What was expected to be a mano-a-mano battle for the under-23 national cyclo-cross championship between reigning national U23 ‘cross champ Jesse Anthony (cyclocrossworld.com) and the World Cup experience of European-based Jeremy Powers (Jelly Belly-Aramark) turned out to be a demonstration of singular skill as the 20-year-old Anthony won his sixth straight national championship, beating Powers by a convincing 1:21 margin on a cold winter day in Portland, Oregon.

Anthony rode a gutsy race over the flat, mud-soaked grounds of the Portland International Raceway, attacking the front group of U23 riders on the first slow and sloppy lap of the 50-minute race. With textbook-precision bike changes coming from his pit crew (brother Josh Anthony and mechanic Stu Thorne), Anthony stayed away uncontested until the finish.

Powers attempted to bridge soon after Anthony leapt out of a lead group that also contained Troy Wells (Kona-CCA-Easton), Matt White (NCC-BikeReg.com), Brent Bookwalter (Balance Bar-Devo) and Zak Grabowski (TIAA-CREF-5280), but instead the Jelly Belly rider dangled in between the leader and a strung-out group of chasers for the remainder of the race.

Powers got caught in the middle

Photo: Chris Milliman

With Powers steadily holding 10 seconds behind Anthony after two laps, spectator sentiment leaned towards an inevitable catch of the leader. Watching the race unfold was 1999 national ‘cross champion Marc Gullickson.

“It’s going to be all about not trying to ride everything,” Gullickson said, and his observation turned out to be spot-on.

With the sometimes-rolling, mostly-winding course thick and sludgy after two days of hour-by-hour racing, many long sections proved to be faster crossed via foot. And Anthony would prove the naysayers wrong, maintaining his lead and stretching it over the final two laps to beat Powers by nearly 90 seconds. Wells finished third, 24 seconds behind Powers, with White and Bookwalter rounding out the top five.

“That was more running than I can remember on any ‘cross course,” Anthony said. “I probably rode about half the course. I just didn’t want to look back. I just rode my own race and happened to stay away the whole time.”

Also on hand was 1997 national ‘cross champion Mark McCormack, who has served as a mentor to Anthony over the past five years.

“Jesse’s a hard worker,” McCormack said. “He’s asked me many times this year, ‘Why am I running so much?’ and now he knows. This race is pretty flat, not a lot of elevation gain, but for the amount of running he did today, that was honestly the difference. As soon as he slowed down he just got off. He didn’t think he was a superhero and try and ride everything.

“I was timing certain sections where Jesse was running and Jeremy was riding, and the last couple of laps Jesse was picking up four or five seconds in a 15-second section. It’s nice to want to be able to ride – I’m kind of that same mindset, ‘Ride, ride, ride’ – but sometimes you’ve just got to suck it up and get on your feet.”

And Anthony ran more often — and faster — than Powers.

“It was a hard race,” a contented Powers said. “There was a lot of running, and I’ve had a hard time putting my running together this year. I rode as strong as I could, and I wanted to win so badly. I felt in my stomach that I just couldn’t go any harder. That was as hard as I could go running. But so many people came out here to support me, and there are so many people to thank. I just wish the result was one better.”

Earlier in the day, the men’s collegiate national championship began as a tight battle between Matt Shriver (Fort Lewis College) and Troy Heitheckler (University of Washington) but ended with Shriver taking the win by 52 seconds. Brian Matter (Wisconsin Sheboygan) took third, 2:26 down.

Racing continues Sunday with the junior men racing at noon, followed by the elite women (1:30 p.m.) and the elite men at 3 p.m.

U.S. Cyclo-cross National Championships
Portland, Oregon. December 11

Under-23 men
1. Jesse Anthony, Cyclocrossworld.com, 49:07.662
2. Jeremy Powers, Jelly Belly-Aramark, 50:28.960
3. Troy Wells, Kona-CCA-Easton, 50:52.745
4. Matthew White, NCC-Bikereg.com, 51:44.653
5. Brent Bookwalter, Balance Bar-Devo, 52:02.913
6. Zak Grabowski, TIAA-CREF-Clif Bar, 53:20.698
7. Jamey Driscoll, Richard Sachs-CYBC, 53:34.601
8. Greg Wittwerm Cyclocrossworld.com, 54:07.100
9. Perry Paolini, Amgen Cycling, 54:48.186
10. Brad Van Orden, Ritchey-Nova, 55:47.607

Collegiate men
1. Matt Shriver, Fort Lewis College, 43:08.373
2. Troy Heithecker, University of Washington, 44:00.172
3. Brian Matter, University of Wisconsin, 45:34.886