The Smiling Assassin (spoiler)
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TBRAVO posted 2 years ago.
Looks like Basso has the Giro wrapped up unless he gets the flu like last year. He is climbing/riding incredibly well. Tomorrow’s mountain stage will be fun to watch as well…a summit finish with grades up to 24%. :eek:
Is it just me or does it seem that DISCO is pretty disjointed this year?
I mean who are they going to be riding for in the TdF?...Hincapie, Salvodelli, Popovych?
Will they wait and see who has the best chance once the TdF gets underway or what?
- T
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Sling posted 2 years ago.
I won't get much work done tomorrow morning - or the next few mornings after that. They have some of the toughest stages in all of cycling ahead of them. But, like you said, barring an illness-induced meltdown for Basso like last year or a 1956 Charlie Gaul-like comeback for someone else, Ivan's got it sewn up. Boy, he looks good.
I am with you on the bewilderment about the Disco boys and Salvodelli . But with Basso setting such a brutal tempo on the hills, all but the purest of climbers are getting spat out the back. The Falcon is tremendous descender, but he's anything but a pure climber.
My prediction - the Discovery team lets Tom Danielson take over as lead in the Giro for the last week and let him shoot for a top ten. This type of climbing suits him a lot better than Salvodelli. Danielson is a former mountain biker and he also has the world record for the descent up Mt. Washington. (And he weighs about a buck 35).
On the TdF issue, that's a good question. My take is that they are going to let Hincapie take a run at it as a reward for being such a loyal lieutenant to Lance. I don't think they have any delusions of anything better than MAYBE a top five finish, at best, with George. They are grooming Popo for the future, and he is promising be still has a ways to go. In baseball they would call this a rebuilding year. Salvodelli's pretty good, but he's not the all-around package it takes to win the grand tours (last year's Giro, notwithstanding - I think that was a fluke, as this year seems to be proving.)
That's my take :o
Speed hurts; how fast do you want to go?
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Tamara posted 2 years ago.
Is it just me or is anyone else mad that OLN is actually charging $$ to watch the streaming video of the Giro? I'd love to watch more than just Cyclism, but I'm not paying to watch on the internet on my company laptop!
"It's very hard in the beginning to understand that the whole idea is not to beat the other runners. Eventually you learn that the competition is against the little voice inside you that wants you to quit." ~George Sheehan
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Sling posted 2 years ago.
That is a bummer. The next best thing for me is following the blow-by-blow on Velonews.com and watching the streaming video on this Italian website:
Speed hurts; how fast do you want to go?
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TBRAVO posted 2 years ago.
So what do you think about today’s shortened stage at the Giro?
Just yesterday they were talking about the legendary ride in 1956 by Charly Gaul in the wind, rain and snow, etc. But today they shortened stage 17 because of the poor conditions.
So what do you think…smart move by the organizers or not?
I say “Break out the fat tire bikes…let em mountain bike the last 10km�.
Of course I would be seeking refuge in a nearby farmhouse or pub as I am a Desert Boy. :D
- T
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Sling posted 2 years ago.
I am sure Charlie Gaul is spinning in his grave - they had to cut his clothes off of him when he finished the same pass in 1956. But I guess that's a whole different generation.
A little bit of an anti-climax today, I thought. I did think it was strange how confident that Piepoli was that Basso was not going to contest the sprint at the finish. He started celebrating with a couple hundred meters to go with Basso right on his wheel. And of course, Basso didn't contest it.
Is Basso giving gifts already?
Speed hurts; how fast do you want to go?
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TBRAVO posted 2 years ago.
Sling wrote:
Is Basso giving gifts already?
Interesting…I didn’t hear that part. I think it depends on what mood the riders are in.
Basso had already won a stage, so no big deal, let another countryman win.
He seems like a pretty humble guy to me.
Also, from what I have read about mountain top finishes with only a few riders in contention, the pros are pretty loyal to let whoever worked the most to take the win. Unless of course time bonuses are critical, etc. I bet if Basso was not so far ahead in the GC he would have put more effort in crossing first.
- t
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Sling posted 2 years ago.
Right. It was absolutely no skin off his back to let Piepoli take the stage, and Basso is a class guy, so I wouldn't put it past him at all to concede the stage win even to Simoni's teammate.
I was just a little struck by how obvious it seemd to be. Almost like they had discussed it on the way up and Basso said, "Go for it." Which is entirely possible.
Not a big deal; just a little intrigue in an otherwise (surprisingly) dull stage.
Speed hurts; how fast do you want to go?
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TBRAVO posted 2 years ago.
Ullrich pulled out of the Giro today. Said he had gotten everything he wanted from the Giro and wanted to focus specifically back on the TdF training goals. Also sounds like he would have pulled out yesterday but didn't want any negative image associated with the Liberty Seguros scandal.
- T
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corkfeeninpr posted 2 years ago.
TBRAVO wrote:
Ullrich pulled out of the Giro today. Said he had gotten everything he wanted from the Giro and wanted to focus specifically back on the TdF training goals. Also sounds like he would have pulled out yesterday but didn't want any negative image associated with the Liberty Seguros scandal.
- T
I read that he had a sore back and was seen to be out of the saddle at the back of the peleton today stretching it.
Seems a little strange to quit now, another big day in the mountains tomorrow.
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Sling posted 2 years ago.
Pas de Cadeau today - no gifts. Ivan wanted to win this one for his new son.
Speed hurts; how fast do you want to go?
Basso is pretty much stamping his authority all over the Giro. Wow what an impressive display!
Speed hurts; how fast do you want to go?