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Race Thread

Page 134 - Get up to date with the latest news, scores & standings from the Cycling News Community.
MVdP looked about 90 percent -- clearly had fitness; made a few errors and was lucky he didn't tweak his back again. Had he not crashed early he'd have won by 45 seconds, I think. Pidcock probably suffering a bit from Saturday's effort; even up I think he gives MvdP a run for his money, or at least keeps it close. Still think that the CX-native riders are no competition for MvdP, Pidcock and Wout. Those guys just have a HUGE base of fitness.
 
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Great racing today, both races kind of decided by some bad luck. In the women's race van Empel with the crash and in the men's Pidcock with a broken wheel. But still exciting racing, great track and crowds.

Two champs

FikmoEqXwAMF2F_
 
I love Puck Pieterse interview in English, she certainly doesn't mind saying what she means :D
Puck: "... yeah her bike was a bit f*cked"

Interview here:

xYtl8WOp
 
I love Puck Pieterse interview in English, she certainly doesn't mind saying what she means :D
Puck: "... yeah her bike was a bit f*cked"

Interview here:

xYtl8WOp
She wasn't wrong though!
 
I love Puck Pieterse interview in English, she certainly doesn't mind saying what she means :D
Puck: "... yeah her bike was a bit f*cked"

Interview here:

xYtl8WOp
Very normal vocabulary in The Netherlands.
 
MVdP looked about 90 percent -- clearly had fitness; made a few errors and was lucky he didn't tweak his back again. Had he not crashed early he'd have won by 45 seconds, I think. Pidcock probably suffering a bit from Saturday's effort; even up I think he gives MvdP a run for his money, or at least keeps it close. Still think that the CX-native riders are no competition for MvdP, Pidcock and Wout. Those guys just have a HUGE base of fitness.
10% off would be too much to to win.
 
I love Puck Pieterse interview in English, she certainly doesn't mind saying what she means :D
Puck: "... yeah her bike was a bit f*cked"

Interview here:

xYtl8WOp


How to say "fcked" without saying "fcked"? "Derailleurs"

View: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=70BTfVZolYg&ab_channel=MTBTed
 
Last edited:

Puck is considering moving to the Elites for the Worlds.
 

Puck is considering moving to the Elites for the Worlds.
Makes sense that she's thinking about it. It's quite clear after the past two races she's at least on the same level as Fem.
 
There was also something on one of the belgian news sites and then later on wielerflits that Tormans would be taking some time out from running a team and is parting ways from Intermarche Wanty. They'd continue running the cx programme with Thijs Aerts still rumoured to be coming across. Possibly also with Toon if that debacle is sorted considering he was training with Wellens, Kuhn, van Kessel a few weeks ago.
 
Pieterse and Van Empel are their generation’s Van der Poel and Van Aert. They took almost two minutes on the rest of the field on the first two laps at Hulst. That’s crushing it. Pieterse have some extraordinary skills and Van Empel makes up the slightly less technique with a massive endurance.

Van Anroij is absolutely fun to watch and if the other two are the VDPs/WVAs then she is definitely the female version of Van der Haar. Maybe not the most skilled but a mindset of pure grit and determination and a never surrender attitude. Hope also that Alvarado doesn’t get lost. She was always a talent but something seems to be missing?
 
Pidcock post Hulst interview: https://www.indeleiderstrui.nl/veld...poel-focus-op-wegklassementen-nadeel-in-cross

“I don't have the weight and the same power as those two (MvdP & Wout). It's hard to beat them in races like this. In addition, I am increasingly shifting focus to rankings on the road. That has advantages on the road, but disadvantages in the cross. Nevertheless, I will keep trying and the rainbow jersey will help a bit', he concludes with a smile to Bram van der Ploeg of In De Leiderstrui:
 
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Pieterse and Van Empel are their generation’s Van der Poel and Van Aert. They took almost two minutes on the rest of the field on the first two laps at Hulst. That’s crushing it. Pieterse have some extraordinary skills and Van Empel makes up the slightly less technique with a massive endurance.

Van Anroij is absolutely fun to watch and if the other two are the VDPs/WVAs then she is definitely the female version of Van der Haar. Maybe not the most skilled but a mindset of pure grit and determination and a never surrender attitude. Hope also that Alvarado doesn’t get lost. She was always a talent but something seems to be missing?
Take the U23s out of the equation, and Alvarado has had a steller season. But the three of them have raised the bar. Outside of a crash or mechanical, the 3 U23s may finish 1-3 the rest of the season. They're fun to watch.
 
Van Anroij is absolutely fun to watch and if the other two are the VDPs/WVAs then she is definitely the female version of Van der Haar. Maybe not the most skilled but a mindset of pure grit and determination and a never surrender attitude. Hope also that Alvarado doesn’t get lost. She was always a talent but something seems to be missing?
I wouldn't say anything is missing for Alvarado. She appears to be around the same level she was when she won the world title following last season's issues if you compared her to the others that she rode against at that time. The trouble is that level doesn't quite seem to be as high as the one the van Empel, Pieterse, and van Anrooij are at.
 
I wonder if the youngsters concentrating on just the World Cup is helping as well; so no double weekends, and spending the Saturday recceing and preparing, rather than racing, which is what a lot of the others are doing.
Yes. Can remember where, but I read that Pieterse does it for that exact reason. She said she has the extra training day on the Friday whereas the rest are doing activation rides or whatever on that day.
 
-So there may be some mileage in saying World-Cup is killing CX - when non-WC races are shunned by the newgen-elite

Maybe it's just my perception but looking at the Superprestige and DVV races (and in a bigger scale this year), they don't look like having the same prestige as before. Depleted fields, the biggest stars (specially in the woman's field) don't care to ride it as much as before.
 
Maybe it's just my perception but looking at the Superprestige and DVV races (and in a bigger scale this year), they don't look like having the same prestige as before. Depleted fields, the biggest stars (specially in the woman's field) don't care to ride it as much as before.
It's always going to look a bit smaller at the DVV trofee as they've now got a junior women's event which takes a small number off the start grid, but the bigger impact is the u23 race meaning there is a much smaller field in the elite men. This has been especially evident at the Koppenbergcross in the past when the u23 race has had over 100 riders and the elite mens has less than 30..
 
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