Cycling: Racing into the Headwind

Chapter 145: Chapter 112: We Can’t Miss Such a Good Opportunity to Win the Championship

On a high-mountain stage with so much climbing, the riders who reached the finish line first were naturally the climbing-oriented GC contenders.

The sprinters who excelled on flat roads and the brawny, classics-style riders from the various teams had been dropped long ago and were nowhere to be seen.

However, when facing other climbers, Huang Chong’s sprinting ability was by no means weak.

On top of that, after cresting the final third-category climb—descending from the Qingsha Mountain pass at the 111km mark—he had eaten a system-rewarded Rapid Recovery Energy Bar to prevent any unexpected energy loss in the latter half of the race that could cost him his overall lead to other GC Cyclists.

As a result, his energy reserves were still more than ample, even as he approached the finish line.

The consequence was that when he launched his all-out sprint, he immediately unleashed a peak power output of nearly 1200W. The two riders beside him, Fagúndez Eric Antonio and Baldaccini Davide—both in the top five of the general classification—were utterly unable to respond and were instantly left in the dust.

The finish line arch in Huzhu County was set up on a wide, four-lane main road. Because of this, the Huzhu People lining the streets to welcome the riders had a crystal-clear view. With just over a hundred meters to go, they watched as Huang Chong—like the fiercest stallion on the high plateau—broke away from the pack and charged headlong for the finish arch, leaving everyone else in his dust.

The outcome was no surprise. He not only claimed another stage victory and the accompanying 10-second time bonus to protect his overall lead, but he also managed to open up a full 7-second gap over the second-place finisher, Baldaccini Davide, during that anaerobic sprint to the line.

Ultimately, after three days of racing, Huang Chong remained at the top of the general classification standings. He had opened up a lead of a full 5 minutes and 5 seconds over the second-place rider, the Colombian from the Medellin Team, Paredes Wilmar.

Third place in the GC was now held by Baldaccini Davide—the very rider Huang Chong had just decimated in the final sprint—trailing by 5 minutes and 41 seconds.

As for fourth place, Burgos-BH rider Fagúndez Eric Antonio, and fifth place, Bardiani Team’s Core Commander Mulubrhan Henok, they trailed Huang Chong by 5 minutes 46 seconds and 5 minutes 56 seconds, respectively.

This outcome was undoubtedly the hardest to accept for the Medellin and Bardiani Teams. They had frantically driven the pace at the front, hoping to use the tour’s most difficult climbing stage to finally break Huang Chong.

After Stage 3, not only had their respective Core Commanders completely lost the Polka Dot Jersey, but they had also failed to close the GC gap on Huang Chong. In fact, the gap had only widened.

Could the overall winner of this year’s Qinghai Lake Road Race already be decided on just the third day of competition?

After the third day of racing, the teams, who had come from all over the world, were forced to confront this very possibility.

"Damn it, there was nothing wrong with the strategy and tactics we planned for Stage 3."

After dinner, the Bardiani Team manager, in a foul mood, addressed his riders as they were getting recovery massages:

"Our Core Commander, Mulubrhan Henok, even took first at both intermediate sprint points and successfully snatched the Dash King Green Jersey from the Dutchman.

But when it came to the general classification, even when we worked with the Medellin Team to put the pressure on that rider from China, he still seemed completely at ease on all the difficult climbs!

It’s like I’m seeing a ghost!

And the worst part is, the explosive power he displayed in the final sprint today was a complete humiliation to all of us who traveled thousands of miles to compete here. It’s infuriating!

Do we really have no hope for the GC anymore?"

Neither the team’s Core Commander, Mulubrhan Henok, nor Lucca Riccardo, their second-ranked rider, said a word in response to the manager’s question.

After today’s stage, to claim they could drop Huang Chong on a climb would be pure self-deception. It was a boast so arrogant, even they couldn’t believe it themselves.

Finally, the team’s lead sprinter, Nieri Alessio, was the one to speak up.

"If we can’t drop him on the climbs, then our only option is to keep increasing the pace on the upcoming hilly stages. We’ll have to see if we can make up the GC time by relying on the raw physical differences between our races!"

"A great idea! Well said, Nieri!"

Hearing this, the team manager laughed, but it was a laugh born of pure frustration.

But he knew he had no better strategy to offer. So, swallowing his anger, he nodded and agreed to this tactic that barely qualified as one.

Finally, he said:

"Alright, everyone. Starting tomorrow, we’re doing what Nieri said. We keep pushing the pace, faster and faster, all the way to the finish line!"

...

「July 12th.」

The fourth stage of the Tour of Qinghai Lake, from Huzhu to Menyuan, began.

Compared to the previous three stages, this one had a different profile. Although it featured a First Category Climb, once the riders crested that climb at the 45.5km mark, there were no more difficult ascents for the rest of the race.

The latter half of the stage consisted of a long, gradual incline of 2-3%, leading into a flat sprint finish.

Without a doubt, this type of terrain offered a prime opportunity for the sprinters to contend for the Green Jersey.

On a stage like this, Huang Chong had nothing to fight for. Instead, his main task was to be cautious while drafting behind the leaders of the other teams.

This was because it was a rainy day, and the riders would be soaked for the entire race.

Ultimately, the race unfolded with little suspense. After the peloton passed the final intermediate sprint point at the 143.5km mark, Dutch ABLOC CT rider van den Broek Frank and Italian Corratec rider Gandin Stefano launched a two-man breakaway. They rode together all the way to the finish, crossing the line more than two minutes ahead of the main group that contained Huang Chong.