Brad Wiggins

[runninboy]

When compared to Rasmussen he was.

the reason being his careful use of power meters and monitoring his food intake

 

[BroDeal]

the reason being his careful use of power meters and monitoring his food intake

Well, that and being in two places at the same time burns a lot of calories.

 

[mherm79]

Do you consider the mid-90s to be old fashioned? Cause that's when getting super skinny became trendy with Riis, Casagrande, Bartoli and then everyone else. As far as I know, that trend never went away except in France, where it never started.

coz the french wont part with their desserts & cheese!

 

[mherm79]

ok, i hate to be the one to start this, but....

remember what we normally find out later after a rider shows a dramatic, out-of-nowhere, mid-career improvement? bernard kohl anyone?

i wouldn't say his had a mid-career improvement - the guy is a gold medallist and has been a stand out on the track.
he is only now getting serious about road racing.

 

[runninboy]

i wouldn't say his had a mid-career improvement - the guy is a gold medallist and has been a stand out on the track.
he is only now getting serious about road racing.

+1
exactly

 

[issoisso]

For those who doubt the weight loss:

2008:
http://images33.fotki.com/v1139/photos/1/1292031/5924957/ToC08Prologue0472-vi.jpg

2009:
http://www.flickr.com/photos/slipstreamsports/3434625727/

 

[Boeing]

pure nails

 

[keen_but_slow]

I agree. However Boardman was doing mostly track before going to pro road racing. If a 400 metre runner started doing marathons then of course they would lose weight.

That's not actually true. He did the pursuit because it was the Olympic event. He was generally doing '25's and even '50's in the early 1990s and popped up the Tour of Lancashire and won stages in the Girvan. I think he probably did the pursuit as a pro because it was the only thing he could win in that era!

But either way I take the point - there's nothing in the UK that requires weight to be kept to the minimum. The hills in road races are just too short and the time trials are nothing more than chasing lorries up and down dual carriageways.

 

[gatete]

i wouldn't say his had a mid-career improvement - the guy is a gold medallist and has been a stand out on the track.
he is only now getting serious about road racing.

I'm in the middle between expecting to read Wiggings tested positive for something and also the hope of him working and training hard to get such present results, I want to think that just maybe this guy will do it the old fashion way due to his previous oustanding achievements, I think comparing Brad to Kohl is a bit harsh, Kohl in his own admission never achieved anything great had not been for EPO, so I'm skeptical and hopeful this will not be the case.

 

[issoisso]

Remember, this is a guy who refused to train more than a few short hours per week on the road for fear it would affect his track performance. Since beijing he's completely set aside the track. Completely. It's only natural that the difference is massive.

You won't find a much bigger sceptic than me, but for now I haven't seen him do anything out of the ordinary given his change of focus to the road and his massive weight loss.

Especially given the insane amount of weight he's lost. Have you seen him up close this year? Piepoli was fatter. No, that's not an exaggeration.

At this point, he is 1kg lighter than Evans. Let that sink in for a second.

 

[richwagmn]

Wiggins is THE find of this year's tour. An excellent performance. 10kg lighter than last year? That's commitment. Way to go Brad.

 

[anubisza]

He's lost a stone in weight since last year, down from 78kg to 71kg

 

[biker77]

I am a Brit, so good luck to Brad. If he wins anything on the track in the next 12 months then let the inquisition begin with its full fury.

 

[Clemson Cycling]

Don't forget Vande Velde came out of nowhere last year as well on this team

 

[fatandfast]

Brad lit it up today!When Ac went off he stayed within himself and road a fantastic race.To all brits don't be smashed if it turns out to take more than a year to climb with the bestEven if he blows up he is still a stud..

 

[podilato]

You won't find a much bigger sceptic than me, but for now I haven't seen him do anything out of the ordinary given his change of focus to the road and his massive weight loss.

Especially given the insane amount of weight he's lost. Have you seen him up close this year? Piepoli was fatter. No, that's not an exaggeration.

Previous best finish in Grand Tour before 2009, 123rd. This year in Giro 71st. I think he has only 3 non time-trial wins in his career. But now just because he lost some weight he could now conceivably win the Tour.

You're right. Nothing out of the ordinary there.

 

[Anonymous]

i think this has been discussed at great length...

the weight thing, interesting comments in todays observer frpm bradley and what he thinks weight loss is worth.. he says about 10 seconds on a 10k climb per kilo pf wieght lost (if i remember correctly i read the article in a cafe), and approximated this would be worth 10 minutes plus over the entire tour.. (on top of normal improvements of course)

its also the first year he has dedicated himself to the road, in previous years the track always took precedent..

if you are going to attempt to turn this into a brad is doping thread please try and provide some credible evidence other than he is doing better than the giro and last time he did the tour (two years ago)..

improvement isnt impossible you know..

 

[Anonymous]

remmeber when dave brailsford said team sky was being built with the aim of producing a british tour de france winner in five years...

and everyone laughed...

well if he could get brad and put the right team behind him.. well i dont think anyone is laughing anymore.. that said..

he may get 3rd this year, possibly even if he puts in a superman performance this week 2nd, but repeating that another year, when everyone knows about you, is watching you, is a completely different matter..

I am though keeping a realistic head on, a lot can happen in the next seven days.. top ten, would be beyond most peoples wildest imaginations..

 

[BroDeal]

remmeber when dave brailsford said team sky was being built with the aim of producing a british tour de france winner in five years...

and everyone laughed...

well if he could get brad and put the right team behind him.. well i dont think anyone is laughing anymore.. that said..

he may get 3rd this year, possibly even if he puts in a superman performance this week 2nd, but repeating that another year, when everyone knows about you, is watching you, is a completely different matter..

Repeating on a real TdF course is what is a different matter. Vande Velde did great last year, but the high mountains still eventually got him. The same will happen to Wiggins on a route with a number of real mountain stages.

 

[Anonymous]

Repeating on a real TdF course is what is a different matter. Vande Velde did great last year, but the high mountains still eventually got him. The same will happen to Wiggins on a route with a number of real mountain stages.

fair point..

anyone seen next years course yet.. ive heard no flat stages cos theyre bored with cav winning them all, no mountain top finishes at all to screw up AC, and no time trials.. Reckon with 3000km of descending cunego might give it a go..

 

[issoisso]

Previous best finish in Grand Tour before 2009, 123rd. This year in Giro 71st. I think he has only 3 non time-trial wins in his career. But now just because he lost some weight he could now conceivably win the Tour.

You're right. Nothing out of the ordinary there.

Yes, please do twist words and ignore statements to suit your ends. It'll gain you a lot of respect.

This forum needs an ignore function

 

[BroDeal]

fair point..

anyone seen next years course yet.. ive heard no flat stages cos theyre bored with cav winning them all, no mountain top finishes at all to screw up AC, and no time trials.. Reckon with 3000km of descending cunego might give it a go..

Ullrich is already training for it. All the brats and strudel will finally pay off.

Lemond may even come out of retirement.

 

[issoisso]

Ullrich is already training for it. All the brats and strudel will finally pay off.

I'm wondering where they'll find 300kms of consecutive downhill with no turns

 

[Anonymous]

I'm wondering where they'll find 300kms of consecutive downhill with no turns

every stage is starting at the top of a hill..

Frank Shleck has already announced he is doing the Giro and Vuelta with Levi instead..

 

[BroDeal]

Cunego will be riding support for this guy.