Local boy Siutsou powers to stage 8 win.

///Local boy Siutsou powers to stage 8 win.

Local boy Siutsou powers to stage 8 win.

The local winner

It’s nice to know the local roads. Especially when you’re riding the Giro, have good legs and the green light to go for stage wins. Nobody every wins the Giro while checking the route with a Michelin Guide or shouting “which way to Bergamo?” at spectators.

Yesterday, Kanstantsin Siutsou went for a ride in his Italian neighborhood. For fun he invited his Columbia-Highroad team and 21 other pro teams to join him for the road trip. Yup, just a friendly 209k spin into Bergamo. Orginally from Belarus, Siutsou lives not far from the town and knows the roads well. So when the competative juices got flowing he jumped away, hit the last Bergamo Alta climb and then bombed the dangerous descent into town for his biggest win.

Not only has Siutsou trained in the part of Italy, he’s also a student of the area’s cycling history, “Garzelli won a similar stage that used this climb [to Bergamo Alta] and I knew when you have a gap like I had at the top, you can be quite sure you will win.” Well, he certainly earned a nice Biscotti di Clusone, a local delicacy. Perhaps team manager Stapleton will buy him one.

By |2024-03-18T16:26:09-07:00May 18th, 2009|Giro d'Italia|0 Comments

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