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The Pro Cycling Thread (Part 2)


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Old 01-08-2015, 17:04
Edward_Sloley
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A couple of interesting facts - Yates is the first ever Brit to win the Clásica de San Sebastián since its creation in 1981 (much better result than his crash last year); it has also been 50 years since Tom Simpson won the rainbow stripes in the same city.

Speaking of the rainbow stripes, Storey gets to keep them for another year thanks to her dominant C5 road race victory.
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Old 01-08-2015, 17:05
Marti S
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The usual technical expertise we get from Spanish races the opposite end of the spectrum to French coverage, who it's hard to surpass
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Old 02-08-2015, 10:52
swingaleg
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The Tour of Poland gets underway today....it's a 7 day race which has a 25k individual time trial as stage 7

Although there's a few climbing days there's no really big mountains to split the field up so it's a good idea to have the ITT as the last stage to decide the overall winner as there's quite likely to be a very clustered leader board at the end of the road stages

Only highlights today (7.00pm, Eurosport) but live coverage from tomorrow

This is a World Tour race.......for any newbies still around from The Tour. The top races around the world are organised into a series called The World Tour and the top division teams, often called World Tour teams, are obliged to send a squad to every World Tour race

Sky had a team in the San Sebastian Classic yesterday (world tour race) and they're riding the London race today (not World Tour so a race that Sky have chosen to send a team to)...........the team they're sending to Poland looks a bit light weight with the American Ian Boswell as apparent team leader and a few 'domestiques' that didn't make the Tour de France squad
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Old 02-08-2015, 16:37
swingaleg
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Oh dear.........with recorded highlights of stage 1 of the Tour of Poland to follow the London race the commentators have told us the result

Well done Eurosport.......
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Old 02-08-2015, 19:39
Edward_Sloley
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Result of the first stage:
Spoiler
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Old 03-08-2015, 21:54
swingaleg
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Huge pile up in the home straight in Poland......only 9 riders got through to contend the finish

Kittel is in the yellow jersey after a win and 2nd in the two stages so far

The big lad is back !

He didn't look too happy in 2nd today accusing the winner of bumping him 100 yards out........did look a bit dodgy on the pictures but probably within acceptable levels of pushing and shoving

two more sprint stages then a couple of climbing days and a TT to come
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Old 04-08-2015, 09:46
Marti S
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I will start watching this Thursday, I just find watching the circuits boring, to have 4 in a row is too much
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Old 04-08-2015, 10:30
grassmarket
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I will start watching this Thursday, I just find watching the circuits boring, to have 4 in a row is too much
Particularly when they are going through all those endless identical Communist-era housing schemes.
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Old 04-08-2015, 11:17
Edward_Sloley
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It has somehow escaped me that Dowsett is riding is Poland - thankfully he avoided that pile-up towards the end. If he can make the top 5 in Saturday's ITT, that would be an excellent result for him after leaving the TdF.
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Old 04-08-2015, 11:47
swingaleg
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Another live race on ES today with the start of the Tour of Denmark

I think this is a new race to Eurosport as I don't recall them showing it before although it appears to be a well established race and is currently at 2nd tier level

Although it's only a 6 stage race they have a rest day in the middle !.......

There are 4 World Tour teams including Sky who have Nordhaug, Knees, Siutsou, Henao and Ben Swift

kick off 2.45 on ES and it should be wrapped up before coverage from Poland starts
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Old 04-08-2015, 16:31
swingaleg
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Oh......Carlton and Maggy are busy bees.......they're doing Denmark and Poland.....
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Old 04-08-2015, 17:02
ToneXIR
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Incycle are posting up highlights on the same day of the Tour of Poland stages on their You Tube Channel with World Feed commentary of the two Robs, Hatch and Hayles which is rather handy.
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Old 05-08-2015, 09:08
swingaleg
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It has somehow escaped me that Dowsett is riding is Poland - thankfully he avoided that pile-up towards the end. If he can make the top 5 in Saturday's ITT, that would be an excellent result for him after leaving the TdF.
He's currently carrying the 'lantern rouge'........over 8 minutes down after 3 sprint stages
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Old 05-08-2015, 17:44
Edward_Sloley
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He abandoned today - stomach problems, if my translation of Movistar's tweet is correct.
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Old 08-08-2015, 17:32
grassmarket
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Good to see Marcin Bialoblocki winning the ITT in the Tour of Poland today - in his day job he rides for the British team One Pro, and has had a fair few years on the British pro circuit for Velosure and UK Youth (i.e. coached by Magnus Backstedt at the time), so he is a one of us really, even if his English is not that great still.
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Old 08-08-2015, 18:24
Edward_Sloley
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Must have felt good to earn his first WorldTour victory in Poland - in the Polish champion's skinsuit, I'm sure. Beating Kiryienka is no small feat, and that victory will certainly boost his squad's chances of becoming a Pro Conti team.
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Old 08-08-2015, 18:40
swingaleg
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Must say that I stopped watching Denmark and Poland in favour of the cricket from Thursday ...........

I usually would watch the cycling even if it coincided with cricket on the basis that cricket is on for like 7 hours a day so you can leave it for an hour or two......

but these two races were a bit dull ........

I probably did miss the best couple of days of the Polish race but as someone above said the first 3 days seem to consist of endless circuits around council estates.....not very interesting to watch !
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Old 10-08-2015, 12:53
swingaleg
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Eneco Tour starts on ES today

Ian Stannard looks like the team leader for Sky who also take sprinters Andy Fenn and Viviani together with some rouleurs, Eisel, Nordhaug etc. I thought Nordhaug got injured last week in Poland so hope he's fit to take his place in the team

The race is a bit light on British interest.....apart from Stannard & Fenn it looks like Adam Blythe from Orica is the only other Brit
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Old 10-08-2015, 14:13
swingaleg
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Something a bit different on the Eneco Tour today........it's a sprinter's stage but they've decided to put 3 intermediate sprints with time bonuses all within the space of about 1 kilometre..........

I think I heard that right

Be interesting to see how the teams and the sprinters deal with that........3 sprints bang, bang, bang......

that action will happen with about 23/24K to go to the finish
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Old 10-08-2015, 16:41
Marti S
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Froome to compete in the vuelta

http://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/0/cycling/33854768

I wonder if he will be the team leader though.
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Old 10-08-2015, 16:51
timboy
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Some crash in the Tour Of Utah the other day.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hRM3bFXlyNk
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Old 10-08-2015, 18:59
cmq2
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Some crash in the Tour Of Utah the other day.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hRM3bFXlyNk
It looked like a free-for-all with the cars and motorbikes recklessly driving in between closely spaced riders on the hairpins - all negotiating the corners on different lines and speeds.

It is not clear from the video what sent Brammeier so far off line at excess speed. Fortunately, he escaped with only multiple minor fractures. The outcome could have been far worse.

After several events this season, most recently Fuglsang in the Tour and GVA in the San Sebastian, some essential training, updated rules and genuine penalties (not race exclusions) for the service vehicle drivers are overdue.
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Old 10-08-2015, 19:44
swingaleg
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Froome to compete in the vuelta

http://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/0/cycling/33854768

I wonder if he will be the team leader though.
I expect he's bound to be team leader !

who else could it reasonably be ?

Could be Porte but he strikes me as a guy who's always going to be 5th or 6th rather than podium........and he's leaving the team anyway

Geraint ?......he had a very hard Tour.......I'd be surprised if he was competitive in the Vuelta, To be honest I'd be surprised if he took part
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Old 10-08-2015, 20:11
grassmarket
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I

Geraint ?......he had a very hard Tour.......I'd be surprised if he was competitive in the Vuelta, To be honest I'd be surprised if he took part
I'd hope that Sky gave him the chance to go in the Tour of Britain. Not a big race in World terms, but he's earned the lap of honour.
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Old 11-08-2015, 09:41
swingaleg
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I'd hope that Sky gave him the chance to go in the Tour of Britain. Not a big race in World terms, but he's earned the lap of honour.
Good call !.......looks the ideal race for him

California usually coincides with the Vuelta and Sky usually send a decent team over there so I guess resources might be a little stretched over the next few weeks

Monday was a good day on the road.....

Sky's Viviani won stage 1 of Eneco in a sprint finish. Griepel went too early and finished 4th. The so called 'Golden Kilometre' with 3 intermediate sprints in the space of 1 kilometre was very entertaining !.......as it happened the breakaway just got there first and it was a bit like a points race on the track with points every few hundred yards. This all happened about 20K from the finish and I guess the idea is to incentivise the peloton to catch the break a bit earlier than they normally would to make the last 20K a bit more interesting rather than the usual peloton timing it to catch the break with 2K to go

Meanwhile Lucy Garner won stage 1 of the women's Route de France, the only major women's stage race held in France........it's a prologue and 6 stages. All the peloton finished together so the yellow jersey stays with the prologue winner
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