Giro D'Italia- Stage 18 ***Spoilers***
frenchfighter
Posts: 30,642
The climb is 10km at 9% average with max of 13%.
Got these two beasts the following two days:
Uran needs a stage win the salvage his Giro. I wonder what stage he will have a go first on.
32 KOM points today.
# Rider Name (Country) Team Result
1 Steven Kruijswijk (Ned) Team LottoNL-Jumbo 92 pts
2 Benat Intxausti (Spa) Movistar Team 91
3 Mikel Landa Meana (Spa) Astana Pro Team 73
4 Carlos Betancur (Col) AG2R La Mondiale 68
5 Simon Geschke (Ger) Team Giant-Alpecin 53
Contador is the Greatest
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Comments
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Breakaway day today... nothing in for the GC
Tomorrow different day... they go through my area, I know those climbs very well. They are steady climbs, no big gradients... I fear there will be still a large peloton at the top of the Col St pantaleon, unless someone attacks early, but I don't see that hapening.
The last climb to Cervinia is almost a motorway... something might happen but if I was Contador I wouldn't be too worried.left the forum March 20230 -
Didn't you say that yesterday? This race has not failed to deliver on practically every stage and I hope this will be no different. If anything, Astana may continue trying to batter Contador to knacker him for the Tour to improve Nibali's chances.0
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coriordan wrote:Astana may continue trying to batter Contador to knacker him for the Tour to improve Nibali's chances.
That sounds so forward thinking that is almost a conspiracy theory...
left the forum March 20230 -
ugo.santalucia wrote:Breakaway day today... nothing in for the GC
Tomorrow different day... they go through my area, I know those climbs very well. They are steady climbs, no big gradients... I fear there will be still a large peloton at the top of the Col St pantaleon, unless someone attacks early, but I don't see that hapening.
The last climb to Cervinia is almost a motorway... something might happen but if I was Contador I wouldn't be too worried.
Interesting - hopefully it will be quite calm and then they can really unleash on the Saturday and special Colle delle Finestre.
“I think they'll attack on Saturday," he said. "They have two options, but one of them might finish off the podium if they are very aggressive. And depending on how the stage is, I could attack too."Contador is the Greatest0 -
ugo.santalucia wrote:coriordan wrote:Astana may continue trying to batter Contador to knacker him for the Tour to improve Nibali's chances.
That sounds so forward thinking that is almost a conspiracy theory...
It's not that unreasonable, given that their GC chances are over for the GIro. Would be in their and Sky's interests to batter him as much as they can in the time remaining (although he has no reason to chance Sky) to soften him up for the tour. A few people have mentioned it.0 -
frenchfighter wrote:
Interesting - hopefully it will be quite calm and then they can really unleash on the Saturday and special Colle delle Finestre.
“I think they'll attack on Saturday," he said. "They have two options, but one of them might finish off the podium if they are very aggressive. And depending on how the stage is, I could attack too."
I am already disappointed about Col delle Finestre. I read that they have manicured it, filling in the potholes and gaps with fresh gravel, harrowing and then rolling the gravel smooth to suit race bikes...
All nonsense, they should have left it as it is... what's the point of a gravel road which is smooth as tarmac?
Roubaix docetleft the forum March 20230 -
Contador is the Greatest0
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coriordan wrote:ugo.santalucia wrote:coriordan wrote:Astana may continue trying to batter Contador to knacker him for the Tour to improve Nibali's chances.
That sounds so forward thinking that is almost a conspiracy theory...
It's not that unreasonable, given that their GC chances are over for the GIro. Would be in their and Sky's interests to batter him as much as they can in the time remaining (although he has no reason to chance Sky) to soften him up for the tour. A few people have mentioned it.
Doesn't make any difference... he has 5 weeks to get back in shape... first two on the beach, third one training and the other two back in the peloton... it's plenty of time.
All this nonsense of recovering dates back to the blood doping era, when you had to rebuild your 60% hematocrite to be competitive...
it's a three weeks race, not 6 months in Birkenau...left the forum March 20230 -
Just wondering, is there a spot betting market in cycling? You can imagine being bunged a few quick to break at the 30k mark...0
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ugo.santalucia wrote:coriordan wrote:ugo.santalucia wrote:coriordan wrote:Astana may continue trying to batter Contador to knacker him for the Tour to improve Nibali's chances.
That sounds so forward thinking that is almost a conspiracy theory...
It's not that unreasonable, given that their GC chances are over for the GIro. Would be in their and Sky's interests to batter him as much as they can in the time remaining (although he has no reason to chance Sky) to soften him up for the tour. A few people have mentioned it.
Doesn't make any difference... he has 5 weeks to get back in shape... first two on the beach, third one training and the other two back in the peloton... it's plenty of time.
All this nonsense of recovering dates back to the blood doping era, when you had to rebuild your 60% hematocrite to be competitive...
it's a three weeks race, not 6 months in Birkenau...
Did you watch the tour in 2011? Obviously, hindsight tells us that Contador wasn't actually there, but the people watching at the time must have thought the ghost looked a little tired.0 -
TheBigBean wrote:Did you watch the tour in 2011? Obviously, hindsight tells us that Contador wasn't actually there, but the people watching at the time must have thought the ghost looked a little tired.
Interestingly, he finished better than he started, meaning he gained form, rather than losing it. I think he didn't start with the idea of winning back then. I don't remember why he went for the Giro in 2011, but I think it had to do with the uncertainty around the clenbuterol affair and the possibility that the Tour door might shut in his face, like it did for Basso and Ullrich in 2006.
That was the past, now he can fill those 5 weeks with positive thinking and adequate rest/training... he can do it... don't think he will, but not for lack of form, rather because his team looks a bit shite, to be honest compared to Astana/Movistar/Skyleft the forum March 20230 -
darkhairedlord wrote:Just wondering, is there a spot betting market in cycling? You can imagine being bunged a few quick to break at the 30k mark...
Not that I know of.0 -
ugo.santalucia wrote:TheBigBean wrote:Did you watch the tour in 2011? Obviously, hindsight tells us that Contador wasn't actually there, but the people watching at the time must have thought the ghost looked a little tired.
Interestingly, he finished better than he started, meaning he gained form, rather than losing it. I think he didn't start with the idea of winning back then. I don't remember why he went for the Giro in 2011, but I think it had to do with the uncertainty around the clenbuterol affair and the possibility that the Tour door might shut in his face, like it did for Basso and Ullrich in 2006.
That was the past, now he can fill those 5 weeks with positive thinking and adequate rest/training... he can do it... don't think he will, but not for lack of form, rather because his team looks a bit shite, to be honest compared to Astana/Movistar/Sky
He rode the Giro in 2011 because he thought he would be banned for the tour. It was probably his most dominant GT win. A two month delay in the CAS hearing then meant that he could ride the tour. If he was suffering from possible-ban-stress it certainly didn't affect his Giro performance. Therefore, he went from tip top in the Giro to 4 mins off the pace in the tour in the time between the two.
The Giro Tour double is very hard. 5 weeks is nowhere near enough time to fully recover.0 -
TheBigBean wrote:
He rode the Giro in 2011 because he thought he would be banned for the tour. It was probably his most dominant GT win. A two month delay in the CAS hearing then meant that he could ride the tour. If he was suffering from possible-ban-stress it certainly didn't affect his Giro performance. Therefore, he went from tip top in the Giro to 4 mins off the pace in the tour in the time between the two.
The Giro Tour double is very hard. 5 weeks is nowhere near enough time to fully recover.
You said it yourself.. there was the hearing and all that stuff going on, I don't think he prepared for the Tour and probably his head was elsewhere. He still managed to clinch a fifth and shine up some climbs.
5 weeks is plenty enough to recover for someone like Contador. He will be at his best for the Tour... I am more worried about the performances of Basso, Rogers and Kreuzinger to be honest. So far very underwhelming. Are they holding it back for the Tour or they don't have any?left the forum March 20230 -
Well to state the obvious time will tell but there are enough examples of riders who have gone well in consecutive Grand Tours to suggest it needn't affect their form. Either way I doubt making a couple of mountain stages in May that bit harder will have any effect come July.[Castle Donington Ladies FC - going up in '22]0
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DeVlaeminck wrote:Well to state the obvious time will tell but there are enough examples of riders who have gone well in consecutive Grand Tours to suggest it needn't affect their form.
There are a lot more examples to the contrary.0 -
Paulie W wrote:DeVlaeminck wrote:Well to state the obvious time will tell but there are enough examples of riders who have gone well in consecutive Grand Tours to suggest it needn't affect their form.
There are a lot more examples to the contrary.
Funny that no one has ever won all three in a year. Ever.0 -
No break as yet. 15km raced.
LLS and Trofimov are being suggested in a few places as potential winners due to the tricky descent.Contador is the Greatest0 -
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I went for Contador in PTP as I thought he might attack at the top of the climb to give himself an easier descent.0
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Cunego surely. He's amazing at descending - Carlton told me so
just realised Szmyd is in this race, haven't seen or heard of him once0 -
Rick Chasey wrote:is LLS all that good downhill?
Not as good as his brother Sammy.... ;-)0 -
Contador is the Greatest0
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inseine wrote:Paulie W wrote:DeVlaeminck wrote:Well to state the obvious time will tell but there are enough examples of riders who have gone well in consecutive Grand Tours to suggest it needn't affect their form.
There are a lot more examples to the contrary.
Funny that no one has ever won all three in a year. Ever.
Not really funny.
For most of their history the timing of the 3 grand tours made that impossible, it's only since 1995 that it could have been done because that is when the Vuelta moved to late Summer, and for a lot of that time riders who won the Tour had no interest in a race like the Vuelta or in some cases the Giro either.
In any case my point is that it is possible to race the Giro and Tour on pretty much peak form, I think the difficulty in doing so is overstated, not that it's impossible for the Giro to affect a rider at the Tour, clearly attempting the triple makes it more difficult to hit peak form for all three but even then if a sufficiently dominant rider tried it I doubt it's impossible. The history of the races, team politics, the relative value of each race and luck means that it is something that has rarely been attempted.[Castle Donington Ladies FC - going up in '22]0 -
Judging by today's stage profile it's one to follow from about 3pm onwards.0
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frenchfighter wrote:Rick Chasey wrote:is LLS all that good downhill?
I'm not convinced thus far.0 -
DeVlaeminck wrote:In any case my point is that it is possible to race the Giro and Tour on pretty much peak form, I think the difficulty in doing so is overstated, not that it's impossible for the Giro to affect a rider at the Tour, clearly attempting the triple makes it more difficult to hit peak form for all three but even then if a sufficiently dominant rider tried it I doubt it's impossible. The history of the races, team politics, the relative value of each race and luck means that it is something that has rarely been attempted.
I would agree that part of the reason that riders dont routinely chase the double or even the triple is that some teams have to keep multiple GC riders happy, there are other targets for some of the riders who might be capable (monuments, worlds, etc.), etc. but I think you're understating the difficulties. Look at Froome in 2012, rode the Tour pretty much full-on, went to the Vuelta and was visibly below his Tour form and dropped off over the 3 weeks. I think riding for the overall in a GT is physically and mentally extremely demanding and very few riders have it in them to be at the best for two in a season; in fact evidence suggests that many GC riders dont have two in them in two seasons.0 -
Wish Dayer Quintana would show his face and do something.Contador is the Greatest0
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inseine wrote:Cunego abandons, no reason why as yet.
Crashed into a Ferrari, or is that just into Ferrari?0
