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Horner and Bessette wrap up Redlands titles

Dionne and Demars win Sunset Road Race

By Bryan Jew, VeloNews managing editor
Published: Mar. 28, 2004
Horner has dominated throughout
Horner has dominated throughout
Photo: Casey B. Gibson

Chris Horner and Lyne Bessette successfully defended their respective leader's jersey on Sunday's final stage of the 20th-anniversary Redlands Bicycle Classic, with Horner taking his fourth win in five years and Bessette winning the women's race for the second time. On the closing Sunset Loop road race, Bessette was content to defend the race lead and seal the overall win, opening the door for an opportunistic and gutsy win by Victory Brewing's Nicole Demars. However, in the men's race, Horner took the opportunity to deliver one more blow to the reeling Health Net team, setting up his Webcor Builders teammate Charles Dionne for the stage win, the day after Health Net's Gord Fraser closed the door on Dionne just before the final turn of the downtown criterium.

The ride of the day belonged to Demars, who attacked on the very first lap of the 60-mile women's race on a day when temperatures in Southern California soared into the mid-80s. With Demars no threat to any of the top riders in the overall, Quark, RONA and Genesis Scuba were content to let her roll away. Seizing the chance, Demars pedaled a smooth rhythm over the tough Sunset Loop climbs, building her lead to more than two minutes at times.

Never give up. Demar's efforts pay off
Never give up. Demar's efforts pay off
Photo: Casey B. Gibson

Demars had a relatively smooth ride until late in the race, when T-Mobile, hungry for another stage win, launched mountain-biker and guest rider Sue Haywood on the final lap of the circuit in pursuit of the leader. Haywood would catch Demars by the run-in from the main loop to the finish in downtown a few miles away, and with the main field bearing down on them as well, there was the cruel possibility that after more than 50 miles out front, Demars would be denied the victory.

However, the lead duo maintained the slimmest of margins over the chase, and with about 400 meters to go, Demars made her bid for victory. She gapped Haywood and was able to cruise onto the finishing straight all alone, sealing a major victory for her team, and herself.

Bessette has proven more than capable of taking on Jeanson
Bessette has proven more than capable of taking on Jeanson
Photo: Casey B. Gibson

In the race for the overall, Bessette finished comfortably in the main field, along with second- and third-place finishers Geneviève Jeanson (RONA) and Christine Thorburn (Webcor Builders), to cap a solid week of racing.

Webcor's double whammy
In the men's race, Horner's Webcor team finished what it had started four days earlier, when it first defended the leader's jersey on the Crestline road race stage, and also got a bit of revenge for the previous afternoon, when they felt Fraser had deliberately taken Dionne into the barriers on the last lap of the criterium.

The men's 85-mile Sunset race saw an early break take off for the fourth time in four road stages, and Health Net again had one of its heavy hitters in the break, with Scott Moninger joining Eric Wohlberg (Sierra Nevada), Will Frischkorn (Colavita Olive Oil) and Doug Ollerenshaw (Jelly Belly-Aramark) in the second-lap move. A lap later, they had been joined by Jurgen Van Den Broeck (U.S. Postal Service), Ben Brooks (Jelly Belly-Aramark), Gordon McCauley (Monex) and Jacob Erker (Seasilver).

The presence of Van Den Broeck, fifth on G.C., meant that Horner and Webcor would keep a tight rein on the break, but with the Postal man more of a threat to third place Adam Bergman (Jelly Belly-Ararmark) and second place Cesar Grajales (Jittery Joe's), much of the load would fall on those two teams as well.

... was watched closely by the two top teams.
... was watched closely by the two top teams.
Photo: Casey B. Gibson

Horner would ask his Webcor team to ride the front for one final day, after a week of doing so, and as they had for most of the week, Jittery Joe's threw in a few riders to protect Grajales's standing. But on the closing two laps of the main circuit, with the gap still around a minute and Bergman's G.C. lead over Van Den Broeck at only 41 seconds, Jelly Belly had the job of closing the gap before the race reached the finishing circuits downtown, and they did just that.

With the race all together, McCauley launched an attack just before they hit the downtown circuits, and stayed away for the first of the five closing laps. The New Zealander would stay off for two-and-a-half laps in his bid for the win, but with three laps remaining, Horner himself went to the front with Dionne in tow, and closed the gap to set up the sprint finish for Dionne.

On the final two laps, Health Net sent its train to the front looking to set up Greg Henderson for the win (Fraser had flatted out earlier in the race), but just as it had been the night before, the train was denied the win. Dionne shot through the final turn trailed by Henderson and the previous night's winner Alex Candelario (Jelly Belly), and this time everything fell into place as the Canadian flew across the line first - with Candelario second and Henderson third - to cap a perfect week for Webcor and Horner.

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