Giro d'Italia Stage 10: Avellino - Bitonto (230km)

[therhodeo]

Yesterday, Julian Dean got caught behind a crash, and Farrar came third (granted not a pure sprinter's finish). Today, Julian Dean reported present and correct, and Farrar won handily.

Farrar clearly has the measure of pretty much everyone at the race in speed terms, but the importance of a good pilot fish cannot be overstated. See: FredRod/McEwen, Renshaw/Cavendish. Interesting that Julian Dean and Mark Renshaw are both former Thor Hushovd lead-out men, he clearly knows how to teach 'em.

Wasn't that Thor's biggest weakness though last year in the Tour was that he didn't have a lead out like Cavendish did?

 

[The Sheep]

For his win Farrar takes home 100 litres of olive oil of locally produced olive oil apparantly... I'm sure that the Garmin boys will find some use for that.

Gesink used it for massage oil he said on twitter few weeks ago

 

[Jamsque]

Wasn't that Thor's biggest weakness though last year in the Tour was that he didn't have a lead out like Cavendish did?

But of course, his two best protegés have been poached by other teams!

 

[Moose McKnuckles]

For his win Farrar takes home 100 litres of olive oil of locally produced olive oil apparantly... I'm sure that the Garmin boys will find some use for that.

Vaughters has laid claim to 25 litres for his hair grooming needs.

 

[therhodeo]

But of course, his two best protegés have been poached by other teams!

That was probably the thing that made me the most happy during last years tour was seeing Thor get caught on Stage 17 with a smile on his face knowing he took the green jersey.

 

[ImmaculateKadence]

Awesome win for Farrar. I hope this form continues. If he can get lead outs like this to disrupt the HTC lead out for Cav, we could see some great finishes in July.

 

[Captain Serious]

There was a brief mention in one of Cycling News' live reports that Greipel may have been a bit ill in the guts earlier in the week

 

[Jamsque]

There was a brief mention in one of Cycling News' live reports that Greipel may have been a bit ill in the guts earlier in the week

Yeah, he had the splatters a couple of days before the race. It's a shame, really, I was hoping to get to see him and Farrar going head-to-head in a battle for the title of 'second fastest man in the world', but it seems like the Gorilla just hasn't recovered at all.

Either that, or he's been riding too hard for too long in the early part of the season and has run out of gas.

 

[taiwan]

Starting their leadout at 10k out is what works against HTC.

Yeah if you're gong to do that, you need to be strong enough to keep anyone from overhauling you for the whole 10k. Not this HTC team today. Garmin doing it right. Sky had a train asembled at one late point, but that dissappeared too.

 

[therhodeo]

Yeah if you're gong to do that, you need to be strong enough to keep anyone from overhauling you for the whole 10k. Not this HTC team today. Garmin doing it right. Sky had a train asembled at one late point, but that dissappeared too.

Seems like Garmin sits in and lets the other guys work till the time is right.

 

[TRDean]

Yeah, he had the splatters a couple of days before the race. It's a shame, really, I was hoping to get to see him and Farrar going head-to-head in a battle for the title of 'second fastest man in the world', but it seems like the Gorilla just hasn't recovered at all.

Either that, or he's been riding too hard for too long in the early part of the season and has run out of gas.

I think this has a lot to do with it...he has been going full gas for quite a while...and now it is showing. Being sick has not helped either...

 

[ImmaculateKadence]

Either that, or he's been riding too hard for too long in the early part of the season and has run out of gas.

Or he just isn't as good as people give him credit for.

 

[taiwan]

Yeah, he had the splatters a couple of days before the race. It's a shame, really, I was hoping to get to see him and Farrar going head-to-head in a battle for the title of 'second fastest man in the world', but it seems like the Gorilla just hasn't recovered at all.

Either that, or he's been riding too hard for too long in the early part of the season and has run out of gas.

Not as bad as I thought today though. Might just have been because they were strung out in the last corner, and no-one could pass.

 

[taiwan]

Awesome win for Farrar. I hope this form continues. If he can get lead outs like this to disrupt the HTC lead out for Cav, we could see some great finishes in July.

+1 Columbia's July train will be stronger, though. Having said that, they might not use Mick Rogers in it if he can do something in the GC, and that woud weaken it.

 

[Von Mises]

Starting their leadout at 10k out is what works against HTC.

But somebody has to do this. If sprinter teams are not going to hold the pace, opportunists will start attacking from left and right. HTC has been pacemaker before, they are used to it, they have build their whole team around this.

 

[taiwan]

Seems like Garmin sits in and lets the other guys work till the time is right.

Well yes, I don't know how else you could do it with limited numbers of riders to use. Mind you, they aren't doing a whole lot of the pulling mid race for the team with the strongest sprinter. If Farrar's going to win multiple stages, maybe the onus will be on them next time.

 

[taiwan]

Or he just isn't as good as people give him credit for.

If you like, but I think he has been better than this.

 

[9000ft]

For his win Farrar takes home 100 litres of locally produced olive oil apparantly... I'm sure that the Garmin boys will find some use for that.

You could have an entertaiing evening in the bus with 100 litres of olive oil and some podium girls.

 

[Jamsque]

Well yes, I don't know how else you could do it with limited numbrs of riders to use. Mind you, they aren't doing a whole lot of the pulling mid race for the team with the strongest sprinter. If Farrar's going to win multiple stages, maybe the onus will be on them next time.

Garmin has been contributing men to the chase in the middle part of stages pretty regularly, at least according to CN's ticker.

Kadence, I think you are right that Greipel is over-rated in some quarters, but I also think it's fair to say that we are not seeing him at full strength in this Giro.


[edit] \/ \/ \/ \/ This, also \/ \/ \/ \/

 

[theyoungest]

Well yes, I don't know how else you could do it with limited numbrs of riders to use. Mind you, they aren't doing a whole lot of the pulling mid race for the team with the strongest sprinter. If Farrar's going to win multiple stages, maybe the onus will be on them next time.

It's not their fault that Sky and HTC think they'll win.

 

[taiwan]

Garmin has been contributing men to the chase in the middle part of stages pretty regularly, at least according to CN's ticker.

Fair enough.

 

[I Watch Cycling In July]

Parochial moment

I'm really happy for Deans after this win by Farrar. Last year there seemed to be a number of occasions where JD was in a reasonable position, but Farrar decided to grab the wheel of someone else. JD indicated that it was something that needed work in this interview with Velonews. So it's great to see signs that they have figured it out.

JD: ..... I had this relationship with Hushovd, he had complete trust and confidence in me. He would just follow me everywhere I went. It didn’t always work out, but sometimes it did. We’ve got to a little more work with Tyler.
VN: How comfortable is Farrar completely trusting your wheel?
JD: Tyler never had a lead-out before.....
VN: Is your position going to stay the same as the final set-up man?
JD: That’s the kind of things we have to suss out. It will kind of depend on who Tyler has confidence in. We’ll try different things in different times. Hopefully we’ll get some chances to come up against Columbia as well.....

 

[tgsgirl]

Last year there seemed to be a number of occasions where JD was in a reasonable position, but Farrar decided to grab the wheel of someone else.

Last year Dean managed to get lost on Champs Elysees. I wouldn't trust him either.

 

[Night Rider]

It's not their fault that Sky and HTC think they'll win.

Nice post

 

[taiwan]

It's not their fault that Sky and HTC think they'll win.

Well... they thought they might, not that they would. Isn't the convention to contribute men to the chase if you're even interested in contesting the sprint? But if they (Garmin) did, they did, and it's not exactly the most serious charge anyway. HTC: I wonder which specific riders allow them to do that whole "contol the race from start to finish" thing. Bert Grabsch? Michael Rogers?