2014 - 98th Ronde van Vlaanderen, 259km, Sunday 6th April (1.UWT)

[Roude Leiw]

Very nice article in l'Equipe, esp videaos of some of the key hellingen are embedded

http://www.lequipe.fr/Cyclisme-sur-route/Actualites/-mon-top-des-monts/454716

 

[Panda Claws]

Omg,according to staff of OPQS Boonen will be the leader.
Stating he is stronger than Terpstra and Stybar now,thats brainless

It is far from unthinkable.

 

[Hugo Koblet]

Vuelta, Eneco and Tour of Poland last year. And in the Four days of Dunkirk and two occasions. And that's from what I can remember.

Well, to be honest, he was sucking a lot of Gilbert wheel in that Vuelta stage he won.

Omg,according to staff of OPQS Boonen will be the leader.
Stating he is stronger than Terpstra and Stybar now,thats brainless

We're talking about a three time winner versus a guy who has only raced the Ronde once (finishing 36th) and another guy whose results are 113th, 6th, 45th, 14th and once outside the time limit.

I fail to grasp the brainlessness.

 

[Roderick]

Omg,according to staff of OPQS Boonen will be the leader.
Stating he is stronger than Terpstra and Stybar now,thats brainless

Are you really surprised that Tommeke is the team leader? Even if he starts with one broken leg, he will be the team leader.

 

[ILovecycling]

It is far from unthinkable.

I didnt say its unthinkable,but more likely is that he is even with them at best.

...
We're talking about a three time winner versus a guy who has only raced the Ronde once (finishing 36th) and another guy whose results are 113th, 6th, 45th, 14th and once outside the time limit.

I fail to grasp the brainlessness.

The most important factor is form,then experience.As for the experience,Terpstra has ridden it more than 3 times so he has almost the same amount of experience (imo there is no diffrenece if you ride it 4 times or 9 times, or whatever).
And as for the form,its hard to believe Boonen upgraded his form this quickly in one week.
DS shouldnt care how many f...ng times he has won this race,he should pick his best option,and I doubt this year it is Tommeke.

Are you really surprised that Tommeke is the team leader? Even if he starts with one broken leg, he will be the team leader.

yeah,ridiculousness of various DS is endless

 

[Bushman]

I didnt say its unthinkable,but more likely is that he is even with them at best.

The most important factor is form,then experience.As for the experience,Terpstra has ridden it more than 3 times so he has almost the same amount of experience (imo there is no diffrenece if you ride it 4 times or 9 times, or whatever).
And as for the form,its hard to believe Boonen upgraded his form this quickly in one week.
DS shouldnt care how many f...ng times he has won this race,he should pick his best option,and I doubt this year it is Tommeke.

yeah,ridiculousness of various DS is endless

Where is the line between inexperienced and experienced? At 3 times? Or 4? Of course there is a difference between riding the race 4 or 9 times.

 

[Volderke]

(imo there is no diffrenece if you ride it 4 times or 9 times, or whatever).
And as for the form,its hard to believe Boonen upgraded his form this quickly in one week.
DS shouldnt care how many f...ng times he has won this race,he should pick his best option,and I doubt this year it is Tommeke.

yeah,ridiculousness of various DS is endless

no difference 4 or 9 times? Tell that to Fabian Cancellara! It took him years to decipher what to do when.
Boonen's form last week was not particularly weak, or is your opinion solely based on E3 where he too was held back by the big crash?
And for once I would say that, in the case of Tom Boonen, experience is more important than form. Besides, he IS a leader. You are not just pointed out as a leader by the DS. Everybody in the team kneels for Boonen because he is the reference. He is one of the few guys with the ability of thinking with the legs and the head in the finale, not just having legs but no solid tactics (the difference between Boonen and e.g. Flecha, GvA, Boom, Thomas)

 

[ILovecycling]

Where is the line between inexperienced and experienced? At 3 times? Or 4? Of course there is a difference between riding the race 4 or 9 times.

If the route and hellingens are the same what is the difference?

 

[Hugo Koblet]

The most important factor is form,then experience.As for the experience,Terpstra has ridden it more than 3 times so he has almost the same amount of experience (imo there is no diffrenece if you ride it 4 times or 9 times, or whatever).
And as for the form,its hard to believe Boonen upgraded his form this quickly in one week.
DS shouldnt care how many f...ng times he has won this race,he should pick his best option,and I doubt this year it is Tommeke.

Well, it's not like Boonen has been really bad this year. Compare his results with Stybar's:

Stybar:

29th in Omloop Het Nieuwsblad
7th in Milan-Sanremo
19th in E3 Prijs Vlaanderen-Harelbeke
20th in Gent-Wevelgem

Boonen:

33rd in Omloop Het Nieuwsblad
1st in Kuurne-Brussel-Kuurne
14th in Dwars door Vlaanderen
11th in E3 Prijs Vlaanderen-Harelbeke
5th in Gent-Wevelgem

Based on results, Boonen has been superior to Stybar. In fact, Stybar has been almost invisible so far this year.

Then we have Terpstra who has amazing this year, no doubt about it, and he indeed is a threat and a good card for OPQS. And I'm sure both Terpstra and Stybar will get to ride their own chance in the race, but they have to attack and/or get to the line in a small group to have a chance of winning. In the finale, Boonen is for sure OPQS's best bet.

 

[Netserk]

I didnt say its unthinkable,but more likely is that he is even with them at best.

The most important factor is form,then experience.As for the experience,Terpstra has ridden it more than 3 times so he has almost the same amount of experience (imo there is no diffrenece if you ride it 4 times or 9 times, or whatever).
And as for the form,its hard to believe Boonen upgraded his form this quickly in one week.
DS shouldnt care how many f...ng times he has won this race,he should pick his best option,and I doubt this year it is Tommeke.

yeah,ridiculousness of various DS is endless

One thing is experience of riding the race. Another is experience of winning the race. Boonen knows how to win this race, and he doesn't have to be among the 3 strongest to win it. In a sprint for the win in a small group, he'd have a greater chance to win than Sagan. Don't underestimate the importance of having a winning tool

 

[woodenswan]

what is the difference?

5

glad to be of help

 

[ILovecycling]

no difference 4 or 9 times? Tell that to Fabian Cancellara! It took him years to decipher what to do when.
Boonen's form last week was not particularly weak, or is your opinion solely based on E3 where he too was held back by the big crash?
And for once I would say that, in the case of Tom Boonen, experience is more important than form. Besides, he IS a leader. You are not just pointed out as a leader by the DS. Everybody in the team kneels for Boonen because he is the reference. He is one of the few guys with the ability of thinking with the legs and the head in the finale, not just having legs but no solid tactics (the difference between Boonen and e.g. Flecha, GvA, Boom, Thomas)

yeah,he has got authority thats true.advantage to Terpstra
as for the experience look at my previous post.And yes I think his form is weak,he wasnt anywhere near the podium in Wevelgem,in a sprint after a tough race like this.I dont judge E3,in Dwaars his form was light years behind Terpstra,same in Omloop.

 

[ILovecycling]

5

glad to be of help

 

[ILovecycling]

Well, it's not like Boonen has been really bad this year. Compare his results with Stybar's:
...results...

Based on results, Boonen has been superior to Stybar. In fact, Stybar has been almost invisible so far this year.

Then we have Terpstra who has amazing this year, no doubt about it, and he indeed is a threat and a good card for OPQS. And I'm sure both Terpstra and Stybar will get to ride their own chance in the race, but they have to attack and/or get to the line in a small group to have a chance of winning. In the finale, Boonen is for sure OPQS's best bet.

I know their results.I think Stybar's big power is in his dark horse status and better form than Boonen's (i explained my opinion couple of times on this)
bolded:this what pis..ses me off.They should get equal chance like Mr 3 times

One thing is experience of riding the race. Another is experience of winning the race. Boonen knows how to win this race, and he doesn't have to be among the 3 strongest to win it. In a sprint for the win in a small group, he'd have a greater chance to win than Sagan. Don't underestimate the importance of having a winning tool

Winning tool is interesting factor,I think its more mental thing than experience.The guy (in this case Boonen) has more mental power as he really believe he can win.Its a advatange,cant judge how big.

 

[spanky wanderlust]

Boonen's form is decent. But you need better than that to win at Flanders, esp w/ Koppenberg only 40k out. I personally give him pretty close to zero chance of winning this year. Still, if he's on a good day and makes the final selection he can absolutely win.

Luck always helps too. If crashes and mechanicals take out Cance and Sagan the race is wide open.

Why is he the team leader? Because he's a three time champ, Belgium's most popular athlete in their most popular sport in their favorite race on their biggest team. It's a no-brainer. Sponsors gots to get theirs.

Terpstra and Stybar will still be protected and will both absolutely get their chances.

 

[VeloHuman]

Boonen's form is decent. But you need better than that to win at Flanders, esp w/ Koppenberg only 40k out. I personally give him pretty close to zero chance of winning this year. Still, if he's on a good day and makes the final selection he can absolutely win.

Luck always helps too. If crashes and mechanicals take out Cance and Sagan the race is wide open.

Why is he the team leader? Because he's a three time champ, Belgium's most popular athlete in their most popular sport in their favorite race on their biggest team. It's a no-brainer. Sponsors gots to get theirs.

Terpstra and Stybar will still be protected and will both absolutely get their chances.

Wonder if Sep Vanmarcke has a chance at that kinda respect.

 

[red_flanders]

Wonder if Sep Vanmarcke has a chance at that kinda respect.

Win three Ronde's and he might.

 

[podunavac]

Thinking about possible development of the race and tactical options, it appears that Trek, basically, has two of a kind. It's not like one can sit behind and wait for a sprint, while the other is in the break.
They are still very limited.

 

[More Strides than Rides]

Thinking about possible development of the race and tactical options, it appears that Trek, basically, has two of a kind. It's not like one can sit behind and wait for a sprint, while the other is in the break.
They are still very limited.

Depends who they're sprinting against...

 

[Hugo Koblet]

Thinking about possible development of the race and tactical options, it appears that Trek, basically, has two of a kind. It's not like one can sit behind and wait for a sprint, while the other is in the break.
They are still very limited.

I dont agree with that 100%. Cancellara is probably the fastest outside of Boonen and Sagan (and not counting the likes of Degenkolb and Kristoff). It's just that that's not enough because if he's sprinting against, say, Terpstra and Thomas, Sagan and Boonen will be there as well, so it doesn't really matter that he's the third best sprinter.

 

[Dazed and Confused]

Thinking about possible development of the race and tactical options, it appears that Trek, basically, has two of a kind. It's not like one can sit behind and wait for a sprint, while the other is in the break.
They are still very limited.

Devo will be used to chase down attackers at critical points late in the race. That will setup Cancellara for a winning move on Paterberg. Trek will stick to a simple plan imo.

 

[ILovecycling]

Devo will be used to chase down attackers at critical points late in the race. That will setup Cancellara for a winning move on Paterberg. Trek will stick to a simple plan imo.

exactly my thoughts

 

[Dazed and Confused]

so Topsport is going in with three Vans:

231.DECLERCQ Tim
232.LAMPAERT Yves
233.THEUNS Edward
234.VAN ASBROECK Tom
235.VAN HECKE Preben
236.VANBILSEN Kenneth
237.WAEYTENS Zico
238.WALLAYS Jelle

Hard to see any of them being a factor at business end, but they are likely to animate the race a bit or so I hope.

 

[podunavac]

Devo will be used to chase down attackers at critical points late in the race. That will setup Cancellara for a winning move on Paterberg. Trek will stick to a simple plan imo.

Yes, inside that pattern they'll look for their chances.
In order to be successful they'll have to keep the race sedated for as long as it's possible. Last year it played out perfectly, and it can't be better than that.
Cancellara must not be in position to finish it off on Kwaremont - Patterberg combo. The teams have to be aware of that.

so Topsport is going in with three Vans:

231.DECLERCQ Tim
232.LAMPAERT Yves
233.THEUNS Edward
234.VAN ASBROECK Tom
235.VAN HECKE Preben
236.VANBILSEN Kenneth
237.WAEYTENS Zico
238.WALLAYS Jelle

Hard to see any of them being a factor at business end, but they are likely to animate the race a bit or so I hope.

Pay attention on Van Asbroeck.

 

[Dazed and Confused]

snipped...


Pay attention on Van Asbroeck.

Maybe, E3 and GW were soft this year imo. Might give the wrong impression. We shall see.