Well, many of the roads that are used are done so for many different races, or when a Giro or Tour route uses them. But the actual recon is usually done by one or two guys from a team (usually the leader for that race) plus the director.

They knew this course in Milan was a problem and protested. They didn't ride into town and suddenly see this was pretty bad. And the race directors did nothing. So the riders did something. People knew about this. That's probably why the crowds were so bad.

The rest of your comments in various posts are spot on and well said.

This Giro was been pretty lucky...the spring has been warm. When I saw the route, I thought they had a 50-50 chance at doing some of the roads due to snow.

BTW...remember two years ago when they were going to finish at a ski station that had a dirt road? The riders yelled, they paved the road...then weather prevented them from finishing the stage.

The thing I like about the Giro is the weather factor. It's still early spring in the mountains and that has an impact.

Interestingly, none of the cycling media that I'm reading indicates protests to the Milan route were made before the Giro started. Seems that would be getting highlighted if that was the case.

Astana is going with road bikes + aerobars for the long TT...
(click for bigger)

http://twitpic.com/show/thumb/5f18z.jpg

http://twitpic.com/show/thumb/5f19p.jpg

Here is a question that I don't think I have seen asked. If the course was dangerous, as it is reported that the race jury decided upon the riders' protest, why didn't they reach this conclusion when they approved the course. Isn't it the responsibility of the commissaires (specifically the Jury President) to ensure the safety of the participants? And given these concerns were not spontaneous (i.e. weather related), why would a Jury President approve a course with the dangers reported and as seen in the photo of the tram tracks seen in this thread? IMO the orgainizer should choose only a safe course and guarantee safe conditions (traffic control etc) and the commissaires should only approve it when they are sure it is safe. I am surprised how many times over the past years I have heard commentators say that a finish or other part of the course is not safe, only to be proven correct by a major crash.

Look this isn't the first time riders have raised the safety question, this has been going on for decades...these guys are not prima donna's, we didn't see them stop at the top of the climb and refuse to make a very dangerous descent in the rain. This course was laid out in a very dangerous fashion. These guys are not like us...if we roll up to a course that could easily put one of us in the hospital then we can walk away. There are no team managers or sponsors breathing down our backs for a result. These guys have to race, and if a promoter or race director has handed them a course that could very easily end their season much less their lives I believe the riders have every reason to take action. I'm sorry that some of you were bored yesterday. I'm sorry that you feel that you were somehow robbed because these guys didn't want to risk their skin for your enjoyment. Frankly given that fact that 99% of the time these guys lay it out and do things on a bike that few, if any, of us could even come close to, I'll forgive them for feeling like they had to take a stand. Please remember that the majority of these guys make very little money. If you consider how many hours they have to put into being ''prima donna's" their hourly salary is ****e. I doubt that most of us would accept the effort/reward ratio that it takes to be a professional bike racer. Yet some can sit here and complain about the fact that they were robbed of a show yesterday. Unbelievable.

Anyway back to the race (which I feel has been excellent), I'll bet the road bike/aerobar choice will be the prevailing one.

BTW someone buy the stuff I have listed for gods sake.

Okay I'm old and not up on computer geek abbreviations...what's the pic supposed to mean.

a spelling correction.

:innocent:

http://www.cherish-creative-scrapboo...t-Letter-I.jpg

it's two words, and the first is spelled with an i

Botto, perhaps you and my wife can create some sort of Super Friends fortress of Correct Spelling and Grammar to protect us from ourselves.

From what I gather, it wasn't so much the course itself, but rather conditions that day, that was of most concern (Parked cars along course route, oncoming traffic not closed down in one stretch).

Hey guys, just wanted to say thanks for keeping this on topic and interesting - I also occasionally go to the cyclingnews forum and it takes about 30 seconds for any topic - from the giro to their last sunday's ride - to turn into a mouthfull of poison directed at LA or doping or a combination of the two...please keep it up!

That's how we roll in the "33"

your welcome, we try hard around here to keep the peace and stay with the point

riff-raff usually find their way elsewhere after a slight reprimand

Anyone have any idea what Lim is having the Garmin boys run for the 60k TT?

I'll be curious if all of the TT specialist riders go this way too. I still wouldn't be surprised to see guys like Rogers, Cancellara, Leiphemer on TT bikes.

I'm curious to see the road bike mods done to fit TT aerodynamics demands - seatpost setbacks, adjustable stems for a steeper drop? etc..

This TT has great potential to open HUGE gaps in the GC. All the twists and turns will make the simplest things like which line to take through successive corners add seconds.

Aside from the few OT debates about safety and my spelling errors...yeah we keep it clean ;)

You forgot a period in there.

I do my best to derail the thread and turn it into a massive sophomoric pissing match and this is the thanks I get.

If (and I don't believe this to be true) Levi were to gain a couple of minutes on Basso and DiLuca, it will be very interesting to see if Astana can protect Levi. Liquigas is very strong and Basso is a great climber who can attack. My feeling is that Astana will find that they will need more than an on form Horner to get Levi up the climbs and not lose any time time.

Was this already stated here by the race direcotr:

"The Italian dismissed claims made by several riders that the course was too dangerous, and speculated that the true reason for the revolt was that certain older riders lacked the power to handle the course's many turns."

" 'This circuit required explosive bursts. It required riders to get their butts up off the seats of their bikes, and some riders who are not so young anymore apparently don't feel like doing that," Zomegnan told the Associated Press. "Instead, it seems like their legs have become shorter and their tongues longer.' "

http://www.cyclingnews.com/news.php?...y09/may18news2

That's why I suck at crits too. I'm old and there's turns. Whodathunkit?

Man's got to know his strengths and play to them...you sir have developed yours into a fine art...

ouch...that was directed at lance ya think?

Those are also the reponsibilities of the Jury President. I hope that he or she was smart enough to
a) drive the course before the race started
b) monitor course conditions after the race started

If those things had been done she/he should have stopped the race before the racers had to take action on their own (if given what we have heard about the course is true).