Stage 1 of the Dodge Tour de Georgia ended in a sprint finish on the streets of Macon. The unofficial results are as follows:
- 1. Robbie Hunter (Phonak), 5 hours, 47 minutes, 52 seconds
- 2. Ben Brooks (Jelly Belly), same time
- 3. Michele Maccanti (LPR)
- 4. Daniele Napolitano (LPR)
- 5. Greg Henderson (Health Net)
- 15. Lance Armstrong (Team Discovery)
Dan Bowman of TIAA-CREF was on a solo breakaway for much of the stage, but was caught. One reporter asked what he thought of while he was leading all by himself. He said that he thought of many things, including “how much it hurts” and reasons why he was moving so slowly. Apparently the race took longer than everyone expected due to a pretty significant headwind. Bowman’s comments were among the funniest moments of the press conference after the race.