The first climbing stage of this year’s Tour of California was a new route from San Jose, with a tough beyond category climb over Mt. Hamilton, gnarly descents that saw more than a few ride off the road and a steep uphill kick to the finish line. Cannondale-Garmin’s general classification hope Joe Dombrowski rode a smart race, finishing in the top ten with the same time as the other favorites.

“I wasn’t sure what to expect because we had a few tough climbs with technical descents and an uphill finish,” said Dombrowski. “So it wasn’t a stage where one team could easily control things. That created opportunities for other teams to open it up for their GC riders.”

The day’s main breakaway had the magic number of riders to keep the peloton at bay with one rider staying away for the win. Behind the eventual lone leader, the overall contenders and their teams battled to thin the ranks.

“I anticipated it was going to be around 30 to 40 guys at the end but it ended up smaller than everyone expected, though with all the GC riders there,” said Donbrowski, “Our first goal was to get into the break, but the guys did a great job of keeping me fed and hydrated all the way into the finale. We rode well all day.”

Director Sportif Johnny Weltz was enthusiastic about the result from the team.

“We are moving a step closer every day,” he said. “It’s good to see Joe racing up there with the best guys in the bunch and is on the same time with the other contenders. That’s what we wanted it to be.”

Wednesday’s stage is also a new route from Pismo Beach to Avila Beach.

“It’s a new game tomorrow since some guys lost enough time to be let go into a breakaway,” said Weltz. “So it will be tough for anyone to control and we will need to be on our game.”