Season 21 is over, and as usual i time for a review! We decided that this time we don’t want to make a huge article. So we’re making 4 articles divided in Tours, Top division classics, 2nd division classics and extras! Now it’s time for the Tours! Drama, amazing management and big surprises. We have it all in here!
  
  
  
  Day 14 - Some managers say that every second counts! And there are others that prefer their riders to save energy and lose 1 or 2 seconds but be in better shape in the following day. Well this season’s Tweedaagse van Antwerpen has been decided... for less than a second! Bartoli Rivera (omega pharma lotto) was one of the favourites for the win, but he only managed 3rd and finished 24 seconds behind the leader. Sebastien Persoens (radu) will never forget this Tour! He made an amazing performance and the feeling was he was going to win it. The only problem was, that he lost it. Heinrich Uttenberger (Drapeau Noir) won the Tour with less than a second in front of Persoens... Wow!
  
  
  Day 22 - Riding in Portugal has always been good for many riders. They love the warm weather and the lovely food. But when they have climbs in front of them, they forget it all and it’s business as usual. Once again we’ll have the Volta ao Porto! Chris Bauwens (Team Crazy Downhillers) is a usual contender in the Tour. As a former winner and with 2 more Top3 GC he must be considered the man to beat! Another big contender was Guálter Matos (Greenride). He was riding in the strongest portuguese team, in portuguese soil and with a great form! But both of them had a problem. the were facing a strong Damario Crusellas (The Doomsday Bunnies) who beat them by far! Matos finished 2nd and Bauwens “only” 3rd.
  
  Day 22 - Racing 2 Tours at the same time cannot be easy. But even so, “during” his victorious Volta ao Porto, Damario Crusellas (The Doomsday Bunnies) raced the Monte Rosa Tour and finished in a very high 3rd place! 2 podiums like this is a true big achievement! Viktor Bertovi? (Ponika) is a practically unknown rider for almost everyone in OCM. But guess what! He finished 2nd in an amazing performance that placed himself in the history books forever! After the massive sold out, CCFC had some problems coming back up in the ranks. So he raced this 3rd division Tour. But he raced it to win it! Peter-Jan Van de Wal (CCFC) was on the form of his life and he didn’t disappointed Einar hopes and won the Tour, not by much, but with pure confidence for his young rider!
  
  Day 41 - Despite being a short Tour, the Cymru Taith has always been very interesting for many teams, especially those with puncheurs. Jammy Verbeeck (IGF) might have been the exception since he’s a complete TTer. He managed a 3rd place in front of some Top guns! After 2 Top3 GC finishes, The Doomsday Bunnies reached

another one with Demario Teodro (The Doomsday Bunnies)! You heard it right it’s not Damario this time, but Demario! Seems like the Bunnies found the right name for the big results... But the true winner, came from a team that had an amazing season! That team is Kremer! And that rider is Thodoros Drimalas! A big congratz for that!
  
  Day 44 - Once again we’re back in the Iberian soil, this time in Spain for the start of the biggest climbing Tour inside OCM! The Vuelta de los Castillos! Looks like that if you want climbs... come to Iberian soil... Well anyway, looking at the field you know right away that many teams consider this Tour as one of their big goals! So many riders in great shape meant that the Tour... would be awesome! Anatoliy Michala (peddelen) is a rider used to this time of Tours and had some great achievements in the past! this time is no exception and he managed another great GC finish, this time 3rd place! After the success in Cymru, Kremer comes back to try to win again! This time, with Øystein Vangen, they managed to finish 2nd! But not far behind the top place! That Top place was a huge happy feeling for the country where the tour takes place! Bonifacio Ballestero (NECFTW) finally won the Tour and brought every spaniard to madness! Great effort by him!
  
  
  Day 47 - The Russian Tour! Perm is known by their freezing temperatures. Just some days ago we were at the warm soil from Spain and now we’re here! Brrr. Jude Evans (Cremtec) comes from the Seychelles, but even so he managed to survive this cold weather and finished 3rd overall! Matt Mundine (minions of static) was almost in the lead the whole race and he thought he could win it... But he had to be happy with his 2nd place! The winner, well may I remember you what I said last season: “Many say he’s the natural winner, but we think van der Werff deserves to win the Tour...someday...Maybe next season”. Well looks like I was right cause Freek van der Werff (Burren Connemara) finally managed to win it! I’m very happy for you congratz!
  
  Day 51 - The is Cymru ok. But then there’s Essex Tour and suddenly looks like finally we’ll have THE Hillers tour. But this year it was proven that you need something more than a good hill skill to have success. Wayne Baboeuf (Red Star) had probably one of the best debuts in a Tour with an amazing 3rd place! Huge success for this young talent! Vitaliy Bayer (Gradient Levellers) showed the young Baboeuf that having an experience like his in Tours is a great help and managed the 2nd place! Sandro Montelbano (Matrix team) is an amazing TTer. But also a great hiller. That’s all you need for this tour, and adding his top form, who could beat him? I’m very curious to see if he can do it again next season. And who will be able to beat him?
  
  Day 52 - Appreciated by many, won by few. The Race of the

Minutemen is on his 6th edition and with some surprises to show! Never a home rider won the Tour, but this season Wesley Meadows (Supernutz) almost did it. He finished 3rd and he is the best ever US rider in the Tour! The brazilians were never so popular in OCM. Evaristo Gusmão (sivac) tried to turn that around and he almost changed the world! He finished 2nd and almost felt the top podium placed! That place was won by Luis Prangsgaard (Team Kernow) does this mean that Kernow is back on track for the Tours? How we miss his glorious days in the Volta ao Porto.
  
  Day 76 - The most important Tour is still the Germany Tour. No one can say otherwise. the sprinters domination is finally over. But the sprinters are not extinct! Olexandr Nagy (NECFTW) as you know is not a sprinter not a climber. he’s a TTer and even so (why not) got a great 3rd place overall! Jan-Joost Dussel (peddelen), bla bla bla, was again on the podium. He didn’t win the Tour but finished again in the 2nd position and brought the SC home for the 4th time in a row!!! the winner, as I said before, is a climber called Adam Hyder (Drapeau Noir)! No one expected a 32 yo to win it, but hey. Luckly or not he managed it!
  
  Day 82 - Season is almost over, but we still have 2 Tours to go! And firstly we have the sprinters dream! the Nederlandse Tour is the paradise, or the hell for any sprinter around! Many reach the heaven, while others fall into the shadow... forever! the fight was hard and the time differences were short. Evan Topper (Quick step minded) managed the 3rd place when no one expected it. Well he was a good contender, but to be a good contender is not enough here! But this time it was! After the 2nd place in the GT, Jan-Joost Dussel (peddelen) came here to defend his title and to wi the Tour for the 4th time in a row. But this time he had to fight against a young gun that has everything to become the best sprinter in the future! He’s Cadman Kantor (thedutchies) and he took the glory away from Dussel!
  
  Day 83 - 2nd edition from the last Tour in the season! Fast on Wheels might become the cherry on top of the cake for any 5th division team! Horace Zeiser (Treaty City CC) finished 3rd this season! Look out for him in the future! The Tour favorite, Carroll Mullan (English Sprinting Team) had everything to put the English cycling on top once again! But “he failed” and “only” managed a 2nd place! The winner was a PERFECT Reginald Haney (Joss) who didn’t gave any chance to the rest of the field! Just amazing!
  
  
  
  Now, this were the Tours in Season 21. How will it be on the 22nd? Good luck to everyone, and let’s write more history!
  
  Stay tuned for more reviews...
  
  
  Written by season analyser Yuri from Yuri SuperTeam to OCM Awards Committee