longslowdistance
Posts:2881
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| 05/13/2018 08:19 PM |
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| Repost:
Puff Daddy has an Inhaler deficit. |
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Cosmic Kid
Posts:4209
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| 05/14/2018 09:00 AM |
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If you believe the SKY propaganda, Froome is not supposed to hit top form until the third week, since he also wants to win the Tour. But at this rate, he is gonna be down a fair deficit...dunno if he can recover.
Yates looks supremely impressive....but while yesterday's climb (and stage) was long, it was not overly difficult compared to stuff like the Zoncolan, etc. Big question for me is whether Michelton-Scott can keep driving the bunch for another 2 weeks. The work they have done in the last few days has been formidable.
Pinot is impressing me as well....hasn't quite had the legs to stick a dagger in, but he is riding well.
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| Just say "NO!" to WCP!!!!
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Spud
Posts:525
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| 05/15/2018 07:59 AM |
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| Yates looking pretty fresh this morning |
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Orange Crush
Posts:4499
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| 05/15/2018 10:28 AM |
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| Zocolan while hardest climb of Giro won't be hardest stage. The three that come after iTT are usual Giro final week brutes. That's where race will be won and lost. After today Yates will have a superdomestique in Chaves which may be key for him. Yates still looking supersharp but team burned some matches again today trying to bring Chaves back. |
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79pmooney
Posts:3180
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| 05/15/2018 11:44 AM |
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I think Yates has a growing problem in Dumoulin. Dumoulin and Sunweb aren't burning matches. (Yeah he has had to make a few chases back after mechanicals.) Yates now gets Chavez's service completely, but at real cost to three other riders of the team. Yes, Yates has been picking up seconds here and there, but he needs minutes before the TT.
Even with the three very hard days after the TT, I'm now betting on Dumoulin. Even with Yates wearing the pink jersey, I think Dumoulin is going to take his minutes in the TT, then benefit from a very strong and motivated team the final week. Plus we know Dumoulin has the one thing you cannot measure - heart. (We saw that last year with his gut issues.  )
Ben |
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Cosmic Kid
Posts:4209
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| 05/15/2018 12:12 PM |
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I don’t think Yates needs minutes before the TT....but he definitely needs more time than he has now. If he loses the jersey after the TT, it isn’t a crisis given what is looming.
And don’t forget, Zonconlan in waiting for them on Saturday.
But Dumoulin can certainly afford to cede seconds near the finish line...he knows he can’t go with a guy like Yates when he attacks, so he will always lose a handful of seconds as the line approaches. That’s OK... |
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| Just say "NO!" to WCP!!!!
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Orange Crush
Posts:4499
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| 05/15/2018 12:37 PM |
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| Agreed at this point it Yates' to lose; he is in driver seat. Dumoulin knows this year is an uphill battle; it'll all come down to how everyone is wearing down in that final week. My gut feeling is that Michelton is wearing themselves down a bit fast so Yates could become isolated. And after the iTT the overall landscape could look very different. Aside from Dumoulin, the likes of Froome, Dennis, Bennett who can ride strong TTs could all be within striking distance of top spot. This is why I like Giro...unpredictable. |
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79pmooney
Posts:3180
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| 05/16/2018 12:16 AM |
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I didn't see that Dumoulin crashed today until I read the VN article. (http://www.velonews.com/2018/05/giro-ditalia/stage-10-proves-things-rarely-go-script-giro_466156)
So that's why he needed a biie swap and the chase back. Sounds like he is OK but we will see.
Ben |
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Orange Crush
Posts:4499
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| 05/16/2018 10:31 AM |
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And then there were two.
It was a mini spill more than a crash. Tom managed to crack a few jokes about it yesterday. It feels like he's getting closer to Yates level as Giro wears on so this should be interesting. |
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79pmooney
Posts:3180
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| 05/16/2018 11:44 AM |
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Dumoulin allayed my fears today! Losing just 6 seconds (mostly time bonus) on a stage made for Yeats. Yeats talked of concern that Dumouin is getting stronger after the race. With good reason IMO. I hoped to see more from Pinot today.
More Skies falling. (Henao 5 km from the finish.) Froome more time lost on a finish not made for him but one that should not have given him a lot of trouble. Sky seems to be having difficulties with keeping the rubber down and the drug/blood levels up.
Ben |
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Orange Crush
Posts:4499
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| 05/16/2018 03:28 PM |
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| On Froome/Sky, as Dumoulin put it, "I'll write him off when we've reached Rome". |
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79pmooney
Posts:3180
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| 05/18/2018 10:37 AM |
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More Q-S, more Viviani. Plus more of the same in California with Gavira. Wow! Quick-Step has certainly gotten some press from the team it has sponsored for years! Good for them for sticking out the post-Boonen dog years.
And good for the team for being a winning team with real focus and being a plus to the sport. I won't claim they are squeaky clean but they do certainly appear to run a good ship and do it with no big boasts. |
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Orange Crush
Posts:4499
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| 05/19/2018 11:07 AM |
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"Crucified in Jerusalem. Resurrected on the Zoncolan"
It's the second coming lol. |
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longslowdistance
Posts:2881
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| 05/19/2018 08:52 PM |
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| That's funny and creepy at the same time. |
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79pmooney
Posts:3180
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| 05/20/2018 01:19 PM |
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Bike racing at its best! Yates goes on instinct. Dumoulin didn't read his immediate rivals' goals carefully enough and forgot that the two U23s had more to lose with each other than they had to gain on overall. Froome was paying for yesterday. Old fashioned racing, not mind numbing team tactic, done with legs and the brains on the bike, not in the team car.
Yeats is riding to win. A joy to watch. Dumoulin made a chess-match mistake. Immediately TTing for the finish would have cost him places and saved him time. Froome is human. Pinot and Pozzivivo are almost there but not quite on both legs and battle smarts.
When was the last time we saw a contest like this in the TdF? This is what I love.
Ben |
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