Time never stands still and the Tour de Yorkshire now seems an age ago, what with other races like the Lincoln Grand Prix and the whole of the Tour Series only just in the rear view mirror!
But one of the biggest races in the UK racing calendar will also leave an indelible print on our memory, and none more so than for Jacob Hennessy.
Our guest blogger, Robyn Davidson (gruppettosandstilettos) managed to catch up with Jacob recently…
As the Tour de Yorkshire grows in stature, so does Canyon dhb p/b Bloor Homes.
It may have been under a new name, with new sponsors and new faces, but Tim Elverson’s riders once again demonstrated their familiar attacking style throughout the four-day race around Yorkshire.
One of the “new faces” included Jacob Hennessy, the 22-year-old recruit from Mitchelton-BikeExchange.
Ned Boulting commented…
“It’s good to see Hennessy in the breakaway, riding for the very ambitious Canyon [dhb p/b Bloor Homes] team who, a couple of years ago, were quite new to the domestic scene, but really grew in stature last year, race after race.
They really are one of the strongest domestic teams and they do have a very trademark aggressive style.”
Attacking on the opening stage and making it into the breakaway à la former Canyon dhb p/b Bloor Homes rider Harry Tanfield last year, Hennessy asserted his dominance.
Along the 182km route from Doncaster to Selby, he claimed both the first and second intermediate sprints in Elloughton and Pocklington.
Not content with dominating just the one category, he climbed his way to the top of the mountains classification too after taking maximum points on the Côte de Baggaby Hill.
At the end of the day, it came as no surprise that Hennessy was on the podium, donning the coveted red mountains jersey and clutching a giant LNER train ticket as a prize.
“I was really happy to win the King of the Mountains jersey on day one and to have been part of that move.”
As expected, the boys in blue were – during the first two days – frequently visible at the head of the race.
Yet illness swept through the team, weakening riders and forcing the likes of Rory Townsend and Dan Pearson to withdraw from the Tour de Yorkshire.
“It was unfortunate [that] a lot of us got ill during the race which limited us in the later stages. It made the last two days very difficult, we had to do more effectively with less man power.”
But the Canyon dhb p/b Bloor Homes rider remained positive after the Tour de Yorkshire, acknowledging that he now has more of an understanding of what “Yorkshire grit” is.
“I still feel that, looking back with the crowds and wearing the jersey, it was an overwhelmingly positive experience.”
