Rediscovering an admiration for C. Evans

[Angliru]

C. Evans doesn't seem the warmest kind of guy in interviews, he's kind of uncomfortable and oblique, and he'd never be a homecoming king, but I reckon his heart is in the right place and is basically a good guy. Witness his stand on issues like Tibet: the guy has a heart and a brain which is a lot more than can be said for the many basic, under-developed types who ride bikes for a living.

He's an exciting rider too, he always gives it his best (he has to, cuz his teams are lousy). He was great in the Giro.

It's not his teams that are lousy, it's his inability to choose a team that will best serve his ambitions and goals. He is hardly the type of personality that encourages loyalty and supreme sacrifice. Every public statement about how he lacked support is a kick in the gut to his teammates.

 

[Ripper]

Is it a fact that the rider "slammed on his brakes" or is this just a something that was added to spice up the argument?

The bottom line is that Evans needs to get a grip on his emotions and his temper. There is a laundry list of incidents in the past couple of years that he's had to later apologize for.

No, no, the slam on the breaks part was when I was explaining the things that can earn you a smack or a punch in a race. I think the rider in question swerved fairly suddenly, along with slowing considerably. Remember though, I also said it was a silly argument because they both lost their cool.

 

[biker jk]

And there we are with the excuses - Cuddles had to wheelsuck because he had no team support and was in the lead.

Cuddles ended up off the podium, with his smart, non-contributing tactics.

Vino had no team support, Scarponi had little team support, but they all worked at various points in the race.

If you think wheelsucking is smart tactics then fine, but don't try to claim that he doesn't wheelsuck and that he more often than not just follows in the mountains and doesn't contribute.

MJM, the broken record. Get some new material mate, it's boring us to tears. Repeating the same thing over and over again doesn't mean you're right. Your obsession with Cadel Evans is unhealthy. Go wind up a clock.

 

[Angliru]

No, no, the slam on the breaks part was when I was explaining the things that can earn you a smack or a punch in a race. I think the rider in question swerved fairly suddenly, along with slowing considerably. Remember though, I also said it was a silly argument because they both lost their cool.

My apologies. I misunderstood your post.

 

[richo36]

If Savoldelli could won his 2nd Giro with minimal support why can't Evans win a grand tour the same way? Menchov hasn't had the strong support similar to teams like the current Liquigas, Shack and Saxo Bank and yet he has 3 grand tour wins. It is ALWAYS something with Evans:
-He gets sick.
-He crashes.
-A slow wheel change.
-He bonks.
-The Spaniards teamed up on him.
-and the standard "My team didn't support me like my opponents' teams did."

Evans isn't "the only one by himself". He's just the only one whose fans always use that excuse to cover for him.

Let me say that he's a great rider who performs at a high level throughout the season unlike several other pro's who I won't name but please come up with some new material.

Read the very first line of my last post, I didnt give any excuses for cadel. I said the real reason which was he didnt have the legs. The steepness of the climbs was to much for cadel in the recent giro. but the main reason why he never has won is he doesnt have the legs.

I think his tactics were good just didnt have the legs to last the 3 weeks.In the particular example i gave, It was not a mountain top finish which meant that Cadel would of had to use alot of energy once on the flats to stay away from to liquigas riders. With the next stage being the Zoncolan he needed his energy.

In most cases i would say yes to this but the tactics liquigas were using were just a constant high speed, which sort of limited charges. I do believe he has developed this tag unfairly as in the peloton he does stand out alot more as he is always the only one by himself.

All im trying to say is the tactics that he often implies are good but often doesnt have enough to last 3 weeks.

 

[Mrs John Murphy]

MJM, the broken record. Get some new material mate, it's boring us to tears. Repeating the same thing over and over again doesn't mean you're right. Your obsession with Cadel Evans is unhealthy. Go wind up a clock.

No one is forcing you to read it. If you don't like it then put me on ignore. That way you can filter out all those people who have nasty negative opinions of your boy Cuddles.

 

[Archibald]

am I the only one who thinks that most of his "wheelsucking" everyone keeps ripping into him for is more a case of him struggling to stay with others? On so many of the climbs in the Giro he was out of his saddle looking like he was really having to work just to stay there...
reckon some of this is either being blown out of proportion or just sh*tstirring...

 

[Libertine Seguros]

Sometimes he wheelsucks because he simply can't do anything else, like in the Giro. This, I don't think anybody would hold against him. Other times, when he simply will not take the initiative in the situation, such as on Ventoux in the Dauphiné last year, is all about sucking wheels, and that's where his bad reputation comes from.

He's far from the worst wheelsucker in the péloton - José Serpa Pérez and Levi Leipheimer are two I can name off hand who are worse - but because he has the reputation for sucking wheels, people notice it more when it's Cadel. And other teams call him out for it more because he usually doesn't have a teammate up there, so it's more obvious.

 

[Angliru]

Read the very first line of my last post, I didnt give any excuses for cadel. I said the real reason which was he didnt have the legs. The steepness of the climbs was to much for cadel in the recent giro. but the main reason why he never has won is he doesnt have the legs.



All im trying to say is the tactics that he often implies are good but often doesnt have enough to last 3 weeks.

Could it be his schedule? Or the intensity of his efforts in the races on his schedule? He is generally in the mix in virtually every event he enters with the exception of his 2009 Tour performance. If he's going to target a grand tour, be it the Tour or Giro maybe he needs to ease back on his race miles or stop going for the win in every event that he enters.

Now he has often said that he can't compete with the real climbers and that was the reason he usually simply rode conservatively but the Zoncolan showed that he can climb with the best. Climbs like the Zoncolan are the territory of the pure climbers that Evans supposedly fears yet he was able to outclimb all but one of his competitors. Evans can compete on any terrain. It seems he just needs to ration his efforts in the races leading up to his the grand tours.

 

[JA.Tri]

Could it be his schedule? Or the intensity of his efforts in the races on his schedule? He is generally in the mix in virtually every event he enters with the exception of his 2009 Tour performance. If he's going to target a grand tour, be it the Tour or Giro maybe he needs to ease back on his race miles or stop going for the win in every event that he enters.

Now he has often said that he can't compete with the real climbers and that was the reason he usually simply rode conservatively but the Zoncolan showed that he can climb with the best. Climbs like the Zoncolan are the territory of the pure climbers that Evans supposedly fears yet he was able to outclimb all but one of his competitors. Evans can compete on any terrain. It seems he just needs to ration his efforts in the races leading up to his the grand tours.

+1 While I have an affection for Cadel and dislike the stirring/rolling that inevitably accompanies "Cadel" I recon constructive criticism, like this, is great!

 

[Angliru]

+1 While I have an affection for Cadel and dislike the stirring/rolling that inevitably accompanies "Cadel" I recon constructive criticism, like this, is great!

You'd probably retract that statement if you were to read the majority of my Evans related posts.

 

[Angliru]

Sometimes he wheelsucks because he simply can't do anything else, like in the Giro. This, I don't think anybody would hold against him. Other times, when he simply will not take the initiative in the situation, such as on Ventoux in the Dauphiné last year, is all about sucking wheels, and that's where his bad reputation comes from.

He's far from the worst wheelsucker in the péloton - José Serpa Pérez and Levi Leipheimer are two I can name off hand who are worse - but because he has the reputation for sucking wheels, people notice it more when it's Cadel. And other teams call him out for it more because he usually doesn't have a teammate up there, so it's more obvious.

Leipheimer is the crown prince of wheelsucking in my opinion. He gets in that little hunkered down position, finds that draft and attaches to that wheel like a barnacle to a ship.

 

[Kender]

And there we are with the excuses - Cuddles had to wheelsuck because he had no team support and was in the lead.

Cuddles ended up off the podium, with his smart, non-contributing tactics.

Vino had no team support, Scarponi had little team support, but they all worked at various points in the race.

If you think wheelsucking is smart tactics then fine, but don't try to claim that he doesn't wheelsuck and that he more often than not just follows in the mountains and doesn't contribute.

what a load of dribble

cadel pulled the entire peloton on several occasions, you gonna call the entire peloton wheel suckers?

vino was the bigest wheelsucker of the lot. he refused to do any work when he got into small groups. hell, even his whiole team wheelsucked while vino was in pink and should have been trying to pull back sastre and arroyo. biggest mistake of the giro

 

[biker jk]

No one is forcing you to read it. If you don't like it then put me on ignore. That way you can filter out all those people who have nasty negative opinions of your boy Cuddles.

Nah, why should I put you on ignore? Still waiting for your new material but judging by that "your boy Cuddles" line, I might be waiting for a very long time. In the meantime, have you wound up that clock yet?

 

[Mrs John Murphy]

Since you've used the clock line twice maybe you ought to look for some new material? Physician arise and heal thyself.

Why so sensitive about Cuddles?

 

[Boeing]

+1

loved dude when he hit the pro tour out of Mtn biking. then lost something

now after the Giro can't say enough about him

word

 

[karlboss]

Since you've used the clock line twice maybe you ought to look for some new material? Physician arise and heal thyself.

Why so sensitive about Cuddles?

So if you don't have the legs up a climb, where should you sit in the group?

 

[Ferminal]

So if you don't have the legs up a climb, where should you sit in the group?

In the Rabobus, behind the cameras.

 

[JA.Tri]

@Angliru

Some of your posts I have found less objective than others. But we all bring our own biases to the forum.

While some enjoy trolling (and my guess is you partake in a bit of baiting), for the most part I see your view as being reasonable (for a person not partial to Evans). I see Cadel to be a polarizing force as evidenced by the (sometimes) diametrically opposing views (that are vehemently held) on this thread.

When we observe cycling and see an incident we can choose to give benefit or otherwise to one/none, some or all of the participants. If I like a rider then I will likely diminish their culpability (others will not and some will demonize ).

To finish I enjoy reflecting on all the contributions, allowing me to put my own view in context.

 

[Nick777]

But he contributed nothing to that move, he basically wanted Basso, Nibali and Scarponi to tow him to the summit. If he had come to the front and done a turn, contributed to the break then I would have more respect. As it was he hung around like an unwanted house guest.

Nice try, but when climbing at speeds of less than 16-17kph, you encounter more mechanical resistance from the bike & friction from the road than you do from air resistance. Nothing is gained by 'wheelsucking'.

 

[delbified]

cadel is going to blow everyone into the weeds come july. his form is good this year and contadoper is due to take a fall. i predict a 4 minute victory.

 

[auscyclefan94]

cadel is going to blow everyone into the weeds come july. his form is good this year and contadoper is due to take a fall. i predict a 4 minute victory.

More likely ten minutes as graeme brown is going to bmc to be a supre domestique for cadel.

what a load of dribble

cadel pulled the entire peloton on several occasions, you gonna call the entire peloton wheel suckers?

vino was the bigest wheelsucker of the lot. he refused to do any work when he got into small groups. hell, even his whiole team wheelsucked while vino was in pink and should have been trying to pull back sastre and arroyo. biggest mistake of the giro

+1

Could it be his schedule? Or the intensity of his efforts in the races on his schedule? He is generally in the mix in virtually every event he enters with the exception of his 2009 Tour performance. If he's going to target a grand tour, be it the Tour or Giro maybe he needs to ease back on his race miles or stop going for the win in every event that he enters.

Now he has often said that he can't compete with the real climbers and that was the reason he usually simply rode conservatively but the Zoncolan showed that he can climb with the best. Climbs like the Zoncolan are the territory of the pure climbers that Evans supposedly fears yet he was able to outclimb all but one of his competitors. Evans can compete on any terrain. It seems he just needs to ration his efforts in the races leading up to his the grand tours.

If Savoldelli could won his 2nd Giro with minimal support why can't Evans win a grand tour the same way? Menchov hasn't had the strong support similar to teams like the current Liquigas, Shack and Saxo Bank and yet he has 3 grand tour wins. It is ALWAYS something with Evans:
-He gets sick.
-He crashes.
-A slow wheel change.
-He bonks.
-The Spaniards teamed up on him.
-and the standard "My team didn't support me like my opponents' teams did."

Evans isn't "the only one by himself". He's just the only one whose fans always use that excuse to cover for him.

Let me say that he's a great rider who performs at a high level throughout the season unlike several other pro's who I won't name but please come up with some new material.

Keep plucking that same old string on the violin Angliru!

 

[flicker]

Yeah Graeme Browne super climber ! yeh! Hope big George has the transfusion kit ready.

 

[Garry Allen]

Rupert Guiness had an article in the Sydney Morning Herald yesterday on Richie Porte available here Worth noting the comment at the bottom

''Cadel was just fantastic. He would always warn me for stuff coming up because he had done all the course reconnaissance and I hadn't. He is a pretty good human being if you ask me.''

I've followed Cadel since he was winning the MTB World Cups. I've been impressed with the way he has raced since he won the World Championships last year. And the way he took responsibility for not winning the giro this year. He was one of the riders who animated the race and helped to make it the great race it was.

 

[auscyclefan94]

Yeah Graeme Browne super climber ! yeh! Hope big George has the transfusion kit ready.

Hopefully you have the anaesthetic for when I cut your head open and give you a brain!