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Tour De Nez: Final Stage Results |
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Written by By Briggs Heaney
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Sunday, 22 June 2008 |
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 By Briggs Heaney
www.europeloton.com
Stage five of the 2008 Tour de Nez, a 45 mile up and down affair in and around the Village at Northstar resort, gave onlookers one last chance to see the main protagonists of the race fight it out on the tough, technical course. The 1.75 mile loop took riders over stretches of the cobbles stones that run through the village, lending an old school feel to the race.
As usual, the action came fast and furious, as the overall race leader through four stages, Andy Bajadali of the Kelly Benefit Strategies/Medifast team, held a tenuous four second lead over BMC’s Scott Nydam, five seconds on Symmetric’s Eric Wohlberg and a further 18 second lead on Bissell’s Burke Swindlehurst. All signs pointed to a showdown among the leading trio, but as happens so often in cycling, a different scenario played out.
The strongest team in the race, Bissell, initiated the action right away as Graham Howard, the brother of stage one winner Steven, went clear early with four others, including SRAM’s Ben Raby, Zteam’s Paul Mach, stage three winner Roman Kilun and Vitamin Cottage’s Jonathan Baker, second in stage three behind Kilun.
With only eight laps remaining, Bissell racheted up the pace, as Aaron Olson went off in search of the breakaway, and behind them, Garmin-Chipotle’s Steven Cozza, Team 5 Star Waste Vegetable Oil’s Karl Bordine and Tom Zirbel worked hard to bridge to the leading group of five.
Two laps later, the breakaway was nine strong, with Zirbel and Howard pinning it at the front. Bajadali’s Kelly Benefit Strategies squad suffered a bit of bad luck, as “The Bahj” explained. “The race was really tight, and we needed all our guys to battle Bissell. They brought a full GC team, so we had out work cut out for us. Candelario flatted and really had to dig to get back. By the time he reconnected, he was really tired. Dan Bowman too was really fatigued, so I got isolated and was unable to match Bissell’s power.”
 As the race went inside the final five laps, both Howard and Zirbel put in huge pulls at the front, increasing the gap to Bajadali and the chasing field. Olson took over with three to go, and dragged the remaining four riders the rest of the way home. In what seemed like an impossibility, the affable 30 year old from Bend, Oregon was able to create enough of a time gap to take the overall title for the 2008 Tour de Nez.
Olson was obviously happy with the result, and described it as his biggest win to date. “I was able to win because of my teammates. They sacrificed themselves for my benefit. Graham Howard probably could have won today, but he sacrificed himself so that I could try for the overall. I’ve been feeling my form coming along over the last few weeks, and I was able to go with some of the better climbers, so I knew I had a good chance today for the overall win. For me, winning the overall is pretty special, especially considering the guys I beat this week.”
In the battle for the stage win, it was all Health Net’s Roman Kilun, as the Oakland, California native took his second stage win ahead of SRAM’s Ben Raby and John Baker of the Vitamin Cottage team. This time, Kilun won on a hilly, tough course, showing his versatility as a rider. “It’s been a really great week. When you’re relaxed and having fun, I think it makes it easier. With this race, it feels like family with Tim Helion and his crew. I come here every year, and it just seems to get better and better.”
In the jersey competitions, Kelly Benefit’s Dan Bowman wrapped up the climber’s purple jersey, while team Rubicon’s Carson Miller netted the best U-23 white jersey. For the green sprinter’s title, it was Roman Kilun, riding his two big wins in the five stage race. Olson meanwhile can bask in the glow of victory, as he scores the red overall winner’s jersey, which will match his predominantly red Bissell kit perfectly.
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Last Updated ( Tuesday, 24 June 2008 )
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