Biggest stage race outside of the Grand Tours.

[The Hitch]

Well we have 2 possible candidates on now, so im just wondering what the most important stage races outside of the 3 Big ones are in your opinions.

And for those who want top ut Giro Donne, I am talking about mens but if you want to measure its popularity feel free to make another thread.

 

[jobiwan]

The Tour of California

 

[dlwssonic]

TOC, Tour of basque country, Dauphine, suisse, PN, TA, romandie.

 

[Ferminal]

"Biggest" - how would we quantify that.

"Best" - well that's personal opinion, I would say T-A or Pais.

One of the last three looks good though (most interesting?).

 

[Timmy-loves-Rabo]

Paris-Nice usually

Basque is generally very good.
Suisse and Dauphine are fun are good also, tour being so close has it's negatives (not the best going for victory always) and positives (it is fun to watch and analyze their performances with the tour in mind, plus we get riders with some giro form still).
T-A has been very good the last couple years also.

those 5 are certainly my favorites.

 

[Timmy-loves-Rabo]

Tour de l'Avenir I wish we got coverage

 

[luckyboy]

Paris-Nice vs Dauphine in terms of how big they are.

Pais Vasco vs Tirreno in terms of how good they are.

Voted Paris-Nice.

 

[El Pistolero]

Paris-Nice usually is the best. Dauphine is used as a prep by a lot of people. A lot of GT contenders make Paris-Nice a real goal in their season.

This year it was definitely Tirreno-Adriatico.

 

[Lanark]

Paris-Nice is definitely the most important stage race after the grand tours. A very strong and motivated field. After that, I would probably put Tirreno and Pays Basque as equal, with Tour de Suisse and Dauphiné behind that.

 

[boomcie]

Definitely PN for me. 4th most important stage race IMO (history+past winners+current status).

 

[ak-zaaf]

Suisse and Dauphine have become too much of a pure warm-up race. Otherwise it would be Suisse.
Now it's PN.

 

[Parrulo]

i voted for portugal because:

first: i am biased

second: it was the 4th biggest stage race until the uci decided to drop his status to something lower then stuff like oman and the TDU. its a freaking joke. i know money and all that stuff count but still . . . .

atm tho P-N prolly is the best because it isn't used as a warm up race as much as suisse

 

[Anonymous]

Paris-Nice.

 

[Publicus]

I say Paris-Nice because if you (as a professional) show up, it's generally to race for the win and not to build form for a later race like the Dauphine and Tour de Suisse.

 

[Jux1893]

Volta a Portugal, without a doubt.

 

[Eshnar]

I voted TA because:
1) I'm italian
2) It's the best raced (my opinion)

 

[Winterfold]

I realise now I voted for one 'I like the Parcours on the most', rather than 'biggest'.

P-N and Dauphine seem equally big to me though?

I guess P-N occupies a special place in the year and is not treated as a training race...

 

[titan_90]

Paris-Nice hands down, with Basque 2nd. Then I would say Dauphine and Suisse. TOC? It takes place the same time as the best race of the season the Giro, it shouldn't even be considered

 

[Moondance]

For me its between Paris-Nice and the Dauphine. PN edges it.

 

[boomcie]

Why are people able to check the results before voting themselves?
That seriously compromises the validity of such a poll. Because some people will just hop on the wagon or follow the vote of their favorite users. I wouldn't be surprised if Paris Nice just runs of now.

This needs to change if you want to get a valid result.

 

[Peccio89]

For history i would say tour de suisse, however now it's kind of a warm-up race for the Tour.
For the field probably is Tirreno Adriatico.
For the importance of the event itself it surely is Paris-Nice, because people who race there actually care about winning it.
For the parcours it is Dauphine because it features the classic tdf alp climbs.

 

[AlejandroValverde]

Paris-Nice because:
1.my favourite race in entire calendar - in some places snow lying on the fields and ideal time for racing
2.always nice battles on hilly stages especially when it's up&down all the time
3.stages like 4th in 2010 to Mende or 7th in 2009, with Contador beaten by LL Sanchez

But Dauphine i love for its beautiful views, Suisse for its mountains, Tirreno, however, is the first big italian race in calendar, where everyone is fighting for a position - not only Italians.

 

[Cobblestoned]

DL
TdS

P-N
T-A
PV

ToC

rest

 

[lancaster]

voted vasco

usually a great race. also good history

i actually think the closest to a 4th gt are Portugal and columbia but they don't get the media and riders that they deserve.

 

[cineteq]

Dauphiné in terms of parcours, but it's become a warmup race.
Right now Basque is perhaps the best because of parcours and quality of field.
P-N is nice, but if Tony Martin was the winner this year, which means it wasn't tough enough.