Best Climber (active)

[The Hitch]

Three words: Le Grand Bornand.

If F. Schleck and Anton had competed in the Tour, Schleck would have crushed Anton on every mountain.

Contador and A. Schleck are definitely the best climbers in the Tour de France, but in other races they are both beatable (especially Andy). Judging from this year's Tour I voted for Andy.

No.

You have AS, possibly the best climber in the world, but dont push it

Anton is clearly a better climber than Frank. He showed this on the Muur when he held on to Contador and in the Vuelta where he crushed Frank on every climb they faced. On the Muur, when i saw him go i thought, Contadors going to eat him up any second, and yet he kept going, and going and going, with the great one.

Anton is a super climber better than half the people on that list.

I am begining to think that Robert Gesink is up there only to satisfy a certain minority on this forum. This is considering that clearly superior climbers (people that beat him on climbs, just a few months ago) - Menchov and Samu, are not on there.

ANd how could i forget the colombians Yes some of those Colombians are probably up there as well, they just lose minutes on the flats.

 

[uphillstruggle]

He doesn't like the shallow, steady climbs (see stage 7 of this years Tour).

Like Veriber.

 

[ttrider]

You cant argue with Contador, hes proved himself on every kind of climb in every grand tour and lots of week long races to be top 3 at worst, i would agree with some poster who say Andy is better on very long climbs, its probably true but he still cant drop Contador except for once and that only yielded 10 secs.
Basso on form was an animal in the Giro, but allround i would say Anton is the better bet, and superior to S Sanchez also. J Rodriguez is 5th he was 3rd on tourmalet and won a mountain stage in the Vuelta, add second in fleche wallone and consistency through out the season.
My top 5 is:
Contador
A Shleck
Anton
Basso
J Rodriguez

 

[CraZyCaLL]

Igor Anton for me

 

[Christian]

Anton is clearly a better climber than Frank. He showed this on the Muur when he held on to Contador and in the Vuelta where he crushed Frank on every climb they faced. On the Muur, when i saw him go i thought, Contadors going to eat him up any second, and yet he kept going, and going and going, with the great one.

I don't know man - Mur de Huy is a very special climb, look at the people who won there: Kirchen and Evans for example. They are both good climbers but far from being "pure" climbers. If you have a really good punch then you can win in Huy.

And coming into this year's Tour Fränk was probably in the best form of his life, some even saw him better than Andy. I see how one can argue that Anton is better than Fränk, but all I'm trying to say is don't judge from this year's Vuelta. One was in top shape taking on the biggest goal of his season, the other hadn't raced for months. Plus he had those screws in his shoulder slowing him down

 

[Jan the Man]

Basso for me-

The best climber in the hardest race of the year.

 

[Libertine Seguros]

I don't know man - Mur de Huy is a very special climb, look at the people who won there: Kirchen and Evans for example. They are both good climbers but far from being "pure" climbers. If you have a really good punch then you can win in Huy.

And coming into this year's Tour Fränk was probably in the best form of his life, some even saw him better than Andy. I see how one can argue that Anton is better than Fränk, but all I'm trying to say is don't judge from this year's Vuelta. One was in top shape taking on the biggest goal of his season, the other hadn't raced for months. Plus he had those screws in his shoulder slowing him down

It's not just the Mur de Huy though. Antón dropped and distanced Contador, Mosquera and Soler on the Alto del Morredero in Castilla y León - hardly a bunch of weak climbers there - just a week earlier. In the Vuelta a Burgos he wasn't even his team leader, but he got on the front on Lagunas de Neila and policed Nibalia and Mosquera for Sánchez, and did one of the best domestique jobs I've seen all year. His two wins in the Vuelta were one on a very short but very steep climb, and a long but gradual drag. That shows versatility. Yes, the field of that Vuelta wasn't extremely good, but we're talking about this year alone, which is rather unfair. His 2009 was pretty mediocre since he missed most of his training time due to his 2008 Vuelta injury.

So if you want to suggest that he's only an élite climber in big races with weaker fields, or in smaller races with strong fields, then I point to stage 8 of the 2008 Vuelta, to Pla de Beret. Contador and Valverde attacked the group and Antón was the only man who could go with them. If we're talking the élite climbers of the moment, then Contador and Valverde have to merit a mention. That's a big race and a big field - riders who were unable to follow that move included Sastre, Rodríguez, Moreno, Leipheimer, Mosquera, Gesink, and Arroyo.

 

[Christian]

It's not just the Mur de Huy though. Antón dropped and distanced Contador, Mosquera and Soler on the Alto del Morredero in Castilla y León - hardly a bunch of weak climbers there - just a week earlier. In the Vuelta a Burgos he wasn't even his team leader, but he got on the front on Lagunas de Neila and policed Nibalia and Mosquera for Sánchez, and did one of the best domestique jobs I've seen all year. His two wins in the Vuelta were one on a very short but very steep climb, and a long but gradual drag. That shows versatility. Yes, the field of that Vuelta wasn't extremely good, but we're talking about this year alone, which is rather unfair. His 2009 was pretty mediocre since he missed most of his training time due to his 2008 Vuelta injury.

Agreed, those are better examples. My comment on Huy was merely that it is not a very good example since it is such a special climb.

Why did Anton not go to this year's Tour anyways? If he'd been as good as in the Vuelta, he would have been a podium contender, or else a great help for Sanchez.

There are other great domestiques who I'd qualify as top climbers: Navarro, Szmyd, C.A. Sorensen, but surely a level under most people mentioned in the list

 

[Libertine Seguros]

Antón can't TT for toffee, and isn't the greatest descender in the world. The Vuelta and Giro are much more suited to his strengths than the Tour. He's been planning to peak for the Vuelta all season long. Plus, of course, he rides for Euskaltel. They need to be hugely present in the Vuelta. And with Sánchez focusing on the Tour and Astarloza sitting on the bench, they needed someone to ride for the win in the Vuelta, and Antón fit the bill. And after their greatest GC triumph in many years with Sánchez riding the Vuelta last year after skipping the Tour, they thought they'd try the same thing again.

 

[jens_attacks]

Why did Anton not go to this year's Tour anyways? If he'd been as good as in the Vuelta, he would have been a podium contender, or else a great help for Sanchez.

nope.

he would have lost ten minutes on the stage to spa and then to arenberg 25 minutes breaking his collarbone,elbow and another 15 bones.he'll never make it to stage 8.he's not made for le tour.

 

[Arnout]

Yeah and he knows it. He has to spend so much energy to stay in the nervous peloton that he has nothing left after a week.

That's also why he decided to hang on in the back in the stage to Andorra this year. And that's probably why he shouldn't wear a leaders jersey during the Vuelta as he becomes even more nervous and we know the result of that...

 

[Dekker_Tifosi]

No.

You have AS, possibly the best climber in the world, but dont push it

Anton is clearly a better climber than Frank. He showed this on the Muur when he held on to Contador and in the Vuelta where he crushed Frank on every climb they faced. On the Muur, when i saw him go i thought, Contadors going to eat him up any second, and yet he kept going, and going and going, with the great one.

Anton is a super climber better than half the people on that list.

I am begining to think that Robert Gesink is up there only to satisfy a certain minority on this forum. This is considering that clearly superior climbers (people that beat him on climbs, just a few months ago) - Menchov and Samu, are not on there.

ANd how could i forget the colombians Yes some of those Colombians are probably up there as well, they just lose minutes on the flats.

Hey I agree with you, I don't think Gesink should be on the list, yet.
He's in the large group that is just behind the top climbers. On a good day he wins mountain stages (Suisse) or hangs with the best (Tour), but other than that not in the contention for 'best climber'
I'm already glad they didn't put Nibali in the list that would've been good for 10 page discussion

 

[Moncoutie]

David Moncoutie!

 

[Denkoff]

1. Andy Shleck 83
2. Denis Menchov 82
3. Ivan Basso 81
4. J.Rodriguez 81
5. S.Sanchez 81
6. I.Anton 80
7. V.Nibali 80
...
33. E.Silin 77

 

[sublimit]

Kenny Van Hummel

 

[mr. tibbs]

Kenny Van Hummel

He's certainly my favorite climber. But Best is Contador. He's proven it time and time again, in all types of terrain, against all types of competition. He just always shows up, even if he's still wearing his swimsuit.

Though he may not be showing up at all next year...

 

[Timmy-loves-Rabo]

No.

You have AS, possibly the best climber in the world, but dont push it

Anton is clearly a better climber than Frank. He showed this on the Muur when he held on to Contador and in the Vuelta where he crushed Frank on every climb they faced. On the Muur, when i saw him go i thought, Contadors going to eat him up any second, and yet he kept going, and going and going, with the great one.

Anton is a super climber better than half the people on that list.

I am begining to think that Robert Gesink is up there only to satisfy a certain minority on this forum. This is considering that clearly superior climbers (people that beat him on climbs, just a few months ago) - Menchov and Samu, are not on there.

ANd how could i forget the colombians Yes some of those Colombians are probably up there as well, they just lose minutes on the flats.

To be fair to gesink, some of those guys were in better form, and there were times when gesink was towing the likes of menchov up climbs just a few months ago.

He is clearly a very good climber, considering his age, and has beaten guys like samu, j-rod, schleck etc in the past (vuelta last year anyone? I wonder if you have even seen him ride prior to the tour de france, your comments lately make me think no). Funny taht someone who is putting so much of an opinion on this year's vuelta will totally disregard the 09' edition.

But yeah, the only reason he warrants a spot on the list is because of the dutch contingent on the forum

imo easily good enough for the list, call me biased, I don't really care.

---

anywho...

contador (putting the doping issue aside) and ricco are probably the best two that spring to mind for me. Anton was great at the vuelta, but the vuelta field wasn't the strongest GT i've seen. He progressed really well this year though.
Basso is great on the steep stuff, but his acceleration is like a snail.
And good ol' andy schleck is an excellent climber... for 3 weeks in july....

 

[The Hitch]

To be fair to gesink, some of those guys were in better form, and there were times when gesink was towing the likes of menchov up climbs just a few months ago.

He is clearly a very good climber, considering his age, and has beaten guys like samu, j-rod, schleck etc in the past (vuelta last year anyone? I wonder if you have even seen him ride prior to the tour de france, your comments lately make me think no). But yeah, the only reason he warrants a spot on the list is because of the dutch contingent on the forum

Hey im not getting on Gesinks back. If the list had 13 spaces then sure, let him on there. But the point is more, How are Samu and Menchov not on there?

They are clearly better, not just than Gesink, but Frank (who i complained about before Gesink and Purito)

1. Andy Shleck 83
2. Denis Menchov 82
3. Ivan Basso 81
4. J.Rodriguez 81
5. S.Sanchez 81
6. I.Anton 80
7. V.Nibali 80
...
33. E.Silin 77

How is Menchov ahead of Samu. Menchov got all his time on Samu from cobbles and flat tts. In the mountains Samu took 10 seconds on Morzine, a minute on Madeline and 15 seconds on Tourmalet. Worse on the flat, but in a climbing discussion, Samu is better.

 

[Timmy-loves-Rabo]

You seem to be making these judgments from the last 3 months of racing. Cycling existed before then you know..
Like I said last vuelta, Gesink was out-climbing the likes of basso and samu.
I'm not saying he is better (I agree samu is a better overall climber), but when all in top form, there isn't a huge difference between the likes of gesink, basso, samu, menchov, anton in climbing ability. Obviously the type of climb makes a difference.

a lot more riders last year were in top form for the vuelta... Basso, Valv., J-Rod, Mosq, Samu, Basso (none of these guys rode the tour), cuddles (soft-peddled at the tour), but this one only nibali, mosq and anton went there fresh (of the big guns) and you act like antons impressive performance makes him the greatest climber, and pay no steed to last year? I agree he was excellent (I'm sure he would have won.. and I do think he is better than gesink, not by a lot though... but imo you make it out like there's a worlds difference), but your opinion is a little short sighted imo.

 

[The Hitch]

You seem to be making these judgments from the last 3 months of racing. Cycling existed before then you know..
Like I said last vuelta, Gesink was out-climbing the likes of basso and samu.
I'm not saying he is better (I agree samu is a better overall climber), but when all in top form, there isn't a huge difference between the likes of gesink, basso, samu, menchov, anton in climbing ability. Obviously the type of climb makes a difference.

a lot more riders last year were in top form for the vuelta... Basso, Valv., J-Rod, Mosq, Samu, Basso (none of these guys rode the tour), cuddles (soft-peddled at the tour), but this one only nibali, mosq and anton went there fresh (of the big guns) and you act like antons impressive performance makes him the greatest climber, and pay no steed to last year? I agree he was excellent (I'm sure he would have won.. and I do think he is better than gesink, not by a lot though... but imo you make it out like there's a worlds difference), but your opinion is a little short sighted imo.

No.

I based the LAST comment directed at Denkoff on the last few months because his table seems to me to be an annual one. It has Basso, in 3rd, Nibali in 7th Purito in 4th.

I definately do not see Basso in 3rd or Purito in 4th or Nibali in 7th if the time span was anything other than last 12 months or less. So seeing a table which i assume to be on a 12 month time span, i make a comment about the riders over the last 12 months.

Would appreciate it if, once you read this, you withdrew this patronising remark

You seem to be making these judgments from the last 3 months of racing. Cycling existed before then you know..

Secondly, where do you get this crap that i said Anton was "worlds" better than Gesink.

I said that Samuel Sanchez (Tour 4th place, Vuelta 2nd place, olympic champion) and Dennis Menchov ( 3 Gt victories) deserve to be on there more than Frank Schleck, Gesink, and Purito.

From what i have seen 99% of cycling fans would hold a similar opinion. If you disagree and think that Gesink owns Menchov and Samu, dont get on my back because of it.

 

[Timmy-loves-Rabo]

Only reason I posted the remark was because that was the feeling I got from your original gesink criticism. Considering my perception at the time, I don't regret the comment.

I have no problem with your opinion that samu and menchov belong on the list, I agree. But I disagreed with the notion that gesink maybe wasn't worthy to be considered, and was on to satisfly the dutch posters.

I might have mistaken the anton love for somebody else, apologies if the case. And "worlds" wasn't literal, just a summary.

Again call me biased, But I firmly believe gesink belongs on the list of best climbers. It is honestly my opinion.

 

[Altitude]

Gesink's got 5 votes, that's probably more than Menchov or Sanchez would have. Gesink is able to do things that those 2 can't-- his acceleration is much better. He was very good in the Vuelta last year and his performance at the Tour de Suisse this year was fantastic. When is the last time Menchov won a mountain stage? I consider him more of an all around GC rider than a pure climber.

 

[The Hitch]

Gesink's got 5 votes, that's probably more than Menchov or Sanchez would have.

How do you know?

 

[simoni]

Impossible to look beyond Contador here. Time and again he has proved he has what it takes to consistently outclimb the best of the rest.

 

[Parrulo]

lol the dutch mafia.

Gesink is a good climber but he still needs to improve to be above guys like samu and menchov. and those aren't even in my top climber's list.

at this tour he was always struggling. i do admire him cus he has an amazing capacity to suffer and even tho he seems struggling he still was able to cut his losses. but a top climber doesn't struggle all GT long. he attacks and tries to gain time, doesn't try not to lose it.

thats why i think gesink still has to improve a bit before being a top climber.

oh and please don't say he wasn't in top form at le tour. thats like saying if he was he would be up there with contador and baby shleck.

anyway

*waits for the dutch mobe to hire a professional killer*

p.s. i voted for contador just in case you are wondering. and i do rate basso, ricco, shleck and anton above samu and menchov