With a commanding lead on GC, John O’Hearn looks to match Alex Vanias’ record of winning all three jerseys at the Giro.
It will be all out from the gun on Thursday, with the third stage almost entirely focused on the Mountains classification. Riders with any hopes of taking the title will have to score points, making the assault on the Vasa CC Climb even more important than usual. With an insurmountable two minutes, thirty-nine second lead on GC, O’Hearn can now turn his attentions to protecting his four-point lead over Ryan Kennedy in the Mountains. However, with the likes of Kennedy, Jeff and Cam Owens, and a slew of other riders all out of GC contention, they’ll be totally committed to getting points back on O’Hearn.
O’Hearn’s lead comes after a number of no shows from other favorites, but his nearly three minute lead on Cody Sovis came on a disastrous Stage Two for Sovis, who lost over two minutes on the day. It could have been more without the help of teammate Dan Ellis, and while the gap is extremely large, he’s vowed to try to get some back on the third stage. Crazier things have happened…
Jeff and Cam Owens blew Stage Two wide open last week, and for this week, they’ll have some added firepower. Velo City Cycles’ Brad White is making his long-awaited SOL debut, and he’s sure to threaten the 2017 SOL course record set on Stage One.
Dave Bucholtz looks set to win both the Best Old Rider and Singlespeed titles, which means he and his Hagerty teammates will likely look to erase the 1:47 deficit they have in the Team Competiton, with kolo t.c. Pirate Armada somehow in the lead. They can also devote some effort to seeing Women’s GC leader Marie Voss to her first Grand Tour win.
Ryan Kennedy still holds the lead in the Points classification, making the most of the opening day’s double points and now looking back to O’Hearn in second place there. With so much effort going into the CC Climb, there may be an opportunity for a new rider to nab some points if they’re willing to cede a little time overall to really nail the Go! section.