The Giro, my favourite tour of the year is only 2 weeks....

[Frosty]

And here are the GC standings after today's stage:

 

 

1 Esteban Chaves (Col) Orica-GreenEdge 78:14:20

2 Vincenzo Nibali (Ita) Astana Pro Team 0:00:40

3 Steven Kruijswijk (Ned) Team LottoNl-Jumbo 0:01:05

4 Alejandro Valverde (Spa) Movistar Team 0:01:48

5 Rafal Majka (Pol) Tinkoff Team 0:03:59

6 Bob Jungels (Lux) Etixx - Quick-Step 0:07:53

7 Andrey Amador (CRc) Movistar Team 0:09:34

8 Rigoberto Uran (Col) Cannondale Pro Cycling 0:12:18

9 Kanstantsin Siutsou (Blr) Dimension Data 0:13:19

10 Domenico Pozzovivo (Ita) AG2R La Mondiale 0:14:11

Nibali finished 53 seconds ahead of Chaves on the stage, and with only 40 seconds for tomorrow it's going to be a toit finish.

 

Can't say I'd be thrilled to see Nibali win but will definitely be rooting for Chavez.

[T-Bob]

What a stage. Shame you have to feel for SK, not the way you want to lose the jersey. I'm 50/50 on the waiting. Nibbles is master descender and that is part of his arsenal. It puts his rivals under pressure where they hesitate and get dropped or in this case go too far. Should he have sat up? Not sure, probably in the sprit but not if he want's to win. Chavez had to go with Nibs. 

 

Has to be said though another giro and another italian rider on Astana coming back from the dead. They sure know how to recover.  

[SwissVan]

He really never lived up to what he could've achieved lbesides the 1 Giro win with GT)...and his coach puts it down to he could do either grand tours or 1 day races.. but Cunego himself could never really decide on which way to go, so his coach basically said it was because he never committed one way or the other.

 

That's basically it in a nut shell

 

They also touch on the doping saga.. and mentioned a rider that did dope that was convinced that Cunego was riding clean and because Cunego was not a doping programme that he could never achieve what the others did.

If you do manage to get to a place with free WiFi I really recommend downloading the episode to listen to later.

Thanks

Interesting

I always thought (hoped) he was one of the clean ones and based on his performances it kind of proves it IMO.

Which in itself does not bode well for the current situation regarding doping.... Anyway it's good to see him still going for it.

 

Btw I found a wifi signal, if I stand on the toilet and hold my phone up to the ceiling..... Not very comfortable

????

['Dale]

What happened to "not attacking the jersey if he crashes"? Unwritten rules, honor in the peleton and all that.!

That was definitely the values of a previous generation, GOG

Now it's...

 

If you can't have Saganesque bike handling skills and stay on your fiets, I'll go fetch those bonus secs - thanx for coming

['Dale]

Just saw the footage of Kruijswijk's crash

How he got up from that and continued is a bit of a miracle

['Dale]

That aerial footage of Zakarin's crash by the stream was also dramatic

Glad he's oraait

Phew!

['Dale]

I dont think the old guard will agree with you, many examples, Lance waiting for Jan when he went over a hill and disappeared down a ditch, or Hamilton slowing the race when Lance went ploughing a furrow in the fields, or when Mayo and Lance got caught up on a hand bag and Jan waited.....

 

Never the less, it is what it is.

I like Dan Lloyd's distinction between 'bad luck' and 'poor handling skills'

[HappyMartin]

It wasn't a puncture of a bike failure or an unruly spectator. I was hoping SK would win this Giro but it wasn't a moment to sit up. That's my opinion.

[GrumpyOldGuy]

That was definitely the values of a previous generation, GOG

Now it's...

 

If you can't have Saganesque bike handling skills and stay on your fiets, I'll go fetch those bonus secs - thanx for coming

Yeah, unfortunately,..but maybe we are all the poorer for it, fans and athletes alike.

['Dale]

Kruijswijk admitted that he erred, was thinking about getting a snack and drink at the time, lost focus and had poor judgement.

 

Hope he can hang in there, hurting and stay on the podium

[GrumpyOldGuy]

What a stage. Shame you have to feel for SK, not the way you want to lose the jersey. I'm 50/50 on the waiting. Nibbles is master descender and that is part of his arsenal. It puts his rivals under pressure where they hesitate and get dropped or in this case go too far. Should he have sat up? Not sure, probably in the sprit but not if he want's to win. Chavez had to go with Nibs. 

 

Has to be said though another giro and another italian rider on Astana coming back from the dead. They sure know how to recover.  

Indeed, it was Nibali who went ahead and took advantage, Chavez just rode wheel,.. maybe it was on instructions from team Astana, who knows,... but taking advantage of someones misfortune sort of goes against the spirit of sport, in my opinion, its similar to a cricketer breaking his bat and been expected to play on, No, he gets another bat and the game is neutralized while he does so, they dont suddenly bowl him out because he cant defend his wicket, sport is meant to be a fair game between matched opponents,... or at least as Puncheur says, "its was."

 

I kinda miss that. 

[GrumpyOldGuy]

Kruijswijk admitted that he erred, was thinking about getting a snack and drink at the time, lost focus and had poor judgement.

 

Hope he can hang in there, hurting and stay on the podium

Yeah, but I dont think it matters how it happened, he crashed, he was in the lead, he was disadvantaged, it wasn't "cricket" to take advantage.

 

But Yah, as I said, "It is what it is".

[GrumpyOldGuy]

I like Dan Lloyd's distinction between 'bad luck' and 'poor handling skills'

He is not commentating on my feed, what did he say, I would be interested to hear, I actually like Dan, he always has some nice little snippet, a bit like Mathew Keenan. 

['Dale]

Yeah, but I dont think it matters how it happened, he crashed, he was in the lead, he was disadvantaged, it wasn't "cricket" to take advantage.

 

But Yah, as I said, "It is what it is".

It seems as if he is not feeling disadvantaged or exploited it robbed

He seems to appreciate that it was a costly mistake.

 

And if anyone crashed in the leader's jersey, the cost would've been similar

 

Yip, the prevailing culture is different and, apparently, accepted by all involved.

 

Bigger question is

Can the smiling Colombian take the pink jersey home and seal a stellar year for OGE after the Hayman train took the trophy home in Paris-Roubaix?

[GrumpyOldGuy]

It seems as if he is not feeling disadvantaged or exploited it robbed

He seems to appreciate that it was a costly mistake.

 

And if anyone crashed in the leader's jersey, the cost would've been similar

 

Yip, the prevailing culture is different and, apparently, accepted by all involved.

 

Bigger question is

Can the smiling Colombian take the pink jersey home and seal a stellar year for OGE after the Hayman train took the trophy home in Paris-Roubaix?

Okay, fair enough.

 

Us dinosaurs gotta get with the programme I guess.   

['Dale]

Okay, fair enough.

 

Us dinosaurs gotta get with the programme I guess.

*grin*

 

Gentlemanly

A nice word for what you are referring to, GOG

I appreciate that ????????