3 years ago by Tom Owen

Carpenter wins Britain stage 2, seizes race lead

TOUR OF BRITAIN
Stage 2 
Sherford – Exeter
ROSTER
 WEATHER
A hot one in the Devon sun. The mercury tipped 24°C / 75°F.
  TERRAIN
The loveliness of coastal England, and the mystic moorland of Dartmoor.
 COURSE 
Lots of winding roads, steep climbs, perfect for an ambush.
THE STAGE

A daring solo move with 30km to go saw Robin Carpenter blow away the breakaway and outrun the peloton, to claim his first European race win. 

Not only did he secure the stage honors[2], Carpenter also finished with enough time on the peloton to go into the blue overall leader’s jersey. 

“I was feeling really good almost all day, then the last 15km were super tough. I didn’t have a whole lot left in the tank, but I knew I had a big gap. I just had to keep it steady and make sure I didn’t explode.”

Carpenter attacked the descents into Exeter with relish[3], but he found the tank almost dry by the time he reached the city.

“I was falling apart at the end but I made sure to be falling apart by myself.”[4]

  QUOTE OF THE DAY  
"I knew I didn’t want any company in the last 20km, I just wanted to do it solo."
– ROBIN, ON SOLITUDE
DECISIVE MOMENTS
The break gets established early on the way out of Plymouth. They build a margin of 4 minutes.
The peloton almost catches the break on the first KOM, before sitting up[1].
At 45km to go, the other members of the break fall away, leaving Carpenter & Scott.
Robin hits it for real[5] 30km out and shakes Scott.
 Robin crosses the line solo, after some daring descending.
NOTABLE RESULTS
Robin Carpenter wins stage 2 of the Tour of Britain
Carpenter's margin of victory puts him into the blue race leader's jersey, 22" ahead of Wout van Aert (Team Jumbo-Visma)
LAY OF THE LAND

The team heads into the stage 3 TTT with every intention of going after it, not just to honor the blue jersey but also to help the chances of our riders best-suited to the overall GC. “We were always going to hit it hard anyway," Carpenter said. "We’ve got a couple of guys who are well-suited to go for the overall so we’ll do our best and see what happens.”

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