Ivan Dominguez

[joe_papp]

Sorry if this has been covered already, though I couldn't find a thread for it.

Why did Ivan Dominguez leave Europe to come back to USA to ride for Rock Racing? He didn't like being away from his family so much, or he wasn't racing enough or he couldn't be competitive in the races he was riding? Anyone? Anyone? Bueller? Bueller?

 

[RDV4ROUBAIX]

The "Cuban Missile" couldn't live up to his reputation in Europe, but I'm guessing it was a combination of both.

 

[joe_papp]

It's weird...I mean, here is a guy who practices cycling as if it was an art for him, and upon defecting from Cuba condemned himself to the horror of not being able to be with his mother during her dying days, yet he couldn't hack being away from his own young family in order to ride in Europe. I'm not criticizing him, y si Ivan está leyendo esto, él sabe que estamos conversando sobre las cosas de la vida, y no hablando mal de él...but it reminds me of a aspirant Navy SEAL featured in the first reality TV show that I've ever enjoyed - one about ... surprise ... training for the SEALS. This guy at the start of the program is very motivated, and obviously has the physical capacity to handle the training. But within a week, he quits.

And he actually gave an amazing yet simple explanation, along the lines of not wanting with all his heart and soul to be a SEAL, when that's what is required for success in that position, for why he quit. He said that his family came first for him, at the end of the day his work in the Navy was just a job, and he wasn't willing to live to be a SEAL if that meant that his family life was significantly impacted (I think it was implicit that family life could be adversely affected regardless of what job he had in the Navy if he was killed in action...).

I guess why that surprised me is because most people aren't willing to be honest about why it is they fail at things. And here you had an otherwise highly motivated individual admitting that mentally, he just didn't want it enough.

Yo conozco Ivan y conozco Cuba pero todavia me parece raro que el tipo tuvo ese oportunidad en Europa y lo dejó para volver a correr Manhattan Beach y races like that.

 

[Rice Daddy]

One thing to win crits in the States. A whole 'nother thing to hang onto the (juiced) peloton at Pro Tour or UCI 1.1 or HC races.

 

[RDV4ROUBAIX]

One thing to win crits in the States. A whole 'nother thing to hang onto the (juiced) peloton at Pro Tour or UCI 1.1 or HC races.

Living proof that no thread on this forum is safe, no matter how un-doping related, can be ruined in no less than 4 posts.

Can't we just have a normal conversation about a really good guy?

 

[pmcg76]

I think somebody who competed in the US and Europe would have the best opinion on this.

I think there is a big difference in the standards in Europe & US, I think going from racing mostly crits in the US to a ProTour level is a bit much. JJ Haedo has done better but usually at a level below ProTour, perhaps Ivan was on the wrong team, I dont remember Charles Dionne, Aaron Olsen, Tim Johnson doing much at Saunier Duval, the predecessor to Fuji-Servetto.

Apart from the Tour of Claifornia, even the top US races(Philly, Georgia, Missouri) only have a few ProTour teams present and that is a far cry from full-on Protour fields. I know nobody liles to mention doping but I am sure it might have been a facor in the decision to return to the US.

Maybe it would be better if US based riders tried to cut it somewhere like France first before diving in at the deep end.

 

[RDV4ROUBAIX]

I know nobody likes to mention doping but I am sure it might have been a factor in the decision to return to the US.

That's assuming that we don't dope in the U.S.. Anyway, like I said, this has nothing to do with that.

Maybe it would be better if US based riders tried to cut it somewhere like France first before diving in at the deep end.

The Kermesse circuit in Belgium is usually the first stop for the young U.S. guys. But Ivan was already 25 by the time he became pro with Saturn. Most of the U.S. guys cutting their teeth in Belgium are in their late teens, early twenties that originate from the U.S. developmental squad.

 

[dolophonic]

I never saw any mention of him actually racing over there ...
What races did he start\ finish ?

 

[jaylew]

I never saw any mention of him actually racing over there ...
What races did he start\ finish ?

here you go:
It's not pretty.

 

[joe_papp]

¡coño! That is brrrrutal. At least he got to start Flanders though...

 

[mambo#5]

¡coño! That is brrrrutal. At least he got to start Flanders though...

so, what's the deal with you Joe? Are you still married to that Cuban racer or not?

 

[nightfend]

Well, to be fair, he was suffering from a knee injury for a most of the time he was in Europe this year. And I believe he was still recovering from the injury when he was riding the spring classics. He says he trained too hard, too early trying to get ready for the longer European races, and this caused his knee problems.

 

[Anonymous]

Sorry if this has been covered already, though I couldn't find a thread for it.

Why did Ivan Dominguez leave Europe to come back to USA to ride for Rock Racing? He didn't like being away from his family so much, or he wasn't racing enough or he couldn't be competitive in the races he was riding? Anyone? Anyone? Bueller? Bueller?

It may be that the races are much harder and the field is much deeper. In the US there may be 4 or 5 guys Dominguez has to mark. In the Euro pro peleton he probably does not really know who to mark, he's probably gassed at the end of the race and there's probably 20 guys that are as fast or nearly as fast as him. Which makes what Cavendish is doing really, really impressive.

 

[fatandfast]

So Cal you got it, when your form is crap and there is nowhere to sit in it just sucks. 50 degree days with rain make it suck so much harder. In the US it is easier to race yourself into shape . In Belgium you are in a field of 75 to 125 that can really slam from the gun nowhere to hide. With a bad knee you feel like you gained 50 pounds(3 stones) and your rear brake is on super rub mode with two flats. The guy is a stud and can can go what looks like 50mph when he is on. He needs a diet of points races and crits with a couple of familiar smiles and maybe he can return.When I first started Super Week woke me up to depth in the US,the stuff he is in is 100x deeper and nobody wants to be his friend.