The team time trial Friday was Stage 2 of four at Amgen Breakaway from Heart Disease Women’s Race Empowered with SRAM, a 197.8-mile road race that was selected as the first of only two U.S. events on the first-ever UCI Women’s WorldTour.

Eighteen teams contested the team trial on the same 12.6-mile Folsom course the men would ride later in the day. The first team time trial for the California race, each team chose four riders to compete together, with the clock stopping when the final team member crossed the finish line.

With four-time National Time Trial Champion Kristin Armstrong (Memphis, Tenn.) at the helm, TWENTY16 – Ridebiker upset the favorites for today’s team race, with Boels-Dolmans Cycling Team, containing reigning U.S. National Road Race Champion and current race leader Megan Guarnier, settling for second place by six seconds, followed by UnitedHealthcare Pro Cycling Team, which finished 25 seconds off the best time of the day. Twenty16 – Ridebiker’s final time was 27:33 on the 12.6-mile course, which puts the average speed at a brisk 27.5 mph. Armstrong, already a two-time Olympic gold medalist, is in the hunt for a spot on this year’s Rio cycling team.

Boels-Dolmans’ Romy Kasper (GER) had the fastest time on the course today. Guarnier was the big winner in the jersey competitions with the Visit California Sprint Jersey and the Lexus Queen of the Mountain (QOM) Jersey. The SRAM Best Young Rider Jersey changes hands to today’s winning team’s 19 year-old Chloe Dygert (Bremerton, Wash.).

In the overall standings, American riders top the leader board midway through the race with Guarnier (Boels-Dolmans Cycling Team) holding onto her GC lead and the Amgen Race Leader Jersey by 12 seconds over Armstrong (TWENTY16 – Ridebiker), and two-time National Time Trial Champion Evelyn Stevens (Boels-Dolmans) in third place, 22 seconds down. TWENTY16 – Ridebiker’s Leah Thomas (+:44”) and UnitedHealthcare Pro Cycling Team’s Coryn Rivera (+:47”) round out the top five.

Stage 2 – Team Time Trial Podium

1. TWENTY16 – Ridebiker (USA)
2. Boels-Dolmans Cycling Team (NED)
3. UnitedHealthcare Pro Cycling Team (USA)

Stage 2 Jersey Winners

Amgen Leader Jersey – Megan Guarnier (USA), Boels-Dolmans Cycling Team (NED)

Lexus Queen of the Mountain (QOM) Jersey – Megan Guarnier (USA), Boels-Dolmans Cycling Team (NED)

Visit California Sprint Jersey – Megan Guarnier (USA), Boels-Dolmans Cycling Team (NED)

SRAM Best Young Rider Jersey – Chloe Dygert (USA), TWENTY16 – Ridebiker (USA)

Breakaway from Cancer^® Most Courageous Rider Jersey – Sarah Storey (GBR), Podium Ambition Pro Cycling p/b Club La Santa (GBR) [carried over from Stage 1] 

Celebrating its 11^th year, the Amgen Tour of California is the most esteemed stage race in the U.S. Amgen has been the title sponsor of the race since its first year.

In honor of cancer survivors everywhere, Amgen recognized local cancer survivors Kevin Keady and Debbie Vogel as part of the Breakaway from Cancer^® activities. Keady participated in the official start activities and Vogel awarded the Amgen Breakaway from Cancer Most Courageous Rider jersey to Toms Skujiņš, which he retains for his escape in the mountains yesterday. This jersey is awarded each day to the cyclist that best exemplifies the character of those engaged in the fight against cancer – courage, sacrifice, inspiration, determination and perseverance.

Breakaway from Cancer was founded by Amgen in 2005 in conjunction with its title sponsorship of the Amgen Tour of California. The national program raises awareness of important resources available to people impacted by cancer – from prevention to survivorship. For access to resources or to learn more, visit breakawayfromcancer.com.

Amgen created Breakaway from Heart Disease™ as a complementary component to the Amgen Tour of California. The collective goal of the campaign is to fundamentally change the future of America’s heart health by helping people to find out more about their family’s history of heart disease and encouraging them to get active through cycling. For more information, visit breakawayfromheartdisease.com