Fortunately, the mishap occurred moments before the free lap period expired. Team Type 1 Technician Alex Banyay made a quick wheel change and shoved Ilesic back into the race.
Three laps later, the 24-year-old Slovenian was freewheeling across the finish line with his arms in the air as race winner.
The internationally flavored podium of the National Racing Calendar (NRC) event was completed by Australian Ben Kertsten (Fly V Australia) in second and Lucas Sebastian Haedo (Colavita-Sutter Home presented by Cooking Light) of Argentina in third.
Ilesic’s victory was his third in the past five days and his sixth of the season. He earned a pair of victories at the Giordana Crossroads Classic on Wednesday (Mocksville Criterium in Mocksville, N.C.) and Thursday (Cabarrus Creamery Criterium in Concord, N.C.). It was also Team Type 1’s fourth win in an NRC event.
Ilesic credited flawless teamwork by Team Type 1 riders Joe Eldridge, Ken Hanson, Dan Holt, Valeriy Kobzarenko and Shawn Milne for making it look so easy.
“The guys did just a perfect lead-out,” Ilesic said. “Everyone was up there. Dan and Shawn just kicked it in the end. We passed the Colavita train with no problem.”
Team Type 1 made sure no one was able to dangle more than a few seconds off the front of the peloton for any extended period of time during the 90-minute race. The oppressive heat – temperatures were in the upper 90s with high humidity – also led race officials to open a feed zone on the 1.3-mile (2.0 km) tree-line circuit around a historic park in Winston-Salem’s West End.
Team Type 1 Director Sportif Vassili Davidenko said Sunday’s victory, combined with Ilesic’s second-place finish Saturday night at the Presbyterian Hospital Invitational Criterium, made for a terrific weekend.
“All the hard work of the last eight months of racing together is paying off,” he said. “These guys know each other and are showing perfect cooperation. This was a good test before the national criterium championship at Downers Grove next weekend.”
