July 11, 2010 (Delta, BC) – Canadian Olympian Zach Bell led a road race sweep for US-based Kelly Benefit Strategies Pro Cycling at the 10th Tour de Delta on Sunday. Bell was part of an early 10-man breakaway, then rode away from them with four 8-kilometer laps left, building a 90-second gap with two laps to go before holding off a talented peloton in hot pursuit coming into the final corner. Bell, who represented Canada on the track at the 2008 Beijing Games, finished the 140-kilometer race in three hours, 18 minutes and 43.7 seconds – just five seconds ahead of the chase.

“I’ve never been able to win this road race from a bunch sprint so you’ve got to try another way,” said Bell, who did win the Tour de Delta overall title in 2007 and 2008. “It was fun – everything except maybe coming down the last hill and around the last corner, when I saw those guys bearing down on me. I was having a good time up until then.”

Bell’s Kelly Benefits teammate David Veilleux followed up a victory in the Canadian Criterium Championship on Saturday night by winning a bunch sprint to take second place on Sunday. That also meant a 6-second time bonus for Veilleux, which was just enough to edge out Pro Tour rider Svein Tuft of Garmin-Transitions for the overall Tour de Delta title.

It was similar to a night earlier, when Veilleux broke away from Tuft into the final lap to claim the Brenco Criterium and a National Championship. “Last night I made up some time on Svein with time bonuses and I had a little gap at the end (of the Criterium), so I knew today if I won it or got second in the race, then with time bonuses I would be able to pass him in general classification,” said Veilleux, a 22-year-old Quebec native who also claimed the Tour de Delta top young rider (under-23) award.

Teammate Ryan Anderson, who was the defending Tour de Delta overall champion, led Veilleux out perfectly, and then managed to hold off a hard-charging Andrew Pinfold of United Healthcare by two-tenths of a second to claim third place in Sunday’s White Spot Road Race.

“Today was a really great day for the team,” said Anderson. The biggest challenge figured to come from Tuft and Garmin-Transitions teammate Christian Meier, the only other Pro Tour rider in the field.

The race started with three locals breaking early during four and a half laps in North Delta. But seven riders, including Bell, bridged up through the flats, and the 10-man break pushed the lead to three minutes as they crossed into Tsawwassen for 10 laps of the final 8-kilometer circuit.

Led largely by Meier, the peleton tried to chip away at the lead. But with Kelly Benefits teammates helping hold it back, they couldn’t catch Bell, who followed an attack from a Rubicon ORBEA up a big hill, and then just kept going on his own when that rider began to falter at the top.

“For us to win today against Kelly Benefits, with all their strong guys, was going to be tough,” said Meier. “I rode all day trying to keep the break a manageable distance towards the end. If I can get Svein close to them with 20 kilometers to go, he’s one of the strongest guys in the world, you know, so I’m quite sure he could take care of himself the last 20 km.”

Tuft, who won his third straight Canadian Time Trial Championship last month, certainly made it close, helping cut almost a minute and a half out of the lead over the final 16-kilometers. But the effort didn’t leave him with enough left against a handful of great sprinters like Veilleux.

“The last few laps were difficult with a strong guy like Zach out there still going and not many guys willing to pitch a hand in the chase,” said Tuft. “Christian was unreal today. I don’t think I’ve ever seen a guy ride just by himself that long, that hard, at that pace. The break had 10 guys riding their hearts out and Christian was bringing them back slowly but surely.”

Even Veilleux wasn’t sure if Bell would be able to stay away. But since he was staying at Bell’s place, he wasn’t going to lead any chases. “I would have slept in the street tonight,” he joked. “Sometimes I was looking and thought ‘oh, he’s gone’ and then I’d see him and think he was coming back. I didn’t really know. It depends what the guys do in the peleton, but it wasn’t very organized so I knew chances of him staying out there were very strong. So it was a perfect situation for us because Ryan Anderson and I just had to sit back and wait for the sprint.”

The women’s finish was more dramatic, with a sprint after 85 kilometers. Mighty Riders’ Claire Cameron, was born and raised in Ladner, jumped past Total Restoration teammates Laura Brown and Jasmin Glaesser with 200 meters left down the final straightaway to win the White Spot Road Race. With her parents and sister cheering loudly, she finished the 11-lap race around Tsawwassen in two hours, 22 minutes and 27.8 seconds.

“I know this course and I really like this course,” said an excited Cameron, who grew up working as a lifeguard at the recreation center behind the finish line. “My parents are here, my sister is here. They barely ever come to watch me and so just the atmosphere and I know the course.”

Cameron, 29, got to know the course – and cycling – after hurting her knee nine years ago playing soccer and being told to rehab on a bike. “I used to train here,” she said. “The first time I had to get off my bike to go up this hill (past the finish line) the very first time I ever rode.”

On Sunday, she used that hill to break away with two laps left. Four other riders gave chase and reeled her, so Cameron, who is doing a bachelor of education at UBC, stuck close to the Total Restoration wheels. “I was third wheel going into the sprint and I was like just go, hit it hard and I got it,” said Cameron, who went to the 2004 Athens Paralympics as a pilot for a visually impaired Canadian rider and will attend a national track team training camp later this week. Brown will be there too, and she’ll have a handful of new Tour de Delta jerseys to choose from.

Brown’s second-place finish Sunday allowed her to retain the overall lead she took by winning the MK Delta Prologue on Friday night and kept with a second-place finish in the Canadian Criterium Championship Saturday.

“It was a bit of a drag race,” Brown said of Sunday’s finish. “I did a lot of work to try to keep it away and Jasmine is a really good time trail rider so we were time trialing with a lap and a half to go. We tried to do a lead out here but Claire had a bit more in her legs for the sprint.”

Brown, who has had success on the international track stage, also won the top young rider award, and Total Restorations took the team title. “I’m so stoked,” said Brown, a Calgary native who lived in Vancouver now. “Individual GC, team GC, young rider, some stage wins – we almost won everything possible and I couldn’t have done it without my team.”

BC Superweek continues with the 31st anniversary of the historic Tour de White, another three-stage race running from July 16 to 18.

More Greg Descantes photos here.

Results

Women
1. Claire Cameron (Can) Mighty Riders 22:27.8
2. Laura Brown (Can) Total Restoration Cycling Team 22:28.0
3. Jasmin Glaesser (Ger) Total Restoration Cycling Team 22:28.2
4. Amy Dearden (Can) Keller Rohrback 22:29.1
5. Angela McClure (Aus) Webcor/ Alto Velo 22:30.6
6. Leah Kirchmann (Can) Trek Red Truck Racing p/b Mosaic Homes 23:26.3
7. Shailie Sanbrooks (Can) Russ Hays Cycling Club 23:26.3
8. Leah Guloien (Can) Total Restoration Cycling Team 23:26.4
9. Sarah Stewart (Can) Total Restoration Cycling Team 23:26.7
10. Andrea Bunnin (Can) dEVo Escape Velocity 23:27.0
11. Jenny Lehmann (Can) Mighty Riders 23:27.1
12. Jessica Hannah (Can) Total Restoration Cycling Team 23:27.4
13. Jean Ann Mckirdy (Can) Local Ride Racing 23:27.7
14. Kristine Brynjolfson (Can) Westwood Cycle/Cannondale p/b Vision Sports 23:28.0
15. Annie Ewart (Can) Trek Red Truck Racing p/b Mosaic Homes 23:28.3
16. Rachel Mcbride (Can) Glotman Simpson Cycling 23:28.3
17. Courtney Albert (Can) Trek Red Truck Racing p/b Mosaic Homes 23:28.9
18. Morgan Cabot (Can) Glotman Simpson Cycling 25:17.0
19. Shoshauna Laxson (Usa) Trek Red Truck Racing p/b Mosaic Homes 25:48.5
20. Tannille Stickley (Can) Kelowna Cycle 25:48.9
21. Leslie Vice (Can) Glotman Simpson Cycling 25:49.1
22. Marie-Claude Gagnon (Can) Glotman Simpson Cycling 25:49.4
23. Rachel Canning (Can) Local Ride Racing 25:49.6
24. Margaret Pugh (Can) Westwood Cycle/Cannondale p/b Vision Sports 25:50.2
DNF Naomi Cooper (Can) Trek Red Truck Racing p/b Mosaic Homes
DNF Erin Redl (Can) Glotman Simpson Cycling
DNF Heather Kay (Can) United Cycle
DNF Sarah Coney (Can) Independent
DNF Shawn Wenger (Can) Interior Grasslands Cycling Club
DNS Chelsea Bilsbarrow (Can) Local Ride Racing
DNS Jennifer Gerth (Can) Westwood Cycle/Cannondale p/b Vision Sports

Men Pro 1 2
1. Zach Bell (Can) Kelly Benefit Strategies 18:43.7
2. David Veilleux (Can) Kelly Benefit Strategies 18:52.2
3. Ryan Anderson (Can) Kelly Benefit Strategies 18:52.4
4. Andrew Pinfold (Can) UnitedHealthCare Pro Cycling 18:52.6
5. Mike Northey (Nzl) Rubicon-ORBEA; Benefiting LIVESTRONG 18:53.3
6. Andres Diaz (Col) Team Exergy 18:53.3
7. Cyrus Kangarloo (Can) Total Restoration Cycling Team 18:53.6
8. Curtis Deardon (Can) Garneau Evolution 18:53.7
9. Ben Chaddock (Can) Rubicon-ORBEA; Benefiting LIVESTRONG 18:53.8
10. Steve Fisher (Usa) Hagens Berman LLP 18:54.0
11. Will Routley (Can) Jelly Belly p/b Kenda 18:54.1
12. Mike Sidic (Can) Team H&R BLOCK 18:54.1
13. Shawn Bunnin (Can) Total Restoration Cycling Team 18:54.3
14. Spencer Smitheman (Can) Hagens Berman LLP 18:54.7
15. Roman vanUden (Nzl) Rubicon-ORBEA; Benefiting LIVESTRONG 18:54.9
16. Taylor Gunman (Nzl) Rubicon-ORBEA; Benefiting LIVESTRONG 18:54.9
17. Marvin Guzman (Can) Independent 18:55.0
18. Jesse Reams (Can) Garneau Evolution 18:55.0
19. Tim Abercrombie (Can) Garneau Evolution 18:55.1
20. Svein Tuft (Can) Garmin – Transitions 18:55.3
21. Sebastian Salas (Can) Team H&R BLOCK 18:55.6
22. Mike Elliston (Can) Glotman Simpson Cycling 18:56.1
23. Ryan Aitcheson (Can) Jet Fuel Coffee 18:56.5
24. Garrett McLeod (Can) Team H&R BLOCK 18:56.9
25. Morgan Schmitt (Usa) UnitedHealthCare Pro Cycling 18:57.2
26. Marcel Aarden (Can) Total Restoration Cycling Team 18:57.3
27. Adrian Hegyvary (Usa) UnitedHealthCare Pro Cycling 18:57.6
28. Lang Reynolds (Usa) Hagens Berman LLP 18:59.1
29. Kevin Rowe (Usa) Team Exergy 18:59.3
30. Jamie Sparling (Can) Total Restoration Cycling Team 19:00.1
31. Dustin Andrews (Can) Team H&R BLOCK 19:00.5
32. Marsh Cooper (Can) Kelly Benefit Strategies 19:01.7
33. Nic Hamilton (Can) Trek Red Truck Racing p/b Mosaic Homes 19:26.0
34. Justin Kerr (Can) Team H&R BLOCK 19:43.9
35. Dan MacDonald (Can) Total Restoration Cycling Team 19:54.5
36. Craig Logan (Can) Trek Red Truck Racing p/b Mosaic Homes 19:54.6
37. Mike Laxdal (Can) Westwood Cycle/Cannondale p/b Vision Sports 19:54.6
38. Mike Rothengatter (Can) dEVo 19:54.9
39. David Stephens (Can) Team Coastal 19:55.6
40. Bob Welbourn (Can) Glotman Simpson Cycling 19:56.2
41. Kyle Buckosky (Can) Team Coastal 21:09.7
42. Quinn Keogh (Usa) Rubicon-ORBEA; Benefiting LIVESTRONG 21:38.6
43. Christopher McGarity (Can) Garneau Evolution 21:40.6
44. Matthew O’Hagan (Can) Garneau Evolution 23:09.8
45. William Goodfellow (Can) BikeReg.com/Cannondale 23:13.1
46. Kai Applequist (Usa) Team Exergy 23:13.1
47. Colter Young (Can) ERTC 23:13.3
48. Chris Stuart (Usa) Team Exergy 23:13.9
49. Stephen Meyer (Can) Jet Fuel Coffee 23:14.2
50. Dave Vukets (Can) Trek Red Truck Racing p/b Mosaic Homes 24:01.7
51. Dan Skinner (Can) Trek Red Truck Racing p/b Mosaic Homes 24:01.8
52. Ted Martin (Usa) Garneau Evolution 26:19.4
53. Jeffrey Werner (Can) Garneau Evolution 27:55.0
54. Ian Terry (Usa) Hagens Berman LLP 27:55.3
55. Chris Christie (Can) Suarez/Christie-images.com 27:55.7
56. Mark MacDonald (Can) Team H&R BLOCK 27:56.1
57. Emile de Rosnay (Can) Organic Athlete Victoria p/b Green Cuisine 27:56.3
58. Geoff Macdonald (Can) ERTC Revolution 28:27.0
59. Mike Berkenpas (Can) Local Ride Racing 28:28.7
60. Aaron Schooler (Can) Team H&R BLOCK 29:27.9
61. Bradley Clifford (Can) ERTC Revolution 29:37.0
62. Galen Mittermann (Usa) Rubicon-ORBEA; Benefiting LIVESTRONG 35:44.9
DNF Christian Meier (Can) Garmin – Transitions
DNF Roman Kilun (Usa) UnitedHealthCare Pro Cycling
DNF Chris McNeil (Can) Team H&R BLOCK
DNF Jacob Schwingboth (Can) Team H&R BLOCK
DNS James Neil (Can) Trek Red Truck Racing p/b Mosaic Homes
DNF Tyler Trace (Can) Trek Red Truck Racing p/b Mosaic Homes
DNF Adam Thuss (Can) Trek Red Truck Racing p/b Mosaic Homes
DNF Boris Martin (Can) Trek Red Truck Racing p/b Mosaic Homes
DNF Jason Allen (Nzl) Rubicon-ORBEA; Benefiting LIVESTRONG
DNF David Gerth (Can) Garneau Evolution
DNS Andrew Kyle (Can) Garneau Evolution
DNS Geoff O’Toole (Can) Garneau Evolution
DNS Guy Biggar (Can) Garneau Evolution
DNF Keith Jones (Can) Garneau Evolution
DNF Christopher Wingfield (Usa) Hagens Berman LLP
DNF Rory McAdams (Usa) Glotman Simpson Cycling
DNS John Perkins (Can) Glotman Simpson Cycling
DNF Maurice Worsfold (Can) Team Coastal
DNF Chris Worsfold (Can) Team Coastal
DNF Scott Laliberte (Can) Westwood Cycle/Cannondale p/b Vision Sports
DNS Cuylar Conly (Can) Westwood Cycle/Cannondale p/b Vision Sports
DNS Julian Base (Can) Westwood Cycle/Cannondale p/b Vision Sports
DNF Paul Berry (Can) spoke
DNF Bailey Mcknight (Can) Synergy
DNF Stephen Ferris (Can) Calgary Cycle/top gear
DNF Cody Campbell (Can) Trek-Livestrong U23

Final GC

Women

1. Laura Brown (Can) Total Restoration Cycling Team 3:24:20.42
2. Jasmin Glaesser (Ger) Total Restoration Cycling Team 3:24:29.48
3. Amy Dearden (Can) Keller Rohrback 3:24:46.64
4. Angela McClure (Aus) Webcor/ Alto Velo 3:25:02.85
5. Claire Cameron (Can) Mighty Riders 3:25:06.10
6. Leah Kirchmann (Can) Trek Red Truck Racing p/b Mosaic Homes 3:25:30.67
7. Sarah Stewart (Can) Total Restoration Cycling Team 3:25:40.03
8. Leah Guloien (Can) Total Restoration Cycling Team 3:25:40.93
9. Jean Ann Mckirdy (Can) Local Ride Racing 3:25:45.61
10. Rachel Mcbride (Can) Glotman Simpson Cycling 3:25:46.65
11. Kristine Brynjolfson (Can) Westwood Cycle/Cannondale p/b Vision Sports 3:25:49.09
12. Shailie Sanbrooks (Can) Russ Hays Cycling Club 3:25:50.36
13. Annie Ewart (Can) Trek Red Truck Racing p/b Mosaic Homes 3:25:55.14
14. Courtney Albert (Can) Trek Red Truck Racing p/b Mosaic Homes 3:25:56.81
15. Jessica Hannah (Can) Total Restoration Cycling Team 3:25:58.56
16. Jenny Lehmann (Can) Mighty Riders 3:26:00.57
17. Andrea Bunnin (Can) dEVo Escape Velocity 3:26:01.53
18. Morgan Cabot (Can) Glotman Simpson Cycling 3:27:54.76
19. Shoshauna Laxson (Usa) Trek Red Truck Racing p/b Mosaic Homes 3:28:19.05
20. Rachel Canning (Can) Local Ride Racing 3:28:21.19
21. Marie-Claude Gagnon (Can) Glotman Simpson Cycling 3:28:27.50
22. Tannille Stickley (Can) Kelowna Cycle 3:28:38.75
23. Leslie Vice (Can) Glotman Simpson Cycling 3:29:58.59
24. Margaret Pugh (Can) Westwood Cycle/Cannondale p/b Vision Sports 3:30:13.47

Pro Men

1. David Veilleux (Can) Kelly Benefit Strategies 4:36:14.54
2. Svein Tuft (Can) Garmin – Transitions 4:36:19.30
3. Zach Bell (Can) Kelly Benefit Strategies 4:36:43.80
4. Ryan Anderson (Can) Kelly Benefit Strategies 4:36:53.86
5. Ben Chaddock (Can) Rubicon-ORBEA; Benefiting LIVESTRONG 4:36:57.42
6. Will Routley (Can) Jelly Belly p/b Kenda 4:37:02.72
7. Andrew Pinfold (Can) UnitedHealthCare Pro Cycling 4:37:03.82
8. Mike Sidic (Can) Team H&R BLOCK 4:37:04.86
9. Jesse Reams (Can) Garneau Evolution 4:37:06.59
10. Taylor Gunman (Nzl) Rubicon-ORBEA; Benefiting LIVESTRONG 4:37:08.26
11. Adrian Hegyvary (Usa) UnitedHealthCare Pro Cycling 4:37:08.32
12. Curtis Deardon (Can) Garneau Evolution 4:37:08.92
13. Andres Diaz (Col) Team Exergy 4:37:09.99
14. Roman vanUden (Nzl) Rubicon-ORBEA; Benefiting LIVESTRONG 4:37:10.04
15. Tim Abercrombie (Can) Garneau Evolution 4:37:10.43
16. Cyrus Kangarloo (Can) Total Restoration Cycling Team 4:37:10.58
17. Mike Northey (Nzl) Rubicon-ORBEA; Benefiting LIVESTRONG 4:37:10.59
18. Steve Fisher (Usa) Hagens Berman LLP 4:37:12.51
19. Garrett McLeod (Can) Team H&R BLOCK 4:37:12.83
20. Spencer Smitheman (Can) Hagens Berman LLP 4:37:13.57
21. Jamie Sparling (Can) Total Restoration Cycling Team 4:37:13.86
22. Morgan Schmitt (Usa) UnitedHealthCare Pro Cycling 4:37:15.23
23. Dustin Andrews (Can) Team H&R BLOCK 4:37:18.90
24. Kevin Rowe (Usa) Team Exergy 4:37:19.42
25. Sebastian Salas (Can) Team H&R BLOCK 4:37:21.64
26. Marcel Aarden (Can) Total Restoration Cycling Team 4:37:21.79
27. Shawn Bunnin (Can) Total Restoration Cycling Team 4:37:23.27
28. Ryan Aitcheson (Can) Jet Fuel Coffee 4:37:24.75
29. Marvin Guzman (Can) Independent 4:37:29.60
30. Marsh Cooper (Can) Kelly Benefit Strategies 4:37:31.36
31. Lang Reynolds (Usa) Hagens Berman LLP 4:37:32.67
32. Nic Hamilton (Can) Trek Red Truck Racing p/b Mosaic Homes 4:37:38.76
33. Justin Kerr (Can) Team H&R BLOCK 4:37:56.09
34. Mike Rothengatter (Can) dEVo 4:38:10.47
35. Craig Logan (Can) Trek Red Truck Racing p/b Mosaic Homes 4:38:10.86
36. David Stephens (Can) Team Coastal 4:38:15.11
37. Dan MacDonald (Can) Total Restoration Cycling Team 4:38:23.01
38. Mike Laxdal (Can) Westwood Cycle/Cannondale p/b Vision Sports 4:38:30.35
39. Kyle Buckosky (Can) Team Coastal 4:39:40.62
40. Quinn Keogh (Usa) Rubicon-ORBEA; Benefiting LIVESTRONG 4:40:02.43
41. Christopher McGarity (Can) Garneau Evolution 4:40:09.86
42. Kai Applequist (Usa) Team Exergy 4:41:33.17
43. Chris Stuart (Usa) Team Exergy 4:41:36.45
44. Colter Young (Can) ERTC 4:41:44.55
45. Stephen Meyer (Can) Jet Fuel Coffee 4:41:45.31
46. Matthew O’Hagan (Can) Garneau Evolution 4:41:45.48
47. William Goodfellow (Can) BikeReg.com/Cannondale 4:41:47.69
48. Dan Skinner (Can) Trek Red Truck Racing p/b Mosaic Homes 4:42:20.85
49. Dave Vukets (Can) Trek Red Truck Racing p/b Mosaic Homes 4:42:32.19
50. Ted Martin (Usa) Garneau Evolution 4:44:39.54
51. Chris Christie (Can) Suarez/Christie-images.com 4:46:22.99
52. Mark MacDonald (Can) Team H&R BLOCK 4:46:25.83
53. Ian Terry (Usa) Hagens Berman LLP 4:46:25.86
54. Jeffrey Werner (Can) Garneau Evolution 4:46:27.01
55. Mike Berkenpas (Can) Local Ride Racing 4:47:01.61
56. Aaron Schooler (Can) Team H&R BLOCK 4:47:41.96
57. Bradley Clifford (Can) ERTC Revolution 4:47:53.12
58. Galen Mittermann (Usa) Rubicon-ORBEA; Benefiting LIVESTRONG 4:54:21.02