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Leipheimer takes Sea Otter with ease

Published: Apr. 17, 2009
Sea Otter 09: Leipheimer came for training and left with a win
Sea Otter 09: Leipheimer came for training and left with a win
Photo: Brad Kaminski

Astana's Levi Leipheimer glided up the finishing climb to victory at the Sea Otter Classic road race Friday, finishing just ahead of the three Bissell men with whom he was in a long breakaway.

Leipheimer's Santa Rosa training buddy, Paul Mach, took second with his Bissell teammate Morgan Schmitt rounding out the podium. Ben Jacques-Maynes, the fourth man in the break, came in just behind.

"This is home for me," Leipheimer said. "I came up through the ranks doing these local races and I appreciate them. And I wanted to keep a light spring training schedule. So, this is what I call free training – to get out there and battle with these guys. And it was tough."

Bissell threw its numbers at Leipheimer, putting a number of riders into early moves.

"We had a pretty good day in the breakaways," said Mach. "We were trying to send as many guys up the road as possible to try and tire him out."

But coming up the final 2-mile, eight percent grade to the finish, Leipenheimer looked anything but tired, and easily rolled away from the four seconds.

"We went pretty much into the bottom of the final hill together," Mach said. "Morgan went first, then Ben, and then I went and Levi was on my wheel. I tried to put in a dig at the end to see what would happen. But basically (Leipheimer) just sat there, and then he passed me."

Schmitt won Thursday's criterium, which also unfolded with three Bissell riders clear off the front. On Friday, however, there was a top ProTour rider in the mix.

Leipheimer was relaxed throughout the day, chatting with people at SRAM's booth before the race, and with a handful of reporters afterward. Even in the final meters of the race, Leipheimer wasn't so much sprinting for the win so much as just keeping the gear turning easily over.

Cromwell wins women's race

By Corby Anderson
Tiffany Cromwell (Colavita/Sutter Home) dominated the women's field, winning by a wide margin after a successful solo breakout.

The 21-year-old, originally from Australia, paced a field that included including Team Tibco's Joanne Kiesanowski, who finished second for the second day in a row after missing out on first place by less than a bike length in Thursday's criterium.

The Colavita/Sutter Home team continued to own the middle spot of the Sea Otter Classic winners' podium with Cromwell's dominant win, adding to teammate Kelly Benjamin's dramatic victory the day prior.

Catherine Cheatley added a third place finish to Colavita/Sutter Home's haul — a remarkable feat considering that just three months prior she fractured her hip in a brutal velodrome accident.

The victorious team also placed riders in the fourth and fifth positions, giving Colavita/Sutter Home four of the top five spots in the 49-mile road race that wound through the hilly circuit of Fort Ord's backcountry.

Cromwell took advantage of a gorgeously clear, warm California day, which was a change from blustery, rain-drenched Sea Otter Classics of recent years.

"Today was like a perfect day almost. I am really excited, a win is a win, and it's always a good feeling," said Cromwell.

With a dominant team of strong riders to support her efforts, Cromwell found the running easy on the way to a 34-second victory.

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