May 9/15 17:00 pm - Amgen Tour of California Women Stage 2 results and report

Posted by Editoress on 05/9/15
 

Leah Kirchmann took an emphatic win on Saturday in Stage Two of the inaugural Tour of California Women's Race. The second stage, held in South Lake Tahoe, consisted of two laps of a 25 mile circuit and and a final uphill pitch to the finish line outside Heavenly Mountain Resort, with a grade reaching 18%.

"I think the team had a lot more confidence in my chances on such a tough finish than I had in myself," said Kirchmann.  "I knew that if I could just stay in contact with the front group over that first steep pitch, that I would have a few seconds to recover and could put in a good sprint to the line. I honestly spent most of the race working up my confidence to tackle that final climb. I definitely surprised myself with the win here today!"

McCarty was less surprised, and knew the Canadian champion had the ability to pull off a win at the prestigious race.

"Leah and Lex Albrecht were the go-to finishers today. I knew they would both have to be on good days, and have some luck with positioning at the bottom of the climb to win, but I knew one of them could win," said McCarty. "For a strong sprinter like Leah, the effort had to be timed perfectly. She did just that today, and delivered a fantastic sprint. Lex was also there on the climb, ready to jump in case Kirchmann ran out of steam. It was a great 1-2 punch."

After barely managing to stay with the leaders over the steepest pitch, Kirchmann managed to recover in the final 500m and launch her blistering sprint. Albrecht came home in eighth.

"My legs felt surprisingly good today, I found myself sitting pretty comfortably at the front of the pack on all the major climbs. I think my body is well adapted to the altitude after coming to this race straight from the Tour of the Gila. I was able to conserve a lot of energy throughout the stage thanks to my teammates, they did a great job covering attacks and helping me position myself for the key moments in the race."

"It felt incredible to be on the top step of the podium today! The Tour of California is the most prestigious American race, so it means a lot for them to step up their support for women's cycling with four internationally sanctioned days of racing this year. South Lake Tahoe is a stunning race venue, and the crowds here are enthusiastic and welcoming. I'm looking forward to battling for the overall GC in the streets of Sacramento tomorrow!"

The ten second bonus for the win and subsequent time gap on the line moved Kirchmann into fourth overall, twelve seconds behind race leader Lauren Komanski. The stage win also garnered her the points necessary to don the Visit California Sprint Leader's Jersey, with one stage of racing remaining. With their visit to beautiful Lake Tahoe complete, the women now descend into Sacramento, passing the Tour's torch to the men's peloton after a circuit race around the state capital.

Couresy Optum p/b Kelly Benefit Strategies

Results from the second stage in California

Previous Stages
Stage 1