TransPortugal Garmin Bike Race

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Back to the Mountains

Louize Hill/Agnelo Quelhas / 07.06.2009

As the racers left Albernoa this morning there were ominous clouds looming in the sky. It was clear it was going to rain during the day, and there were some very heavy showers. Between the showers the sun came out, and the colors of the countryside were fantastic. As it rained some sections of the course were quite muddy. Those riders in white shorts quickly didn\'t look quite so spotless!

During the first kilometers of the stage many of the riders rode in groups to work against the strong head wind that was still blowing. Later the stage reached the mountains of the Algarve with a number of stteep climbs and descents.

There was discussion at the finishing line as the whether the first stage or the seventh was the hardest. At least during the first stage the riders had fresh legs and felt strong. By today they have accumulated a lot of tiredness during the week. There was consensus that this race is tough.

A lot of riders had mechanical problems during the day. Both Andrew Jackson and Nuno Luz had ripped tyres. Both of them had to ask the organisation for assistance, so will have been attributed penalties. David Campbell didn\'t have any punctures today, but did break his chain.

Thomas Vandendaele broke his derailleur at the beginning of the timed section. He managed to patch his bike up as a single speed, but this meant Dries Leys had to push him up the hills and along the flat. Despite this, they still finished the stage well, together with Erik Bakke.

Once again João Marinho finished in first place. He rode well and attacked towards the end, gaining 5 min over Frans Claes, who came in 2nd place. Frans lost time early on when the group of Belgians he was riding with followed Erik Bakke down a steep hill, missing a turn to the left. Ricardo Melo and Luis Gomes came in next, followed by Tom Letsinger. Today Telmo Nunes had a great day and came in in 6th place.See All Event Posts