Armstrong wins fourth consecutive Nature Valley time trial

Reigning US National Time Trial Champion, Alison Powers (Team Type 1) astonished the crowds at the Nature Valley Grand Prix when she crossed the line with a more than 30-second lead over Canadian Erinne Willock (Webcor-Builders). Powers had little time to savour her impressive performance because the crowds went wild moments later when Kristin Armstrong (Cervelo Test) stole the show with a victorious time of 13:48.

"Even though I don't get to take in my wins when Kristin is here, she really brings my time trialing up a level," said Powers who dawned her stars and stripes skinsuit for the first time this season. "I see how good she is and I enjoy having her here. It's fun to win but it's more fun to raise you time trial up a notch."

The women raced under the early morning rain making the short course slick and difficult to handle. The course ran flat along the Mississippi River for eight kilometres before turning up onto a steep, one kilometre climb to the finish.

"I just had a goal of breaking 14 minutes today," said Armstrong who returns to the US after recently finishing the Tour de L'Aude, a ten-day race in France. "Nature Valley is unique because there are time bonuses, the stages are somewhat flat and I can't watch fifteen different people. I just have to race smart. The safest place to be is at the front, which is where I will be in tonight's criterium."

Teams TIBCO and Webcor-Builders highlighted their sheer strength when they dominated the top ten places in the time trial, alternating the lead position for most of the race. The peloton will line up for the stage two criterium where, like the men's race, 35 seconds are available in time bonuses. Having several cards to play in the up coming stages will make Armstrong's quest for a fourth consecutive title difficult.

"The US peloton is strong and all the teams are going to be out here racing their bikes," she continued. "Some will be out here to win the overall, some to win stages and some to win a jersey competition. There are a lot of competitions going on so it's going to be a tough field to contain myself. I'm just going to race as hard as I can and go day-by-day."