Sprinting in Holland

While the GC contenders were testing their preparation in the mountains of Switzerland, many of the top sprinters were going head-to-head on the flat roads of Holland.  The 5-stage Dutch race known as the Ster ZLM Toer also concluded last Sunday, June 16.  This race featured last year’s winner, Mark Cavendish (Omega Pharma Quickstep), Andre Greipel (Lotto Bellisol), Marcel Kittel (Argos-Shimano) and Lars Boom (Blanco).

Stage 1 called for a short (8 Km) individual time trial in which Robert Wagner (Blanco) nosed out his teammate Lars Boom by a mere 2 seconds.  In 4th place, Marcel Kittel lost 4", 10th place Andre Greipel lost 13", and 14th place Mark Cavendish lost 18".  That’s a pretty small time gap between the yellow jersey and 14th place – especially if most of the stages will be decided by group sprints where everyone ends up with the same time.  In this event, bonus time is awarded for the top finishers in each stage in order to create some separation for the overall GC standings.

In Stage 2, Theo Bos (Blanco) beat Cavendish, Greipel and Kittel in a bunch sprint.  Lars Boom and Robert Wagner (both with Blanco) rode lead-out for the winner Bos, but still finished with the same time, maintaining their top GC placements.

In the bunch sprint finish of Stage 3, Marcel Kittel (Argos-Shimano) beat Greiple, Cavendish, Bos and Boom, in that order, and took over the yellow jersey on bonus time.

The situation flip-flopped in Stage 4, with Lars Boom (Blanco) winning the uphill finish and capturing the yellow jersey with time gaps over Greipel, Cavendish and Kittel.  This dropped Kittel to GC 6th at -35", while Greipel moved to 2nd at -16", and Cavendish to 3rd at -25".

In Stage 5, four riders from an early breakaway just barely survived to steal the victory from the sprinters, with Greipel out-sprinting Kittel and Cavendish for 5th place, and no time lost to the stage winner.  Lars Boom finished with the peleton (no time lost) and kept the yellow jersey.  Greipel was GC 2nd, Cavendish 3rd, and Kittel 6th.

So, what does this race tell us about the Tour de France?

Cavendish is still the favorite among sprinters, but he can be beat.

Greipel and Kittel are both strong enough to challenge Cavendish head-to-head.  In my previous post, I already highlighted Kittel’s Argos-Shimano teammate John Degenkolb as a sprinter to watch.  In a recent interview, Degenkolb explained that there is no intra-team rivalry, that they are each strong in different kinds of sprint finishes, and that they will help each other depending upon which rider is most favored by the kind of finish stage-by-stage.

Team Blanco will likely make some stage victory and sprinting noise in the Tour de France with Lars Boom, Theo Bos and Robert Wagner all winning stages in this Dutch race.  Remember, in my Tour de Suisse post, I highlighted Blanco’s GC strength (Bauke Mollema and Robert Gesink).  This race around Holland showcased their sprinting strengths.  Since I have Danish ancestors, I think I will adopt Team Blanco as my dark-horse for this year’s Tour.

P.S. of June 22:  I recommend this report by CyclingNews, in which they explain how the points work for the green jersey, they acknowledge that Cavendish and Sagan are the favorites, and they confirm most of my predictions as to other possible spoilers.  But they do not include the Blanco boys in that list.  See the report at:  http://www.cyclingnews.com/features/tour-de-france-2013-sagan-cavendish-and-the-fight-for-the-green-jersey

To get you in the mood for the upcoming Tour de France, I am sharing these photos of the peleton in the 2011 Tour of Utah, courtesy of Scott Wolford.

Surprises from the Tour de Suisse

The Tour de Suisse (Tour of Switzerland) wrapped-up last Sunday with a mountain-finish time trial, won emphatically by Portuguese rider Rui Costa (Movistar).  He moved decisively from GC 2nd place to the overall winner of the yellow jersey, while former leader and Swiss favorite-son Mathias Frank (BMC) lost 2 minutes and fell to 5th.  Danish youngster Bauke Mollema jumped from 5th to 2nd, while Roman Kreuziger (Saxo-Tinkoff)  held on to 3rd place.

The surprises for me were the results for Tejay van Garderen (BMC), Andy Schleck (RadioShack-Leopard) and Ryder Hesjedal (Garmin-Sharp).

Tejay was always near the top, and finished in 7th place overall, but he never really challenged for a podium finish.  He lost 1:19 to Costa in the final time trial.  Team BMC will expect him to work for Cadel Evans in the Tour de France.  Tejay may finish in the top ten, but probably not on the GC podium.

Andy Schleck fared even worse.  He lost over 3 minutes in the final time trial, and placed 40th in the final GC standings at 25:28 behind Costa.  The competition at the Tour de France will be twice as keen as at the Suisse, and nothing Andy has done yet this year suggests that he will factor in the battle for the yellow jersey in Paris.  No one from his team made any noise either, so I doubt he has the supporting cast to mount a credible challenge.

When Hesjedal crashed out he was at least challenging for the GC lead.  But, having failed to finish in the Tours of both Italy and Switzerland this spring, he leaves a giant question mark as to his ability to ride with the yellow jersey favorites, such as Chris Froome (Sky) and Alberto Contador (Saxo-Tinkoff).

On the other hand, positive surprises for me were Rui Costa, Bauke Mollema and Roman Kreuziger.

Costa’s Movistar team has animated pro cycling for over 30 years.  Carrying the names of successive sponsors “Reynolds,” “Banesto,” “Caisse d’Epargne,” and now “Movistar” (a Spanish telecom giant, not a movie company), it has consistently won glory in the Grand Tour.  Does five-time Tour de France winner Miguel Indurain ring a bell?  Costa’s two-year domination of the Tour de Suisse should raise his credibility.  He seems to be peaking at the perfect time.  The so-called favorites had better not overlook this Spanish team and its Portuguese hero.

Mollema’s team Blanco lost its name sponsor this year (formerly Rabobank), hence the name “white” or “blank” while it searches for a new sponsor.  But this proud Danish team has won glory with mostly Danish riders in seventeen previous Tours de France.  Besides winning Stage 2 at the Suisse, youngster Bauke Mollema challenged for victory in at least two other stages, and finished with an impressive 2nd place on the GC podium, earning the designation of team GC leader (over veteran Robert Gesink!) for the TDF.  He may not finally win the yellow jersey in Paris, but look for him to keep the leaders honest.  Mollema, Gesink, Lars Boom and/or Laurens ten Dam or others of their Blanco teammates will probably make their share of stage-by-stage headlines.  (Word on the street is that next week the team will announce the name of new sponsor, Belkin, and new colors for their TDF kit.  Will they be “Blanco” or “Belkin” in the Tour?)

Kreuziger’s 3rd place GC finish (ahead of van Garderen, Schleck and Hesjedal) could make him a contender for the TDF yellow jersey.  But he rides for Saxo-Tinkoff, where he will be expected to sacrifice himself for Alberto Contador.  I look for Kreuziger’s name to appear often in the narrative of this year’s race as a key to Contador’s fight for the top prize.  He could do for Contador in 2013 what Chris Froome did for Brad Wiggins (Sky) in 2012.

I can’t say I was too surprised by the sprinting in the Tour de Suisse.  Peter Sagan (Cannondale) won two stages (making 11 victories already this season!).  No surprise there!  Look for him to challenge Mark Cavendish for sprint finishes and the green jersey in the Tour de France.  The other sprinters were “close, but no cigar.”  Again, not too surprising.  We may see flashes of glory from Tyler Farrar (Garmin-Sharp), Matt Goss (Orica GreenEdge), John Degenkolb (Argos Shimano), and Philippe Gilbert (BMC), but I don’t expect any of them to consistently achieve results sufficient to upstage the Cavendish-Sagan duel.

The Tour de France has its Alps and Pyrénées, and the City of North Salt Lake in Utah has its "Three Kings."  This is a bike race with relentless climbing to test the legs and lungs of the hardiest cyclist!  These photos from the 2012 Three Kings race are offered with permission from photographer Scott Wolford.  (Thanks Scott!)

These photos give you some idea of the steep grades encountered on the Three Kings, as the riders climb from the valley floor to the highest roads in the over-looking foothills.  All cyclists who consider themselves to be climbers should put their legs and lungs to the test by riding the Three Kings.  The 2013 race is scheduled for this coming Saturday, June 22, 2013.

So, you say "Put up or shut up?"  OK, I'm going to do it.  This coming Saturday, yours truly will take up the challenge in the fourth running of the brutal Three Kings race.  At age 67, I do not expect to win the polka-dot jersey for best climber, but I do hope to climb all Three Kings before the "sweeper" car officially closes the race.

If the climbing doesn't make your heart race, then maybe the attack of this ferocious guard dog will!

Hesjedal Crashes Out of Tour de Suisse!

Canadian cyclying star Ryder Hesjedal (Garmin-Sharp) suffered a nasty crash today in the 3rd stage of the Tour de Susse (Tour of Switzerland), and was immediately taken to the hospital.  Eliminated from the race when he was in GC 2nd place, and threatening to win the final yellow jersey.  

The team reported that he took a "heavy blow to the neck and head."  But they also reported that "Preliminary CTs show no fractures and no neurological pathologies."  That leaves him with "multiple, severe contusions and abrasions to the right wrist, hip and knee and left shoulder, elbow and knee."  Sounds like biker-speak for "massive head-to-toe road rash!"  They say that his health is top priority, and then, in the next breath, that he could resume training for the Tour de France within a few days.


So, send me your comments on the following questions:  Do you think he will make it to the starting line of the Tour de France start Corsica on June 29?  And, assuming he does, will he be a factor in the yellow jersey (GC) contest with Chris Froome (Sky), Alberto Contador (Saxo-Tinkoff), Cadel Evans and/or Tejay van Garderen (BMC), Andy Schleck (RadioShack-Leopard), Jurgen van den Broeck (Lotto-Belisol), and others?  If not Hesjedal, who will be the captain of the Garmin team?

Critérium du Dauphiné - Prelude to the Grand Tour?

The 2013 Dauphiné is in the books.  Before we analyze its possible insights into this year’s Tour de France, let’s revisit last year’s blog for a refresher on the origins of this race and its curious name:

Dauphin (pronounced “dough-fan”) is the French word for dolphin.  An early ruler of the area around Grenoble had a dolphin on his coat of arms, so his nickname, Dauphin, became a title for the regional ruler.  During one period the region was sold to the king of France who gave it to his son, the heir apparent to the throne, and the title Dauphin came to mean the heir to the king.  This diverse and beautiful region around Grenoble–from the Rhone River into the central Alps became known as the Dauphiné (pronounced “dough-fee-nay”).  Years ago, a local newspaper organized a bike race in the region which is now called the “Critérium du Dauphiné,” or sometimes just the “Dauphiné.”  It is an important race each spring setting the stage for the Tour de France.

This year’s Dauphiné had 8 stages, of which only two were won by sprinters.  Neither Mark  Cavendish (Omega Pharma Quickstep) nor Peter Sagan (Cannondale) participated in the race, so those two sprint stages give us few clues for the TDF sprinting.  The two stages were won by Elia Vivianni (Sagan’s teammate at Cannondale) and Edvald Boassen Hagen (Sky).  Team Sky will be concentrating on helping Chris Froome win the yellow jersey, but they would be happy if Boassen Hagen could steal a sprint stage at the Tour.  Vivianni will likely be working for Sagan, rather than seeking his own glory in the July race.  Two sprinters who came close in the Dauphiné were Gianni Meersman (Omega Pharma Quickstep) and Michael Matthews (Orica GreenEdge).  Both of these were listed as sprinters to watch in our earlier report from the Tour of California.

The GC battle at the Dauphiné started off slowly, but Chris Froome (Sky) was always lurking.  In the stage 4 time trial, he asserted himself with a third-place finish, moving him to GC 2nd place, just 5 seconds behind Rohan Dennis (Garmin-Sharp).  Tony Martin (Omega Pharma Quickstep) won the time trial, thanks in part to an early start time which spared him from the strong winds which plagued the later riders who were expected to win this test.

In stage 5, Froome and the Sky machine took over the Dauphiné with a stage victory and a capture of the yellow jersey for Froome, and a move to GC 2nd place by his Sky teammate, Richie Porte.

Thomas Voeckler (Europcar), Samuel Sanchez (Euskaltel-Euskadi) and Alessandro DeMarchi (Cannondale) won the three final stages, but Froome and Porte always shadowed the winners and increased their strangle-hold on the top two GC podium places.

It is clear that Froome will captain the Sky team at the Tour de France, and that the team fully expects to carry him to the yellow jersey prize in Paris.  Alberto Contador (Saxo-Tinkoff) always said that the Dauphiné was just a warm-up for the Tour.  So, don’t read too much pessimism into his mere 10th place GC finish, nor the fact that he ended the Dauphiné serving as domestique for his teammate Michael Rogers (GC 6th).  No more sandbagging or possum act for Contador and Saxo once the REAL Tour begins in just three weeks!

The Critérium du Dauphiné is an 8-stage race with a variety of terrains and formats, like the 20-stage Tour de France.  But, often a criterium is a one-day race with multiple laps around a fairly small more or less circular course.  The above picture is from the 2010 Tour of Utah criterium in Park City.  The riders raced around the course as many times as possible within a set time period.  Slow riders were eliminated if lapped by the peleton.  This format allows the spectators to see the riders pass by many times, or to move around and watch the peleton navigate sharp corners, steep uphill sections, and fast downhill sections.  A "crit" is very spectator-friendly.

This photo shows the start of the August 2012 North Boulder Park Classic criterium (Boulder, Colorado).

Here the peleton screams around a sharp corner after flying down the hill in the background.

Here comes the winner toward the finish line, welcomed by the applause of the spectators!  (Sorry, I did not record the winner's name.)

Wiggins Update

Team Sky and Brad Wiggins announced on Friday, May 31, that last year's yellow jersey champion will definitely NOT be on the roster for this year's Tour de France.  His illness from the Giro d'Italia, and a lingering knee problem, have prevented him from training as intensely as he would need to in order to be in top form for the Tour.  He was planning to ride the Critérium du Dauphiné and possibly the Tour de Suisse (Tour of Switzerland) in preparation for the TDF, but now will skip those races also in order to rest his knee.  We may see him later in the season at the Vuelta a España and/or the World Championships (time trials).  Best wishes, Sir Brad!

Giro d'Italia -- Week 3

Stage 16, Ivrea, 238 Km: Beñat Intxausti (Movistar) won this stage as part of a bold 3-man attack with about 2 Km to go.  This gave Movistar their second stage win in a row.  Vincenzo Nibali (Astana) controlled all attacks from the GC contenders and, in the process, hammered Mauro Santambrogio (Vini Fantini) with an additional 2-minute deficit.  Pink jersey standings: Nibali, Cadel Evans (BMC) 1:26, and Rigoberto Uran (Sky) 2:46.

Stage 17, Vicenza, 214 Km: Giovanni Visconti (Movistar) won this stage by attacking near the summit of the only climb of the day (category 4) with 16 Km to go.  He powered through the survivors of the day's early breakaway group, and managed to outlast the charging pink jersey group by 19 seconds.  This gives Visconti two stage victories, and Movistar three in a row.  Glory Days!  No change in GC standings.

Stage 18, Polsa, 21 Km, Individual Time Trial: Nibali moved within sight of the final triumph with a commanding win in this uphill time trial, adding costly time to each of his challengers.  The weather started out fair for the early riders, but deteriorated badly at the end.  In spite of a driving rain, Nibali was so dominant that he nearly eclipsed his 3-minute man Cadel Evans.  Evans lost 2:36, and now clings to 2nd place by only 10" over Uran.  Two other riders finished so far behind Nibali that they were eliminated from the Giro for failing the time delay.  Nibali’s time was 44:29.  The time delay (approx 30%) was about 13 minutes.  The two riders (Beletti and Belkov) who finished more than 14 minutes slower than Nibali were forced from the race.  Snooze, you lose!

Stage 19, Val Martello, 139 Km: This stage was cancelled because of the snowy weather.  The first such cancellation since 1989!

Stage 20, Tre Cime di Lavaredo, 210 Km: This stage was adjusted to eliminate some of the high mountain passes, again because of the weather.  But the summit finish was retained.  Nibali broke free on the final climb in a snowy blizzard, icing all challengers.  Uran lost only 19", but Evans lost 1:30 and fell to third place behind Uran.  Evans claims his problem was mechanical (ice-jammed gears).  It’s always nice when you have a convenient and original excuse!

Stage 21, Brescia, 197 Km: For the GC boys, this was a ceremonial parade, with Nibali, Uran and Evans claiming the overall GC podium in that order.  But for the sprinters there was a lot at stake, and the sprint was hotly contested.  Cavendish proved his superiority once again, winning his 5th stage, and moving to the top spot for the points (sprinters’) jersey.  As a bonus, he also won the “Most Combative” jersey and the Azzuri a Italia prize.  This latter award is a cash bonus of over 5,000 Euro for the rider with the most stage podium points (4 for 1st, 2 for 2nd, 1 for 3rd).  Do you think Team Sky wishes they would have stroked his ego a little more, instead of letting him defect to Omega Pharma Quickstep?

So, what does the Giro tell us about the upcoming Tour de France?

First: That Cavendish is the sprinter to watch.  He will not only chase stage wins in the sprint finishes, but he will also challenge the intermediate sprints in order to win the green jersey.  His biggest rival will be Peter Sagan (Cannondale).  Tyler Farrar (Garmin-Sharp) will hope to win a stage or two, but I doubt he will break into the same league with Cavendish and Sagan.

Second: That Team Sky is still strong, but may have a new leader.  Brad Wiggins was at least ill, if not just plain outclassed by Nibali.  Meanwhile Chris Froome has improved on his top form from 2012.  News source The Guardian reports that Team Sky has declared Froome the leader for the Tour de France.  Wiggins will race in June, and could be on the roster for the July Tour de France, but he will not be the designated leader, barring unforeseen circumstances.  He may not even be number two in the pecking order, given how well Rigoberto Uran and Sergio Luis Henao are riding.

Third: Vincenzo Nibali (Astana) would be a serious contender for the Tour’s yellow jersey – if he even is on Astana’s roster!  That’s right.  The BBC reported that Nibali is likely to skip the Tour de France in order to prepare for the World Championships (road race) later in the season.  Personally, I think that would be a shame.  He was in the GC mix last year, and both his and his team’s performance in the Giro suggest he might well win it all in this year’s Tour de France.  We’ll have to wait and see when the rosters are posted in a couple of weeks.  On May 28, 2013, CyclingNews reported that Nibali confirms that he will not ride the Tour de France in 2013.  He does, however, plan to "target the yellow jersey" in 2014.

Fourth: Cadel Evans may have been sandbagging in the Giro.  Not that coming in third in a race as brutal as this year’s Giro is anything to be ashamed of.  But he publicly said before the race started that he was riding the Giro as a warm-up for the TDF.  So, if he can do as well as he did when winning was not a priority, how well can he do in more civilized conditions when it really matters to him?  Do not count him out just because he did not seriously challenge Nibali in the Giro.

Finally: A team that impressed me, and could make some stage-by-stage noises in the Tour de France is Movistar from Spain.  Beñat Intxausti, Giovanni Visconti and Alex Dowsett won four Giro stages between them, with several other notable performances along the way.  And don’t you just love to pronounce those Basque names like “Intxausti”?

The French and Italian Alps still have lots of snow in May, as evidenced by this shot of Nan Kennard nearing the top of l'Alpe d'Huez in mid-May, 2011.  If I could Photoshop a raging blizzard into this picture, you would have a good idea of the conditions in the 2013 Giro d'Italia.  (Don't tell Bradley Wiggins about global warming!)

Giro d'Italia -- Week 2

Stage 9, Firenze (Florence), 170 Km: Maxim Belkov (Katusha) won this stage by attacking from within the breakaway before they were caught by the peleton.  Most of the top 10 GC riders stayed the same, with Vincenzo Nibali (Astana) still in the pink jersey.  Brad Wiggins (Sky) only avoided losing time because of the sacrifices made by his Columbian teammates Rigoberto Uran and Sergio Luis Henao.  Ryder Hesjedal lost 1:06.

Stage 10, Montasio, 167 Km: After the first rest day, Uran (Sky) won the stage by attacking Nibali (Astana), but his team leader Wiggins (Sky) paid the price, losing 37" to Nibali.  Uran moved up to 3rd place, behind Nibali and Cadel Evans (BMC).

Stage 11, Vajont, 182 Km: Ramunas Navardauskas (Garmin-Sharp) pulled off a clever counter-attack to win the stage.  The GC leaders stayed together, so their standings did not change.  Later that same day, in California, teammate Tyler Farrar won a stage of the Tour of California, for a Garmin “Daily Double.”

Stage 12, Treviso, 134 Km: Cavendish won for the third time in this Giro, and his 100th time as a pro.  Wiggins lost 3 minutes through cautious descending on rain-wet roads.  Both he and Ryder Hesjedal withdrew from the Giro before the start of the next stage, citing ever-worsening chest infections.  Also, the sponsors of Team Vacansoleil-DCM announced they will no longer sponsor that team after this season.  RadioShack had already made a similar announcement for its team earlier in the season.

Stage 13, Cherasco, 254 Km: Cavendish won again!  This time, he looked vulnerable at the end with no teammates to help him, but he found a gap with 350 meters to go and powered through.  The other sprinters, even with better support, were still unable to match his winning burst.  The GC standings held firm, with Nibali, Evans and Uran claiming the podium.

Stage 14, Bardonecchia, 168 Km: Winter conditions ruled this mountain stage, with rain, fog and snow.  The scheduled climb of the Col di Sestriere was cancelled, and the course re-routed.  Mauro Santambrogio (Vini Fantini) won the stage, with Nibali following safely in his wake. Uran edged Evans by only 3" for 5th place, so the GC standings remained the same.

Stage 15, Col du Galibier, 149 Km (Sunday May 19): If this sounds French, it is.  The Giro crossed into France for this stage, and Old Man Winter continued to grip the race.  Rain, fog and snow.  Climbing the Col du Télégraphe and the Galibier in July (Tour de France) is one thing.  Doing it in May is another story!  It would be like trying to ride in May over the Bald Mountain pass on the Mirror Lake Highway, or over Mt. Nebo (both in Utah).  These roads often do not open for cars until June – sometimes late June.  Once again, this race was shortened by moving the finish line 4 Km down from the Galibier summit.  Giovanni Visconti (Movistar) won the stage, followed by a furious battle between two youngsters for the white jersey.  Carlos Betancur (Ag2R) placed 2nd, and with his bonus points, leapfrogged Rafal Majka (Saxo-Tinkoff) for the youth classification lead and jersey.  Astana policed the peleton against any GC aggression, keeping Nibali safely in control of the pink jersey.

Monday, May 20 was a rest day.  I will conclude my summaries of the Giro, after it wraps up on Sunday May 26.  But for now, it looks like Nibali is in control, with Evans and Uran lurking.  If either challenger could shock Nibali in the May 23 time trial, the pink jersey might be captured.  This will be a 20 Km all-out sprint in hilly terrain around Lake Garda, with a 6 Km finish at a 6.8% slope!  Let the punishment begin!

If you happen to see the results before my next post, please do not drop a spoiler on us.

This gives you a little idea how the fog can blanket a mountain stage.  Here are Nan Kennard, Matt Jensen and Ashley Jensen brailling their way through La Mongie, a ski resort village near the top of the Col du Tourmalet (Pyrénées) in May, 2011.