One of the main animators of today's stage 3 of the An Post Rás, Roger Aiken went all out to grab victory on the day but his late attacks from the decisive breakaway were nullified. Seen here leading an escape group yesterday (Photo: Ramsey Cardy - Sportsfile)
By Gerard Cromwell
Although he has only contested one road race all year in the shape of the Tour of Ulster, an aggressive Roger Aiken almost pulled off another fairytale stage win at the An Post Rás into Charleville, Co Cork, today.
After a few skirmishes off the front were brought to heel shortly after the start, Aiken launched an attack just outside Kilfenora after 6km and dragged six men clear.
Stage one winner Robert Jon McCarthy (An Post Chainreaction Sean Kelly) and Damien Shaw (Cork City Aquablue) soon bridged across to the leading septet and the nine leaders opened a four minute gap with Aiken doing much of the driving.
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He crested both of the day’s climbs in front and won the Post Office sprint into Hospital after 127km.
“I forced the move and brought six guys with me and then two more came across,” said the Banbridge man afterwards.
“It was handy enough up the road and the gap went out to four minutes. I went for all the primes - the KOH’s and the sprint - because I thought it might come back and at least I’d get something and it wouldn’t be the day wasted.”
The breakaway’s advantage began to crumble towards the end of the stage however as the Australian Subaru Albion team joined forces on the front of the peloton with race leader Patrick Bevin’s New Zealand squad.
“I wasn’t surprised the gap came down because nobody was really killing themselves up front,” he said.
“When the time started coming down we started riding harder but at about 10km to go we only had a minute. I had a couple of goes at 3km out. Damien Shaw had a go and I had another go with a kilometre to go but I think the Canadian brought me back.
"But I didn’t know about the ramp up to the line in the last 500m. Once I was caught, my legs went and that was it.”
Roger Aiken was today out to repeat this ride into Emyvale in 2005 when he took the opening stage of the then FBD Rás.
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Having lost time earlier in the race, Aiken is now 53rd overall and was hoping to gain a bit of time today. But the group were closed down to just 16 seconds on the line.
“I lost all my time yesterday,” he explained.
“I didn’t have my position quite right on my bike and dropped back to neutral service to drop my seat post. I felt good but obviously all the moving about had an effect on the legs.
"I rode hard to get up to the front group yesterday but just didn’t have it when it counted. It was nice to stay away today though. A lot of times in situations like that the breakaway gets caught.”
Although he only managed ninth in the final sprint and saw the county rider award go to fourth placed Shaw, Aiken had other things on his mind in the finale today.
“I was going for the stage,” said the man who already has one such victory under his belt after winning stage 1 in 2005 into Emyvale.
“When you’re in that situation, you want the stage rather than the county rider prize. There’s no comparison between winning the stage and being first county man.
"I’m 10 minutes down now so it might give me a bit of freedom to mess about. I’ll play it by ear.”
From what he saw today, Aiken reckons race leader Patrick Bevin and his New Zealand squad will be tough nuts to crack, even if he’s expecting fireworks on tomorrow’s stage to Caherciveen.
“That New Zealand team aren’t going to let anyone who’s a threat to the GC up the road but I still think there’s a lot of GC men within two minutes who can do something.
"I’d expect them to have a go and maybe after New Zealand working hard today they’ll hit them hard tomorrow.
"I’ll always have a go too but no two days are the same on the Rás, so you can’t ever plan anything until you’re out on the road.”
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