Davide Frattini took advantage of a moment’s hesitation in a four man break and slipped away to victory on the final lap of the 100k CapTech Classic in Richmond, Virginia, on Thursday.

A few seconds behind Frattini (Colavita-Sutter Home), Uzbekistan national champion Sergey Lagutin (Navigators) out sprinted Ivan Stevic (Toyota-United) for second place.

The winning break, initially containing Ben Jaques-Maynes (Kodak Gallery-Sierra Nevada), Mark Walters (Navigators), Frattini, Lagutin, and Stevic, emerged mid-way throughout an attrition-heavy race.

The demanding 2k-course featured a grinding climb that zig-zagged through downtown Richmond then plummeted back down to a long, flat finishing straight packed with spectators. By the time the winning group formed, half of the 150 starters were already gone.

With under 15-laps to go Jacques-Maynes suffered an asthma attack and was dropped from the lead group. Then, with only five laps remaining, King of the Mountain winner Walters crashed on the technical descent, and it looked like the podium was decided. But with no free lap to take, and his teammate sitting on to slow the pace of the break, Walters managed to catch on again, giving Navigators the two-man advantage.

But the duo couldn’t contain Frattini, who countered an attack by Walters on the climb with two-laps to go, and entered the final lap with a large gap over Lagutin and Stevic.

With Stevic sitting on, Lagutin rode steadily, keeping Frattini in site, then charged up the hill one last time, closing the gap and setting up what it appeared would be a three man sprint. But as the riders descended, a game of chicken ensued. Neither Stevic nor Lagutin, who said he was waiting for his teammate Walters, close behind, to catch back on, were willing to go to the front.

As the three riders coasted down the hill, Frattini, on the far right of the road, caught Stevic and Lagutin off guard with a snappy attack. Rounding the final corner, the slight Italian was able to raise his arms a good 200 meters from the line, knowing he’d just secured his biggest victory in the U.S.

“One day is lucky, one day is not. This is bike racing,” he said.

Women
Tina Pic (Colavita-Cooking Light) admitted that the tight, bumpy corners on the courses fast descent were making her nervous. So on the final lap she rode conservatively, sitting near the back of the top-ten riders. Then, approaching the final corner, she surged to the front, overtook Brenda Lyons (Victory Brewing) and cruised to victory in the 25-mile women’s race.

Lyons held off a hard charging Laura Van Gilder (Lipton) to maintain second place.

“I just kept thinking, make it over the hill, make it over the hill,” said Lyons, who typically prefers flatter, faster courses.

Early in the race the women’s field was paired down to an elite group of 20-riders, with all of the major teams, Colavita-Cooking Light, Lipton, Victory, and Cheerwine, well represented. The most dangerous moment occurred when eventual Queen of the Mountain winner, Super Palmer-Komar (Colavita-Cooking Light), attacked on the climb mid way through the race. On her wheel was Lara Kroepsch (Lipton) with teammate Van Gilder bridging across.

The trio built a small but dangerous gap before Pic, who said she hadn’t had to touch the wind all day, shot up the climb on the following lap. Her presence killed the group’s moment and they were quickly reabsorbed.

“I was hoping to draw out Tina and make it a more select group,” said Van Gilder. But her tactic proved unsuccessful. With five teammates along side her in the ever-dwindling group, Pic had little incentive to go it alone in a break with Van Gilder.

The racers will resume their East Coast build up to the Philadelphia International Championship (formerly the USPRO Championship) this Saturday at the CSC Invitational in Arlington, Virginia.

Results
Men
1. Davide Frattini (Colavita-Sutter Home)
2. Sergey Lagutin (Navigators)
3. Ivan Stevic (Toyota-United)
4. Mark Walters (Navigators)
5. Valerly Kobzarenko (Navigators)
6. Hilton Clark (Navigators)
7. Mark McCormack (Colavita-Sutter Home)
8. Shawn Milne (Navigators)
9. Ivan Dominguez (Toyota-United)
10. Caleb Manion (Jelly Belly)

Women
1. Tina Pic (Colavita-Cooking Light)
2. Brenda Lyons (Victory Brewing)
3. Laura Van Gilder (Lipton)
4. Charm Breon (Cheerwine)
5. Laura Kroepsch (Colavita-Cooking Light)
6. Sarah Bamberger (Cheerwine)
7. Katherine Lambden (Lipton)
8. Iona Wynter (Colavita-Cooking Light)
9. Sue Palmer-Komar (Colavita-Cooking Light)
10. Kate Sherwin (Victory Brewing)