Edvald Boasson Hagen - How Good Is He

[shalgo]

Part of the reason he did not have his own thread is that a lot of the discussion of him occurred in the EBH vs. Sagan thread:

viewtopic.php?f=6&t=16040

 

[IndianCyclist]

Re: Re:

EBH was a beast at High Road. Then sucked at Sky. Now slowly becoming a beast again at Dimension Data.

So many wasted years as some crude helper. Rowe is going the same way (can do much more then he does now).

He wasn't bad at Sky, just from 2013 onwards.

Sky tried to convert him into a climber just like G today but failed considering that he came close to dropping Wiggins in the mountains in 2010. It worked with G but EBH probably lost a lot of power with that kind of training. Had he remained with his natural ability he would have a better palmares than gerrans, matthews etc.

 

[Ruudz0r]

I am happy to see EBH riding very well again, his speed in this Tour so far impresses me. The first months of this year were really weak from him and he ofc did well in Norway after that but the level there wasnt that high, so its great seeing him again at a high level, hope he can keep it for the rest of the year and get some nice wins in, tomorrows stage looks pretty good for him as well and he could even win on sunday (he might actually be 2nd favourite behind Groenewegen, judging from how guys like Greipel are sprinting in the last sprints).

 

[Oude Geuze]

I have a strong urge to put money on EBH for Paris, maybe even today It would be so funny if he did it, winning on champs-elysees because there are no sprinters left in the peloton.

 

[sankaa]

Re:

I have a strong urge to put money on EBH for Paris, maybe even today It would be so funny if he did it, winning on champs-elysees because there are no sprinters left in the peloton.

I hope you did it, man.

Great ride from Eddy today. Looked strong all the way, moving around the break like a boss, knowing where everybody was. The way he blew Arndt off his wheel was fantastic. Made me think of those stages he won in Britain a long time ago.

Looking forward to sunday.

 

[johnymax]

Eddy the Boss rode like a boss today indeed. Great to see him win on a big stage again.

 

[Knutsen]

A very, very happy man, relief:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Glwkto7sVHw

 

[Escarabajo]

Chapeau EBH. Well deserved. Didn't even wait for the sprint.

 

[Flamin]

Strange how him, Valgren and Kragh Andersen all got sick in Algarve, and still none of them seem to have properly recovered. Only Kragh showed some sign of life in G-W for the first time.

 

[Ruudz0r]

Re:

Strange how him, Valgren and Kragh Andersen all got sick in Algarve, and still none of them seem to have properly recovered. Only Kragh showed some sign of life in G-W for the first time.

Ye i was talking about this with some people a few days ago, not only them also Stuyven who was really weak in the opening classics and is just now starting to get better. And you could also make a case for Demare/Laporte.

 

[Salvarani]

Re:

Strange how him, Valgren and Kragh Andersen all got sick in Algarve, and still none of them seem to have properly recovered. Only Kragh showed some sign of life in G-W for the first time.

They probably missed a block of training and preparation before the weeks that has been in March started. Then had to start all over again to build form or got thrown into races not having any form at all too early. While others being in a lot better shape making them look even worse.

 

[Valv.Piti]

I have been sick all week and went for a short ride yesterday. Totally zapped, should never have done that. Something like that can take at least a weak to fully recover from, then your form is *** and you have missed a ton of training as well. It really sucks.

 

[Red Rick]

Re:

I have been sick all week and went for a short ride yesterday. Totally zapped, should never have done that. Something like that can take at least a weak to fully recover from, then your form is **** and you have missed a ton of training as well. It really sucks.

Not sure if intentional

 

[Cookster15]

Re:

I have been sick all week and went for a short ride yesterday. Totally zapped, should never have done that. Something like that can take at least a weak to fully recover from, then your form is **** and you have missed a ton of training as well. It really sucks.

It is always hard to judge. If pros struggle to judge whether they should ride or rest I think we can forgive ourselves. I am sure you will be charging by this time next week. Actually it is worse as you get older because fitness falls faster when you miss time on the bike then when we were in our 20s. So we are more compelled to ride when we instead should be resting. Best solution if you are not sure just take it real easy Zone 1 or Zone 2 max.

 

[Flamin]

Re: Re:

Strange how him, Valgren and Kragh Andersen all got sick in Algarve, and still none of them seem to have properly recovered. Only Kragh showed some sign of life in G-W for the first time.

They probably missed a block of training and preparation before the weeks that has been in March started. Then had to start all over again to build form or got thrown into races not having any form at all too early. While others being in a lot better shape making them look even worse.

Apparently I meant that they all seem to have had something serious, and all after Algarve. Sagan and Wellens for example also got sick somewhere during their prep but it didn't really hamper them that much.

 

[42x16ss]

Re: Re:

I have been sick all week and went for a short ride yesterday. Totally zapped, should never have done that. Something like that can take at least a weak to fully recover from, then your form is **** and you have missed a ton of training as well. It really sucks.

It is always hard to judge. If pros struggle to judge whether they should ride or rest I think we can forgive ourselves. I am sure you will be charging by this time next week. Actually it is worse as you get older because fitness falls faster when you miss time on the bike then when we were in our 20s. So we are more compelled to ride when we instead should be resting. Best solution if you are not sure just take it real easy Zone 1 or Zone 2 max.

Definitely. A sickness that needs a full week off the bike can set you back by a month or more. You've got to adjust goals as needed, this can require building base all over again.

 

[Zinoviev Letter]

What the hell happened to this guy’s career. He seemed to get old very young. Third last guy in the Lorrenzo Manzin train, riding for Total-Direct Energie.

 

[OlavEH]

What the hell happened to this guy’s career. He seemed to get old very young. Third last guy in the Lorrenzo Manzin train, riding for Total-Direct Energie.

A combination I think. In Norway his digestive problem has been mentioned several times. Translated from Norwegian via google translate:

https://translate.google.com/transl...shovd-om-edvalds-store-problem-det-er-mystisk

But I also think there are other reasons. His last couple of years in Sky was the turning point. Maybe he did something wrong in training in that period and tried to become a type of rider that didn't fit him. And he certainly did that after leaving Sky. Then he added several kgs specifically for targeting Paris-Roubaix, a race that IMO didn't fit him at all.

And I have always had a gut feeling that Edvald just wasn't as serious in his training as his compatriot Kristoff. He just didn't put in the necessary kms to become a rider of top, top world class.