Tour of California, Stage 4: The Clear Winner

Two steep climbs within the final 5 kilometers ensured that the marquee sprinters would not be present to contest for the stage victory.  However the World Champion, Peter Sagan (Tinkoff) is not your typical sprinter.  It was Sagan who was able to sprint around Nathan Hass (Dimension Data) and still hold off the chasing Greg Van Avermaet (BMC).  It was Van Avermaet that Sagan left on the penultimate climb of 23rd Street in Richmond, Virginia on his was to winning his Rainbow Jersey.  Van Avermaet did manage to exact some revenge in some of the early Spring races in Belgium this year.  Julian Alaphilippe (Etixx-Quickstep) managed to hang on to finish at the same time as the leaders thus holding on to Yellow.  Sagan may have done enough to solidify is hold on what will become his fourth Green Jersey in the Tour of California, a feat he has already accomplished in the Tour de France.

This is a small original watercolor and ink painting created live during the race using Yarka St. Petersburg watercolors and Steve Quiller brushes from www.richesonart.com.  This painting and all of my cycling art is available through my artist website at www.greigleach.com.  You will also find my art/cycling books on the 2014 Tour du France and the 2015 UCI Road World Championships on the site as well.  To purchase this particular painting, just follow the direct link at the end of this post. Don't delay, these are one of a kind original paintings, so once they are gone, they are gone.

http://www.greigleach.com/large-multi-view/Tour%20of%20California/2792960-20-223355/Painting.html#.Vz0Vw_mDGko

Tour of California, Stage 4: On to the Track

Two short steep climbs mark the end of a 134 mile race along the Pacific coast, the final on the Mazda Raceway just above Monterey Bay.  First it was yet another rider for Axeon Hagens Berman, Ruben Gurreiro, who went on the attack.  His effort was quickly countered by Nathan Haas (Dimension Data).  While these two raced away, the favorites including George Bennett (LottoNL Jumbo), Peter Sagan (Tinkoff) and Greg Van Avermaet (BMC) played cat and mouse, trying to see who could escape from whom.

This is a small original watercolor and ink painting created live during the race using Yarka St. Petersburg watercolors and Steve Quiller brushes from www.richesonart.com.  This painting and all of my cycling art is available through my artist website at www.greigleach.com.  You will also find my art/cycling books on the 2014 Tour du France and the 2015 UCI Road World Championships on the site as well.  To purchase this particular painting, just follow the direct link at the end of this post. Don't delay, these are one of a kind original paintings, so once they are gone, they are gone.

http://www.greigleach.com/large-multi-view/Tour%20of%20California/2792957-19-223355/Painting.html#.Vz0SOfmDGko