Tyler Farrar (Garmin-Slipstream) hopes for a stage win at the 2009 Giro (Image credit: Isabelle Duchesne)
In yesterday's stage three of the Giro d'Italia, Team Garmin-Slipstream's sprinter Tyler Farrar continued to show his presence in a tricky sprint finish, nearly taking the stage win behind Alessandro Petacchi. But as if this wasn't enough of a feat for the 25-year-old, Farrar achieved it with a broken rear derailleur.
The American broke his derailleur cable in a massive crash with ten kilometres to go in the stage, meaning that he had to get back up to speed and then battle for the victory with only one gear.
"It was really a crazy finish circuit today, lots of up, down, left, right - all on small roads," Farrar said after the stage. "I had a bit of bad luck and broke my rear derailleur with 10km to go, so I only had the 12 cog for the end of the race. I was really motivated for today though since it was my last chance for a win before we head into the mountains. Luckily it came together enough that I was able to get second and take the young rider’s jersey. A little more luck and I'll get one of these!"
