Armstrong finishes 3rd in 2nd stage of Tour of the Gila; Leipheimer retains overall lead

Armstrong finishes 3rd in 2nd stage in New Mexico

SILVER CITY, N.M. — Lance Armstrong finished in third place in the windy second stage of the Tour of the Gila on Thursday, helping teammate Levi Leipheimer preserve his overall lead.

Luis Amaran beat out Leipheimer in the final sprint to win the 80-mile loop that started and ended in Fort Bayard. Seven-time Tour de France champion Armstrong finished in a group of about 20 riders.

Wind gusts of up to 60 miles per hour hampered riders protecting teammates proved to the major focus of teams.

“I don’t know that I’ve seen wind like that,” Armstrong told VeloNews. “You have to stay at the front, that’s it. You could sit back a little bit, but there’s nothing good at the back. You have to stay out of trouble, just stay with your team, just stay at the front.”

That’s just what Armstrong and RadioShack teammate Jason McCartney did, protecting Leipheimer for much of the race, as the course became more hectic and windy down the stretch.

“You could tell that the riders were trying not to get wind blown,” race co-director Jack Brennan said. “By the time the racers came out of Bayard toward Fort Bayard, Lance was sitting in third position, and then fragments of riders fell of the pace, as the riders sprinted toward the finish line.”

Armstrong and defending race champion Leipheimer are using the five-day Tour of the Gila as a buildup to next month’s Tour of California. Leipheimer won the opening stage on Wednesday while Armstrong finished 22nd.

Before Thursday’s race, Armstrong’s team director Johan Bruyneel said he advised his team that if conditions got to be a little hectic that winning wasn’t worth the overall goal of getting ready for the Tour of California.

“Levi hasn’t raced in more than a month, and he’s been training at home,” Bruyneel said. “His body is going to be shocked after the first stage, and the wind will play a factor in both his and Lance’s conditioning. Winning is not our priority or obsession. We only have three riders here, and the factor of the strong field is going to be a challenge the rest of the way.”

The wind caused six crashes during the race, though none of the racers needed to be transported to Gila Regional Medical Center. One rider in the Men’s 3 Division got hit in the face with water bottle that was thrown at him from a passing vehicle.

In the women’s pro race, Carmen Small won the stage, breaking away from Colavita-Baci teammate Andrea Dvorak. Their teammate Cathy Cheatley finished the sprint for third, while Mara Abbot retained her overall lead.