'Cross World Cup Update

 

Report & Images: Belinda Sinclair

Venue: Levin, France

Gabby Day (left) and Helen Wyman

 

Helen Wyman and Gabby Day were the only two Brits to brave the mud of Lievin, France, in the penultimate round of the 2007/2008 Cycle Cross World Cup. With the hilly course already having received a good churning by the junior men and the U23 men in the morning, deep ruts, slippery mud patches and leg sapping loose top soil had joined the list of hazards faced by the two Global riders as they lined up to start.

Gabby Day (left) and Helen Wyman

 

And it wasn't long before the effects were felt. As the fifty one strong pack attacked the first hill, the loose and slippery surface caused several riders to lose their footing, and produce a tangle of arms, legs and air-spinning wheels. Both Wyman and Day managed to dodge the worst of it, however, Wyman overcoming her detached clips and jumping over the bodies in the mud, before picking up her bike and running to the top, while Day gave the whole lot a wide berth and rode around them.

The leaders get to grips with a tough, sticky course

 

Although she never managed to catch the leaders - Salvetat and Leboucher of France and eventual winner Hanka Kupfernagel of Germany - Wyman rode most of the race in sixth pace, eventually dropping to tenth for the line, 1.54 mins behind Kupfernagel, while a tired looking Gabby Day also hung on well to the end, finishing in twenty fourth place, 4 mins 03secs down on the winner.