Bye Radioshack and Becca

iainf72

RS ending sponsorship at end of year and Becca also "bored"

No_Ta_Doctor

Can't say I'm surprised or bothered.

LeicesterLad

Happy Days.

mike6

Ahhh, shame.

ddraver

Think theyve had 2 extra years than anyone would have thought so...

dave_1

1 less team is not a problem but if Blanco don't get anyone then that's two less teams.

iainf72

Dave_1 wrote:

1 less team is not a problem but if Blanco don't get anyone then that's two less teams.

And Vaconsoliel

rick_chasey

No Dutch teams would be a travesty.

Jez mon

It's never good to see sponsors leaving the sport... but if you had to pick one

greasedscotsman

iainf72 wrote:

...Becca also "bored"

Maybe he needs to watch some more bike races?

Crankbrother

For all those gleefully polishing themselves at the team's demise ... just bear in mind that there will be another 10+ talented domestiques without a team come the end of the year as the refugees from RS with WT points are hoovered up ...

Once SKY corp can sidle away from their back door sponsoring of the Olympics, Bikeradar's current crop of fawning buffoons will have a harder time watching Stannard, Thomas etc. scrabble for a team having gained very few points in helping Wiggins/Froome/Porte/EBH ...

thomthom

The sport will be just fine. Never been in better shape and perhaps never been a better time to sponsor a cycling team than it is right now.

takethehighroad

Crankbrother wrote:

For all those gleefully polishing themselves at the team's demise ... just bear in mind that there will be another 10+ talented domestiques without a team come the end of the year as the refugees from RS with WT points are hoovered up ...

Once SKY corp can sidle away from their back door sponsoring of the Olympics, Bikeradar's current crop of fawning buffoons will have a harder time watching Stannard, Thomas etc. scrabble for a team having gained very few points in helping Wiggins/Froome/Porte/EBH ...

One of the many holes in this argument is that Thomas is 9th and Stannard 21st in the UCI rankings.

smithy21

Sponsors come and go.

If the team folds another will come through. It's the natural order of things.

Crankbrother

TakeTheHighRoad wrote:

Crankbrother wrote:

For all those gleefully polishing themselves at the team's demise ... just bear in mind that there will be another 10+ talented domestiques without a team come the end of the year as the refugees from RS with WT points are hoovered up ...

Once SKY corp can sidle away from their back door sponsoring of the Olympics, Bikeradar's current crop of fawning buffoons will have a harder time watching Stannard, Thomas etc. scrabble for a team having gained very few points in helping Wiggins/Froome/Porte/EBH ...

One of the many holes in this argument is that Thomas is 9th and Stannard 21st in the UCI rankings.

Come back to me after the Vuelta and show me their points ... and do you think Stannard will repeat in the next season or so?

dave_1

Rick Chasey wrote:

No Dutch teams would be a travesty.

No Dutch teams by 2014 and no German teams too. It's critical. I think it would be good if Net App-Endura get wild carded into the Tour de France..kinda good to advertise that lower budget operations and amalgam of sponsors can get together and get great publicity in such an event. Maybe cycling is just too pricey for a title sponsors now?

ocdupalais

That a team like this - that was built around a retired legendary doper, managed by a doping ringleader and financed by a businessman busted for fraud and embezzlement - has lasted so long as it has, is the thing that impresses me.

TakeTheHighRoad wrote:

Crankbrother wrote:

For all those gleefully polishing themselves at the team's demise ... just bear in mind that there will be another 10+ talented domestiques without a team come the end of the year as the refugees from RS with WT points are hoovered up ...

Once SKY corp can sidle away from their back door sponsoring of the Olympics, Bikeradar's current crop of fawning buffoons will have a harder time watching Stannard, Thomas etc. scrabble for a team having gained very few points in helping Wiggins/Froome/Porte/EBH ...

One of the many holes in this argument is that Thomas is 9th and Stannard 21st in the UCI rankings.

Should Sky conceive of withdrawing their team sponsorship in the next 5 years, you think Brailsford would struggle to relocate his team with someone else?
You think Stannard and Thomas would struggle to find another team at the end of this year - even if they did nothing else all season?

One of the ironies is that the BC structure that Team Sky have embedded themselves with could be argued to give the broadcaster an unfair advantage in terms of "fair competition" over other sponsors of cycling in Britain - very much in the way that BSkyB and News Corp/Murdochs have been banging on about the BBC in the broadcasting industry...

rick_chasey

It's partly the recession. Firms have less disposable income and the doping has given firms an excuse to leave. No superstars from said nations doesn't help. Dutch do put an awful lot of riders in the peloton though.

Richmond Racer

Crankbrother wrote:

For all those gleefully polishing themselves at the team's demise ... just bear in mind that there will be another 10+ talented domestiques without a team come the end of the year as the refugees from RS with WT points are hoovered up ...

Once SKY corp can sidle away from their back door sponsoring of the Olympics, Bikeradar's current crop of fawning buffoons will have a harder time watching Stannard, Thomas etc. scrabble for a team having gained very few points in helping Wiggins/Froome/Porte/EBH ...

Sky have now sponsored British cycling through 2 Olympic cycles. Last year they confirmed the next round of new sponsorship through to 2016. The promotional value they're getting out of sponsoring GB track AND the road team, is phenomenal. They're in discussions re becoming a partner in the Bakala-led breakaway initiative. They dont appear to be in any hurry to sidle away. Sorry to disappoint.

Crankbrother

Bugger ...

Richmond Racer

ok...so what do peeps think re which team Fabu:

1. SHOULD end up

2. WILL end up

iainf72

Richmond Racer wrote:

ok...so what do peeps think re which team Fabu:

1. SHOULD end up

2. WILL end up

1 IAM

2 BMC

I'm hoping little Murdoch tries to recruit him and see how that goes

RichN95.

There's a German managment consultant in my office today who I can hear but not see who sounds exactly like Jens Voigt so I guess he's sorted himself out.

Richmond Racer

iainf72 wrote:

Richmond Racer wrote:

ok...so what do peeps think re which team Fabu:

1. SHOULD end up

2. WILL end up

1 IAM

2 BMC

I'm hoping little Murdoch tries to recruit him and see how that goes

I think the Luigi thing is a showstopper now for your hopes to be realised, apart from anything else.

I'd quite like to see him at IAM. Rhis will flap his chequebook around to try to get him, for sure. What's one more highly paid superstar for them, after all. Would hack off Phinney mightlly though.

Pross

How the f**k did Crankbrother manage to turn even this thread into an anti-Sky rant?

nic_77

RichN95 wrote:

There's a German managment consultant in my office today who I can hear but not see who sounds exactly like Jens Voigt so I guess he's sorted himself out.

You've got management consultants in at work, and you're swanning about on the internet...

Crankbrother

Pross wrote:

How the f**k did Crankbrother manage to turn even this thread into an anti-Sky rant?

Just reminding people that the demise of what was essentially 2 teams will result in several deserving riders losing their livelihood as a result of the WT points system and a flood of riders looking for places on a limited number of teams ... Remember when British riders were in that position (and will be again if/when SKY pull the plug)?

frenchfighter

Maybe he will retire.

Hopefully Jungels gets a good team to nurture him. Like that guy.

Team roster. Already thin.
http://www.radioshackleopardtrek.com/team

rick_chasey

Canc won't go to bmc. He likes being the main star.

dish_dash

frenchfighter wrote:

Team roster. Already thin.
http://www.radioshackleopardtrek.com/team

What do you mean thin? It's made up of 28 riders. UCI minimum is 23 and max 30 (with 3 neos) 28 with no neos.

frenchfighter

Thin on talent.