Rapencross: Nieuwenhuis Rises and Brand Unbeatable

 

Joris Nieuwenhuis had a rough start on Sunday at the X20 Trophee Rapencross in Lokeren, Belgium, but the Ridley rider never panicked. He slowly moved up throughout the race, and once at the front, he pulled away, gaining time on everyone. Because the X20 Trophy classification is based on time, Nieuwenhuis rode hard, too fast for his riding companion Michael Vanthourenhout.

At the finish, Nieuwenhuis had lapped Vanthourenhout by 48 seconds, and the rest had lost a minute or more. X20 leader Thibau Nys had a nightmare ride with mechanical problems and crashes, crossing the line almost four minutes behind. A glorious day for Nieuwenhuis, he shot up from 8th place to 1st place in the overall standings!

“I managed everything well, until the last two laps. Then I heard the announcer, started thinking, calculation, and made mistakes. Before that, I was really in a good position. I knew the whole lap suited me, so I wanted to ride fast and not make any mistakes. The guys behind me were making mistakes, so I could just keep going.”

-Joris Nieuwenhuis 

Lucinda Brand rules the cyclocross tracks so far this winter. A crash against a post prevented her from winning in Overijse, but in the other four races she started, she has won four times. On Sunday, she broke away from the rest in Rapencross. She won the first two heats of the X20 Trophy and took a firm lead in the classification. 

“This victory is special, because this course isn’t really my thing. I felt good, without any real explosiveness in my legs, haha. I stayed calm, had the right technique, and that brought me the win today.”

-Lucinda Brand

“When Lucinda attacked, I was at my limit and made a mistake in the sand. Ultimately, I was able to come back and sill compete for the podium.”

-Sara Casasola