Pez Cyclingnews, Edmond Hood, 1 Augustus 2013
One of the results which was lost in the pre-Tour de France frenzy was the Nature Valley Grand Prix in Minnesota in June; a staple on the US calendar going back to 1999 with names like Chris Horner, Greg Henderson, Robert Forster and Gordon Fraser all in there as stage winners.
This year the man who came out on top after the six stages was a surprise, but a welcome one; Mike Friedman (Optum powered by Kelly Benefit Strategies) back on top after a long absence from the top step of the podium.
Friedman started off on the track and was a member of the winning team in the US team pursuit championship in 2005 – a feat he repeated a year later in the colours of TiAA/CREF. The 2006 season also saw him lift the US individual pursuit and madison titles – as well as enjoying a spell in the leader’s jersey in Ireland’s tough Ras stage race.
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