On Tap at AToC: Stage 7 – A break at the Rose Bowl?
Photo: Casey B. Gibson
With just two days left in the nine-day Amgen Tour of California, only six of the 17 teams have won a stage. That means that 11 others are still eager to taste victory, especially those teams that have major American sponsors. Top of this list of teams is Rabobank, followed by Liquigas and Quick Step.
Although Rabobank is based in the Netherlands, it’s a worldwide corporation that has a presence in California as a community bank, even with a branch in Solvang, where Friday’s time trial was held. It is also a founding partner of the California race, and is sponsoring the Best Young Rider jersey — that just happens be the property of its team leader Robert Gesink this week.
What’s more, Giant bicycles is one of Rabobank’s newest sponsors, and the Dutch team is the only non-American formation that has a custom-painted bus at the Tour of California. Astana, for instance, has a rented bus with Astana stickers affixed.
Using the highly scientific method of arguing over drinks, the VeloNews editorial team assembled the following predictions for the stage podium:
1. Peter Weening (Rabobank). WHY: He’s on one of the teams that most wants a stage win; he’s a former Tour de France stage winner; he was in a long break a couple days ago, but came up short; and he’s on good form.
2. Carlos Barredo (Quick Step). WHY: As with Weening, this Spanish workhorse has been aggressive this week, and he almost pulled off the stage win at Santa Cruz — but was overhauled by an express named Leipheimer.
3. Brian Vandborg (Liquigas). WHY: This is the team’s last chance to get in a breakaway, because none of the Liquigas riders is likely to survive Palomar Mountain on Sunday.
The VeloNews team correctly picked Levi Leipheimer to win stage 6 in Solvang ahead of Dave Zabriskie in second. Our celebrity stage podium picker of the day Sean Petty, the Chief Operating Officer of USA Cycling, also named Leipheimer but in second place; so the day’s score* was: VeloNews 6, Petty 1.
*Using our tried-and-true scoring system from the Tour de France, where you get 1 point for the right name in the wrong podium spot, and 3 points for the right name in the right spot.
As for the other two European teams, Liquigas has Cannondale as its bike sponsor, while Specialized is the main industry sponsor of Quick Step. Liquigas, Quick Step and Rabobank all want to win a stage to reward their American sponsors, so look for their riders this weekend to figure in the breakaways.
The U.S. factor is perhaps the strongest with Liquigas since Friday, when team leader Ivan Basso dropped out of the race when he injured a knee in a freak accident while warming up for the time trial. Its current top man, Brian Vandborg of Denmark, is almost 30 minutes behind race leader Levi Leipheimer on GC.
Stage 7 from Santa Clarita to Pasadena, which is due to finish around 3 p.m. local time next to the Rose Bowl, opens with almost 38 miles of uphill work to the Millcreek Summit at almost 5,000 feet elevation, before descending about 28 miles through the Angeles National Forest to Pasadena. It ends with five laps of a hilly 4.7-mile circuit around the Rose Bowl.
The weather is sunny and in the 70s in Pasadena, and a little cooler on the mountain — which only has a Cat. 3 designation. The same stage last year, held in wind and rain, saw George Hincapie win out of a small breakaway group that emerged in the hills. It’s possible that the peloton will regroup for a field sprint, but with so many teams seeking a win, a break looks more likely. So look for the orange jerseys of Rabobank, the lime green of Liquigas and the blue-and-white of Quick Step.
In addition to following our live text coverage of stage 7 as it unfolds, and results and stories afterward, be sure to check out our new video show, VeloCenter, for analysis, highlights and tech features from each day’s stage.
Filed under : Road
Read more about : Amgen Tour of California