Vuelta Stage 17**Spoiler**
Comments
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The commentary on that French Eurosport clip is absolutely top class!!!
What a magnificent piece of sporting theatre that was - I feel privileged to have watched it.My cycle racing blog: http://cyclingapprentice.wordpress.com/
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airwise wrote:
You ARE kidding right?
It's sad that the Vuelta is considered a GT these days but I guess if the Brits are up there then it's world class
Nope. The Giro was rubbish this year, anyone who says otherwise needs their head felt for softness.
And I don't care who's near the top of the GC. I loathe Wiggins and Sky, but a good race is a good race. And the Vuelta is a good race.Fckin' Quintana … that creep can roll, man.0 -
airwise wrote:
How can it be not classed a GT? 3 week tour = GT. Only 3 of them of Note Giro, TdF and Vuelta they are all world class events.
Only shame for the Vuelta is that it was moved from it's April running to now thus lessened the field it could attract.0 -
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Indeed something smells fishy in there. Who would have said that Froome and Cobo were going to be at the top of the GC rankings 2 weeks ago? No one.
I mean I can moan about Evans. Schelk or Contador not being clean but those guys are consistently at the top and have been since their junior days.x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x
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Rick Chasey wrote:
Yep, just been looking it up. He also won in 2001 but not sure if that was a mountain stage? I also didn't say to win a MTF in a Grand Tour in the previous post but that is what I meant. Robert Millar to Super Bagneres in 89 was the last I could think of.0 -
iainf72 wrote:airwise wrote:
You ARE kidding right?
It's sad that the Vuelta is considered a GT these days but I guess if the Brits are up there then it's world class
Nope. The Giro was rubbish this year, anyone who says otherwise needs their head felt for softness.
And I don't care who's near the top of the GC. I loathe Wiggins and Sky, but a good race is a good race. And the Vuelta is a good race.
Perhaps with good reason though!! Just maybe the death of Wouter Weylandt on stage 3 took a lot of the edge and passion from the race this year from riders and fans alike.0 -
Top_Bhoy wrote:iainf72 wrote:airwise wrote:
You ARE kidding right?
It's sad that the Vuelta is considered a GT these days but I guess if the Brits are up there then it's world class
Nope. The Giro was rubbish this year, anyone who says otherwise needs their head felt for softness.
And I don't care who's near the top of the GC. I loathe Wiggins and Sky, but a good race is a good race. And the Vuelta is a good race.
Perhaps with good reason though!! Just maybe the death of Wouter Weylandt on stage 3 took a lot of the edge and passion from the race this year from riders and fans alike.
No, whilst his death was a tragic event that rightfully overshadowed the race the biggest problem was that you had one guy who was able to just ride away from everybody else whenever he felt like it (so much so that he felt able to gift two stages to other riders), plus a load of other favourites who all seemed happy to ride for 2nd."I have a lovely photo of a Camargue horse but will not post it now" (Frenchfighter - July 2013)0 -
gabriel959 wrote:Indeed something smells fishy in there. Who would have said that Froome and Cobo were going to be at the top of the GC rankings 2 weeks ago? No one.
I mean I can moan about Evans. Schelk or Contador not being clean but those guys are consistently at the top and have been since their junior days.Rich0 -
frenchfighter wrote:Le Commentateur wrote:
Love listening to the French commentators.
+1 - if it was Harmon, we'd all be slagging him off for getting overexcited, but there is something about French. "En cro yable!"
I love the fact they were applauding at the end too.http://www.georgesfoundation.org
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inkyfingers wrote:you had one guy who was able to just ride away from everybody else whenever he felt like it (so much so that he felt able to gift two stages to other riders), plus a load of other favourites who all seemed happy to ride for 2nd.
Didn't help that the classics this year were excellent (well, the flat ones anyway).
You get accustomed to better racing, so the disappointment is bigger.0 -
RichA wrote:gabriel959 wrote:Indeed something smells fishy in there. Who would have said that Froome and Cobo were going to be at the top of the GC rankings 2 weeks ago? No one.
I mean I can moan about Evans. Schelk or Contador not being clean but those guys are consistently at the top and have been since their junior days.
Good question.
I think your answer will bring dark memories from the old days. You probably need to look at early 2000s for the Vuelta and Giro's podiums for that.x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x
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gabriel959 wrote:RichA wrote:gabriel959 wrote:Indeed something smells fishy in there. Who would have said that Froome and Cobo were going to be at the top of the GC rankings 2 weeks ago? No one.
I mean I can moan about Evans. Schelk or Contador not being clean but those guys are consistently at the top and have been since their junior days.
Good question.
I think your answer will bring dark memories from the old days. You probably need to look at early 2000s for the Vuelta and Giro's podiums for that.
Cunego Giro '04?0 -
mroli wrote:frenchfighter wrote:Le Commentateur wrote:
Love listening to the French commentators.
+1 - if it was Harmon, we'd all be slagging him off for getting overexcited, but there is something about French. "En cro yable!"
I love the fact they were applauding at the end too.
Quite right too. What a monumental effort by Froome in the first instance to drop Cobo. He bit the stem for what seemed an age in order to drop him from his wheel. Furthermore, what a come back by Cobo. If it had been Contador and a Schleck attacks would have constituted five quick turns of the crank then a sit up. Both Froome and Cobo were absolutely finshed when they crossed that line...now that's bike racing!0 -
gabriel959 wrote:Indeed something smells fishy in there. Who would have said that Froome and Cobo were going to be at the top of the GC rankings 2 weeks ago? No one.gabriel959 wrote:I mean I can moan about Evans. Schelk or Contador not being clean but those guys are consistently at the top and have been since their junior days.0
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RichA wrote:gabriel959 wrote:Indeed something smells fishy in there. Who would have said that Froome and Cobo were going to be at the top of the GC rankings 2 weeks ago? No one.
I mean I can moan about Evans. Schelk or Contador not being clean but those guys are consistently at the top and have been since their junior days.
Oscar Pereiro0 -
RichA wrote:When was the last time that a GT win has been condended by (i) a domestique, (ii) a rider with as limited a palmares?
Both Schleck & Cunego were young riders. i.e. they came from young to contending rather than from 'mediocre/domestique' to contending. Is this different???Rich0 -
derbygrimpeur wrote:RichA wrote:gabriel959 wrote:Indeed something smells fishy in there. Who would have said that Froome and Cobo were going to be at the top of the GC rankings 2 weeks ago? No one.
I mean I can moan about Evans. Schelk or Contador not being clean but those guys are consistently at the top and have been since their junior days.
Oscar Pereiro
Pereiro had finished in the top ten of the TDF twice before 2006.0 -
Peter Velits last year?0
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derbygrimpeur wrote:RichA wrote:gabriel959 wrote:Indeed something smells fishy in there. Who would have said that Froome and Cobo were going to be at the top of the GC rankings 2 weeks ago? No one.
I mean I can moan about Evans. Schelk or Contador not being clean but those guys are consistently at the top and have been since their junior days.
Oscar Pereiro
Nah, he had a couple of top 10 in the Tour the years before and also the Giro I think. He had also won a few stages in some important stage races.x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x
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Walkowiak?0
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iainf72 wrote:
Nope. The Giro was rubbish this year, anyone who says otherwise needs their head felt for softness.
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Try to spectate at the Giro - there's way more to that race than one guy demonstrating just why he's so highly regarded. Armchair enthusiasts in front of PC monitors are usually the ones with opinions that, however forcefully put forward, are lacking in intelligence and vision.0 -
airwise wrote:iainf72 wrote:
Nope. The Giro was rubbish this year, anyone who says otherwise needs their head felt for softness.
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Try to spectate at the Giro - there's way more to that race than one guy demonstrating just why he's so highly regarded. Armchair enthusiasts in front of PC monitors are usually the ones with opinions that, however forcefully put forward, are lacking in intelligence and vision.
What was better about this Giro compared to this year's Vuelta or the Tour?0 -
The Giro has definitely been the most exciting GT in recent years, but I agree this year it was a bit of a dud for the most part.0
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airwise wrote:
Try to spectate at the Giro - there's way more to that race than one guy demonstrating just why he's so highly regarded. Armchair enthusiasts in front of PC monitors are usually the ones with opinions that, however forcefully put forward, are lacking in intelligence and vision.
The Giro is usually my top choice for grand tour. This year was rubbish.
If it was so great, why did Angelo get sacked?Fckin' Quintana … that creep can roll, man.0 -
afx237vi wrote:derbygrimpeur wrote:Oscar Pereiro
The only time I remember him playing it smart and actually taking a breather for the last few kilometeres before the finish was the day after he had pulled Hincapie to his infamous mountain top win. Pereiro won that day.
After being gifted the TdF he went from being the most aggressive rider in the TdF-peloton to being an anonymous wheel-follower.0