Gesink's time trialling abilities

[Ryo Hazuki]

Pantani

easy...give me a new one

Stage 21, Mendrisio - Lugano, ITT 34 kms:

1. GONTCHAR SERGUEI UKR CANTINA TOLLO - ALEXIA ALL 39.54
2. PODENZANA MASSIMO ITA MERCATONE UNO - BIANCHI 40.23 0.29
3. PANTANI MARCO ITA MERCATONE UNO - BIANCHI 40.24 0.30
4. VELO MARCO ITA MERCATONE UNO - BIANCHI 40.25 0.31
5. TONKOV PAVEL RUS MAPEI - BRICOBI 40.29 0.35
6. SERPELLINI MARCO ITA BRESCIALAT - LIQUIGAS 40.55 1.01
7. CAMENZIND OSKAR SUI MAPEI - BRICOBI 41.08 1.14
8. SAVOLDELLI PAOLO ITA SAECO - CANNONDALE 41.09 1.15
9. ZUELLE ALEX SUI FESTINA WATCHES 41.26 1.32
10. MOLLER CLAUS MICHAEL DEN TVM - FARM FRITES 41.34 1.40

Stage 20, Montceau-les-Mines - Le Creusot, ITT 53 kms:

1. Jan Ullrich (Ger) Telekom 1.03.52 (48.851)
2. Bobby Julich (USA) Cofidis 1.01
3. Marco Pantani (Ita) Mercatone Uno 2.35
4. Dariusz Baranowski (Pol) US Postal 3.11
5. Andrei Teteriuk (Kaz) Lotto 3.46
6. Vjatceslav Ekimov (Rus) US Postal 3.48
7. Christophe Rinero (Fra) Cofidis 3.50
8. Riccardo Forconi (Ita) Mercatone Uno 3.55
9. Axel Merckx (Bel) Polti 3.59
10. Roland Meier (Swi) Cofidis 4.29

Stage 9, Ancona - Ancona ITT, 31 kms:

1. Laurent Jalabert (Fra) ONCE-Deutsche Bank 40.36
2. Sergei Gontchar (Ukr) Vini Caldirola-Sidermec 0.25
3. Marco Pantani (Ita) Mercatone Uno-Bianchi 0.55
4. Oscar Camenzind (Swi) Lampre-Daikin 0.57
5. Dario Frigo (Ita) Saeco-Cannondale 0.59
6. Daniel Clavero (Spa) Vitalicio Siguros 1.08
7. Alex Zuelle (Swi) Banesto 1.15
8. Ivan Gotti (Ita) Team Polti 1.23
9. Niklas Axelsson (Swe) Navigare-Gaerne 1.38
10. Andrei Zintchenko (Rus) Vitalicio Siguros 2.00


:doei:

 

[Ryo Hazuki]

On hilly courses. Ring a bell?

my god you people don't know **** about cycling

 

[Barrus]

Floyd Landis?

If you're going that route, Rasmussen

 

[Ryo Hazuki]

If Gesink follows the Pantani "formula" he might have it easy, too. I thought you actually meant could he TT without a huge medical advantage. 140lb(-) climbers that "TT well when they need to" is a reliable indication of serious dopage, not talent.

pantani was 9 pounds ligher than contador

 

[Ryo Hazuki]

If you're going that route, Rasmussen

rasmussen did very well itt in that tour actually. not to mention the long breakaway time that gesink would never get from the peloton

 

[boomcie]

my god you people don't know **** about cycling

Says who?

no. we are asking for TOUR winners that couldn't do well in itt?? name me one in the past 20 years??

Right, it was you. Great expertise my friend.

 

[Kwibus]

Who is to say gesink's climbing ability won't continue to improve?
he is only 24

During tests in January or early February Gesink managed to get the same numbers as he did a week before the TdF in 2010. Wattage etc.
This could mean he's peaking really early this season, or that he's still getting better. The Rabobank staff was pretty sure Gesink is still getting better.

I think I read this in the AD newspaper after he won the Tour of Oman. Or it was the Telegraaf.

 

[Oldman]

During tests in January or early February Gesink managed to get the same numbers as he did a week before the TdF in 2010. Wattage etc.
This could mean he's peaking really early this season, or that he's still getting better. The Rabobank staff was pretty sure Gesink is still getting better.

I think I read this in the AD newspaper after he won the Tour of Oman. Or it was the Telegraaf.

And if that's true it's because, at age 24; he's making a training choice to be a better TT'er. His climbing on steep stages would not necessarily follow the same improvement curve if he is really concentrating on the TT but doesn't have to suffer, either. Realistically he needs to balance any attributes he develops to the race and the team supporting him.

 

[roundabout]

During tests in January or early February Gesink managed to get the same numbers as he did a week before the TdF in 2010. Wattage etc.
This could mean he's peaking really early this season, or that he's still getting better. The Rabobank staff was pretty sure Gesink is still getting better.

I think I read this in the AD newspaper after he won the Tour of Oman. Or it was the Telegraaf.

Must be all the snowplowing he did on his bike.

But seriously, there's no reason why he shouldn't continue improving. Is he doing Tirreno-Adriatico? It's a short ITT there, but it's dead flat.

 

[Havetts]

Gesink is doing the Tirreno if I remember correctly, so we should see how he fares on flat ITT's .

 

[Dekker_Tifosi]

You would think that a rider who puts out more absolute ánd relative power than a guy like Joost Posthuma and Menchov would do well on flat ITT's as well.

Hopefully his aerodynamics did get better. Problem for 2010 was, according to what I've read, that Gesink adapted his position to sit deeper on a TT bike, but the problem was he couldn't use his power that way and his elbows came out a bit wide, therefore sucked

 

[Oldman]

You would think that a rider who puts out more absolute ánd relative power than a guy like Joost Posthuma and Menchov would do well on flat ITT's as well.

Hopefully his aerodynamics did get better. Problem for 2010 was, according to what I've read, that Gesink adapted his position to sit deeper on a TT bike, but the problem was he couldn't use his power that way and his elbows came out a bit wide, therefore sucked

And that's only part of the problem with tweaking TT positions. A radical position change takes a few seasons to adapt to and usually comes by sacrificing a natural attribute like...climbing. Not to over-argue the point with you but that will be his dilemma for winning a big one: which race will suit the rider he needs to be to win and what team makeup will support that effort. Nowadays the DS's build serious strategies to make that happen. It's a tough choice for a talented rider who could end up being average at TTing and climbing as a result, or one crash away from sitting out his target race.