Damien Shaw was leader on the road with less than 15 kilometres to go on stage five of the An Post Rás today but having done so much riding early in the stage probably cost him a shot at the stage win and the yellow jersey (Photo: David Pintens Photography)
By Brian Canty
Damien Shaw has voiced his frustration at missing out at both the stage win and the yellow jersey on stage five of the An Post Rás.
The An Post ChainReaction man looked well-poised to strike for the race lead when he was away in a break with some 15 kilometres to race and over a minute on the yellow jersey.
He only needed 29 seconds – and to finish ahead of Matt Holmes (Madison Genesis) - but he didn’t manage to gap the Briton.
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And the bunch was just 27 seconds behind Shaw when he came over the line.
Shaw has said he came to the Rás looking for a stage win and to help his team take a stage, which may still be his job. But he is very close to the yellow jersey now (Photo: David Pintens Photography)
“I didn’t get either of what I was going for; the stage or enough time to move into the lead,” he said.
“It’s a little bit of a downer but there are still another few days to go.
“I didn’t come for yellow. I came for a stage and up until maybe 15k to go that’s all I was interested in,” he added.
But things changed when the gap swelled.
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“Seeing the gap was a minute with 15k to go; I just thought 'we might have a chance here' and I might never get the chance to ride for yellow so that changed the plan.
“The team car was pulled out so it was left up to me to call the shots.
“The last time I spoke to Kurt (Bogaerts, manager) I told him I’d go for the stage but I changed tack - and ended up getting neither.”
Shaw seems to be flying in this race, and having done his best riding in the final three stages last year he may well excel in the battle for yellow right until Skerries on Sunday (Photo: David Pintens Photography)
Asked what he’d do differently now, he confessed to maybe doing too much early on.
“I did too much riding and used up a lot of bullets early. I was in a lot of moves all day and closed a lot for (Aaron) Gate.
“I rode over a one-minute gap to bridge to the break so I used up a lot just to be there.
“The first few kilometres in the break I was just happy to be there.
“I sat in and i was only when we stretched the gap out that was I able to ride.”
But all is not lost as he goes about trying to plot ways to take the time he needs.
“It’s anyone’s game now. You just don’t know.
“I didn’t come for GC stuff; my game today and the last two days was help Gate chase the sprints and that is probably still my job. A two-second gap; it’s nothing.”
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