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BMC’s Garcia takes lead at Giro del Friuli Venezia Giulia

by Neal Rogers

• May 10, 2007
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All-American squad wins TTT

By Neal Rogers

American continental road team BMC made history on Thursday when it won the team time trial at the May 9-13 Giro del Friuli Venezia Giulia in Italy. It was a round of firsts for the team — its first European race, its first European win, and, according to team consultant and USA Cycling president Jim Ochowicz, BMC was the first all-American squad to win a team time trial in Europe.

The win launched BMC’s Jonathan Garcia to the top of the general classification and landed Scott Nydam in second place overall. Both Garcia and Nydam were members of a 20-man breakaway during stage 1 that finished one minute ahead of the field. The TTT win also placed the BMC team first on the team classification.

The team time trial was the second stage held Tuesday; an early two-hour stage ended in a field sprint with no major changes on general classification.

“I spoke to Gavin Chilcott right after the race and he told me that our boys rode a near-flawless race,” said BMC team manager Charlie Livermore. “We didn’t know what to expect, given that this was our first ever TTT, so you can well imagine how pleased we are. It’s especially rewarding given that we have four neo-pros in the race. It’s a significant result for the BMC team and for USA Cycling.”

Of the five Americans riding in Italy, four — Garcia, Nydam, Ian McKissick and Ken Hanson — are first-year pros. Only Jackson Stewart has raced as a professional prior to this season, and only Stewart had experienced European racing prior to the Giro del Friuli Venezia Giulia.

“Things are coming together for us really fast,” Livermore said. “We’ve got some guys with big engines, and they’re learning how to use them. Not every American that goes to Europe races well there, but these guys are thriving with this kind of racing.”

Gavin Chilcott and former Phonak team director John Lelangue are directing the BMC squad. Lelangue is connected to the team through Swiss team sponsor Andy Rihs, owner of BMC Bicycles and Phonak Hearing Systems.

“John’s contribution to today’s strategy was pivotal,” Chilcott said. “His knowledge is invaluable.”

The race ends after a pair of climbing stages on Saturday and Sunday. Livermore said the team realizes it will be difficult to control the race, which has 37 teams sporting five-man rosters. Livermore said McKissick, who was seen catapulting over his bike and sliding across a sidewalk at the final of stage 2 of the Tour de Georgia, was probably the team’s best hope to land on the overall podium. A member of the 13-man breakaway that gained 30 minutes over the Tour de Georgia peloton, Nydam finished sixth overall in Georgia.

“We don’t know the climbs as well as these Italians and other Europeans,” Livermore said. “And we have some young guys that haven’t even raced bikes that long. But if we can come out of the race with a spot on the overall podium and the TTT win, we’ll be happy. It’s going to be hard to hold on, anything can happen. It’s going to be an attack-fest.”

Livermore said the performance was exactly what the team needed as it hopes to upgrade to continental professional in 2008. Asked about Lelangue’s future with the team, Livermore said at this point the team was just testing the waters in Europe, but with the move to continental pro next year, the team would likely need a European director, and Lelangue would be a perfect candidate.

“We’ll be expanding the staff, so we may bring John on to be the main DS,” Livermore said. “John picked the winner of the first stage, a Slovenian rider, and Gavin gives him a lot of credit for strategizing for the team time trial.

“McKissick, who was the elite national TT champ last year, was going so hard in front that John told him instead of riding the TT position, sit up on the hoods so the other guys can get a draft. It was good coaching, a good way to get the best out of all five guys. It’s pretty amazing, considering they had never even practiced the team time trial until they got to Italy.”

The Giro del Friuli Venezia Giulia is the only European race the BMC team has scheduled for this trip.