Jelle Hanseeuw and Frederik Decaesteker show business card during first Roc du Maroc stage
The first stage of the Roc du Maroc 2019 starting at the “Kingdom of Heaven” castle in Ouarzazate had a smooth start with 172 riders all sprinting into the Moroccan desert via a brisk acceleration. A large group of competition riders segregated themselves from the challenge riders fairly quickly and after 30km at the first waypoint, a wide breakaway of around 20 riders had formed as they passed through the riverbed to the first supply. The intermediate stretch of road just after that zone was the signal for the duos Jelle Hanseeuw - Frederik Decaesteker and Michiel Van Aelbroeck - Bart Seynaeve to push on and set up a long breakaway.
In the chase, Pascal De Kort and Johnny Goetschalckx fought their way to a great third place after 40km in the Grandmaster (50+) category. Michael Ossieur and Stefaan Vaes stayed close for a long time, but a flat tyre meant they never got to the wheel and had to be satisfied with fourth place, but a handsome victory in the masters (40+) category.
At the front, the two duos rode together until kilometre 75, after which Hanseeuw and Decaesteker showed their good condition and drove away from Van Aelbroeck-Seynaeve one metre at a time uphill. A flat tyre at the front and a short pit stop to pump some extra air into the tyre with a CO2 cartridge meant that everything could be done again at 20km from the finish, but a little further on Hanseeuw and Decaesteker were able to show their dominance and after 115km crossed the finish line victorious, 1m46 ahead of Van Aelbroeck-Seynaeve.
De Kort-Goetschalckx completed the day's podium and confirmed their supremacy in the grandmasters category 22m40 from the winners while Ossieur-Vaes had to concede 27m48.
Also handsome was sixth place for the first mixed duo Luc Bellings and Alice Pirard.
The many riders from the challenge class trickled in one by one, enjoying the beautiful scenery, the supplies and the battle against themselves and the elements of nature. Tomorrow there will be a 102km ride with 2350m altimeters towards El Kelaa M'Gouna