Travis McCabe (Holowesko) made it four in a row for the continental teams at the Tour of Utah when he emerged as the strongest in the bunch sprint on stage 4 of the American race. Having positioned himself well in the chaotic finale, he turned out to be much faster than anyone else, easily holding off Kiel Reijnen (Trek) and Sebastian Haedo (Jamis) to take the second stage win for his Holowesko team. Lachlan Morton (Jelly Belly) finished safely in the peloton and so retained the overall lead.

 

We have gathered a few reactions.

 

Focus on sprints pays off former lead-out man Travis McCabe

“We just waited patiently. It was a pretty hectic finish coming into the final at 70-kilometers an hour, and it was a pretty choppy wind. It was pretty much a patience game. I stayed in good position, but not too (far) forward,” said McCabe, who finished third on Stage 2 presented by America First Credit Union on Tuesday. 

 

It is the second stage win for the Holowesko l Citadel team, as teammate Robin Carpenter (USA) won Stage 2 in Torrey. “This past week has been great for us. The Stage 2 third place was a validation that I had the legs. I was pretty confident coming into the last 500 meters.”

 

"I think the stage 2 third place was kind of validation that I have the legs and the speed right now that I can jump and hold it," McCabe said. "I was pretty confident coming into the last 500 metres. There are a lot of strong sprinters here and we weren't sure how it was going to play out. You've got Sebastian Haedo and Kiel. Eric Young is always just a huge threat. So to win like this is the biggest one so far.

 

"Coming into today our plan was to continue to put someone in the break, and we were able to get Joe Lewis in there right away. Putting him in there took the pressure off us to have to chase, and there were enough teams that wanted a sprint finish that we could sit back. Trek did a lot of work. Silber was up there. Rally was up there. We just kind of sat back, stayed out of everyone's way and tried to save it for the end."

When the peloton brought back the breakaway survivors just as they started the final three finishing circuits, Carpenter jumped into a move that further allowed the Holowesko riders to wait until the last possible moment to assert themselves.

 

"Robin was feeling really good so he said he'd give it a go at the end too if something rolled off the front. So the last three laps when we came to the circuits a group went and Robin was there, so again that took the pressure off of us, and we just waited patiently.

 

"It was a pretty hectic finish with that downhill. We were coming into that at 70km/h with a pretty choppy left-hand turn. The road was pretty beat up so it was just kind of a patience game and staying in good position, not too far forward.

 

"I think I jumped at 250 metres or thereabouts and was able to hold it. It was great. It was really good.

 

"Last year Team SmartStop came into it with Jure [Kocjan], who is also a great sprinter So a lot of the time I was working for him, making sure we could keep him up front and have him sprinting. I went for more of a leadout roll and transitioned over here where I could win.

 

"[Holowesko director Thomas] Craven saw that I had the speed and potential to do it, and instead of focusing on losing weight and trying to make it over the climbs, which I did last year, this year was focusing on the sprint.

 

"The team last year was awesome too. The abrupt stop was just from poor management and a few dishonest people. Making it over to the Holowesko team was one of the best moves I could have made.

 

"We have a lot of fun on the team. "We're a team that will ride and die for each other, so it's not just one person that's getting all the success. I've been on the podium a lot, but so has Robin and Joe, and all the guys just really get behind us.

 

"Once the race s over we're really a family. So when we finish a race everyone is having fun. We're not stressing each other out. We're not arguing with each other ever. That's the secret to our success: we just have a really good time racing our bikes, and we come out and we want to win everyday." 

 

Kiel Reijnen: Today wasn’t a goal, tomorrow is

Stage four of the Tour of Utah offered Kiel Reijnen's first stab at contesting a sprint finish after a late mishap in stage one and breakaways in stage two and three foiled other chances, and Reijnen made good on the opportunity with second place behind winner Travis McCabe (Holowesko-Citadel).

 

"It has been awesome this week to have the team behind me so much; it's really an honor," said Reijnen. "We were fully committed to the sprint, and the guys worked hard again to chase all day long in the wind and with this heat.

 

"Then Pete (Stetina) went with a late move on the circuits which was great so we didn't have to work, and after I had followed Eugenio (Alafaci) for the sprint, and he was super. But only having one guy as a lead-out train is difficult for him to make it the full distance, and there was some cat-n-mouse in the final meters. I played my cards as best I had, but today Travis was quicker, and we had to settle for second place."

 

 The 191.8-kilometer fourth stage presented the flattest parcours of the weeklong race and best chance for sprinters. The eight-man breakaway that escaped was held on a tight rein with stagiaire Jacopo Mosca doing a lion's share of the work for Trek-Segafredo in the chase.

 

With the last of the escapees caught and all the late aggressive moves on the final local circuits tagged back, Alafaci slotted onto the front to bring Reijnen as close to the line as possible, but at 350 meters he had no more. It was too early for Reijnen to jump, so he pulled back and waited. When Reijnen did unleash his sprint, he passed all but McCabe.

 

"If you saw the sprint we did in Torrey, Travis was quicker than I was, so I think to beat him today I had to come from behind. I tried to play that card and he didn't take the bait, so definitely a deserved win.

 

 "I am reasonably happy with my sprint, and it's always good to be on the podium, but when the guys work hard for you, it's disappointing not to win," continued Reijnen. "I definitely came here stage hunting and haven't pulled that off yet.

 

"I guess it was a little bit tragic ending: I didn't get the stage win, and lost the points jersey, and the fan favorites all to one guy! What are you going to do?" said Reijnen, smiling. "But my form feels good; I have been focusing on climbing more for this race and that usually takes something away from your sprint. I think yesterday was one of the better climbs I have ever had, and I was really motivated to try and win the stage. In a straight up bunch kick I am usually never the favorite, but at altitude and with all the climbing, I have a better chance. Today was never one of the stages that I earmarked, but tomorrow is - we have another shot."

 

Matthew Busche on the attack in Utah

The UnitedHealthcare Pro Cycling Team showed great depth and power across the entire 4th stage of the 2016 Tour of Utah on Thursday. Former US national champion Matthew Busche raced into the breakaway of the day, allowing his teammates to sit in and save energy as they planned for attacks later on. When the 95.7-mile stage began to heat up and enter the finishing circuits in Kearns, Busche attacked ferociously, gaining a small gap immediately. The effort showed promise but was unsuccessful with an entire field of sprinters and lead out trains chasing the rider down. As the last breakaway rider standing, Busche was awarded the most aggressive rider jersey for the attempt.

 

With Busche back in the bunch, the UnitedHealthcare Blue Train began to organize for the sprint. Marco Canola would be the designated sprinter for the day, but the team still had cards to play in Tanner Putt and Janez Brajkovič. The combination of high desert heat and crosswinds after an already challenging stage made it difficult for any one team to take control of the race, allowing relentless attacks to fly off the front. At one point, Janez Brajkovič and Tanner Putt attacked in a group of ten that showed potential to stay away.

 

Ultimately, the peloton regained contact and sprints began to fly. Chris Jones led Marco Canola out for 4th place in the final sprint down the left side of the road, while Daniel Jaramillo tried his luck following wheels on the right, coming across the line with an impressive 7th place position for the climber. Sporting director Mike Tamayo was calling the shots from the team car and commented,

 

“Overall we had a great day of racing, we wanted to shine today for our sponsors and the riders did that by animating the race at every point and showing outstanding teamwork.”

 

 

The team has been firing on all cylinders and moving through the 7-stage race with great momentum, earning top-10 finishes on each stage. With a breakaway far up the road early into stage 3, Utah native and determined all-rounder Tanner Putt went to the front of the peloton to drive the pace along with the Cannondale-Drapac Team. The goal of this effort was to keep the breakaway advantage manageable as the final climb neared, so that the UnitedHealthcare Pro Cycling Team climbers and GC threats would be in good position as the road tilted up. Putt helped lead the peloton from kilometer 60 until the base of the climb, where Daniel Eaton and Chris Jones joined the effort in setting the pace up Mt. Nebo. As the road climbed up, a crash in the field caused chaos, mechanicals, and injuries. The UnitedHealthcare Pro Cycling squad was unaffected by the crash, but an unfortunate mechanical event rendered Janez Brajkovič’s bike temporarily immobile while the support staff rushed to his aid. Brajkovič was able to chase back on the lead group, but an elite selection of general classification riders had gone up the road for the stage finish. Brajkovič and Jonny Clarke finished strong to limit losses, with Clarke coming across the line in 10th and Brajkovič in 12th. The riders showed outstanding cohesiveness and teamwork throughout the brutally hot stage, setting a strong tone for the remaining days of racing.

 

On Tuesday's stage 2, Italian sprinter Marco Canola claimed 7th in the field sprint after a breakaway group of 2 riders managed to escape the peloton. With 3 stages now left in the 2016 Tour of Utah, expect the UnitedHealthcare Pro Cycling Team to keep attacking, working together, and creating opportunities across the vast Utah landscape. 

 

"The field wasn't going to give us much leash to go anywhere," said Busche, who won the prize for most aggressive rider on the day. "I think the sprinters wanted their day today. But we saw on stage 2 that even two guys could stay away, so it was kind of a potentially a fruitless venture, but you don't know if you don't try."

 

Axeon sprinter confirms his potential in Utah

Axeon Hagens Berman Cycling Team's Colin Joyce finished sixth to notch his third top 10 finish at the Larry H. Miller Tour of Utah Thursday while teammate Adrien Costa remained second overall, seven seconds off the lead.

Joyce was runner-up on Monday's opening stage and placed ninth on Tuesday. Thursday's stage winner was Travis McCabe, who delivered the Holowesko-Citadel presented by Hincapie Sportswear its second win in three days. Kiel Reijnen (Trek-Segafredo) was second and Sebastian Haedo (Team Jamis) was third.

Joyce said he wanted to wait as long as possible to launch his sprint - like he did on Monday - since the last 600 meters were directly into the teeth of a headwind.

"I was originally trying to be in good position, then wait as long as possible to start sprinting all out," he said. "Unfortunately, I found myself first wheel with 500 meters to go and I wasn't attentive enough to jump back in the group. I lost too many places there."

Costa finished 29th and in the same time as the stage winner as Lachlan Morton (Jelly Belly presented by Maxxis) became the first rider to keep the lead for consecutive days. Andrew Talansky (Cannondale-Drapac Pro Cycling) is third, nine seconds back of Morton.

Costa, the youngest rider in the race at age 18, also remains the leader of two jersey classifications: best young rider and king of the mountains. 

Axeon Hagens Berman's Eddie Dunbar was part of an eight-man breakaway that slipped the pack about 20 kilometers into the 154-kilometer race and survived until the first of three circuits in the finish city of Kearns.

The Irish Under 23 national time trial champion said it was not originally his intention to be part of the day's escape.

"I was just on the right wheel at the right time," Dunbar said. "I noticed that all the other American continental teams were represented. I thought it would be good to have someone in there for our sponsors. Near the end, the coordination between the riders wasn't that great."

Friday's Stage 5 is a virtual repeat of last year's Stage 3, which Axeon Hagens Berman's Logan Owen won in a bunch sprint finish. The winner of the Under 23 edition of Liège-Bastogne-Liège earlier this year, Owen said he is feeling good after a challenging day Wednesday.

"Today, I think everybody was a little bit tired from the climbs yesterday," Owen said. "I wasn't amazing today, but my legs weren't terrible. I am sure I will be feeling good tomorrow."

 

Disappointed Rick Zabel: Tomorrow is another chance

BMC Racing Team continued their run of top ten finishes at the Larry H. Miller Tour of Utah with Rick Zabel sprinting to ninth place on Stage 4 behind today's winner, (Holowesko | Citadel p/b Hincapie Sportswear).

 

No sooner had the race come back together than attacks went off the front of the main bunch including a breakaway move from Joey Rosskopf alongside 12 other riders as well as a solo attack from Dylan Teuns in the final 2.5 kilometers.

 

The pace was fast behind them and eventually with no team able to set up a clear lead out train, the race headed for a hectic sprint finish to the line.

 

There was no change at the top of the General Classification after today's stage with Rosskopf, Darwin Atapuma and Taylor Eisenhart maintaining their positions in the top ten behind race leader, Lachlan Morton (Jelly Belly p/b Maxxis)

 

BMC Sports Director Jackson Stewart said:

 

"In the final today, the race broke up quite a bit and there were a couple of dangerous attacks. Joey was in one of them and put in a solid effort and then Dylan did a really impressive attack but that was chased down just in time for the sprint. There was a bit of a downhill corner into the sprint and then with a slight uphill to the line it ended up being quite a messy finish today. Nobody, including ourselves, were totally organised and we were a little bit spent from our earlier attacks. We did the best we could to help Rick and he was able to crack the top ten but it’s just unfortunate as Rick is looking really strong and is definitely capable of winning a stage.”

 

Rick Zabel said:

 

“I’m a bit disappointed with ninth place today to be honest. It was definitely a sprint for the win. I went into the final corner in a good position and was in 12th with 1 kilometer to go into the headwind. [Tom] Bohli helped me as much as he could and I wanted to wait behind him for as long as possible. It actually worked out quite well as I was in about second place when I started my sprint but with the headwind and the uphill it was just too early and the legs faded a little bit.

 

“It’s obviously nice to be up there and I have had good results so far at this race but as a team we always want to win, that’s why we race. Tomorrow is another chance and I am feeling good. We have a strong team here who are all capable of doing something good.”

 

Cannondale stagiaire gets his chance in Utah

The Tour of Utah stage four played out on wide open roads under the hot sun between IM Flash and Kearns. With Andrew Talansky sitting in third overall, the main purpose of the day for Caondale was to keep him safe ahead of the weekend's decisive stages. Once on the finishing circuits, the team was active to help put stagiaire Jon Dibben in position for the sprint.

 

"We wanted to keep Andrew out of trouble, help him save some energy. We got to hang out in the wheels today with no stress. We tried to mix it up for Jon in the end, but he hit the wind a little early - but that's sprinting,” said Alex Howes

 

ONE on the attack in Utah

As the flag dropped it was another fast start with riders reaching speeds of up to 65 km/h. Hayden McCormick immediately animated the group surging off the front of the bunch with 3 other riders and quickly gaining 10 seconds but almost as quickly being swallowed up by the peloton.

 

Spotting another opportunity McCormick tried again, this time forcing a break with five other riders for support. Two chasers nipped off the bunch in a gutsy move and bridged across, strengthening the break and their chance of staying away.

 

As the peloton started to breathe down the necks of the leaders, the break became disorganised and started attacking each other. Splitting in two, the front four riders including Hayden McCormick opened up a small advantage as the others soft-pedalled back into the peloton. Not satisfied with the pace the others were setting McCormick launched a solo attack as the others struggled to catch his wheel. When they finally settled behind the Kiwi they opened up a gap of 45 seconds on the bunch.

 

Entering the circuit, the GC teams forced the pace and the leaders were finally reabsorbed into the bunch with 16km to go.

 

Heading onto the circuit and with the breakaway caught, the team were aiming to aiming to set up Dion Smith for the final sprint. However with 12km to go, a group of 13 riders escaped from the field, opening up a gap of 20 seconds. At this point ONE Pro Cycling went to the front of the peloton and chased the break down to keep Dion Smith into contention, bringing the field back together as they entered the finishing circuit.

 

Going into the final 6km lap, James Oram suffered a puncture and Hayden McCormick a mechanical leaving Dion Smith isolated as he entered the final few km. Picking his way through the bunch as they surged to the line, Smith crossed the line in 12th position.

 

Novo Nordisk survive another day in Utah

“The race started fast, but once the break went, things got a little easier,” Team Novo Nordisk’s Stephen Clancy said. “Due to the winds, you always had to be paying attention. Once the peloton decided to reel in the break, the pace skyrocketed. It all came down to the circuits. We all survived, were safe and are ready to race again tomorrow.”