Less than an hour into Unbound 200 and only around 15 or so miles into the race, and already the muddy chaos has hit, with pictures of the men’s elite riders grinding to a halt and having to get off the bikes and run, well, at least if they could get their wheels to keep turning with all the mud.
A very few managed to find a grassy detour and keep on rolling, but most were pushing, or even carrying their bikes, and others were completely stopped with the paint sticks out to try and clear the mud so they could get their machines running again.
The mud was a curse for many, quickly splitting the field to shreds and ending 2023 Australian champion Connor Sens’s sortie out the front.
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Still, mud had been just what others were hoping for, defending champion Cameron Jones (Scott Sports USA) among them, with one of the reasons being that it may be at least one way of making the battle more of an individual one than a tactical team one.
The Specialized Off-road trio of Keegan Swenson, Matt Beers and Mads Würtz Schmidt are the team everyone is looking to in the men’s race, and Swenson was one of the riders caught in the mayhem with mud clogging the wheels and cogs.
It was soon revealed, however, that Beers, held out in the front group of around 10 and Jones was chasing in another bunch just behind which soon made the junction and formed a lead group of around 17 which also included Romain Bardet (Factor Racing), Brendan Johnston (Giant) and Würtz Schmidt, but Swenson was, at least initially, left behind.
The women’s race, which started later, then rolled on through. While there were some early offs in the puddle leading in, and some were off the bike once the mud truly hit, quite a few rolled on through, and it was a little less chaotic than the men’s race.
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Still, it caused a big split and a lead group of around 10 formed, including Geerike Schreurs (Specialized Off-road), Rosa Klöser (Canyon-SRAM-MAAP) and Nicole Frain (Factor Racing).
One thing for sure was that the riders and bikes across both fields came out of that section covered in mud, with the multi-coloured range of jerseys now pretty much down to varying shades of brown.
The mud struck again this year as the race started to the south, taking in roads that delivered the peanut butter muck of the 2023 edition. There were thunderstorms overnight in eastern Kansas that delivered enough moisture to turn dust to sludge.
As a result, it’s fair to say most riders were aware that mud was possible, but being prepared in theory and the reality may have been two very different things for some.
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