Update From Stage 3 of the 62nd Vuelta a Andalucia Ruta Ciclista del Sol

The 3rd Stage of the Vuelta a Andalucia Ruta Ciclista del Sol was a grueling 157.9 kilometers of racing with Oscar Gatto of UCI World Tour Team Tinkoff taking first place in a sprint finish. Ben Swift of Team Sky and Raymond Kreder of Roompot – Oranje Peloton finished 2nd and 3rd respectively.  

Stradalli – Bike Aid racers battled for places in the peloton and made the best in the breakaways during the race. Riders Damian Garcia of France and Daniel Bichlmann of Germany are holding their own against World Tour teams every day, finishing alongside teams including Lotto Soudal and Movistar Team, who are providing quality competition which benefits the Stradalli – Bike Aid riders and helps them to learn and succeed later in the season. Ruta del Sol is proving to be a great test.

The Ruta del Sol continues with an individual time trial where Stradalli – Bike Aid riders will get the opputunity to show their strength in one of the toughest races in the world. 

Stradalli-Bike Aid Gears Up For Vuelta a Andalucia Ruta Ciclista Del Sol

The Vuelta a Andalucia Ruta Ciclista Del Sol UCI 2.1 race, which can trace its history back to 1925, is one of the longest running races on the schedule in Europe. The Stradalli – Bike Aid pro team continues its 2016 UCI calendarcampaign at the Ruta Del Sol, arriving with a full line up comprised of the top riders from the German Continental Professional Team. 

The race has been dominated in recent years by Alejandro Valverde from Team Movistar and Chris Froome of Team Sky who won last year’s edition, but historically German riders have excelled here. Erik Zabel is the most recent German to win despite facing quality competition.

One of the primary early season races, the Ruta del Sol is frequented by World Tour teams including, Trek – Segafredo, Team Giant – Alpecin among others. Half of the 24 teams in the race are World Tour teams while the rest of the field is made up of the top professional continental teams in Europe.

At the Challenge Mallorca, Stradalli – Bike Aid showed their ability to compete with the best in the world and they look to improve upon their results at the Ruta del Sol beginning tomorrow with the first 165.2 kilometer stage, Almonaster la Real – Sevilla.

Stradalli-Bike Aid Finishes Great Challenge Mallorca To Start Off 2016 Season

For the Stradalli-Bike Aid the 2016 Challenge Mallorca finished with great experiences and lessons learned. The 161.5 kilometer Trofeo Playa de Palma – Palma presented more than a few challenges for the team on the last day of four challenging days of racing in Mallorca. Andre Greipel of Lotto Soudal would not be denied as once again he found his way to the top of the podium in a fast sprint finish. For Stradalli – Bike Aid team however, racing in Mallorca was about much more than just final results. The racers started 2016 at La Tropicale Amissa Bongo and had fantastic results in the country where the team is making a huge impact. One of the biggest accomplishments of Mallorca for this team was that they were able to bring along 2 African athletes with them to race with the top level teams. It is hard to fully appreciate the difference between Continental Professionals and World Tour Professionals. Stradalli – Bike Aid riders often found themselves under pressure from the top guys of World Tour racing. When Fabian Cancellara attacks, there is not much a continental professionals can do. When Team Sky takes the front and picks up the speed on the ascent of a mountain, everyone hurts from it. For the growth of Stradalli – Bike Aid, competing against teams such as Movistar and Trek – Segafredo is an opportunity to learn. Daniel Bichlmann and Timo Schafer found themselves in breakaways many times which nearly reached the finish. Every day was filled with ups and downs but each rider on the team gave it everything they had. For a brand new team with new bikes the Challenge Mallorca was truly a success for Stradalli-Bike Aid and the "Aversa" full carbon road bikes performed great.