Rolling Pro Cycling Thread

Another year in rainbow stripes for Sagan.

didn't even seem to be in that great of shape to win this.

Luckily Bergen looked absolutely amazing. At least, until the tv cameras crashed with 2-3 km to go.

Bergen looked the part indeed! The crashing cameras were p hilarious tbh. Waiting till the finish cam picked them up and the commentators despairing was oddly... soothing?

Couldn't see enough of todays race due to work. Dumoulin had a blast this week with two titles. October 7th, Lombardia, is in my planner in capitals.

Chris Froome fights to save career after failed drugs test result

"My asthma got worse at the Vuelta so I followed the team doctor’s advice to increase my salbutamol dosage."

sure I'm being naive here but if his asthma was deteriorating wouldn't responsible medical advice be to pull out of the race?

In any case I've already heard several doctors declare that it's simply impossible to get this much salbutamol in using an inhaler.

“We’re banning you due to terminally boring races by you and your team. Oh and the drugs.”

Bring on La Vuelta!

british grand slam ! genuinely extraordinary

The London races this weekend were kinda crazy with both having notable crashes near the end. Viviani pulled it out with a great attack on the men's side (and then today announces for Cofidis which is kinda hilarious given how his team did the work for him yesterday).

But on a much sadder note:

https://deadspin.com/pro-cyclist-bjorg-lambrecht-dies-after-crash-during-rac-1836977471

Enjoying La Vuelta so far -- nothing crazy dramatic, just some good solid rides.

Roglic rode all competition to shit today, as expected. Stoked for the rest of this. Between the insane stage of last Sunday (w/ footage missing, piecing together how Roglic fell on the dirt road through twitter videos) and all that has happened already, it's like this Vuelta has already been going on for weeks. Love it.

Y así fue la caída de Roglic. Entró en el camino de barro junto con @alejanvalverde@NairoQuinCo y de repente se le fue la rueda. Día complicado ayer en Andorra. ¿Quién dijo que esto fuera fácil? #roglic #ciclismo #lavuelta #vueltaciclistaespaña #camaraman #motocamara #LaVuelta19 pic.twitter.com/6Yynua9QhE

— Pack del Toro (@Packdeltoro) September 2, 2019

dirt section 2 days ago was so grimy with the hail. enjoying seeing kuss working. (aussie commentary two days ago said kuss went to uni in WA lol- fighting words!)

Glad I was able to catch up on all stages today (holiday weekend meant guests from out of town). Roll on the rest...

kuss was given a perfect tee-up, but then at least struck it so clean. beautiful job.

Kuss's enthusiasm was heartfelt/heartwarming etc.

as far as GC contenders go, the Vuelta isn't really delivering. I thought Superman Lopez would've been in better shape. I assume Valverde will not win time on Roglic in the third week.

it's like, Pogacar is too young, Valverde is too old. Quintana has spent too much energy on Tour de France and inner team struggles. So we're left with M.Lo to do it (and he's got he team to back it up).

Loved Kuss' win. Been enjoying this Vuelta btw, w/ Pogacar, Gilbert's earlier win, and so many youngsters having a go. Love the bandits of Euskadi Murias and Burgos, too, giving this Vuelta a needed rosy glow on the cheeks.

Ludo otm, but Lopez still won't deliver. Think it's clear Roglic will breeze to the title (bad luck not withstanding). Valverde ever so impressive but not as good as Roglic. Plus Jumbo have the team to deliver.

Brilliant stuff from Pogacar. Him and Roglic surely buddies 4 life now.

Rumors Roglic may wanna get out of Jumbo (to Emirates)?In light of Dumoulin cannot say I blame him for wanting clear leadership role, but perhaps Pogacar on board UAE would be its own issue sooner than he may think.

remco evenepoel is a weapon

A little late but yeah, loved Kuss's win as well, fun interview just after too. Right kind of enthusiasm and not an easy stage! Yesterday's stage good as well, kinda glad for the break today just to catch up on things.

Rumors Roglic may wanna get out of Jumbo (to Emirates)?In light of Dumoulin cannot say I blame him for wanting clear leadership role, but perhaps Pogacar on board UAE would be its own issue sooner than he may think.

― Hunt3r, Tuesday, September 10, 2019 6:17 PM (twenty-four minutes ago) bookmarkflaglink

Erm, Roglic signed a new contract today, staying at Jumbo till 2023 :)

remco evenepoel is a weapon

― prorogue mahone (||||||||), Tuesday, September 10, 2019 6:21 PM (twenty-one minutes ago) bookmarkflaglink

You sure you don't mean Van der Poel?

What a finish! Congratulations @mathieuvdpoel!#OVOToBpic.twitter.com/pyi4MgvSs3

— Tour of Britain 🇬🇧 (@TourofBritain) September 10, 2019

vdp is a weapon also but remco is something else

jesus @ that sprint

he shoulda raced mtb worlds, he had enough time to recover for road worlds.

For some reason there's a breakaway w/ Quintana, Kelderman and Pernsteiner, and the peloton can't close the gap, which is already 3min.

4.30 now. And we can't even watch it...

mental stage - 31mph average speed. gilbert said he was spinning at 110RPM (!) on his 54x11 (!!)

crowd chanting “¡HI-GUI-TA!” at podium was pretty great.

Yeah, he held on really great. I kinda feel for Pogacar, his first Vuelta's just a couple of days too long for him, but he's been great.

Again confirmed today Quintana cannae hack it uphill right now. Which retroactively renders yesterdays "coup" pretty much useless. I expect Lopez to knock him off third on Saturday.

Roglic caught in a crash, Movistar puts its foot on the gas. QuickStep and Astana giving Valverde a right bollocking.

🇪🇸 #LaVuelta19

After a crash in the peloton, which involved race leader Primoz Roglic (TJV), Movistar have now been removed from every other teams Christmas gift list... 🤷🏼‍♂️ Some order being restored now though, as the break with @ben_oconnor95 has 1’50”.

— Team Dimension Data (@TeamDiData) September 13, 2019

Hell of a run-in by Cavagna there!

VAI POGACAR

weapon

Love that guy

Difficult circumstances in🌈@Yorkshire2019 Road World Championships Men U23 Individual Time Trial. This is the European Champion 🇩🇰@JohanPrice in 🌧️#Yorkshire2019 (📺@Eurosport_UK)pic.twitter.com/D3YJssrnPZ

— World Cycling Stats (@wcsbike) September 24, 2019

"Difficult conditions" you say

looks like my commute to work this morning tbh

I couldnt view that here but im betting its like-

Think you're having a bad day? #Yorkshire2019 pic.twitter.com/g1jDOXF37w

— Elisabeth Anderson (@velobetty) September 24, 2019

lol all the comments i presume from brits going: “der schoolboy amateur! learn to steer a puddle!! loser.”

me, a yank: “whoa, do britishes have no drainage sewer infrastracture at _all_?? that’s fucking barbaric! lol savages. I guess it’s to put out all the stovetop chips fires they have.”

Not a great week to have the World's in Yorkshire. It's been pissing down all week and is going to piss down for the rest of the week too.

The above levels rain are obv ridiculous, but I'd actually welcome rain on Sunday. The course + rain has all the ingredients to make it feel like a classic rainy Flanders classic. I'm pretty stoked for it.

For spectators it's obv a different matter. Are you in the vicinity and plan to have a look NBS?

No, I live in London so Yorkshire's a bit of a trek. Some of my clubmates were talking about going up there, though.

pro tour riders must hate riding in britain

heavy roads, potholes everywhere, terrible weather... at least the crowds are good

Le Grand Depart in the 2014 TDF must have fooled them into thinking that conditions are generally warm, dry and sunny.

not convinced by this move by VDP - still a lot of weapons in the peloton behind him

take that back

spoke too soon again.... ffffffff

but i don’t know how much the vo2 max can be argued to be a definitive permanent defin stmt. it has a ceiling for everyone, but it does move. with ppl built to cheat, when will you know you’ve got the correct ceiling measurement? also not all races are determined by that energy system. better races (imo) are determined not only by your w/kg at threshhold, but v v often by your super-threshold power layed down in just such a situation to make a gap and get away enough to stay away with other better performers, or if you can hold that superthreshhold power long enough to win with it (these “w’” efforts are ot usually long, they can last 8-10 mins, not much more). And in a long day, lots of difference comes out of how your body can recover during long hard days. Or how good your teammates are at hiding you until it’s time to make those super efforts, of either kind (roughly called aerobic and anaerobic). whether you’re eating enough. whether, even if youre eating, youre digesting it. whether youre digesting. even whether youre drinking. whether you are naturally just low and fast in position. there’s a shitton of smaller variables that cumulatively make big differences.

i mean there are things that stand out as flags. relatively sudden big improvements obv. ppl going from excellence at anaerobic super performance to being aerobic w/kg supermen (like armstrong bw 97 and 99– and there were many of these in the late 90s obv). or low enders who suddenly just became gods, like froome.

my main takeaway for lemond—as talented and as sorta regular decent person as I think he is— is that his vo2max numbers were like all-time great for any sport, like 95ml/kg/min. scandi xc level shit (who btw were also like patients zero for aerobic doping technique—but i’m implying that for lemond at all).

so maybe everything looks like a nail to lemond, named vo2max. but i dunno, srsly all those riders move so much more oxygen that normies like me, and i just watch and clap.

Lemond I like mostly but he also seems pretty obv very emotionally immature. Not fragile, he’s tough and v resilient,but perhaps best termed “whiny.” actually the first time i met him in the early 90s (i don’t know him obv), i turned around so he could sign the back of my team jersey in sharpie. then he was nice enough to talk to me a couple mins. near to the end he made a joke like “well, i’m just a retired wash-out now, they should just put us down, like horses.” it was said humorously and was appropriate and funny, but i walked away thinking “he really does seem a little shook.”

NOT IMPLYING lol

it was not a jersey of his team, it was a long sleeve of my team, i was out riding and stopped at a shop and there he was. I wish i’d kept that jersey in good shape— but i rode and warshed it to rags. ☹️