TACTICS 101 # 10 ATTACK ON ALL FRONTS
Team Sky are known for dominating races, but in grand tours typically, the squad has one plan, one strategy, and one leader. While the Herald Sun Tour might not be comparable to a grand tour, Team Sky employed a convincing tactic over the five stages. Let every one of their six riders attack the race head-on. Such was their domination, they took home the race overall with Dylan Van Baarle, two stages through Owain Doull and Kristoffer Halvorssen, the KoM jersey with Christian Knees, the young rider’s jersey with Pavel Sivakov plus the team classification. Kenny Elissonde and Sivakov finished in the top 10 plus their riders finished either second or third on four of the five stages. Each stage, the other teams didnt know where to look or who to mark. On stage 2 it was Rowe and Elissonde who struck a fierce pace to split the peloton, before the Frenchman and Sivakov attacked on the gravel climb. A day later, Rowe and Doull, who had tactically lost time on GC, escaped in the day’s break and used their numerical advantage to take the stage one-two. On the decisive stage 4 finish atop Arthurs Seat, Sky again got three riders in an early eightrider break that eventually stayed away, meaning Van Baarle overhauled race leader Michael Woods. The opposition might not have been the strongest, but when Sky have the numbers they know how to use them.