Stage 6 was the much anticipated start in Golden with the finish at the Flagstaff Amphitheater in a Boulder. The stage was nothing short of expectations. The crowds were huge and the racing thrilling. The early break was established about 10km into the stage with Jens and George present. Both Chris and I tried to get into the break to really try and make things interesting, but we weren't able to make it happen. The stage was fast and furious all day nonetheless. Before we knew it, the heat was on as we went up Lee Hill Road at mach 5 and dramatically thinned the peleton. After the descent and a small regrouping, we made the run into Flagstaff through the crowded streets of Boulder. The climb started immediately and the group blew up. I fell off the pace, but Kloedi fought hard to hold the group. At the finish, Levi had won the stage, taken the yellow, and the stage was set for a final showdown at the tt in Denver.
The crowds in Denver were in good competition with the crowds from Boulder. The tt was a nearly flat 15km with a few out and back loops starting/finishing at the Capital building. I was motivated going in to try and make the top 10 on gc. I rode out of the start house and tried to find my rhythm. I fought to find a good cadence and power output on the nearly flat course. When I crossed the line, I was not confident that I had ridden a good tt; however, it turned out that I had done a pretty good tt to place 19th on the stage and move up to 8th on the gc. It turned out to be a great stage and race result. It was a good finish to a solid block of racing beginning at the start of July in Austria. I am now looking forward to a few days at home and up at the lake cabin relaxing. My next races will be in the land of maple syrup: Canada. Thanks for all the support!
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