FBD Milk Rás 2002 Review |
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Stage 4NEWTON FIGHTS BACK: (By Shane Stokes May 22) The chief rival to race leader Ciarán Power showed that he had little intention of backing down in today’s fourth stage of the FBD Milk Rás, racing clear on the road to Castletownbere and claiming back some of the time that his Irish rival gained 24 hours beforehand. After tracking Power for most of the 107 mile stage, Great Britain rider Chris Newton launched a massive attack against the Team Ireland Stena Line cyclist on the foothills of the first category Healy Pass, the final climb of the day, and sped to the finish in Castletownbere some 39 seconds ahead of his main rival. Newton remains over four minutes behind Power but while today’s was a small gain, it proved to be a valuable confidence booster. While in yellow he had said that the overall classification did not interest him, yet with four stages remaining it is clear that the war is far from over. One who has lost all chance of winning the 50th edition of the race is Mayo Connacht Gold rider David O’Loughlin. The American-based Irish pro jumped up to second overall yesterday but was forced to pull out of the race this morning due to a stomach bug. ‘I woke up during the night and didn’t feel quite right’, he said. ‘I initially didn’t know what was wrong but then started vomiting….I am totally drained this morning and on medical advice, have decided not to start the stage.’ Given that this was the first real mountain leg of the race, O’Loughlin’s choice seems a wise one. The roads around the Ring of Kerry are notoriously difficult and with seven categorised climbs lying in wait, even fully-healthy riders were facing a gruelling day in the saddle.
Apart from Griffin, Irish interests were represented by Cork Stafford Fuels rider Richie Cahill, while Paddy Moriarty (Dublin Skip Hire) had the misfortune to puncture while bridging across to the escape. Back in the bunch, the Team Ireland Stena Line team – in particular Tommy Evans – limited the gain of the leading group to around one minute, controlling the race for Power, but the yellow jersey was briefly caught napping when Newton and several others raced clear before the start of the Healy Pass. Power quickly closed the gap to his main rival, but a chain problem meant that he was unable to respond to Newton’s next attack shortly afterwards. Clear of the Navigators professional, Newton drove the pace up towards the summit of the climb and, with eleven others to contribute, sped down the twisting descent and on towards Castletownbere. Power was forty seconds down at the top but combined with the Lancashire Compensation Group squad and Surrey’s Gethin Butler to hold that gap to the line, where he rolled in a weary, but relieved, rider. Newton was second in the sprint for stage honours behind Canadian professional Andrew Randell, and was bullish. ‘I could have won today if I had a clear run to the line – the barriers jutted out near the finish and I had to back off’, he said. ‘The real priority though was to gain time on the yellow jersey and I am pretty happy with how things went. Ciarán still has a big lead but I will keep on trying all the way to the finish.’
FBD Milk Rás stage 4 (in memory of Jim Killean), Killorglin – Castletownbere: 1, Andrew Randell (Canada Team Sympatico) 107 miles in 4 hours 21 mins 26 secs; 2, C. Newton (Great Britain); 3, H. Nowak (Poland Team Legia); 4, D. Rudnicki (Poland Team Legia); 5, J. Winn (Wales); 6, H. Menad (France VC La Pomme); 7, A. Hojgaard (Denmark Distrikt Jylland Fyn); 8, C. H. Brondberg (Denmark Distrikt Jylland Fyn); 9, S. Cummings (Great Britain) all same time; 10, G. Zoledziowski (Poland Team Legia) at 6 secs. KOM Primes: Cat 2 at Seefin: 1, Winn; 2, D. Spence (South Africa HSBC); 3, E. Moriarty (Meath Lee Strand Cycleways). Cat 2, Knoughanoughish: 1, Tim Buckle (GB); 2, Pritchard; 3, Cummings. Cat 3, Mount Foley: 1, Winn; 2, T. Wolk (Germany Team Stevens-Jeantex); 3, Spence. Cat 1, Coomakista: 1, Paul Griffin (Team Ireland Stena Line); 2, Spence; 3, Hojgaard. Cat 3, Tousist: 1, Griffin; 2, Hojgaard; 3, Pritchard. Cat 2, Drum West: 1, Winn; 2, Spence; 3, Cummings. Cat 1, Healy Pass: 1, Winn; 2, Menad; 3, Nowak International team: 1, Poland Team Legia; 2, Great Britain; 3, Lancaster Compensation Group County team: 1, Meath Lee Strand Cycleways; 2, Ciarrai Earl of Desmond; 3, Tipperary Dan Morrissey
Points: 1, Newton 49; 2, Power 36; 3, Pritchard 32; 4, P. Cassidy (Meath Lee Strand Cycleways) 29; 5, Tanner 26 Mountains: 1, Winn 41; 2, D. Spence (South Africa HSBC) 31; 3, P. Griffin (Team Ireland Stena Line) 27; 4, T. Buckle (GB) 18; 5, Hojgaard 18 International team: 1, Great Britain; 2, Lancaster Compensation Group; 3, Denmark Distrikt Jylland Fyn County team: 1, Meath Lee Strand Cycleways; 2, Tipperary Dan Morrisey; 3, Dublin Skip Hire Best under 23 (Ben McKenna Trophy); 1, Nowak; 2, Cummings; 3, I. McLeod (South Africa HSBC) Best 2nd category rider: 1, Simon Kelly (Cork Stafford Fuels); 2, M. Power (Tipperary Dan Morrissey); 3, F. O’Leary (Usher IRC) <Read Full Results Here> Stage 3CASSIDY GRABS STAGE, POWER TAKES YELLOW: (By Shane Stokes May 21) Prior to the third stage of the FBD Milk Rás, Phil Cassidy performed a curious pre-race gesture. The Meath Lee Strand Cycleways rider was fired up after placing second on yesterday’s stage into Nenagh, and heading into the home region of his team sponsor he vowed to do even better. ‘Stage 3 Nenagh to Killorglin – Phil Cassidy’ he wrote on the chamois of his shorts, then pulled on his racing gear and headed out to do battle.
The audacious move ultimately proved a rewarding one for Cassidy and Power. Race leader Chris Newton missed the boat and never got back on terms with the attackers, and at the end of the 97 mile stage Cassidy took a stunning victory while Power wrested the yellow jersey of race leadership from the shoulders of his English rival. The win marked Cassidy’s third in the race, with his last stage coming 15 years ago; he also won the event twice and is the archetypical ‘Man of the Rás’. Power too repeated history – he took yellow in 1998 as a young amateur and went on to win the race overall.
Power led smoothly up the climb, with Cassidy, Lynch and O’Loughlin close behind, and while Clarke, Malarczyk and Barry slid back into a small group of chasers the reduced leading group showed little sign of weakening. Back in the bunch, Newton and three of his team-mates were making little impression on the lead. By the 68 mile mark Power’s group was had an advantage of seven minutes, and in desperation GB manager Simon Jones ordered Tim Buckle to sit up out of the chasing group and go back to give assistance. In response Power and Cassidy turned the screw yet further, accelerating once more and shedding O’Loughlin and Lynch in the process. Newton was still over five minutes back as Power and Cassidy raced into the streets of Killorglin, and it was clear that Power was heading towards a comfortable lead in the general classification. For Cassidy, the fruits of his efforts were a stunning stage win and the King of the Mountains jersey, once again showing up the younger riders in the field.
‘It is great to win a stage in the race’, said Cassidy afterwards. ‘I was second yesterday but this was always the day for me to try to do it as our sponsors Lee Strand are from the area. My legs felt very good this morning and I decided to have a go at the start – with that strong crosswind, you are as well being off the front as in the bunch. The day was going to be equally hard no matter where you were.’ ‘As regards the overall classification, I am not too interested in going for that. Saturday’s stage (a gruelling mountainous race through Wicklow) will not suit me and so there is little point in trying to get up overall. I will take it easy tomorrow and then see what I can do later in the week – if I can get another stage, I will certainly go for it.’ Power, on the other hand, is thinking very much about the final general classification. ‘My legs are good and I am going to defend the lead from here’, said the Navigators professional. ‘Today’s stage was an ideal opportunity to get some time – when I saw Cassidy and the other go, into that sidewind, I knew it was a serious move and one which could really pay off.’ Despite the loss of Dermot Nally today to food poisoning, Power feels that the Team Ireland Stena Line squad are strong enough to protect his advantage. ‘The team are getting better day by day and I think we should be up to the task’, he said. Manager Declan Byrne echoed this sentiment. ‘The Great Britain team seem to be getting weaker, while our riders are coming into top form as the race progresses. There are some tough stages yet to come but I think we will be strong enough to defend the lead’, he vowed. For his part, Newton vows to fight on. ‘It is not too easy to defend the jersey in this race’, he warned. ‘Everyone expects you to ride. A strong rider has it now but we are going to keep attacking…..’ Tomorrow’s stage: Killorglin – Castletownbere, 107 miles. (ETA 15.15)
KOM: Cat 3, Barnagh Gap: 1, Lynch 5 points; 2, Cassidy 4; 3, O’Loughlin 3; 4, Power 1. Cat 3, Kilconlea: 1, Cassidy 5; 2, Power 4: 3, Lynch 3: 4, O’Loughlin 1. Cat 3, Glensharoon: 1, Cassidy 5; 2, Power 4; 3, O’Loughlin 3; 4, Lynch 1. International team: 1, Team Ireland Stena Line; 2, France VC La Pomme; 3, Poland Team Legia County team: 1, Mayo Connacht Gold; 2, Meath Lee Strand Cycleways; 3, Tipperary Dan Morrisey Overall classification (George Plant Trophy): 1, Power 12 hours 5 mins 4 secs; 2, O’Loughlin at 3 mins 54 secs; 3, Newton at 4 mins 43 secs; 4, J. Tanner (Lancashire Compensation Group RT) at 4 mins 55 secs; 5, B. Brooks (NW England Cycle Centre RT) at 5 mins; 6, K. Dawson (Lancaster Compensation Group) at 5 mins 4 secs; 7, H. Pritchard (Wales) at 5 mins 10 secs; 8, G. Dodd (Surrey League RT) same time; 9, A. Hojgaard (Denmark Distrikt Jyallan Fyn) at 5 mins 11 secs; 10, N. Swithenbank (Lancashire MK Cycle Centre) at 5 mins 12 secs Points classification: 1, Power 36 points; 2, Newton 35; 3, Pritchard 32.
Best under 23 rider (Ben McKenna trophy): 1, Ian McLeod (South Africa HSBC) 12 hours 10 mins 52 secs; 2, H. Nowak (Poland Team Legia); 3, J. Laroche (Canada Team Sypatico) both same time
Category 2 rider: 1, Mark Power (Tipperary Dan Morrissey) 12 hours 26 mins 50 secs; 2, F. O’Leary (Dublin Usher Insulations); 3, J. Horgan (Cork Stafford Fuels) both same time International team: 1, Lancaster Compensation Group 36 hours 32 mins 15 secs; 2, Great Britain at 1 sec; 3, Denmark Distrikt Jylland Fyn at 21 secs County team: 1, Mayo Connacht Gold 36 hours 45 mins 22 secs; 2, Meath Lee Strand Cycleways at 2 mins 11 secs; 3, Tipperary Dan Morrissey at 17 mins 16 secs Stage 2
Meath Lee Strand Cycleways leader Phil Cassidy went close to taking a historic victory on today’s second leg of the FBD Milk Rás, losing out in a four man finishing sprint to former British champion John Tanner (Lancashire Compensation Group). Cassidy went clear with Tanner’s team-mate Kevin Dawson with 25 of today’s 102 wind-lashed miles remaining, but despite opening up a lead of over one and a half minutes on a chasing bunch behind, they eventually succumbed to the strong headwind and a determined drive by Tanner and Ben Brooks (NW England Cycle Centre RT) to get back on terms.
This second stage from Ballinamore to Nenagh was a classic FBD Milk Rás day. Gale force winds, spitting skies and a hard, hard slog from gun to flag clearly suited Cassidy well, but also appealed to those who were willing (and strong enough) to have a go. The first serious break went after fifteen miles when four riders – Tim Barry (Team Ireland Stena Line), Dariusz Rudnicki (Poland Team Legia) and France VC La Pomme duo Denis Lynch and Stephan Mifsud built a solid lead. These were eventually joined by a dozen others, Tanner included, but despite the reinforcements the field was all together again by the 39 mile mark.
However, a late charge from Tanner and Ben Brooks (New England Cycle Centre RT) saw their lead come tumbling down and the pursuing pair joined the leaders with just four miles remaining. Cassidy’s Irish supporters had their fingers crossed that the double FBD Milk Rás victor (1983 and 1999) would somehow sprout the fast-twitch fibres needed to out-kick Tanner, but despite a determined finishing burst he was beaten to the line. Brooks and an exhausted Dawson were next home, while Newton benefited from a late charge to bounce back to finish just thirteen seconds behind. Relaxed and smiling in a new yellow jersey, Newton was relaxed after the stage. ‘I didn’t panic today. I said I wasn’t going to try to defend the lead as I am more interested in stage wins, but things worked out pretty well in the end. The headwind meant that breaks weren’t going to get too far out in front, so when the speed went down later on we were able to close things back up.’ ‘Ciarán Power and several other riders tried hard to get clear during the stage but each time I got up to them, they eased back. Ciarán looked strong but wouldn’t really commit himself.’ ‘It was good to hang on to the jersey in the end. The crowds are really appreciative here and there is a great atmosphere. Over in France people are much calmer after races, just directing you to go up onto the podium, but here everybody is genuinely pleased and happy for you when you are doing well. It doesn’t matter whether you are Irish, English or from somewhere else - the crowd and the race organisation are all very warm.’ As for Cassidy, he promised to try again. ‘I have just finished a course of antibiotics today, as I had a bad chest infection for the past three weeks. I didn’t expect to feel this good so soon. But the legs were very strong today. I thought the stage was definitely possible as I think I would have beaten Dawson at the finish if we had stayed away. But when Tanner caught us with four miles to go, that changed everything. He is very fast.’ ‘I will keep trying – I think a stage is definitely in reach, if I have the necessary luck. This is almost certainly my last FBD Milk Rás so I would really like to get a stage before the end of the race.’ Tomorrow’s stage: Nenagh-Killorglin, 97 miles.
Primes: KOM Cat 3 at Greagh: 1, T. Wolk (Germany Team Stevens-Jeantex); 2, G. Zoledziowski (Poland Team Legia); 3, Griffin International team (stage): 1, Lancaster Compensation Group 14 hours 16 mins; 2, NW England Cycle Centre RT at 10 secs; 3, Canada Team Sympatico at 21 secs County team (stage): 1, Meath Lee Strand Cycleways 14 hours 16 mins 9 secs; 2, Ciarrai Earl of Desmond at 12 secs; 3, Dublin Usher Insulation same time <Read Full Results Here>
Points competition: 1, Tanner 26 points; 2, Newton 25; 3, Brooks 22; 4, Power 22; 5, Pritchard 21 Mountains competition: 1, Wolk 5 points; 2, Zoledziowski 4; 3, Griffin 3 Ben McKenna memorial trophy (best under 23 rider): 1, L. Bojsen (Denmark Distrikt Jylland Fen) 8 hours 21 mins 51 secs; 2, I. McLeod (South Africa HSBC); 3, JF. Laroche (Canada Team Sympatico) both same time Cycling Ireland cat 2 overall: 1, M. Power (Tipperary Dan Morrissey) 8 hours 28 mins 53 secs; 2, F. O’Leary (Dublin Usher Insulations); 3, J. Horgan (Cork Stafford Fuels) both same time International team overall: 1, Lancaster Compensation Group 25 hours 5 mins 12 secs; 2, Great Britain at 1 sec; 3, Denmark Distrikt Jylland-Fyn at 21 secs County team overall: 1, Meath Lee Strand Cycleways 25 hours 19 mins 25 secs; 2, Mayo Connacht Gold at 12 secs; 3, Dublin Iarnrod Eireann at 7 mins 10 secs Stage 1(By Shane Stokes May 19)
The victory was a sweet one for Newton, coming one year after he was forced to pull out of the race with foot problems. Back then, team-mate Paul Manning stepped into the breech and won the race, and while Manning finished as part of the main bunch which lost over seven minutes today, Newton, Tim Buckle and Steve Cummings are all very much in the hunt to bring yellow back to Britain once again. All Irish hopes rest with Power, David O’Loughlin (Mayo Wheelers) and Ray Clarke (Meath Lee Strand Cycleways), who were the only home riders to slip into the 27 man breakaway group which opened up a huge lead over a lethargic, and poorly organised main field. Amongst those now resigned to searching for stage wins rather than yellow are previous champions Phil Cassidy (Meath Lee Strand Cycleways), Julian Winn (Wales), Andy Roche (Isle of Man) and Tommy Evans (Team Ireland-Stena Line). Last year’s race may have been characterised by tight, controlled racing which resulted in few time gaps, but today buckled this trend. Strong tailwinds on the road out from Dublin pushed the speeds up, and once the riders turned left and hit strong crosswinds and driving rain, the splits started happening. Shortly after Newton took the bonus seconds at the Kells hot-spot sprint, a six man breakaway group comprising Power, Buckle, John Tanner (Lancashire Compensation Group), Daniel Spence (South Africa HSBC), Neil Swithenbank (Lancashire Mk Cycles Bianchi) and Ari Hojgaard (Denmark Distrikt Jylland-Fyn) raced clear. A second chase group of nine riders bridged across 13 miles later, with the final junction being made shortly afterwards. Despite some inconsistent work, the now-27 strong group pulled steadily clear of the main bunch. Power, Clarke and O’Loughlin were here, as were Newton and his GB team-mates Buckle and Cummings. The ever-consistent Lancashire Compensation Group trio of Mark Lovatt, John Tanner and Kevin Dawson also made the split along with riders from the South Africa HSBC, Poland Legia and Canada Sympatic pro teams. Tanner had won the hot spot sprint into Virginia but Newton countered that with some more bonus seconds when he was first over the line into Killeshandra. That should have been enough to ensure he took the first yellow jersey of the race but he was after the stage as well; an unsuccessful attack coming into Ballinamore was followed by a more decisive effort on the final ten kilometre finishing loop. Showing the time trial skills which won him the recent Tour de la Manche in France, he drew steadily clear on a tight, twisting run-in to the finish beside the Shannon-Erne waterway, and soloed up the main street to an ear-splitting reception. Twenty seconds later Power coolly outsprinted the remainder of the break to take second on the stage, with Neil Swithenbank (Lancashire MK Cycles Bianchi) and Lars Bojsen (Denmark Distrikt Jylland-Fyn next home. ‘It is great to win the stage’, said Manning afterwards. ‘I had foot problems last year and had to pull out of the race. This season I have built up a bit more slowly but am in good form – I won the Tour De La Manche last week in France and am going pretty well.’ ‘We got a good gap today but I was a bit unhappy that the group didn’t work better as I think we could have opened up a lead of ten or fifteen minutes. I really wanted to win the stage so I had a couple of goes on the way in towards the finish – I got clear and just time-trialled from there to the line.’ ‘Getting the jersey so early makes things difficult – I was conscious that the FBD Milk Rás is a very difficult race to control. But I thought it was better to win a stage rather than hold back, in case anything went wrong later in the week. I am not too worried about the overall – there are three of us from the team up there now and so the pressure is not really on me.’ Irish hope Ciarán Power was also satisfied with his day’s racing. ‘I felt very good during the stage,’ he said. ‘Unfortunately a few of the Irish team were sick and missed the move, so I was the only one there. I think I could have brought Newton back near the end but the other riders weren’t willing to give me a hand. I was hoping to win the stage and so didn’t want to give anyone an armchair ride to the finish. I backed off and Newton stayed away. It is a long week, though, and I feel pretty good…’ Tomorrow’s stage: Ballinamore to Nenagh, 102 miles.
FBD Milk Rás stage one (in memory of Noel McGuill) Dublin – Ballinamore. 1, Chris Newton (Great Britain) 97 miles in 3 hours 36 mins 4 secs; 2, C. Power (Team Ireland Stena Line) at 20 secs; 3, N. Swithenbank (Lancashire MK Cycles Bianchi); 4, Lars Bojsen (Denmark Districkt Jylland Fyn); 5, J. Tanner (Lancaster Compensation Group); 6, H. Pritchard (Wales); 7, B. Brooks (NW England Cycle Centre); 8, A. Hojgaard (Denmark Distrikt Jylland Fyn); 9, I. McLeod (South Africa HSBC); 10, G. Dodd (Surrey League RT) all same time Hot Spot Sprints: Kells: 1, Newton 3 seconds; 2, Pritchard 2 secs; 3, Brooks 1 sec; Virginia: 1, Tanner 3 secs; 2, Buckle 2 secs; 3, Hojgaard 1 sec; Killeshandra: 1, Newton 3 secs; 2, Dodd 2 secs; 3, Tanner 1 sec <Read Full Results Here> <See Pictures Here> Overall classification: 1, Newton 3 hours 35 mins 55 secs; 2, Tanner at 25 secs; 3, Power at 27 secs; 4, Pritchard; 5, Dodd; 6, T. Buckle (Great Britain) all same time; 7, Swithenbank at 28 secs; 8, Brooks; 9, Hojgaard both same time; 10, Bojsen at 29 secs Points: 1, Newton, 15; 2, Power 14; 3, Swithenbank 13; 4, Bojsen 12; 5, Tanner 11; 6, Pritchard 10 Ben Mc Kenna Memorial trophy (best under 23 rider): 1, Bojsen 3 hours 36 mins 24 secs; 2, McLeod; 3, H. Nowak (Poland Legia) both same time
Dignam had received verification as to the authenticity of the Lagos squad through a number of sources, including an approach to cycling’s world governing body, the UCI. ‘Despite the submission of these papers the Department failed to reply to our calls and faxes in recent days,’ said an angry Dignam. ‘Their treatment of this matter, and of the team, has been shameful. It is bad enough for us here in Ireland being given the run-around over the past few weeks by our own government officials, but it is unbelievable that five Nigerian cyclists looking forward to riding in a cycle race in Ireland were rejected for no apparent reason.’ Ironically their soccer-playing compatriots had no such trouble and on Thursday beat the Irish national squad 2-1 in their final warm-up match before the World Cup. The Lagos cycling team had booked flights and had also paid a sizeable deposit towards their accommodation for their stay in Ireland. |
Following several skirmishes, the first significant
break occurred one hour into the stage when a group of ten joined together up
the road and began to pull away from the main bunch. Newton had two team-mates
in this break – Steve Cummings and Tim Buckle, while Power’s team-mate Paul
Griffin was present to police the move. This was just as well, as there were
other danger-men present - Danish rider Ari Hojgaard and Huw Pritchard were both
up overall and had the opportunity to regain some of their lost time.
Still
over four minutes clear, Power remains in a strong position. ‘Newton got clear
when I had bike problems and while I couldn’t close the gap, we held him on
the run in to the line,’ he said. ‘I am still confident. Every day is a
danger, but I think we are strong enough to keep the jersey until the finish on
Sunday.’
Overall classification (George Plant Trophy):
1, Ciarán Power (Team Ireland Stena Line) 16 hours 27 mins 45 secs; 2, Newton
at 4 mins 4 secs; 3, Hojgaard at 4 mins 32 secs; 4, Nowak at 4 mins 33 secs; 5,
Randell; 6, Menad; 7, Cummings all same time; 8, J. Tanner (Lancaster
Compensation Group) at 4 mins 55 secs; 9, B. Brooks (NW England Cycle Centre) at
5 mins; 10, K. Dawson (Lancaster Compensation Group) at 5 mins 4 secs
Lashed by rain and a cruel crosswind, Cassidy threw
down the gauntlet from the start and raced clear, ripping the bunch to shreds
behind and causing total chaos. Fellow Irishmen David O’Loughlin (Mayo
Connacht Gold) and Tim Barry (Team Ireland Stena Line) recognised the danger and
joined up to the flying 40 year old; this leading trio were soon joined by Barry’s
team-mate Ciarán Power, France VC La Pomme rider Denis Lynch, Ray Clarke (Meath
Lee Strand Cycleways) and sole foreign rider Anthony Malarczyk (Wales).
Newton was left rueing the slip-up which allowed
his rivals to race clear. The 28 year old found himself stranded back in the
bunch shortly after the start, over two minutes in arrears, and for the first
time this week his Great Britain team looked fragile. Although he bridged across
to a chasing group the pursuit was scrappy and disorganised, and by the the
third category climb of Barnagh Gap he was a massive 5 minutes and 45 seconds
adrift.
Lynch and O’Loughlin were next over the line, the
latter jumping to second overall, while Newton sprinted home second in the main
bunch some 5 minutes and 10 seconds adrift. There are five stages remaining in
the race, including tomorrow’s mountainous 107 miles to Castletownbere, but
the GB team have a lot to do to get back onto terms.
Stage 3 (in memory of Ando Christle) Nenagh –
Killorglin: 1, Philip Cassidy (Meath Lee Strand Cycleways) 3 hour 43 mins 51
secs; 2, C. Power (Team Ireland Stena Line) same time; 3, D. Lynch (VC La Pomme)
at 3 mins 48 secs; 4, D. O’Loughlin (Mayo Connacht Gold) at 3 mins 52 secs; 5,
H. Pritchard (Wales) at 5 mins 10 secs; 6, C. Newton (Great Britain); 7, J. Winn
(Wales); 8, H. Nowak (Poland Team Legia); 9, D. Rudnicki (Poland Team Legia);
10, I. McLeod (South Africa HSBC) all same time
Mountains classification (Brendan Carroll trophy):
1, Cassidy 14 points; 2, Lynch 10 points; 3, Power 10; 4, O’Loughlin 8; 5, T.
Wolk (Germany Team Stevens-Jeantex) 5
CASSIDY
GOES CLOSE; NEWTON HOLDS ON:
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Caught with just four miles remaining on the stage,
40 year old Cassidy – who last won a stage back in 1987 – kicked hard in the
finishing sprint but was no match for Tanner. Chris Newton (Great Britain)
benefited from the high-power finish of the combined GB and Team Ireland Stena
Line squads to retain his race lead, finishing just 13 seconds behind Tanner
today.
The ceasefire lasted all of one mile before chaos
resumed once more. Previous winner Julian Winn (Wales) and Tanner’s team-mate
Mark Lovatt went clear and eventually sparked off a massive free-for-all, with
riders trying repeatedly to steal a march on their rivals and gain time. Team
Ireland Stena Line’s Ciarán Power was one of the main aggressors, trying to
overcome the 27 seconds separating him and race leader Chris Newton, while David
O’Loughlin (Mayo Wheelers), Ray Clarke (Meath Lee Strand Cycleways) and Paddy
Moriarty (Dublin Skip Hire) also tried their luck. But Newton and his GB squad
were simply too strong, sooner or later getting onto terms with all the moves.
The Poland Team Legia rider Herbert Nowak then took
off and led the race for ten miles, holding off the chase of Martin O’Loughlin
(Tipperary Dan Morrissey) and Meath Avonmore’s Denis Easton but eventually
yeilding to the pitiless headwind. Cassidy, Kevin Dawson (Lancashire
Compensation Group) and VC La Pomme rider Frederick Pedersoli then seized their
opportunity, opening a considerable lead over a group of favourites who were
concentrating more on negating each other’s attacks.
Pedersoli faded at the 88 mile mark, fourteen from
home, as Cassidy and Dawson increased their advantage to 1 minute 40 seconds
over a South Africa HSBC-led chasing group. They had perfect incentive to work
together; Cassidy was hunting for a stage win and Dawson was aiming to snatch
yellow from Newton, now almost three minutes back, and fully committed, they
raced towards Nenagh to what seemed like a happy ending.
FBD
Milk Rás stage 3 (In memory of Donal Roche) Ballinamore – Nenagh; 1,
John Tanner (Lancaster Compensation Group) 102 miles in 4 hours 45 mins 14 secs;
2, P. Cassidy (Meath Lee Strand Cycleways) at 1 sec; 3, B. Brooks (NW England
Cycle Centre) at 2 secs; 4, K. Dawson (Lancaster Compensation Group) at 5 secs;
5, H. Pritchard (Wales) at 13 secs; 6, C. Newton (Great Britain); 7, D. Rollin
(Canada Team Sympatico); 8, C. Power (Team Ireland Stena Line); 9, C. Bracken
(Dublin Usher Insulation); 10, P. Griffin (Team Ireland Stena Line) all same
time
General classification: 1, Newton 8 hour 21
mins 22 secs; 2, Tanner at 12 secs; 3, Brooks at 17 secs; 4, Dawson at 21 secs;
5, Power at 27 secs; 6, Pritchard; 7, G. Dodd (Surrey League); 8, T. Buckle
(Great Britain) all same time; 9, N. Swithenbank (Lancashire MK Cycles) at 28
secs; 10, A. Hojgaard (Denmark Distrikt Jylland Fyn) same time
Great
Britain riders took up where they left off last year when joint team leader
Chris Newton today won the opening stage of the FBD Milk Rás and took the first
yellow jersey of the 8 day event. Newton raced clear on the tight, twisting
finish circuit and soloed to victory into Ballinamore, twenty seconds clear of
Team Ireland-Stena Line rider Ciarán Power and the rest of a 27 man breakaway
group.
DIGNAM
BLASTS DEPT. OF JUSTICE:
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