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2017 Omloop het Nieuwsblad, Feb 25th, 198.3km

Page 13 - Get up to date with the latest news, scores & standings from the Cycling News Community.
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Gigs_98

Gigs_98

Feb 18, 2015
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Re:

carolina said:
As usual, the UCI doesn't have the balls to enforce the rules:

http://www.cyclingnews.com/news/sidewalk-riding-sparks-anger-at-omloop-het-nieuwsblad/

This is ridiculous. GVA admitts he knew the rules, but he just didn't give a **** about them... They should be disqualified.
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This seriously is ridiculous. I don't know what exactly was said to the riders and it would be okay for me if the top three wouldn't be disqualified but there has to be some sort of punishment. If not even the uci itself takes its rules seriously nobody will. Otherwise a rider could as well say he knew that doping is disallowed but other rules weren't taken serious as well so he still dopes.
 
M

movingtarget

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How are they going to police such rules over the course of the race ? What GVA said is correct. It happens in every race where the barriers don't stop them. It's like telling spectators not to stand on traffic islands or riders to go around the islands instead of over them. Most of the crashes are still caused by the riders in the bunch or fools walking onto the road with cameras or phones. How could you tell a rider in Paris Roubaix not to use the bike path especially if he has to go around crashes ? UCI should first work on the things they can control then worry about the harder problems.Some riders still take risks with level crossings so they are not going to worry about bike paths and footpaths. The UCI can't even sort that one out. Bigger fines or suspensions might help or deducting points from teams.
 
Gigs_98

Gigs_98

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Re:

movingtarget said:
How are they going to police such rules over the course of the race ? What GVA said is correct. It happens in every race where the barriers don't stop them. It's like telling spectators not to stand on traffic islands or riders to go around the islands instead of over them. Most of the crashes are still caused by the riders in the bunch or fools walking onto the road with cameras or phones. How could you tell a rider in Paris Roubaix not to use the bike path especially if he has to go around crashes ? UCI should first work on the things they can control then worry about the harder problems.Some riders still take risks with level crossings so they are not going to worry about bike paths and footpaths. The UCI can't even sort that one out. Bigger fines or suspensions might help or deducting points from teams.
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I partly agree. Such rules don't work in cobbles classics since the racing is way too chaotic and there will always be riders in the peloton who have to ride on the sidewalk. But this was a three man break near the end of the race in a situation in which riding on the cobbles wouldn't have been a problem.
Maybe it's true that the top three shouldn't be disqualified since that would be a very harsh punishment for a rule which exists for the first time and which was probably already ignored earlier in the race. But if the UCI makes a new rule and completely ignores it they set a very dangerous precedent.
 
carolina

carolina

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All the riders were told more then once that they could not use the sidewalks. The second group raced on the cobbles, so there was no excuse.

Two days ago, there was a meeting with the UCI and they explicitly said that from now on they would enforce the rule. Yesterday they repeated their message again, adding that they would act when checking the TV images after the race
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Netserk

Netserk

Apr 30, 2011
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It's not new. It's from 2013. (modification in red)

soAI3ZQ.png


So it's a no go if it endanger others or if it procures a significant advantage over others.

...

Personally, I much prefer how they in Ronde actually fence the forbidden areas off, but that just isn't always possible (it should happen more in Roubaix).
 
Z

Zinoviev Letter

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Felline is a beast. It seems he is good at everything. He really should make the cobbles a big focus though.

On the bike path issue: The UCI can either shrug it's shoulders about cobble-dodging or it can force riders to stop it. There are arguments for either approach. What it absolutely shouldn't do though is enforce a rule for some and not for others. Making some of the main cast ride every cobble while letting others avoid doing so makes a mockery of the principle that there should be a level playing field.
 
jaylew

jaylew

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The 3 up front were obviously the strongest and GVA is my favorite current cobbled rider but I have to say those guys should be DQ'd.

I'm not sure it would have made a difference but you just can't enforce rules for some and not others.
You can't specifically point out an area that path riding will result in a DQ and then not follow through with it.
And you certainly can't block an easier path for the chasers that you didn't block for the leaders (not the riders' fault, of course).
 
Tonton

Tonton

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Re:

King Boonen said:
DQ them, there's a big difference between getting round a crash and using it to race. If they DQ'd 1, 2, and 3 in this race you wouldn't be seeing it again.
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I agree with you here, fixie KIng.

Great race, great ending, great winner...except that the rules were broken, big time. There's no excuse. It's blatant, caught on tape, clear cut.

Too bad...
 
johnymax

johnymax

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The usual three suspects in front. It was a great race and I'm glad the classics season has finally started. Let's hope there's no heavy crashes so we can enjoy the battles between all the main players in RVV and P-R.

Watch again from 52km to go untill about 35km to go. Sagan has done something like 90% of the work in front. It's crazy. No wonder he couldn't win in a sprint against GVA. Also I find it funny how when you have Sagan and GVA in the finale, you always find Peter leading out the Belgian in the last km. Is Sagan being too confident in his abilities, does he think he always has to lead the group out in this kind of situations? Does he even care? Greg usually outsmarts him big there. Chapeau to him.
 
M

movingtarget

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Re:

King Boonen said:
DQ them, there's a big difference between getting round a crash and using it to race. If they DQ'd 1, 2, and 3 in this race you wouldn't be seeing it again.
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I don't believe that. In this type of racing it's become an instinct. They are doing it without thinking about it. But I also agree that the UCI seems hapless at enforcing rules most of the time. In track cycling it's the opposite but you have the advantage of an enclosed space where it is easier to spot the rule breaches. Road cycling is much more chaotic especially with the weather and the amount of vehicles on the road. Only last week riders were complaining about other riders drafting in a TT. This is basic. If it's filmed or spotted by a commissaire the riders should be disqualified and it happens in most TTs to some degree but you rarely hear of someone being DQed.
 
Jagartrott

Jagartrott

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Re:

King Boonen said:
DQ them, there's a big difference between getting round a crash and using it to race. If they DQ'd 1, 2, and 3 in this race you wouldn't be seeing it again.
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If I read into the whole thing correctly, the riders behind *also* tried to ride on the sidewalk (in spite of having been told they shouldn't) but were forced off by a motorbike. I think it is second nature to (i) take the easiest path, (ii) follow the rider in front of you. So I think it's a little bit more nuanced then 'the first three broke the rules and should be disqualified'. They should also have been forced off one way or the other, like the riders behind.
 
C

Cannibal72

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Re:

movingtarget said:
How are they going to police such rules over the course of the race ? What GVA said is correct. It happens in every race where the barriers don't stop them. It's like telling spectators not to stand on traffic islands or riders to go around the islands instead of over them. Most of the crashes are still caused by the riders in the bunch or fools walking onto the road with cameras or phones. How could you tell a rider in Paris Roubaix not to use the bike path especially if he has to go around crashes ? UCI should first work on the things they can control then worry about the harder problems.Some riders still take risks with level crossings so they are not going to worry about bike paths and footpaths. The UCI can't even sort that one out. Bigger fines or suspensions might help or deducting points from teams.
Click to expand...

They did police the rules over the course of the race. They just didn't for the lead group, who knew full well anyway.
 
spalco

spalco

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Re: Re:

Jagartrott said:
Very fascinating to see *again* Sagan was a level above anyone else in the hill zone, but then fading towards the finish. I think you could 'see' it the last 20 km that he was fading, while Greg could barely hang on earlier but then looked stronger towards the end.
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You could see it, yes, I just thought he was faking it.

That exit interview is absolutely hilarious, I might turn into a fan after all, maybe.
 
Arredondo

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Why some many people think Sagan's interview is funny? It's just childishly and indecent.

He doesn't have any humour. He needs to act normal and behave himself. Just give a normal answer to a normal question. You can give a humorous answer, but stop acting like you're some kind of a cool pathetic weirdo.

He really starts to believe he's Jesus. So sad. Because he's the most exciting rider on the road actually :(
 
E

Echoes

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Re:

frisenfruitig said:
God, some of you guys are very childish. Can't you just appreciate the fact that there are riders out there like Sagan and GVA? Why does it have to be one or the other?
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(I don't know who reported me for my own post by the way but it's amazing that I should get a warning for this. CN is getting really PC. On no other forums I would. I still don't know the meaning of the word trolling, so I take it that it's a warning because I have an ugly face, period.)

With regards to my not being able to appreciate a rivalry, I'd simply say that I've been following the whole of the cyclocross season that has just ended today and it all boiled down to a great rivalry between Mathieu Van der Poel and Wout Van Aert. Mind you my man this season was the lesser talented rider of the two, the one who was regularly beaten by the other, namely Wout Van Aert. This did not prevent me from sharing my admiration for the talent and the self-abnegation displayed by Mathieu Van der Poel.

And yet on this very forum I sometimes could read very sad comments such as:

Giuseppe Magnetico said:
Baal. Weird. Almost is if Wout was sleeping for 45min. Didn't drop Bosmans until 3 laps to go. Strange day.

MVDP, get back on that horse and teach these fools how to race!
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Where were you when this disrespectful post was posted? By that time I had health issues and didn't feel like posting but this is very sad. Van Aert and Van der Poel are very likeable figures, none of both are flawless but still likeable and I could have said exactly the same:

"God, some of you guys are very childish. Can't you just appreciate the fact that there are riders out there like Van der Poel and Van Aert? Why does it have to be one or the other?"

Anyway Greg won THE race of the weekend, with style and it was great to see. :cool: Sagan wins 75% of his catalogue in bunch sprint. That's a fact.
 
S

saganftw

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Re:

Arredondo said:
Why some many people think Sagan's interview is funny? It's just childishly and indecent.

He doesn't have any humour. He needs to act normal and behave himself. Just give a normal answer to a normal question. You can give a humorous answer, but stop acting like you're some kind of a cool pathetic weirdo.

He really starts to believe he's Jesus. So sad. Because he's the most exciting rider on the road actually :(
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he acts normal and thats literally him (part of it is his kitchen english)

i know people are expecting a professional to give a professional response,something like "we were sporting hard and in the end i was outsported by other athlete,good job sport" ...and im ok if 199 riders choose to do that, but i always appreciate if at least one guy is just like that - a guy

im 32 years old and in my 20+ years of following cycling and other sports i can probably count on one hand after-the event-interviews when i actually wanted to hear from the winner because they are boring and predictable
 
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