Virginia's Blue Ridge GO Cross: Manon Bakker and Tofik Beshir solo to victories in Roanoke

Day 1 of the Virginia's Blue Ridge GO Cross in Roanoke, Virginia saw experienced Dutch rider Manon Bakker extend her perfect record on US soil, winning a third consecutive race in the USCX series. Rising talent Tofik Beshir (CXD Trek Bikes) took his first elite men's victory at the C1 level, which was his second consecutive win in the series following Rochester CX last Sunday.

"Today was about being smooth and being patient," Beshir said after his victory, which saw him extend his lead in the USCX standings.

"There were definitely times where I wanted to go. I remembered [Team Manager] Chris [Merriam] told me I needed to wait. But once everyone did their attacks and got a little tired, I hammered it."

Beshir attacked with three laps of the eight remaining to move into the solo lead of the race, and he never looked back. Tyler Clark finished second, 42 seconds down on Beshir, with Calvin Conway of Midwest NXT in third place.

"It felt great winning my first C1 [UCI race]," Beshir said. "I’ve been waiting for this for a long time."

In the women's race, the pre-race favourite Bakker confirmed her superiority with a convincing victory. The Dutch rider is a regular fixture on the European circuit but has found success in the USCX in past seasons and extended her perfect record.

On Saturday in western Virginia, she won with a 38-second advantage over Kaya Musgrave (Competitive Edge Racing) in second. Lauren Zoerner (Corner Racing p/b Beyond Horizons) rounded out the podium in third, finishing one minute down on Bakker.

Bakker pushed into the lead on the first tricky section of the course, the long sandpit. She remained in the lead for the entirety of the six-lap race after that.

Speaking after the race, Bakker said it was not an easy effort, as the hilly GO Cross course is the most challenging one for her on the USCX circuit.

"For me, it’s like a road race," she said. "There aren’t any very [many] technical parts, so it’s full gas the whole time. I was suffering."

Day 2 in Roanoke offers the C2 race taking on much of the same course but in the reverse direction.

Women's results

Men's results

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