Robbie McEwan - Cycling Australia

[Old School]

Aussie Aussie Aussie....Ey Ey Ey!

Robbie woulda been toasted...not his type of race...maybe 7 years ago...not now.

 

[hrotha]

I don't get why Davis would be one of the main guys for Australia.

Because, as far as sprinters go, Davis climbs pretty well.

 

[boardhanger]

http://maps.google.com/maps?hl=en&tab=wl&q=challambra%20cress%20geelong

Just googled the street view of the climb in Geelong. Its savage. No true 'sprinter' will get over it. Have a look for yourselves.

 

[waccampbell]

http://maps.google.com/maps?hl=en&tab=wl&q=challambra%20cress%20geelong

Just googled the street view of the climb in Geelong. Its savage. No true 'sprinter' will get over it. Have a look for yourselves.

On my Garmin it gets upto 18% just near the top, it's not that bad though. But I guess after 10-16 times, whichever it was they go up it that it would start to hurt.

 

[boardhanger]

On my Garmin it gets upto 18% just near the top, it's not that bad though. But I guess after 10-16 times, whichever it was they go up it that it would start to hurt.

It looks like the sprinters will not make it up here after so many laps???

 

[M Sport]

I just read that Robbie McEwan is not in the Aussie team for the Worlds. This decision is beyond belief, he is currently in great form, in the twilight of his career, and the Worlds are in Australia. They owe it to him to let him ride.

I don't subscribe to the point of view of giving someone a ride in a race like the World Championships for the sake of services rendered over the past decades. It has to be picked on form. That is form to be a contender. Or form in being able to support that contender.

Robbie has no chance of winning whatsoever. That should have been perfectly clear to everyone.

 

[Michele]

Because, as far as sprinters go, Davis climbs pretty well.

Yep, but Id rather bring someone who can deliver as well.

 

[Sasquatch]

Imagine the backlash if Cooke is selected!

Take into account the Commonwealth Games squad, who were listed in the final fifteen, it leaves.

Evans, Gerrans, Haussler, Rogers, Goss, O'Grady, Sulzberger, Hansen, Cooke

Unless they give Porte both the RR, TT and Comm Games RR. I can't justify Cooke in the team who has done ****** all this year.

 

[auscyclefan94]

Imagine the backlash if Cooke is selected!

Take into account the Commonwealth Games squad, who were listed in the final fifteen, it leaves.

Evans, Gerrans, Haussler, Rogers, Goss, O'Grady, Sulzberger, Hansen, Cooke

Unless they give Porte both the RR, TT and Comm Games RR. I can't justify Cooke in the team who has done ****** all this year.

That would be squad except obviously with cooke out porte in.

Riders from Europe will need to get used to the weather we also get a lot of pollen from canola feilds that can cause breathing troubles in spring the Wattle pollen also plays havoc if your not used to it.

other isues like ultra violet and swooping magpies etc all make this a different race.

Well that means contador is out of it.

 

[Nearly]

That would be squad except obviously with cooke out porte in. QUOTE]

I'd agree but I would have selected Robbie instead of Richie. Maximises options even if Robbie is an outside one.

 

[Nearly]

.... and swooping magpies etc all make this a different race.

Leave the Magpies out of this as they will have done all the necessary swooping on Geelong the weekend before!

 

[Sasquatch]

Leave the Magpies out of this as they will have done all the necessary swooping on Geelong the weekend before!

Magpies will choke like Rasmussen did in the 2005 Tour.

 

[ultimobici]

http://maps.google.com/maps?hl=en&tab=wl&q=challambra cress geelong

Just googled the street view of the climb in Geelong. Its savage. No true 'sprinter' will get over it. Have a look for yourselves.

Might want to reconsider its significance. Gent Wevelgem has a lot of cobbled climbs of similar steepness as well as a lot of wind.

http://www.gent-wevelgem.be/fileadmin/DOCS/parcours-gw-2010.pdf

A few sprinters have won too

Cippolini x 3!
Eisel
Vanderaerden

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gent–Wevelgem

So don't assume that a sprinter can't or won't be there at the end for the win.

 

[Sasquatch]

So don't assume that a sprinter can't or won't be there at the end for the win.

Been over the course many times. There is no way a sprinter will contest the win.

If the wind stays around like we've had in Victoria the last few weeks, the run into Geelong will see half the peloton eliminated. Even if it doesn't, there is no way a sprinter will contest the win.

If Australia were smart, they would have a rider in the break early on. Same with most other countries.

 

[boardhanger]

The google street view of that climb clearly shows that the sprinters won't get over this especially mulitpule time.
http://maps.google.com/maps?hl=en&ta...ress%20geelong

 

[LukeSchmid]

I heard a radio report today that suggested that Goss and Davis were going to be the sprinting options and that the team will be announced tommorrow.

 

[ultimobici]

The google street view of that climb clearly shows that the sprinters won't get over this especially mulitpule time.
http://maps.google.com/maps?hl=en&ta...ress geelong

Google earth shows a 500m long ramp that is beautifully paved and is unlikely as steep as a Garmin suggests. European based pros used to Belgian & Dutch courses will have no problem.

Seem to remember a lot of people said the Cipressa, Poggio & Turcino would see off Cavendish in 2009. Ask Haussler about that, eh?

 

[Ferminal]

Google earth shows a 500m long ramp that is beautifully paved and is unlikely as steep as a Garmin suggests. European based pros used to Belgian & Dutch courses will have no problem.

Seem to remember a lot of people said the Cipressa, Poggio & Turcino would see off Cavendish in 2009. Ask Haussler about that, eh?

What about Cav in 2010? Likewise Farrar and EBH? McEwen in Hamburg? Stop picking out random examples and attempting to compare them to the Geelong course. How does a cobbles specialist winning a classic in March have anything to do with sprinters on a hilly worlds course?

Sure there's a chance there will be a bunch sprint and a traditional pack sprinter will win, but let's not get caught up in things with ridiculously low probabilities. There's also a chance that a rider from Taiwan will win but no one is suggesting that...

 

[on3m@n@rmy]

Let's be serious, McEwen is never going to make a final selection on the day, he didn't even make the sprint in Hamburg! Robbie has been a great finisher on days for sprinters, but he's not a sprinting all-rounder, or a man who can put in a fast finish from a select group.

In the provisional squad, there is Davis, Goss, Haussler, Renshaw, McEwen and Sutton as "sprinters". Haussler is a faster sprinter, Davis and Goss are better over difficult terrain whilst Renshaw is basically a sprinter's Super Dom. Sutton is not quite good enough as a teammate or a sprinter to be considered for selection.

Whilst I have enormous amounts of respect for Robbie's career and his achievements, as well as his efforts this season, there is no way I could see him picked ahead of the other four. Any selection would simply be a token selection and a "home farewell", but it's clear Cycling Australia have not gone down that avenue.

I also like Robbie and agree he'd be hard to pick ahead of the others. Besides the 8 names already mentioned like Cadel, O’Grady, Davis, Goss, Haussler, Renshaw, Rogers and Sutton there are 6 others to vie for the remaining slots (9 total): Baden Cooke and Richie Porte (Saxo Bank); Simon Gerrans and Matt Hayman (Team Sky); Wesley Sulzberger (Française des Jeux); plus Adam Hansen (HTC Columbia). Not including Robbie that's 14 other guys. So it is a pretty competitive group with quantity in numbers and quality. Even Sulzberger, at age 23, has gotten some stage wins in smaller races, and was 5th overall in the 2009 TDU.

 

[Dewulf]

I also like Robbie and agree he'd be hard to pick ahead of the others. Besides the 8 names already mentioned like Cadel, O’Grady, Davis, Goss, Haussler, Renshaw, Rogers and Sutton there are 6 others to vie for the remaining slots (9 total): Baden Cooke and Richie Porte (Saxo Bank); Simon Gerrans and Matt Hayman (Team Sky); Wesley Sulzberger (Française des Jeux); plus Adam Hansen (HTC Columbia). Not including Robbie that's 14 other guys. So it is a pretty competitive group with quantity in numbers and quality. Even Sulzberger, at age 23, has gotten some stage wins in smaller races, and was 5th overall in the 2009 TDU.

+1

And for anyone who hasn't looked at the course, cyclingtips have a great video (see link below), ridden with one of the Skil-Shimano guys as well as some local A grade riders and one of our best female riders. It's edited to show you the key points, but gives you a really good look at anything important - goes for about 13 minutes.

When you see the climbs, which both need to be tackled 11 times (that's the number of laps), that should end any talk of a true sprinter having a chance at this.

Also negative comments about Baden are misplaced - his job at Saxo is now domestique, he's not meant to be winning races (usually) so to say he's done nothing this year is...*sigh* yeup. He could therefore ride to get say, Gerro in position, whilst that would not be a role Robbie could fill really.

BTW Hassler's blog on THIS website makes it pretty clear he's not really in condition to go for the win or even support, even though this would be an ideal course for him if he wasn't catching up due to the knee. Other riders mentioned in the quoted post are great choices in his place really.

http://www.cyclingtipsblog.com/2010...eam-for-the-worlds-–-a-good-problem-to-have…/

 

[on3m@n@rmy]

+1

And for anyone who hasn't looked at the course, cyclingtips have a great video (see link below), ridden with one of the Skil-Shimano guys as well as some local A grade riders and one of our best female riders. It's edited to show you the key points, but gives you a really good look at anything important - goes for about 13 minutes.

When you see the climbs, which both need to be tackled 11 times (that's the number of laps), that should end any talk of a true sprinter having a chance at this....

http://www.cyclingtipsblog.com/2010...eam-for-the-worlds-–-a-good-problem-to-have…/

Yup. A couple of kick a$$ climbs in that vid. Mine anyway!

 

[mORGAN]

I also like Robbie and agree he'd be hard to pick ahead of the others. Besides the 8 names already mentioned like Cadel, O’Grady, Davis, Goss, Haussler, Renshaw, Rogers and Sutton there are 6 others to vie for the remaining slots (9 total): Baden Cooke and Richie Porte (Saxo Bank); Simon Gerrans and Matt Hayman (Team Sky); Wesley Sulzberger (Française des Jeux); plus Adam Hansen (HTC Columbia). Not including Robbie that's 14 other guys. So it is a pretty competitive group with quantity in numbers and quality. Even Sulzberger, at age 23, has gotten some stage wins in smaller races, and was 5th overall in the 2009 TDU.

IF you look at the OZ CWG squad Men’s CWG Road

Allan DAVIS (Bundaberg, QLD 27.07.1980)
Mathew HAYMAN (Araluen, NSW/ACT 20.04.1978)
Richie PORTE (Hadspen, TAS 30.01.1985)
Mark RENSHAW (Bathurst, NSW 22.10.1982)
Chris SUTTON (Sylvania, NSW 10.09.1984)



My pick for the 9 riders are :
Cadel, Dodger, O'Grady, Goss, Gerrans, Hansen, Hayman, Haussler and Wes

 

[Ferminal]

The team is announced today, keep your eyes on twitter/cyclingaus website.

 

[danjo007]

oh ffs. you people are experts with google earth.. i live here,i ride the roads, and id put robbie ahead of 4 other riders in the current squad.

and i watch the vid just now.. nice piece of exaggerating.

 

[Sasquatch]

Team:

'Cyclones' - Elite Men

Road Race

Baden COOKE (Benalla, VIC 10.12.1978 / Saxo Bank)
Allan DAVIS (Bundaberg, QLD 27.07.1980 / Astana)
Cadel EVANS (Barwon Heads, VIC 14.02.1977 / Team BMC)
Simon GERRANS (Jamieson, VIC 16.05.1980 / Team Sky)
Matthew GOSS (Cressy, TAS 05.11.1986 / HTC-Columbia)
Mathew HAYMAN (Araluen, NSW/ rep ACT 20.04.1978 / Team Sky)
Stuart O'GRADY OAM (Unley Park, SA 06.08.1973 / Saxo Bank)
Michael ROGERS (Garren, ACT 20.12.1979 / HTC-Columbia)
Wesley SULZBERGER (Flowery Gully, TAS 20.10.1986 / Francaise des Jeux)

Time Trial
Richie PORTE (Hadspen, TAS 30.01.1985 / Saxo Bank)
Michael ROGERS (Garren, ACT 20.12.1979 / HTC-Columbia)

Long Team - Elite Women
Ruth CORSET (Condon, QLD 09.05.1977 / Tibco)
Tiffany CROMWELL (Upper Sturt, SA 06.07.1988 / Lotto Ladies Team)
Shara GILLOW - (Belli Park, QLD 23.12.1987)
Rochelle GILMORE (Stanwell Tops, NSW 14.12.1981 / Lotto Ladies Team)
Amber HALLIDAY (Norwood, SA 13.11.1979)
Chloe HOSKING (Campbell, ACT 01.10.1990 / HTC Columbia)
Emma MACKIE (Jindera, NSW/ rep QLD 09.09.1984)
Rachel NEYLAN - (Adelaide, SA 09.03.1982)
Bridie O'DONNELL (Jan Juc, VIC 29.04.1974 / Valdarno) Oceania Time Trial Champion
Alexis RHODES (Henley Beach, SA 01.12.1984) Oceania Road Race Champion
Carla RYAN (Teneriffe, QLD 21.09.1985 Cervelo Test Team)
Amanda SPRATT - (Springwood, NSW 17.09.1987)
Carlee TAYLOR - (Happy Valley, SA 15.02.1989)
Vicki WHITELAW (Dunlop, ACT 02.01.1977 / Lotto Ladies Team)

Elite women riders have until close of business this Friday 27 August to lodge appeals against non-selection in the long team. The final team for elite women will be announced on 14 September.

The U23 men's team was announced earlier this month and are listed below for reference.

'Cyclones' - U23 Men

Road Race

Nick AITKEN (Wonthaggi, VIC 01.01.1990 / Jayco-Skins)
Luke DURBRIDGE (Bassendean, WA 09.04.1991 / Jayco-Skins)
Joseph LEWIS (Gloucester, NSW 13.01.1989 / Drapac)
Michael MATTHEWS (Farrer, ACT 26.09.1990 / Jayco-Skins) Oceania Road Race Champion
Timothy ROE (Hallett Cove, SA 28.10.1989 / Trek-Livestrong)
Malcolm RUDOLPH (Oakhurst, QLD 04.01.1989 / Jayco-Skins)

Time Trial

Rohan DENNIS (Vale Park, SA 28.05.1990 / Team Jayco-Skins)
Luke DURBRIDGE (Bassendean, WA 09.04.1991 / Team Jayco-Skins)
Michael MATTHEWS (Farrer, ACT 26.09.1990 / Team Jayco-Skins) Oceania Time Trial Champion)