2019 Tour de Romandie 30 April - 5 May

[Mayomaniac]

Re:

You can almost guarantee that Saturday mountain stage gets shortened or cancelled with blizzard conditions above 1000m, you can see the 0C isotherm below 1000m and plenty of precipitation. Winter will return to Alps from Saturday morning

Yesterday we already woke up with 30cm of snow...

 

[tobydawq]

Re:

Zakarin to crush them all before he wins the Giro. You heard it here first.

He is definitely not winning any Giros this year.

 

[movingtarget]

Re: Re:

Zakarin to crush them all before he wins the Giro. You heard it here first.

He is definitely not winning any Giros this year.

Or any other year...........

 

[movingtarget]

Re: Re:

Roglic for the overall.

One would think so but the team has said they are riding for Kruijswijk. Roglic apparently is just there to support and get preparation for the Giro.

It's especially interesting since Roglic is such a dominating favourite.

In this field (depends on G's form, I don't think it's there) and on this parcours Roglič should be an overwhelming favourite normally. But with Jumbo making Kruijswijk team leader things change. Rogla is looking ahead to the bigger goal, the Giro. This is a big opportunity for Steven to get a big win and finally take a WT stage race. But I still think there's a big chance Roglic accidentally wins this with the prologue and ITT. He needs to go full gas in those to test himself ahead of the Giro.

I think you are right especially with SK's up and down TT form. Spilak used to be very good at the week long stage races. Not sure what's happening with him.

 

[Lequack]

A power guy should win the prologue not an ITT guy, someone like Sam Bennet. Unless Victor is still feeling very good.

 

[LosBrolin]

Why would Sam Bennett suddenly win prologue over Ganna and the likes? I mean some Tom Bohli can probably target like three stages in a season and this is one of them. I'm surprised if Sam B even podiums today.

 

[tobydawq]

Re:

Why would Sam Bennett suddenly win prologue over Ganna and the likes? I mean some Tom Bohli can probably target like three stages in a season and this is one of them. I'm surprised if Sam B even podiums today.

Shorter than four kilometres, lots of twists and turns, even a small hill. Acceleration, speed and technical abilities will probably be more important than four kilometre track skills.

Van der Poel would win this prologue with ten seconds if he participated.

 

[LosBrolin]

Re: Re:

Why would Sam Bennett suddenly win prologue over Ganna and the likes? I mean some Tom Bohli can probably target like three stages in a season and this is one of them. I'm surprised if Sam B even podiums today.

Shorter than four kilometres, lots of twists and turns, even a small hill. Acceleration, speed and technical abilities will probably be more important than four kilometre track skills.

Van der Poel would win this prologue with ten seconds if he participated.

Yeah, and Sam Bennett has shown lot of those abilities in the past prologues he has done? Last year it was 400m longer and apart from Bling there wasn't many sprinters in the top 30.

 

[tobydawq]

Re: Re:

Why would Sam Bennett suddenly win prologue over Ganna and the likes? I mean some Tom Bohli can probably target like three stages in a season and this is one of them. I'm surprised if Sam B even podiums today.

Shorter than four kilometres, lots of twists and turns, even a small hill. Acceleration, speed and technical abilities will probably be more important than four kilometre track skills.

Van der Poel would win this prologue with ten seconds if he participated.

Yeah, and Sam Bennett has shown lot of those abilities in the past prologues he has done? Last year it was 400m longer and apart from Bling there wasn't many sprinters in the top 30.

And what past prologues might that be? He hasn't done a prologue in three years. Since the 4 kilometre mountain prologue of Dauphiné.

It's not exactly often we see a time trial like the one today. Last year's was a lot more hilly if I recall correctly.

He has never done well in a time trial, I'll give you that.

 

[search]

Sprinters may have a chance indeed, but there are others (like Nizzolo) who have a better record in prologues than Bennett, I'd say

 

[LosBrolin]

Re: Re:

Why would Sam Bennett suddenly win prologue over Ganna and the likes? I mean some Tom Bohli can probably target like three stages in a season and this is one of them. I'm surprised if Sam B even podiums today.

Shorter than four kilometres, lots of twists and turns, even a small hill. Acceleration, speed and technical abilities will probably be more important than four kilometre track skills.

Van der Poel would win this prologue with ten seconds if he participated.

Yeah, and Sam Bennett has shown lot of those abilities in the past prologues he has done? Last year it was 400m longer and apart from Bling there wasn't many sprinters in the top 30.

And what past prologues might that be? He hasn't done a prologue in three years. Since the 4 kilometre mountain prologue of Dauphiné.

It's not exactly often we see a time trial like the one today. Last year's was a lot more hilly if I recall correctly.

He has never done well in a time trial, I'll give you that.

I failed with my sarcasm then. I meant what you just said, that he has barely done any prologues.

He's in hot from tho, I'll give you that. But yeah, wouldn't be the first time when I'm completely wrong with my predictions so guess we'll see

 

[topt]

Re: Re:

Roglic for the overall.

One would think so but the team has said they are riding for Kruijswijk. Roglic apparently is just there to support and get preparation for the Giro.

It's especially interesting since Roglic is such a dominating favourite.

In this field (depends on G's form, I don't think it's there) and on this parcours Roglič should be an overwhelming favourite normally. But with Jumbo making Kruijswijk team leader things change. Rogla is looking ahead to the bigger goal, the Giro. This is a big opportunity for Steven to get a big win and finally take a WT stage race. But I still think there's a big chance Roglic accidentally wins this with the prologue and ITT. He needs to go full gas in those to test himself ahead of the Giro.

I ll just say one thing; Roglic is really really unhappy if he is not winning

 

[RedheadDane]

I'm having some issues with the start list on the CN home page, mainly:

7 Jonas Vingegaard (Nor)

And

85 Asbjørn Kragh Andersen (Nor)

Also:

Vital Concept-B&B Hotels
195 Patrick Muller (Swi)

Poor guy… I'm assuming he's actually in the Swiss selection.

 

[yaco]

This is a wide open Prologue - My smokey is Cameron Meyer.

 

[DJ Sprtsch]

Tom Bohli to win, or at least top three (Ref: last year).

 

[Logic-is-your-friend]

Campenaerts to ride the entire 3.85 km on his largest gear and win.

Seriously, i have no idea. I think a sprinter could take it, but not necessarilly.

 

[search]

Re:

Campenaerts to ride the entire 3.85 km on his largest gear and win.

Seriously, i have no idea. I think a sprinter could take it, but not necessarilly.

Although he has basically no results to prove it, with the track background usually also Viviani should have a good shot. Last year in the Romandie prologue he was 2nd at the split but faded (well, exploded) on the climb to the finish, so that may be an indication of what's to come today on the flatter parcours.

 

[Robert5091]

Live ticker info etc at
https://www.tissottiming.com/2019/tdr/fr/tdr/Stage/1

 

[Laplaz]

Re:

Campenaerts to ride the entire 3.85 km on his largest gear and win.

Seriously, i have no idea. I think a sprinter could take it, but not necessarilly.

He has already finished. Dead last btw

 

[Robert5091]

Re: Re:

Campenaerts to ride the entire 3.85 km on his largest gear and win.

Seriously, i have no idea. I think a sprinter could take it, but not necessarilly.

He has already finished. Dead last btw

Did he crash?

 

[Laplaz]

Re: Re:

Campenaerts to ride the entire 3.85 km on his largest gear and win.

Seriously, i have no idea. I think a sprinter could take it, but not necessarilly.

He has already finished. Dead last btw

Did he crash?

Yes. Confirmed now by the twitter account of Lotto-Soudal.

 

[tobydawq]

Spilak actually with a decent ride. Be afraid!

 

[Logic-is-your-friend]

Re: Re:

Campenaerts to ride the entire 3.85 km on his largest gear and win.

Seriously, i have no idea. I think a sprinter could take it, but not necessarilly.

He has already finished. Dead last btw

How is that funny?

Anyway, it wasn't a bad crash, more like he slipped in a corner and hit the deck. But you could tell immediately he wasn't going to try and make the best of it. In such a short ITT, the smallest mistake is game over.

 

[70kmph]

Panzerwagen

 

[Logic-is-your-friend]

Viviani came close.