Buchli & Stoll extend overall lead with second stage win

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A second stage win underscored the ambition of Switzerland's Lukas Buchli and Thomas Stoll to bring home the TransAlp crown. The leaders from the BiXS iXS Pro Team mastered the 74.6 kilometres from Kaltern to Andalo in 3:31:05. Hannes Genze and Andreas Kugler finished second, and thus, the Multivan Merida Biking Team remains the only other serious contender in the battle for the title. Carsten Bresser and Volker Ordowski (Rocky Mountain) finished third, their first podium of the week, in 3:36:56.

The final climb up to Andalo - the 2009 Transalp's only summit finish - decided the victory and mirrored the battle for the overall. At the beginning Buchli and Stoll broke away and gained a lead of more than one minute on Genze and Kugler.

It was a planned attack, which Buchli had announced the evening before. "It's a very good feeling that we were able to achieve what we had in mind for today. That's amazing." However, the 30-year-old first time TransAlp racer knows the race isn't over yet.

"A mechanical can always happen. So, it's important to choose the right equipment for tomorrow. But we hope that we will be able to bring home the lead and celebrate in Riva del Garda."

Compliments from competitors

Despite a bitter defeat which enlarged their deficit, Multivan Merida Biking Team member Kugler showed some class by giving out props for the winners. The 2005 European Championships runner-up said, "At the moment, both are simply the best on the climbs. In addition, they had some very good support along the flat parts of the course on this very hot day. I think this was the decisive factor."

However, the 29-year-old doesn't think that it's over and done with. "We will see what happens tomorrow. But if you have a technical problem you can lose a lot of time. A lot of things can happen."

Team KTM with another stage win

Ekkehard Doerschlag and Heinz Zoerweg dominated the seventh day for the masters. The three-time overall winners secured their fifth stage win in 3:47:00. Shortly behind, current race leaders from Team KTM Italy's Silvano Janes and Stephan Unterthurner from Petrovilla Bergner Bau RTTR followed in second (3:48:21). About 50 seconds later, Walter Platzgummer and Johann Grasegger from Scott-Adidas were third.

Injuries and capitulations mix up mixed classification

The sixth consecutive stage win of team Rocky Mountain's Alison Sydor and Daniel Gathof was darkened by the fact that Anita Steiner had to be taken to the hospital due to an injury which she suffered in a crash. Besides the Swiss rider from Stoeckli Craft/Fischli Bikes, who was sitting in second position of the mixed ranking together with her partner Sepp Fischli, Steffi Hadraschek of the fourth-ranked duo Sebamed team also had to withdraw due to a cold. Her teammate Martin Jochem said, "I simply can't ride anymore. It doesn't make any sense."

The two prominent drop-outs meant that Daniela Storch and Alexander Stark (Scott Genius-Generation) and Margrit Joerg and Roland Abaecherli (Giant-Swiss-Mixed) are now in the top three of the mixed classification.

Rothaus-Cube women stay strong

The women's leaders continued smooth sailing toward an overall win. Milena Landtwing and her partner Kristine Noorgard needed 4:29:01 for the second to last stage. 6:45 minutes later, Peggy Klose and Claudia Till from Zwillingscraft 1 followed in second. Kerstin Brachtendorf and Danièle Troesch (Fiat-Rotwild) rounded the podium in third (4:44:40).

Ganser & Niggl first senior masters to the finish

As in previous days, Ferdinand Ganser and Georg Niggl (Jeantex RSC Logwin Kempten) extended their winning streak, this time to six in a row. The pair crossed the finish line in 4:22:49. About 15 minutes behind, Ueli Schuermann and Hanspeter Hunziker (Long Time Bikers V-sport.ch) came in second (4:37:48). Australia's Craig Peacock and Hans Dielacher from Merida Flight Centre secured the third spot on the podium (4:42:23).

Stage 8: Andalo - Riva del Garda

The final stage is short. It'll be the 10th time the TransAlp finishes like this, with 60.6km and only 1,451m of climbing. After a section to the Molveno Lake, the last climb greets racers at the Passo San Giovanni.

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