2018 Pre-Season North American Power Rankings

Perhaps the most traveled US based racer, Clark raced around the world last season with stops in China, Australia, Japan, and of course, the US. When all was said and done Clark finished 21 races with only one non top ten finish (Jingle Cross). Clark is already back at it this year racing this past weekend in Australia.

As a U23 rider in the US, Petrov races with the Elite Men at all non-championship races. He finished inside the top ten in every race he did last year. He suffered from mechanicals and bad luck at U23 Nationals and the Pan-American Championships, where he finished fifth and tenth respectively. Look for Petrov to be close to the front of races and make his way onto the podium a few times this season.

Driscoll has been racing at an elite level for over a decade now. Last season he picked up one victory and was in the top ten at every race that was not a World Cup. If anything, Driscoll has been consistent over the years and is always competitive.

At 23 years-old White is another youngster on this list. He had three victories last season and did not finish outside the top ten. The only exceptions were the World Cups. This summer White has been racing criteriums and doing quite well. Expect to see him in the lead group a lot this season.

After several seasons of domination, Powers has slowly come back down to earth. A heart issue derailed his season last year, but he was able to cap it off with a second at US Nationals. Despite not grabbing the headlines, Powers did not finish outside the top ten in any race he did. This season remains a bit of a mystery, but he should be able to contend for a top-five finish every time he races.

Last season, Kisseberth had nine podium finishes, three victories, and only one non top ten finish in the US. This season he should remain a podium threat and contend for a few more victories. It will be interesting to see how he progresses in the World Cup and (perhaps) European races.

Hecht is another one of two U23 riders on this list. Like Petrov, he is well known in the US because he only does Elite races. In fact, he only had one non top ten finish last season. He also won the U23 Pan-American title and was 9th in the U23 race at Worlds. He should be a consistent podium threat this season.

Ortenblad stormed into the season last year with wins almost every weekend to start the season. He ended up second at the Pan-American Championships, picked up three C1 and eight C2 victories. While he faded towards the end of the year, he is still a force to be reckoned with.

A consistent rider and podium threat, Werner seems to never get the credit he deserves. Werner finished third at Nationals and was never outside the top ten in the US. He also picked up 6 victories along the way. Look for him to be in the lead group and on the podium even more this season.

The reigning US and Pan-American champion, Hyde had a great season last year. He picked up two C1 wins and finished first or second in six C2 races. In Europe, Hyde was 11th a Namur and 15th at Worlds. Hyde has been putting in long training rides, so he may start out the year a bit slow, but should be crushing it as the season progresses.