David Veilleux Wins Tour of Elk Grove

This years Tour of Elk Grove started with a 4.5 miles long prologue on Friday. Tom Zirbel (Bissell Pro Cycling Team) won the opening time trial in a time of 8:36:37 (50.526 km/h). Astana's Chris Horner clocked the second best time. Horner needed 3 seconds more than the winner of the prologue. Francois Parisien (Team Race Pro) finished third. Parisien needed 8 and a half seconds more than Zirbel on a technical course made for specialists.

Hilton Clarke (Toyota - United) finished 21st, 23 seconds behind winner Zirbel. However, saturday's Stage 1, which consisted of a 150 kilometer dead flat, windy race, showed just how much a team’s fortune can change in a day. After a split in the peloton early in the race, Hilton Clarke found himself over three minutes off the leaders pace in the last group with overall leader, Tom Zirbel, and second place overall Chris Horner (Astana). “The race was so bloody hard with guys attacking left and right and the next thing I know, I find myself in a small group of riders that included the first and second place overall riders. We were three minutes back. I felt totally dejected and was about to quit the race, when all of a sudden, Chris Horner went to the front of the group and rode like a madman and single handedly brought us back to the front of the race. Next thing I know, my entire Toyota-United teammates are leading me out in the final kilometer and I win the race…unbelievable!” said Clarke.

The roller coaster ride continued in stage 2 which was the final race on Sunday consisting of a 110 kilometer criterium. Clarke was nursing a two second lead over 2^nd place David Veilleux (Kelly Benefits Strategies/Medifast). With multiple time bonuses on offer during the race and hefty time bonuses for the top three finishers, Toyota-United had their work cut out for them. The team rode at the front of the race to control it, attempting to set Hilton up for the win and maintain his slim lead. With Veilleux at 2 seconds, Zirbel at 3 seconds along with four other riders in position to win with time bonus sprints on the line it was a tough task. A break of six developed immediately, gaining one minute. The boys rode it back to 25 seconds and then kept a break matching time for the next 2 hours and 20 minutes. With two to go they brought the break back and a few teams attempted to lead it out, but Kelly took control on the last lap and gapped Dominique Rollin and Hilton Clarke in the last corner. Veilleux took 2^nd place and the 12 second time bonus and thus, a 10 second GC win over Clarke. Zirbel was able to finish in the group and hold on to his 3rd place on GC.

The second stage was won by Jelly Belly's Bead Huff. Rock Racing’s Tyler Hamilton figured into a breakaway that was only reeled back by the chasing efforts of the Toyota-United Pro Cycling Team, which was trying to protect the lead of then-overall leader Hilton Clarke.

"Having Tyler in that breakaway kept us in the game," Rock Racing’s Fred Rodriguez said. "I was pleasantly surprised how it was actually a controlled race today. It all came down to the last lap."

Rodriguez finished third in the final stage and fifth overall. Saturday, Rodriguez narrowly avoided a massive pile-up in the final turn of the 105-mile (150 km) road race (stage 1). Memories of that crash – combined with a couple of hard falls earlier this season – had Rodriguez taking a cautious approach Sunday as the Kelly Benefit-Medifast team again led out the sprint.

"It’s a criterium, so you expect it to be fast around the corners," Rodriguez said, "but they (Kelly Benefits) are misjudging how fast you can go around the corners. Yesterday, they lost one of their guys in the crash. The problem is we also get caught in the fire."

Chris Horner (Astana) broke his left collar bone after a crash in the final sprint of the 2nd stage. He was able to finish the race (as 34th) but was transported to a nearby hospital where the break was diagnosed.

Horner (36), who earlier finished second in the time trial, was preparing for the Tour of Spain (Vuelta d'España). He was planning to return to Europe this week to participate in the Tour de l'Ain and the Tour de Limousin prior to starting in his third Tour of Spain. With less than four weeks to go till the Vuelta, it will be impossible for him to start in the Grand Tour.