General News Thread

[luckyboy]

The "why did someone even bother writing this article" of the day

ten riders to watch in 2010

talk about stating the obvious..
via steephills twitter..

"The man most eyes will be on throughout most of the year will be Lance Armstrong."

"All eyes will also be on Alberto Contador.."

Everyone's eyes will be watching Contador, yet somehow more than everyone will be watching Lance

Also,

"The reigning world champion will lead a new American Team into 2010 and should provide plenty of fireworks to gaze upon."

Must've been a different BMC that was running in 2007..


Another point - where the hell did they get the money from seeing as before this year their star riders were Alexandre Moos and Markus Zberg?!

 

[auscyclefan94]

"The man most eyes will be on throughout most of the year will be Lance Armstrong."

"All eyes will also be on Alberto Contador.."

Everyone's eyes will be watching Contador, yet somehow more than everyone will be watching Lance

Also,

"The reigning world champion will lead a new American Team into 2010 and should provide plenty of fireworks to gaze upon."

Must've been a different BMC that was running in 2007..


Another point - where the hell did they get the money from seeing as before this year their star riders were Alexandre Moos and Markus Zberg?!

I thought i heard Rihs say in the CN article today that BMC was the 6th highest budget? hard to believe?

"At the moment we're not quite at that [ProTour] level. If I made a ranking of all the budgets from all the teams, we are somewhere in the top six teams."

 

[luckyboy]

Yeah, but surely not before this season?

 

[BroDeal]

I thought i heard Rihs say in the CN article today that BMC was the 6th highest budget? hard to believe?

I don't see how that can be true. Who are they paying all the money to? Evans?

Contador alone might be getting four million euros. Isn't that what Valverde was reportedly being paid? How much do the Schlecks and Cancellara cost?

 

[craig1985]

I don't see how that can be true. Who are they paying all the money to? Evans?

Contador alone might be getting four million euros. Isn't that what Valverde was reportedly being paid? How much do the Schlecks and Cancellara cost?

I would say Hincapie and Ballan would be in the very high six figure salaries. Rumour was that they offered EBH more dough then what Sky did.

 

[BroDeal]

I would say Hincapie and Ballan would be in the very high six figure salaries. Rumour was that they offered EBH more dough then what Sky did.

I can see paying big bucks for Ballan but Hincapie? His chance of winning something big is fairly low these days. Perhaps his real value is in advertising BMC bikes to Americans.

 

[craig1985]

I can see paying big bucks for Ballan but Hincapie? His chance of winning something big is fairly low these days. Perhaps his real value is in advertising BMC bikes to Americans.

I reckon that have paid overs (as in over paid) for guys like Cadel and Hincapie just to get them to sign for BMC (and I suppose for Hincapie, it is his one last big pay day). Why would Cadel go to BMC if they weren't offering huge wads of cash, same with Ballan and Hincapie?

EDIT: Kroon and Burghardt would also be low - mid six figure salaries. Considering the amount of riders that they signed, there must of been some serious cash spent.

 

[Big GMaC]

The "why did someone even bother writing this article" of the day

ten riders to watch in 2010

talk about stating the obvious..
via steephills twitter..

I just flicked through that, for why reading age audience were they writing for? 3-7 years olds? That was pretty pi55poor...

 

[tgsgirl]

I don't see how that can be true. Who are they paying all the money to? Evans?

Lotto did pretty much say that Evans went to BMC for the money, so I expect them to be paying him big. Sixth highest budget in the peloton is embarrassing for that squad though.

 

[Timmy-loves-Rabo]

Lotto did pretty much say that Evans went to BMC for the money, so I expect them to be paying him big. Sixth highest budget in the peloton is embarrassing for that squad though.

agreed. How is it they they are the 6th highest and have such poor depth.

 

[auscyclefan94]

agreed. How is it they they are the 6th highest and have such poor depth.

unless he was referring to the continental teams?
Evans wouldn't be getting moremoney at bmc in comparison to lotto even if that tool Marck Coucke says so!

 

[auscyclefan94]

I reckon that have paid overs (as in over paid) for guys like Cadel and Hincapie just to get them to sign for BMC (and I suppose for Hincapie, it is his one last big pay day). Why would Cadel go to BMC if they weren't offering huge wads of cash, same with Ballan and Hincapie?

he was at LOTTO

 

[Libertine Seguros]

Why wouldn't he? Considering the lack of depth at BMC to back him up, it'd have to be a pretty nice offer for him to give up a year's salary to make the switch to a team who probably won't offer him any significantly greater level of support and who aren't even guaranteed to get entry to the races he wants.

 

[tgsgirl]

he was at LOTTO

You mean that team that took him on when no one believed in him? That team that made his TdF fantasy one of their two yearly priorities (besides classics' season, they are Belgian after all)? That team that invested heavily in him? That team he then stabbed in the back as soon as he finally won something?

 

[issoisso]

You mean that team that took him on when no one believed in him? That team that made his TdF fantasy one of their two yearly priorities (besides classics' season, they are Belgian after all)? That team that invested heavily in him? That team he then stabbed in the back as soon as he finally won something?

You're ruining the Evans fans' fantasy that he would've won the Tour if his team hadn's somehow screwed him over. Stop ruining peoples' dreams

 

[auscyclefan94]

You mean that team that took him on when no one believed in him? That team that made his TdF fantasy one of their two yearly priorities (besides classics' season, they are Belgian after all)? That team that invested heavily in him? That team he then stabbed in the back as soon as he finally won something?

your unintelligent comment doesn't warrant a reply!

 

[Timmy-loves-Rabo]

You mean that team that took him on when no one believed in him? That team that made his TdF fantasy one of their two yearly priorities (besides classics' season, they are Belgian after all)? That team that invested heavily in him? That team he then stabbed in the back as soon as he finally won something?

aren't you aware that evans is the victim in cycling, lotto are the villains!!! They are Friggin evil!!

 

[Libertine Seguros]

...a team that paired him with Leif Hoste, so as to be the only place in cycling where Evans could seem utterly likable and optimistic?

 

[tgsgirl]

What, because you can't think of one? Before Lotto Evans was at T-mobile, where no one considered him a possible GT winner. He then chose to go to Lotto, who as Belgians will by definition invest in the classics. They simply can't afford not to. Belgium = classics. Simple as that. He knew that when he went there, so there's little point in complaining that they, unlike Astana or The Shack, realise that there are races other than TdF.
It's under Lotto that Evans got all of his successes. All of his wins. Well, all of his near wins. They transfered themselves into a GT player just for him. I'm not saying they had the team of the century for him. I'm not saying that the squad didn't let him down at times. But Lotto, as a management, did a lot for Evans. He did very little for them in return.

I honestly want to know what Lotto should've done according to you. Buy one of Armstrong's faithful leuitenants for him? Popo, check. Buy the Tour's big sensation to assist him the year after? Schumacher, check. Buy one of the most promising climbing talents at that time for him? Dekker, check. Yes, Cuddles' Curse took them all out. But seriously, realistically, what else should they have done?

 

[ak-zaaf]

...

There's a book out now that I ordered called 'Het Rode Leger' (the red army) about 20 (very successful) years of Lotto in the peloton. I wonder what it will say about the Evans adventures

 

[auscyclefan94]

One simple thing they could of done, given support. some of you experts who think you know it all should read his book and maybe you might learn about him much better. he hardly bad mouthed lotto at all and really talked them up tbh. Their was a lack of support and strategy and planning with lotto. most of you will disagree as you don't like him but don't say he did little for them in return. the results he got them when no one else in the team could win anything! got a lot of results which they would of struggled to get without him!

 

[ingsve]

Kennaugh with a probable collar bone break in Strade Bianche.

 

[craig1985]

What, because you can't think of one? Before Lotto Evans was at T-mobile, where no one considered him a possible GT winner. He then chose to go to Lotto, who as Belgians will by definition invest in the classics. They simply can't afford not to. Belgium = classics. Simple as that. He knew that when he went there, so there's little point in complaining that they, unlike Astana or The Shack, realise that there are races other than TdF.
It's under Lotto that Evans got all of his successes. All of his wins. Well, all of his near wins. They transfered themselves into a GT player just for him. I'm not saying they had the team of the century for him. I'm not saying that the squad didn't let him down at times. But Lotto, as a management, did a lot for Evans. He did very little for them in return.

I honestly want to know what Lotto should've done according to you. Buy one of Armstrong's faithful leuitenants for him? Popo, check. Buy the Tour's big sensation to assist him the year after? Schumacher, check. Buy one of the most promising climbing talents at that time for him? Dekker, check. Yes, Cuddles' Curse took them all out. But seriously, realistically, what else should they have done?

That was Kohl

Schumacher signed for Quick Step which to say Paolo Bettini was not impressed about it would be the understatement of the year. Perhaps he knew something we all didn't.

 

[issoisso]

That was Kohl

Schumacher signed for Quick Step which to say Paolo Bettini was not impressed about it would be the understatement of the year. Perhaps he knew something we all didn't.

As far as I know what ticked Bettini off was not getting the contract offer he wanted. He wasn't getting any results at all, was past it and still threw a tantrum over not being offered the salary he wanted.

A salary that according to Lefévère "would be enough to pay Schumacher, Devolder and Barredo's salaries and there would still be some money left".

 

[Libertine Seguros]

One simple thing they could of done, given support. some of you experts who think you know it all should read his book and maybe you might learn about him much better. he hardly bad mouthed lotto at all and really talked them up tbh. Their was a lack of support and strategy and planning with lotto. most of you will disagree as you don't like him but don't say he did little for them in return. the results he got them when no one else in the team could win anything! got a lot of results which they would of struggled to get without him!

They got Popovych for him. And Popo had a terrible year. They bust their left nuts getting Bernhard Kohl for him, and Kohl turned out to be a fraud (gs, amongst your salient points I thought I'd be pedantic - it was the OTHER Belgian classics squad that signed Schumacher). They got Dekker for him, and Dekker was a fraud. They got Moreno for him, and Evans said 'sayonara, I'd rather have a much better mountain team who will help me. Like Ballan and Burghardt, yea!" Sure, Lotto sometimes couldn't provide him with enough help. But that was not because of lack of effort - they were doing everything they could for him. It was for lack of ability.

Besides, nobody blew the 2008 Tour for Evans but Evans himself. Nobody blew the 2009 Dauphiné for Evans but Evans himself. The 2009 Vuelta was just terrible luck. But, conversely, Evans let Lotto down at the 2009 Tour. There aren't too many teams that could have done a much better job for him. Astana? Sure, but they have Contador. Saxo? Sure, but they have the Schlecks. Columbia? Don't care about GCs, and it's the team he left to go to Lotto anyway. Caisse? Probably, but they have Valverde, who may not be as good a GC candidate (even though he's won one, which Cuddles hasn't) but offers more success in a much broader range of events. Liquigas? They've got four different GC candidates now, the boat is full. Lotto might have mismanaged Evans a bit, but that's mostly due to not really having the experience of dealing with GC candidates' race calendars and so on. BMC don't have that experience either.