T-Bob Posted February 16, 2016 Posted February 16, 2016 That is a shocker. Qatar was the same... it's not like they haven't got coin. Road side changes in front of fans and random finish lines. I had a better set up than the Giant boys here when I was 17 and trying to crack it in France out the back of my Mini clubman!
'Dale Posted February 16, 2016 Posted February 16, 2016 http://pelotonmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/02/ZUPER-24647.jpg
Cav' Posted February 17, 2016 Author Posted February 17, 2016 Tour of Oman, stage 2:The course:In the past, the first half of the race has always been a bit of a waiting game for the GC riders who have been trying to save energy for the big battle on the Green Mountain. This time they have to be on their toes right from the start as the tricky first stage is followed by a first big climbing battle in a new summit finish on the second day. The 162km stage brings the riders from the start at the Omantel Head Office on the western outskirts of Muscat through mostly flat terrain to the new summit finish in Quriyat in the much hiller area east of the capital. From the start, flat roads lead them to the capital which they will pass through before heading into the hills. The first challenge is the Bousher al Amerat climb (3.4km, 8.8%) that has often been tackled in the Ministry of Housing stage and will again play a key role in the penultimate stage of this year’s race. The summit comes at the 33km mark and then it is back into flat terrain as the riders will continue their eastern journey. The first intermediate sprint comes at the 81km mark just before the feed zone and then the riders descend back towards the coast where the terrain gets slightly more undulating. With around 30km to go, they will turn around to head back towards the finishing city of Quriyat before the final intermediate sprint comes with 22.5km to go. The riders will reach Quiryat with 7.5km but this time they won’t finish in the city as they have done in the past. Instead, they will follow flat roads into the nearby hills where the race will end at the top of a tough climb that averages 6.5% over 2.8km. It includes two hairpin bends close to the flamme rouge and then the road bends gradually to the left before the riders get to the 100m finishing straight. Quriyat has hosted one stage finish in the past but when the race visited the city in 2014, there was no summit finish. Instead, it was a flat finale that allowed Alexander Kristoff to take a bunch sprint win ahead of Leigh Howard and Tom Boonen. The weather:Wednesday should be another perfect day for a bike race as there will be plenty of sunshine and a maximum temperature of 26 degrees. It will be a bit windier though, with a relatively strong wind from an easterly direction. This means that it will be a cross-headwind almost all day until the riders turn into a crosswind and a cross-tailwind in the finale. There will be a tailwind and a crosswind on the final climb. The favourites:The stage to Al Bustan already creates a few surprises and some of the GC contenders always lose ground as the short, steep climb of Al Jissah and the heat are usually shocks to the system after a long travel. This year it was pre-race favourite Richie Porte who failed to stay with the best and he is now unlikely to win the race overall. However, history shows that the legs often come around for the good climbers. Two years ago Thibaut Pinot was dropped on Al Jissah and last year it was Rui Costa but both bounced back with great performances in the queen stage. It is still too early to write Porte off as a possible stage winner in the queen stage even though his GC campaign is now over. At the same time, Bob Jungels proved his huge talent by launching a perfectly timed move in the finale. As we wrote yesterday, it was always going to be tricky for the likes of Edvald Boasson Hagen and Greg Van Avermaet to control the late attacks to get a sprint. Van Avermaet was isolated and Boasson Hagen only got company when Jungels had already taken off. Hence, both were left frustrated. The stage gave the first indications of who’s going strong at the moment but the first big test for the GC riders will come tomorrow. It’s a new uphill finish so it hasn’t been tried in the past and everybody will be heading into the unknown. However, it’s a relatively short climb that is not very steep so it is better suited to puncheurs than to real climbers. Hence, the time gaps will be small but it will be important not to lose any seconds or potentially take a share of the bonifications. The stage is likely to be firmly controlled by Etixx-QuickStep as they both have the leader’s jersey and Dan Martin as a potential winner of the stage. BMC may lend them a hand as may Dimension Data so it will be decided on the final climb. However, there will be a cross-tailwind in the run-in to the climb so everybody needs to be attentive as things could potentially split up here. Today Astana tried to make the race hard on the climb and they will probably try to do so again tomorrow. However, it is not obvious who’s strong enough to control the race and bring back any late attacks and it won’t be impossible to make a successful move in the finale. Today tactics came into play and there is no guarantee that we will get an uphill sprint. However, this climb is not long enough for the best climbers to make a difference so it will either be an uphill sprint from a small group or a successful late move. Greg Van Avermaet had no luck in today’s stage as he missed some teammates to control things. Unless Porte bounces back, it will be a similar scenario tomorrow. He can only cross his fingers that Astana, Etixx-QuickStep or Dimension Data will be strong enough to control things and set up a sprint finish. Van Avermaet looked very strong in today’s stage as he was never in trouble on the climb which is much harder than tomorrow’s final ascent. As he proved in last year’s Tour de France, he is very strong in an uphill sprint and he will be hard to beat in a final dash to the line. This makes Van Avermaet our favourite. Edvald Boasson Hagen proved his good condition in Qatar. Today he was again with the best on the climb and he should be up there again tomorrow. Obviously he is a relatively big guy but in last year’s Tour of Britain he proved that he can do well on this kind of ascent. He is the faster than Van Avermaet in a flat sprint but the tables are likely to have been turned around for this kind of finale. However, he definitely has a big chance in this kind of punchy finale. Tom Dumoulin is making his debut in this race so his form is still a bit of an unknown. However, he is always very strong at the start of the year and it is unlikely to be different in 2016. He was in the first group today but not among the very first at the top of the climb which indicates that he still needs to gain some extra percent. On the other hand, he did a very strong final sprint and tomorrow’s finale suits him a lot better as he is a great sprinter in this kind of punchy finale. If he had been at 100%, he would have been our favourite but now he has to settle for third place. Daniel Martin is better than usual at this time of the year but the Tour of Valencia proved that he is not at his best yet. Furthermore, he is suffering from a small cold so he may not be ready to go for the win yet. On the other hand, he easily stayed with the best in today’s finale and this kind of uphill sprint suits him down to the ground. Rui Costa looked very strong in today’s stage. That’s no surprise as he is always very consistent. This finale suits him really well as he is fast in an uphill sprint. Martin, Dumoulin, Van Avermaet and Boasson Hagen are faster but if Martin is not at 100% and the race becomes hard, it won’t be impossible for him to win. Astana have two cards to play and they know that neither Vincenzo Nibali nor Jakob Fuglsang will win an uphill sprint. They will try to ride aggressively. While the Italian will probably be heavily marked, Fuglsang may get a bit more freedom and he looked very strong today. Domenico Pozzovivo attacked in the finale of today’s stage and he was one of the strongest on the climb. Tomorrow he will probably try a similar move and he will probably not be too heavily marked. His teammate Romain Bardet is better suited to this kind of finish but after his third place today, he may not get the same kind of freedom as Pozzovivo. Davide Rebellin attacked with Pozzovivo on the final climb today and he seems to be in great condition. This is the kind of punchy finale that he loves. He is fast in an uphill sprint but there are faster riders than him. However, he seems to have the form to make a late move. Finally, we will point to Eduardo Sepulveda. The Argentinean was with the best in today’s stage but crashed on the descent. Now he is out of the GC battle so he may be given the freedom to attack in the finale.
Cav' Posted February 17, 2016 Author Posted February 17, 2016 The peloton is speeding up and the gap is dropping to 3'00" #TOO2016
Cav' Posted February 17, 2016 Author Posted February 17, 2016 20 riders dropped from the peloton including Meersman, Van Hecke & @richie_porte again #TOO2016
Cav' Posted February 17, 2016 Author Posted February 17, 2016 The pack is breaking up in several groups. @DanMartin86 is in the 2nd group #TOO2016
Cav' Posted February 17, 2016 Author Posted February 17, 2016 Less than 4 km to go. The front group has a 0'50" lead over the Martin's group #TOO2016
Cav' Posted February 17, 2016 Author Posted February 17, 2016 Dimension Data & Astana at work now in the final climb #TOO2016
Cav' Posted February 17, 2016 Author Posted February 17, 2016 Less than 2 km to go! The last 500 m are really really steep #TOO2016
Pure Savage Posted February 17, 2016 Posted February 17, 2016 Less than 2 km to go! The last 500 m are really really steep #TOO2016This is not a world tour event is it?
Cav' Posted February 17, 2016 Author Posted February 17, 2016 This is not a world tour event is it?It is. Correction: 2.HC
pe3nguin Posted February 17, 2016 Posted February 17, 2016 This is not a world tour event is it? 2.HC
Pure Savage Posted February 17, 2016 Posted February 17, 2016 I have seen coffee rides with better coverage.
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