R.E.S.P.E.C.T. to Chris Horner

[Jancouver]

I think with all his health issues (lungs, asthma etc) he is pretty much done and he won't be able to compete on pro level again.

Time to take a year off and hit the SoCal masters racing

 

[nightfend]

Re:

I think with all his health issues (lungs, asthma etc) he is pretty much done and he won't be able to compete on pro level again.

Time to take a year off and hit the SoCal masters racing

He is still better than 99% of the other riders in the Tour of Utah. So he is still competitive. The issue really is with his inflated ideas of how much he should get paid. Ultimately his pay requirements will force him to retire as the domestic teams won't find it worthwhile to pay him that much.

 

[Libertine Seguros]

Re: Re:

Three simple, beautiful words: Törku Seker Spor

Why not Tabriz?

I was going to argue the toss about the races they get to do with climbs at professional level, but you're right, Tabriz get to do Langkawi which is the same category as Turkey against a weaker field and with a GC almost invariably settled by the MTF, which would suit Horner down to the ground.

However, a US rider on an Iranian team is probably going to cause visa problems more than riding for a Turkish-registered one, no?

 

[snccdcno]

No respect from the UCI

http://www.cyclingnews.com/news/horner-blasts-uci-for-denying-asthma-tue/

 

[Jancouver]

Re:

No respect from the UCI

http://www.cyclingnews.com/news/horner-blasts-uci-for-denying-asthma-tue/

No wonder he is so pissed. Froome and his SKY workers are getting TUE left and right for no reason and they will deny this old fart some asthma meds probably all worried that he may win another grand tour if was was allowed the same (legal) medical treatment their preferred teams are using.

 

[jmdirt]

Re:

No respect from the UCI

http://www.cyclingnews.com/news/horner-blasts-uci-for-denying-asthma-tue/

Horner sounds is pissed, but I'm sure that the UCI doesn't care.

 

[webvan]

Gotta feel sorry for the guy but what about that mysterious lung infection he kept going on about, is that gone now?

Not sure how the Tour of Spain 2014 plays into that either, I mean he was on a World Tour team last year with a team doctor so his current explanation for not getting a TUE doesn't really work. Also why would he need asthma medication all of a sudden now if he only had two TUEs during his career?

As for his salary requirements, is he really getting paid that much this year at Airgas? I think it hurt him in 2013 when Trek didn't renew in him but I doubt it's still the case now.

 

[Catwhoorg]

He is just old and cranky.

 

[jmdirt]

Re:

Gotta feel sorry for the guy but what about that mysterious lung infection he kept going on about, is that gone now?

Not sure how the Tour of Spain 2014 plays into that either, I mean he was on a World Tour team last year with a team doctor so his current explanation for not getting a TUE doesn't really work. Also why would he need asthma medication all of a sudden now if he only had two TUEs during his career?

As for his salary requirements, is he really getting paid that much this year at Airgas? I think it hurt him in 2013 when Trek didn't renew in him but I doubt it's still the case now.

You should consult his pulmonary specialist for the answers you seek. Maybe the infection is why he is having restricted breathing now?

 

[webvan]

That would be privileged information, on the other hand one would expect from a public figure for his stories to be consistent...

 

[offbyone]

Re: Re:

Again, though, this is the risk that you take when you sign up somebody like Horner. I recall the fuss that Johan Bruyneel raised when Radioshack weren't invited to the 2010 Vuelta, basically along the lines of "we haven't even mentioned the race all year, but we deserve to go because our sponsors put a lot of money in and deserve to get exposure for that". But all the other sponsors put money in too, and just saying that a team deserves to go to a race simply because of the money a sponsor has put in regardless of what the team offers the race is a very fast way to turn racing into a bidding war at the expense of the sport.

On the face of it, inviting a small Israeli development team with a few central-eastern Europeans and a random Spaniard seems like a bonkers call over an American team who offer a GT winner. Maybe by extending an olive branch to a team which has Peter Sagan as a patrocinador they hoped to get the man himself to ride, shoring up name value. Maybe they had concerns that Horner appearing on the winner's list when he's about to turn 44 and on a very weak continental team will give the race negative press or make it seem bush league.

It does seem silly, but it's hard to have sympathy for a team whose bid for these invites was based entirely around the Horner gamble. They've gained a lot more press out of the signing than they would have got from the rest of their roster even if they HAD been invited to California and Colorado. It's a bit like when Meridiana-Kamen tried to sign Riccò when he was fighting provisional suspension after his faulty transfusion: I can't recall if he ever got to race for them. But they didn't even have a working website, and more people talked about Meridiana-Kamen than ever talked about them before or since: I didn't even know until today they're still running this year. And I watched the Tour of Croatia where they had a rider come top 10, and I'd completely forgotten about that. Horner has gained Airgas as a team a lot of press attention they would otherwise not have been able to get; the flip side is, his reputation will make it difficult at times to secure invites to major races. Christina Watches-Onfone is another good comparison: they often didn't get to do the biggest races they intended to and got shut out of a lot of invites due to riders' reputations, but Hembo's push for attention and the willingness to take those riders for the press coverage meant more people heard the sponsor's name than ever would have done if she'd just sponsored a normal Danish Continental team.

The real shame is, had they known earlier, we could have seen Chris Horner vs. Portuguese Chris Horner, the forbidden battle in A Volta. Maybe 2016...

I agree with the gist of this. It is an unguaranteed gamble, but I don't think this picture you paint of a bidding war is realistic. In the end, not many of these pro tour riders who are still riding want or need to ride on a team in their last years where they likely won't get to compete in a high level of competition. Keep in mind, it is only the big names that will help with this gamble and they mostly made their money already.
In this particular case, you have to remember that Airgas Safeway didn't give horner a big contract hoping to get Grand Tour invites, they just wanted american race invites. If there really is a bidding war mentality for pro riders on continental teams then it can only be a good thing, but rarely do these continental sponsors have the ability or desire to afford this. The ROI just doesn't make enough sense for this to become a problem.

Man this forbidden battle you speak of has me intrigued

Horner didn't blow the doors off at this race, but no one can argue that he wasn't competitive. Personally, I think it is pretty cool to see the older generation of american riders duking it out with the younger. Even though he struggled to make his mark on the race, I thought it was even neat to see the younger generation work him over a bit. Horner certainly talks positively about these guys in the press, he talked up Woods a bunch. How is that not cool?

His asthma complaints seem like him being butt sore, but so what. In terms of his injuries, he did suffer some pretty unlucky injuries in his last years. If you recall he did get run over by a car in 2014 that left him with a punctured lung.

Anyways I would still personally like to see his team get the call up. Outside of Horner, his team did play a role in the race and I would guess that the times they did mix it up at the front was an incredible experience for his team and all those young riders. After more contemplation, I still think it is absurd that they aren't invited to Colorado.

 

[May0maniac]

Re: Re:

Three simple, beautiful words: Törku Seker Spor

Why not Tabriz?

I was going to argue the toss about the races they get to do with climbs at professional level, but you're right, Tabriz get to do Langkawi which is the same category as Turkey against a weaker field and with a GC almost invariably settled by the MTF, which would suit Horner down to the ground.

However, a US rider on an Iranian team is probably going to cause visa problems more than riding for a Turkish-registered one, no?

If the sanctions against Iran really end Horner should be able to join Tabriz, the real unstoppable war machines

 

[webvan]

Anyone got news about Horner? Season finished for him?

 

[snccdcno]

L'Equipe reporting Horner has been advised to retire by Baden Cooke as they can't find a team for next year

http://www.lequipe.fr/Cyclisme-sur-route/Actualites/Christopher-horner-vers-la-retraite/603312

 

[BigMac]

He's probably asking for a huge salary, and after what happened with Airgas (not being invited to Cali and Colorado) teams probably see no real value in signing him. Ironic how his major career victory is what's holding him back.

 

[bassano]

Re:

He's probably asking for a huge salary, and after what happened with Airgas (not being invited to Cali and Colorado) teams probably see no real value in signing him. Ironic how his major career victory is what's holding him back.

If he really want to race, he should not ask high sallary and if he only want to earn more money, I do not care about him so he need to do some decision

 

[Jspear]

Re: Re:

He's probably asking for a huge salary, and after what happened with Airgas (not being invited to Cali and Colorado) teams probably see no real value in signing him. Ironic how his major career victory is what's holding him back.

If he really want to race, he should not ask high sallary and if he only want to earn more money, I do not care about him so he need to do some decision

Precisely. He's 44 and has health issues. His head is way to big if he thinks he has the right to ask for a "high" salary. He just needs to disappear.

 

[snccdcno]

Baden Cooke has completely denied the report in L'Equipe.

 

[Velolover2]

Horner can't die! CCC next year!

 

[StryderHells]

Re:

He's probably asking for a huge salary, and after what happened with Airgas (not being invited to Cali and Colorado) teams probably see no real value in signing him. Ironic how his major career victory is what's holding him back.

Is it his Vuelta victory holding him back or the fact he is a ancient (in pro cycling) injury prone rider that's the issue? If he was 6 years younger when he won that Vuelta and could actually string some race days together then somebody might actually want him.

 

[IndianCyclist]

Re: Re:

He's probably asking for a huge salary, and after what happened with Airgas (not being invited to Cali and Colorado) teams probably see no real value in signing him. Ironic how his major career victory is what's holding him back.

Is it his Vuelta victory holding him back or the fact he is a ancient (in pro cycling) injury prone rider that's the issue? If he was 6 years younger when he won that Vuelta and could actually string some race days together then somebody might actually want him.

He is probably the only GT winner to have no clout with UCI/race orgs, Plus he requires medication/TUE to race. Last 2 years teams have got burnt after hiring him. Even though he is better than 99% of riders inspite of age.

 

[StryderHells]

Re: Re:

He's probably asking for a huge salary, and after what happened with Airgas (not being invited to Cali and Colorado) teams probably see no real value in signing him. Ironic how his major career victory is what's holding him back.

Is it his Vuelta victory holding him back or the fact he is a ancient (in pro cycling) injury prone rider that's the issue? If he was 6 years younger when he won that Vuelta and could actually string some race days together then somebody might actually want him.

He is probably the only GT winner to have no clout with UCI/race orgs, Plus he requires medication/TUE to race. Last 2 years teams have got burnt after hiring him. Even though he is better than 99% of riders inspite of age.

He's only useful to a team and better than 99% of riders (he's not) if he can actually race. You are so right that Lampre and even little Airgas have been burnt taking on such a fragile rider, he didn't even get them the invites that I'm sure the management were hoping for which would of helped that small team get exposure and potential sponsors.

 

[GuyIncognito]

As Vaughters said after that Vuelta, the reason people won't touch Horner is the same people won't touch Cobo.

 

[BigMac]

Re:

As Vaughters said after that Vuelta, the reason people won't touch Horner is the same people won't touch Cobo.

Yep,

10char.

 

[doperhopper]

Re:

As Vaughters said after that Vuelta, the reason people won't touch Horner is the same people won't touch Cobo.

... or Rebellin