Tour de Bretagne Cycliste Updates

The three Canadian members of Kelly Benefit Strategies are racing in the Tour de Bretagne Cycliste. This seven stage race, kicked off on April 25th with a 142 kilometer stage and stage two featured a 10 kilometer individual time trial. Today’s stage is 185.5 kilometers, taking the racers from Saint Malo to Saint Gildas des Bois. So far the Kelly Benefit Strategies team is holding its own amongst the deep field at this UCI 2.2 stage race.

On stage 1, Ryan Anderson finished in 66th, David Veilleux finished in 90th, and team mate Zach Bell finished in 112th. In the stage 2 time trial, Anderson finished in 14th position, Veilleux was 44th, and Bell was 55th.

Veilleux, 22 years old and a four-time U23 Canadian National Time Trial Champion, filled us in on his thoughts on the race and time trialing:
Now that you’re through the travel hoops of recent days, how do you recover from this travel to get ready for the race?
I don’t think there is more to be done than usual. I did an easy spin on the day I got there; some short efforts (1m – 1m30s) the next day to get the legs going and short sprints (10-15s) on a small gear the day before the race. The rest of the time I simply rested.
What are your expectations for this stage race?
The race will be a very good final preparation for the Tour of California. The aggressive style of racing in France will give us speed. The team will also look at getting a stage win.
What is your team role for this race?
My role will be to try and get in breakaways and I will also help with leading out my teammates Alex Candelario and Zach Bell for the sprints.
Tell us a bit about how your season is going so far.
I raced the Tour of Luzon, a 9 day stage race in the Philippines, and the Vuelta del Uruguay, a 10 days stage race. Those two long races allowed me to start the season by putting some good racing miles in without a lot of pressure to get results.
Is the National time trial title and competing at the World Time Trial Championships on your radar again this season?
Nationals are definitely a big goal for me (road and TT), and a participation at the Worlds for a 6th year in a row would be great, but my chances are very slim since I am not longer U23.
Any tips for up and coming time trialists?
When doing a time trial with a good climb in it, make sure not to over pace yourself when you climb. Then, once you crest at the top, you have the energy to accelerate quickly and get back to your pace. Even though you will lose some time going up, you will make up a lot more during the rest of the time trial.

Anderson, a native of Spruce Grove, Alberta, has been racing professionally since 2008 and is in his second season racing with Kelly Benefit strategies, had this to say about the race and bike racing:
“The last few days have been nice. We have been hanging out in a house the team has rented. I have been using my contour muscle stim a lot since I have been over here to help my legs with long travel. We got in a good ride yesterday as well. Our first goal for the race is going to be the overall GC.”

“The first day was a hard day to start on for us and we missed the move on the day. So now the goal will be stages. The biggest thing I wish I new back when I started is that you have to confident in your self on the bike in the bigger races.”