Carter Jones took the Amgen Tour of
California by the horns on the first stage and gave notice he was there to
race. The break of the day formed inside
the first 10 miles, but didn't really establish itself until Jones bridged up
to it. Once he got there, they worked
together well and set off for a day off the front; a hot day off the
front. Temps would remain in the triple
digits for most of the day making an all day break even tougher. Once he got to work though, Carter won the
first intermediate sprint and took the accompanying 3 sec time bonus. He finished second on the first KOM, but the
real climbing was still to come. Jones
led over the highest point of the ToC race, Palomar Mountain, for maximum
points and then took another KOM before the finish. By the last KOM, the break had been whittled
down to just two riders and they still held the field off until inside the last
5 km. Once caught, Jones was able to
finish with the remnants of the peleton, and with his 3 sec time bonus ended up
4th on GC in addition to being the first rider to pull on the KOM jersey in the
2013 Amgen Tour of California.
PCG Coach: Stephen McGregor
