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Hay truck takes out inflatable arch at Santos Women’s Tour

Stage 1 sees Canadian Alison Jackson finish in 15th, Edmondson win

January 11, 2018
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Thursday’s Stage 1 of the Santos Women’s Tour ended with a thrilling sprint under a white, inflatable arch in Gumeracha, South Australia, with Annette Edmondson (Wiggle-High5/Australia) taking the win and the first leader’s jersey. But earlier in the day the Start/Finish arch was carried off by a truck stacked high with hay bales.


The two people situated at the left foot of the arch were fortunate not to get whacked by the structure as it was whisked away. The truck stopped, the organizers were able to reestablish the arch before the finish and TV station ABC Adelaide reported that the police were not involved in the incident.


New UCI rules and regulations are in place to ensure that inflatable structures have backup systems and safeguards so that they don’t deflate. But sometimes vehicles play havoc with the arches and other finish structures. In the opening stage of the 2013 Tour de France in Corsica, the Orica-Scott team bus got wedged under the gantry, resulting in organizers’ indecision that led to a crash.


In 2014 at the seventh stage of the Giro Rosa, the UnitedHealthcare bus became wedged under the finish banner.


Sole Canadian entrant Alison Jackson finished 15th in the bunch sprint on Thursday, her first result for new team Tibco-SVB. Bonus seconds give Edmondson a six-second buffer on Giorgia Bronzini, who took second place in her debut for Cylance Cycling.


Only a few days before Edmondson’s brother Alex (Mitchelson-Scott) won the national road race title.