Andes Pacifico Enduro: Days Two and Three - The Long Road to Wine Country
Day two kicked off high in the Andes once again with three stages in the morning and three in the afternoon. The stages were very physical and Nico Lau used these to his advantage, putting considerable time into race leader Fabien Barel. Fabien was strongest on the long and tech stages that play into his strengths as a DH racer and at the close of the day he was able to come out ahead by just 15 seconds.
The race then moved 3 hours south to Chilean wine country, New Santa Cruz for Day 3, which saw racers criss-crossing vineyards throughout the day on their liaison stages. The biggest factor was the heat which would reach 47C (116F) at the peak of the day, and with no shuttles up to stages it was an exhausting affair.
The morning started with a 400m climb and a short tech stage before riders climbed over 1000m in the heat to reach the second and final stage of the day. The effort was worth it and riders where rewarded with one of the best descents of the week down the other side.
Fabien once again proved his technical skills are some of the best in the business and extended his lead once again to almost 40 seconds by days end. In the women's race Florencia Espineira has been no match for the competition an she carries a lead in excess of 10 minutes into the final day.
In the evening to celebrate the final day in the big mountains before heading to the coast, the race organizers surprised racers by organizing exclusive private tours of the three wineries used through the day to link up all of the stages.
![Andes Pacifico 2015]()
![Andes Pacifico 2015]()
montenbaik.com/tiempos/2015/AndesPacifico/Dia3/
MENTIONS: @Montenbaik, @davetrump, @SamNeedham
The race then moved 3 hours south to Chilean wine country, New Santa Cruz for Day 3, which saw racers criss-crossing vineyards throughout the day on their liaison stages. The biggest factor was the heat which would reach 47C (116F) at the peak of the day, and with no shuttles up to stages it was an exhausting affair.
The morning started with a 400m climb and a short tech stage before riders climbed over 1000m in the heat to reach the second and final stage of the day. The effort was worth it and riders where rewarded with one of the best descents of the week down the other side.
Fabien once again proved his technical skills are some of the best in the business and extended his lead once again to almost 40 seconds by days end. In the women's race Florencia Espineira has been no match for the competition an she carries a lead in excess of 10 minutes into the final day.
In the evening to celebrate the final day in the big mountains before heading to the coast, the race organizers surprised racers by organizing exclusive private tours of the three wineries used through the day to link up all of the stages.
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 As Day 2 started racer could see where the previous day's racing kicked off just below the glacier seen at the top left. |
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| The Andes are pretty unique in the way that you can pretty much drive to the top of most mountains. But don't let the trucks make you think the racers had an easy time of it. |
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| Old mining roads provide access for shuttle vehicles to get riders close to the start of the day, but once the roads end riders must pedal the last few kilometers to the start of each stage. |
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| The views on the liaison stages aren't half bad. |
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| Saying one feels small against a backdrop of the Andes Mountains is an understatement. |
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| Day two, stage one. Flat out, dust filled fun to ease the racers into the day. |
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| Nate HIlls was in the running after Day 2 but would lose 10 minutes on the final stage of Day 3 due to a front flat. |
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| Sam Flannigan has come to grips with the anti-grip and is now sitting in 5th overall. |
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| Death to course cutters. |
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| Take time to hydrate and refuel through the day or face the consequences. |
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| Nico Prudencio raced half of Day 2 with a broken knee cap but the pain was too much to carry on for a 3rd day. A real shame for the local rider who had a solid hold on 3rd place. |
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| After two days in the Andes the race moved south to the Coastal Range for the rugged mountains of Chile's wine country. |
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| Sometimes a little extra horse power is what you really need. |
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| Fabien Barel lost time to Nico Lau on Day two but was able to match his rival's pace once again on Day 3. With only a handful of seconds separating the two it is still anybody's race as we head into the final day. |
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| Local vineyards played host to racers between each stage on Day 3. |
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| Day 3 was HOT HOT HOT and riders took any water source along the route as an opportunity to cool off. |
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| Francois Damseaux, the genuis behind the "enduro-brolly". |
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| An extra set of legs may well have been just the ticket on today's 1000m climb in 47 degrees of hot Chiliean heat. |
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| With Nico Prudencio retiring due to a broken knee cap on Day 2, Chris Johnston has now moved up to occupy 3rd position. |
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| Tight narrow and twisty would best describe the start of day 3. A stark contrast to the exposed ridges of the Andes. |
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| Florencia Espineira has been dominant in the women's race all week and holds a commanding lead going into the final day of the race. |
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| After a 1000 meter climb and a spectacular 13 minute descent in record summer heat, riders reached the close of Day 3 close to exhaustion. |
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| After spending the day in 47C / 116F heat, many a cold beer were in order. |
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| Race organizers surprised racers at the close of Day 3 with exclusive and private tours of some of the region's finest wineries. |
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| No risk running out of vino here. Under the glass table of the tasting room lies a cellar containing just a few thousand more bottles in reserve. |
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| Team Lambrini. Tasting the finest of wines since 2015. |
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| The summer evenings in Chilean wine country are absolutely beautiful. |
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| The sun sets over the Coastal Range that challenged riders on Day 3. Tomorrow will see 6 more stages raced with a finish at the beach on the Pacific Ocean. |
montenbaik.com/tiempos/2015/AndesPacifico/Dia3/
MENTIONS: @Montenbaik, @davetrump, @SamNeedham
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