Sauser/Kulhavy surge to Cape Epic lead

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Chrisophe Sauser and Jaroslav Kulhavy overcame a mid-stage puncture to surge to the lead in the 2015 Cape Epic as the defending champions Kristian Hynek and Alban Lakata fell further behind thanks to double flats in the opening full stage.

Karl Platt and Urs Huber were second on the stage, and now trail Sauser and Kulhavy by 51 seconds, with Jose Hermida and Rudi van Houts moving up into third overall. Lakata and Hynek rallied to finish fourth on the day.

Prologue winners Fabian Giger and Martin Gujan dropped back to fifth place after taking the questionable decision to ride a hardtail, making the descent off the Groenlandberg very rough. “Towards the end the course wasn’t so bumpy, so it got better,” Giger said.

“It’s cool being in yellow zebra jersey after the first stage,” said Sauser. “It was my first real test of the season and everything went well. My legs were good today and we were able to put the Bulls under pressure at times.”

“I felt under pressure today because I didn’t have a good prologue. I felt super comfortable going over Groenlandberg (the major climb of the day). I was in control.” Soon, however, Sauser would suffer a cut in his sidewall that forced his team to stop for a quick repair. While working they were passed by Platt and Huber, but quickly caught back up.

“Fortunately we caught them, recovered and attacked,” Sauser said. “I’m glad to be riding with Jaro again. He’s a powerhouse.”

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