March 25, 2010 - Redlands, CA – Rory Sutherland of the UnitedHealthcare Pro Cycling Team Presented by Maxxis took 4th place in the opening prologue of the Redlands Classic, just six seconds back of stage winner Ben Day (Fly V Australia).

“I came off feeling good from last week,” Sutherland said. “I’ve done every single race since Merced. The legs started coming around at San Dimas. I’m definitely getting the feeling back. I don’t necessarily think I lit the world on fire today, but I felt good during the ride.”

Sutherland was one of five UnitedHealthcare Presented by Maxxis riders to place in the top 17 today. Max Jenkins and Brad White finished 11th and 12 respectively, while Chris Baldwin took the 15th spot. Karl Menzies showed his power with a 17th place finish, just under 0:33 off the stage winner. And Marc de Maar of UnitedHealthcare Presented by Maxxis finished just 0:36 out of the lead in 24th place.

“Brad and Max pulled off great rides, better than they’ve done before,” Sutherland added. “Max is a young guy, so it’s a great showing for him and bodes well for the future.”

“It was a really good showing all around,” added Team directeur sportif Gord Fraser. “Tomorrow presents a tough course, with plenty of climbing. It’s a good stage for breaks, and hopefully one that our sprinters can get to the finish in the front group. But we have a lot of cards to play, a lot of options. We’re in a good position to move up the overall tomorrow.”

The first road stage of the Classic – the 84-mile Beaumont Road Race – includes a new climb in Banning within the first nine miles of the stage, and typically offers up plenty of wind over the rolling course.
“It’s usually windy and hot for Beaumont,” Sutherland said. “It’ll be a difficult race to read tomorrow. We have to be quick thinking, smart and execute our plan. I know we don’t want to finish 4th overall here. So we’re gonna do what we can to move up. And I’d be more than happy to see one of my teammates on the final podium Sunday.”

Photo: Jonathan Devich, Epic Images

Print | posted on Friday, March 26, 2010 11:58 AM