"The 33"-Road Bike Racing - Stage 17 *spoiler*

****ing weak. Seriously. If the races are so tough that the routes get changed and the difficult parts are totally removed, why don't the riders just ride motorcycles instead. No Passo delle Erbe and no last 5 km of Plan de Corones--- why the heck have I bothered being so stoked for the last few weeks?

Sorry for the rant--- I know it's selfish, but I'm just really disappointed.

2nd

all that hype about using 34-27 for nothing, huh? disappointing.

The stage was ended early because snow and ice were on the Plan De Corones. It was not safe under those weather conditions, and like any other stage at any other race, it had to be shortened or cancelled.

Really, would you have preferred a few dead/injured cyclists for the sake of TV spectacle?

Piepoli sprints and Basso stays in the saddle and doesn't contest the sprint. Piepoli takes the stage and Guttierrez comes in for third 15 seconds down. Pelizotti comes in for fourth place. Cunego came in at 33 seconds and Simoni at around 50 seconds. He'll move into third place on GC now. Savoldelli is coming in with a group of six riders. They are 1'33" down. Danielson leads him over the line. Danielson may have ridden himself back into the top 10.

what a finish, passo delle Erbe or not.
Basso and Piepoli just pulled away from the others
like they were standing still.
I don't know if Piepoli's win was a "gift", Basso stayed
seated while Piepoli was out of the saddle quite a bit in
the last 500metres.

as they said on RAI Bravo Piepoli Bravo.

marty

boring. i want pain suffering and agony. at the very least i want it televised :)

The stage was ended early because snow and ice were on the Plan De Corones. It was not safe under those weather conditions, and like any other stage at any other race, it had to be shortened or cancelled.

Really, would you have preferred a few dead/injured cyclists for the sake of TV spectacle?


and what kind of weather conditions did Andy Hampsten ride in to win his Giro in '88? Over the Passo Gavia?

Did Eric Breukink fall off his bike and die?

What kind of weather conditions did Bernard Hinault ride in to win his LBL in 1980?

Did he fall off and die?

The stage was ended early because snow and ice were on the Plan De Corones. It was not safe under those weather conditions, and like any other stage at any other race, it had to be shortened or cancelled.

Really, would you have preferred a few dead/injured cyclists for the sake of TV spectacle?

Death and injury aren't necessary, no, but here was a chance for a truly legendary race, not what felt like a bait and switch. It was something different than the norm, and definitely a challenge to the rider's skills and endurance on many levels. There have been plenty of unsafe conditions, and often the less than pleasant weather, not so easy grading, and sketchy terrain have made for some of the most memorable and beloved races of all time. Not to be cliche or melodramatic, but however nicely Basso et ux pulled away on the finish, no heros were born today. Which, after the 50th celebration yesterday, makes me sad.

Just my 0.02

What a bunch of wuss-wads this current riders are. First no split TT/Final day. Then skipping the first big climb and then having the organizers skip the end of 17...

What happened to real men????

http://www.pezcyclingnews.com/photos/features/gavia/gavia-andy.jpg

There's a difference between "Snowing" and "roads covered in ice"

what would the real angel of the mountains say?
http://www.gazzetta.it/Speciali/Giroditalia/2006/upload/cha/charly.jpg

its only snow, it's what makes the Giro great, bad weather is always
a possiblitiy, ask Charly Gaul, Andy Hampsten, Bernard or Bobke. They'll tell ya.

if the roads were truely ice covered then I have no problem
with the route change. If only snow, well, it is a bit dodgy.

what would the real angel of the mountains say?

if he was alive today, then charly would probably say something like - where's the beer?

there was a reason why nobody heard from him for such a long time :D

There was a Discovery rider having mechanical issues with his chain shortly after the start of the last climb. He easily lost over 30 seconds monkeying with it. Couldn't tell the number, but I suspect it was Savoldelli.

There was a Discovery rider having mechanical issues with his chain shortly after the start of the first climb. He easily lost over 30 seconds monkeying with it. Couldn't tell the number, but I suspect it was Savoldelli.

according to eurosport NL it wasn't

When was the last time someone won the overall, mountains, & points in the same grand tour? Looks like Basso would have a good chance, but I suck at math.

Before you guys get all sentimental about long slogs through the snow and split stages remember that it was Hinault that lead the strike against these types of stages. But he's just a big ***** right!

he could be, but i'm not exactly sure what a "*****" is ;)


Before you guys get all sentimental about long slogs through the snow and split stages remember that it was Hinault that lead the strike against these types of stages. But he's just a big ***** right!

he could be, but i'm not exactly sure what a "*****" is ;)

Well I'll clean it up and let's just say sissy.

well, i for one wouldn't call him a sissy, or anything similar.

but i'd hazard a guess that a majority of folk from the state you're now living in would. after all - he is a cheese eating surrender monkey :D


Well I'll clean it up and let's just say sissy.

actually I think it was Rubiera with Savoldelli at 1:29, with Danielson at 5:16 75th across the line.

according to eurosport NL it wasn't

Did they say who it was having the mechanical? Perhaps Danielson then?

Really, would you have preferred a few dead/injured cyclists for the sake of TV spectacle?

Well... yeah.

Danielson leads him over the line. Danielson may have ridden himself back into the top 10.


Well Danielson is down in 17th on GC, he lost another 5+ minutes today. Cyclingnews first reported that it was Tommy D who led Savoldelli over the line but it was Rubiera.

BTW Jan finished 11.11 back, I want to believe that he is going to show himself once in the mountains but I'm really having my doubts. He's got to have a go and see how he stacks up at leat once before this race is over.

he could be, but i'm not exactly sure what a "*****" is ;)


It's like a ****, or a ****-*****.

Well... yeah.

Watch the Indy 500 this weekend, you can see has-beens and dentists slamming cars into walls at 220mph, enjoy.

Then there's pro wrestling.

Did they say who it was having the mechanical? Perhaps Danielson then?

nope, but seeing as it wasn't savoldelli, it really doesn't matter anyway, does it? :)

if he was alive today, then charly would probably say something like - where's the beer?

there was a reason why nobody heard from him for such a long time :D

I believe the reason no one saw Charly for such a long time was that he
suffered from depression.

Bahmontes on the other hand, would call everyone ef'ing wusses.

marty

When was the last time someone won the overall, mountains, & points in the same grand tour? Looks like Basso would have a good chance, but I suck at math.

Ok, so I looked it up myself:

Giro - 1968
Tour - 1969
Vuelta - 1995,1993

Breakaways might change the mountain points a lot, but Basso currently leads all three.

Wow…. I’m definitely an advocate for race safety, but I must say I am a bit disappointed they cut the race short.

I didn’t get to watch the live feed, but did anyone see riders with triples? I’m assuming mostly everyone was on compacts. It also looks by the pictures Basso was on the Vittoria Open Pave EVO tires which are 700x24.


FWIW Danielson had the mechanical:
http://grahamwatson.com/gw/imagedocs.nsf/images/06giroSt17/$file/2.jpg
"Is Tom Danielson about to abandon...? No, but a dropped chain has caused the American to stop and fix it..." Graham Watson

that pic wasn't from the the scenario that the other poster was asking about.

the disco rider who was fixing his chain was a. on the right side of the road, and b. much wetter than TD is in the pic



Wow…. I’m definitely an advocate for race safety, but I must say I am a bit disappointed they cut the race short.

I didn’t get to watch the live feed, but did anyone see riders with triples? I’m assuming mostly everyone was on compacts. It also looks by the pictures Basso was on the Vittoria Open Pave EVO tires which are 700x24.


FWIW Danielson had the mechanical:
http://grahamwatson.com/gw/imagedocs.nsf/images/06giroSt17/$file/2.jpg
"Is Tom Danielson about to abandon...? No, but a dropped chain has caused the American to stop and fix it..." Graham Watson

nope, but seeing as it wasn't savoldelli, it really doesn't matter anyway, does it? :)

Well, it might matter to Tommy. :D

Basso spoke to reporters today about his alleged connections with some of the people arrested today. I suspect that his answers were mangled in the translation process.

He says "there is no proof" that the doctor who was arrested had worked with Basso. I would have thought the answer would be "I did not have medical relations with that doctor". But, the translated answer seems to be "there is no proof I had medical relations with that doctor".

That may not be the answer that the organizers of the Tour de France were hoping to hear.

Well that sucks.
Of course Basso cheats. Everyone does.
But it still sucks.
:(

Ok, so I looked it up myself:

Giro - 1968
Tour - 1969
Vuelta - 1995,1993

Breakaways might change the mountain points a lot, but Basso currently leads all three.

Basso has a good chance of winning the mountians Jersey. It is the points where he is most likely to fall short. Many of those close to Basso in the Mountians are also on the Podium in the GC. Tomorrow may be big as far as the Points Jersey goes. If it is a reasonably mass finish advantage Bettini. If there is a break off the front advantage Basso. The 2 days after that any break hurts Basso for both mountians and points. But overall it looks to me like Bettini has hte advantage as he can pick up intermediate sprint points and Basso will not try for those.

BTW Hinault came very close to all 3 a couple of times as did Eddy (aside from the 2 times he did it). Likely for both these riders they missed because it was worth the risk for other riders to pick off the odd point in the other 2 competitions where it was not worth the risk for the GC leader.


Oh but on the plus side for both BAsso and cycling he is also leading the most aggressive competition. When the leader is right up there in that one it means things are interesting.

I wonder how much weight Jan lost since the Giro start? Not trying to make a joke but I wonder how much more in shape he is for the tour?

Watch the Indy 500 this weekend, you can see has-beens and dentists slamming cars into walls at 220mph, enjoy.

Then there's pro wrestling.

Its professional bike racing as well. Its supposed to be somewhat of a spectacle as well.

Well I was looking forward to them going up that unpaved road...confirm they didn't do that?

So I don't understand shortening the course...someone said because of unsafe conditions?
Yeah, because descents in the rain at 70kph at close to freezing temps are totally safe, but god forbid gravel freezes up when they are going up at 15kph.

BTW Jan finished 11.11 back, I want to believe that he is going to show himself once in the mountains but I'm really having my doubts. He's got to have a go and see how he stacks up at leat once before this race is over.

I hear you. I'm hoping for the same thing. However, Jan certainly isn't going to push himself when the weather is so crappy out. I mean...it's Jan...he'd rather be training in South Africa about now. :eek:

Bahmontes on the other hand, would call everyone ef'ing wusses.

Feddy would have chucked his shoes over a cliff and quit.

The Passo dell Erbe was taken out, not because of the AScent, but because of the DEscent. That was the dangerous part, as the visibility was near zero and there was ice on the roads...

Corones WAS climbed...just not the dirt road part, mostly because it was mud. The road was paved until the last 5k, after that it was impassible. Cars were apparently getting stuck.

What a bunch of wuss-wads this current riders are. First no split TT/Final day. Then skipping the first big climb and then having the organizers skip the end of 17...

What happened to real men????

http://www.pezcyclingnews.com/photos/features/gavia/gavia-andy.jpg

They must all be doing CAT V and IV races in parking lots for 60 minutes plus two laps...

man...did you like, watch the stage, like, and listen to the reasons why this happned, and stuff...?

3 hours and 20 minutes and the temps lowered to -2c (about 28 degrees)...

Take heart...they do the Pordoi on Friday and the Di Gavia and Mortirolo on Saturday...

Corones WAS climbed...just not the dirt road part, mostly because it was mud. The road was paved until the last 5k, after that it was impassible. Cars were apparently getting stuck.

You evidently didn't watch the 10 minute video that was linked to on the other thread. The final 5 k are paved. I think the race organizers caved in to complaints - probably about only allowing one team car on that section. Too much at risk for riders in contention for podium spots.

Feddy would have chucked his shoes over a cliff and quit.

What, again? :)