Taylor Phinney

afx237vi
afx237vi Posts: 12,630
edited March 2009 in Pro race

Comments

  • Well, he is on LA's team! :wink:
  • Kléber
    Kléber Posts: 6,842
    He's a real talent. Now sometimes a rider can struggle to go from hotshot junior to a real champion but this guy seems like the real deal. I did find it a shame he left Garmin for Armstrong's youth team but at least the hat suggests what he thinks of Dr Ferrari.
  • leguape
    leguape Posts: 986
    Kléber wrote:
    He's a real talent. Now sometimes a rider can struggle to go from hotshot junior to a real champion but this guy seems like the real deal. I did find it a shame he left Garmin for Armstrong's youth team but at least the hat suggests what he thinks of Dr Ferrari.

    He looked ridiculously composed out there tonight. Was he even pushing hard at any point in the final?
  • Kléber
    Kléber Posts: 6,842
    The time was miles off Wiggins from last summer.

    For me the question is whether he can climb, if he is possible Grand Tour material?
  • stagehopper
    stagehopper Posts: 1,593
    Kléber wrote:
    The time was miles off Wiggins from last summer.

    For me the question is whether he can climb, if he is possible Grand Tour material?

    Phinney did a 4:15.2 in qualifying (matching what he did in Copenhagen in the World Cup) and a 4.17.6 in the final.

    Wiggins did 4:15.0 in qualifying, 4:16.6 in the quarters and a 4:17.0 in the final in the Olympics.

    In last year's worlds Wiggins did a 4:17.0 and a 4:18.5.

    Times are very comparable. Phinney looked very smooth on the bike. Be interesting to see if he can replicate his 1km time from Copenhagen where he did a superb 1:01.6..
  • Kléber
    Kléber Posts: 6,842
    Ok, I stand corrected, I thought Wiggins went below 4.10 for some reason but no, Talylor Phinney is clocking similar times and he's just 19 years old and apparently on a slower track.
  • SunWuKong
    SunWuKong Posts: 364
    Very impressive ride.
  • bluntandy
    bluntandy Posts: 15
    the world record is 4.11 by boardman on the superman bike. Wiggins suggested that before beijing he was close to that pace but illness and needing to compete in two other event stopped him from really going for it.
  • andyp
    andyp Posts: 10,114
    He's clearly a very classy rider, which is no surprise given his genetic make up. The young Australian rider, Jack Bobridge, who came second also shows promise.

    If Wiggins is to win a third consecutive Olympic title in 2012 then he now understands the strength of the competition he's likely to face.
  • Monty Dog
    Monty Dog Posts: 20,614
    I can't help but think that with his mother's associations with the LA Olympics where blood-doping was officially endorsed by the USCF, his no-doubt relationship with Chris Carmichael who ran the US cycling programme and now his associations with Armstrong I'm finding it hard to see if this is 'pure' talent. There were a number of allegations around Carmichael's role in the US junior programme that I believe were quietened up and settled out of court.
    Make mine an Italian, with Campagnolo on the side..
  • stagehopper
    stagehopper Posts: 1,593
    Not sure the Polish track is slow - there's been world bests in the women's 500m and women's team sprint, and very close to a world best in the women's team pursuit. Throw in Phinney's times and it looks pretty speedy to me.

    There'll always be question marks around Phinney, but he does look incredibly smooth on a bike.

    What's interesting I think is the British performances in Warsaw. The French is particular were throwing around a lot on insinuations last August, yet if you look at the times from Beijing the Brits weren't in general doing anything spectacular. Take Romero and Houvenaghel who were 3 or 4 seconds slower than the winning time in Athens. Yes the men's team pursuit broke the record twice but then they were being driven to it by the performances of the Danes and New Zealand teams.

    What Britain had was a very strong squad which seemed to peak whereas most other countries sent patchwork squads which underperformed. Come this week and many of the other countries have sent highly promising, exciting new athletes with Britain sending a bit of a patchwork squad and hey presto order is restored in track cycling. The times from "the world" have really kicked on from Beijing.
  • DaveyL
    DaveyL Posts: 5,167
    Yes, it's impressive that Phinney can knock out a 4:15 in the 4 km pursuit, but he's also posted a, what, 1:01.6 in the kilo? An astounding talent - I mean, what could Brad do in the kilo? What could Sir Chris do in the 4 km pursuit? (I do seem to recall Hoy started out as a pursuiter?)

    Let's see how he goes today.
    Le Blaireau (1)
  • mclarent
    mclarent Posts: 784
    I think it's clear that this worlds is not a priority for BC, save for blooding youngsters and getting a clear view on their options going forwards. Paraphrasing what Pendleton said, you can't stay on the rivet for 4 years and then just turn it on at the Olympics, and I think that applies to BC as much as the individual riders. All round, not a bad performance so far, although I hoped we'd do better in the womens pursuit, and mens points race / Keirin.
    "And the Lord said unto Cain, 'where is Abel thy brother?' And he said, 'I know not: I dropped him on the climb up to the motorway bridge'."
    - eccolafilosofiadelpedale
  • leguape
    leguape Posts: 986
    Monty Dog wrote:
    I can't help but think that with his mother's associations with the LA Olympics where blood-doping was officially endorsed by the USCF, his no-doubt relationship with Chris Carmichael who ran the US cycling programme and now his associations with Armstrong I'm finding it hard to see if this is 'pure' talent. There were a number of allegations around Carmichael's role in the US junior programme that I believe were quietened up and settled out of court.

    Odd insinuations to make given his long and well-documented relationship with Vaughters and riding as a junior with the various incarnations of the Garmin junior setup up until the beginning of this season.
  • timoid.
    timoid. Posts: 3,133
    Monty Dog wrote:
    I can't help but think that with his mother's associations with the LA Olympics where blood-doping was officially endorsed by the USCF, his no-doubt relationship with Chris Carmichael who ran the US cycling programme and now his associations with Armstrong I'm finding it hard to see if this is 'pure' talent. There were a number of allegations around Carmichael's role in the US junior programme that I believe were quietened up and settled out of court.


    A bit harsh. Give the boy the benefit of the doubt. We could be seeing the beginnings of a superstar.
    It's a little like wrestling a gorilla. You don't quit when you're tired. You quit when the gorilla is tired.
  • OffTheBackAdam
    OffTheBackAdam Posts: 1,869
    A cracking time, am I getting old, or wasn't 4.15 a bloody good time for a Team Pursuit not that long ago?
    Remember that you are an Englishman and thus have won first prize in the lottery of life.
  • kilo
    kilo Posts: 174
    Monty Dog wrote:
    I can't help but think that with his mother's associations with the LA Olympics where blood-doping was officially endorsed by the USCF, his no-doubt relationship with Chris Carmichael who ran the US cycling programme and now his associations with Armstrong I'm finding it hard to see if this is 'pure' talent. There were a number of allegations around Carmichael's role in the US junior programme that I believe were quietened up and settled out of court.


    I thought something similar when I first heard of him but it would seem from this;

    "It's real bad for cycling, and it's real bad for all of us who didn't participate," said Connie Carpenter, a "completely antisubstance" rider who edged Twigg by millimeters to win the women's road race. "The blame falls directly on the coaching staff, and from everything I've heard since, I'm surprised nobody died."

    which comes from here;

    http://vault.sportsillustrated.cnn.com/ ... /index.htm

    he may be due the benefit of the doubt.

    I was never a great fan of his father when he was racing, probably due to him always being ramped up in Winning magazine ,but judging by this

    http://www.davisphinneyfoundation.com/a ... hinney.asp

    he is due some respect to.
  • DaveyL
    DaveyL Posts: 5,167
    1:01.6 for Phinney, silver medal. Extremely impressive.
    Le Blaireau (1)
  • Kléber
    Kléber Posts: 6,842
    Many, many road teams will be desperate for this guy, he's the answer to the nightmares Cavendish is giving them.
  • micron
    micron Posts: 1,843
    If he can translate track prowess to road - he looks great on the track but so does Wiggins.

    What would be nice is if he gets the opportunity to develop without the pressure of being branded the 'next big thing' - then hopefully we can see what he can do when he's strong enough to compete in the pro peloton