Professional Cycling For the Fans - Paris-Nice

Starts Sunday.

I'm rooting for VANDEVELDE, I hope he has a good showing. I see Cadel, Contador & Sanchez are riding also, it will be interesting to see how their early season legs will show.

http://www.letour.fr/2009/PNC/COURSE/us/le_parcours.html
http://www.letour.fr/2009/PNC/COURSE/img/parcours.gif

The Race To The Sun!! I have to remember to check VS and see if they are carrying anything on Cyclism Sunday. OK, enough fooling around, it has been a looooooonnnnnnnnnng winter and I need to get my head wrapped around the racing action again. :thumb:

Yep, they should be showing it on Cyclism Sunday.
http://www.versus.com/epicevents

Vandevelde won't be much of a contender for GC.

I've been waiting for this. I love Paris-Nice.

Levi is not racing P-N, due to that busted tailbone @ ToC.

Anyone remember a few years ago how OLN had daily coverage of PN?

When I first started watching cycling in the 80s we were limited to an hour on Sunday afternoon during the TDF. Then when Lance hit suddenly there was all this incredible OLN coverage. One year they showed two hours of the Giro daily! Simply unimaginable twenty years ago. Sadly we now appear to be regressing to 1989 and I suspect in a few years we may again have nothing. :(

Where can I find a video of the highlights for free?

Anyone remember a few years ago how OLN had daily coverage of PN?

When I first started watching cycling in the 80s we were limited to an hour on Sunday afternoon during the TDF. Then when Lance hit suddenly there was all this incredible OLN coverage. One year they showed two hours of the Giro daily! Simply unimaginable twenty years ago. Sadly we now appear to be regressing to 1989 and I suspect in a few years we may again have nothing. :(

Yes, I remember that. I was very excited to see them air live every stage of the '04 Giro, but sadly that was the last year. Until now, I'm guessing. With Lance going for the win in this year's Giro I can't see them not devoting to it some significant coverage. But we'll see! I'll keep my fingers crossed.

Oh, and was today's stage in HD for anyone else? That was a pleasant development.

Great stage today...Contador was on fire! Who would have expected him to beat the likes of B. Wiggins, L.L. Sanchez, and even my main man (sigh...)Jens Voigt? On the flip side, I was sad to see Vande Velde down in a crash, the road rash on his right shoulder looked nasty! :eek: It shapes up to be a fun race with all the climbing involved. But will have to check in on the web for stage details as VS is limited to a wrap up show next Sunday. :(

Go figure, I pull for Vande Velde and jinxed him. I hope he recovers to put in some strong performances. Contador was a surprize winner.

Too bad Versus is only televising again next Sunday, showing stage 8, and a summary of the rest of the week... I guess I'll have to see what their web site's summaries are like while I wait.

Where can I find a video of the highlights for free?

This good enough?
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dukibSDbFPk

Anyone else think Contador will win Paris-Nice, Giro, TDF and Vuelta this year?

Added to my list of things I will never have to worry about:

- A helicopter covering my time trial slowing me down because it's too close (B. Wiggins)

David Millar's quote in the French press: ”You don’t win three big Tours in one year if you don’t have something special. And then we tend to forget that he’s young and improving. That’s crazy. He really is impressive. It doesn’t look too good for Armstrong… “

Anyone else think Contador will win Paris-Nice, Giro, TDF and Vuelta this year?

Is he scheduled to race all four?

If so, I think it is possible... but it would be tough. The other teams/racers will obviously work hard to keep it from happening by taking the lead at any opportunity, as he will be marked as the one to beat.

Of course, we are talking about a rider who was called at the last minute to race in the Giro last year, and won it. There is also little doubt that he has a strong enough team to support him in the attempt. I think it depends partly on his health/endurance, whether anything like an accident or mechanical happens at the wrong moment, and on the team priorities.

Anyone else think Contador will win Paris-Nice, Giro, TDF and Vuelta this year?

It's early on yet and a lot of racing to be done, but Contador looks to be in form that we can seriously consider the possibility.

However, I suspect Contador really wants the TdF and perhaps the Vuelta as well. We know Lance wants the Giro something bad - perhaps that's where LA and Conti will have their falling out?

I'm sure Conti would like to win Paris-Nice as well, but not at the price of burning out before the TdF.

That said, Conti will take Paris-Nice unless the opposition wakes up and smells the coffee, but if they do, I wonder if this is a big enough prize to lay it all on the line to win it? I suspect the other teams might push really hard to see how much Conti and Astana are willing to invest in a Paris-Nice win. In any event, we'll at least have our answer to that one on Sunday.

It's early on yet and a lot of racing to be done, but Contador looks to be in form that we can seriously consider the possibility.

However, I suspect Contador really wants the TdF and perhaps the Vuelta as well. We know Lance wants the Giro something bad - perhaps that's where LA and Conti will have their falling out?

I'm sure Conti would like to win Paris-Nice as well, but not at the price of burning out before the TdF.

That said, Conti will take Paris-Nice unless the opposition wakes up and smells the coffee, but if they do, I wonder if this is a big enough prize to lay it all on the line to win it? I suspect the other teams might push really hard to see how much Conti and Astana are willing to invest in a Paris-Nice win. In any event, we'll at least have our answer to that one on Sunday.

Contador is not riding the Giro to focus on the Tour de France according to reports I've read. Contador going all out in Paris-Nice won't have an affect on his tour; there's plenty of time in between. Riding the Giro might have, which is why he's abstaining (although I bet he could manage it). Lance and Alberto are scheduled to ride together in the Tour of Castilla y Leon later in March. A couple mountain-top finishes will be fun to see.

Anyone else think Contador will win Paris-Nice, Giro, TDF and Vuelta this year?

Maybe 3 out of the 4 and skip the Giro. Many now feel there's not enough recovery or training time between the Giro and TdF to realistically win both. Plus the team would be under a lot of pressure to keep Contador in front and defend challenges. Astana is a strong team, but is susceptible to burning out its support riders too.

Lance said he needed to lose some pounds, so who knows if he can do it and still be competitive in the Giro. Winning one of the other Grand Tours would deflect criticism that he was only interested in the TdF and cement his legacy as one of the greats.

I have not heard anything that Contador was riding the Giro, I think that's the main reason LA is riding it. However, if he's riding the other 3, then yes, he could well win them all.

Did you all see how Haussler punched out of the peloton with 250 to go. The overhead shot showed an impressive kick with plenty of time to celebrate.

Unfortunately I have seen no video of Monday's stage, relying only on the write up on the Cycling News site. Renshaw is apparently pretty darn fast himself, what with successfully leading out Cavendish in the ToC, so Haussler's win must have been impressive enough!

Unfortunately I have seen no video of Monday's stage, relying only on the write up on the Cycling News site. Renshaw is apparently pretty darn fast himself, what with successfully leading out Cavendish in the ToC, so Haussler's win must have been impressive enough!

Check it out Suzie
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XjPEx1_NYyE&feature=channel

Wow! He came out of there like somebody gave him a track sling! It's like he got 10 meters on everyone and nobody could close the gap. Fortunately too for Contador, that crash came in the last 3 km!

Maybe 3 out of the 4 and skip the Giro. Many now feel there's not enough recovery or training time between the Giro and TdF to realistically win both. Plus the team would be under a lot of pressure to keep Contador in front and defend challenges. Astana is a strong team, but is susceptible to burning out its support riders too.

On Feb. 22nd Contador said: “This year, the Tour is without doubt my priority, but I don’t want to discard the Giro or the Vuelta.”

Anyone else think Contador will win Paris-Nice, Giro, TDF and Vuelta this year?

I think COntador will win the TDF this year unless he gets hurts or crashes. He will finish high or win the Paris Nice race. I think some riders are really going to be gunning for him in Paris Nice so the competition may really heat up. I wish we had better coverage of this race in the USA.

Stage 3 highlights:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=let-20s5i4c&feature=related

Another great stage today, I just watched the highlights. Wonderful victory for VDV, glad he could come back after that TT crash. Nice little attack by Contador really had things stretched out. He's got some fire in those legs.

I see that my hero, Jens Voigt is only 1:03 back in 10th place and is the leading Saxo Bank rider, 9 seconds ahead of Frank Schleck. Hmmm, who is riding for who? :D

I also am glad that VDV did not abandon after the TT crash. A stage win goes a long way towards making up for the road rash! It's pretty funny that the French press are already blabbering about Chavanel and how he didn't have the legs to follow Contador. OMG, those guys are brutal, I can't imagine being a French bike rider!

That's one good thing about being an american rider in Europe. The press at home couldn't give a hoot less about how you perform.

I see that my hero, Jens Voigt is only 1:03 back in 10th place and is the leading Saxo Bank rider, 9 seconds ahead of Frank Schleck. Hmmm, who is riding for who? :D

I also am glad that VDV did not abandon after the TT crash. A stage win goes a long way towards making up for the road rash! It's pretty funny that the French press are already blabbering about Chavanel and how he didn't have the legs to follow Contador. OMG, those guys are brutal, I can't imagine being a French bike rider!

It's true, they all have to live in the shadow of Hinault. However, in an interview with Astana's director sportif, Contador apparently got a talking to after Tuesday's stage for getting caught off guard in the middle of the peloton. Chalked it up to a learning experience for the youngster.

I see that my hero, Jens Voigt is only 1:03 back in 10th place and is the leading Saxo Bank rider, 9 seconds ahead of Frank Schleck. Hmmm, who is riding for who? :D

I also am glad that VDV did not abandon after the TT crash. A stage win goes a long way towards making up for the road rash! It's pretty funny that the French press are already blabbering about Chavanel and how he didn't have the legs to follow Contador. OMG, those guys are brutal, I can't imagine being a French bike rider!

Too true. Remember the pressure the French put on Jean Francois Bernard in the late 80's. No wonder he went running to the Spanish Banesto team.

Too true. Remember the pressure the French put on Jean Francois Bernard in the late 80's. No wonder he went running to the Spanish Banesto team.

And even Laurent Jalabert, who had talent coming out his ears and never needed to live up to the expectations of the press and his fans, always seemed uneasy in the public eye. Riding for Once helped deflect a bit of any pressure he faced. It was Ja Ja's personality that he really didn't care what anyone thought about him, he just went about the business of trashing his competition.

OK...mountain top finish today, is this going to be the big shake out? Can Chavanel hang onto his lead??

[spoiler alert] Wow!

Great race today. That's all I have to say.

OMG! I guess we knew it was coming!!

I see that my hero, Jens Voigt

I knew I liked you, even if you are a goil. :thumb:

OMG! I guess we knew it was coming!!

Yes, but Contador's ability to accelerate on a mountain remains astounding. Poor Chavanel deserves a lot of applause. And poorer Voeckler out with a broken collerbone. I always liked him ever since his jump to hearthrob status (to a few French teenagers I know) in 2004. He's always willing to go on a break, mix things up, keep it exciting.

I knew I liked you, even if you are a goil. :thumb:

I get hubby to do the dishes by threatening to trade him for Jens! :D

Yes, but Contador's ability to accelerate on a mountain remains astounding. Poor Chavanel deserves a lot of applause. And poorer Voeckler out with a broken collerbone. I always liked him ever since his jump to hearthrob status (to a few French teenagers I know) in 2004. He's always willing to go on a break, mix things up, keep it exciting.

I was impressed with Sanchez. He can time trial, so this should be some fireworks in July!

Edited to put in a video clip of the final 5 minutes... HERE! (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dyENWdz4djA)

I get hubby to do the dishes by threatening to trade him for Jens! :D

Don't worry, I won't tell your hubby that Jens don't do dishes either. :p

I think COntador will win the TDF this year unless he gets hurts or crashes or the spanish open up their investigation. He will finish high or win the Paris Nice race. I think some riders are really going to be gunning for him in Paris Nice so the competition may really heat up. I wish we had better coverage of this race in the USA.

fixed it for you

Anyone have video of the final climb?

Anyone have video of the final climb?

Try this! (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dyENWdz4djA)

Try this! (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dyENWdz4djA)

Brilliant! Thank you.

I'm still amazed at Contador's TT. What is he, 120lbs soaking wet? Climbs like nobodies business and can beat the likes of Wiggins & Millar in a flat TT.

Wow.

wow, Contador self destructed today on stage 7.

video here http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ggT7qF1KI38

I was impressed with Sanchez. He can time trial, so this should be some fireworks in July!

You said it. That kid's got a future!