CO
10/31 – Victory Circle Graphix Boulder Cup - Broomfield, CO
11/20-21 – Whitmore’s Landscape Super Cross Cup – Southampton, NY
