2008 Tour of Missouri Live Updates: Stage 5

for live coverage of stage 5

To VeloNews.com’s live coverage of stage 5 of the Tour of Missouri, a 109-mile stage from St. James to Jefferson City. We join the race at mile 60. A 12-man break is up the rode with about a 3-minute lead on the peloton.

After the requisite attacks and counters early on, the 12-man move got established about 20 miles into the day. Most teams except Garmin-Chiptole and Sparkasse are represented in the move.

Mark Cavendish (Columbia)
Gianni Da Ros (Liquigas)
Michael Van Stayen (Rabobank)
Lui Alfredo Gutierrez Colunga (Tecos)
Darren Lill (BMC)
Michael Creed (Rock Racing)
Caleb Manion (Toyota-United)
Chris Wherry (Toyota-United)
Kyle Gritters (Health Net-Maxxis)
Luis Amaran (Colavita-Sutter Home)
David Veilleux (Kelly Benefit Strategies-Medifast)
Brent Bookwalter (BMC)

With Sparkasse up there, too. Garmin-Chipotle, with their man Christian Vande Velde in the leader’s jersey, is keeping a cautious eye on things, but isn’t sweating the break at the moment, as the highest place man on GC (BMC’s Darren Lill) is more than 19 minutes down.

25. Darren Lill (BMC) at 19:09
32. Brent Bookwalter (BMC) at 20:21
33. Chris Wherry (Toyota-United) at 20:26
34. Luis Amaran (Colavita-Sutter Home) at 20:27
42. Michael Creed (Rock Racing) at 21:30
45. Mark Cavendish (Columbia) at 21:40
71. Lui Alfredo Gutierrez Colunga (Tecos) at 23:59
75. Gianni Da Ros (Liquigas) at 24:10
78. Caleb Manion (Toyota-United) at 24:21
82. Michael Van Stayen (Rabobank) at 25:00
98. David Veilleux (Kelly Benefit Strategies-Medifast) at 27:57
101. Kyle Gritters (Health Net-Maxxis) at 28:29

We are at mile 65 now. Toyota-United’s Dominique Rollin has a commanding lead of the KOM competition with 24 points. Health Net’s Frank Pipp is second with 15 points.

With Cavendish in the 12-man group that was clear through both of those sprints, who do you think was first across the line?

Of course, while Cavendish would love for the group to ride cohesively all the way to the line, his breakaway companions will be wanting to get get rid of the sprinter before the line.

Cavendish is slipping off the back of the group on the rollers up to the KOM now.

Hard to tell what was going on there. Maybe he just needed a little fresh air.

The maximum lead was about 5 minutes.

We started today in St. James, a little red brick town of about 4,000 people. Like a lot of Missouri, it can’t decide whether it’s in the Midwest or the West. Or WE can’t decide, anyway. It was hard to find WiFi or a Starbucks, but it’s Frogleg Friday at the CountryMart. We are told they are good-deep fried.

Columbia’s Craig Lewis got a quite a few cuts and scrapes yesterday, got some stitches on his elbow and flew home this morning. His teammate John Devine broke his collarbone and also left today.

Kelly Benefit’s David Veilleux is racing with shoe covers. He sprained his right ankle in the TT when he dropped his bottle into his rear wheel and crashed. He says he’s fine riding but walking hurts – and his feet sweat a lot with all the tape.

As we pass through St. Thomas.

Scooping up the KOM points in defense of their teammate Dominique Rollin’s KOM jersey.

Sparkasse is up there, too, with Garmin-Chipotle tucked in behind them.

It makes it a little difficult to pull over and, um, take a natural break. But it’s great to see so many people out.

The gap is hovering at two minutes from the 12-man group to the peloton.

The American Bissell squad and the German Sparkasse outfit are giving it on the front of the field now, bringing the gap under two minutes.

No big climbs, but the roads are constantly going up and down, up and down.

Which is never what the guys in the break want to hear, as it means the gap is closing down on them.

Missouri homeboy Brad Huff is their man. He is well versed on races these roads, including the hilly run-in to the finish today in the state capital.

Remember it was Brad Huff who took the jersey at the U.S. national criterium championship in Downers Grove in 2006, the year after he won the elite (Cat. 1) title on the same course. He was riding for Slipstream in 2006.

As we approach Taos. Huh. And here we thought New Mexico had the only Taos.

Lill is looking strong in the break. Veillux, not so much. Maybe that ankle he hurt in the TT crash is starting to really get to him. Cavendish looks cool as a cucumber.

Bissell, Jelly Belly and Sparkasse are earning it.

Riders are dropping back to take on supplies, but are otherwise all pulling through evenly, doing their share.

Jelly Belly is probably riding for Huff or Bernard Van Ulden or Nick Sanderson. Sanderson took third to Ivan Dominguez on a stage of the Tour de Georgia this year.

Sparkasse has Eric Baumann, who has been right there behind Cavendish twice already in Missouri.

And Bissell has Richard England, who took a stage of the Tour de Georgia this year ahead of Rory Sutherland and George Hincapie.

They’re almost within sight.

Veilleux goes with him. Shows what we know about him looking bad.

But two coming across.

Rock’s Mike Creed and Toyota, looks like Wherry, have come across.

Lill (BMC), Veilleux (Kelly), Creed (Rock) and we think Wherry, but certainly a Toyota rider.

Wherry and his three mates have a good tempo going now.

Stand by for confirmation, but it looks like the new situation is the four riders – Lill, Veilleux, Wherry and Creed – have about 35 seconds on the peloton.

The gap is now almost a minute to the four leaders. Bissell, Jelly Belly and Sparkasse continue to drive the peloton. The rest of the breakaway is indeed back in the fold.

The peloton has pulled back two more riders from the original break.

The Bissel and Sparkasse teams are still putting the hammer down in the peloton. We’ll get a time check to the four men up front ASAP.

The four up front have around 21.5km to go, but they have just 1:00 on the main field. They are going to have to work for this one.

Just a reminder about the boys up front. Here are there names and positions on GC:
25. Darren Lill (BMC) at 19:09
33. Chris Wherry (Toyota-United) at 20:26
42. Michael Creed (Rock Racing) at 21:30
98. David Veilleux (Kelly Benefit Strategies-Medifast) at 27:57

to go, our four leaders are sharing the work quite nicely. It’s what they need to do if they hope to stay away. We may, however, see some attacks as our leaders near the finish.

has put its full gang up front to drive the chase. The team is sponsored by one of Germany’s largest savings banks … heck even the Live Update Guy still has an account at the Goppingen Sparkasse. No, we won’t give you the accunt number for that one.

the four men off the front are 18m from the finish, but more importantly, they are just 38 seconds ahead of the peloton led by the German bankers.

David Veilleux makes a jump out of the lead group. He’s pulled back, but we can expect a counter … and Darren Lill tries.

have a gap over Creed and Wherry.The Rock and Toyota fellas are sitting up.

Up front Darren Lill is attacking. Are we going to see a repeat of yesterday’s finish?

are back in the peloton.

Up front the remaining attackers are fighting it out but the main field is coming fast. The gap is down to 15 seconds.

are moving up front. The chase is on as our two leaders course through quiet neighborhoods of Jefferson City. They have about a one-block lead on the peloton.

is moving up to the front of the field. The two leaders arejust seven seconds ahead of the field as they pass the state capitol building.

is just about to happen… and there it is, as Lill and Veilleux shake hands and the peloton is all together.

With six miles to go – two trips around a three-mile loop – Sebastian Haedo takes a dig. He’s caught and the Columbia and Garmin teams are moving up to the front of the field.

is driving it up front, probably just to keep the speed high enough to prevent more major attacks.

is now up front. We can expect that the team is working for Mark Cavendish. That boy can sure sprint.

We see an attack from a Rabobank rider and he’s been pulled back before we could even ID him.

There is a new attack from Tony Cruz as the peloton crosses the finish line, meaning that we have one lap to go.

But the gaps are minimal and he’s caught.

A Liquigas rider has a small gap, but Columbia is chasing hard and he’s about to be caught.

With 1km to go, we will have a field sprint!

Whoever he is, he’s attacking with 500 meters to go.

With a 300 meter uphill charge to the finish, Rabobank’s Boy Van Poppel takes the field sprint!

He edged out his own teammate, Michael Van Stayen, and Kevin Lacombe from Kelly Benefit Strategies.

Christian Vande Velde finishes in the main field and holds on to the overall lead.

We’ll get quick stage and GC results ASAP.

has not changed.

The top three in the overall standings remain:
1. Christian Vande Velde (USA), Garmin
2. Michael Rogers (Aus), Columbia
3. Svein Tuft (Can) Symmetrics

is Boy van Poppel, the son of Jean-Paul van Poppel and Dutch cyclist Mirjam Melchers. Daddy van Poppel was the sprint ace from the ’80s and ’90’s. Daddy van Poppel who rode for Superconfex-Yoko, Panasonic, PDM and Festina.

Dad won more than a handful of Tour (9), Giro (4) and Vuelta (9) stages and the points jersey at the 1987 Tour.

Genes do count, eh?

have a full report from today’s stage coming up ASAP, as well as photos from Casey B Gibson, results and news from Steve Frothingham.

Be sure to turn in tomorrow for our Live Coverage of Stage 13 of the Vuelta a Espana. It’s gonna be a biggie.