June 21, 2004 – After one week of what is probably the hardest racing in
North America,
today’s final stage at G.P. Tour de Beauce is traditionally the nail in the
coffin for much of the field as the demanding 11K circuit features a
devastating climb and technical decent that typically all but destroys most
of the remaining starters. The difficulty of today’s stage was accentuated
by a strong, in-your-face, headwind for the 3.5K approach to the finish.

The Navigators Insurance Cycling Team’s strategy was to get involved in
early attacks, and then fire a full-on assault in the closing laps, hoping
to improve Rapinski’s position on GC and Points, and Power’s position on
GC, while protecting Louder’s KOM jersey.

Although the yellow leaders jersey was all but out of reach, the Points and
KOM jersey were realistic opportunities, and team GC was still a possibility.

Keeping to the game plan, David McKenzie responded to the day’s first
serious attack, and rode away with Gord Fraser, Charles Dionne, Alex
Lavellee, Alex Nadeau, and Aaron Olson. Although Olson refused to
contribute, the others worked well, with especially strong efforts by the
three Quebec riders, and the gap grew to over 4.5 minutes. The Action ATI
Team continued to control the main peloton, while most of the principal
antagonists followed. With five laps to go, the Navigators initiated a
major assault from the field, first sending Siro Camponogara with a hard
attack on the 120th street climb. His attack put several riders in serious
difficulty, and as the Poles tried to maintain control, El Campo built a 1′
30″ lead.

With three laps to go, the leaders were beginning to attack as McKenzie,
Dionne and Fraser went away from the two VW riders and Olson. The
Navigators continued the attack from behind with Walters, then Louder, and
finally Rapinski firing a volley of attacks. Three of the Action riders
were dropped, and the CCC Polsat team came to the front to drive a
desperate chase after Rapinski. Meanwhile, the lead group came back
together, but then split again as Dionne kept the pressure on with McKenzie
and Fraser eager to pursue. Rapinski was caught on the long drag down 10th
Ave, and the Polsat Team was now committed to driving the pace to
discourage attacks. At the front, the six riders came back together with
1.5 laps to go, and Olson attacked on the flat stretch after the start
finish. As the rest of the break watched each other, Olson slogged up the
road, cushioning his advantage before the climb. McKenzie hit out in
pursuit on the climb and closed to 20 metres, but could not finish the job
before Dionne and Fraser re-attached. The poker game resumed, and Olson
regained an advantage. Behind, the CCC train was pulling the break back
fast, and discouraging any possibility for attacks. With 5K remaining,
only Olson was away, and the 18 riders remaining were setting up for the
sprint. The Navigators delivered another torrid lead out to give Rapinski
the field sprint for second, 0:15 behind Olson. Symmetrics’ Andrew Pinfold
was third, and Rapinski’s effort secured him the White Points jersey.

General Classification remained unchanged for the top five, but the
aggressive riding helped move Navigators riders Power and Louder into the
top ten, and fifteen respectively. Rapinski finished fifth overall, and first
in the points competition. Louder won the Climbers jersey, and the team
finished second in the team classification to CCC Polsat.