Nash takes the win on Day 1 of the USGP’s Deschutes Brewery Cup weekend

It was a brisk but dry day here in Bend, Oregon, for the first day of the USGP Deschutes Brewery Cup weekend, the series finale.

After about a dozen OBRA amateur races traversed the initially frozen ground in the morning hours, the course, which was the National Championship course in 2009 and 2010, had thawed out and gotten slippery. In addition to the mud, other course elements included a fly-over, a classic set of stairs, barriers, gravel and several ride/run-ups.

The Elite women lined up for their afternoon race with Katerina Nash (Luna Pro Team), Nicole Duke (Alchemy), Julie Krasniak (Rapha-Focus), and Caroline Mani (Raleigh-Clemente) in the front row.

Nash and teammate Georgia Gould quickly took the lead of the 36-women field and stayed there, taking turns in front.

Mani rode strong tailing the pair but the Luna Chix were racing themselves more than anyone else.

Duke started the race off strong, staying close on Mani's wheel but crashed and lost her position.

With little over one lap to go, Nash got a little gap on her teammate and managed to stay ahead, riding solo to the finish line. Gould crossed the finish 13 seconds later for a solid second place finish. Mani rounded off the podium in third, Kaitlin Antonneau (Exergy Twenty12) followed the Frenchwoman, and Amanda Miller (Optum p/b Kelly Benefit Strategy) completed the Top 5.