Race Thread

[Logic-is-your-friend]

Whatever. There's no really good reason to be upset that more people around the world have found the sport or snobbish because you have followed it for longer than many of us.

WTF are you talking about? Maybe read the posts before mine.

 

[senna6541]

Nothing is coming easy for MVDP these days - once again he makes the race and just missing that tiny percentile to finish it off just like at Zolder. Still, awesome to see him seemingly fully healthy and on the best trajectory he's been on in a long time. If his back has been able to withstand the last 7 days it has to be in pretty good shape. As much as the losses suck, it's still all in front of him. I don't worry about his "confidence". His track record suggests that isn't something that has ever been an issue for him. He pretty much goes out and races full gas regardless of what happened the previous race(s). If anything, Wout is going to have huge pressure to deliver in the Hoogerheide, and he doesn't exactly have the best track record of delivering when he is the favorite in the biggest races.

 

[jono]

I just meant
After that Wout Victory MVdP matured and generally trounced Wout in head to heads (with rare exceptions)
- but now the tables have begun to turn again.

I think a lot of this is down to circumstances outside of the cyclocross fields. After this World Championship, Wout entered a period including his contract dispute and lawsuit, and then his TT injury at TdF in 2019. Mathieu's chronic injuries, the challenge of attempting to train for CX, road and MTB in 2021 and then his Tokyo crash, and then continued injuries in 2022 plus the hotel teens in Australia have also made for about 1.5 years of a write-off in his professional career. He may still be climbing out of that hole.

 

[theyoungest]

If anything, Wout is going to have huge pressure to deliver in the Hoogerheide, and he doesn't exactly have the best track record of delivering when he is the favorite in the biggest races.

The pressure will definitely be on Mathieu. Even though the Dutch aren't nearly as cyclocross-crazy as the Belgians are, it's still his home country (if you can call it that, he has never actually lived there )

 

[tobydawq]

WTF are you talking about? Maybe read the posts before mine.

The thing about "nobody cared apart from Czech, Belgians and Dutch people" really sounded like "how dare you suggest that the sport is more interesting now than earlier, you know nothing?".

Sorry if I misinterpreted (I might well have).

 

[Logic-is-your-friend]

The thing about "nobody cared apart from Czech, Belgians and Dutch people" really sounded like "how dare you suggest that the sport is more interesting now than earlier, you know nothing?".

Sorry if I misinterpreted (I might well have).

It was a response / follow up to Bonimenier saying "This past week has probably done more for the interest in and the potential growth internationally of CX than the last couple of seasons combined." He is talking about international growth of the sport. Now people all over the world start watching cyclocross because 3 road racing stars are battling. Which was not the case 10-20 years ago, even though the battles back then were equally great. So they did not do so much for the international growth of the sport.

And if you are not certain how to interpret a post, your default mode is to act like a jackass?

 

[tobydawq]

It was a response / follow up to Bonimenier saying "This past week has probably done more for the interest in and the potential growth internationally of CX than the last couple of seasons combined." He is talking about international growth of the sport. Now people all over the world start watching cyclocross because 3 road racing stars are battling. Which was not the case 10-20 years ago, even though the battles back then were equally great. So they did not do so much for the international growth of the sport.

And if you are not certain how to interpret a post, your default mode is to act like a jackass?

Fair enough but "the last couple of seasons" is obviously not referring to the days of Stybar, Albert and Nys.

 

[Logic-is-your-friend]

Fair enough but "the last couple of seasons" is obviously not referring to the days of Stybar, Albert and Nys.

No, it was referring to the last couple of seasons not being exciting, unlike now hence unlike the days of Stybar, Albert and Nys (and the first three years of Van Aert and Van der Poel before they were international stars).

 

[Sciatic]

It was a response / follow up to Bonimenier saying "This past week has probably done more for the interest in and the potential growth internationally of CX than the last couple of seasons combined." He is talking about international growth of the sport. Now people all over the world start watching cyclocross because 3 road racing stars are battling. Which was not the case 10-20 years ago, even though the battles back then were equally great. So they did not do so much for the international growth of the sport.

And if you are not certain how to interpret a post, your default mode is to act like a jackass?

I don’t want to snide, but why care how someone found their way to the sport? Unless you’re born into a family of crossers or cyclocross afficionados, pretty much everyone has some reason they became interested in the sport?

 

[DNP-Old]

From now on, only those who've seen Kevin Pauwels dominate Zolder are allowed to post.

 

[Logic-is-your-friend]

I don’t want to snide, but why care how someone found their way to the sport? Unless you’re born into a family of crossers or cyclocross afficionados, pretty much everyone has some reason they became interested in the sport?

OMG I literally just explained in the post you quoted that was not what i was talking about.

From now on, only those who've seen Kevin Pauwels dominate Zolder are allowed to post.

Fuk that, only posters who broke furniture when Nys refused to ride after Groenendaal have any business here!

 

[Lequack]

 

[DNP-Old]

Fuk that, only posters who broke furniture when Nys refused to ride after Groenendaal have any business here!

Pijnacker 2004 used to be a legendary meme on another forum. Ah, those were the days.

 

[Logic-is-your-friend]

Pidcock ruining another potentially great picture by not looking behind.

Pijnacker 2004 used to be a legendary meme on another forum. Ah, those were the days.

My memory goes as far back as the WCC 1994 with Herygers mocking Groenendaal. I think that's the year i graduately started following cross. I was a kid when De Bie was dominating by being the only one to bunnyhop the barriers, but didn't really follow it closely back then. Nys is a few years older than me, and i think that was the moment i started watching every cross, also because they now were broadcast every weekend.

 

[postmanhat]

Although he was third, I think this might be Pidcock's most impressive performance? Staying with those two on a course and conditions like that shows how much he is progressing. I wonder why he was losing so much time in the pits?

I nearly always watch on replay, and for at least the last three years, have watched the women's race first because they're more interesting. Until tonight, when I couldn't wait to see the latest contest between these three. What a wonderful series of races this has been.

 

[Armchair cyclist]

This has to be greatest three day period for CX ever.

Make that 5

 

[Gwbert]

Although he was third, I think this might be Pidcock's most impressive performance? Staying with those two on a course and conditions like that shows how much he is progressing. I wonder why he was losing so much time in the pits?

I nearly always watch on replay, and for at least the last three years, have watched the women's race first because they're more interesting. Until tonight, when I couldn't wait to see the latest contest between these three. What a wonderful series of races this has been.

For me at least it seemed like Pidcock was losing time in the pits because his bike was first so he was losing all his momentum and then having to get going again in a muddy pit, whereas the others were much further in to the pits. It seemed like he would stop dead?

 

[jono]

For me at least it seemed like Pidcock was losing time in the pits because his bike was first so he was losing all his momentum and then having to get going again in a muddy pit, whereas the others were much further in to the pits. It seemed like he would stop dead?

I know the Eurosport/GCN announcers kept mentioning that Pidcock was losing time in the pits, but I think what they really meant were the muddy sections before the pits on both halves of the course, including when he wasn't pitting.

Based on my view of the race, WVA and MVDP could have left Pidcock behind on the last two laps, but WVA had no interest in pushing on and riding on the front and MVDP didn't care to drop Pidcock if he didn't also drop Wout. The lap times illustrate this, to a point.

That's not to take away from the tenacity shown, but I think if either of Wout or Mathieu was not in the race, or if Wout rides on the front just once or twice on the finishing straight where Pidcock kept catching up, Pidcock doesn't make it to the sprint.

https://twitter.com/x/status/1608885098296020994

View: https://twitter.com/ammattipyoraily/status/1608885098296020994

 

[Gwbert]

I know the Eurosport/GCN announcers kept mentioning that Pidcock was losing time in the pits, but I think what they really meant were the muddy sections before the pits on both halves of the course, including when he wasn't pitting.

Based on my view of the race, WVA and MVDP could have left Pidcock behind on the last two laps, but WVA had no interest in pushing on and riding on the front and MVDP didn't care to drop Pidcock if he didn't also drop Wout. The lap times illustrate this, to a point.

That's not to take away from the tenacity shown, but I think if either of Wout or Mathieu was not in the race, or if Wout rides on the front just once or twice on the finishing straight where Pidcock kept catching up, Pidcock doesn't make it to the sprint.

https://twitter.com/x/status/1608885098296020994

View: https://twitter.com/ammattipyoraily/status/1608885098296020994

Oh I totally agree, Pidcock suffered like hell in the mud sections and was visibly slower each time. It was a lot of fun to see it come down to a three-up sprint though!

 

[lemon cheese cake]

Great mens race. Little plain women's race. Great rides by Mason, Kuypers and Mein.

 

[senna6541]

The pressure will definitely be on Mathieu. Even though the Dutch aren't nearly as cyclocross-crazy as the Belgians are, it's still his home country (if you can call it that, he has never actually lived there )

Being American, I don't know much about what the Belgians think of MVDP. Do all Belgians pull for Wout, or is there some % that pull for MVDP? In the US nobody (maybe 1%) really cares about about professional cycling, and certainly not pro cyclocross. Which is nice, because I can watch the replays inadvertently hearing the result.

 

[jono]

Being American, I don't know much about what the Belgians think of MVDP. Do all Belgians pull for Wout, or is there some % that pull for MVDP? In the US nobody (maybe 1%) really cares about about professional cycling, and certainly not pro cyclocross. Which is nice, because I can watch the replays inadvertently hearing the result.

I'm sure MVDP has some fans in Belgium but in several of the recent races the boos he was getting on course were loud enough to be audible on the broadcast.

 

[senna6541]

I'm sure MVDP has some fans in Belgium but in several of the recent races the boos he was getting on course were loud enough to be audible on the broadcast.

In a way, he's kind've a man without a country. Although I imagine the Dutch will be rooting for him hard in Hoogerheide. I just love the way he races. Just completely throws caution to the wind no matter the discipline. Even today, just blew the race apart up and over the first ramp - and then the relentless attacks throughout.

 

[Hugh Januss]

I know the Eurosport/GCN announcers kept mentioning that Pidcock was losing time in the pits, but I think what they really meant were the muddy sections before the pits on both halves of the course, including when he wasn't pitting.

Based on my view of the race, WVA and MVDP could have left Pidcock behind on the last two laps, but WVA had no interest in pushing on and riding on the front and MVDP didn't care to drop Pidcock if he didn't also drop Wout. The lap times illustrate this, to a point.

That's not to take away from the tenacity shown, but I think if either of Wout or Mathieu was not in the race, or if Wout rides on the front just once or twice on the finishing straight where Pidcock kept catching up, Pidcock doesn't make it to the sprint.

https://twitter.com/x/status/1608885098296020994

View: https://twitter.com/ammattipyoraily/status/1608885098296020994

By midrace WVA and MVP were pretty much ignoring Pidcock. They were both only focussed on each other, Wout had to work to bring back all of VDP's attacks which occured in the twisty sections and so didn't cost him that much energy and Wout's one big attack came to nothing with a slow puncture. Wout was lucky to catch MVP when he went sideways in the mud and had nothing left to press on at that point. Neither did MVP, both had no other option but to ride for the sprint, so who cares if it's 2 or 3? I thought Wout made an error by letting Tom in between them but it seemed to make a good launch pad at the end. Great race.

 

[Lequack]

https://twitter.com/x/status/1606198082571485186

View: https://twitter.com/cyclocross24/status/1606198082571485186