I'm sorry about the title but I am a strong supportor of Ullrich and was hoping he would shine this year :)
instead, he seems up and down :( I know we talk about Lance, Lance Lance, but I would like some opinions on what people think Ullrich's problem is :mad:
He must be good because every year, Armstrong says Jan is his main rival, and if Lance say's it, it must be true :D

So, what's going on Jan? If your reading this, lots of us want you to win :D

Maybe at the end of the tour, he'll tell us?

Like Phil/Paul mentioned during the prologue, he had cold sores on his lip, which may suggest he wasn't at 100%. Then there's also talk about how he lost too much weight too fast...etc etc.

I'm also a big supporter of Jan. Maybe next year.

Or who knows, maybe he'll ride the Vuelta (we can only hope!).

I think he's just having a bad tour, especially with all the pressure of stopping Lance. My husband, at lunch today, said "Jan should have started training a month earlier." I think it's just that Lance started training last August and Jan may be a little burned with his great showing at the Tour de Suisse. It's reported that he lost 10 or so pounds the last month before the tour. That's got to be hard on the body.

I secretly hoped that this would be his year. I really want to see him win again.

Big disappointment for me too, I'm a jan fan. I agree, it seems he just didn't get into form in time. Let's face it, Armstrong's entire regimen is based on winning the tour, and you have to somehow beat that formula. You have to be as rigid as lance is about it. Also, T-mobile showing bad management. They have not supported Jan, not the way USPS works for lance. And andreas kloden is taking sprint points that should be for Zabel! I think Lance's brain and ullrich's body should be grafted together.

Ive been watching him . This is just my oppinion . But it looks like he has a few extra pounds in his abdomin area . Maybe 1 or two pounds . Not much , but alot for a professional .
jar

I think he's just having a bad tour, especially with all the pressure of stopping Lance. My husband, at lunch today, said "Jan should have started training a month earlier." I think it's just that Lance started training last August and Jan may be a little burned with his great showing at the Tour de Suisse. It's reported that he lost 10 or so pounds the last month before the tour. That's got to be hard on the body.

I secretly hoped that this would be his year. I really want to see him win again.

Maybe he should have started in August. I mean you can't lay around all off season & then try to be in top tour winning shape in a few months can you? Maybe that's part of why Lance wins - the sheer dedication to the tour and nothing else. I give much respect to Jan he's one helluva strong rider, I just want to question his motivation and drive sometimes.

I'm a big Lance fan, but I respect Ullrich immensely. I like his stoic nature on the bike, and his class off the bike, which shows over and over if he doesn't win a stage or race. Seems like a genuinely solid guy.

My assessment: as I've said in another thread, the difference between the two is the difference between having the most talent (Ullrich) and being the most prepared (Armstrong). For once I don't blame JU for not wanting to train all winter long - he has a wife and kid now. Still, I wonder if it knaws at him that if not for Pantani and Lance, HE might have rewritten the record books.

That's the thing, armstrong has sacrificed everything for the tour, it even cost him his marriage because he was never home. Maybe it has something to do with nearly dying, and that's what drives him. No one else has that driving them. It's not that lance is better than everyone else, he's better than everyone at the tour. There are other guys like ullrich, and maybe others, who if they adopted that attitude would also have won. But probably most of them want to have a life and can't sacrifice everything for one race.

He isnt riding a Bianchi this year :D

Have you seen the look on Ullrich's face as he's been finishing up the last few stages? It's like a war face, real intense. Gotta hand it to him, though, he's not giving up.

Interesting to see the difference in cadence/gear choice between Ullrich and Armstrong.

I think Jan's got all the tools, save one, focus on the TdF like there's no other bike race in the world. It also doesn't hurt having a talent laden, selfless team that is only there expressly to get your across the finish line in yellow.

I think Lance speaks so highly of Jan because he thinks he has the physical talent to compete with or beat him.

I think two factors influence this:

(1) I don't think Jan believes in himself anymore. He's been 2nd for so long, it must seem like 1stis impossible. He doesn't have the mental "guts" to go up against Lance for more than a day or two...

(2) He doesn't train like he wants it. Lance does anything and everything to win. Jan just isn's as serious as that (I don't think)...

PS (3) He's never had a team like USPS...

(3) He's never had a team like USPS...

big bump....USPS are the vehicle Lance rides on. They've done an awesome job. George, Yeki, Noval, Azevedo. Incredible.

big bump....USPS are the vehicle Lance rides on. They've done an awesome job. George, Yeki, Noval, Azevedo. Incredible.


.......and Chechu. :)

.......and Chechu. :)

And Landis, who today had all the top 5 riders wishing that hill would end!!

And Landis, who today had all the top 5 riders wishing that hill would end!!


Sheet yeah!!! I knew I was going to forget someone!!! :D

Those guys deserve to enjoy thier ride into Paris and lead Lance onto the Champs Elysees....great ride.

Not sure it would happen, but it would be great if Lance could get them up on the podium this year when he receives the "bowl" (if he wins '05, he'll have a clean one for cereal every day of the week :D )...

I have noticed that T-Mobile dosn't have the tactics that USPS have and I think it's about time that Ullrich found a team that can support his talent. I really feel that if Ullrich gets into a team like Phonak or CSC or someone who takes it serious, he will be the next TdF winner

When it was all on the line last year, when Ullrich really and truly had a chance to win the Tour and could have beaten Lance...Lance sick and hurt...at the final time trial when it was pouring down rain:

Lance went out and looked at the entire course and prepared

Jan stayed in bed.

That's the difference.

This is not Circuit de la Sarthe. It's cycling's Super Bowl.

Jan stayed in bed.

I still cannot believe it.

Oh...and Jan makes tactical errors that Lance does not...but Lance has, argueably, the best tactician in the world in his team car.

I've never been convinced by the Jan "has more talent than anyone." Jan has immense talent but has a fatal flaw; he can't match acceleration changes on climbs. He climbs at a steady, fast pace but if there's an acceleration he's caught out. We've seen this repeatedly. No one has a bigger motor but he can't "rev the gears" as high as Armstrong and that has killed him many times. I'd imagine he could ride anyone, even LA, off his wheel on long flat or even rolling courses but not in the Alps or Pyrenees and that's where it matters.

:beer:

If you haven't taken time to read Jan's daily diaries on his own Web site (in German) or on the T-Mobile Web site, you're missing an incredible opportunity to learn more about Jan. It's late in the tour, but the entries are still very illuminating:

http://www.t-mobile-team.com/cms/tmoteam/en/templateId=renderInternalPage/contentID=30250/id=9158.html

Jan has immense talent but has a fatal flaw; he can't match acceleration changes on climbs. He climbs at a steady, fast pace but if there's an acceleration he's caught out. We've seen this repeatedly. No one has a bigger motor but he can't "rev the gears" as high as Armstrong and that has killed him many times.

If it was as simple as that, he would be able to gradually reel in any and all attacks against him in the mountains.

But when he is slower, he cannot catch the rider who accelerated.

I've heard that 'the only reason Armstrong wins in the mountains is he can sprint from Ullrich. Besides that, they are just as fast', when Armstrong has won two mountain time trials against Ullrich, and has often beat Ullrich by over a minute on mountaintop finishes. You don't get a minute in an attack. You get 5-15 seconds.

big bump....USPS are the vehicle Lance rides on. They've done an awesome job. George, Yeki, Noval, Azevedo. Incredible.

This is true BUT ... look at the uphill time trial. That was all Lance. Factor in the difficulty of competeing against the Posties as a team and then throw that mental bomb in there and voila! Game over (for this year).

"High RPM is a straight line to horsepower." That's a saying from race engine builders but I think it holds true for human engines as well. Ullrich can't match cadences on climbs and can't (usually) hold LA's wheel on climbs. Oftentimes by the end of the stage Jan is beginning to recover some time but by then it's way too late.

LA works/trains harder than the others w/o doubt but he also isn't giving anything to anyone when it comes to natural ability as well, claims to the contrary nonwithstanding.

:beer:

Jan is the man. It's cool to see LA get six but ya gotta love watching Ullrich grind it out. MAYBE Ullrich can gain enough time in the ITT to get on the podium, that would be sweet.

Ok, I'm going out on a limb here.
I'm tired of hearing that Jan has more talent than any other rider in the peloton,
if he did, he would be in yellow. Ok? good.
Now, I will say that Jan has more RAW talent/power than any rider in the peloton.
But (and its a big butt!) he lacks a few things which leave him perpetual bridesmaid.
1) Who the hell is running t-mobile (and Jan) Grodfoorte? Pevenage?
2) There is no clear leadership of T-mobile, not in the same sense that LA is team
leader of USPS.
Under someone like Riis, or Bruyneel or the Phonak management I think Jan would
be unbeatable. I don't think training/weight etc. would be a problem. I also don't think
that they would have allowed Jan to sleep in and watch a video as opposed to
actually riding the course.

Until Jan gets out from under t-mobile and Pevenage he will continue to never
live up to his expectations.

FWIW I hugely respect Jan, even tho I may not be a huge fan of his.
Just my .02 worth.
Marty

Bjarne has offered his former teammate a spot on CSC in the past. Not sure why he didn't do it. Riis would really whip him into shape.

Bjarne has offered his former teammate a spot on CSC in the past. Not sure why he didn't do it. Riis would really whip him into shape.
Maybe thats why. Jan is incredibly focused during the tour (just look at his face), but his lack of lance-like discipline in the off-season is losing him the races. I love lance, but I wanna see Ullrich get the chance to school him before the tour is over-ITT- The problem is that lance is unstoppable right now

I was really hoping Jan would pull himself back up into second place. Not sure he can do that, maybe third. Why the hell didn't he attack on stage 17? He had nothing to lose and lots to gain. I guess Floyd just drove the pace too hard, but dang I kept waiting for him to go. Then when they had dropped Basso and Kloden on the descent he was pi*#ing around wanting Lance to pull instead of going for the time he needed. very strange indeed. I can't figure this guy out.

As I said when I started this thread, If Jan was in a different team, more disciplined and tactical, I think he would blow the s#@t out of everyone. If everyone respects Armstrong as much as they say they do, they must admit how good Jan is. Armstrong has made no secret of telling the world that Jan is his main rival, dont you think Armstrong would know?

Bjarne has offered his former teammate a spot on CSC in the past. Not sure why he didn't do it. Riis would really whip him into shape.

Well, it's not just Jan. As far as I can tell, USPS has made the whole field look "division 2." Except, just maybe, CSC.

I was thinking the same thing. If Jan wants to win another tour, he needs to quit F@#king around and hook up w/CSC before they blow their budget on some other GC hopeful.

:mad:

...And how is it that everybody is an expert on Jan's focus and preparation? You also are aware, no doubt, of Lance's Krispy Kreme habit and all the time he squandered with Sheryl that he should have been training? C'mon people...

The difference between lance and jan physically is obvious just by looking at them. Lance may eat krispy kreme, but I bet once that donut is digested, it wishes it was never born.

Jan's big weakness is chocolate. Well, he is german. And they all gain weight off season, jan's not the only one. And it's not like germans are known world-wide for being dainty pickers and light eaters. I think some are just better at self-denial.

Eddy Merckx said that he also had a tendency to pork up in the winter, so he would do six-day races. ALso for the money,of course. Maybe jan should do something like that and be more active in the winter.

:mad:

...And how is it that everybody is an expert on Jan's focus and preparation? You also are aware, no doubt, of Lance's Krispy Kreme habit and all the time he squandered with Sheryl that he should have been training? C'mon people...


Sure doesn't look like he wasted any time to me...

Jan's big weakness is chocolate. Well, he is german. And they all gain weight off season, jan's not the only one. And it's not like germans are known world-wide for being dainty pickers and light eaters. I think some are just better at self-denial.

Eddy Merckx said that he also had a tendency to pork up in the winter, so he would do six-day races. ALso for the money,of course. Maybe jan should do something like that and be more active in the winter.

He needs to do some 'cross or MTB in the off-season :) :D

- Buddy Lee

If everyone respects Armstrong as much as they say they do, they must admit how good Jan is. Armstrong has made no secret of telling the world that Jan is his main rival, dont you think Armstrong would know?
Jan is a good rider and I admit it, But Jan lacks the determination, he doesnt stay mean and lean year round.
Sure Teams have a huge role in the outcome, if the Team can support the leader then that just widens his chances of winning. Last year was a perfect example, Team Bianchi took Jan to 2nd, he could have given Lance more of a run if he wouldnt have crashed in the final TT. My opinion is if Jan would concentrate and make the TDF his goal, have the same tunnel vision a Lance, Train and discapline himself and stay with one Team, work with that Team (Team Postal is one smooth running machine, the team has been together for a long time, yes there are a few additions and departures, but they also get molded into the team that they are) as Lance he would definately be a better contender than he is this year. as lotek say "just my .02 cents worth"
Oh here is anothe pennies worth, Jan isnt riding a Bianchi this year, last year he was look at the difference :)

Oh here is anothe pennies worth, Jan isnt riding a Bianchi this year, last year he was look at the difference :)

what makes you think he actually did last year?

Marty

what makes you think he actually did last year?

Marty
Hmmmm yea you are right Marty, my mistake, definately a trek just painted black and celeste with bianchi decals :)

He isnt riding a Bianchi this year :D



hahaahhahahahaa!!!!!!!!! this is true!

actually thats a Walser, made in switzerland, with Bianchi stickers.
His carbon Bianchi for the stage races last year was a Reparto Corse Carbone, By Bianchi.

now Walmart TREK's in that team

I cannot confirm this, but today I believe Paul Sherwin said that T-Mobile's DS said something like "If you combined the professionalism with Erik Zabel and the body of Jan Ullrich, you would have the next Eddy Merckx"