Based in Boulder, the four-day event is the team's home race. It begins on August 16 and is centred around Vail and Denver, with the high-altitude time trial in Vail one of the key stages.
Both Phinney and Martinez have enjoyed a short break from racing following the Tour de France in July. It was a turbulent Tour that saw the team lose their general classification contender, Rigoberto Uran, in the second week. Martinez contested the Clasica San Sebastian before heading home to Colombia for some rest and recuperation.
"I'm anticipating a competitive race," Martinez in a team press release. "The legs are feeling good, and I think the team can ride well this week."
Phinney has not raced since the Tour while he recovered from a broken nose that he suffered when he crashed in the final kilometres of the penultimate stage. The injury was such that he was unable to fly with the team to the final stage in Paris. Phinney grew up in Colorado and is looking forward to racing at home, but is unsure how he'll fair with little training since completing the Tour de France.
"I have a solid two days of training in the legs heading into this race, on top of three weeks of the Tour de France, so I'm not sure what to expect – but my face is fine. My nose has a bit of chicane in it but it's hardly noticeable," said Phinney. "I get a little nervous thinking about racing in Colorado, which is a good thing, I think. I'm excited. I'm happy to see the race branch out of Denver with two stages in Vail.
"The Vail Pass time trial is iconic and beautiful. It's not exactly my cup of tea, but I'll enjoy it nonetheless."
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EF Education First-Drapac for the Colorado Classic: Nate Brown, Hugh Carthy, Joe Dombrowski, Dani Martinez, Jose Neves, Taylor Phinney.
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