USA Pro Challenge 2015: Stage 4

Welcome to Cyclingnews' live coverage of the 2015 USA Pro Challenge.

Welcome back to Cyclingnews' live coverage of the USA Pro Challenge. We're up for another big stage from Aspen to Breckenridge, a whopping 202.5km.

They head straight up Independence Pass out of Aspen, going over the opposite direction from yesterday's stage finish. The first KOM is at 30.8km, so it's a long ,long climb.

Once they get down the other side, they'll divert from yesterday's route at Twin Lake and head through Buena Vista for the first sprint at 99.7km in. A second sprint in Fairplay is at km 160.8.

Hoosier Pass is the next KOM at 178.9km, and then Boreas Pass just before the finish at km 198.6.

There are big crowds again in the start town of Aspen, but no sign of Lance Armstrong yet. Perhaps he's too busy dealing with his lawyers.

We prefer to see the current generation of riders, including race leader Brent Bookwalter, points leader Kiel Reijnen, mountains leader Will Routley, best young rider Hugh Carthy and best Colorado rider Alex Braico.

Riders have a 5.5km neutral parade around downtown Aspen, population 7k-30k depending on the season.

National anthem sung, the riders head out for their lap. It's pleasantly cool - the 63F temps feel warmer than that.

BMC, Optum, and UnitedHealthcare are making a rainbow of bright colors at the front of the race.

Cyclingnews spoke to Axeon's James Oram this morning. The New Zealander is looking for opportunities to show himself here in Colorado.

"We really want to get a guy up in the break today. In the past it's always stuck so it's a perfect opportunity for someone like Logan [Owen], Dan [Eaton] or myself or even Greg [Daniel] to get up the road and have a good showing."
 

There are a lot of tired legs in the peloton and it's only stage 4. Today is a big day of climbing and will be six long hours in the saddle.

Travis McCabe (Smartstop) spoke to Cyclingnews this morning, predicting: "It's just going to be a really hard day today. There is no going around that. From the gun we climb up Independence Pass. Yesterday, from the first climb the group spit to about 30, and guys were able to chase on and that was only a 10 k climb so with this is just going to be brutal.

"The longest day of the race the most climbing of the race it's just going to be a smaller group going to the finish line."

The race is on!
 

@MarkCavendish Thu, 20th Aug 2015 16:26:46

Congratulations to Mark and Peta Cavendish on the birth of their son on Monday.

The peloton is heading up Independence Pass - it didn't take long after leaving Aspen to start the climb.

Already riders are attacking. The GC is still pretty tight considering all of the climbing done so far. Bookwalter and Dennis are separated by 6 seconds, with Jonny Clarke (UHC) at 10 with Hugh Carthy.

GC after stage 3

1 Brent Bookwalter (USA) BMC Racing Team 12:13:02
2 Rohan Dennis (Aus) BMC Racing Team 0:00:06
3 Jonathan Clarke (Aus) UnitedHealthcare Pro Cycling 0:00:10
4 Hugh Carthy (GBr) Caja Rural-Seguros RGA
5 Robbie Squire (USA) Hincapie Racing Team 0:00:13
6 Lachlan David Morton (Aus) Jelly Belly p/b Maxxis 0:00:25
7 Jaime Roson (Spa) Caja Rural-Seguros RGA 0:00:27
8 Davide Formolo (Ita) Cannondale-Garmin Pro Cycling Team 0:00:31
9 Julian Arredondo (Col) Trek Factory Racing 0:00:33
10 Julien Bernard (Fra) Trek Factory Racing 0:00:38

Nobody is able to establish a breakaway yet.

Rohan Dennis is putting on a great performance in Colorado, but he doesn't think he should be included for Australia's Worlds road race team.

Read more here.

193km remaining from 203km

The peloton is grinding its way up Independence Pass but still the front of the group is together. The peloton has already split into two.

@TrekFactory Thu, 20th Aug 2015 16:13:01

@Cyclingnewsfeed Thu, 20th Aug 2015 16:50:29

Sorry about that, the link to the video with Carson Miller is here.

188km remaining from 203km

The peloton is about halfway through the climb, seeing lovely views under the clear blue sky. They are skirting the Roaring Fork, the whispering Aspens towering on either side as they make their way up the lower slopes.

The road out of Aspen narrowed up rather quickly, and although there is no shoulder it's a popular cycling route. There are some very narrow points around the switchbacks so passing in a car is quite difficult. It's slow going either on a bike or in a car.

We've got a move: Roman Kreuziger (Tinkoff-Saxo),
Laurent Didier (Trek), Janier Acevedo (Cannondale-Garmin) and his ex-teammate Phil Gaimon (Optum p/b Kelly Benefit Strategies) have forged on with a 15 second gap to the race leader.

Jaramillo has now bridged across, making it five. He was in the breakaway yesterday.

BMC shut that move right down - the first four were not much of a threat, but Jaramillo is only 1:30 down so there's no letting him go up the road.

Kreuziger and Didier have another go, this time with Kyle Murphy (Caja Rural). This one might work - Kreuziger is the best placed at 5:30 down on Bookwalter.

Tinkoff has gotten nothing in the race so far, so BMC might be willing to let Kreuziger have a go. Didier is in the most aggressive rider's jersey after spending the day off the front yesterday. He'll be going after the mountains classification. Big points available atop this one - 15 for the winner, which would put him well over Routley.

Michael Torckler (Budget Forklifts) and Nathan Brown (Cannondale-Garmin) went on the attack to bridge - Torckler made it but so far Brown hasn't.

179km remaining from 203km

Brown has given up, and the four riders have 40 seconds - almost to the 5km to the top sign, but not quite.

When they get to the top they'll be cresting the Continental Divide, where the flow of the rivers reverse direction. It's a lovely view from the top, but they don't have time to look around. We were mistaken on the distance, they still have about 8km of climbing.

Five chasers are now behind the quartet at 15 seconds, just 10 ahead of the yellow jersey group: Damiano Caruso (BMC) patrolling for his team leader, Janier Acevedo (Cannondale-Garmin), Chris Jones (UnitedHealthcare), Phil Gaimon (Optum), and Oscar Clark (Hincapie).

And now the chasers have caught the breakaway, making it 9 in front.

177km remaining from 203km

Just about 5km to go to the top and Kreuziger and Acevedo have attacked to try and break up the break.

Correction that was Kyle Murphy up with Kreuziger on the attack. The rest are about to be caught by the yellow jersey group.

Remarkably, Murphy - even after being in the breakaways several times - has found the legs to attack and has left Kreuziger behind. Not a bad showing for a NorCal kid who is in his first big time race.

It seems Gaimon has caught Kreuziger, while Didier and Jones are still chasing behind, while the rest have gone back to the yellow jersey group.

The leaders are about to top the KOM - Murphy will get the 15 points, getting the mountains classification virtual lead. 

171km remaining from 203km

Gaimon caught and passed Kreuziger before the top of the climb, but the Czech rider held on for third. Murphy took 12 points (correction), and now has 28, leading the classification.

Mountain 1 (Cat. 1) Independence Pass, km. 30.8

1 Kyle Murphy (Caja Rural) 12
2 Phillip Gaimon (Optum) 10
3 Roman Kreuziger (Tinkoff-Saxo) 8
4 Laurent Didier (Trek) 7
5 Damiano Caruso (BMC) 6
6 Oscar Clark (Hincapie) 5
7 Jonathan Clarke (UnitedHealthcare) 4
8 Rohan Dennis (BMC) 3
9 Brent Bookwalter (BMC) 2
10 Michael Schär (BMC) 1

The descent down to Twin Lakes is a fast, gradual one, not too technical, though there are a few switchbacks.

Kreuziger, Murphy and Gaimon were joined by Clarke and Caruso over the top, and have formed a five-man group with 50" on the field.

154km remaining from 203km

We're not sure where Laurent Didier vanished to, but perhaps he's saving his legs for the later climbs. He's trailing Murphy in the mountains classification by 7 points.

Over in Europe the teams previewing the opening team time trial of the Vuelta a Espana are not pleased at what they see. The course includes a section of boardwalk that's dirt and sand, but the race director insists it's fine.

The tricky bit of the descent is over, and our intrepid leaders now enjoy the presence of their team cars behind. The peloton faded to 1:40 behind.

The breakaway is nearing Twin Lake, the town they passed through in yesterday's stage. That means they're done descending and will be turning right on highway 24, and are done retracing their steps from stage 3.

The leaders are enjoying even more leeway as the peloton behind grows in size and gather food from their team cars. Gap at 2:45.

143km remaining from 203km

The leaders are enjoying a brisk tailwind as they reach the bottom, but of course when they turn that will become a cross or cross-tailwind.

The peloton has had to answer the call of nature, so the gap to the five leaders has gone out to 3:10. Plenty of road ahead to chase. Plenty.

@Laura_Weislo Thu, 20th Aug 2015 18:17:01

It's interesting that the stages are so long in this year's USA Pro Challenge. Last year, the average stage distance was 120km and the longest 169km. This year, the average is 142 with today's stage the longest at 202.5. Only the time trial is shorter by 2km.

Tinkoff-Saxo is down a man - Ivan Rovny just abandoned.

The leader are following the Arkansas River as they head out of Granite, the aptly named town in the shadow of the towering 14,000ft mountains. Lots of rocky cliffs, the kind that give the Rocky Mountains their name.

117km remaining from 203km

The breakaway is now five solid minutes in front of the peloton, having just picked up their feeds in the feedzone. The team directors are getting a little bit sleepy following along at 25mph behind the break on this long, long, straight road, with the sun oh so warm and the fields oh so tempting for a nap.

The course drops 1300ft in altitude between Twin Lake and the sprint in Buena Vista at km 102.8 - but that's over 40-some kilometers. They're cruising along at about 50kph.

108km remaining from 203km

The road has opened up into a warm, sunny valley, and the wind has died down. The numerous American flags are hanging limply and it's quite a bit warmer than in Aspen - 77F now.

5km to go to the sprint.

The leaders are approaching the sprint in Buena Vista, being cheered on by good sized crowds along the road.

103km remaining from 203km

The leaders rolled on through the sprint line.

Sprint 1 - Buena Vista, km. 99.7

1. Phillip Gaimon (USA) Optum p/b Kelly Benefit Strategies
2. Kyle Murphy (USA) Caja Rural-Seguros RGA
3. Roman Kreuziger (Cze) Tinkoff-Saxo

The field is now passing through Buena Vista, enjoying the cheers of the fans. The entire town seems to be out.

The leaders have made the left turn onto highway 285, the road will begin heading slowly back up and up and up. They pass the Coyote Cantina, which definitely looks like it's straight out of the old wild wild west.

They'll have a bunch of climbing to do before the next sprint in Fairplay. The directeur sportifs bargained for another feedzone there, too.

They go from 7868' on up to 9953' and then pop up to 11,542' over Hoosier Pass before descending down to Breckenridge.

We've got the definitive start list for the Vuelta a España, if you're interested. It's hot off the presses.

The leaders have to get out of the saddle to climb up through Johnson village. They're on the western side of South Park, a 1000 square mile flat grassland, one of Colorado's three high altitude basins. Last year they came through from the east from Woodland Park en route to Breckenridge, and the descent into South Park is simply stunning. You've never felt so small until you've seen this kind of expanse of land.

94km remaining from 203km

The leaders need to get up and over this climb before they're treated to that impressive view.

Not a cow in sight.

The gap is 4:30 with Cannondale-Garmin now patrolling the front of the peloton.

93km remaining from 203km

As the leaders make their way up the climb, the effort is beginning to wear. They've only recently passed the halfway point of the stage and the gap is already coming down. Just 3:40 thanks to the Cannondale-Garmin effort.

The view from this side of the basin isn't quite as impressive as the entry from Woodland Park, but it's beautiful in a Cormac McCarthy kind of way - barren, hard, and lonely.

Wow, the gap is really starting to fall now - only 2:40. There's been a minor crash in the peloton between Arredondo (Trek) and Summerhill (UHC), but they're back up and riding.

It's almost as if the riders know that it's nearly TV time, and they're going to try to make the race more interesting.

The end of this stage is well designed for some fireworks - Hoosier Pass is a category 2, it climbs for almost 10km and while it averages only 4 or 5%, it has some kickers in there that will cause pain.

The descent is the tricky part - there are some very steep sections and switchbacks, and the roads get torn up in the winter.

The leaders are almsot to the top of this unclassified climb, holding just 2:40 on the peloton.

79km remaining from 203km

The wind is picking up for our leaders as they have passed that short climb and now have a gradual descent. It's short, and they'll then climb all the way up to the next KOM.

The sprint in Fairplay, also known as South Park, comes at kilometer 160.8. Still a long way to go.

The leaders are gaining time on the bunch, now 4:05 as they negotiate a flat road but are punished by a strong crosswind.

The leading five: Clark, Gaimon, Murphy, Caruso and Kreuziger lean into the wind, forming an echelon as they fight for any bit of shelter. The wind is very strong, blowing in across the basin.

But, they should look on the bright side. Last year they passed through rain and hail before reaching Hoosier Pass. It was so cold that riders were turning blue and grabbing any bit of clothing they could from the team cars.

The way the road turns back and forth is punishing the riders with a stiff headwind and cross wind, making the second half of this marathon stage even more difficult. The riders are definitely earning their paychecks today.

64km remaining from 203km

The leaders are cruising along through ranch country, their gap up to 4:25 now. The scenery is pretty dull unless you find the disorientingly wide open land exciting.

Once the leaders get to Fairplay, the riders who raced last year's event will begin to recognize the roads. They used the same route to Breckenridge but approached Fairplay from the other direction on 285.

The sun is shining at the finish in Breckenridge. It's such a lovely town, with the Blue River streaming right through downtown. They've done wonders with the landscaping and it's just beautiful in summer. All sorts of flowers hanging in pots and planted around the quaint shops and restaurants.

Clarke is head down driving the breakaway into the wind. We doubt Caruso has been obliged to do very much work, considering he's working for the leader of the race. 

The gap is coming down but the peloton behind is being torn asunder by the crosswinds. There are four echelons and it's a constant fight.

The wind is so strong it's kicking up dirt devils, which are tiny swirls of air like minature tornadoes.

They'll be happy to hear there is not as much wind in Breckenridge, but they'll have to climb over the Hoosier Pass to get relief.

The dust isn't obscuring the view, however. The leaders can see the mountain ahead but it seems to be so very, very far away. 

@Laura_Weislo Thu, 20th Aug 2015 20:03:52

Caruso is just bouncing along on the wheel of the other four leaders, he is the passenger. He rides and he rides, under the bright and hollow sky...

We had better video last year when it was pounding down rain. Our TV cameras can hardly keep the signal going. Maybe it has something to do with sunspots or alien abductions.

Looks as if Gaimon and Clark are doing the most work in the breakaway.

We've finally gotten a peek at the peloton behind. Cannondale-Garmin is doing a TTT at the front, being forced into doing all of the work since BMC has Caruso in the breakaway. The red team seem happy even if Kreuziger much better placed than Caruso - by 10 minutes. This breakaway won't survive Hoosier Pass.

The five leaders have a very long stretch of road in front of them, but they're beginning to see some positive signs. The mountains look bigger, meaning nearer, and there are a few buildings - a hint of civilization in this vast grassland.

Looks like the peloton has reformed, though there are some stragglers coming back from the cars. They're still showing echelon formation but as a pack, not as a shattering pack.

47km remaining from 203km

Bookwalter is getting a nice ride thanks to his team forming around him, blocking the wind. But even still, it's not easy. They're chasing flat out and bringing the gap under a minute. Time to get the last feed from the car as they'll be pulled from the gap soon.

The gap has been halved again, going down exponentially now. Only 35 seconds separate the two groups.

The race is just outside Fairplay and can see the breakaway. They're not quite ready to catch them yet.

After hours in the middle of nowhere, they've got a few fans to cheer them along, and finally a little shelter from the wind.

The wind is hitting the riders in their left ears, and they'll be turning straight into it after they reach the sprint. But luckily as they get closer to the mountain the climb will shelter them from the wind. They'll trade one pain for another.

There's a bit of coasting going on in the peloton, they're not quite ready to catch the leaders because that will spark a whole new series of attacks.

The leaders are inside 1km to the sprint, and Kreuziger rolls to the front.

41km remaining from 203km

Gaimon, Kreuziger and Clark roll through the sprint in that order.

Caruso had stuffed his pockets with bidons as he thought the break was going to be caught, but then jettisoned them as they were allowed more time. Break is up to 40 seconds as they head up toward Hoosier Pass.

We get a glimpse of US champion Matthew Busche at the front of the peloton as a rider comes blasting out of the pack.

Wojciech Migdal (Cycling Academy) is the rider who jumped from the pack. It's the first time we've been treated to a good view of that kit off the front.

Migdal just doesn't have it to bridge across. Often times at the end of a stage like this you're about to blow sky high and you get a burst of energy and think, "I should attack!". Then you get 30 seconds into your effort and you regret it.

He's caught, and the leaders still have 45 seconds.

37km remaining from 203km

The leaders are really starting to hurt now. The wind, the dry air, the altitude, the climbing straight from the gun - sitting at home reading it seems like a boring stage but on the bike it's an endless suffer-fest.

Taylor Phinney is still up near the front for BMC, and most of the peloton is together behind the breakaway by 50 seconds.

The mountains are looming much larger now, and the leaders have just a few more kilometers of flattish roads before Alma, where they'll begin the climb in earnest.

The breakaway is still doing a bit of an echelon, but the wind is now cross-head. Jelly Belly is leading the peloton now for Lachlan Morton.

Nobody on the GC is threatened by Kreuziger, the highest placed on the standings, but he's a world class climber when he wants to be, and they don't want to give him a head start.

Smartstop is now pulling through, too - the WorldTour teams taking a back seat to the Continental riders for the moment.

34km remaining from 203km

Almost into Alma, the leaders are just 31 seconds up the road now, and Murphy continues to push the pace ahead.

The race is passing through Alma and the climb will really start to kick up in about 1km.

The peloton can see the breakaway haed. The flags flying show they still have a headwind. The breakaway knows their time is almost up but they persist.

Clark attacks. Caruso goes after him.

Murphy is in time trial mode chasing back to them.

Kreuziger didn't even look twice when Clark went. He just went straight back to the peloton. Clark and Caruso now have a slight gap on Murphy, with Gaimon back in the peloton.

A Cannondale pops out of mid-pack and heads to the front. The climb is visible ahead. Clarke is grinding up the start of it with Caruso glued to his wheel.

Murphy is about to be caught, but the C-duo have 30 seconds on the bunch.

Murphy has been brought back, and the climb has not yet begun to pitch up - it's a false flat at the moment, Clark and Caruso still in the big ring.

The road is visibly higher than the valley to the riders' left. Caruso finally takes a pull after a day long trip in the passenger seat.

29km remaining from 203km

Nobody would complain about Caruso, they know he's doing his job. But Clark isn't able to hold his wheel anymore and heads back to the bunch.

@BDAndrewsphoto Thu, 20th Aug 2015 20:51:57

The wind is preceding the riders as they head up Hoosier Pass. Caruso is dangling like a rabbit in front of the race horses, just ahead of the flotilla of support motorcycles.

27km remaining from 203km

Finally, after a billion kilometers, the breakaway has been caught thanks to Jelly Belly's efforts for Lachlan Morton.

Danish champion Chris Anker Søensen is in trouble at the back. There have been a lot of riders suffering with the altitude - it affects sleep and hydration. He's not alone in being shot out the back. Didier is out, Murphy is out. Torckler is out.

It's still Jelly Belly at the front. It's nice to see the Continental teams taking charge, even if their efforts have been fairly futile so far this week.

Caruso and Kreuziger wave goodbye to the race as BMC takes oer from the Jelly Belly riders.

The peloton is nearly single file going up this gradient, it's not too steep yet but riders are being popped out one at a time.

Ferrari of Caja Rural is the latest victim.

Reijnen is stuck to the back of this long line in the green jersey.

Reijnen might want to move up as gaps are starting to form ahead. There is a lot of movement as climbers pass sprinters in the bunch, but so far it's all together.

Racing at altitude is like doing jumping jacks on the moon. Slow motion.

Reijnen moved up past two Caja Rural riders as the peloton nears the top of the pass.

Just one more kilometer of climbing to go. The descent is very tricky and there were several crashes last year- but that was with wet roads. Let's hope they all get down safely.

The WorldTour teams are strutting their stuff now, with only one Hincapie rider, a few Caja Rural guys left for Hugh Carthy, and an Axeon rider in the front part of the bunch.

There's SmartStop's Rob Britton near the front as they have the KOM in sight. Lots of fans to raise their spirits.

Reminder to the fans, don't run in front of the riders. Geez... The BMC riders lead the bunch over the top, with Schär taking the cat 2 points.

Oooouch. The Smartstop riders have to sprint to get back on the peloton as the whip end snaps them hard.

21km remaining from 203km

The switchbacks have to be a visual relief after hours of straight roads. The BMC riders have the best view at the front.

20km remaining from 203km

At the back Angus Morton and Tom Zirbel are sitting on the back, swerving around dips and potholes in the road. It's not a smooth surface.

They've made it past the worst of the switchbacks but the acceleration at the front has the back markers in trouble.

A Tinkoff rider surges to the front.

A Cannondale rider in a deep aero tuck heads past but just pulls them along. That style, pedaling while sitting on the top tube, looks uncomfortable.

17km remaining from 203km

The road has flattened out, and the peloton is still quite large. The riders are all waiting for Boreas Pass, where their final chance to distance the sprinters will come.

Still BMC in control, but one Axeon rider has come up to the front with them.

The peloton has bunched up and there's a lot of looking around.

13km remaining from 203km

There's been an attack from Optum, he's pulled three more riders clear just by a few meters.

Boivin is in there with one teammate. He is looking around. His teammate goes back to the bunch, and a Cannondale rider pulls out the pace.

One Trek, Axeon, Cannondale, Boivin and a Caja Rural rider who's bridged have a slight advantage.

It's Watson who's attacked, but the rest are caught.

10km remaining from 203km

This move isn't going to stick. The Boreas Pass is 6km away.

9km remaining from 203km

BMC reels that Trek rider in.

The Axeon rider who is ahead of BMC now is Tao Geoghegan Hart, he was led to the front with a teammate.

Axeon has taken up the pace with 8km to go.

The course heads into Breckenridge, then out and around up the Boreas Pass and back down to town for the finish. It's a tough little climb that should preclude a big bunch sprint, but could favour Kiel Reijnen.

But it also can favor Logan Owen, who botched his sprint yesterday and missed out on the stage win.

The two Axeon riders got pinched by BMC and UHC as they head to the climb.

UHC pulls into the climb, but Phinney takes over and keeps his teammate Bookwalter in the mix. There's a Smartstop rider, and a Hincapie rider sitting ahead of the yellow jersey.

It's Travis McCabe who takes over as Phinney pulls off. The Hincapie rider attacks up the climb.

No ID on that Hincapie rider. Looks like Squire, who is in fifth overall. He's not getting much of a gap, but he's persisting.

Squire is keeping his gap and his effort is hurting evveryone except Bookwalter and Dennis.

Bookwalter is with Formolo (TCG) chasing behind Squire.

Once again, inconsiderate fans running in the way of the riders.

Rohan Dennis bridges up then blasts past Squire!

Dennis passes under the KOM banner and he has a gap. The crowds are so thick and so in the middle of the road we can't see where Bookwalter is.

3km remaining from 203km

Dennis is sitting on his top tube pedaling awkwardly down the descent into town. He's got a clean view of the route. 3km to go!

Looks like Squire and Bookwalter have come together, and the BMC rider will just sit on.

Dennis sitting on his top tube pedaling is a bit clown-like but effective. He's keeping that gap.

1km remaining from 203km

1km to go for Bookwalter!

Sorry 1km to go for Rohan Dennis, but now it's 1km for Bookwalter too.

Dennis wins, and Bookwalter beats Squire to the line for second, reversing the result of their previous succes - Dennis in yellow tomorrow!

Phew! Dennis gets to take the yellow, coming in 19 seconds ahead of Bookwalter.

1 Rohan Dennis (Aus) BMC Racing Team 5:10:55
2 Brent Bookwalter (USA) BMC Racing Team 0:00:19
3 Rob Squire (USA) Hincapie
4 Jonathan Clarke (Aus) UnitedHealthcare Pro Cycling 0:00:23
5 Bruno Pires (Por) Tinkoff-Saxo
6 Gavin Mannion (USA) Jelly Belly
7 Toms Skujins (Lat) Hincapie
8 Dion Smith (NZl) Hincapie
9 Tao Geoghegan Hart (GBr) Axeon
10 Lachlan Morton (Aus) Jelly Belly

General classification after stage 4

1 Rohan Dennis (Aus) BMC Racing Team 17:24:03
2 Brent Bookwalter (USA) BMC Racing Team 0:00:13
3 Rob Squire (USA) Hincapie Racing Team 0:00:26
4 Jonathan Clarke (Aus) UnitedHealthcare Pro Cycling 0:00:27
5 Hugh Carthy (GBr) Caja Rural-Seguros RGA 0:27
6 Lachlan Morton (Aus) Jelly Belly 0:00:42
7 Jaime Roson (Spa) Caja Rural-Seguros RGA 0:00:44
8 Davide Formolo 0:00:48
9 Julien Bernard (Fra) Trek Factory Racing 0:00:55
10 Toms Skujins (Lat) Hincapie Racing Team 0:01:01

Rohan Dennis gets a nice hat with horns for his stage win. Robbie Squire and Brent Bookwalter have to be content just with flowers.

The top three get a well desevered magnum of Sierra Nevada beer. Hope it's cold!

They keep the beer, rather than spraying it on the fans, just in case you were worried.

Dannis took over the points classification from a rather unhappy Kiel Reijnen, but the UHC rider will get to wear it in tomorrow's time trial.

The mountains jersey also goes to Dennis. Caja Rural's Hugh Carthy keeps the best young rider jersey.

That's it for us today. Tune back in for tomorrow's time trial in Breckenridge. It'll be a quick one at 14km. The stage begins at 1pm local time.

Don't forget to follow Cyclingnews for the inaugural Women's USA Pro Challenge, they also will take on the Breckenridge course tomorrow.