Rate the Giro 2022

mididoctors
mididoctors Posts: 18,908
edited May 2022 in Pro race
Show your working out in the margins
"If I was a 38 year old man, I definitely wouldn't be riding a bright yellow bike with Hello Kitty disc wheels, put it that way. What we're witnessing here is the world's most high profile mid-life crisis" Afx237vi Mon Jul 20, 2009 2:43 pm
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Comments

  • Pross
    Pross Posts: 43,463
    I found this one hard. There were some very interesting and unpredictable stages but the GC action was pretty much limited to a very good medium mountain stage that ultimately led to the favourites still coming home together and 3km at the end of the final mountain stage where there was no chance for a fight back. It suffered from Bardet going home sick, Yates getting injured and then Almeida having to leave the race when his presence was probably the most interesting part of the dynamic at the top of the leaderboard. For me, up until he left, the main intrigue was whether the climbers could get a big enough gap on him to keep him at bay in the final TT. It felt a bit more like watching the Vuelta than the Giro for me.
  • kingstongraham
    kingstongraham Posts: 28,165
    Fun stages: 4, 5, 7, 8, 9, 10, 12, 13, 14, 17, 18, 20

    Plus good finishes to not very exciting stages: 1, 3, 6, 11

    Stages that aren't immediately memorable: 15, 19

    Plus one stage that wasn't all that exciting but had an impact on GC: 16

    (And TTs that I didn't watch.)

    Pretty good, but because the GC didn't really light up, not an all time classic. But stages 8, 10 and 14 especially were outstanding.

    Almost gave it 6 because the battle between GC was not very exciting, watching the not quite best in the world gradually get whittled down through attrition, but Girmay and especially van der Poel really lit up quite a few days, and the full coverage meant seeing really long running battles to get into a break on any day it had a chance, and what a crazy hard three weeks it is.
  • DeVlaeminck
    DeVlaeminck Posts: 9,104
    I've gone 6, about average, plenty of interesting stages and while the GC battle wasn't exciting it was at least in the balance. Thinking about it the points and climbers jersey comps weren't that great either.
    [Castle Donington Ladies FC - going up in '22]
  • pblakeney
    pblakeney Posts: 27,342
    edited May 2022
    A seven based on individual stages rather than the jerseys.
    GC was diminished by withdrawals, but GC is always a test of health, fitness and endurance.
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  • mididoctors
    mididoctors Posts: 18,908
    Carapaz cracking like that was oldskool
    "If I was a 38 year old man, I definitely wouldn't be riding a bright yellow bike with Hello Kitty disc wheels, put it that way. What we're witnessing here is the world's most high profile mid-life crisis" Afx237vi Mon Jul 20, 2009 2:43 pm
  • JimD666
    JimD666 Posts: 2,293
    Enjoyed the stages (except for 6) but the GC was largely forgettable. So I'd rate the GC as a 2 but the stages as an 8. Add both together and average out. Hence the 5.

    Well you wanted the working out showing.....
  • bobmcstuff
    bobmcstuff Posts: 11,435
    6, it was entertaining enough for me but not a vintage edition. Would have preferred if Yates and Almeida were still in the mix later on. As above some good individual stages.
  • No_Ta_Doctor
    No_Ta_Doctor Posts: 14,655
    3km of GC action in 3,445.6 km of racing is dire, even though it was a spectacular old school crack. They didn't even bother bringing the break back and going for the bonus seconds most days. That also cheapens the wins from the break a little.

    The closeness of the GC race should have added tension and excitement, but it didn't. After 3 weeks of the leaders shadow boxing and throwing a few small jabs I lost any interest in them.

    Highlights were Girmay and MvdP, worth at least a point each. If Girmay had been able to continue and compete for the Ciclamino I'd have given 2 or 3 more
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  • kingstongraham
    kingstongraham Posts: 28,165
    Blockhaus was also GC action. And the stage to Aprica.
  • redvision
    redvision Posts: 2,958
    Only a 4 from me.

    The giro has always been my favourite GT but I found this edition pretty dull. Can't quite put my finger on why but just didn't seem to have the spark and excitement it has delivered previously.
  • mididoctors
    mididoctors Posts: 18,908
    Was it a more interesting race in hindsight ?
    "If I was a 38 year old man, I definitely wouldn't be riding a bright yellow bike with Hello Kitty disc wheels, put it that way. What we're witnessing here is the world's most high profile mid-life crisis" Afx237vi Mon Jul 20, 2009 2:43 pm
  • mrb123
    mrb123 Posts: 4,819
    edited May 2022
    5 from me.
    redvision said:

    Only a 4 from me.

    The giro has always been my favourite GT but I found this edition pretty dull. Can't quite put my finger on why but just didn't seem to have the spark and excitement it has delivered previously.

    Yeah, the overwhelming sensation for me was disappointment. Top candidates dropping out. GC stages failing to spark.
  • blazing_saddles
    blazing_saddles Posts: 22,726
    It was heading for an 8 until the final week. That was a bit of a dud. Some great stages earlier in the race, but ultimately it was a GT dominated by withdrawals, which meant the focus was seemingly always on the breakaway.
    "Science is a tool for cheaters". An anonymous French PE teacher.
  • phreak
    phreak Posts: 2,953
    The Giro is traditionally the most unpredictable of the GTs and it had none of that this time around and the GC battle was the dullest I can recall.
  • carbonclem
    carbonclem Posts: 1,784
    I'll remember it as I went to Budapest for the start. Other than that, a couple of the sprint stages were cool, and the break 'just' holding off the final sprint was good. As before GC action was limited but I don't think anyone really saw the end coming so it was quite the ending. MVDP came out as the coolest cat in the race and Girmay's hero to zero heartbreak was a shocker.

    As its a UK based forum, a decent showing for home riders? 2 stages for Yates, a win for Cav, top ten for Hugh Carthy and a show of promise for Ben Tullett - Top 5 TT at both ends of a first grand tour is pretty decent.
    2020/2021/2022 Metric Century Challenge Winner
  • thejimmymethod
    thejimmymethod Posts: 458
    A good number of exciting stages, but battles for all classifications were underwhelming. Final week didn't ignite and think the race suffered from a lack of overall contenders after withdrawals.
  • mididoctors
    mididoctors Posts: 18,908
    It's a tough call this one. Cos it speaks to other giros .
    "If I was a 38 year old man, I definitely wouldn't be riding a bright yellow bike with Hello Kitty disc wheels, put it that way. What we're witnessing here is the world's most high profile mid-life crisis" Afx237vi Mon Jul 20, 2009 2:43 pm
  • mididoctors
    mididoctors Posts: 18,908
    I tend to take on board most people's points here
    "If I was a 38 year old man, I definitely wouldn't be riding a bright yellow bike with Hello Kitty disc wheels, put it that way. What we're witnessing here is the world's most high profile mid-life crisis" Afx237vi Mon Jul 20, 2009 2:43 pm
  • mididoctors
    mididoctors Posts: 18,908
    I'll find something to disagree with in a bit
    "If I was a 38 year old man, I definitely wouldn't be riding a bright yellow bike with Hello Kitty disc wheels, put it that way. What we're witnessing here is the world's most high profile mid-life crisis" Afx237vi Mon Jul 20, 2009 2:43 pm
  • wakemalcolm
    wakemalcolm Posts: 911
    If it was a festival of individual races like the Mallorca week I'd have gone higher but, for me, a GT is all about the classifications and they didn't really catch light.
    ================================
    Cake is just weakness entering the body
  • RichN95.
    RichN95. Posts: 27,253
    A three for me. Not helped by missing the best stage (won by Yates).. Other than that 3km of GC racing and Girmay challenging VDP then being felled by a Prosecco cork.
    Twitter: @RichN95
  • RichN95.
    RichN95. Posts: 27,253
    I think three riders had their reputations enhanced by this race. Jai Hindley, Birmay Girmay and Tao Geoghegan Hart.
    Twitter: @RichN95
  • mididoctors
    mididoctors Posts: 18,908
    RichN95. said:

    I think three riders had their reputations enhanced by this race. Jai Hindley, Birmay Girmay and Tao Geoghegan Hart.

    This is the thing it was the lock down giro electric boogaloo 2
    "If I was a 38 year old man, I definitely wouldn't be riding a bright yellow bike with Hello Kitty disc wheels, put it that way. What we're witnessing here is the world's most high profile mid-life crisis" Afx237vi Mon Jul 20, 2009 2:43 pm
  • mididoctors
    mididoctors Posts: 18,908
    It was a brutally hard race .. consecutive days of leg breaking pace . That's over looked
    "If I was a 38 year old man, I definitely wouldn't be riding a bright yellow bike with Hello Kitty disc wheels, put it that way. What we're witnessing here is the world's most high profile mid-life crisis" Afx237vi Mon Jul 20, 2009 2:43 pm
  • m.r.m.
    m.r.m. Posts: 3,475
    The GC "battle" was dull.

    One of the most fun things to me was the fight to get into the breakaway every day which was at times incredibly brutal.

    MvdP & Biniam were nice and so was the the stage Dries de Bondt and the break held off the sprinters. There were plenty of stages I enjoyed, but hardly anything I found truly special.
    PTP Champion 2019, 2022 & 2023
  • andyp
    andyp Posts: 10,553
    Tough crowd.

    I thought it was an excellent race, with lots of memorable stages and a tense GC battle that went down to the final 3 kms of the final road stage. Hindley was a deserving winner, who rode an intelligent race and was ably supported by a team that used their available resources well. Their intervention in Turin, especially, was race-changing and blew apart the GC ambitions of a lot of teams.

    Withdrawals are part and parcel of GT racing, having the endurance and luck to see the course is part of the challenge.
  • rick_chasey
    rick_chasey Posts: 75,661
    Didn’t see enough to rate it but given I spent the second half of it in Italy and could have watched it but didn’t - it clearly didn’t capture my interest.
    _
  • ddraver
    ddraver Posts: 26,698
    5 on the basis that ProRace would rate the most exceptional race of all history a 6.5...

    Some good stages, some not so good but finished with sprints. GC battle not crazy as top 2 were very evenly matched until they weren't.

    All in all, a pretty standard GT
    We're in danger of confusing passion with incompetence
    - @ddraver
  • No_Ta_Doctor
    No_Ta_Doctor Posts: 14,655
    ddraver said:

    5 on the basis that ProRace would rate the most exceptional race of all history a 6.5...

    You say that, but there are quite a few votes at 7 or above! I've no idea how that would work out if there had been a proper 3 way battle, trading punches over 3 weeks for the GC, or if the mountain and points jerseys were hotly contested, or if we saw epic solo breaks.

    Also, hello Jai's mum 👋 (I assume, scoring a full NINE rating!)
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  • crescent
    crescent Posts: 1,201
    A solid 7 from me. As always, visually stunning, which is important to me from an enjoyment point of view. I'm working from home so it was an enjoyable distraction (I mean incentive, obviously) in the background and I am missing it this week. A pity some of the GC hopefuls fell by the wayside and left it as a 2 horse race, albeit a very close one, but the non-GC battles for stages were more enjoyable in my opinion.. Hindley's attack on stage 20 was deserving of the overall honours I felt. I don't dislike Ineos or Carapaz by any means but it was nice to see a new face on the top step of the podium.
    I thought Eurosport's coverage was excellent. The current mix of commentators and pundits has been spot on since GCN have become more involved. Robbie McEwan is another great addition to the line up. The Breakaway and general banter between Orla, Dan, Robbie, Adam etc was entertaining. I also enjoyed "Brad on the bike".
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