Back On Track Production's Urban Cyclocross Series continued with the Encore Cycling Cyclocross at Camp James in Irvine. It was another star-studded field and the racing was World Class. Mike Bell, Superbowl of Motocross Champion, 1980 Supercross Series Champion and Motorcycle Hall of Famer, brought his sons Sean and Trevor out to race. It was an honor to see all three of them compete cyclocross.
The Elite 1/2/3 field was once again graced by the presence of Discovery Channel's Tony Cruise. This time Tony showed experience and patience moving his way up through the field to victory. Initially attacked by Lyle Warner (Team Bearclaw), John Tzinberg (Kahala/LaGrange), and Brandon Gritters (5StarFish), only Gritters was able to match Cruz's speed towards the second part of the race. Gritters teammate Chris Demarchi appropriately refused to help chase Cruz and Gritters and Cruz was able to shake Gritters off to roll away to the solo win.
Once again the Single speed categories proved to be bigger than ever. Single speed A was a hotly contested race between Single Speed newbie Mike McMahon, Coley King, and Cid Castillo. In the end, McMahon secured the win in a very tight sprint finish. However, Noah Holcomb maintained his series lead by one point after managing a fourth place finish.
For the women it was Team Ergon-Ellsworth newcomer Monique Sawicki who upset the series leaders. Monique, a mountain bike endurance legend outdistanced Lana Atchley (SC Velo) and Rachell O'Connell
(UCI-WPT Cheerwine) in her first race of the series.