Double Victories at the TransAlp 2012

24.07.2012
Sally Bigham and Milena Landtwing won the Craft Bike TransAlp 2012 after winning all 8 stages. Alban Lakata and Robert Mennen also won in the men’s race.

The prestigious Craft Bike TransAlp Challenge took place this year from the 4th to the 21st July. It was a complete and unmitigated success for the Topeak Ergon Racing Team. The stage race covered 600km with 19,500m of climbing across the Alps. Beginning in Oberammergau in Germany, to Italy and Lake Garda. The wonderful views were only matched by the ferocity of the climbs.

For the women, their race was faultless. Sally Bigham, together with Milena Landtwing (Centurion-Vaude) made up a 2 person team. It was a team which dominated the field. The British Champion and the Swiss rider showed everyone who had the strongest legs during the first stage, and continued to hammer home their point every day until the finish, winning all eight stages. The champions didn’t look back, and wore the leaders jerseys right onto the podium taking the win. No other team was even close, as they covered the distance in 33:18:64.2hrs.

For the men it didn’t look as good to begin with. A mechanical defect caused the team of Mennen and Lakata to lose about 10 minutes to the lead team. From that point on it was a case of digging deep, “when we got the second puncture, thought that it was game over for the general classification. We decided there and then to ride for stage wins“ Lakata said of the first day. Then stage for stage they chipped away at the lead that Klausmann and Stoll (Centurion Vaude and BiXS-iXS) had, taking stage after stage. It was then on the crowning stage from Livigno to Ponte di Legno that Robert Mennen and Aban Lakata took the yellow leaders? jerseys, heading up the GC.

“It was hardly an easy victory for us, so we are even happier to have won!“ Lakata said in Riva del Garda straight after the final stage. “It is amazing! Alban is such a great partner!“ Robbert summed up his feelings. The pair clearly having worked very hard to take the Craft Bike TransAlp Challenge 2012 with a winning time of 27:35:15.5hrs and about 10 minutes lead on second place.

Team Topeak Ergon certainly showed their authority and we look forward to returning next year.


Results and more information:

www.bike-transalp.de