2011 cobbled season

[ingsve]

Assuming the canc doesn't ride, I'll say Haussler for ronde and Hushovd for Roubaix

I think it may depend on how good the pre-season is for Haussler. It seems almost like this year has drained his confidence a bit and in 2009 he was riding on a wave of success so he might need some good runs before he gets back in that kind of groove.

 

[pedaling squares]

I think the 50km tt against 4 top cobbled riders working together, was more impressive

What? A great break but in no way did the chasers work together.

Agreed. All "chasers" except for Poor Tom had their eyes on the second step of the podium. Count me among the fans hoping that Boonen feels the sting of his 2010 spring season and turns 2011 into a real dogfight.

 

[luckyboy]

Gilbert for Ronde hopefully. As long as Roubaix is exciting I'm not bothered. Maybe Boonen, but it's kinda hard to think that Cance isn't gonna win one of them after what happened this year.

 

[Sydney21]

Rvv is a good race for Greg but I am not sure about PR for him. Greg should target AGR. His performances in the recent hilly classics was quite good.

Yeah theres something in that. He was the strongest rider with a fast finish at the WC too. He rode his **** off for Gilbert and still managed to come 5th.
Big year for him next year.

 

[Timmy-loves-Rabo]

Boom can be great on cobbles, but Rabo will have Breschel next year

let boom work for breschel and continue his progress.
He can only get better.


---

Phinney > thomas: Phinney has won two junior paris roubaix's to thomas' one.

Flecha > Hincapie: Flecha only slightly better atm. He won his first cobbled
classic this year. That is saying something.

van avermaet>ebh. Greg has placed and top 10'd in a lot of the classics where as ebh has only won one classic, gent wevelgem. I personally think that AGR should be a big target for Greg van avermaet next year.

Quinziato>arversen: Quinziato is a much stronger work horse imo, has been held back a bit in the past because of pozzato when he was at liquigas.

Burghardt>>>>Hayman: I am sorry to say this but other than this year, Hayman has done alright in the classics but is much older than burghardt. Burghardt is much stronger.

TP i agree is better.
Flecha is miles ahead of hincapie, always has been. Don't kid yourself.
Quinziato and arvensen wont do anything, and in terms of helper, arversen is much more valuable.
And yeah... Burghardt is overrated.. by you.
the van avermaet > ebh comment is just silly.

 

[Timmy-loves-Rabo]

Terpstra and Van Averamat will be the revelations of next years RV and/or PR

Niki Terpstra's progress in the last year or two has gone under the radar i feel.
I think this guy is becoming a really great rider. On the verge..

 

[auscyclefan94]

Niki Terpstra's progress in the last year or two has gone under the radar i feel.
I think this guy is becoming a really great rider. On the verge..

His strength at the end of the World RR was quite amazing. A+ for endeavour.

Yeah theres something in that. He was the strongest rider with a fast finish at the WC too. He rode his **** off for Gilbert and still managed to come 5th.
Big year for him next year.

Agreed. One of the strongest out there.

let boom work for breschel and continue his progress.
He can only get better.


---

TP i agree is better.
Flecha is miles ahead of hincapie, always has been. Don't kid yourself.
Quinziato and arvensen wont do anything, and in terms of helper, arversen is much more valuable.
And yeah... Burghardt is overrated.. by you.
the van avermaet > ebh comment is just silly.

Burghardt still > Hayman

maybe the van avermaet comment was silly but he hasn't been given the opportunities he should of because of leif Hoste.

Flecha cobbles palmares
7th Gent–Wevelgem
2nd Gent–Wevelgem
3rd Paris–Roubaix
4th Paris–Roubaix
2nd Paris–Roubaix
3rd Paris–Roubaix
6th Paris–Roubaix
3rd Ronde van Vlaanderen
3rd Omloop Het Nieuwsblad
1st Omloop Het Nieuwsblad
3rd E3 Prijs Vlaanderen

2 x top 10 finishes Gw, 5 top 10 finishes in PR, 1 top 10 finish in Rvv, 2 top 10 finishes in Omloop het nieuwsblad of which 1 he won this year and 1 top 10 finish in E3. His first cobbled win was this year!

Hincapies cobbles palmares
4th, Paris - Roubaix
6th, Paris - Roubaix
4th, Paris - Roubaix
6th, Paris - Roubaix
8th, Paris-Roubaix
2nd, Paris-Roubaix
9th, Paris-Roubaix
4th, Gent - Wevelgem
1st, Gent - Wevelgem
3rd, Gent - Wevelgem
4th, Gent-Wevelgum
4th Gent Wevelgem
5th, Gent-Wevelgem
4th, Ronde Van Vlaanderen
10th, Ronde van Vlaanderen
7th, Ronde van Vlaanderen
5th, Ronde van Vlaanderen
6th Ronde van Vlaanderen
3rd, Ronde van Vlaanderen
1st, Kuurne-Brussel-Kuurne

7 top 10 PR finishes, 6 top 10 finishes in GW including a win, 6 top 10 RVV finishes and win in KBK.

You might be able to argue that atm flecha is the better cobbled rider but always having been the better cobbled rider is far from the truth.

 

[Mellow Velo]

You might also be able to argue that 8 podiums beats 5. Especially when they were accomplished in fewer seasons.
Flecha trumps "Unlucky" Hincapie, every time.

 

[auscyclefan94]

You might also be able to argue that 8 podiums beats 5. Especially when they were accomplished in fewer seasons.
Flecha trumps "Unlucky" Hincapie, every time.

No it doesn't. Hincapie more consistent. to say flecha has always been beeter than hincapie is an absurd comment!

 

[Mellow Velo]

No it doesn't. Hincapie more consistent. to say flecha has always been beeter than hincapie is an absurd comment!

You pick and choose your logic to suit your riders.
Phinney is better than Thomas. How?
At this time in respective careers, Thomas is well ahead of Phinney.
You want it all ways, when in fact, you don't have it any way.
Phinney is too young and George is too old. His job is shepherd the young riders and pass on his experience.
The truth is, by the time young Phinney is ready to win a senior cobbled classic, he'll be out of contract.

A resurgent Ballan remains BMC's best bet, even though this is by no means a certainty.

I don't expect EBH to have such a poor Spring, either.

 

[auscyclefan94]

You pick and choose your logic to suit your riders.
Phinney is better than Thomas. How?
At this time in respective careers, Thomas is well ahead of Phinney.
You want it all ways, when in fact, you don't have it any way.
Phinney is too young and George is too old. His job is shepherd the young riders and pass on his experience.
The truth is, by the time young Phinney is ready to win a senior cobbled classic, he'll be out of contract.

A resurgent Ballan remains BMC's best bet, even though this is by no means a certainty.

I don't expect EBH to have such a poor Spring, either.

And you don't? Results are results and that statement Timmy made was absurd! Comparing the pair at all in the original post is not overly smart. Hincapie proved in GW and RVV that he can still be up there even though I acknowledge that he won't be challenging for the wins in the big classics. as much as people don't want to admit it, BMC have a formidable lineup though it seems to be some posters hobbies to "egg me on" about BMC.

Do you expect Ballan, Kroon, Van avermaet and burghardt to all have poor spring classic campaings again? Then chuck in quinziato, hincapie and phinney and I don't see how they all of those formidable cobbled riders to all flonk next year.

 

[roundabout]

However talented he is Phinney is a 20 year old kid.

Seondly, apart from Ballan BMC doesn't have a genuine contender (and even with Ballan it would be a bit of a stretch).

 

[blaxland]

And you don't? Results are results and that statement Timmy made was absurd! Comparing the pair at all in the original post is not overly smart. Hincapie proved in GW and RVV that he can still be up there even though I acknowledge that he won't be challenging for the wins in the big classics. as much as people don't want to admit it, BMC have a formidable lineup though it seems to be some posters hobbies to "egg me on" about BMC.

Do you expect Ballan, Kroon, Van avermaet and burghardt to all have poor spring classic campaings again? Then chuck in quinziato, hincapie and phinney and I don't see how they all of those formidable cobbled riders to all flonk next year.

I think with the riders that you have mentioned Auscyclefan94 Team Bmc should go reasonably well next year in the cobbled classics.Personally i think Ballan still has it in him for another big win.Maybe RVV?Hincapie will be the father too Phinney guiding him with his years of experience..Phinney in 2012?

 

[auscyclefan94]

I think with the riders that you have mentioned Auscyclefan94 Team Bmc should go reasonably well next year in the cobbled classics.Personally i think Ballan still has it in him for another big win.Maybe RVV?Hincapie will be the father too Phinney guiding him with his years of experience..Phinney in 2012?

I think this is a fair summation of my thoughts. Not saying Hincapie will win a big classic but I think that he can still feature in the top 10 and their are some other riders in that team who can post some very strong results as well.

 

[Mellow Velo]

It's all about expectation. Most objective posters would expect BMC to have a better Spring than last year, with a smattering of podiums and maybe, the odd win or two.
Certainly, they have strengthened their squad, but IMO, they are closer to a reasonably strong team, rather than formidable.

This season we were told that Cadel would have sufficient support at both the Tour and Giro, from the team and we all know how that worked out.

I look at BMC and I look at Sky and I think they look so so similar, in virtually all aspects.

 

[auscyclefan94]

It's all about expectation. Most objective posters would expect BMC to have a better Spring than last year, with a smattering of podiums and maybe, the odd win or two.
Certainly, they have strengthened their squad, but IMO, they are closer to a reasonably strong team, rather than formidable.

This season we were told that Cadel would have sufficient support at both the Tour and Giro, from the team and we all know how that worked out.

I look at BMC and I look at Sky and I think they look so so similar, in virtually all aspects.

I guess peoples definition of formidable slightly differs when looking at cycling teams but generally I agree with your post.

 

[Marcus135]

It's all about expectation. Most objective posters would expect BMC to have a better Spring than last year, with a smattering of podiums and maybe, the odd win or two.
Certainly, they have strengthened their squad, but IMO, they are closer to a reasonably strong team, rather than formidable.

This season we were told that Cadel would have sufficient support at both the Tour and Giro, from the team and we all know how that worked out.

I look at BMC and I look at Sky and I think they look so so similar, in virtually all aspects.

With the ToC Cadel would never have gotten a huge amount of support at the gero as BMC takes that race to mean a lot as it has strong ties to the US.

You are right tho BMC is not a formidable team in any respect (yet) yet they are are still strong and could have a shot at some of the cobbles however i doubt they will come away with a win in the big 3. Phinney i dont think will have it next year, he is simply not old enough and people like canc will destroy him. In a few years tho i think he will be right up there.

BMC similar to Sky, yea i can see that

 

[Timmy-loves-Rabo]

curious as to what the big 3 is? RVV and P-R I get... i assume G-W, in which certainly isn't a race.. or on par with the other two.. or even close.

They had a pretty weak team this year, good signings though.
Far from one of the strongest teams though.

 

[auscyclefan94]

curious as to what the big 3 is? RVV and P-R I get... i assume G-W, in which certainly isn't a race.. or on par with the other two.. or even close.

They had a pretty weak team this year, good signings though.
Far from one of the strongest teams though.

I now have a thread starter!

 

[El Pistolero]

I'm hoping Boonen will do the double again this year.

With Boonen and Gilbert the Belgians could potentially win all monuments in one season haha. Milano- San Remo will be a hard one though.

Just imagine how much a team would own if it had both Boonen, Gilbert, Leukemans(good helper), Greg van Avermaet(helper, potential winner) and Jurgen van den Broeck(helper, could even win a hilly classic, but he isn't really a winner.)

 

[Kvinto]

My Top-10 pre-season favourites (all IMO):
1. Fabian Cancellara
Don’t know if he'll be as strong next year, maybe he'll seek for another goals, but he is Great and will be Great.
2. Tom Boonen
Another Great of cobbled classics. In fact he’s my no.1 but Fabian was too strong in 2010 to be #2 . His 2010 cobbled season actually wasn’t bad, but he was expected to win something Big (something Big means Ronde or PR) but he won nothing at all, two times second, one time fifth – not good enough for such a rider.
3. Thor Hushovd
Current rainbow jersey dreams of Roubaix, where he was third in 2009 and second this year. Don’t think he’ll be contending Ronde but on the roads of PR he is the real danger.
4. Heinrich Haussler
He doesn’t deserved such a season! He was strong in 2009 and I’m sure he’ll come back even stronger in 2011. I think hilly cobbled races suits him a little more then Roubaix, where he can help Hushovd.
5. Matti Breschel
In Rabo he’ll get the leader role for cobbled classics. It seems to me he is very similar rider to Haussler, maybe Haussler a little bit better sprinter, but Breschel unlike him will be the only leader of his team.
6. Filippo Pozzato
A lot was said about him and his tactics. I suppose there’s only psychological problem. He tries to stay with the best riders and it’s his choice, but maybe it will be better for him to try to be the best? All depends on Pippo. He has the abilities to do better ride.
Here is the quote of Katushas team manager Andrei Tchmil (former winner of Roubaix and Vlaanderen) about Pippo: "He's got class and talent but is just missing that little bit that makes a huge difference, probably a bit of extra determination. He doesn't seem to realise that time is going by and that he'll never get it back. It really hurts me to see him wasting so many chances. I was more aggressive, hungry. I knew I had to win, that nobody was going to give me anything for free and that I could never make excuses."(c) http://www.cyclingnews.com/news/tchmil-wants-cipollini-as-a-katusha-consultant
7. Bjorn Leukemans
Strong classic rider. He reached top-10 finishes in almost every cobbled race, he started in this spring (Waregem, E3, Ronde, Roubaix, Brabantse Pijl).
8. Edvald Boasson Hagen
I think his problems with long distance races are only the matter of age. In 2011 he’ll be one year older and more experienced. He’ll may not be awesome at RVV and PR but the cobbled season isn’t just this two races
9. Alessandro Ballan
Not much to say, still waiting
10. Sep Vanmarcke
You may think: “How can he compare Vanmarcke to Boonen and Cancellara? Ha ha ha”. Yes, it’s nonsense. In fact I was thinking of someone of Devolder, Flecha and Hoste for my 10th place, but didn’t decide who is the best of them. So I picked Sep Vanmarcke there, as one of the most talented young riders (for the cobbled classics of course) in the peloton. I like his attacking style, he did well at Gent - Wevelgem (on this years harder route) finishing second, had several good results in less important races, made strong but unsuccessful solo attack at Paris – Tours. In 2011 he’ll ride for Garmin. I’m sure that sooner or later he’ll become the favourite on the cobbled roads and at least it will happen earlier then in case of Taylor Phinney .

 

[Mellow Velo]

Definitive proof that ACF is, in fact, Italian.

http://www.cyclingnews.com/news/quinziato-bmc-the-team-to-beat-in-2011-classics

Right down to the use of the term "formidable".

 

[Ferminal]

My Top-10 pre-season favourites (all IMO):

Nice list, I like it

 

[L'arriviste]

...
2. Tom Boonen
4. Heinrich Haussler
5. Matti Breschel
...

These. All people with something spectacular to do in 2011. The former had an awful 2010 - by his standards, anyway - and the latter two are really knocking on the door of sustained golden greatness.

Something nags at me about Boonen though. I don't know whether he will actually get around to destroying everyone else in 2011.

Not sure how Haussler will play with Hushovd. Suppose they'll have to split things between them. But they have such a stacked team behind them both.

 

[auscyclefan94]

Definitive proof that ACF is, in fact, Italian.

http://www.cyclingnews.com/news/quinziato-bmc-the-team-to-beat-in-2011-classics

Right down to the use of the term "formidable".

"And then you took the words right out of my mouth" - Meatloaf