TRDean said:
Jasper..I totally agree...and that is why I hate this thread. van Hummel has always been a very good sprinter. Last year he finally had surgery on an artery in his leg that was basically making him a one legged rider. Now after a year of mediocre results and a good offseason...he starts to see the podium for about a month...then he goes on a tear and gets 5 wins!! Sounds like a natural progression to me. Also, I think a lot of winning (especially in bike racing) is mental. Win one time and the mids says "hey I should be up front doing this more...I am capable". Hence stringing wins together...at least this is how I feel about pure sprinters.
I should never have put Hausler on this thread... I really like the way he races, and it was wrong of me to do.
Guess you missed the sarcasm in my post
Agreed on Van Hummel though, he's always been a decent sprinter that gradually got better and better, and now seems ready to make it to the top. Same thing for Gesink, he's gradually maturing and developing the skills he already had during the youth categories, no spectacular improvements in areas he used to be bad before, for instance.
Haussler however, made such a stellar improvement that it seems almost impossible, and surely not only accountable to something as simple as losing a few pounds. It's not only the incredible increase in performance, but also the fact that he managed to maintain such extraordinary form for so damn long. It can't be just losing weight, or a mere boost of confidence. Remember he comes from Gerolsteiner as well...