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Last Post 04/09/2019 10:34 PM by Frederick Jones. 35 Replies.

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Posts:3180

04/08/2019 02:12 PM
Just read the VeloNews piece on Valverde. I had forgotten his age (days from 39) and never knew he only weighed 61 kg (135 lbs). I did notice he rode a really smart race, the race of a seasoned veteran and was there until Bettiol went. Didn't see that at that moment, Valverde was following a rider who was falling off the pace. He said he watched Bettiol go and knew it would take massive amount of work to bridge. Sounds like Valverde felt he was strong enough to go with Bettiol had he been at the front and not behind the wrong wheel at the moment. Valverde and Bettiol out there for 13k? That would have been fun to watch. And a glorious display of the rainbow jersey. Flip side - it was good to see the premiere Belgium team get 2nd. They earned it. (And fun seeing a rider you would not expect. A podium with no "heavies" on the top two steps?) Ben

Posts:4499

04/08/2019 02:30 PM
Yes Valverde has always been a fly weight. He rode well to keep up although never properly in contention at same time. Same with Sagan, he was there but keeping up, not more. Reports had him gasping for air on Patersberg. I don't think anyone could have kept up with Bettiol except perhaps van der Poel; had he been there and if he didn't have to give chase after his broken wheel. When van der Poel took a dig on Patersberg he initially thought he was going for glory; van Avermaet had to tell him Bettiol was up ahead. Deceuninck have to be disappointed with 2nd after their rip roaring start to season. They were never properly in game and their entire deep bench came up short; case of peaking too early in season? Same with Lotto-Visma; not quite the team performance they put on at Gent. Instead, EF played the smart team game with Vanmarcke softening things up knowing full well he couldn't go the distance and Langeveld playing stopper.

Posts:4499

04/08/2019 02:38 PM
Nice piece on the winner. He likes to eat, doesn't like training (a bit lazy according to van Avermaet), and gets most of his fitness racing. Sounds like he turned things around a bit last winter with immediate payoff. https://www.velonews.com/2019/04/news/ef-education-first-finally-scores-with-mamma-di-pasta-bettiol_492300

Posts:4499

04/09/2019 12:15 PM
Back to Sagan Instead of injury from that crash, perhaps worth considering that he's become unmotivated. Maybe he is in a mental hole after divorce from his wife +kid. That happened mid-tour last year just before that crash in fact. Also worth considering that level around him has gone up. For longest time we were just talking about Sky dominance. For past two years, we've added DQS dominance in one day races to that mix. This year Astana and Jumbo-Lotto also seem to have stepped up. I am a bit curious about all of this but that's perhaps a dark side topic.

Posts:4209

04/09/2019 10:11 PM
Oh, I think there are plenty of questions to ask about Astana.....given who owns the team and there surge in results this year. Jumbo-Visma....boy I hope not. I think you can build a case that there has been a slow emergence of them as a team over the last year or so. They played an an active role in both the Giro and Tour last year and I would like to think their performance this year is just a continuation of that growth. But that is probably hopelessly naive.....

Just say "NO!" to WCP!!!!

Posts:2881

04/09/2019 10:34 PM
OC, thanks for the Sagan personal life info, which I did not know. Sad for him that his personal life has been so troubled. Surely, that can have a major impact on the psyche. Still waiting for PR, or more thoroughly the next green jersey run. IMHO, pro cycling is better off with Sagan in top form. Replay his interview on the podium in Richmond. In broken English after 260km, he made a plea for world peace and understanding. I was in the audience and was simply stunned. He's evolved from an immature talent to a global superstar.