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The Bicycle Racing Thread 2014

Sigmund Fraud said:
I would normally agree - Cancellaras methods have been all about power...which is pretty boring after a couple of wins. Sunday was all about guile and the application of all the power he could muster at the point when it mattered most ie how a great racer wins. I hate to say it but if he turns up with 90% of what he had on Sunday and stays upright he will win Roubaix too.
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Vanmarcke needs to stop working with him. It's Cancellara. If you find yourself away with him in a classic, you sit on his wheel and hold on for dear life. If you work with him, you will get dropped or rip the sprint out of your own legs.
 
Nigel Irritable said:
Short of something taking out Froome and Contador etc, I can't see Valverde winning the Tour. He's seemingly had a complete personality transplant this year and has been attacking constantly from crazy range, which makes him look fantastic against weaker fields, but Contador dropped him comfortably enough yesterday when he was one on one against a genuine contender. And Sky and Saxo aren't going to let him ride away dozens of km out, GP Mig style.
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It wouldn't be the first time Valverde had fairy innocuous early season and storming GTs. Contador with his new 'you must be more PRO' boss in uber buffoon Tinkoff is under pressure to bring results and is ageing. Valverde has also has a mega salary to justify. Both are convicted cheats. I don't give either benefit of doubt and the most natural response from both will be to seek non-natural advantages to counter Froominator.
 
Sigmund Fraud said:
It wouldn't be the first time Valverde had fairy innocuous early season and storming GTs. Contador with his new 'you must be more PRO' boss in uber buffoon Tinkoff is under pressure to bring results and is ageing. Valverde has also has a mega salary to justify. Both are convicted cheats. I don't give either benefit of doubt and the most natural response from both will be to seek non-natural advantages to counter Froominator.
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I'm not big on giving the benefit of the doubt to riders who've been popped either. But despite Valverde having what's actually a very good early season, he really hasn't beaten the top GC guys in a big stage race since his comeback. His top level so far has generally involved fighting someone like Purito for third.

I think you'd have to assume that not only will he be on the sauce for the Tour, but that being on the sauce will give him a step up from his recent level because he's been clean (or "cleanish") since his comeback. And also that the others, including Contador who consistently beat him back in the "different era of cycling", won't get a similar boost. Possible? Yes, in theory, but all of them together starts seeming unlikely.

Now maybe he could get very lucky and Froome, Contador and Nibali could share a crash, an illness and a positive randomly between them, with Quintana at the Giro and old Father Time finally catching Horner. I still think Froome is the big favourite, and that Nibali or Contador are most likely to profit from any problems. But if your mate is right, we will all be demanding a flow of insider betting tips!
 
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Scheldeprijs, the ugly duckling of the northern classics, is on tomorrow (sample Cyclingnews forum comment: "You could have a better race by lining up 200 riders, karate chopping through the collarbones of 20 selected at random, and then having a 1km race between the other 180"). Will anyone challenge Kittel?
 
Nigel Irritable said:
Will anyone challenge Kittel?
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Worth taking on given the short price and his recent performances, imo. Demare is 8/1 which seems a bit short given that he seems to have the knack of finishing second atm, but Kristoff @ 16s could be worth a nibble on the off chance the Giant-Shimano train drops the ball again.

All of which means Kittel will win so clearly he'll get his own time.
 
Nigel Irritable said:
But if your mate is right, we will all be demanding a flow of insider betting tips!
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I sincerely hope he is not right. He is a British neo pro rider from the 90s and well connected to gossip and rumour mill. Thats what worries me.

BTW his tip for last Sunday was Van Avamaet, who you could have had 40/1 on in certain bookies.
 
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Nigel Irritable said:
Vanmarcke needs to stop working with him. It's Cancellara. If you find yourself away with him in a classic, you sit on his wheel and hold on for dear life. If you work with him, you will get dropped or rip the sprint out of your own legs.
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Vanmarcke has taken a battering in Het Nieuwsblad for Chinny calling his bluff with 3km to go. The wise after the event commentators have said he should have sat up, waited for Chinny to come past and sapped on his wheel and given the other two a chance to fight it out cleanly. Easy to say but Vanmarcke was in the biggest race of his life and can't afford to lose the way Chinny can. As it stands the three Flandrians have taken a hammering for not defending the greater Flemish cause and working Chinny over.
 
Sigmund Fraud said:
Vanmarcke has taken a battering in Het Nieuwsblad for Chinny calling his bluff with 3km to go. The wise after the event commentators have said he should have sat up, waited for Chinny to come past and sapped on his wheel and given the other two a chance to fight it out cleanly. Easy to say but Vanmarcke was in the biggest race of his life and can't afford to lose the way Chinny can. As it stands the three Flandrians have taken a hammering for not defending the greater Flemish cause and working Chinny over.
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The "Flandrian alliance" stuff is obvious politics when two of the three should reasonably have fancied their chances in a sprint. Perhaps GVA was rash to chase down VDB repeatedly rather than making Cancellara do it, but that's about as far as common interests go. Van racket though worked with Cancellara earlier when it was just the two of them, and that's just a stupid thing to have done twice.
 
The Boy said:
Worth taking on given the short price and his recent performances, imo. Demare is 8/1 which seems a bit short given that he seems to have the knack of finishing second atm, but Kristoff @ 16s could be worth a nibble on the off chance the Giant-Shimano train drops the ball again.

All of which means Kittel will win so clearly he'll get his own time.
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Bingo on the last part. Nice to see Van P and Bennett top five though. And Farrar continues his low key resurrection.
 
Nigel Irritable said:
Bingo on the last part. Nice to see Van P and Bennett top five though. And Farrar continues his low key resurrection.
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Not seen the stage but there are a few names I expected to be involved at the sharp end who came in nowhere.

Anyway, I also see that Chava is out of P-R. Bit gutted tbh.
 
The Boy said:
Not seen the stage but there are a few names I expected to be involved at the sharp end who came in nowhere.

Anyway, I also see that Chava is out of P-R. Bit gutted tbh.
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Don't think its worth seeing apart from the last 3kms. Good sprint for second, but Kittel smashed everyone.

Hadn't seen that about Chavanel. Shit news. Van Summeren out too, apparently for (understandable) mental health reasons. That's two of the outside contenders out, which is never good news.
 
Great win for Poels yesterday, after a career threatening injury.

And as for today, an out of this world climbing performance by Swift. He's wasted as a not very good sprinter, stick him in the mountain train!
 
So whose everyone betting on for Sunday? Got a bit of a dilemma as I want one of the OPQS trio of contenders but think they'll fall short. I haven't got the balls to lay big money on Spartacus to get any sort of half-decent return. Got to have a few bets on though to make watching it even more interesting.
 
Vanmarcke is at 11/2 at Ladbrokes currently - a good each way bet...

I don't want Chinny to win but I think he will. Forecast is overcast and 15 degrees but not a sausage as far as rain goes, the last time we had rain was 12 years ago! Probably the most pointless race of the season for predictions but I will say:-

1.Chinny
2.Vanmarcke
3.Turgot
 
Just watching a re run of his 2010 win. Only an accident can beat Fab tbh. Never seen such disregard for cobbles.

Just hope vanmarcke doesn't bridesmaid it at the death again.
 
Sigmund Fraud said:
I don't give either benefit of doubt and the most natural response from both will be to seek non-natural advantages to counter Froominator.
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If Froome beats either of them in a GT you'd have to assume he isn't riding "pan y agua" as well. Not that there's much doubt...
 
What a fuck up for the end! Enjoyed the race a lot...terrible way to finish the day,
Terpstra was out of this world.
 
A comedy end to a very good race.

Possibly the only time in my life I will ever find myself cheering on Wiggins. Great ride by him.

Frustrating that the likes of Cancellara and Vanmarcke weren't willing to chase Terpstra, but I suppose there's little benefit to bringing Degenkolb, Sagan, Boonen to the line.

Boonen's racing was tactically strange but he provided 90% of the entertainment.
 
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Not exactly a classic renewal tbh. Cracking last 20-30kms but the size of the peloton going into the final cobbled sectors annd the small time gaps at the end are indicative of a slightly tactical affair. Highly entertaining but lacking a bit in the pure attrition for me.

edit: Demare in 12th @ 47 seconds. Given the luck he seemed to be having today that was a pretty strong ride. And to think I mocked Madiot for suggesting he would be suited to cobbled classics.
 
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I suppose so, but given the scrutiny Froome's under it seems a stretch. No motoman for him.

Of course that assumes any doping would be using a known substance.
 
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