Stage 5

There have been many firsts from this weekend….

It’s the first time we’ve all ridden with Rich Davis (personal accounts will come with personal requests)…

It’s the first time Workman has ridden in a Pro 1 field – congrats Dan!

It’s the first time I’ve (Ian) felt humbled in cycling by team members who have done everything to set me up for success…

And of course it was Andy’s first fine in the caravan… Thanks for the pacing Clark!

Following from the humbling feeling riding with these guys and as the most important first – on the eve of the last stage – has been the complete evolution of a team dynamic catalyzed by veterans Cole (Brad) and Spoti (Paul), as they lead five Legacy riders to the base of the final climb today, ready to take on what was left of the peloton by storm.

Now, as you’ve likely read from the rest of this weekend, this fifth stage did not play out exactly the way we had hoped; this was not a first…

The race was aggressive from the gun and having planned for this we too prepared on being aggressive. As the initial climb kicked up we were present at the front, feverishly attacking. Phil took a flier, Brad took two more and then Rolf, Jarred and I each took one, if not two. This takes us most of the way up the first climb, redlined and realizing that only about 70 of the starting 135 were left. So we hit the KOM and began descending, five Legacy boys left.

Just after the descent more attacks emanated from the pack and a group of eight got away. With no Legacy riders in it and Andy on the radio clamoring about the need to be aggressive and to “bridge that gap,” Jarred took a flier and quickly put 60 seconds on the peloton. For miles he worked with a USA national team member to bridge and then, just 30 seconds from the break, he fell back when his co-chaser took off up a rise… with too many matches previously burnt he came back to the bunch.

As the day evolved so did the team play, as Cole and Spoti took multiple trips back to the car for bottles and then, as the climb drew near, aggressively got Jarred, Rolf and I to the front. The climb kicked up and so did the pace. Now here’s a personal account of what followed…

Sitting in the top ten, I road the first 1k of the climb with the front riders and then just didn’t have it. Falling back I was quickly met by a push and Rolf urging me to get on. Again, another dig and then, popped again, sent to the third group on the climb. After working all day, Spoti was in the next group back and Berger, matches spent, was just behind him. Finishing in that order, Cole came across, hopefully knowing that all his hard work did, in the end, pay off.

We’re excited about tomorrow, so please check back soon… oh and as far as firsts go, this is my first ever blog, I hope it conveyed our experience…