The youngest yellow jersey in Tour history enters Stage Two with a big bull’s eye on his back, and a strong teammate as his very best defense. 

Braiden Voss sits just a few seconds clear of a crowded top four, with the general classification still very much up for grabs. It’s a completely new position for Voss; no longer content with just hanging around the lead group, he’s now the benchmark for three more weeks of racing. He’ll be up against a handful of experienced riders like Kyle Macdermaid and Ryan Kennedy, the rivals closest to his maillot jaune. 

Voss’ best defense is playing off teammate Garrett Jenema, who has come into June and July as an absolute workhorse for Hagerty Cycling and their most dangerous rider over the course of this season. It’s a scenario much like the CSC team in 2008, when Frank Schleck had to be willing to lose the Tour in order for teammate Carlos Sastre to win it. Rather than sit and defend, the pair are more likely to attack off each other and make the old guys chase.

Jenema also has the Points classification to consider. Tied on points after Stage One, it’s double points night on the Power Section, which means he’ll have to focus his efforts on yellow or green, or risk both. Kennedy has shown a big propensity here, although he’s a bigger challenger on the Boonenberg. If he isn’t in yellow before Stage Three, you may see him focus entirely on the polka dots in the penultimate stage.

On the women’s side, Emma Schwab just needs to keep her schedule clear for the next three weeks to take the win, but it’ll be a point of pride for her to finish as high up as possible every stage.

Rob Frank holds the white jersey of Best Old Rider, with Steve “Love Is A” Lagerquist closest on his heels. Expect the official photographer of SOL, Jeff Galstererererer to fight until the bitter end, especially with eyes on the Queen Stage at the end of the month.

Some very big news for miniSOL and Junior SOL; thanks to the $$$$ from the Pancake Ride, we’ve got enough to pay for a few entries for July 22’s Traverse City Trails Festival. The winning teams in Thursday’s team time trials will be IN for the 8 mile kid’s race or the 25 mile event, depending on their interest. You can win, but you gotta be there! We’re also excited to contribute one Bike Mas scholarship to Norte, but hey, YOU could sponsor a kid for the next session, too, right here.