Redlands Bicycle Classic: Abbott wins at Oak Glen and takes race lead

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Despite crashing hard and injuring her shoulder with more than 25km remaining in stage 2 of the Redlands Bicycle Classic, Mara Abbott (Amy D Foundation) stormed to victory in the Yucaipa Road Race and claimed the race lead for her reward.

Abbott out-climbed Kristin Armstrong (Twenty16-RideBiker) and Katie Donovan (Colavita-Bianchi) up the final 8.6km climb to the Village of Oak Glen to repeat her 2015 stage win on the same course.

"I didn't have trouble climbing, I had trouble stopping and then moving my arm afterwards," Abbott said when asked about her injuries from the crash.

After the stage Abbott sought medical attention for pain in her shoulder and neck caused by the crash that happened on the third of four laps around the Yucaipa circuit before the final uphill leg to Oak Glen. Abbott had abrasions on her shoulder and hip from the crash, which occurred before a tight-right turn on a long, fast descent.

Stage 2 at Redlands took place on a rolling 22.7km circuit around Yucaipa. The women circled the course four times before turning onto the final climb to Oak Glen. The finishing climb caused the peloton to play the day rather conservatively, with none of the attempted escapes able to break free as the Hagens Berman-Supermint team of stage 1 winner and race leader Scotti Wilborne-Lechuga put a stranglehold on the bunch.

As the field turned onto the final climb, however, the day's effort began to show as the peloton quickly disintegrated into the select group that would battle for the win, with only Abbott and Armstrong remaining in the lead halfway into the climb. Abbott's climbing abilities eventually won the day as Armstrong lost the pace and could only hope to lose as little time at the finish as possible.

"Of course I wanted to minimize my losses, but when we talk about Mara being a good climber, she's actually the best climber in the world," Armstrong said. "And so when I first crossed the finish line I was disappointed because I wanted to stay with her, but I also have to keep things in perspective.

"I think that this was the closest I've ever been to Mara on a climb that is this distance and this steep," she said. "So when it got pitchy she had the advantage over me, but I just tried to hold on as hard as I could. I lost 30 seconds, but I just hope to gain that back."

Armstrong is now banking on making up some of the lost time during Friday's Greenspot time trial, a discipline she's conquered with two Olympic gold medals and two world championships. The 11.4km out-and-back course is short and fast.

"It's a very powerful course," Armstrong said. "It's a slight uphill on the way out, and then you turn around and you have to take the speed home. It's a short course, but there is still opportunity for time gain. We also have time bonuses throughout the week." 

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