During the 180.3km Stage 5 trek from Exeter to Exmouth on Thursday, September 15, the results-producing US-based Pro Continental Team did just that – produced results – as sprinter and podium mainstay, Robert Förster, finished third on the day behind the HTC Highroad sprinting duo of Mark Renshaw (Aus) and Mark Cavendish (GBr). For Förster, it was his second top 10 finish in the Tour of Britain, as he took 6th in Stage 1. In addition, the collective effort from the boys in blue earned them the win for the Stage 5 Team Classification and of the 18 teams in the field, UnitedHealthcare Pro Cycling sits in 7th place in the Team Classification.

Photo: Jonathan Devich/epicimages.us

According to Team Director, Eric Greene, “The guys really stuck together today. Rory Sutherland was part of the nine guys that chased and caught the breakaway, Karl Menzies helped Boy out and Chris Jones helped Robert get up front for the sprint finish. Good Team work today and we are pleased with the results, especially since some of our key sponsors were here with us today, including our bike sponsors from Boardman.”

Stage 4 Highlights: Boy Van Poppel Moves into 3rd place in the GC following 5th place finish in Stage 4

Boy Van Poppel was among the elite group of 25 riders who contested Stage 4 winner, Thor Hushovd (Nor) of Team Garmin-Cervelo, who captured the victory in 4:32:22 after a tough finish featuring the ever-imposing Caerphilly Mountain. Rabobank’s Lars Boom (Ned) took second and Italian Cesare Benedetti of Team NetApp took third. Van Poppel’s effort enabled him to land in the top five, just behind Motorpoint’s Ian Bibby (Gbr) who finished fourth.

Commenting on Van Poppel’s performance after the 183.7km haul from Welshpool to Caerphilly, Team Director, Eric Greene, said, “Boy did an awesome job staying with the leaders to end up 5th in the Stage. Overall, it was a good day for us. We’re happy with the result but we still have several days to go here. We are a very focused bunch right now and just taking this thing one stage at a time and not getting ahead of ourselves.”

Stage 3 Highlights: Boy Van Poppel makes his move

Team UnitedHealthcare battled severe winds and weather during Stage 3 on Tuesday, September 13. Following the cancellation of Stage 2, the Stoke-on-Trent Stage was still very windy and quite the hard course with very narrow roads.

Photo: Lin Chien Hung/PhotoSport International

“There was lots of attacking from the gun,” said Greene. “Boy ended out in the move with Andrew Fenn (An Post-Sean Kelly) and Russell Hampton (Sigma Sport). The guys put in a tremendous effort. Boy ended up 19th and got a five second time bonus for taking first and second in the intermediate sprints, which elevated him to 5th in the General Classification.”

Stage 2: Severe weather forces cancellation of Stage 2

Stage 2 was cancelled due to severe weather caused by a storm from Hurricane Katia that hit Scotland, making it impossible to start the race. Wind gusts reached upwards of 85mph (137km/h) and Scottish Power reported that several hundred homes in Ayrshire and Dumfries and Galloway were without power. According to Greene, “The winds were so strong on the hour transfer to the race, the Team had to stop three times to re-secure the bikes. Race organizers made the right call as the stage was scheduled to finish in Blackpool, which is right on the coast.”

Stage 1: Robert Förster Finishes 6th

In the opening Stage of the Tour of Britain, Robert Förster took 6th place, finishing in the top 10 thanks largely in part to the outstanding work from Teammate Karl Menzies (Aus) and despite brutal weather conditions that featured heavy rain and strong winds. Those conditions would worsen and prove to be serious enough to force the cancellation of Stage 2.

THE TOUR OF BRITAIN 2011

The Tour of Britain began in the Scottish Borders on Sunday, September 11, before visiting England’s Northwest, Stoke-on-Trent and the Staffordshire Moorlands. Two stages in the Southwest, in Devon and Somerset, are followed by a return to East Anglia, with a stage from Suffolk to Norfolk, before the final day of the race takes place in central London on Sunday, September 18, as the battle for the race leader’s IG Markets Gold Jersey reaches its climax with an individual time trial and circuit race on the streets of Whitehall and Westminster.

Daily highlights of The Tour of Britain will once again be screened every evening on ITV4 from September 11 – 18.

The UnitedHealthcare Pro Cycling Team roster for the 2011 Tour of Britain:
Robert Förster (GER)?
Rory Sutherland (AUS)
Chris Jones (USA)?
Karl Menzies (AUS)
Boy Van Poppel (NED)
Jonny Clarke (AUS)

Crested Butte, CO – On a stage sponsored by the Team’s title sponsor, Brad White (USA) earned “Most Aggressive Rider” honors earlier today following his massive effort in Stage One of the 2011 USA Pro Cycling Challenge, the peloton’s first test in the high altitude of the Colorado Rockies. White, along with South Africa’s Jay Thompson of Team Bissell, spent 134km of the nearly 160km charge from Salida to Crested Butte at the front of the race, at times increasing the gap between the two riders and the field to nearly five minutes. And in a scene reminiscent from last week’s Larry H. Miller Tour of Utah, the two were able to separate from the initial break of four riders that went off the front early and manage to retain the lead for the majority of the day. Climbing to 11,312 feet, the two outpaced the peloton through Monarch Pass by 03:50 and held that gap on the field before eventually being reeled in late in the stage. As a result of his efforts, White will don the Most Aggressive Rider jersey at the start of Stage Two tomorrow in Gunnison.

Photo: Jonathan Devich/epicimages.us

White’s Teammate Rory Sutherland (AUS) finished 11th on the stage, which was won by Levi Leipheimer (USA) of Team RadioShack. Sutherland’s 11th place finish enabled him to move into 7th place overall, +0:35 behind the race leader, Leipheimer.

White also won the Intermediate Sprint in Gunnison while Teammate and fourth place finisher in the Prologue, Robert Förster, took second place in the Intermediate Sprint in Gunnison and third in the Intermediate Sprint in Crested Butte.

“Brad was tremendous today,” said General Manager and Team Director, Mike Tamayo. “To stay 134km off the front, win the intermediate sprint in Gunnison, and produce the type of overall effort he did today was impressive, especially given the motivated field here in Colorado and the challenges the altitude presents.”

Photo: Jonathan Devich/epicimages.us

The versatile White said, “It was a very hard day and I’m glad I was able to capture the Most Aggressive Rider’s jersey. Jay (Thompson) did a great job out there as we battled the wind constantly. I thought we were an ideal pair for the conditions and believe we worked well together.”

“CAPTAIN AMERICA” AND HIS HEROIC EFFORTS AT HOME AND IN THE PELOTON

White’s superhero-like effort today follows a string of amazing feats the man his Teammates have nicknamed “Captain America” has achieved. This past Friday, August 19th (the eve of USPRO Crit in Grand Rapids, Michigan), White’s wife gave birth to their second child. White, who lives in Grand Rapids, conducted a series of media interviews hours before leaving for the hospital, then following the birth of his new baby girl, raced hard on Saturday, where he endured a crash which required several stitches in his arm en route to helping land Teammate Jake Keough on the podium for the 17th time this season. Immediately following the race, White hopped on a plane for Colorado with his Teammates to join the balance of the squad racing at this week’s USA Pro Cycling Challenge, where he is continues to make a name for himself amongst the world’s best cyclists.

Photo: Jonathan Devich/epicimages.us

Förster averaged 58.5kmh/38.6mph while blazing through the winding, hairpin turns of Colorado Springs’ beautiful Garden of the Gods, nestled at the foot of the legendary Pike’s Peak and the front range of the Colorado Rockies. His scorching run topped several of the world’s time trialing elite, including 2011 Tour de France winner, Cadel Evans (AUS) of BMC, and David Zabriskie (USA) and Tom Danielson (USA), both of Team Garmin-Cervelo.

After a solid performance from Team UnitedHealthcare, the boys in blue and white are currently third in the Team General Classification after the first day, behind Pro Tour powerhouses BMC and HTC.

Förster’s Teammates, Adrian Hegyvary (USA) finished 14th on the day and Rory Sutherland (AUS) crossed the finish line one second behind Hegyvary, rounding out the field’s top 15.

Commenting on his performance, Förster said, “It was a good race for me – a little bit downhill, yes, but we know the course. The first part was technical and we risked a lot going all out, and the last 5km was just pedal, pedal, pedal!”

“When I saw the start list, I knew that I wanted to be top 10 or top 15, so to get in the top five today was great,” Förster concluded.

General Manager and Directeur Sportif, Mike Tamayo, said, “It’s good to see a sprinter like Robert have such a good Time Trial today. The Team put in a great effort and as a result is sitting in 3rd in the GC. Rory is just seconds outside the GC and overall, I believe this was a good day for the entire UnitedHealthcare Pro Cycling Team.”

FOLLOW THE USA PRO CYCLING CHALLENGE ON VERSUS AND NBC ON VERSUS:
Tuesday, August 23 (Salida to Crested Butte) 2pm MDT/4pm EDT (LIVE)
Wednesday, August 24 (Gunnison to Aspen) 2pm MDT / 4pm EDT (LIVE)
Thursday, August 25 (Vail) 2pm MDT / 4pm EDT (LIVE)
Friday, August 26 (Avon to Steamboat Springs) 2pm MDT / 4pm EDT
Saturday, August 27 (Steamboat Springs to Breckenridge) 2pm MDT / 4pm EDT

ON NBC:
Sunday, August 28 (Golden to Denver) 12pm MDT / 2pm EDT (Live)

AND FOLLOW THE RACE LIVE BY DOWNLOADING THE RADIO SHACK TOUR TRACKER APP FOR “USA PRO CYCLING CHALLENGE”

• iPhone
• iPad
• Android

Team Roster for the 2011 USA Pro Cycling Challenge:
Rory Sutherland (AUS)
Robert Förster (GER)
Brad White (USA)
Adrian Hegyvary (USA)
Scott Zwizanski (USA)
Davide Frattini (USA)
Jonny Clarke (USA)
Chris Jones (USA)