Report – Von Hoff 4th at Bay Crits

2014_August_Prendas_Bannerr4

Aussie champion Steele Von Hoff showing off the stripes in Australia overnight with 4th in the Bay Crits, round 2

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Report – Von Hoff 4th at Bay Crits

Round one winner Caleb Ewan has produced back-to-back victories at the Mitchelton Bay Cycling Classic in Geelong following another tactically sound race by ORICA-GreenEDGE.

The result mirrors the 21-year-old’s efforts in 2015 and elevates him to the clear second highest stage winner at the ‘Bay Crits’ with a total of nine stage wins over the past five years. Australian sprint legend Robbie McEwen remains the highest with an impressive 17 victories over ten editions.

Ewan’s second win for the year came from another bunch sprint after his ORICA-GreenEDGE teammates closed a dangerous breakaway covered by debutant Alexander Edmondson. “The team again rode so well,” Ewan said. “It was handy having Alex up in the breakaway.”

“I think he was just sitting on making sure it wasn’t getting get too far ahead and then the boys behind did a great job to chase as well. We rode it perfectly and I think everyone was pretty tired towards the end so that made the sprint a lot easier for me.”

Leaving the final chase until the closing stages of the one-hour race made for a frantic final lap. “There were people going everywhere because teams were running out of guys so there wasn’t much organisation on the last lap,” the two-time overall champion said. “I had Alex Edmondson with me the whole last lap and he guided me perfectly and put me in good position into the last corner.”

The Race
There was no settling into the second day of racing at the Mitchelton Bay Cycling Classic as a series of solo attempts kept the peloton honest. After 37 minutes of racing a dangerous move of nine riders escaped, ORICA-GreenEDGE represented by Edmondson in his first hit out for the outfit.

A split in the break saw three riders – Pat Shaw (Avanti IsoWhey Sports), Pat Lane (Avanti IsoWhey Sports) and Nathan Haas (VTWO) – with a narrow lead from their previous companions.

In the closing laps ORICA-GreenEDGE worked solidly on the front, with contribution from Drapac Professional, and the speed demolished the breaks lead and diminished the size of the peloton from the pressure.

Tomorrow’s penultimate day of racing at the Mitchelton Bay Cycling Classic moves to Portarlington for a challenging 1.3km circuit.

Round 2 Result
1. Caleb EWAN (Orica GreenEDGE) 59:49
2. Brenton JONES (Drapac Professional)
3. Leigh HOWARD (Chain Reaction Cycles)
4. Steele VON HOFF (Avanti IsoWhey Sports)
5. Alex FRAME (JLT Condor Mavic)

14. Steven LAMPIER (JLT Condor Mavic)
20. Mike CUMMING (State of Matter/Maap) @58
30. George ATKINS (JLT Condor Mavic) @2:00

dnf Chris LAWLESS (JLT Condor Mavic) (broken spokes)
dnf Jon MOULD (JLT Condor Mavic)

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