All Hail Vino

[TNT1]

I was about the only one of my friends that didn't think the Cav would win - call me naive but I don't think Wiggo and Froome Dawg are good rolleurs - sure they climb like mountain goats and can slam a 1 hour TT but rolling off 200+km at 40kph? Not their thing. Stannard is also not quite world class. Even the honourary austrian brit could not control the multiple breaks.

 

Uran had a fine nap in the last 300m but didn't have the legs anyway - I don't think there was any deal making going on there. Fair and sqaure and fine winner in my book. Good opporunistic riding and a nice fairy tale ending to Vino's career after the broken broken last year.

 

Yip. Team Sky selected and backed the wrong riders here.

 

Also, read the interview with Uran on cyclingnews, he agrees, he was looking the wrong way, but when it happened, he didn't have the legs to match Vino anyway.

[dev null]

And this is why I don't like Cav. He has no honour. Same for some of the British press. It is bad from them to even suggest that Uran would sell the gold to Vino. I don't think anybody would be willing to just sell the gold because it would be worse than plain old match fixing. That would almost be like high treason against your country, and the athletes know what an olympic medal means.

[SwissVan]

Anyone see the post-race interview where Cavendish moaned at the journalist for asking the wrong question?

Cannot find a link but went something like this:

Journo: Do you think your chances were affected by fatigue (of theTeam sky riders) after the TDF?

Cavendish Indigent tone: No man stop asking (stupid)? the wrong questions.

 

Cavendish displaying his true colours, what a wheel sucker suurtiet suurtiet wheel sucker

 

Kazakhstan had 2 riders in the race, one of who managed to win

 

Chancellera making a statement today at 11am regarding his shoulder and defending his TT title.

[TNT1]

London Mayor Boris Johnson, who’s known for his deadpan humor, said near the finish line that the defeat on day one was a “classic British maneuver.”

“We’re lulling our competitors into a false sense of security,” Johnson said in an interview. “The lulling may go on for several days.”

[Eldron]

London Mayor Boris Johnson, who’s known for his deadpan humor, said near the finish line that the defeat on day one was a “classic British maneuver.”

“We’re lulling our competitors into a false sense of security,” Johnson said in an interview. “The lulling may go on for several days.”

 

Boris for mayor president prime minister!

[Tumbleweed]

Boris for mayor president prime minister!

 

A womanising cyclist for president? Hell yeah!

[Velouria]

^{Nice vote of confidence for doping}

 

Did the crime, did the time - move along, nothing to see here.

[GrumpyOldGuy]

Anyone see the post-race interview where Cavendish moaned at the journalist for asking the wrong question?

Cannot find a link but went something like this:

Journo: Do you think your chances were affected by fatigue (of theTeam sky riders) after the TDF?

Cavendish Indigent tone: No man stop asking (stupid)? the wrong questions.

 

Cavendish displaying his true colours, what a wheel sucker suurtiet suurtiet wheel sucker

 

Kazakhstan had 2 riders in the race, one of who managed to win

 

Chancellera making a statement today at 11am regarding his shoulder and defending his TT title.

 

- They had it on the radio, basically he told the Journo "What do you know about cycling?" Might be valid, but its not going to garner him any friends.

[philip.maree]

And this is why I don't like Cav. He has no honour. Same for some of the British press. It is bad from them to even suggest that Uran would sell the gold to Vino. I don't think anybody would be willing to just sell the gold because it would be worse than plain old match fixing. That would almost be like high treason against your country, and the athletes know what an olympic medal means.

 

That Team Sky unit is surely a tight bunch.

[SwissVan]

[Christie]

Some issues:

Berhard Eisel pacing in front of Cav. Sure, they are team mates and room mates, but Austria did not select him to help get a medal for GB. Not right imo.

GB raced like it was a tdf stage(possibly because they had a lot of stage racers and one sprinter) - peleton cruise along till 40k to go, then the sprinters' teams mass at the front and set up a sprint. They let breaks go with winners of one day races in - Cancellara, Vino, Valverde, Gilbert in a break of 22 with team mates. Very difficult to control those guys, if you were pacing the whole day already.

Some other big teams raced like DAs, by sitting Cav's wheel the whole day. At least the Australians sent one guy up the road. OK for smaller nations like ZA, who had only 1 card to play.

Very stupid mistake from Cancellara - not a dangerous corner, looked like that one race in SA where one of the SA ladies went into the barrier - Marissa vd Merwe ?

Perhaps Ricco had a point by saying most in the peleton can't think for themselves, sentiment was echoed by O'Grady.

[dev null]

Perhaps Ricco had a point by saying most in the peleton can't think for themselves, sentiment was echoed by O'Grady.

 

Yes, seems that without race radios and DS dictating what must happen, some of these cyclists don't know how to think for themselves anymore, and have forgotten how to strategise for the race conditions prevailing at the time.

[gtr1]

I agree, the Brits are sore losers. There was nothing stopping any of them going in the break, even Cavendish. They were over confident and thought they could control everything. I didn't see them complaining in the TDF for setting pace all day for Wiggins. maybe that's coz it worked there.

 

They have Millar on their team who was caught for doping, so don't know how they can even think of bringing up the doping angle. Maybe Vino's dope was better than Millar's, once again sour grapes

 

It goes to show how the complextion of a race can be different without radios. Riders must think on the spot, and work out for themselves what they must chase and what to do. How they could expect to pull back a break with so many top class riders in, I don't know. This wasn't a bunch of domestiques in a break. There were seriously classy riders in the break with teammates to help.

 

And lastly, Vino's experience against Uran's youth. The wiley old fox outfoxed the youngster.

 

great win for a real racer who is always trying for a win.

[TNT1]

Some issues:

Berhard Eisel pacing in front of Cav. Sure, they are team mates and room mates, but Austria did not select him to help get a medal for GB. Not right imo.

 

Yeah, talk of money being paid for a win, bet he was in line for a healthy cheque from Sky if Cav took the gold.

[TNT1]

A womanising cyclist for president? Hell yeah!

 

He can get Hoy as Minister of Sport, and KJ as Minister of All Things Awesome...

[Brian Fantana]

It is actually quite irritating that some of the british journalists call him a "nobody".

 

Look what Ryder said:

 

 

Canadian Ryder Hesjedal, the recent Giro d'Italia winner, later told AFP: "Usually when Vino goes, I make sure to go with him. I wish I had that time."

 

If the other riders in the peleton regard a fellow rider's ability this high, it shows that the british journalists know diddly squat about cycling and tactics.

 

I actually like the fact that a sprinter did not take gold, imo the olympics road race should be like a one day classic where strong all-rounder riders can take the win by using good tactics instead of relying on a strong team, to pull them to the finish.

Edited July 31, 2012 by Brian Fantana