Randoms from Phoenix

It truly was the Valley of the Sun today...

TK finished with the lead group to maintain his hold on the third step of the podium in the 2's. His DBC Elite team did a stellar job of making sure he was safe and comfortable for the final climb to the finish... as an added bonus, Paul Mach and Chris Morales both moved up a spot or two on the GC, we think... As it stands, the DBC Elite team has three in the top fifteen--TK in third spot, Paul Mach in 5th? and Chris Morales in 10th? 11th? We'll verify it all when the results are posted later tonight. Kudos to ex-DBCJRT athlete Steel Joe and Judd Van Sickle as they both sold themselves out today to make sure that nothing dangerous went up the road without the DBC anchor hanging on it...

In the 3's, El Gigante and Staz made the final selection and ended up somewhere in the top 25 of the 73 mile RR. El Gigante was 10th wheel with 300 meters to go but had to grab a handful of brakes when a wreck caused guys to swerve in front of him, nearly taking him off the pavement into the gravel. Can't grab brakes with 300 to go and still finish top 5... Angry... sure, but that's bike racing and sometimes top five finishes can be swamped in the blink of an eye. Both El Gigante and Staz moved up on the GC quite a bit today... we are expecting somewhere around 20 places or so, but that remains to be seen...

Bummer for PtotheArker as he felt the 12 hour car trip and the bonk monster today... but he's learning what it takes to be a stage racer!

I'm thoroughly impressed with all the guys... these are kidlets riding with big dawgs and more than holding their own. Gotta love it.. and, gotta love that the DBC Elite team is easily the top team in the 2's race. If there was a team classification we'd be rockin' it.

Also cool that the Sunday Jesse Ride crowd is putting on a show so far away from home. El Gigante and Staz both were feeling low most Sundays in December and January after being dropped as Jesse worked the watt-o-meter on the hills above Folsom, but if you figure that the guys they were riding with are plastered all over the top twenty of the 2's race they aren't feeling so bad now... All that hard work is paying off in a big way.

Shout out to ex-DBC Elite rider, now Cal-Giant, Tyler Dibble... he posted the fastest time of the day in yesterday's TT and easily defended his jersey today with a second place finish in the RR... all without a team. That boy's gonna sign a contract soon. Which is way cool because part of the DBC Elite Team's mission is to develop talent and help guys make that next step!!!

Finally... I've heard rumor that DBCJRT alum, Thor, won the 3's at Cantua today. If what I hear is true, he won out of a break and rode his break mates off his wheel in the finale despite a flat front tire... I think he'll know how to pronounce it when I say, "Power!"

Gawd, bike racing is fun!