Leopold Koenig (TNE) won the day with an aggressive ride up the slopes of Mt. Diablo after 45 minutes of climbing. Janier Acevedo (JSH) made a huge effort on the HC climb to finish stage seven, overtaking Cameron Meyer in the overall standings and setting himself up for a podium finish. Nobody could threaten Tejay van Garderen (BMC), however, and the yellow jersey will be safe for another day.

With the mountain-top finish at Mt. Diablo, stage seven would likely be the last chance for any shakeup in the general classification. If Janier Acevedo (JSH) could make an effort like he had on stage two, he might be able to move himself back into contention for the podium. For Michael Rogers (TST), sitting in second place 1:47 behind Tejay van Garderen (BMC), the climb wouldn’t bode well. Rogers got dropped by van Garderen and the other climbing specialists at the end of stage two, so it would be interesting to see how Saxo-Tinkoff would ride stage seven.

After an aggressive start, it took twelve miles for a significant breakaway to get established. Andy Schleck (RLT) joined the group of seven, perhaps hoping to take the breakaway all the way to the mountain and being the climb with a significant advantage to take a shot at moving up in GC. Carter Jones (BPC) also made the move with his eye on the category two climb early in the stage. Jones rode the entire Tour of California impressively, spending hours in the breakaway and defending the polka dot jersey that he claimed on stage one. He would go on to win both the KOM climbs out of the breakaway in stage seven, clinching the jersey, barring any catastrophe in the final stage.

Considering the importance of the Tour’s queen stage, the break never made it further than 4:00 away from the peloton. Jamis Hagens-Berman did the majority of the heavy lifting to try and bring the move back, shaving several minutes off over the course of six or seven miles. The advantage had come down to under a minute by the time the breakaway started climbing, at which point Andy Schleck took over the pacemaking and riders started popping off the back of the breakaway. When the peloton hit the climb, the damage was instantaneous as sprinters relented to the force of gravity.

In the breakaway, Laurent Didier (RLT) started putting on the pressure, pushing the pace and expanding the gap on the peloton. Though he wouldn’t move into the winners circle with a strong ride up Mt. Diablo, it looked like Andy Schleck was ready to go it alone for the stage win. Unexpectedly, Lieuwe Westra (VCD) attacked out of the breakaway with David de la Cruz (TNE) on his wheel and put a swift minute on Schleck. If he could hold on to that advantage for the eight miles remaining in the stage, Westra would claim another win for himself. At that point, the main field was down to only fifteen riders and BMC was controlling things with an iron hand, ready to respond to any attack from riders who threatened van Garderen’s hold on the general classification.

With Westra and de la Cruz still one minute up the road, Jens Voigt (RLT) naturally attacked the peloton, hoping to do some damage. With his twenty-minute deficit on GC, Voigt perhaps thought the pack would let him go. At the end of the day, that’s just Jens being Jens, animating the race and proving why he is the fan favorite. Francisco Mancebo (5HR), also far enough behind van Garderen to not raise alarm in the peloton, attacked out of the field and passed Voigt like he was standing still. The breakaway riders began to falter, coming within thirty seconds of the pack, and Mancebo caught them with 2.5 miles to go. Mancebo would need several minutes to move onto the podium.

With 1.8 miles to go, Acevedo made his big move, rocketing out of the field in a bid to climb his way back into the podium. He rode across the gap with ease, picking up and dropping Mancebo along the way, and putting twenty seconds into the field. If he kept opening the gap, he could take third place back from Cameron Meyer (OGE).

Working with Leopold Koenig (TNE), Acevedo rode a blistering tempo, pedaling up the side of the mountain with ease. Koenig attacked in the final meters, putting distance into Acevedo and winning the stage with glory. For Acevedo, the effort was enough. He gained enough time on Meyer to take third overall and would start the final stage in a strong position to end the Tour of California on the podium.

Final:

1. Leopold Koenig (TNE)

2. Janier Acevedo (JSH)

3. Tejay can Garderen (BMC)

4. Michael Rogers (TST)
5. Mathias Frank (BMC)

6. Matthew Busche (RLT)
7. Lawson Craddock (BCT)

8. Francisco Mancebo (5HR)

9. JJ Mendes (TNE)

10. Marc de Maar (UHC)

Van Garderen rode an amazing time trial today, putting still more distance between himself and Michael Rogers.  Cameron Meyer moved up in GC after a blistering TT, while Janier Acevedo ceded time to his main rivals.  The women, who raced first, showed fast times, with Evelyn Stevens coming in for the W.

For the women’s time trial, run as a big money exhibition race before the men started the stage, the odds-on favorites for the win were Amber Neben (Pasta Zara-Cogeas), Evelyn Stevens (Specialized-Lululemon), and Alison Powers (NOW and Novartis).  Neben and Stevens have both been champions in the event and Powers demonstrated her ability to ride hard with a tough win at the Redlands Classic earlier in the year.  Dark horse candidates for the win included Katie Compton (Trek Cyclocross Collective), who has crushed more cross races than most people have started, and Julie Dibens (Trek), a champion in the notoriously tough Xterra triathlon race.

It looked like Neben would ride to the win as she put time into her main rivals through the early time splits, but an unexpected crash while descending took Neben out of the race and paved the way for Powers and Stevens to finish within a minute of each other, Stevens taking the win with an average speed of 21.3mph and a 55:49 final time.

For the men, Tejay van Garderen (BMC) was widely expected to win.  The only question was, “how much time will he be able to gain on Michael Rogers (TST)?”  For van Garderen, trying to gain time on Janier Acevedo (JSH) would be a secondary goal, considering the powerful Colombian climber trailed by only 0:50 and the punishing climb up Mt. Diablo was still ahead.

Rohan Dennis (GRS) set the first really fast time of the day with a 49:19, the first rider to break 50 minutes.  The TT course ended in a sharp climb to the finish, which hurt quite a few riders times.  Some riders opted to change out their TT bikes for road bikes at the base of the climb, looking to shed a few grams and ride in a better climbing position.  Lieuwe Westra (VCD), Dutch national TT champion and stage one winner, was the next rider to set a fast time, beating Dennis by four seconds.

Acevedo lost at least fifteen seconds to a mechanical, losing his chain at the base of a hill.  Being a good time trialist in his own right, Acevedo should have been able to keep van Garderen and Rogers in his sights for the mountain stage.

Lawson Craddock (BCT) rode a solid 51:34, which would keep him in the young rider’s jersey for another day.  Cameron Meyer rode his way into the fastest time trial finishes and moved up into the standings for the general classification.

Acevedo and Rogers both switched out to their road bikes for the climb.  Van Garderen opted to stay on the TT bike as they hit the climb.  Acevedo rode a very strong 51:33, but it would bring him neck and neck with Meyer for the final spot on the podium. Michael Rogers rode under 50 minutes, but it wouldn’t be enough to get ahead of van Garderen, who broke the 49 minute mark with a 48:52, augmenting his lead over everyone.

 Final:

1. Tejay van Garderen (BMC)

2. Lieuwe Westra (VCD)

3. Rohan Dennis (GRS)

4. Michael Rogers (TST)

5. Marco Pinotti (BMC)

6. Cameron Meyer (OGE)

7. Bob Jungels (RLT)

8. Leopold Koenig (TNE)

9. Mathias Frank (BMC)

10. Sylvain Chavanel (OPQ)

Tyler Farrar

It was a great day for Garmin-Sharp, heretofore quiet in the Tour of California, as Tyler Farrar finally claimed a stage win. In a heated sprint, the American made his way through the bunch and took the win as the Amgen Tour of California rolled into Santa Barbara. Janier Acevedo (JSH) would retain the yellow jersey for another day as the peloton finished together. This victory for Garmin comes on the same day that Ramunas Navardauskas claimed a win for the team in the Giro d’Italia, soloing to victory in Vajont.

Stage four offered the weary, sunbaked riders further respite from the mountains and the torturous sun of the high desert. Heading west and towards the sea, the riders looked forward to cool ocean breezes. Battling headwinds would be a welcome relief for the beleaguered peloton. Since the stage was relatively flat, with only a few low hills to earn KOM points, the likelihood of a sprint finish, and a possible back-to-back stage win for Peter Sagan, was high. Stage four would also be the shortest of all the stages at 84.7 miles to the finish.

With about 70 miles to go, Chris Baldwin (BPC), Chad Beyer (CSS), James Stemper (5HR), Nathan Brown (BCT), Frank Pipp (BPC), and Marsh Cooper (OPM) worked their way into a move. Beyer wore the most courageous rider’s jersey after his attempt to solo away from the field yesterday and Stemper had earned it after stage one’s all-day breakaway. Once again, it was the domestic teams taking the initiative to animate the race.

The breakaway stayed 3-4 minutes ahead through the first sprint at the end of the long, gradual descent. Since none of the riders were in contention for the green jersey, they rolled across the line riding tempo in an effort to stay away. Not the case through the first KOM, a category four climb. Stemper had claimed some KOM points during the course of his stage one breakaway, but he trailed Carter Jones (BPC) significantly. Jones teammate in the break, Chris Baldwin, attacked Stemper to prevent him from claiming enough points to threaten Jones’ lead in the mountain’s classification.

The breakaway riders maintained a stiff tempo, pushing the pace up to 30mph through tricky winds, but their time gap decreased steadily as the second sprint approached. With about 30 miles to go, their advantage over the peloton was down to 2:20 and shrinking fast. The field wanted to bring them back before the category three climb at Casitas Pass, after which it would be a windy, downhill charge to the finish line and a likely bunch sprint. Just before the final KOM at 20 miles to go, Nathan Brown (BCT) jumped away from the breakaway, earning some KOM points and shaking things up at the front of the race. The peloton, led by Vacansoleil, drove hard up over the climb and had the break dangling just one minute off the front.

Frank Pipp got dropped out of the break over a hill and then chased his way back on like a boss, descending like a madman through the winding hills leading down into Santa Barbara. With about ten miles to go, the break dangled within sight of the pack. Ted King (CAN) was the master of the chase. Working hard to tire the field and catch the break so that his teammate Sagan could go for another spring victory, King showed just what it means to be a great domestique, exemplifying Rule V in every way. Unexpectedly, Nate Brown jumped hard at the 9-mile mark in hopes of distancing himself from the fading break and the charging pack. Whether gunning for a stage win or for the Amgen courageous rider’s jersey, Brown managed to take back some time and get himself forty seconds off the front. Would the field let him go since he was out of contention for the GC? Did they even know he was out there?

Jens Voigt knew. The hardman from Radioshack rode off the front, passed the chase group, and then passed Brown. His move ignited the spirits of the main field and they upped the pace, bringing everything back together with 6 miles to go. Mendes (TNE) gave it a go, but Chavanel (OPQ) reeled him in as the peloton strung out behind the hard-charging French rider.

Garmin would take no chances in the final three miles. Lining up at the front of the race, Zabriskie pulled for over 1k at 32 miles an hour with the leadout train behind him. Tyler Farrar was denied on stage three and his teammates would give everything to set him up for stage four. Flying through a traffic circle, Matt Brammeier (CSS) attacked and put a big gap in the field with 2k to go. His effort was good, but the leadout trains were better. In the final kilometer, Tyler Farrar (GRS) pirated the Optum leadout and fought his way to the finish line over Ken Hanson and Gianni Meersman.

Final

1. Tyler Farrar (GRS)

2. Ken Hanson (OPM)

3. Gianni Meersman (OPQ)

4. Kris Boeckmans (VCD)

5. Peter Sagan (CAN)

6. Michael Matthews (OGE)

7. Thor Hushovd (BMC)

8. Sylvain Chavanel (OPQ)

9. Jeremy Vennel (BPC)

10. Jasper Stuyven (BCT)

Result: Sagan Wins Amgen Tour of California Stage Three

Peter Sagan finally broke out of his TOC slump this year by sprinting for the win in Santa Clarita. There were no changes to GC after the flat-ish stage and the KOM and young rider’s jersey also stayed with Carter Jones and Lawson Craddock respectively.

The blistering heat let up as the riders prepared to roll out of Palmdale. Every rider was glad to be shed of the mountains and the triple-digit temperatures. Tanner Putt (BCT), who battled the Palm Springs sun to stay within six minutes of Acevedo at the end of stage two, expressed his gratitude to be shed of the mountains and made it plain that Bontrager would try to protect Lawson Craddock’s command of the young rider’s jersey.

All eyes were trained on Janier Acevedo and the Jamis team at the start of stage three. The Colombian rider’s unexpected stage win put the domestic team in the position of defending the yellow jersey early in the race. Jamis’ DS, Sebastian Alexandre, realizes that trying to keep Acevedo in yellow will be an uphill battle, especially with the time trial ahead on day six. They had set out to win a stage, which the team accomplished with amazing style, and anything else is a wonderful bonus. Considering the relatively flat terrain of stage three, Jamis shouldn’t struggle to stay in yellow for at least one more day.

It was clear there would be no all-day breakaway for the stage when a flurry of attacks went and were covered in the early miles of the race. A promising group of 23 (including van Garderen and Sagan) got away leading into the first KOM, where Carter Jones (BPC) took maximum points to augment his lead for the mountains classification. They never got more than 45 seconds ahead before the peloton reeled them in.

The Sprint Stage Two ©Brandon Hale

Andy Schleck (RLT), Lieuwe Westra (VCD), Chad Beyer (CSS), and Gavin Mannion (BCT) got up the road with 86 miles to go. They rode a stiff tempo as the field sat up, pushing their way through the first KOM (won by Beyer) and getting about five minutes ahead of the field with 55 miles left in the race. Their group rolled through the second KOM shortly thereafter, not battling because none of the riders were in contention for the jersey. The group stayed away through the first sprint (points leader Lieuwe Westra capturing the sprint and augmenting his lead), but Cannondale decided they had had enough of the breakaway riders and the peloton ratcheted up the pace in an effort to shrink the leaders’ gap.

Mancebo (5HR) suffered a series of mechanicals about 25 miles from the finish line. He had been sitting in position for a strong GC placing, but the mechanical struck as the peloton pushed the pace in an effort to bring back the break. He had to dig deep to get back on, working his way through the team cars in the tricky winds.

Meanwhile, Westra claimed another first-place finish at the second intermediate sprint. His lead virtually intact for another day and the breakaway’s gap holding at 2:35. Fighting a vicious headwind, the breakaway began to lose time to the charging peloton. Mannion fell off the break with about fifteen miles to go and was quickly absorbed back into the field. Schleck and Westra pulled the plug with eleven miles to go. Beyer set out on his own, but he ran a fool’s errand as the pack caught him with just under ten miles to go.

Irizar (RLT) took a flyer 3 miles out, forcing Cannondale and Garmin to spend some energy reeling him in. Cannondale’s leadout train looked perfect in the final 3 kilometers, with Peter Sagan sitting comfortably at the end of the line. After all the shuffling, bumping, pushing, and shoving, Sagan managed to come out of nowhere, taking the long way around Tyler Farrar to seal his first win of the 2013 Amgen Tour of California.

Final:

1. Peter Sagan (CAN)

2. Michael Matthews (OGE)

3. Tyler Farrar (GRS)

4. Gianni Meersman (OPQ)

5. Boy Van Poppel (VCD)

6. Thor Hushovd (BMC)

7. Alexander Candelario (OPM)

8. Sylvain Chavanel (OPQ)

9. Zakkari Dempster (TNE)

10. Michael Morkov (TST)

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