The Jelly Belly Team is close to finishing the Tour of Hainan, as today marked the fifth stage out of six stages. There were strong crosswinds today which allowed a 25 man break to occur, after many failed attempts. Two JB riders were in the group, Bernard van Ulden and Kiel Reijnen. They stayed away to gain more than two minutes over the field until they were attacked with 30km to go.
“The break was good for us today because some of the top ten riders in the GC missed the break,” Van Haute said. “While we weren’t able to set up a sprinter for the finish, we have been able to overcome some bad luck to put ourselves in good GC positions.”
Unfortunately, Phil Gaimon added to that string of bad luck when he had a flat tire while van Haute was up ahead behind the break. This meant Gaimon didn’t get a wheel from the Jelly Belly car, and since his wheel change took longer than expected he did not make the time cut.
Stage Six may offer some positive results for the team however, since it includes some climbs.
“Hopefully Kiel can pick up some KOM points on Stage Six,” Van Haute added. “I know we’ve got it in us to keep pushing until we get the results we want. And we’ve got four more stages to prove it.”
-Molly Saunders
PR Jelly Belly Pro Cycling Team
