Grand Junction's Main Street was abuzz early Sunday morning with talk of the 41 pro riders, 18 women and 23 men, that were about to battle it out for the $20,000 cash purse. The inaugural event posed an uncharted challenge for the pro riders.
Welcomed cloud cover kept the morning cool as riders pushed their limits across the challenging 40 Grand course. The field was close with Ben Sonntag (American Interbanc) and Sepp Kuss (Rocky Mountain Chocolate Factory) leading the pack for a large portion and battling it out for most of the event, while Pua Mata (Cannondale/Sho-Air), Chloe Woodruff (Crankbrotherse), and Erin Huck (Tokyo Joes) went neck-in-neck for the women's win.
In the end, Sonntag came roaring across the finish line in just over three hours with 18-year-old Sepp Kuss hot on his heels just over a minute later. Mata was able to pull away and take the win for the women with a finishing time of three hours and 36 minutes and Huck hightailing it in for second place with a time of three hours and 45 minutes.
No escaping the peloton on first day in the Alps for Pinarello-Q36.5 rider who looks to gain time from eighth place in GC with few opportunities remaining
