Yesterday was simply unbelievable; thousands of spectators lined the sun kissed roads between Selby and the city of York, creating a carnival atmosphere for the entire 174km route. With just two categorised climbs it should have been a day for the sprinte
Yesterday was simply unbelievable; thousands of spectators lined the sun kissed roads between Selby and the city of York, creating a carnival atmosphere for the entire 174km route. With just two categorised climbs it should have been a day for the sprinters, however the south easterly wind was to cause mayhem.
Within the first five kilometres of the stage the break had already established, a very dangerous 16 man group quickly gaining 40 seconds advantage over the chasers before some teams realised they had missed this oppourtunity and started to chase. Madison Genesis were well represented by Mark McNally, Tom Scully and Tobyn Horton but despite their efforts the gap slowly decreased. Just as the break was about to be caught, eight riders including Mark McNally attacked from the front for what was to be the break of the day.
The group worked well and the bunch seemingly happy to give them some freedom, with their lead rising to a massive seven minutes before Team Sky set about chasing to defend the race lead. There then became two races, up front the group battled to win the KoM points (of which Mark won both), and behind the battle to stay out of the wind in the rapidly moving peloton.
Mark was riding the race of his life at the front and attacked the break drawing De Backer from Team Giant Alpecin with him. The two pushed on as their former escapees were reeled in by the now 'sprinter teams' led bunch that started splitting into several groups due to the impressive speed and the cross winds. Tom Scully and the rest of the team worked tirelessly to keep Erick Rowsell (currently top-10 in the GC) out of harm’s way.
Mark and De Backer’s lead was dwindling, but slowly and there was a real chance that the pair would make it to the finish. It wasn't to be though and with just five kilometres to go Mark was finally caught and the inevitable bunch sprint ensued. Mark was voted the most aggressive rider of the day thanks to his efforts in the breakaway and will wear the Digital Dimension Jersey for the final stage.
Roger Hammond, Team Manager:
"I was really proud of how the team rode after Stage One, but this was on another level. The character and the fight I saw today both in front and behind was impressive and the results achieved are indicative of that. I will remember this day for a while."
