Al Hartmann | The Salt Lake Tribune Riders in the 4th stage of the Tour of Utah leave Rush Valley just past the halfway point in the race. Stage 4 started in South Jordan went west into the hot, dry west desert and finished back in South Jordan 123 miles later.
South Jordan • As John Murphy spread his arms and smile wide, the announcer’s voice over the loudspeaker had a confession to make: “We didn’t call his name once all day!”
But Murphy will take quality over quantity.
The 32-year-old cyclist from Jacksonville, Fla., emerged from the pack at just the right time Thursday afternoon, claiming victory in the fourth stage of the Tour of Utah. Murphy, who rides for the Holowesko-Citadel team, finished with a time of 4 hours, 22 minutes and 23 seconds.
Canadian Robert Britton started the day with the yellow jersey after a victory in Wednesday’s 5.5-mile time trial, and performed well enough to maintain his place as the race’s overall leader. Britton holds a 26-second advantage over the second-place rider, United Healthcare’s Gavin Mannion.
For Murphy, Thursday’s win came down to veteran savvy, as the group of riders sprinted en masse down Redwood Road toward the finish line.
“If you take some experience into these sprints, maybe you can do more than your speed allows,” said Murphy, who is the “oldest guy on the team by far.” “You can make some moves just knowing when to be where, when to wait and when to go.”
Tour of Utah Stage 4 results<br>1. John Murphy — Holowesko-Citadel<br>2. Jose Alfredo Rodriguez — Elevate<br>3. Mihkel Raim — Israel Cycling Academy<br>4. Colin Joyce — RallyCylcing<br>5. Paolo Simion — Bardiani CSF<br>Overall leaders<br>1.Robert Britton — Rally Cycling<br>2. Gavin Mannion — UnitedHealth Care (26”)<br>3. Serghei Tvetcov — Jelly Belly(28”)<br>4. Kyle Murphy — Cylance (34”)<br>5. NeilsonPowless — Axeon Hagens Berman (38”)<br>Friday’s Stage 5<br>Layton to Bountiful, 115 miles, 4,200-foot elevation gain.
After spending Wednesday in Big Cottonwood Canyon, riders got a break from climbing Thursday during the fourth stage of the race. Stage 4 posed its own challenges, however, as it covered just over 123.4 miles, an out-and-back course that started in South Jordan. The cyclists road along the Mountain View Corridor, then out to Cedar Fort and Rush Valley in Tooele County before looping back toward the finish line in South Jordan.
Italy’s Lorenzo Rota and Spain’s Gonzalo Serrano Rodriguez led a two-man break until giving way to the peloton with about 6 miles left to ride.
With just under 2 miles to go, Murphy saw riders start to make their final sprint and recognized there was still too much distance between them and the finish.
“They opened the sprint up a little too early,” he said. “I stayed patient. We knew it was a long way from the last turn. Three or four guys came by me. I was like, ‘Wow, those guys are going super fast.’ But I stayed patient. Then a little hole opened up there the last 150 meters.”
Murphy crossed the finish line first, followed by Jose Alfredo Rodriguez (Elavate-KHS Pro Cycling), Mihkel Rim (Israel Cycling Academy), Colin Joyce (Rally Cycling) and Paolo Simion (Bardiani-CSF).
Murphy was pleased with his Stage 4 victory, but said he will spend the remaining stages trying to get his teammates, Robin Carpenter and Stage 1 winner Tyler Magner, onto the podium.
“The rest of the week will be for them,” he said. “They have a very good chance of moving onto the podium or taking the yellow jersey. Rally looks very strong, so it will be a tall order. But we look forward to the challenge.”
Stage 5 of the race will cover 112 miles from Layton to Bountiful on Friday. The start time is set for 9:10 a.m.