Colombian Olympian Carlos Alzate sped across the finish line to win the inaugural UBC Grand Prix in a three-second flash ahead of Victoria's Marsh Cooper. Riding for the Idaho-based Exergy Pro Cycling Team, Alzate and Cooper, who races for Minnesota-based Kelly Benefits Strategies Pro Cycling, broke away from the field 12 laps into the 40-lap circuit. Each lap measures 1.3 kilometres. Alzate crossed first in a time of one hour, 15 minutes and 8.21 seconds. Cooper conceded he couldn't keep pace with the Colombian sprint specialist. "Alzate is incredibly strong. I knew it was going to be extremely tough for me to take him and it kind of went the way I thought, unfortunately."
Whistler-based Shoshauna Laxson of the Trek Red Truck racing team, and Laura Brown of Local Ride Racing surged for a thrilling finish. Laxson hung off Brown's wheel, keeping pace and dousing the threat of each sprint. Then she upped the throttle before the final corner and won the 39-km race in 1: 04.11.
"I was hurting pretty bad, I'm not going to lie," said Laxson. "She went and then I went."
The criterium race, part of the $65,000 B.C. Superweek that includes the Giro di Burnaby and the weekend series in White Rock and Delta, was an exciting success for its creator, also the founder of the Â鶹´«Ã½Ó³»Sun Run, Jack Taunton. "It ended up being an outstanding event."
Twitter: @MHStewart
