Cycling Track

[agricola]

I can't for the life of me work out how someone can ride a bicycle race in an exciting manner. None of them juggle or jump through flaming hoops or anything.

Seriously, what does it mean?

 

[Corax]

Solo attacks rather than sitting behind a train of team mates riding a steady tempo staring at their power meter.

Is that a winning strategy?

 

[Orang Utan]

The Keirin race has been in my thoughts all day. I wonder if the derny rider ever thinks, 'fuck it, I can win this, I've got a motor'.

 

[The Boy]

Is that a winning strategy?

Depends on the rider I guess. Though in this day of power-meters and race radios it's increasingly rare.

 

[Corax]

Impressive, but if that's the kind of excitement someone's after, I would have thought they'd watch downhill mountain bike or something instead.

 

[Espresso]

The Keirin race has been in my thoughts all day. I wonder if the derny rider ever thinks, 'fuck it, I can win this, I've got a motor'.

Bradley Wiggins should apply for that job when he retires from competition.
I can just see him doing it on one of these

.

 

[where to]

Think you may be getting confused (not saying that 100%). Let me have a delve in my files.

looks like it, nothing coming up on search function here, which is where i remember getting it from. or imagine getting it from. strange. quite clearly not security type too, very odd.

 

[Nigel Irritable]

looks like it, nothing coming up on search function here, which is where i remember getting it from. or imagine getting it from. strange. quite clearly not security type too, very odd.

I vaguely remember something about some Olympic star along those lines here, but I don't think it was her.

 

[twistedAM]

Forza Nibali.
This is eye-watering.

 

[Nigel Irritable]

Is that a winning strategy?

It depends on the rider's abilities and on the situation.

General Classification riders have to be able to climb and time trial, but there's a spectrum from guys at one end who are primarily about the TT and then grimly holding on when it comes to the climbs, to riders at the other end who have to make time on the climbs. The best climbers can attack weaker GC riders on the climbs successfully. Then you have the occasional GC rider who likes to attack on downhills as a bonus. Wiggins is perfectly sensible not to attack and to just maintain his tempo, because he has no acceleration but can maintain a high pace, but its not a style cycling fans generally like.

This whole tangent probably longs on the road thread anyway.

 

[The Boy]

Well if we're posting vids of Nibbles descending...



Edit: shame he's off to Astana next year

 

[Orang Utan]

Forza Nibali.
This is eye-watering.

What's eye-watering about that? The bump?

 

[twistedAM]

What's eye-watering about that? The bump?

He's probably doing 50mph and sees a rut in the road that could cut his tyres to shreds and he still has the bike-handling ability and quickness of mind to jump over it.

 

[The Boy]

And not lose it when he lands...

 

[Orang Utan]

Oh, hard to tell how fast he's going. Doesn't look very fast

 

[twistedAM]

Well if we're posting vids of Nibbles descending...

Edit: shame he's off to Astana next year

Ah didn't know that

(and shit yeah, this thread has taken a tangent, but what the hell..)

 

[The Boy]

I'm sure it'll be back on track tomorrow afternoon!

Christ, that was worse than that mother-in-law joke I made on facebook this morning. I really need to get some sleep.

 

[twistedAM]

Oh, hard to tell how fast he's going. Doesn't look very fast

Somehow cameras never do that justice. You can get an idea of the gradient at the corner.

 

[twistedAM]

I'm sure it'll be back on track tomorrow afternoon!

Christ, that was worse than that mother-in-law joke I made on facebook this morning. I really need to get some sleep.

Only one medal decided tomorrow, Women's Pursuit.
I'll stick my neck out and say GB will win.

 

[Lord Camomile]

Fuck me, just seen Pendleton in the Kerin! Talk about flicking the afterburners on!

Mears was nowhere

 

[Espresso]

So, apart from Pendleton and Varnish, for reasons of disqualification - or relegation - as they seem to say in this sport - is that event the only one that GB's not taken gold and a world record in the velodrome?

If it is, why are there no shouts of DRUGGGGGGGGs, like the Chinese swimmers got?

 

[twistedAM]

Fuck me, just seen Pendleton in the Kerin! Talk about flicking the afterburners on!

Mears was nowhere

If Pendleton/Varnish hadnt been DQ-ed in the team sprint, Meares wouldn't have got a medal in that either.

Seems the Aussies gave their all for the WCs earlier this year, which is fine by me.

My new favourite cyclist is that Hong Kong girl who came third. She was so happy and so she should be as she wasn't even expected to make the final,

 

[Corax]

I've enjoyed the track. But it'd be even better if one of them pulled a wheelie over the line.

 

[tommers]

So, apart from Pendleton and Varnish, for reasons of disqualification - or relegation - as they seem to say in this sport - is that event the only one that GB's not taken gold and a world record in the velodrome?

If it is, why are there no shouts of DRUGGGGGGGGs, like the Chinese swimmers got?

Oh God. Don't start them off. Please.

 

[butchersapron]

You can whisper it like like nigel does.

 

[Nigel Irritable]

You can whisper it like like nigel does.

I don't think I've said a word, sotto voce or otherwise, about drugs on the track, have I?

 

[twentythreedom]

Fuck me can you lot stop the fucking bitching? Please?

Olympic bicycle shiz, yay, etc!

 

[pocketscience]

It's pretty much the same as the badminton players deliberately trying to lose so as to get an easier draw. Nothing to commend about it at all. If there's a loophole in the rules, then he'll get away with it, but it's fucking awful sportsmanship.

I haven't said what the Asians did in the badminton is wrong (or unsportsman like). why always the comparison? Is what they did against the rules?

We're getting in to subjective views on moral issues of the "Olympic Spirit" and, it's not down to sports kids of 19yrs old to resolve them. They won't resolve different views and shouldn't need to.
Never the less, there are times when performers are so good at what the do they get the run of the luck on how the rules are interpreted by a judge or ref at any given split second.
The fact is, team Gb won the gold within the rules as stated, nobody could get near them, the also broke the world record world record ffs, the kid's nineteen... That's the olympic spirit. So any protest would look equally... no sorry, one million times more unsportsmanlike like.

 

[pocketscience]

Imagine if they allowed restarts in the track athletics if someone falls over.

...and Usain Bolt takes the 100M gold in a new world rec.. oh wait, Imyan Santanya has tripped over his own shoelaces half way back down the track, restart in 10 minutes.

False starts are restarted in track athletics...as well as swimming.... Point?

 

[sleaterkinney]

The Keirin race has been in my thoughts all day. I wonder if the derny rider ever thinks, 'fuck it, I can win this, I've got a motor'.

It looks like something from A clockwork orange, strange.