Is Pro Racing Less Exciting?

[marinoni]

This is something I've been struggling with for a few years now. It seems like pro cycling has, in the last few years, lost a lot of it's excitement and thrills. I look at a race like Fleche Wallone and see what used to be a tough, selective race reduced to a 200 km training ride with a 2k race at the end. I look at the Tour and see how many mountain stages have been won by relative nobody's while the favourites "keep their powder dry" for the final 5k of the final climb on the final mountain stage. I could go on and on.
The thing is though, I know how easy it is to look at the past through rose-coloured glasses. We've all had older relatives or parents talk about the old days and how movies or music or life in general isn't like it used to be.
What do you think? Everyone's opinion is welcome of course, but I'd particularly like to hear from members who are old enough to have seen races in the 70's or 80's. Oh, and lets not let this descend into another race radio argument. I don't like them but the subject has been argued to death.

 

[Libertine Seguros]

Is it more boring? Yes

Why? Team High Road

 

[ingsve]

This is something I've been struggling with for a few years now. It seems like pro cycling has, in the last few years, lost a lot of it's excitement and thrills. I look at a race like Fleche Wallone and see what used to be a tough, selective race reduced to a 200 km training ride with a 2k race at the end. I look at the Tour and see how many mountain stages have been won by relative nobody's while the favourites "keep their powder dry" for the final 5k of the final climb on the final mountain stage. I could go on and on.
The thing is though, I know how easy it is to look at the past through rose-coloured glasses. We've all had older relatives or parents talk about the old days and how movies or music or life in general isn't like it used to be.
What do you think? Everyone's opinion is welcome of course, but I'd particularly like to hear from members who are old enough to have seen races in the 70's or 80's. Oh, and lets not let this descend into another race radio argument. I don't like them but the subject has been argued to death.

I think the issue here isn't race radios but rather clinic related. It's pretty clear that we have seen a gradual change of the last few years where we have gone from 80-90% of riders being charged to perhaps half that or even less. This will certainly effect how races are raced. Teams simply can't afford to waste energy by riding hard from the first bump in the road and instead conserve energy for later stages in a race.

 

[ingsve]

Is it more boring? Yes

Why? Team High Road

As far as easier stages then yes this is part of the reason. There has been a change in the mentality of the sprinting teams over the last few years. People seem to forget that there were sprints on pretty much every stage in the first week of the Tour in the 90s as well but the diffrence is that once Zabel, Steels, Blijlevens, Cipollini etc had gotten their victories they were content with that and didn't chase the 5th and 6th win during the 2nd and 3rd week and a lot of sprinters even abandoned when the mountains came. Now more sprinters are staying in the race and chase the points jersey and stage wins trough the whole GT.

 

[jens_attacks]

of course it is.it all began with those who have chosen cycling to be jesus of professional sports,then all the tests and scandals,cyclists dissing each others,accepting every stupid rule,whereabouts and so on.all other sports are getting more and more exciting,cycling on the other hand is going down big time.'93-'06 remains the golden age no matter what they say.

 

[uphillstruggle]

.all other sports are getting more and more exciting,cycling on the other hand is going down big time.'93-'06 remains the golden age no matter what they say.

I'm not sure they are; football/soccer has gone through the same changes as cycling in that people have figured out how to win effectively and they stick to it because it works.

 

[boardhanger]

Cycling did go into a predictable period for the past decade. But during the past 2-3 years it has come out of this......no more waiting for last mountain type GT's......exciting worlds courses etc...etc...and the riders are responding slowly to the critic from fans about robotic racing. Which is awesome!! So lets hope it continues down this path again...

 

[Michielveedeebee]

I'm not sure they are; football/soccer has gone through the same changes as cycling in that people have figured out how to win effectively and they stick to it because it works.

Barca is exciting

 

[Kwibus]

Barca is exciting

That's a highly succesful exception though. A team needs a special set of talents to play like that.
I can't any other team play like that right now. That's why those teams will play more conservative.

 

[Mambo95]

Most sports have got more boring in both a real way and a perceived way.

In the real way: As the financial stakes have got higher, tactics have got more conservative. The emphasis is on not making a mistake, rather than on attempting the glorious. Individuals in a lot of sports can also now make a very health living coming in the top ten. Cricket is the only sport I can think of that has got less conservative.

In the perceived way: As the saying goes 'nostalgia ain't what it used to be'. When we look back at the past we remember the best and most glorious moments, forgetting the rubbish, therefore leading us to believe that this were better back then.

 

[WonderLance]

This is the most exciting cycling will ever be. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uDawlrIeaVM&feature=related

 

[hrotha]

Not sure about the lack of Clinic help being a factor. If anything, I'd say clinic stuff tends to raise and equalize rider levels towards the average, which would make team tactics more effective and cycling more predictable. After all, people in the 90s already complained about cycling being more boring than in the 80s (before EPO changed everything).

 

[Sanitiser]

Not sure about the lack of Clinic help being a factor. If anything, I'd say clinic stuff tends to raise and equalize rider levels towards the average, which would make team tactics more effective and cycling more predictable. After all, people in the 90s already complained about cycling being more boring than in the 80s (before EPO changed everything).

I'd disagree. Look at Wonder Lance's signature.

 

[uphillstruggle]

Barca is exciting

Barca's current team is the Eddy Merckx of football. True once in a generation type stuff. Arsenal try the same stuff and don't win anything. Spain are dull, they are the Banesto/USPS of football world. Efficient but successful and as mentioned above, success pays more than excitement.

 

[Libertine Seguros]

This is the problem. Spain have for so long been the Igor Antón of football, exciting, impressive, but collapsing in a heap before the end. Now they've hit on the success formula (and for this I blame José Mourinho in part, just cos he's the figurehead of it, not because he created it): be boring.

See also: Alejandro Valverde. Sure, he'd had a LOT of success from doing interesting things, and continued to have a lot of success from creating excitement in races in 2010 too (see Paris-Nice, Romandie, País Vasco). But in Grand Tours, the one time everything was all a-ok was the 2009 Vuelta, in which he did... well, not very much.

 

[hatcher]

Not at all. We just get to see a heck of a lot more of it throughout the year, and inevitably become jaded.

 

[Oldman]

Cycling did go into a predictable period for the past decade. But during the past 2-3 years it has come out of this......no more waiting for last mountain type GT's......exciting worlds courses etc...etc...and the riders are responding slowly to the critic from fans about robotic racing. Which is awesome!! So lets hope it continues down this path again...

I agree but you can see that philosophy break down when a well funded team wants that stage, real bad. What's more fun is to see those teams get pipped when they (HTC) train loses steam or their (RadioShack) self promotion blows up.

 

[hrotha]

I'd disagree. Look at Wonder Lance's signature.

So? Older forumers could link to Merckx videos which would be more spectacular, if less charged.

 

[boardhanger]

I agree but you can see that philosophy break down when a well funded team wants that stage, real bad. What's more fun is to see those teams get pipped when they (HTC) train loses steam or their (RadioShack) self promotion blows up.

When the big boys play, they play I agree. I get the feeling the smaller teams smell victory as the old school moves out.....More riders believe in taking a chance and reap the rewards or not, against last centuries dictators...um....sorry, director sportives and their grandiose superstars .

 

[180mmCrank]

This is the most exciting cycling will ever be. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uDawlrIeaVM&feature=related

Wow! Not very good technique - he needs to get his elbows through more!

On topic- it's a big mistake to look back at days gone by (all 120 years of days gone by) and look at the cycling highlights and say "wow - wasn't it exciting back then!" There were both boring and exciting races back then too. Indurain was many things but not many would describe him as exciting! And I am a big 'big mig' fan by the way.


I thought last years classics season was just as exciting as any - even with Cancellara kicking a$$ - just my opinion.

 

[Bike Boy]

I don't know how to compare because I have only followed cycling since 1995, but I have seen videos from Merckx's time, it was awesome. He rode on the the front the entire time, that could be due to the editing, but it was still surreal, but I don't know if it was more interesting for that reason, a rider winning 1 out of 3 races makes cycling pretty predictable.

 

[auscyclefan94]

This is the most exciting cycling will ever be. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uDawlrIeaVM&feature=related

What type of person oils themselves up to workout?

 

[180mmCrank]

I don't know how to compare because I have only followed cycling since 1995, but I have seen videos from Merckx's time, it was awesome. He rode on the the front the entire time, that could be due to the editing, but it was still surreal, but I don't know if it was more interesting for that reason, a rider winning 1 out of 3 races makes cycling pretty predictable.

Some would say that was boring. Not me I just love watching people who are good at what they do. I can watch hour after hour of cycling and never get bored... my one complaint in Canada compared to the UK is that it's harder to get coverage. Although my wife and kids aren't complaining they get to see more of Dad!

 

[marinoni]

Wow! Not very good technique - he needs to get his elbows through more!

On topic- it's a big mistake to look back at days gone by (all 120 years of days gone by) and look at the cycling highlights and say "wow - wasn't it exciting back then!" There were both boring and exciting races back then too. Indurain was many things but not many would describe him as exciting! And I am a big 'big mig' fan by the way.


I thought last years classics season was just as exciting as any - even with Cancellara kicking a$$ - just my opinion.

Of course not every race was an epic show but I do think the standard for what is considered a great race has slipped some. Some of those Indurain Tours were pretty poor but even they had elements you almost never see any longer. Indurain taking off with Bruyneel or with, I think, Leblanc on a mtn stage is something you will never, ever see Contador or Schleck do. Chiapucci's epic break in 92 is another example. Perhaps I should have put this in the Clinic because I really am talking about pre "you know what" days.

 

[marinoni]

This is the most exciting cycling will ever be. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uDawlrIeaVM&feature=related

Your presence in my thread honours me sir.