Dierking takes solo victory over Napolitano

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 It was a hot day in Elkhart Lake, as racers took to the storied Road America racetrack for the fifth day of racing in the Tour of America’s Dairyland, with Lauren Robertson (FCS-Metro-Volkswagen) and Frankie Dierking (Team Wisconsin/MC2) standing tallest on their respective podiums.

Carrie Cash-Wooten (Team Vera Bradley Foundation) started the day in yellow, after taking over the leader’s jersey last night in Appleton, but faced tough competition on a difficult course from a talented field of professional women. The Road America course featured wide open turns and a tough finishing climb on the 4.4 mile circuit, making the course perfect for breakaways. Attacks were fast and furious from the start but with six laps remaining, the day’s winning breakaway escaped off the front, and nine riders would hold off the field for the rest of the race.

Missing from the lead break were the top three overall contenders, as last night’s leader Cash-Wooten, second overall Kacey Manderfield (Cycle Loft), and third overall Jacquelyn Crowell (Team Type 1) all missed the break, opening the door for a major shift in the overall standings.

After six grueling laps the break of nine sprinted one more time up the final climb, and Lauren Robertson (FCS/Metro-Volkswagen) outkicked Sarah Caravella (Team CARD) to take the stage win, moving Robertson into the leader’s jersey heading into Tuesday night’s Sheboygan Harbor Centre Criterium. Francis Shofield (Z-Motion) finished fourth in the break, moving her into second overall, as Caravella slotted into third. Taking third for the day’s race was Julie Jerue (Nova ISCorp).

A small group of Pro Men rolled off the front early on, and a second group formed to chase but never caught the break. The gap, one minute and eight seconds at one point, had withered to 25 seconds with three to go. In the end, there was one leader clear off the front, Frankie Dierking (Team Wisconsin/MC2). Rudolph Napolitano (Team Helen’s) proved again that the best revenge for hitting the pavement as he did in Grafton is to pound it hard, the efforts of which have landed him in second place twice in as many days. Texan Jonny Sundt (Kenda Pro Cycling-GEARGRINDER) thrived on the day’s rays, planting himself in third on the podium.

Reminiscent of the Bluemounds Road Race of 2009, utterances of fatigue rang clear as the effect of the day’s 72 miles including three-quarter mile finishing climb could be seen on the faces as well as on the Overall podium. Chad Hartley (Kenda Pro Cycling-GEARGRINDER) stepped down a notch to make room for new Overall leader Mike Sherer (Verizon U25 p/b ABD). Napolitano’s (Team Helen’s) determination and force have landed him in the third spot overall.

Results