Mike F

According to the article Andy has said in the past he would only ride on the same team as Frank. Leopard Trek is done after year end and only Cancellera has signed with Trek. Do they sign both or cut bait? Andy hasnt hit his 2011 form yet but is improving and Frank well....


https://www.velonation.com/News/ID/14...m-is-over.aspx

oldskoolwrench

I say cut bait and run. Rebuild the team around Cancellara, with emphasis on the Classics and the Grand Tours. Find riders that complement Cancellara's style, that can get him up the steep climbs.

cthenn

I wish more teams were like that, kinda like OPQS. The classics are so much more entertaining than GT's IMO, and riders who do well in those races are hardened, real men. I know it was LA who made the light/stiff race bike popular, but I think the vast majority of the (fat) American public would be much more comfortable on bikes with a more relaxed geometry and dampening properties. I know Specialized has a whole line of those (Roubaix) and though I do ride a stiff road bike, these more relaxed bikes are super comfy. Building a brand behind Fabu would be a great idea, and promoting more all-day comfort road bikes over the lightest, stiffest racer could make these manufacturers $$$$$. And now that Trek will be the title sponsor for Radioshack, it's a perfect match.

oldskoolwrench

I agree; the Classics are more exciting, and much more spontaneous. Van Summeren's win in '11, the way Fabio stomped Peter Sagan in the '13 Tour of Flanders, and his win in P-R the following week...

It could be because the chance viewing of A Sunday in Hell in my school lunchroom, way back in 1976 (which influenced me to start riding and later, make bicycles my career), gave me an appreciation of the Classics which has never left me. Maybe it's why I ride a road bike equipped with a Rock Shox Paris - Roubaix Ti SL fork... maybe it's why I have a poster of '94 winner Andrei Tchmil, covered in mud, hammering down the Carrefour de l'Abre.

kenji666

What will wittle Andy do without his big bwotha?

reef58

FC is getting older. It may be risky to build a team around him.

The announcement about Frank is pretty dumb with the GC battle just getting ready to start. I am not sure who is their PR person, but they have no sense. Wait until after the tour and let Andy have a go at it. He seems to be pretty fragile especially in matters dealing with his brother. Since 2009 the people running, Astana then RS are their own worse enemies.

sprince

I have doubts there is a pile of money in building sensible bikes. There are already companies that do that very well, and at well below the premium prices of a Trek or Specialized. Fuji comes to mind. What I see at club rides is a lot of the mid-high priced carbon frames with the stems upside down and a 2 inch stack of spacers. I've often wondered why those people don't just buy a steel touring bike and be comfortable, and probably faster. But I guess they want a bike just like the pro riders use, or at least a bike that looks just like the bikes that pro riders use. Not sure what the connection to Fabian is. I ride with a relatively precipitous drop to the bars, but 5 minutes on Fabian's bike would give me back spasms. He's got some freakish hip and low back flexibility.

kenji666

I thought they were pretty honest in dealing with this situation. He is 10 days away from coming off suspension. If they haven't made a decision about whether to take him back by now, then it is pretty dishonest to lie to everyone and push off an announcement until after the tour. Go ahead and get out of the way and let the riders do their jobs like professionals instead of allowing rumors to go wild. It also sends a strong message about the intolerance of using PED's to the riders.

Homebrew01

One time Frank was struggling and Sean Kelley suggested he should get his daddy to help him.
Sean can be witty every once in a while.

reef58

Fair point. It seems RS is on a constant state of self destruct.

sprince

Seems like the decent thing to do would have been to make the decision long before the tour, and give Frank the opportunity to look for another gig. Trek had to have a good idea at the beginning of the year what they were willing to pay and if they wanted them at all, but maybe they expected to get them both resigned cheap.

ultraman6970

Well i would love to see something like that coming from Phil or Paul but that ain't going to happen, great from Sean Kelly.

Dunno if anybody read this...

https://www.cyclingnews.com/news/andy...h-trek-in-2014

Pretty much now AS is crying over his unemployed brother and looks like now he doesn't want to race if not with him, if i understood right, looks like FS has a chance with trek?? I would think that after the Armstrong incident trek would be less tolerant to dopers?

Well who knows what AS does, it is time for Sean Kelly to tell AS to grow a pair of those ones, and finally live his own life. Even would not surprise me that no team might want the brothers at all.