McGrath edges Armstrong in opening time trial

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Less than four seconds between Peanut Butter & Co. duo

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Alison Tetrick-Starnes (left) Cari Higgins (center) and Kristen McGrath sign commerative jerseys and posters for the Aspen Pro Women's Stage Race.(Image credit: Wil Matthews)

Kristin McGrath (Peanut Butter & Co Twenty12) climbed into the top spot on the podium during stage one at the inaugural Aspen Women's Pro Race in Colorado. She won the opening time trial ahead of her teammate a former double world champion Kristin Armstrong in second and National Racing Calendar (NRC) leader Janel Holcomb (Colavita-Forno D'Asolo) in third.

"I was surprised to win given the nature of a very strong field here," McGrath told Cyclingnews. "I had good legs coming in and I am from altitude so I knew I had a bit of an advantage there. I am stoked to win it."

McGrath will lead the three-day omnium stage race into the second stage, a circuit race held in Snowmass on Tuesday. She is confident that her team can secure the overall title following the stage three criterium held in Aspen on Wednesday.

"I think that we are in a really good position to keep the jersey in our team," McGrath said. "Having first and second will give us a chance to play a couple of cards. We definitely want to win the overall for sure."

Former US National Time Trial Champion Jessica Phillips is promoting the Aspen Women's Pro Race. Although it is a relatively small field, there are multiple world-class talents participating in the inaugural event including French legend Jeannie Longo. "For sure, it is a good quality field," McGrath said.

The race kicked off in Maroon Bells with a 12.4km uphill time trial held at roughly 8000ft of elevation. McGrath, who is from Durango, is accustom to the higher elevation and said it played a large factor in the outcome of the time trial.

"The first part was rolling up hill and then we gradually started climbing and it got steeper at the top," McGrath said. "Any time it goes uphill, it will put a smile on my face."

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Full Results
#Rider Name (Country) TeamResult
1Kristin McGrath (Peanut Butter & Co. TWENTY 12)0:29:15.50
2Kristin Armstrong-Savola (Peanut Butter & Co. TWENTY 12)0:00:03.52
3Janel Holcomb (Colavita / Forno D'Asolo)0:00:16.34
4Amanda Miller (HTC Columbia Women's Team)0:00:46.93
5Kelly Crowley (Metromint Cycling)0:00:47.83
6Anne Samplonius (Now Cycling/NOW and Novartis for MS)0:00:49.40
7Robin Farina (Now Cycling/NOW and Novartis for MS)0:01:00.86
8Andrea Dvorak (Colavita / Forno D'Asolo)0:01:33.63
9Jessica Phillips (AJAX Tavern Cycling Team)0:01:39.33
10Kristin Sanders (Colavita / Forno D'Asolo)0:02:22.16
11Kasey Clark (Team Primal Racing/Primal/MapMyRide Womens Racing)0:02:32.87
12Alison Powers (TIBCO to The Top)0:02:54.15
13Anne Gonzales (ESC Basalt Bike and Ski)0:02:59.24
14Lauren Hall (Colavita / Forno D'Asolo)0:03:16.08
15Jeannie Longo (Vitall)0:03:18.16
16Ally Stacher (HTC Columbia Women's Team)0:03:19.17
17Olivia Dillon (Peanut Butter & Co. TWENTY 12)0:03:19.60
18Alison Starnes (Peanut Butter & Co. TWENTY 12)0:03:25.99
19Abigail Mickey (AJAX Tavern Cycling Team)0:03:44.79
20Emilia Fahlin (HTC Columbia Women's Team)0:03:50.45
21Amy Dombroski (Crank Brothers Race Club)0:03:52.57
22Anna Barensfeld (Team Primal Racing/Primal/MapMyRide Womens Racing)0:03:54.25
23Catherine Johnson (Unattached)0:03:55.56
24Erica Allar (Ride Clean p/b patentit.com)0:04:22.32
25Devon Gorry (Now Cycling/NOW and Novartis for MS)0:04:25.30
26Liza Rachetto (Team Primal Racing/Primal/MapMyRide Womens Racing)0:04:25.99
27Tiffany Pezzulo (Team Primal Racing/Primal/MapMyRide Womens Racing)0:04:39.76
28Amity Elliot (Team Kenda presented by Geargrinder)0:04:43.62
29Julie Emmerman (Team Primal Racing/Primal/Treads)0:04:48.06
30Kris Walker (Bell Lap Coaching)0:04:51.04
31Katie Colclough (HTC Columbia Women's Team)0:04:57.04
32Nicole Duke (Natural Grocers)0:04:59.98
33Alisha Welsh (Peanut Butter & Co. TWENTY 12)0:05:00.04
34Cari Higgins (Peanut Butter & Co. TWENTY 12)0:05:07.85
35Anne Donley (Unattached)0:06:28.56
36Gwen Inglis (Team Primal Racing/Primal/MapMyRide Womens Racing)0:06:31.81
37Colleen Hayduk (Pure Energy Cycling-ProAirHFA)0:07:13.46
38Kathryne Carr (Bell Lap Coaching)0:07:30.02
39Kathryn Judson (International Christian Cycling Club/Christian Cycling-Hammer Nutrition0:11:24.92
Kirsten Frattini
Kirsten Frattini
Deputy Editor

Kirsten Frattini is the Deputy Editor of Cyclingnews, overseeing the global racing content plan.

Kirsten has a background in Kinesiology and Health Science. She has been involved in cycling from the community and grassroots level to professional cycling's biggest races, reporting on the WorldTour, Spring Classics, Tours de France, World Championships and Olympic Games.

She began her sports journalism career with Cyclingnews as a North American Correspondent in 2006. In 2018, Kirsten became Women's Editor – overseeing the content strategy, race coverage and growth of women's professional cycling – before becoming Deputy Editor in 2023.

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