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A first time for everything: A look back at the '99 Vuelta Excerpt of article from CyclingNews.com A first time for everything: A look back at the '99 VueltaChann McRae In his first of two years riding for Italian powerhouse Mapei, the 1999 Vuelta a España would be the 27-year-old American's first Spanish Grand Tour experience and McRae passed the test with flying colors. Riding in support of Mapei's general classification challenger, Russian Pavel Tonkov, McRae still managed to finish 19th overall on GC, one of only four non-Spanish riders to crack the top 20 overall. McRae's best stage finish would be in the 51-kilometre stage six time trial where the American stopped the clock in fifth place, 2:40 behind stage winner Abraham Olano but 1:15 faster than teammate Tonkov. Mapei did not expect such a performance from McRae as he tackled the time trial alone without the benefit of a follow vehicle to supply split times or assistance in case of a mechanical. McRae would be in the hot seat until Angel Casero, starting seventh from last, bested the American's time by 23 seconds. The result put McRae into fifth on general classification and he would be Mapei's highest placed GC rider until Pavel Tonkov came to the fore on stage eight's dramatic visit to the Alto de Anglirú summit finish. The American continued his run of good form at the 1999 world road championships where he finished a career-best fifth place, finishing in an elite group of eight riders four seconds behind surprise winner Oscar Freire. Full Article: http://www.cyclingnews.com/features/a-first-time-for-everything-a-look-back-at-the-99-vuelta
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