The classics thread

ddraver

http://cyclingtips.com.au/2015/04/wiggi ... s-roubaix/

So clear that the Wiggins hate fans doesnt exist outside of GB cycling fans. We re a sorry bunch sometimes

frenchfighter

Because Paolini wants his photo and Pozzato wants his bike?

ddraver

because its one of many interviews I ve read and opinions I ve heard outside of the GB cycling fan echo chamber

The ridiculousness id that someone like me who is ambivalent about Wiggins comes across, even to me, as a fanboi on this forum

mm1

Unashamed fan here. He's been great for the profile of the sport with the wider public, is still a member of his original club, which was his Dad's old club when he lived in London (the club which the rest of us tuggoes looked up to when I was a kid in the 70's), what's not to like?

frenchfighter

frenchfighter

Wiggins lovers, put your avi where your heart is:

rob churchill

Definitely a fan, will be celebrating if he wins next week.

No_Ta_Doctor

I'm a bit of a fan, but can see why he pisses others off sometimes.

It's a shame that he can't seem to produce consistently, and also that he doesn't seem to bury himself for a teammate unless it's part of some magnificent grand gesture. But I genuinely think he can only lift himself to the heights he manages when he is completely focused, motivated and self obsessed. He can't do it all that often, but his performance peaks are incredible.

ddraver

I think he really did want to last weekend but bad luck is bad luck. Its not like any other favourite had people capable of working in the group with them either (except probably Kristoff/Paolini and Terpstra/Stybar). If he really CBA then he'd have sat in the car after the crash

RichN95.

ddraver wrote:

I think he really did want to last weekend but bad luck is bad luck. Its not like any other favourite had people capable of working in the group with them either (except probably Kristoff/Paolini and Terpstra/Stybar). If he really CBA then he'd have sat in the car after the crash

I don't think Paolini was there. He had mechanical problems at the same as Wiggins and never got back to the front of the race.

EKIMIKE

So the situation to date for this year's classics sees quite a collection of winners:

Stannard (Omloop)
Stybar (Strade Bianche)
Degenkolb (San Remo)
Wallays (Dwars)
Thomas (E3)
Paolini (G-W)
Kristoff (De Ronde)

Paolini and Wallays are the odd ones out for me. The rest are potential heirs to crowns of Boonen and Cancellara. Do we think any of them are convincing winner and heirs to the Boonen/Cancellara tandem?

Kristoff's sprint weaponery can convert placings into a wins. We haven't really seen Stybar sprint at the end of a hard race yet. None of them look capable of 'doing a Cancellara' in my eyes.

rick_chasey

Kristoff looks most like turning into a Museeuw/Boonen (if you lot are comfortable with lumping the two together), though I'm cheating a bit as he already has 2 monuments to his name.

Degenkolb also looks like one but then he also has a monument. I'd suggest he's a top favourite for P-R over Kristoff tbh.

frenchfighter

rick_chasey

Bit too early FF.

First...

EKIMIKE

Degenkolb certainly has the better record in P-R. I was quite surprised by how dire Kristoff's P-R record is.

I suppose Sagan is the other 'big, powerful, relatively successful sprinter' that fits the Museuuw/Boonen mould. Demare looks to have the right trajectory too.

Kristoff is the oldest - 18 months older than Degenkolb. While Degenkolb has a year on Sagan. Some good battles ahead, maybe...

frenchfighter

Rick Chasey wrote:

Bit too early FF.

Never too early for a shot of that.

takethehighroad

Watching last year's PR again it struck me how good Degenkolb was on the cobbles, and of course he won the sprint in the velodrome. One to watch for the weekend, for sure

frenchfighter

If anyone is taking the mantle of Boonen or Cancellara then first they need to win solo for more than 30km.

TakeTheHighRoad wrote:

Watching last year's PR again it struck me how good Degenkolb was on the cobbles, and of course he won the sprint in the velodrome. One to watch for the weekend, for sure

If he wins, hopefully he does it solo rather than riding wheels all day then taking the sprint.

A move like in Paris Tours perhaps.

I love it when sprinters go on the attack.

frenchfighter

adr82

frenchfighter wrote:

Wiggo in the car keeping his feet dry?

takethehighroad

That's the sector before Arenberg isn't it?

milton50

You have to say based on his performance on Sunday he could easily equal Museeuw's consistency in Flanders (rarely outside the top 3 for 7 or 8 years). He is just such a strong rider over 250km with a big engine and the perfect kind of sprint for a classic: he can go long or short and seems to retain a lot of his power even after long distances.

The challenge that all riders face when they win a few big races is that they will be more closely watched and riders have to become more tactically aware in order to win races. That said, if you're the strongest rider then you'll go pretty close.

We'll have to see how he goes on Sunday but it would be unusual for someone to be the strongest rider in Flanders and not feature at all in Roubaix.

Degenkolb isn't far behind either.

It's possible that when Cancellara is gone there won't be a standout rider in the race who can just ride away from the rest of the field, so we may see much closer races with small group sprints. At the start of the season it looked as though Vanmarcke was going to step up to be a rider similar to Cancellara but it hasn't materialised.

frenchfighter

adr82 wrote:

Wiggo in the car keeping his feet dry?

No, but he wanted to ride it by himself away from his teammate. Nor surprising given he is a prima donna and doesn't understand what being a teammate is.

http://www.steephill.tv/players/720/spo ... 83&yr=2015

frenchfighter

He also wants to precicsely gauge his efforts in watts. Proper classic rider tactic.

Wiggins wants to win the Hell of the North after a five-year run in team Sky. With his trainer, Tim Kerrison, he studied the 27 cobbled sectors that make up the French monument. He timed each one and calculated the watts he needs to ride to be competitive again.

“It’s pretty simple: what time are you spending and what intensity, and the intervals between the sectors, what [the watts] look like on the cobbles, what it looks like the rest of the time,” Sky’s head of performance operations, Rod Ellingworth told VeloNews.

okgo

What you mean like what Magnus Backstedt did and that was also covered in various cycling magazines?

Give it up, you don't know your arse from your elbow.

thomthom

From Stybar's Instagram

After Flanders.


After dentist.

Anonymous

Wow, Flanders ages you about 20 years.

hammerite

Professional athlete in preparing for race meticulously shocker!

I'm sure they're well aware it takes a lot more than knowing all this to win this race, tactics and a bit of luck play a heavy part... But what is so wrong with being prepared?

Anyway... Anyone know where I can download a copy of this year's P-R road book?

hammerite

sjmclean wrote:

Wow, Flanders ages you about 20 years.

Wow +1

frenchfighter