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This race is always a big one. Jittery Joe’s has received an invitation to this race since its first year in 2003 and it has always been a focus for us. We have always been able to make a mark on this race every year whether winning a stage (Cesar Grajales—2004 Brasstown Bald), winning a Best Young Rider jersey overall (Trent Lowe 2005) or just riding hard and winning daily prizes like Most Aggressive Rider awards.

This year saw one of the strongest fields ever seen in North America with full squads from Astana, CSC, Gerolsteiner, Slipstream and all the big domestic teams. We started out in Tybee Island with a short flat stage to Savannah (site of a new Jittery Joe’s cafe 2 days earlier) and had a solid day with Cody in 11th and Jonathan in 17th. Day two we finished a 135 mile day in Augusta (home of our car sponsor Taylor BMW).

The finish of day two didn’t quite go as planned when Cody had a run in with a Health Net rider with 400 meters to go and crashed hard. He got up to finish, but probably would have been in the top 10 if he hadn’t gone down. Cody would continue to ride hard all week despite some bad road rash. Jonathan was again 17th.

Day three went only about 15 miles away from the team’s hometown of Athens to finish in Gainesville. Jonathan would capture the first top 10 of the week when he placed 9th on the difficult finish circuit. He was placed in the top 15 overall going into the Team Time trial.

The Team Time Trial at Road Atlanta was a spectacular stage. Thousands of people showed up to see the race and it was a huge hit with fans and teams alike. Louis Garneau broke out some special edition long-sleeve skinsuits for the occasion and the boys gave it a hard effort. The team was 14th place—not quite what we were hoping for but what can you expect when you are racing against the best in the world?

Friday’s stage was the first mountain stage and we did our best to get a rider in the break. 135 miles of rolling terrain plus three KOM climbs. No luck getting into the break again that day despite everyone on the team staying aggressive for the first few miles, but Trent put a strong effort in at the end and stayed in the top 10 that day to finish strong and to keep a solid GC spot.

Saturday’s stage was the infamous Brasstown Bald day. The stage was only 88 miles long, but it included the two most difficult climbs in Georgia with the backside of Hogpen Gap and Brasstown Bald (including the Owl Creek wall). Neil made it into the break that day and had a spectacular ride. He fought Jason McCartney of CSC for KOM points all day and put a valiant solo effort in right before the field caught them at the bottom slopes of Brasstown. He was awarded the Most Aggressive Rider award on the day and also captured enough KOM points to finish 2nd overall in the KOM competition overall for the Tour.

Sunday’s circuit in downtown Atlanta is usually a formality and this year would be no different. A strong break went up the road and High Road defended their yellow jersey by riding the front all day and catching the break on the last lap to finish with a field sprint. Jared (our California rookie) was in the break all day and rode strong to give the Bean Team some great visibility at a fantastic crowd in Atlanta.

All in all, we had another successful Tour de Georgia. Trent and Jonathan both got a top 10 stage finish, Neil won a Most Aggressive Rider jersey and 2nd overall in the KOM competition, and Trent ended up a very solid 21st overall at one of the biggest races in North America.

Thanks to all of your for your support and see you on the road!
Micah

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