2016 Tour Down Under WT January 19-24 Adelaide

[dirkprovin]

Re:

I assume the issue is logistical in closing off so many roads in the suburban/urban areas. As for the outbound stages they're neutralised until they they get into the countryside so the risk is reduced.

Not to that extent, they are neutralised until they are out of the inner suburbs and can get onto an arterial road out of the city.

 

[Lupi33x]

Re: Re:

I assume the issue is logistical in closing off so many roads in the suburban/urban areas. As for the outbound stages they're neutralised until they they get into the countryside so the risk is reduced.

Not to that extent, they are neutralised until they are out of the inner suburbs and can get onto an arterial road out of the city.

regardless the issue is the same unless you want to finish in an outer suburb

 

[dirkprovin]

Re: Re:

I assume the issue is logistical in closing off so many roads in the suburban/urban areas. As for the outbound stages they're neutralised until they they get into the countryside so the risk is reduced.

Not to that extent, they are neutralised until they are out of the inner suburbs and can get onto an arterial road out of the city.

regardless the issue is the same unless you want to finish in an outer suburb

As someone who actually worked and lived in Adelaide for a few years, McLaren Vale (where they raced today) and the western parts of the Adelaide Hills are effectively Adelaide outer suburbs.

Your point is correct that it is far less intrusive/disruptive to limit the closures and length of disruption in the most built up areas, particularly during a working week.

With regards to the final city circuit stage, whilst I can see the attraction of your suggestion; its probably a case now with tougher overall parcours that they throw something out to the sprinters after a couple of days of them "grovelling" in the heat.

 

[MatParker117]

Classifications:

GC and Points-Gerro
KOM-Henao
Young Rider-McCarthy
Teams-Cannondale

 

[Libertine Seguros]

Well, the final stage is a circuit, the time gaps are tiny, an epilogue time trial or even trialling a pursuit race over a smaller number of laps might work, rather than a pointless crit. We already have a pointless crit in the time period, the Cancer Council Classic, which is at least treated as such, paying no points and having no GC relevance, just a chance for teams to put on a bit of a show for the people of Adelaide.

The point of the final day show sprint in the Tour was to let riders congratulate themselves on having made it to the end of a gruelling three week race. While those parades are ok in moderation, it really isn't necessary to have a sprinters' final day parade in a six day race where most of the stages are sub-140km. The race has been slowly improving over the years, but we still have yet to improve the fact that it ends in a two hour crit that gives World Tour points.

 

[bassano]

Re:

Well, the final stage is a circuit, the time gaps are tiny, an epilogue time trial or even trialling a pursuit race over a smaller number of laps might work, rather than a pointless crit. We already have a pointless crit in the time period, the Cancer Council Classic, which is at least treated as such, paying no points and having no GC relevance, just a chance for teams to put on a bit of a show for the people of Adelaide.

The point of the final day show sprint in the Tour was to let riders congratulate themselves on having made it to the end of a gruelling three week race. While those parades are ok in moderation, it really isn't necessary to have a sprinters' final day parade in a six day race where most of the stages are sub-140km. The race has been slowly improving over the years, but we still have yet to improve the fact that it ends in a two hour crit that gives World Tour points.

That is right, tour down under should not be included in WT same as poor eneco race was some year ago only one hilly and not really hard stage to decide race for 100 world tour ranking points
tour de San Luis is much more entertaining and challenging race, maybe next year will be different


but anyway where on the podium is Vakoc? I can not find him there

 

[Anderis]

Nice race for Cannondale. Two WT rookies in top10 overall and Team Classification win. I think they've already eclipsed everything they did last season until the Giro. Nice to see they are not starting their season as miserably as last year.

 

[Guybrush]

for second year in a row, the strongest rider in the race doesn't win... thanks time bonusses

 

[Anderis]

Re: Re:

only one hilly and not really hard stage to decide race for 100 world tour ranking points

Not really one stage. GC differs quite a bit from Willunga Hill stage results.

 

[18-Valve. (pithy)]

Re:

for second year in a row, the strongest rider in the race doesn't win... thanks time bonusses

Also thanks to BMC backing the wrong man. It could have been really close, at the very least. Porte wouldn't have lost 8 seconds yesterday either.

 

[Vesica]

Agree with Libertine Seguros, last stage parade is silly. For one-week races there should be GC battle the whole week, included the last stage. A short TT would be nice I think for the TDU.

ps. something about posting and quoting..If you respond to someone above you, it's not necessary to respond with a quote. Discussions are difficult to follow when there are quotes after quotes etc..

 

[MatParker117]

Why has the TDU never gone up Mount Lofty?

 

[Lupi33x]

logistics

 

[jens_attacks]

Any idea about porte's schedule?
Will he fight froomey in catalunya?

 

[Anderis]

A short TT would be nice I think for the TDU.

I always wonder why TDU doesn't have any TT. Many Australian riders are coming to road racing from track and are kinda TT specialists. A short ITT would be an ideal stage for them to show themselves to the cycling world.

 

[RedheadDane]

ps. something about posting and quoting..If you respond to someone above you, it's not necessary to respond with a quote. Discussions are difficult to follow when there are quotes after quotes etc..

True. However, sometimes these race-threads move so fast that by the time it takes to type the answer and click send, the thread will have moved on with about a billion pages.

 

[MatParker117]

A short TT would be nice I think for the TDU.

I always wonder why TDU doesn't have any TT. Many Australian riders are coming to road racing from track and are kinda TT specialists. A short ITT would be an ideal stage for them to show themselves to the cycling world.

Expensive to ship TT bikes across the globe.

 

[LaFlorecita]

A short TT would be nice I think for the TDU.

I always wonder why TDU doesn't have any TT. Many Australian riders are coming to road racing from track and are kinda TT specialists. A short ITT would be an ideal stage for them to show themselves to the cycling world.

Expensive to ship TT bikes across the globe.

They wouldn't have to, in San Luis many teams did the TTT on road bikes, and in previous years riders did the ITT on road bikes too (not all of them though).

 

[Lupi33x]

WT race rules they have to use TT bikes is my understanding.

The reason given by the tour director is that any TTT would be won easily by Orica GreenEdge every year as they're the only team to send a strong team to the TDU. So it'd be kind of pointless as they'd win the whole race just on that stage.

A short ITT may work, but why the cost for a short course?

 

[Libertine Seguros]

Yea, Tour of Qatar did a TT with road bikes + tri bar clip-ons a few years ago too. I guess that the TDU organizers might feel it makes the race look a bit bush-league to have the best TTing on suboptimal equipment, but I think that as the race is relatively short and time gaps are small it wouldn't be that problematic. Have a short epilogue TT in Adelaide, 7-10km is all you need with these time gaps. It would make it a bit more exciting for sure and with short length and 7-man teams wouldn't close the roads for much longer than the crit anyway.

 

[Mr.White]

Re:

for second year in a row, the strongest rider in the race doesn't win... thanks time bonusses

Strongest in what? The best man won, end of story!

 

[MatParker117]

Would Col D'Ezeing Mount Lofty solve the logistics problems?

 

[Libertine Seguros]

Re:

WT race rules they have to use TT bikes is my understanding.

The reason given by the tour director is that any TTT would be won easily by Orica GreenEdge every year as they're the only team to send a strong team to the TDU. So it'd be kind of pointless as they'd win the whole race just on that stage.

A short ITT may work, but why the cost for a short course?

The cost for a short ITT for 140 riders at max 1 min intervals with top 10 being wider spaced can't be too much more than for a circuit of similar length for two and a half hours. Alternatively, they could do a literal out and back like they do in Tirreno-Adriatico so they only need to close one stretch of road, which if anything might be cheaper and easier.

 

[Guybrush]

Re: Re:

for second year in a row, the strongest rider in the race doesn't win... thanks time bonusses

Strongest in what? The best man won, end of story!

without time bonusses Porte would be leading by 9 seconds (over Gerrans)

 

[togo95]

Re: Re:

for second year in a row, the strongest rider in the race doesn't win... thanks time bonusses

Strongest in what? The best man won, end of story!

without time bonusses Porte would be leading by 9 seconds (over Gerrans)

Meaning Gerrans was stronger in sprint finishes yes. What's your point?