Belgium's one-day race specialist Tom Boonen (left) took the final sprint in Sacramento on Tuesday, as Slipstream's Tyler Farrar of Seattle stepped into the overall lead of the Amgen Tour of California.
The Stage 2 win marked the first in the US for Boonen, the leader of the QuickStep team. The 27-year-old is among the winningest riders in the peloton, with stage wins at the Tour de France and many of the spring classics trophies on his mantel.
The third cyclist across the line was a blast from the past, Mario Cipollini, who returned to pro cycling after two years of retirement. You gotta tip your helmet to the 40-year-old Rock Racing sprinter, who obviously did more than sit around cafes drinking wine the past two years.
Quote in BikeRadar: “This comeback was my mission impossible. To finish third at the age of 40, when I'm sprinting against 20-year-olds who could be my children, is an incredible emotion.”
Tour of California photo at flickr.com
Tyler Farrar
Farrar's (left) climb into the overall lead is a real bonus for the 23-year-old Wenatchee native and a credit to the Slipstream team.
In Sunday's prologue in Palo Alto, Farrar finished in third place, just 5.25 seconds behind Fabian Cancellara. He shaved about 4 seconds off that margin on Monday with intermediate sprint bonuses and moved into second place past Bradley Wiggins, who dropped to third. He gained another 3 seconds on intermediate sprints on Tuesday.
Farrar must be coming into his own, as he won the Tour of Bahamas earlier this season. His only other win as a pro, since 2003, came in 2005 when he won stage 2 of the Tour de l'Avenir.
Farrar was signed by Slipstream last fall.
Heartbreak
Another BMC Racing cyclist took the heartbreak of the day award. This time it was Scott Nydam who escaped the peloton on the category 2 climb on Trinity Grade about 15 miles into the race and led until the peloton approached Sacramento, where he was passed by the sprinters' teams.
CyclingNews says Nydam's father is battling cancer.
Top 10
1. Tyler Farrar (USA), Slipstream-Chipotle
2. Fabian Cancellara (Swi), CSC, :01 behind
3. Tom Boonen (B), Quickstep, :04
4. Bradley Wiggins (GB), Team High Road, :05
5. Gerald Ciolek (G), Team High Road, :07
6. Levi Leipheimer (USA), Astana
7. David Millar (GB), Slipstream-Chipotle, :08
8. Gustav Larsson (Swe), CSC, :09
9. David Zabriskie (USA), Slipstream-Chipotle
10. Benjamin Jacques-Maynes (USA), Bissell Pro Cycling, :10
Christian Vande Velde (USA) Slipstream and George Hincapie (USA) High Road sit in 11th and 12 places, respectively.
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