Drapac Pro Cycling’s USA race calendar heats up again with Tour of Utah and USA Pro Challenge this month. Drapac raced both events in 2014 and comes back to these iconic USA events with experience and momentum.
Tour of Utah will showcase the Drapac Sprint Train as well as 2014 10th place GC rider Lachlan Norris, who is back with a climbing group to tackle the mountains of Utah.
Sports Director Keith Flory was clear about the goals of the squad as they make their second appearance at what is titled the one of the world’s hardest stage races.
“We are coming to Utah with a focus on stage performances and we believe we have an excellent blend of riders to search for results on each stage. We will target each stage with specific goals. The tour of Utah is an incredibly hard race, so no one can underestimate any of the stages – each day can shape the GC and whilst we’ll not focus on this aspect, a strong performance on each of the stages will put people in the hunt for a top GC result,” Flory said.
Team captain Graeme Brown felt the strength and power of all the riders are vital to the success of the team this coming week.
“We bring a strong and unique group to Utah. A few of our riders have raced here last year and that experience is key in our approach. We will eye opportunities for our powerful sprint train, that we are continually trying to improve and then look for the climbers to have their days to shine in the mountains of Utah.”
Roster for Tour of Utah 3 Aug – 9 Aug
Graeme Brown (AUS)
Jordan Kerby (AUS)
Lachlan Norris (AUS)
Adam Phelan (AUS)
Tim Roe (AUS)
Malcolm Rudolph (AUS)
Samuel Spokes (AUS)
Wouter Wippert (NED)
Drapac heads later in the month to USA PRO Challenge in Colorado for what is sure to be a strong race, with each stage at altitude and varying terrain.
“Our team comes to this race with a focus on being highly aggressive and hunting for stage wins. We have a number of talented rouleurs in the team, such as Will Clarke & Adam Phelan, who are capable of getting a result at the end of hard stages. Although GC is not a focus for us we will be bringing Tim Roe and Lachlan Norris, who are both excellent climbers with the ability to keep us in the mix on the hillier stages,” Tom Southam, Sports Director, said.
Roster USA Pro Challenge 17 Aug- 23 Aug
William Clarke (AUS)
Dylan Girdlestone (SA)
Jordan Kerby (AUS)
Martin Kohler (SUI)
Lachlan Norris (AUS)
Adam Phelan (AUS)
Tim Roe (AUS)
Samuel Spokes (AUS)
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