Conn McDunphy (Team Skyline) has put in one of the rides of his life to win $15,000 after finishing 2nd in The Growler road in the US, billed as America's richest bike race.
The Irish rider, a former national TT champion, was leading solo with just over 1km to go and looked good for the $25,000 first prize, when he was caught by a three-man chasing group.
However, though he had been out on his own for a long time, he still had the legs to take 2nd place, with only last year's winner Keegan Swenson (Santa Cruz SRAM) beating him to the line, after being aided by others in the group.
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The Growler - with a total $156,000 prize fund - is part of the Levi's Gran Fondo festival of racing, and Gran Fondo events. It is 222km long and involves 4,300 metres of elevation gain.
After Swenson and Ireland's McDunphy in 1st and 2nd, Marcis Shelton was 3rd, with South African Matt Beers in 4th.
Though Beers and Swenson are not team mates, Beers closed the last part of the gap to McDunphy for Swenson after the duo had clearly reached an agreement to work together.
More to come.
