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Best race of the major spring classics of 2019?

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Best of the major spring classics of 2019?

  • Omloop Het Nieuwsblad

    Votes: 0 0.0%
  • Strade Bianche

    Votes: 3 4.0%
  • Milano-San Remo

    Votes: 2 2.7%
  • E3-BinckBank

    Votes: 0 0.0%
  • Gent-Wevelgem

    Votes: 7 9.3%
  • Ronde van Vlaanderen

    Votes: 6 8.0%
  • Paris-Roubaix

    Votes: 20 26.7%
  • Amstel Gold Race

    Votes: 51 68.0%
  • Flèche Wallonne

    Votes: 0 0.0%
  • Liège-Bastogne-Liège

    Votes: 1 1.3%

  • Total voters
    75
Bolder said:
To be honest, P-R was my favorite this year. Amstel was nearly as good,but only because Alaphilippe/Fuglsang threw it away at the end. Had they continued to ride and finished in a 1/2 sprint with the VDP group coming up fast, it would have been memorable but not much above average. But to me P-R was just nonstop action, and recall that many (including myself) thought Sagan was going to be a serious factor at the end; and it had been a while since he looked less than in top shape...so it was a little shocked that he fell off the pace at a point where normally he'd put the hammer down.

Biggest disappointment was LBL, not because Fugl wasn't worthy but because a lot of his top competitors just didn't have it last weekend. There was a lot of talk from guys like Kwiat that they'd waited all year for LBL but everyone just kind of fizzled at the end.
But you know, that's what makes it memorable. They messed up.
 
Bardamu said:
Bolder said:
To be honest, P-R was my favorite this year. Amstel was nearly as good,but only because Alaphilippe/Fuglsang threw it away at the end. Had they continued to ride and finished in a 1/2 sprint with the VDP group coming up fast, it would have been memorable but not much above average. But to me P-R was just nonstop action, and recall that many (including myself) thought Sagan was going to be a serious factor at the end; and it had been a while since he looked less than in top shape...so it was a little shocked that he fell off the pace at a point where normally he'd put the hammer down.

Biggest disappointment was LBL, not because Fugl wasn't worthy but because a lot of his top competitors just didn't have it last weekend. There was a lot of talk from guys like Kwiat that they'd waited all year for LBL but everyone just kind of fizzled at the end.
But you know, that's what makes it memorable. They messed up.

This. We'll see in 10 years if people are still talking about Mathieu and Wout's heroic comebacks in RVV and PR or THAT Amstel Gold Race. I'm pretty confident it will be the latter. It's all about the memorable moments, the ones that make the most impact. Especially if it's a crucial, winning move. I'm pretty sure I will never forget that Amstel finish and the lead up to it ever since Mathieu started the "impossible" chase. That last kilometer in particular is the single best kilometer I have ever witnessed in my life in any pro cycling race. Amstel takes it easily imo.

I'm just wondering if a distinction can be made between the most "memorable" race and the "best" race or if they go hand in hand. There's an argument that can be made for the best race when looking at the entirety of the race. Like many have already mentioned, Amstel was epic, but only in the final phase seeing as nobody thought Ala and Birdsong could actually be caught, until they did.
 
Im not buying the memorable moments and people will think back on. For examlpe, I see the trackstand between Schleck and Contador on Ax-3-Domaines referred to quite a lot by commentators etc. altho it was absolutely dreadfull to watch. Now, Im not saying Amstel was a dreadfull race (quite the contrary obviously), but simply think Paris-Roubaix was the superior race given it was absolutely full gas the whole feffin day.
 
Re:

jaylew said:
Amstel easily. I've watched the final 45k 3 times now. Not sure what would even be second.
I am pretty sure that the amount of times that I have watched the last 20k of LBL already cannot be counted on two hands :D Awe-inspiring performances are the ones I turn back to the most, even if the races themselves are not always as exciting as the more open races with many different potential outcomes.
 
Re:

Valv.Piti said:
Im not buying the memorable moments and people will think back on. For examlpe, I see the trackstand between Schleck and Contador on Ax-3-Domaines referred to quite a lot by commentators etc. altho it was absolutely dreadfull to watch. Now, Im not saying Amstel was a dreadfull race (quite the contrary obviously), but simply think Paris-Roubaix was the superior race given it was absolutely full gas the whole feffin day.
Exactly. 'Memorable' and 'best racing' can be very different things. Amstel will be more memorable, yes, but Roubaix had the better racing, surely. The race was on from the get-go and things got serious already 100 km from the finishline. In Amstel, you wouldn't have missed anything if you only watched the last 45 km. And in a race, not only the final hour should count, I think.
 
Re: Re:

Cance > TheRest said:
jaylew said:
Amstel easily. I've watched the final 45k 3 times now. Not sure what would even be second.
I am pretty sure that the amount of times that I have watched the last 20k of LBL already cannot be counted on two hands :D Awe-inspiring performances are the ones I turn back to the most, even if the races themselves are not always as exciting as the more open races with many different potential outcomes.
I can appreciate that sentiment. I feel that way about Mathieu's Amstel win. I guess I'd go Flanders for 2nd.
 
Bardamu said:
Bolder said:
To be honest, P-R was my favorite this year. Amstel was nearly as good,but only because Alaphilippe/Fuglsang threw it away at the end. Had they continued to ride and finished in a 1/2 sprint with the VDP group coming up fast, it would have been memorable but not much above average. But to me P-R was just nonstop action, and recall that many (including myself) thought Sagan was going to be a serious factor at the end; and it had been a while since he looked less than in top shape...so it was a little shocked that he fell off the pace at a point where normally he'd put the hammer down.

Biggest disappointment was LBL, not because Fugl wasn't worthy but because a lot of his top competitors just didn't have it last weekend. There was a lot of talk from guys like Kwiat that they'd waited all year for LBL but everyone just kind of fizzled at the end.
But you know, that's what makes it memorable. They messed up.

Yep

It's the mistakes and near-misses that make races memorable, as much as a stellar performance by someone.

Fuglsangs LBL win will be remembered for that save on the final decent, not for how he actually won the race, for instance.
 
Broccolidwarf said:
Bardamu said:
Bolder said:
To be honest, P-R was my favorite this year. Amstel was nearly as good,but only because Alaphilippe/Fuglsang threw it away at the end. Had they continued to ride and finished in a 1/2 sprint with the VDP group coming up fast, it would have been memorable but not much above average. But to me P-R was just nonstop action, and recall that many (including myself) thought Sagan was going to be a serious factor at the end; and it had been a while since he looked less than in top shape...so it was a little shocked that he fell off the pace at a point where normally he'd put the hammer down.

Biggest disappointment was LBL, not because Fugl wasn't worthy but because a lot of his top competitors just didn't have it last weekend. There was a lot of talk from guys like Kwiat that they'd waited all year for LBL but everyone just kind of fizzled at the end.
But you know, that's what makes it memorable. They messed up.

Yep

It's the mistakes and near-misses that make races memorable, as much as a stellar performance by someone.

Fuglsangs LBL win will be remembered for that save on the final decent, not for how he actually won the race, for instance.
I won't remember LBL for that at all. I will remember it for the best rider just taking the race by force on the hardest climb in the race, just like Andy did in 2009.
 

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