"The 33"-Road Bike Racing - That's how it's done! Giro Stage 18

Breaking away 10km into a 150km stage and attacking the break at 35km to go...results in:


http://www.velonews.com/files/images/Voigt.jpg

His first Giro stage win. Totally deserved it, too.

Totally deserved it, too.

+ a gazillion.

That was most impressive.

did you guys see bettini spank bennati in the sprint for 5th? i thought there might be a fight or something.

That was a fun stage to watch

Breaking away 10km into a 150km stage and attacking the break at 35km to go...results in:

So was it more triumphant than the day the strong men cried?

that wasn't a spank, it was a pat, as in "ok, i tried to beat you in the sprint, but i can now see it's a pointless endeavor, so perhaps i should just sit up and make a sportsmanlike gesture, like a pat on the back."

dang. i was watching on the low bandwidth, so i couldn't see it that well. still fun to watch voigt, though. jens voigt: big heart, small torso.

if this was anyone other that jens would there be a thread about it?

Great ride by the Berliner! Impressive execution.

Former inline speedskating world champ just had an article posted that relates to Jens effort today.....


Strategies for Success
http://www.inlineplanet.com/08/05/Resources/tonymuseleading.jpeg
Tony Muse (white jersey) heading for the line at the 2007 NorthShore Inline Marathon.
Photo: Darlene Prois (http://darleneprois.com/)


By Tony Muse
May 23, 2008
When I was 16, I headed off to my first World Championships on a team that included my brother Dante, the world champion Donnie Van Patter, and my then-skating hero Bobby Kaiser.
For some reason, Bobby took me under his wing. He taught me all he knew about international competition and, in his last race, let me win my first gold medal.
Two things that Bobby told me continue to resonate with me to this day:
1) Be the Bus
Bobby used to tell a story about a boy who was on a mission. The boy's elders told him he needed to catch a certain bus to get where he was going. The boy spent many hours trying to figure out how to catch the bus: where and when it stopped and where to get off. But no matter how hard he tried, he was unable to reach his destination.
Then one day, he forgot about the bus. Instead, he woke up early and set out on foot. Somehow he arrived at his destination with plenty of time to spare.
Bobby said, "If you want to make an impact, you have to be the bus."
Back then, Tom Peterson (future founder of Hyper Wheels) was the only consistent performer on the U.S. World Team. Years of skating indoors had polished his turns and sprint, so he performed well on the track, although he was less successful on the road ...
And that's where the Italians dominated; they controlled the pace and then lined up like a train to out-teamwork, out-muscle and out-sprint everyone else.
Everyone tried to imitate them, but few were able to beat the "Blue Train."
But then Bobby decided to be the bus that beats the train.
From then on, he was no longer content to sit back in the pack and wait for the race to unfold. Instead, he was the race.
He never sat in the pack without a reason, and when he went to the front, it was because he was going somewhere. He never led just to lead or to take his turn at the front. Instead, he spent every second of the race as if what he was doing was how the race was meant to be.
With this simple change of attitude, Bobby not only became the man to beat, he controlled who would win, place or show. No longer did races end in field sprints; instead, they finished in breakaways with wobbly legs and cramped muscles.
Bobby became legendary worldwide as the man who took the race to the Italians and beat them consistently. He changed the nature of our sport, turning distance races into endurance events, and paved the way for the U.S. domination of Worlds.
2) Go Out on a Limb
At 16, I didn't think I belonged on the same track with my hero ... or at the World Championships, for that matter. So Bobby Kaiser had a lot of baby sitting to do.
To be honest, though, I was born with a silver skating spoon in my mouth. My parents owned skating rinks, one of which was connected to our house. So naturally, I skated a bunch.
And I was the youngest in a family of skaters. One of my brothers was just ending his competitive skating career and focusing on coaching; another (Dante) was developing into a champion ... and I hated to lose to him.
My background made me fast but didn't prepare me for the mental challenges of international competition.


One day, Bobby asked me if I liked fruit and if I knew where it came from. I lied and said, "yes," at which point he launched into another of his proverbs:
Fruit is delicious and is good for you, he said. But there is only one way to get to it — you have to go out on a limb.
Sometimes, the limb will break, he said. But the only way to get the fruit is to go out on a limb.
He knew what he was talking about. If he hadn't tried something new, he would've never beat the Italians. He took a big risk, and that allowed him to rewrite the culture of distance racing and define an era.
Using the Rules
For 20 years now, ever since meeting Bobby, my rules for training and racing have been: be the bus and go out on a limb.
Going out on a limb has helped me win numerous races that I did not deserve to win. In one recent race in the rain, I was physically drained and struggling technically with slippery pavement.
Nonetheless, I chose to go to the front, which allowed me to control the tempo. The tactic worked. Since I was leading and skating in the only decent lane, no one even tried to pass me.
Being the bus has had an even bigger impact on my career. In fact, I think it was the reason I was able to dominate my era. I became the sprinter the Italians had never had to compete against. And by also preparing for the longer distances, I was able to help my teammates in long races while the rest of the sprinters were on the sidelines.
As I get older, I find I have to rely more and more on my mind and perseverance. But thanks to Bobby's proverbs, I know how to get it done.
---
http://www.inlineplanet.com/08/05/Resources/tonymuse160.jpegTony Muse was the younger half of the legendary Muse brother team of the late-1980s and early-1990s. The two dominated speed skating as the racing world moved from quad to inline skates. Tony won 18 gold medals at the World Championships and another seven at the Pan American Games. These days, he is a father of five and a real estate broker in his homeown of West Des Moines, Iowa. He still races and is a member of the Luigino/Answer racing team.
• Luigino Racing (http://www.luiginoracing.com/)

http://www.biomalz-back.de/produkte/einzelne_produktseiten/rezeptur_feine_backwaren/berliner400.jpg

Ich bin ein jelly doughnut

Ich bin ein jelly doughnut

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5mu02xUgE4k

It's slang. He's American. "Hey, I'm a donut! "

http://www.biomalz-back.de/produkte/einzelne_produktseiten/rezeptur_feine_backwaren/berliner400.jpg

Gahh... tease! :twitchy:

omg inline skating! wtf

if this was anyone other that jens would there be a thread about it?

Maybe, maybe not. There were posts about Sella's stellar efforts...and he's essentially a no name on the world stage.

Jens is always in the break, riding aggressively, and seems to be a generally good guy. Oh yeah, he's also almost 37. Not to mention he rode his ass off and won his first individual stage of the Giro after some hellacious climbing in previous weeks - in a fashion befitting a champion.
:beer:

Maybe, maybe not. There were posts about Sella's stellar efforts...and he's essentially a no name on the world stage.

Jens is always in the break, riding aggressively, and seems to be a generally good guy. Oh yeah, he's also almost 37. Not to mention he rode his ass off and won his first individual stage of the Giro after some hellacious climbing in previous weeks - in a fashion befitting a champion.
:beer:

more importantly, he didn't wear those pug fugly '1992 neon yellow' framed glasses. those things made csc look like they got rick roll'd or pizza hut commercial'd, or something.

jens voigt: big heart, small torso.

:roflmao:

I'm not ashamed to admit my mancrush on Jens.

<3 Jens

He was no longer content to sit back in the pack and wait for the race to unfold.

He was the race.

He never sat in the pack without a reason, and when he went to the front, it was because he was going somewhere.

He never led just to lead or to take his turn at the front.

He spent every second of the race as if what he was doing was how the race was meant to be.

He controlled who would win, place or show.

No longer did races end in field sprints; instead, they finished in breakaways with wobbly legs and cramped muscles.


Excellent.

That's awesome!

Sella did a great job with his two breakaway wins on the back to back mountain stages.

I :love: Jens too. Always a voice of reason, as during one of the doping roundups when he said something to the effect of "WTF are they (the riders) thinking...it's only bike racing, it's not like it's something that's all THAT important!"

Of course there would have been a thread about Stage 18 if Jens hadn't won. Coming out of such a star-studded breakaway pack to essentially crush them with 30km to go? If an essentially unheard-of rider had done that, there would have been *more* press on the result, of the "arrival of the new phenom" variety. F***, the dude took out the World Champion and Italian Champion as well as the Maglia Ciclamino and the (former) Maglia Rosa!

Amazing victory.

Damn strong ride! I'm no sprinter either so LOVE his strategy/technique/capability. :)

There's two things I've really enjoyed watching over the years....Lance sprint up a mountain, and Jens ride a bike.

http://images.cafepress.com/jitcrunch.aspx?bG9hZD1ibGFuayxibGFuazoyX0IuanBnfGxvYWQ9TDAsaHR0cDovL2ltYWdlcy5jYWZlcHJlc3MuY29tL2ltY WdlLzEzNjY5NDI1XzQwMHg0MDAuanBnfHxzY2FsZT1MMCwxNzAsMTcwLFdoaXRlfGNvbXBvc2U9YmxhbmssTDAsQWRkLDE1NSwxM DB8Y3A9cmVzdWx0LGJsYW5rfHNjYWxlPXJlc3VsdCwwLDQ4MCxXaGl0ZXxjb21wcmVzc2lvbj05NXw=

^^ should add "Turn pedals in anger" to the list

http://unholyrouleur-jim.blogspot.com/2008/05/my-man-jens.html

Jens Voigt doesn't read books. He simply attacks until the books relent and tell him everything he wants to know.

Waldo can't be found because Jens dropped him on a hill training ride... on K2.

Jens doesn't spin or mash the pedals... he kicks them into submission.

Jens Voigt puts the "laughter" in "Manslaughter."

Jens Voigt climbs so well for a big guy because he doesn't actually climb hills; the hills slink into the earth in fear as they see him approach.

If you are a UCI ProTour rider and you Google "Jens Voigt," the only result you get is "it's not to late to take up kickball, Fred."

Jens was a math prodigy in elementary school, putting "Attack!" in every blank space on all his tests. It would be the wrong answer for everybody else, but Jens is able to solve any problem by attacking.

Jens' testicles are bald because hair does not grow on a mixture of titanium, brass, steel, and cold, hard granite.

Some lucky horses are hung like Jens Voigt.

Eddy Merckx was actually a neo-pro at the same time as Jens, but Jens dropped him so hard that he shot backwards in time to the 1960's, where he became a great champion.

Jens once had a heart attack on the Tourmalet. Jens counterattacked repeatedly until he kicked its ass.

Jack was nimble, Jack was quick... and Jens still drove him to quit racing bikes and become an ice dancing commentator on Lifetime.

If Jens Voigt was a country, his principle exports would be Pain, Suffering, and Agony.

If Jens Voigt was a planet, he'd be the World of Hurt.

Jens Voigt doesn't know where you live, but he knows exactly where you will die.

Jens Voigt doesn't have a shadow because he dropped it repeatedly until it retired, climbing into the CSC team car and claiming a stomach ailment.

Jens Voigt visited the Virgin Islands last year. They are now The Islands.

Jens Voigt once challenged Lance Armstrong to a "who has more testicles" contest. Jens won... by five.

When you open a can of whoop-ass, Jens Voigt jumps out and attacks.

You are what you eat. Jens Voigt eats spring steel for breakfast, fire for lunch, and a mixture of titanium and carbon fiber for dinner. For between-meal snacks he eats men's souls, and downs it with a tall cool glass of The Milk of Human Suffering.

Jens Voigt believes it's not butter.

Jens Voigt can eat just one.

The first time man split the atom was when the atom tried to hold Jens Voigt's wheel, but cracked.

Jens Voigt is the new black.

Jens Voigt doesn't complain about what suffering does to him... but suffering constantly complains about getting picked on by Jens Voigt.

Jens Voigt can start a fire by rubbing two mud puddles together.

Guns kill a couple dozen people every day. Jens Voigt kills 150.

Jens's tears are so tough they could be the world heavyweight mixed-martial arts champion. Too bad Jens never cries.

Greg Lemond wasn't shot in the leg by his brother, as he claimed... those near-fatal wounds were from Jens Voigt, who accidentally spat on him during a training ride. Lemond only made up the story because Jens didn't want to scare all other bicyclists to death.

The Book of Revelations originally said "and behold a pale horse: and his name that sat on him was Jens Voigt." They changed "Jens Voigt" to "Death" because Jens doesn't want the world to end yet, not until he's reached deep into his suitcase of courage and punished the peloton a few more times.

God is Jens Voigt's co-pilot.

Jens Voigt rides so fast during attacks, that he could circle the globe, hold his own wheel, and ride in his own draft. At least as long as he didn't try to drop himself.

Jens Voigt nullified the periodic table because he doesn't believe in any element, other than the element of surprise.

The grass is always greener on the other side. Unless Jens Voigt has been riding on the other side in which case it's white with the salty, dried tears of all the riders whose souls he has crushed.

So, Jens Voigt is Chuck Norris's brother? German counterpart?

excellant read lol

jim - unholyrouleur is a great guy and awesome writer.

It was worth watching the race just to hear the Italian announcer mispronounce Jen's name about 1,000 times in a row.

Same as last year! :) :roflmao2:

... Brad

did you guys see bettini spank bennati in the sprint for 5th?

That was indeed quite funny. Bettini was laughing the whole time. :thumb:

... Brad

jim - unholyrouleur is a great guy and awesome writer.

Plus he knows how to plagiarize lame Chuck Norris jokes.