Kira Mullins (Bear National Team) mounted a three-lap chase to catch and pass Ada Watson (CXD Trek Bike) on the final lap to win the junior 17-18 women’s title at the USA Cycling Cyclocross National Championships presented by The Meteor on Saturday.
After pulling away on the first lap with two other riders, Mullins (17) watched Watson (17) power with an over 10-second lead after the first lap. Joined by 16-year-old Tessa Beebe (BYRDS Cycling), the chase duo closed down the gap by the bell lap, until Mullins made her move to solo to victory.
“I was with Tessa for the majority of the race, just kind of sitting on her wheel. And I heard people saying that Ada, who was leading, was making mistakes and stuff. And I just noticed that the gap kept getting smaller and smaller, and I saw her, and Tessa seemed a little tired or was not trying to catch her,” Mullins told FloBikes announcers Brad Sohner and Ellen Noble after her win.
“So I passed Tessa, and very quickly caught on to Ada’s wheel, and then basically went immediately right past her and just hammered it from there and didn’t really look back. And it worked out.”
“I was pretty happy with my results,” said Mullins, who finished 41st in Tábor and 20th in Flamanville. “I mean, it being my first World Cups, I was kind of thrown into the deep end, especially on first lap. I, like, so much faster about first lap than over here, but I think it honestly, really prepared me well for this race, and I’m super happy with that.”
On a cool, overcast day, 27 junior 17-18 women faced a fast 2.1-mile (3.4km) course in Centennial Park in Fayetteville, Arkansas, featuring sandy loam soil, long stairs with 38 steps and a few tricky off-chambers.
After taking the holeshot, Watson was briefly joined by Mullins and Clamann until she powered away after the stairs. Meanwhile, Beebe overcame a slower start to…
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