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yaco

Jun 20, 2015
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An ITT immediately ruins the nature of the race - It also impractical in Australia because teams will be forced to use their normal bikes. Anyway lets see what unfolds.
 
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yaco

Jun 20, 2015
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Willunga Hill is the cornerstone of the TDU, and even moreso, since they made it the last stage - The organisers are trying to get Remco. Is they whey they introduced a prologue ?
 
42x16ss

42x16ss

May 23, 2009
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claude cat said:
2023 TDU Parcours announced

AusCycling | Time trial, Mt Lofty, but a surprise absence: 2023 Tour Down Under route

A time trial, and no Old Willunga Hill finish.
An ITT will make it a lot more expensive for the trade teams to attend.
Click to expand...
Really not sure about these changes. Stage 3 is now a nasty little stage with a couple of uncategorised climbs as sharp as the categorised ones. Then there's stage 5 - no big names want to race 4 times up 9km at 6% in January - and the ITT? Let's hope it's only road bikes, because O'Grady might just be ruining a very popular (for riders) and successful early season race with these moves. It's probably going to be almost impossible for someone on the national team to get a good GC now as well.

The only riders willing to race this somewhat hard will be looking to peak for Paris-Nice and again at the Ardennes or Giro. I don't like it for a race so early in the year.
 
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42x16ss

42x16ss

May 23, 2009
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yaco said:
Willunga Hill is the cornerstone of the TDU, and even moreso, since they made it the last stage - The organisers are trying to get Remco. Is they whey they introduced a prologue ?
Click to expand...
They're trying for a mini TDF, but it seems O'Grady has forgotten why the race was popular with riders to start with.
 
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Samu Cuenca

Samu Cuenca

Sep 26, 2020
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RedheadDane said:
People keep saying Porte is the King of Willunga, but I sure remember someone else being crowned king last time they went there!

Santos Tour Down Under 2020 Stage 6 results (procyclingstats.com)

1HOLMES MatthewLotto Soudal60503:24:54
2PORTE RichieTrek - Segafredo25300:03
3BOARO ManueleAstana Pro Team10180:04
Click to expand...

Well you have to win there more than once to become king. Porte also won there last year and Angus Lyons did it back in January in the substitution races.
 
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yaco

Jun 20, 2015
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RedheadDane

RedheadDane

May 5, 2010
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yaco said:
Except, Holmes won it from the break - King of Willunga refers to winning from the GC group which Porte did again.
Click to expand...

What's with thinking you need certain circumstances to be crowned king - or queen - of a hill? If you take the crown, you take the crown, even if you have to steal it.
 
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StryderHells

StryderHells

Oct 10, 2015
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yaco said:
Except, Holmes won it from the break - King of Willunga refers to winning from the GC group which Porte did again.
Click to expand...
No it doesn’t, King of Willunga refers to who holds the record for most wins up it, not if they won from the GC group.
 
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Libertine Seguros

Libertine Seguros

Feb 20, 2010
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42x16ss said:
Really not sure about these changes. Stage 3 is now a nasty little stage with a couple of uncategorised climbs as sharp as the categorised ones. Then there's stage 5 - no big names want to race 4 times up 9km at 6% in January - and the ITT? Let's hope it's only road bikes, because O'Grady might just be ruining a very popular (for riders) and successful early season race with these moves. It's probably going to be almost impossible for someone on the national team to get a good GC now as well.

The only riders willing to race this somewhat hard will be looking to peak for Paris-Nice and again at the Ardennes or Giro. I don't like it for a race so early in the year.
Click to expand...
They're not doing the full Mount Lofty ascent though, only the section from Stirling so it isn't like a real 9km climb, it's the false flat and rolling stuff from the Stirling circuit then about 3-4km up to Mount Lofty.

To tell the truth I am not too against the changes. Prologue probably should be road bikes with clip on tri bars to keep costs down, however it guarantees some time gaps so I think it works.

I think actually for me the ideal route for a TDU would be something like:
P) Prologue
  1. Sprint
  2. Something akin to the stage with Corkscrew Hill and the descent finish here - the climb isn't so hard that sprinters can't get back on, maybe a bit more distance from the summit to the finish to balance out the rest of the race but give baroudeurs and puncheurs hope
  3. Sprint
  4. Stirling finish after descent from Mount Lofty, so you have the 9km at 6% version but it isn't the finish so you're more likely to get a small group together at the end, setting us up for
  5. Mount Richieporte
Nothing too difficult, only one ascent of Mount Lofty so it isn't crazy hard (as for nobody wanting to do all that climbing in January, people used to go to the Tour de San Luís with its Filo Serrano climb, 16km at 8%, but obviously the TDU has never been about that so they shouldn't imbalance things too much), the stage lengths are fairly short reflecting its January timeslot, but you've got multiple stages that can create timegaps and opportunities for almost all types of rider.
 
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yaco

Jun 20, 2015
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The sadder news is that there appears to be no Herald Sun Tour in 2023 which is the older stage race in Australia dating back to 1952.

I understand that O'Grady wants to shake up the TDU route in his first edition as race director BUT he's made a big mistake taking Willunga Hill off the parcours. Despite being an iconic part of the race it's a decent test which fits beautifully into the GC battle.
 
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M

movingtarget

Aug 5, 2009
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yaco said:
The sadder news is that there appears to be no Herald Sun Tour in 2023 which is the older stage race in Australia dating back to 1952.

I understand that O'Grady wants to shake up the TDU route in his first edition as race director BUT he's made a big mistake taking Willunga Hill off the parcours. Despite being an iconic part of the race it's a decent test which fits beautifully into the GC battle.
Click to expand...
Be a shame to see the Sun Tourgo. It's recent incarnation is sad enough. The Tour of Tasmania was also a good race years ago. The Sun Tour had some good battles up Mt Buffalo. Don't know why Sydney doesn't host a good level bike race anymore. Plenty of good cllimbs in the Blue Mountains and they used to hold a race in the mountains years ago but it didn't remain on the calendar for long. I think the last edition was wne by one of the Swiss pro's. Cant remember which one. The old Commonwealth Bank Tour which ran down the east coast and sometimes into the Hunter Valley was a better race than the TDU, route wise, especially, when they stopped having so many criterium stages but logistics wise is was probably a nightmare for organizers.

I don't really see a need to change the TDU too much. Plenty of riders have won it from the sprint bonuses but usually the GC is still close. I think the TDU plus the Cadel race isn't a bad start to the season before the tougher races start. And the Aussie riders also have the National Road Race to ride although you could argue thet that could be raced in September after the worlds.
 
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Y

yaco

Jun 20, 2015
15,366
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movingtarget said:
Be a shame to see the Sun Tourgo. It's recent incarnation is sad enough. The Tour of Tasmania was also a good race years ago. The Sun Tour had some good battles up Mt Buffalo. Don't know why Sydney doesn't host a good level bike race anymore. Plenty of good cllimbs in the Blue Mountains and they used to hold a race in the mountains years ago but it didn't remain on the calendar for long. I think the last edition was wne by one of the Swiss pro's. Cant remember which one. The old Commonwealth Bank Tour which ran down the east coast and sometimes into the Hunter Valley was a better race than the TDU, route wise, especially, when they stopped having so many criterium stages but logistics wise is was probably a nightmare for organizers.

I don't really see a need to change the TDU too much. Plenty of riders have won it from the sprint bonuses but usually the GC is still close. I think the TDU plus the Cadel race isn't a bad start to the season before the tougher races start. And the Aussie riders also have the National Road Race to ride although you could argue thet that could be raced in September after the worlds.
Click to expand...

Look at the recent history of the Herald Sun Tour and it's been won BY GT champions in Wiggins, Froome and Hindley.

The Nationals will never change from January as it fit into the summer of cycling - I hear there is a chance that Bling may target the Nationals.
 
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