HOLLADAY, Utah -- James Piccoli won the opening prologue at Snowbird Resort on Monday to take the leader’s jersey in the Tour of Utah, triumphing over a field of 113 riders to start the seven-day race.
The 27-year-old Canadian finished the 3.3-mile ride over lumpy terrain at elevations of above 8,000 feet in 8 minutes, 37.59 seconds. That was good enough for a six-second advantage over the trio of Lawson Craddock, Serghei Tvetcov and Joao Almeida heading into Stage 2.
Piccoli has had a banner season, winning the Tour of the Gila and finishing second in the Tour de Beauce and the Joe Martin Stage Race, three of the premier events on the North American circuit.
The first full stage Tuesday takes riders 87 miles around Logan City. The ride covers the western slopes of the Bear River Mountains and, with two circuits around Little Mountain, tops over 4,300 feet of climbing before the riders finish with five downtown circuits.