Swiss bliss? Cav’s record? Pro cycling 2024

[ursus arctos]

Women's race temporarily neutralised following a crash between commissaires and a team car

[longeared]

This obviously sounds like being wise after the event but I did look at the start sheet beforehand and wonder why quite so many big names were in this race given its proximity to the Ronde. It did feel like a lot of risk for not a great deal. Now WvA has done his collarbone and is out of both this weekend and Roubaix. Class is again permanent in the women's race I note.

Elsewhere SD Worx have said they're expecting Vollering to leave at the end of the season, destination unknown. She's a more versatile rider than Kopecky and a year younger so unless her salary demands were absolutely colossal it begged the question why they tied the Belgian up first. This and the various national team debacles on her watch add weight to the belief she might be a bit difficult to work with.

[Sits]

I wonder what Jorgenson's trajectory is going to look like now WvA is out. He had put all his Classics eggs in the basket of the two upcoming monuments. I wonder whether he'll be right for the Giro.

Edit: out of the Giro. Collarbone, ribs and sternum.

[Sits]

For those who don't read/subscribe to Escape, an enjoyable piece here from Jonny Long:

In a sport where even the slightest hint of smack talk between riders is hard to come by, the peloton seems to have made an exception this week for ... Nairo Quintana.

First off, Bahrain-Victorious' Wout Poels was trying to move up the final climb of a stage at the Volta a Catalunya, but no one would let him in so he squeezed in next to Quintana behind Enric Mas.

“That in itself is annoying for him, but I wasn't riding so close to him that I tried to push him away," Poels explained on his In Koers podcast that he records alongside Dylan van Baarle.

"At one point he elbowed me and I got into an argument with him. I said that he was definitely on tramadol again, which is why he was acting so aggressive," said Poels.

Quintana was, of course, suspended for his 2023 Tour de France tramadol positives (plural), which likely saw him sailing over the cobbles of that first week floating like an ice skater across a rink.

But then, on the Geraint Thomas Cycling Club podcast, when Thomas and Luke Rowe begin discussing potential Giro d'Italia contenders and the idea of Quintana is brought up, Thomas didn’t miss a beat.
"He shouldn't even be racing," the Welshman says.

Then a pause before the ever-eloquent Luke Rowe added his own thoughts: "Little f**king rat".

We've never shied away from deriding Quintana for his painkiller positives, but, unless Thomas and Rowe know something we don't, it's fairly selective to bash Quintana when the list of riders who've come back from actual bans or have had marginal cases lawyered away (anyone remember a former Thomas and Rowe teammate called Chris Froome and his salbutamol case?) seems slightly inconsistent.

And then what about the pair's former doctor, Richard Freeman, who was struck off after being found to have ordered banned testosterone “knowing or believing” it was to help dope an unnamed rider. Have we heard anything from them on their crusade for clean sport? Not a dicky bird.

A final thing, while Rowe's words are ... strong, let's say, even for this potty-mouthed newsletter, what made our eyes roll into the back of our heads was that earlier in the episode there was an advert for ketones.

Ketones are of course legal, but they are currently banned by the Movement for Credible Cycling and the likes of Romain Bardet, Guillaume Martin and Thibaut Pinot have previously called for them to be banned. Tramadol was in the same position for years, if you recall.

Thomas waxes lyrical about how fabulous ketones are and how he currently uses them, and that he has a special code you can use to get cheaper ketones! Mine should be in the post. Thanks G.

Stay classy, Luke Rowe.

[delicatemoth]

Sits, I am happy that I have got over my kneejerk dislike of british riders, don't bring it back! I normally actively like Thomas, I like how he finishes Grand Tours even when they've gone totally pear shaped for him halfway through.

I hadn't realised Quintana was at Catalunya! Who is he riding for?

My favourite one-day races of the year, hopefully I can maintain concentration on them.

[Sits]

I hadn't realised Quintana was at Catalunya! Who is he riding for?

Movistar

My favourite one-day races of the year, hopefully I can maintain concentration on them.

I’m enjoying watching live for now, will probably end up recording the latter parts, and the women’s.

FDJ actually have a decent squad - Küng, Madouas, Pithie, Askey

[longeared]

Pithie could be very good indeed in a couple of years time but he needs to get stronger - he made what turned out to be the winning move in both Kuurne and Wevelgem and got dropped before the finish.

Expect MvdP will win the men's race with a massive attack from miles out. Hope Vos wins the women's, more likely it'll be somebody from SD Worx.

[Sits]

It messes with my head a little when there’s a Jayco-Allula rider alongside a Lotto-Dstny (sic) rider as the two jerseys - from the back - are the same only opposite ways up.

[Sits]

[Sits]

Oh, Mitch Docker is co-commentating on SBS.

[longeared]

Whereas we've got fucking Kirby saying "he's going to put a fire out" every time there's any form of acceleration. Quite an active race situation at present admittedly.

[longeared]

Good to hear Blythe questioning what Pedersen is up to here, it's just hanging at 20 seconds, this is too far out to try and make this stick, Alpecin don't have to chase with Vermeersch being up front and consequently MvdP is just getting a free ride at the moment.

[longeared]

MvdP accelerates up the Koppenberg and goes solo with 45k left, Jorgensen is chasing behind and such is the steepness of the wet cobbles that virtually everybody else was forced to get off and push. That should get the climb kicked off the route for a few years again. Are the women going up there later?

[ursus arctos]

He's destroying the Tannienberg

[longeared]

MvdP eased up massively in the closing ks but still won by over a minute. Sure there will be terrible disappointment for many as the chase group including a Start Up rider got caught on the finish straight, think Luca Mozzato got second which is a right result for Arkea in terms of ranking points. Michael Matthews came third but imagine the commissaires will have a look at him switching line in the sprint.

[longeared]

STOP LOOKING AT EACH OTHER FFS

[longeared]

That's a top piece of disruption from van Anrooij going straight over the top and shooting up the road, now everybody else should just sit on and make SD Worx do the chasing.

[longeared]

Much better race as suspenseful entertainment if not always tactically, Niewadoma and Longo Borghini got away over the Paterberg and linked up with van Anrooij, they worked together then dawdled in the finish straight which had me shouting at the screen, they held on and Longo Borghini won the sprint. Quite some scenes at the finish, Lidl celebrating their 1-3 and Niewadoma in tears after nearly winning a big race yet again. Vos won the sprint behind for fourth. That's how you beat SD Worx.

[Sits]

MvdP eased up massively in the closing ks but still won by over a minute. Sure there will be terrible disappointment for many as the chase group including a Start Up rider got caught on the finish straight, think Luca Mozzato got second which is a right result for Arkea in terms of ranking points. Michael Matthews came third but imagine the commissaires will have a look at him switching line in the sprint.

Guess who had an each way bet on Matthews at extremely attractive odds?

Nice commentary longeared. Should the Koppenberg be included or not is an interesting topic. If I saw the highlights right, both Kopecky and Vollering got off and pushed.

[Sits]

I feel the wisdom of MvdP’s decision to err on the side of caution with dark “shorts” was borne out by the increasing greyness of Kopecky’s as the women’s race wore on.

[Levin]

As a wider fashion note, I think we're back to the days of different coloured shorts for casual cycling. The tyranny of 'the rules' and black shorts only seems to be fading. Every manufacturers ss24 collection has a range of different coloured bibs.

[San Bernardhinault]

I’m happy to have coloured and patterned side panels, but there are parts of a bib that should definitely be dark. Even if it doesn’t rain, but particularly if they get wet.

[ursus arctos]

They have added an insane chicane just before Aremberg

https://twitter.com/brismithy/status/1775588261739602164?s=12

[Sits]

Apparently the riders asked for one to slow down the Arenberg approach. But maybe it just moves the crashes.

Good for CX riders I reckon.

[ursus arctos]

Vingegaard, Roglic and Evenepoel all down in a concrete culvert in Itzulia