What a difference a day can make! The short 111km dash across the mountains from Taichung City Hall to Taichung Metropolitan Park was much cooler than the last few days with periods of heavy rain
What a difference a day can make! The short 111km dash across the mountains from Taichung City Hall to Taichung Metropolitan Park was much cooler than the last few days with periods of heavy rain. It didn't seem to dampen the racing though, for the fourth day in a row the attacks were non-stop from the start.
Liam made the first group of 17 that established any sort of advantage over the fast moving bunch after just 20 kilometers. Unfortunately the cooperation amongst the riders wasn't great and the group was quickly caught. On the second climb of the day with the summit only 35 kilometers away, (the highest point of the race) Madison Genesis set the tempo splitting the bunch into several groups on the ascent. The very difficult rain soaked descent caused almost as much damage as the climb and a select group of 12 riders had a one minute lead heading into the final climb to the finish with Liam once again representing Madison Genesis. On the final climb the group was whittled down but with two riders from the Drapac team riding to keep the group together it was impossible for Liam to attack. In the final sprint he finished 5th.
"It was a great ride by the team today, they were vigilant all day and we have now taken back some vital seconds. It is good to see the guys back at their best now the temperatures have dropped. There are still plenty of opportunities to attack." Team Manager - Roger Hammond
"The conditions today with the rain and cooler temperatures suited us much more after the winter we've had this year. It was nice to show what we can really do." Team Rider - Liam Holohan