Stefko Wins National Championships

I am stoked to be pumped to announce that my good friend and Fort Collins own, Steve Stefko has (finally) won a CX National Championship! Today in Fayetteville, he took the win in the Master Men’s 50-54 race, a category that entered the day with the highest predicted race quality of the weekend outside the Elite Men’s and U23 Men’s races.

Steve rode in the lead group of eight early before it was gradually reduced to three. Midway through the final lap, Adam Myerson and Tim Strelecki tangled, giving Steve the opening he needed to commit fully. He put the power down and rode clear, finishing seven seconds ahead of Myerson, the defending champion. Eneas Freyre followed a few seconds later in third, with Strelecki finishing fifth behind Justin Robinson. The race started at 11:40 local time with temperatures in the low 30s.

The win adds a national title to a long record of steady results at Cyclocross Nationals. The Miiflo Cycling Team’s longtime racer first raced Nationals in January of 2014, finishing third in the Master Men’s 35-39 race. He returned the next day, to race in the Pro, 1, 2 race where he placed 25th in a 105 rider field. That Elite start remains the only time he has finished outside the top five at Nationals.

Stefko was back in the top five in January 2015, finishing fifth in the Master Men’s 35-39 race. After moving into the 40-44 category, he continued to contend near the front, placing third in 2016, in a 93-rider field, then second in 2018, and fifth in December 2018, in the 40-44 races.

Today’s Men 50-55 race stood out not only for the depth of the field but for its overall quality, with more highly ranked riders and proven Nationals performers than any other race of the weekend outside the Men Elite and U23 categories. Stefko’s win in that field marks his strongest Nationals result to date and completes a Nationals résumé that now includes a championship jersey alongside five top five finishes in six prior appearances.