There were no real surprises during today’s final circuit race in downtown Atlanta. A breakaway that included Tom Danielson held about a one-minute gap on the peloton for most of the race.

The break was overtaken in the final 10 km circuit with all the team’s lining up for their shot at a final stage win. Tyler Farrar managed to finish the stage 6th and maintain his second place position in the overall sprint competition.

Trent Lowe (right) easily maintained his position as the 2008 Tour de Georgia Best Young Rider overall. This marks the second time Trent has earned that honor, having won it in 2005 when he was only 20-years-old. Trent also finished on the podium as second in the overall classification, while Christian Vande Velde finished seventh.

Stage 7 Results
1. Greg Henderson 2:23′53″

6. Tyler Farrar mt
22. Trent Lowe mt
34. Christian Vande Velde mt
48. Danny Pate mt
56. Tom Danielson mt
68. David Zabriskie mt
87. Lucas Euser +1′08″

Final General Classification
1. Kanstantin Sivtsov 22:44′44″
2. Trent Lowe +4″
7. Christian Vande Velde +1′32″
38. David Zabriskie +8′51″
43. Tom Danielson +11′35″
65. Danny Pate +24′56″
89. Tyler Farrar +39′05″
93. Lucas Euser +43′06″

Best Young Rider
1. Trent Lowe 22:44′48″
2. Christian Meier +3′40″

Sprint Classification
1. Greg Henderson 53 pts
2. Tyler Farrar 35 pts

First I have to explain something that you only really know if you have ridden Liege-Bastogne-Liege. By looking at the profile, you have the impression that all of climbing is in the last 100 km of the race. But no. This race is said to be one of the hardest races in the world. There was not really any flat all day. We counted 17 climbs on top of the 12 categorized ones that range from between 1 and 5 km long.

The plan was for Pat, David and Ryder to save their ammo for the final battle while the rest of us were to try and get in the break of the day. The ‘rest of us’ failed but that meant we were more useful to the other guys, fetching bidons and helping with position.

I was running on empty all day. No idea why. Just felt plain terrible all day. But as the races are so long, often you can start feeling bad and finish with race with winning legs. I kept telling myself this all day, and truth be told I did feel better . . . once I had hit the showers.

Liege is an insanely hard bike race but one that I already have a soft spot for, which is why I was so determined to finish. These races are won with experience and now I have one under my belt!

Tour de Georgia, Stage 3

That was one of those race days I’d just as soon forget. Which, fortunately, is turning out to be pretty easy to do. All I know is I woke up sometime that night in a strange bed wondering what the heck happened, where I was, and why I was so sore. Never a great sign, by the way.

Apparently I was in a nasty high speed crash that involved a descent and big crack in the road midway through the 3rd stage of Georgia. Either way, when I woke up, it was all news to me.

Then, in the last two days, I have had collarbone surgery, watched my team win the team time trial, and wear the yellow jersey…all from my hospital bed. It’s not been much fun, I can assure you. Especially when you add the fact that it will be pretty difficult in my current condition for me to start my biggest event of the season, the Giro d’Italia. That makes things feel even worse. But if I have learned anything from cycling, it’s that to enjoy the highs in sport and in life, you have to endure the low points as well.

I want to thank all my friends, family and fans for the tremendous outpouring of support following my crash. It really made me feel very good and happy to know that so many stand behind me and that I truly have some amazing people in my life. What a strange feeling it is to have gone through such a traumatic event and have no memory whatsoever of the events immediately preceding or after the crash. It’s like I have a 48-hour window of memory that has just disappeared.

I also want to assure everybody that I am healthy and will be back racing at 100% very soon and that there is nothing to worry about!

Thanks so much for your thoughts and prayers!

Timmy (pictured above during the first part of stage 3)

As DS Matt White predicted (see preview below), today’s race would not finish in a big group as it has in the past. Instead, a group of three battled it out for the win, while the main ‘peloton’ - fractured by almost 30 hills - finished in several small groups. Ryder Hesjedal was the first of the Argyle Armada to cross the finish line.

After the finish, Ryder said, “Today was extremely hard but unbelievably beautiful!! I still don’t know the final results, but I know I finished in a group about 4 minutes down.”

“I was able to stay in the front over La Redoute and the Sprimont. But the new climb, which was second to last, was the end of seeing the front for me,” Ryder continued. “The race, as expected, blew to bits there. And still, it was a fight till the end for all the pieces left in the race!”

Slipstream Results
1. Alejandro Valverde 6:44′04″

51. Ryder Hesjedal +4′09″
90. David Millar +8′11″
112. Pat McCarty +12′00″
117. Huub Duyn +14′24″
118. Dan Martin +17′11″
DNF Jason Donald
DNF Killian Patour
DNF Christophe Laurent

Liège-Bastogne-Liège preview from DS Matt White:

261 km…12 categorized climbs…17 un-categorized climbs

There is no other word except brutal to describe this great classic.

Friday, we completed the usual reconnaissance of the course which involved the last eight climbs, including a very challenging, brand new penultimate climb! The trend over the last couple of years has been to have big groups still intact late in the race.

But this year, not a chance!

We certainly aren’t going into this race as favourites. So the plan will be to move before the likes of Evans, Rebellin and Cunego do. Ryder, Dave and Pat have had a good week here, albeit some poor luck. But they are looking for a big hit out today, their last before the upcoming Giro. The rest of the boys will be fired up and looking for that early break.

Slipstream/Chipotle H30 worked hard at the front today (above: Zabriskie, Danielson, Vande Velde, Lowe) as they chased down the day’s main breakaway on the way to the decisive Brasstown Bald finish. They managed to position race leader Trent Lowe for the grand finale. Tenacious Trent hung close to challenger Levi Leipheimer on the slopes of the unrelenting and crowded ascent.

When the lesser known, but equally dangerous rival Kanstantin Sivtsov took off, neither of the favorites reacted. Unbeknownst to almost everyone covering the event, the Belarussian rider was only 6″ off of Trent in GC. His finish on Brasstown put him in the yellow race leader’s jersey.

Lowe did hang on to the Best Young Rider jersey and increased his lead on second place Christian Meier to 3′40″. Tyler Farrar remains second in the sprint classification and will look to move up tomorrow during the final circuit race through downtown Atlanta.

Stage 6 Results
1. Kanstantin Sivtsov 3:47′16″

2. Trent Lowe +10″
9. Christian Vande Velde +1′38″
47. David Zabriskie +8′57″
55. Tom Danielson +11′27″
77. Lucas Euser +21′43″
91. Tyler Farrar +22′16″
106. Danny Pate +24′03″

General Classification
1. Kanstantin Sivtsov 20:20′51″

2. Trent Lowe +4″
7. Christian Vande Velde +1′32″
40. David Zabriskie +8′51″
45. Tom Danielson +11′38″
72. Danny Pate +24′56″
95. Tyler Farrar +39′05″
99. Lucas Euser +41′58″

Best Young Rider
1. Trent Lowe 20:20′55″
2. Christian Meier +3′40″

Sprint Classification
1. Greg Henderson 38 pts
2. Tyler Farrar 30 pts

We just got back from the team presentation here which meant standing on a stage and waving at the crowd while an “interesting” choice of music played. YMCA in our case…I said interesting!

Any way, we’ve all been resting up since the crashfest that was Fleche (Dan right at Fleche). Lots of work for DS Matt (White) and plenty of ice. Everybody is feeling ready for Liege tomorrow, which is lucky as our reconnaissnce of the route yesterday ended with a lesson of Belgian highway law.

Overtaking a bus that was slowing on a two-lane road, the group was confronted by the side door of a silver Volkswagon. I had a perfect view as Ryder left a nice dent in the rear door while Jason tested the hood for comfort! Miraculously, both guys were okay after the tumble.

As far as tomorrow’s route goes, it’s hard. Real hard. There is no flat in the final 90 km. The new climb with 20 km to go is a 1.5 km wall that will blow the race to pieces. It’s gonna be an epic day, that’s for sure.

Weather forecast is perfect, so hopefully it will be a beautiful race too!

This Wednesday, two of our junior racers broke the records in their respective categories during Colorado’s Cherry Creek time trial series. Danielle Haulman broke the previous record for Junior Women 17-18 by posting a time of 25:44.9, and Andrew Barker broke the old record for Junior Men 17-18 with a time of 22:16.0.

The previous men’s record was held by former TIAA-CREF racer Sheldon Deeny. Both Andrew and Danielle are clearly on form going into next week’s Tour of the Gila stage race, a vicious 5-day race in Silver City, New Mexico.