May 15/14 21:56 pm - Tour of California: Stage 5 report and results

Posted by Editoress on 05/15/14
 

On Stage 5, from Pismo Beach to Santa Barbara, Will Routley (Optum p/b Kelly Benefit Strategies) all but secured the Michelob Ultra King of the Mountains classification in the Tour of California, with three stages to go. Will accomplished this with a combination of focus, grit and superb form. The field at this year's TOC contains many international climbing notables, which accentuates the magnitude of Will's accomplishment this week.  In the past, Will has won the Canadian Championship road race and placed second in the Tro Bro Leon race in Europe.

I caught up with Will at the end of Stage 5 in Santa Barbara. Will said that he made the decision to focus on winning the KOM classification a few days before the TOC began. He described this as his "mission" on the team. He certainly delivered and he capped it off with a stage win yesterday, in the process.

Will calls Whistler, BC home. His parents, originally from Ontario, moved to Whistler to follow their passion for skiing. Will has described long solitary training rides in the area which in the early season are often wet and cold. Today, Will said that, "if he is not in the best form of his career then he is pretty darn close". If you are ever a bit down during a 5 hour solo training ride in bad weather you might thing of Will out alone on the roads around Whistler and how it has translated into glory for him.

Will is a thoughtful, well-spoken and polite gentleman. Today and yesterday, when he sprinted away from the bunch to win successive KOM's and yesterday's overall stage win he also displayed great timing and a killer instinct.

Chapeau Will!

Some other comments from the finish area, today:
Overall GC leader Sir Bradley Wiggins (Team Sky) said that today was the hottest day that he has ever experienced on a bike. In the inland area, he said that it was "like an oven" with temperatures of 42 degrees.

Today's stage winner Taylor Phinney (BMC) said that going downhill is the only time he has an advantage in cycling and he showed that today. He held off Peter Sagan's Cannondale team who were unable to close the gap on Taylor on the run-in to Santa Barbara. Sagan won the bunch sprint, showing that he had the sprinting legs.

Taylor said that Bradley Wiggins is very strong and could probably win the Tour of California riding alone on the front. He also said that Team Sky is very strong and that the stages at TOC are not long enough or hard enough to crack the Team or Bradley.

Bill Buckley in Santa Barbara - exclusive to Canadian Cyclist

Results from the fifth stage in California