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June 7/11 8:38 am - Mt Hood Classic: Women's Stage 3, 4 and Final GC


Posted by Editoress on 06/7/11
 

Armstrong wins, Huges 2nd overall, Shaw 4th

 

After four days of racing around the Columbia River Gorge and surrounding mountains, the dual between Olympians Kristin Armstrong and Clara Hughes came down to the last 500 meters of the 2011 Mt. Hood Cycling Classic.

The two riders started the stage tied in the overall competition, both 13 seconds behind Armstrong’s Peanut Butter & Co. Twenty-12 teammate Alison Starnes. But Sunday’s “queen” stage Three Summits Road Race on the flanks of Mt. Hood was a truly epic climbing and descending bonanza that eventually separated Armstrong and Hughes from the rest of the field by several minutes.

Metromint’s Molly Van Houweling and Keller Rohrback’s Tricia Bailey started the fireworks early with a breakaway that eventually gained 2:40 on the quickly disintegrating field. But by the time the race had reached the top of the third Summit Armstrong and Hughes had swallowed up the riders in front and were on their own.

Armstrong held a better hand and exploited the advantage of having Starnes in the leader’s jersey and teammate Kristin McGrath chasing behind. She made Hughes (Pactimo Cycling Team) do all the work on the front as the pair headed toward the finish at Cooper Spur Ski Area. Hughes said she understood and respected Armstrong’s tactics.

“She’s experienced, and she’s an awesome racer, there’s no way she’s going to pull with me,” Hughes realized as the two got away and built a workable advantage. “I respect that, and so I essentially gave her a 50 km leadout to the finish. I thought that if I sat up, then Kristin McGrath would catch us and it would be really frustrating.”

Hughes did gain a slight advantage over Armstrong as the pair descended through the twisting one-lane forest service roads and onto the valley floor about 20 km from the finish. But Armstrong regained contact and continued to follow Hughes, attacking in the last 500 meters of the steeply pitched mostly gravel road leading to the finish in the ski area’s parking lot. Armstrong said she considered attacking earlier but thought better of it.

“She’s just so strong right now,” she said of Hughes. I didn’t kid myself and pretend that I’m going to make five attacks on her and try to ride away. When you want to give 110 percent, you want to put everything in one basket, because you don’t want to do five efforts at 90 percent. So I knew that whole time I’d just sit on her and be patient. I had ridden the finishing climb before the race, and normally I don’t like top wait until the end, but I knew it was steep and it was dirt. And I like the dirt, and I like steepness.”

Armstrong had plenty of time to think about the plan as the pair rode to the finish. But her well-thought-out plan almost came to an end in some of the dusty gravel approaching the end.

“I got in the soft dirt and thought I was going to bite it,” Armstrong said. “(Hughes) told me later she thought I was going to go down, too.”

But she didn’t. Instead she gained 16 seconds on her Canadian rival at the finish. Starnes came in more than eight minutes later for sixth on the day, ceding the overall win to her team captain and second to Hughes.

McGrath crossed the line 2:55 after Armstrong. Rhae Shaw (Keller Rohrback) finished fourth, 3:57 back. Alisa Welsh (Peanut Butter & Co.-Twenty 12) was fifth at 7:31. The top five in GC mirrored the day’s results, with exception of Starnes hanging on for fifth place in front of Pactimo’s Jade Wilcoxson.
Courtesy Mt. Hood Cycling Classic

 

Stage 3 (June 4th): Hood River Criterium, 31.5 km
1 Kaitie Antonneau (Peanut Butter & Co. Twenty 12) 0:39:03
2 Jade Wilcoxson (Pactimo Cycling Team)
3 Pepper Harlton (Juventus)
4 Tricia Bailey (Keller Rohrback Cycling Team)
5 Katy Curtis (CMC/Bow Cycle) all s.t.
6 Clara Hughes (Pactimo Cycling Team) 1:34
7 Melissa Barker (New Hope/GS Boulder/Trek)
8 Kristen Armstrong (Peanut Butter & Co. Twenty 12)
9 Karlee Gendron (Trek Red Truck Racing pb Mosaic Homes)
10 Rebecca Rising (Metromint Cycling)
11 Alison Starnes (Peanut Butter & Co. Twenty 12)
12 Rhae Shaw (Keller Rohrback Cycling Team)
13 Kristin Mcgrath (Peanut Butter & Co. Twenty 12)
14 Ashley Koch (TriSports Cycling / Eclipse Racing)
15 Molly S. Van Houweling (Metromint Cycling)
16 Anne Fulton (Metromint Cycling)
17 Alice Pennington (Upper Echelon Fitness)
18 Alisha Welsh (Peanut Butter & Co. Twenty 12)
19 Mindy Simmons (Ind)
20 Brianna Walle (Ironclad Performance Wear Cycling)
21 Jane Robertson (Metromint Cycling)
22 Anna Christiansen (Ironclad Performance Wear Cycling)
23 Jennie Phillips (Wells Fargo Racing Team)
24 Kristine Brynjolfson (Trek Red Truck Racing p/b Mosaic Homes)
25 Anne Davis Usher (Upper Echelon Fitness) all s.t.
26 Cathy Varland (Keller Rohrback Cycling Team) 1:41
27 Melanie Wong (New Hope/GS Boulder/Trek)
28 Elizabeth Newell (Metromint Cycling)
29 Kelly Crowley (Metromint Cycling)
30 Lindsay Fox (Athletes Lounge) all s.t.
31 Jessica Cutler (Keller Rohrback Cycling Team) 1:45
32 Joy Duerksen (Pactimo Cycling Team)
33 Giana Roberge (Peanut Butter & Co. Twenty 12) both s.t.
34 Nik Vogler (Westwood/Cannondale p/b Vision-Sports) 2:18
35 Amy Frykman (GAS/Intrinsik)
36 Lisa Turnbull (REP Gym/Riverstone) both s.t.
37 Hilary Billington (Pactimo Cycling Team) 3:16
38 Natalie Koch (New Hope/GS Boulder/Trek) 3:35
39 Anona Whitley (Ironclad Performance Wear Cycling)
40 Sara Fletcher (Therapuetic Associates & Sagebrush Cycles)
41 Jennifer Schulz (Balance Point/Fresh Air Concept) 4:20
42 Jennifer Burtner (Olympia Orthopaedic Associates) 4:53
43 Lina Martensson (Metromint Cycling) 7:49
DNF Tayler Wiles (Peanut Butter & Co. Twenty 12)
DNF Rosalyn Rombauer (Keller Rohrback Cycling Team)
DNF Carrie Eller (Gregg's Trek Racing)
DNF Patricia Dowd (Team Rep)
DNF Jennifer Wheeler (TIBCO/To the Top)
 
Stage 4 (June 5th): Three Summits Road Race, 112.15 km
1 Kristen Armstrong (Peanut Butter & Co. Twenty 12) 3:42:12
2 Clara Hughes (Pactimo Cycling Team) at 0:16
3 Kristin Mcgrath (Peanut Butter & Co. Twenty 12) 2:55
4 Rhae Shaw (Keller Rohrback Cycling Team) 3:57
5 Alisha Welsh (Peanut Butter & Co. Twenty 12) 7:31
6 Alison Starnes (Peanut Butter & Co. Twenty 12) 8:33
7 Ashley Koch (TriSports Cycling / Eclipse Racing) 9:10
8 Jade Wilcoxson (Pactimo Cycling Team) 10:32
9 Elizabeth Newell (Metromint Cycling) 11:40
10 Molly S. Van Houweling (Metromint Cycling) s.t.
11 Kristine Brynjolfson (Trek Red Truck Racing p/b Mosaic Homes) 11:55
12 Nik Vogler (Westwood/Cannondale p/b Vision-Sports) 14:10
13 Hilary Billington (Pactimo Cycling Team) 15:55
14 Tricia Bailey (Keller Rohrback Cycling Team) 16:51
15 Kaitie Antonneau (Peanut Butter & Co. Twenty 12) s.t.
16 Jane Robertson (Metromint Cycling) 16:55
17 Rebecca Rising (Metromint Cycling) 17:02
18 Mindy Simmons (Ind) 17:10
19 Anona Whitley (Ironclad Performance Wear Cycling) 17:38
20 Alice Pennington (Upper Echelon Fitness) 18:22
21 Anna Christiansen (Ironclad Performance Wear Cycling) 18:24
22 Lindsay Fox (Athletes Lounge) 19:10
23 Katy Curtis (CMC/Bow Cycle) 20:27
24 Pepper Harlton (Juventus) s.t.
25 Melanie Wong (New Hope/GS Boulder/Trek) 20:38
26 Joy Duerksen (Pactimo Cycling Team) 24:19
27 Brianna Walle (Ironclad Performance Wear Cycling) 24:26
28 Kelly Crowley (Metromint Cycling) 25:24
29 Melissa Barker (New Hope/GS Boulder/Trek) 29:14
30 Sara Fletcher (Therapuetic Associates & Sagebrush Cycles) 30:17
31 Jennie Phillips (Wells Fargo Racing Team) 30:34
32 Jennifer Schulz (Balance Point/Fresh Air Concept) 32:53
33 Cathy Varland (Keller Rohrback Cycling Team) 33:41
34 Natalie Koch (New Hope/GS Boulder/Trek) 41:21
DNF Giana Roberge (Peanut Butter & Co. Twenty 12)
DNF Anne Fulton (Metromint Cycling)
DNF Lina Martensson (Metromint Cycling)
DNF Karlee Gendron (Trek Red Truck Racing pb Mosaic Homes)
DNF Anne Davis Usher (Upper Echelon Fitness)
DNF Amy Frykman (GAS/Intrinsik)
DNF Lisa Turnbull (REP Gym/Riverstone)
DNS Jessica Cutler (Keller Rohrback Cycling Team)
DNS Jennifer Burtner (Olympia Orthopaedic Associates)
 
Final GC
1 Kristen Armstrong (Peanut Butter & Co. Twenty 12) 7:29:39
2 Clara Hughes (Pactimo Cycling Team) at 0:20
3 Kristin Mcgrath (Peanut Butter & Co. Twenty 12) 5:25
4 Rhae Shaw (Keller Rohrback Cycling Team) 5:30
5 Alison Starnes (Peanut Butter & Co. Twenty 12) 8:30
6 Jade Wilcoxson (Pactimo Cycling Team) 12:24
7 Alisha Welsh (Peanut Butter & Co. Twenty 12) 14:51
8 Ashley Koch (TriSports Cycling / Eclipse Racing) 16:00
9 Molly S. Van Houweling (Metromint Cycling) 17:43
10 Kristine Brynjolfson (Trek Red Truck Racing p/b Mosaic Homes) 19:06
11 Elizabeth Newell (Metromint Cycling) 21:57
12 Nik Vogler (Westwood/Cannondale p/b Vision-Sports) 25:29
13 Kaitie Antonneau (Peanut Butter & Co. Twenty 12) 25:46
14 Jane Robertson (Metromint Cycling) 26:37
15 Anna Christiansen (Ironclad Performance Wear Cycling) 26:59
16 Alice Pennington (Upper Echelon Fitness) 27:13
17 Hilary Billington (Pactimo Cycling Team) 28:59
18 Mindy Simmons (Ind) 29:20
19 Rebecca Rising (Metromint Cycling) 29:29
20 Tricia Bailey (Keller Rohrback Cycling Team) 29:33
21 Pepper Harlton (Juventus) 29:51
22 Lindsay Fox (Athletes Lounge) 33:08
23 Kelly Crowley (Metromint Cycling) 33:27
24 Anona Whitley (Ironclad Performance Wear Cycling) 34:12
25 Brianna Walle (Ironclad Performance Wear Cycling) 35:08
26 Melanie Wong (New Hope/GS Boulder/Trek) 35:34
27 Melissa Barker (New Hope/GS Boulder/Trek) 41:38
28 Katy Curtis (CMC/Bow Cycle) 44:16
29 Joy Duerksen (Pactimo Cycling Team) s.t.
30 Cathy Varland (Keller Rohrback Cycling Team) 50:50
31 Sara Fletcher (Therapuetic Associates & Sagebrush Cycles) 57:59
32 Jennifer Schulz (Balance Point/Fresh Air Concept) 1.02:43
33 Natalie Koch (New Hope/GS Boulder/Trek) 1.03:33
34 Jennie Phillips (Wells Fargo Racing Team) 1.03:37

 

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