Schneider wins stage 4 of North Star Grand Prix

Skylar Schneider (ISCorp Cycling p/b SmartChoice MRI) claimed stage four of the North Star Grand Prix in uptown Minneapolis. The 17-year-old, still competing on junior gears, outsprinted yesterday’s winner Coryn Rivera (Team UnitedHealthcare) after 24 laps of a .88 km circuit. Samatha Schneider, Skylar’s sister and lead out, held on for third place.

In the overall competition, Brianna Walle (Team TIBCO - Silicon Valley Bank) remains in the yellow jersey, four seconds ahead of her teammate, Lauren Stephens. After racking up several time bonuses on the last two stages, Coryn Rivera has jumped up to third place, 23 seconds back.

“If anyone was going to beat me today I’m happy it was Skylar,” said Rivera, who now leads the Ku’ul Chocolate Sprint classification. “She deserves it. I remember when I was that punk kid who beat senior riders with regular gears. I’m really impressed by her.”

The criterium was animated from the start, with the lead changing hands almost every lap. Rivera was quick to scoop up time bonus opportunities for GC advancement and cyclocross champion Ellen Noble (North Memorial Health Care) crossed the line first to lay claim to the Carmen Small spotlight prime. The prime gave her cash donated by the crowd, a highlight on social media and a coveted call-up at Stillwater criterium. Noble was also awarded the Surly Most Aggressive jersey at the end of the stage.

After her acceleration, Noble found herself off the front for a half of a lap or so, but UHC was quick to regain control of the peloton. However, when the blue train began to set up for a bunch sprint, stage hopeful Rivera said she found herself in an unfavorable position.

“It was pretty chaotic, naturally,” Rivera said. “I was a little too far back so it was difficult for me. I got the time bonuses that were important for GC, I knew I just had to finish and get a podium today. “We obviously want stage wins but still have our eye on the prize for overall GC.”

Just before the final corner the speed started to slow, and that was where Schneider seized her opportunity. After following her sister into an ideal position, Schneider jumped, developed a slight gap and held it to the line.

“We didn’t have the numbers we were expecting up at the front so we had to be a little bit more patient, but it ended up playing out in our favor,” Schneider said

Results

General classification