Laura Van Gilder (Mellow Mushroom) won day three of the Tour of America’s Dairyland as David Guttenplan (AG Bicycles) managed to derail the UnitedHealthcare train’s traditional Jake Keough-led sweep of the podium.
The Giro d’Grafton saw riders dashing for cash early on in the women’s race, with primes sending the likes of Meredith Miller (Tibco-To the Top), Anna Sanders (FCS-Zngine), Heather Fischer and Christa Ghent (Exergy Twenty16), and Erin Silliman (Fearless Femmes-Pure Energy) off the front in search of a little extra folding green.
But with one lap to go the field had reformed and it was the speedy Van Gilder who took the bunch sprint ahead of Cari Higgins (Exergy Twenty16) and Jen Purcell (Colavita-Fine Cooking).
Van Gilder also took the pink leader’s jersey from Theresa Cliff-Ryan (Fearless Femme).
The pro men’s race saw some action early on but nothing that stuck.
With 30 laps to go, a three-man break formed, consisting of Alexander Ray (ISCorp-Intelligentsia Coffee), Dion Smith (Predator-Carbon Repair) and Jeyson Camilio Ulloa (Indeportes Boyaca). As it was pulled back, Sergio Hernandez (Predator) countered, followed by Andrew Dahlheim (Bissell) and Tim Rugg (Kelly Benefit Strategies-Lateral Stress Velo), and a second trio went up the road, taking 17 seconds with 14 laps remaining.
But this escape was likewise doomed, and as the UHC blue train poured on the coal it was Keough and Hilton Clarke finishing one-two with Guttenplan preventing another sweep of the podium.
Keough remains in the overall lead.
The Tour of America’s Dairyland continues Sunday with the Carl Zach Cycling Classic in Waukesha.