A near seven-minute margin separated the defending champions back to their second-placed rivals following the opening day, which signaled a convincing way to commence their 6DAYS campaign.
With the European summer in full swing, heated Italian conditions added a layer of complexity to Day 2 of proceedings, with a string of mishaps resulting in third position for Steede, which still enabled the U.S. team increase its advantage entering the third day.
Despite that early success, Day 3 marked a more challenging outing for Steede – who was credited P8 on Tuesday – and her teammates, however, the trio collectively managed to extend their lead in the Women’s World Trophy classification to over 20 minutes as the event reached its mid-way point.
“I was leading most of Day 1 and went into the final test having put together a stellar ride up until that point,” reflected Steede. “I had hit all my marks, and then there was just one more creek crossing, which took us to the finish line area, and I had committed to a line that I thought was good, but it wasn’t. I was lodged in there, so I lost a lot of time, and I was pretty bummed about that. Day 2 was really hot all day, starting at 8:00am until we got back, which made it tough. I hit the ground a few times, made a few too many mistakes out there, but the team crushed it! And then Day 3 was also a bit of a tough one, although overall we’re in a really good position at the halfway point, and we’ll keep charging to the end and try to bring this title home.”
USA, 5:57:29.65France, +20:08.37Australia, +21:17.86Italy, +32:54.78Great Britain, +44:10.12