Ronda al Pais Mexicano (Fantasy Tour)

[Eric8-A]

Like jobiwan, I too created a route for a fantasy race of my own.

Lupetto introduced this website here (Tracks4Bikers check it out, it's a pretty neat site.

The organizers decided to create a race that can be up there with the likes of the Vuelta a Colombia and the Vuelta a Venezuela, but with the addition of having some world class riders and teams.

TV Azteca presents:

 

[Eric8-A]

Sponsors

 

[Eric8-A]

This race will NOT have any time bonuses at the line, or in an intermediate sprint.

For the points competition, there will be one intermediate sprint point that's worth 15 points, along with the one at the finish line that will earn the first placed rider, 40 points. For the first grab at the points, the points will only be awarded for the first 5 riders. They'll go from 15, 9, 7, 5, 3, 1. For the finish line, it will be like this: 40, 35, 28, 21, 17, 13, 8, 4, 1. For TT's, medium mountain, and mountain stages, I will follow the TdF format.

KoM will be pretty much the same as the TdF.


Course

Prologue: Bahia, San Lucas (ITT) 3.71 km
Stage 1: Guaymas - Hermosillo 138.33 km
Stage 2: Mexicali - Baja California 186.17 km
Stage 3: Zacatecas - Durango 150.05 km
Stage 4: Culiacan, Sinaloa 173.47 km
Stage 5: Mazatlan, Sinaloa 106.84 km
Stage 6: Guadalajara, Jalisco 157.46 km
Stage 7: Puerto Vallarta (ITT) 19.81 km
Stage 8: Coahuila, Nuevo Leon 102.51 km
Stage 9: Oaxaca - San Juan 138.23 km
Stage 10: Poza Rica - Puebla 123.59 km
Stage 11: Campeche - Sabancuy 151.59 km
Stage 12: Baja California 131.78 km
Stage 13: Leon, Guanajuato (ITT) 53.10 km
Stage 14: Mexico City 99.65 km

 

[Eric8-A]

Startlist

Mexico National Team

1. Julio Alberto Perez
2. Luis Fernando Macias
3. Juan Pablo Magallanes
4. Ignacio Sarabia
5. Antonio Aldape
6. Jose Andres Sanchez
7. Moises Aldape
8. Jose Antonio Ochoa


Movistar Team

11. David Arroyo
12. Rui Costa
13. Ivan Gutierrez
14. Carlos Oyarzun
15. Francisco Ventoso
16. Vasil Kiryienka
17. Andrey Amador
18. Jesus Herrada


EPM-UNE

21. Giovanny Baez
22. Rafael Infantino
23. Mauricio Ortega
24. Juan Pablo Suarez
25. Eduard Beltran
26. Leonardo Oyola
27. Ramiro Parra
28. Javier Gomez


Sky ProCycling

31. Michael Rogers
32. Davide Appollinio
33. Christian Knees
34. Alex Dowsett
35. Greg Henderson
36. Michael Barry
37. John-Lee Augustyn
38. Moris Possoni


Geox-TMC

41. Carlos Sastre
42. Rafael Valls
43. Giampaolo Cheula
44. Marcel Wyss
45. Fabio Felline
46. Matteo Pelucchi
47. Xavier Florencio
48. Arkaitz Duran


Garmin-Cervelo

51. Thor Hushovd
52. Tom Peterson
53. Sep Vanmarcke
54. Brett Lancaster
55. David Millar
56. Peter Stetina
57. Martijn Maaskant
58. Michel Kreder


Rabobank

61. Stef Clement
62. Lars Boom
63. Bram Tankink
64. Tom Leezer
65. Theo Bos
66. Pieter Weening
67. Jos van Emden
68. Sebastian Langeveld


Pro Team Astana

71. Andry Grivko
72. Allan Davis
73. Paolo Tiralongo
74. Franseco Masciarelli
75. Valentin Inglinski
76. Assan Bazayev
77. Andrey Zeits
78. Roman Kireyev


Team Radioshack

81. Yaroslav Popovych
82. Sebastien Rosseler
83. Jesse Sergent
84. Philip Deignan
85. Robert Hunter
86. Robbie McEwen
87. Manuel Cardoso
88. Ivan Rovny


Androni Giocattoli

91. Jose Rujano
92. Jose Serpa
93. Roberto Ferrari
94. Carlos Jose Ochoa
95. Jackson Rodriguez
96. Angel Vicioso
97. Emanuel Sella
98. Riccardo Chairini


SpiderTech-C10

101. Flavio De Luna
102. Svein Tuft
103. Lucas Euser
104. Guillaume Boivin
105. Zachary Bell
106. Keven Lacombe
107. Will Routley
108. Pat McCarty


Jamis-Sutter Home

111. Luis Amaran
112. Tom Zirbel
113. Anibal Borrajo
114. Alejandro Borrajo
115. Jamey Driscoll
116. Andy Guptill
117. Tyler Wren
118. Guido Palma


BMC Racing Team

121. Matthias Frank
122. Johan Tschopp
123. Martin Kohler
124. Danilo Wyss
125. Karsten Kroon
126. Alexander Kristoff
127. Greg Van Avermaet
128. Chad Beyer


Euskaltel-Euskadi

131. Jorge Azanza
132. Jonathan Castroviejo
133. Javier Aramendia
134. Romain Sicard Abandoned
135. Pablo Urtasun
136. Mikel Landa
137. Ion Izagirre
138. Miguel Minguez


UnitedHealthcare

141. Rory Sutherland
142. Christian Meier
143. Karl Menzies
144. Scott Zwizanski
145. Hilton Clarke
146. Charles Wegelius
147. Morgan Schmitt
148. Robert Forster


Saxo Bank-Sunguard
151. Laurent Didier
152. Juan Jose Haedo
153. Sebastian Haedo
154. Gustav Larsson
155. Nick Nuyens
156. Brian Vandborg
157. Jonas Aen Jorgensen
158. Jaroslaw Marycz


HTC-Highroad

161. Marco Pinotti
162. Frantisek Rabon
163. Hayden Roulsten
164. Matthew Brammeier
165. Caleb Fairly
166. Patrick Gretsch
167. Leigh Howard
168. Gatis Smukulis

Jelly Belly p/b Kenda

171. Bernard Van Ulden
172. Brad Huff
173. Jeremy Powers
174. Ken Hanson
175. William Dickeson
176. Sergio Hernandez
177. Nic Hamilton
178. Sean Mazich Abandoned


Team Type 1 - Sanofi Aventis

181. Rubens Bertogliati
182. Alexander Efimkin
183. Laszlo Bodrogi
184. Kiel Reijnen
185. Jure Kojcan
186. Martijn Verschoor
187. Ivan Melero
188. Valery Kobzarenko

 

[Eric8-A]

Prologue: Bahia, San Lucas 3.71 km

The Ronda begins with a relatively short prologue. Something to get the legs of the riders going before the two weeks of racing ahead of them. Starting in the beautiful stae of Cabo, there will be nothing but beach next to the riders in this prologue.

 

[Eric8-A]

Catching up with the riders

Some teams arrived two days ago. Could it have been to check out the course for the prologue? Or could it be to just catch some sun and lazy it out on the beach?

I havn't rode the course yet. I'm actually going now. It's a pretty short one, and it ends close to the hotels where most teams are staying at. So you can say that the rider that wins tommorow is the one that's most anxious to get back to the hotel. - Tom Zirbel

I was third at the prologue in the Eneco tour. This one's shorter than it. It all depends on how I feel tomorrow. We're pretty close to the beach, so the wind can play a crucial part. We've also brought Thor along who's also a candidate to win tomorrow. - David Millar

Another person that the riders are looking to to win the prologue is Rabobank's Lars Boom. He's won the prologue in the Tour of Qatar and the Criterium du Dauphine. Both of which were relatively short time trials.

 

[Eric8-A]

September 1: Prologue Bahia San Lucas, 3.71 kms

Boom Goes The Dynamite!

Just as the majority of riders coming in today predicted, Rabobank's Lars Boom once again powered to victory to snatch the prologue of the inagural Ronda al Pais Mexicano.

Jamis Sutter-Home's Alejandro Borrajo was the first rider to roll out of the start ramp, setting the first time of the day. Surprisingly, his time stood for a relatively long time until Radioshack's Jesse Sergent claimed the virtual top step of the podium. But this was still early on, and many of the big hitters for the win were yet to roll out.

As far as the battle of the GC contenders goes, Team Sky's Michael Rogers was the best placed of all. Rogers comes into this race as Team Sky's leader and based on his result today, is looking pretty good. But this is still just the prologue, there's two weeks of racing ahead of him.

Results

1. Lars Boom
2. David Millar +2"
3. Scott Zwizanski
4. Patrick Gretsch
5. Thor Hushovd
6. Jesse Sergent +5"
7. Brett Lancaster
8. Davide Appollinio
9. Jonathan Castroviejo +8"
10. Vasil Kiryienka +9"


16. Michael Rogers +14"

Classifications

Leaders Jersey (White): Lars Boom

Telcel Points Leader (Green): Lars Boom

Best Young Rider (Blue): Patrick Gretsch

 

[greenedge]

Nice race thread. I think the favourites would be Rogers, Rujano, Efimkin, Sutherland, Infantino and Satre. Thor to win at least 2 stages.

 

[Eric8-A]

I'll put tomorrow's stage profile shortly. It's one that can suit Thor pretty good.

 

[Eric8-A]

Stage 1

Stage 1 of La Ronda al Pais Mexicano is 138.33 km stage starting in the state of Sonora. The route will take the riders down interstate 15, before ending atop of the Cerro de la Campana in Hermosillo. This finish will take the riders round and round on a 2.02% ascent for the final 5 kilometers. If the riders are going to want to claim the stage, and possible inherit the white leaders jersey, they're going to have to battle it out in the finish. Thor Hushovd lies only 2 seconds behind the race lead. And with riders like Brett Lancaster, David Millar, Martijn Maaskant, he looks poised to take the stage win and the race lead. But there are others who surely will not let him have it that easy.

A view of the finish

More stage info

 

[Eric8-A]

September 2: Stage 1, Guaymas-Hermosillo 138.33 kms

Van Avermaet wins the stage. Thor takes lead from Boom

The first road stage of the Ronda took place in the state of Sonora.

The break was started 8 kilometers into the stage. A break of 6 riders including Tom Peterson, Francesco Masciarelli, Svein Tuft, Charles Wegelius, Jose Antonio Ochoa, and Jeremy Powers managed to gain a lead of close to 4 minutes, making Jelly Belly's Jeremy Powers the virtual leader on the road. Jeremy came into the day 33 seconds back on Lars Boom.

Back in the chasing group, Rabobank was keeping Lars Boom well sheltered with Garmin-Cervelo right on their tails. After yesterday's time trial, reigning world champion Thor Hushovd was looking to get the win today along with the race lead.

18 kilometers to go, and the break was caught by the work that was being done by Rabobank. With 10k's to go, Jeremy Powers attacked once again and made it to the start of the Cerro de la Campana with an advantage of 12 seconds. In the back, David Millar was driving the chase, hoping to set up the world champion for the stage win. Lars Boom had Tom Leezer with him there to help him up.

For the moment, the center of attention were both the Rabobank and Garmin-Cervelo teams, as they looked to see who attacked first. Further up ahead, Jeremy Powers was looking to get a solo victory as there was no reaction from the chasing group.

Taking advantage of the pace being set by Martijn Maaskant, BMC's Greg Van Avermaet launched an attack, quickly gaining a gap of 300 meters with Thor finally reacting, jumping off Martijn's wheel to pursue the Belgian. Lars Boom however was unable to react to the attack, as he was unable to close the gap.

4k to go, Thor caught up with Greg, as they both passed Powers along the way. The two riders seemed to work in unison until Greg put in another attack with 2k to go. This time, the attack stuck as rode away from the big Norwegian to solo to the win by the margin of two seconds.

Results

1. Greg Van Avermaet
2. Thor Husvhod +2"
3. Nick Nuyens +4"
4. Jeremy Powers
5. Sebastien Rosseler +9"
6. Christian Meier
7. Michael Rogers
8. Flavio De Luna
9. Lars Boom +10"
10. Michel Kreder

General Classification

1. Thor Hushovd
2. Lars Boom +2"
3. Sebastien Rosseler +8"
4. Christian Meier
5. Michael Rogers +23"
6. Nick Nuyens +28"
7. Juan Pablo Suarez +29"
8. Yaroslav Popovych +34"
9. David Millar
10. Romain Sicard +41"

Michael Rogers still looks to be the best placed amongst the other future GC contenders. With today's stage, there were some King of the Mountain points which were awarded to Greg Van Avermaet, making him the first KoM leader.

Classifications

Leaders Jersey (White): Thor Hushovd

Telcel Points Leader: Thor Hushovd

Best Young Rider (Blue): Romain Sicard

Corona King of the Mountains: Greg Van Avermaet

Most Aggressive Rider: Jeremy Powers

 

[Swede1]

Well since Gilbert's not in the race I guess Van Avermaet will take the hilly stages.

I'm waiting to see what Rujano can do!

 

[Eric8-A]

Stage 2: Mexicali-Baja California 186.17 kms

Stage two brings on some average climbing. Nothing too big. What's interesting about this stage is that it take the riders on the roads of La Rumorosa. La Rumorosa is a highway in the desert that's known for it's dangerous roads. Over the past decades, there have been a number of accidents that have resulted in cars falling onto the canyons below. It's slim roads, the curves of the road, and the reckless driving of people are usually the causes for these accidents. As for the riders, they should be good as they're going up these roads instead of down.

 

[Swede1]

Ill go with Hushovd for this one.

 

[Eric8-A]

Post-Race

I'm very happy with the win. When we reached the Cerro de la Campana it was mainly Rabobank and Garmin on the front. Thor had Martijn and Kreder with him, and I was behind them. When I attacked, it did take Thor some time to react. I don't think he saw that coming. I think he was too focused on Boom. When we were close to the finish, I knew I didn't want him to get there with me as I felt like he would have beat me on a one on one sprint, so I dug in once more and attacked, and it worked. - Greg Van Avermaet


I think I was too locked onto Lars Boom that I didn't realize Greg was on my wheel. He was clearly fresher as he was taking advantage of my wheel. He played it smart today. Tommorow I have another chance to go for a win. I'll definately be more motivated with the white jersey. David, Martijn, and Michel did good work for me towards the finish, I'm sure they'll do the same for tomorrow. - Thor Hushovd

Being in the break was great. We had Svein Tuft there who did some long pulls. I crossed the line first at the intermediate sprint point. I just felt really good today. I had a pretty good prologue yesterday. I really liked the finish for today. That's why I attacked in the finale. But I think I overdid it a bit because I felt my body blow up with like 4k to go. When Greg and Thor passed me, I thought I would have been able to hang with them, but I just didn't have it. But the way I rode today, being in the break, getting those points, putting in an attack, and finishing behind the winner of the Tour of Flanders, I can't complain much. The most aggressive award is somewhat of a consolation. - Jeremy Powers

 

[Eric8-A]

Stage 2: Mexicali-Baja California 186.17 kms


The God of Thunder Lays it Down at La Rumorosa

After a second place at yesterday's stage, Thor Hushovd sprinted to victory on the roads of La Rumorosa.

Given that there was a slight bit of uphill for the riders pretty early on in the stage, no real break was given the leash. Some attacks were made, but were reeled in pretty quick. Because of this, it also allowed Thor Hushovd to cross the line first at the intermediate sprint, increasing his lead in the points competition.

As the riders got over the one bump in the road, Androni's Carlos Ochoa and Ignacio Sarabia of the Mexican national team broke away and took advantage of the small descents and cruvy roads of the route to get a good gap on the leading group.

When it came time for the teams to start assembling themselves to setup their sprinters, the black jerseys of Garmin-Cervelo were present on the front with David Millar drilling it on the front.

In the sprint, Roberto Ferrari was first to unleash his sprint. Ferrari took off with 500 meters to go. The other riders fighting for the stage were still behind a rider from their team. With 250 meters left, Thor swung off Maaskant's wheel and passed the Italian to steal the stage collecting even more points in the points competition.


Results

1. Thor Hushovd
2. Roberto Ferrari
3. Robbie Hunter
4. Allan Davis
5. Juan Pablo Suarez
6. Leigh Howard
7. Will Routley
8. Lars Boom
9. Greg Van Avermaet
10. Robert Forster


General Classification

1. Thor Hushovd
2. Lars Boom +2"
3. Sebastien Rosseler +8"
4. Christian Meier
5. Michael Rogers +24"
6. Nick Nuyens +28"
7. Juan Pablo Suarez
8. Yaroslav Popovych +34"
9. David Millar
10. Romain Sicard +41"

Jerseys

Leaders Jersey (White): Thor Hushovd

Telcel Points Leader (Green): Thor Hushovd

Best Young Rider (Blue): Romain Sicard

Corona King of the Mountains: Greg Van Avermaet

Most Agressive Rider: Carlos Ochoa

Team Classification: Radioshack

 

[Eric8-A]

Stage 3: Zacatecas-Durango 150.05 kms

Following a prologue, most stage races follow that up with a flat stage suited for the sprinters. But this hasn't been the case in this race. After the prologue, the first two road stages suited riders that have an extra kick to be able to sprint just as fast going uphill, and we saw that with Thor and Greg taking the previous two stages. But stage three will be the first real opportunity for the sprinters to have their shot at a win. Thor Husvhod is fresh off a win in stage 2 and will most likely be the key sprinter for Garmin-Cervelo. But competition will be coming in the form or Rabobank's Theo Bos. There are also four pretty fast Argentinian riders in the race. The two Haedo brothers from Saxo Bank, and the two Borrajo brothers from Jamis Sutter-Home. There will also be Robert Forster, Ken Hanson, and Astana's Allan Davis to name a few more. It's not likely that the peloton's going to let a breakaway to get away as they will be looking to get a victory for the team.

A scenic view of the national park in which the riders will start stage three. The Parque Nacional Seirra de Organos

Obelisco a Guadalupe Victoria. A monument that the riders ride into Durango

Catedral Basilica Menor. During the race, riders will be passing through a good number of churches. Here's one.

 

[Swede1]

Yes! I knew it! Hushovd!

 

[Eric8-A]

September 4: Stage 3 Zacatecas-Durango 150.05 kms

Bos Sprints to Victory in Durango

Yesterday we saw some of the fast men in the race making their presence known. But with today's stage, it would be the first time that the spectators would get treated to the first real sprint finish of this race. World Champion, and points leader Thor Hushovd has been consistent since day one, being in the top 5 since the prologue, also claiming a stage yesterday.

Rabobank's Theo Bos proved to be the best man of the day today, outsprinting the World Champion and the Kiwi Greg Henderson to claim victory in the first real stage for the sprinters in this race. Theo was nowhere to be seen in the fight for the points in the intermediate sprint, but was present in the runin to the finish. Astana's Paolo Tiralongo claimed maximum points in the intermediate sprint due to his breakway actions. There were no KoM points given for today, so Greg Van Avermaet can enjoy another day in that jersey.

Saxo Bank-Sunguard came into this race with the Haedo brothers as their sprinters. Many though that they would rely on JJ Haedo as their main sprinter, with his younger brother aiding in leadouts, but that wasn't the case when JJ punctured with 12k to go, leaving the younger Haedo to sprint into a top 10 finish.

As for the GC riders, there really wasn't a need to fight for position today. All they needed to worry about was that they finished safely within the bunch.


Results

1. Theo Bos
2. Thor Hushovd
3. Greg Henderson
4. Robbie McEwen
5. Allan Davis
6. Sebastian Haedo
7. Allan Davis
8. Ken Hanson
9. Anibal Borrajo
10. Leigh Howard

General Classification

1. Thor Hushovd
2. Lars Boom +2"
3. Sebastien Rosseler +8"
4. Christian Meier
5. Michael Rogers +24"
6. Nick Nuyens +28"
7. Juan Pablo Suarez
8. Yaroslav Popovych +34"
9. David Millar
10. Romain Sicard +41"

Jerseys

Leaders Jersey (White): Thor Hushovd

Telcel Points Leader (Green): Thor Hushovd

Best Young Rider (Blue): Romain Sicard

Corona King of the Mountains: Greg Van Avermaet

Most Agressive Rider: Paolo Tiralongo

Team Classification: Radioshack

 

[Eric8-A]

Stage 4: Culiacan, Sinaloa 173.47 kms

Got home a bit late. Too lazy to do a summary on this, but it looks to be another one for the sprinters.

 

[greenedge]

Tell ACF about GVA winning, something.

 

[Eric8-A]

September 5: Stage 4 Culiacan, Sinaloa 173.47 kms


Bos Doubles up in La Ronda!

After a stage win in yesterday's stage, Theo Bos has proved so far that he is the boss so far in the sprints in La Ronda. With two back to back wins, Theo Bos is now rivaling Thor Hushovd in the points competition.

The day saw Greg Van Avermaet getting into the break early on in the stage to snatch the early KoM points that were set almost 10k into the stage. The came the descent. Greg, satisfied with the KoM points, slowly eased in back into the peloton, as the break took advantage of the descent to increase their advantage.

Euskaltel's Romain Sicard and Jelly Belly's Sean Mazich had to abandon today after a pileup towards the end of the descent. A number of riders went down, but managed to get back on their bikes with minor road rash. Mazich on the other hand, couldn't manage to walk right as he had a nasty limp to his walk. He tried getting back on his bike, but said that he couldn't turn the pedals because of his leg. Romain Sicard was leading the best young rider classification. The former U-23 World Champion has faced a lackluster season and was looking to put that aside in this race, but all that changed with that crash.

And just like yesterday, we saw the blue and orange colors of the Rabobank team with Theo Bos getting back-to-back stage wins, making him the first double stage winner of the race.

For the first time in this race, Thor Hushovd was outside of the top 10, crossing the line at 11th place.

Results

1. Theo Bos
2. Juan Jose Haedo
3. Leigh Howard
4. Brad Huff
5. Jure Kocjan
6. Alexander Kristoff
7. Allan Davis
8. Fabio Felline
9. Robbie McEwen
10. Roberto Ferrari

General Classification

1. Thor Hushovd
2. Lars Boom +2"
3. Sebastien Rosseler +8"
4. Christian Meier
5. Michael Rogers +24"
6. Nick Nuyens +28"
7. Juan Pablo Suarez
8. Yaroslav Popovych +34"
9. David Millar
10. Gustav Larsson +1:01"

Jerseys

Leaders Jersey (White): Thor Hushovd

Telcel Points Leader (Green): Thor Hushovd

Best Young Rider (Blue): Jesse Sergent

Corona King of the Mountains: Greg Van Avermaet

Team Classification: Radioshack

 

[Eric8-A]

Stage 5: Mazatlan, Sinaloa 106.83 kms

Relatively short stage. Pretty flat. Sprinters get to have another showdown here. The race stays in the state of Sinaloa, traveling over to the city of Mazatlan.

Considered to be one of the 13 Wonders of Mexico, the riders will surely have a great stage today as the stage will stay relatively close to the coast. Stage 5 will finish on the Faro Mazatlan, adjacent to the Isla de la Piedra. Both places are close to the water and are places where boats come to dock. The last kilometer will give the riders two bends, one right and one left. The right one coming first will be the hardest of the two, with the left hander coming in with less than 200 meters. It may be somewhat of a tricky finish with those turns and if there's any winds coming in from the coast. Theo Bos has won the two previous stages, will be be able to pull off the hat trick?

Views of some of the sights the riders will pass through

El Faro. The finish

Isla de la Piedra

 

[Eric8-A]

I saw a UHC rider get wobbly during the descent. His rear wheel sort of slipped to the left. He didn't fall, but the rider behind him touched his wheel, causing to fall. Considering the speed that we were going in, those behind that rider shared the same fate. I fell hard on my side. As I got up, there was a sharp pain in my hip. Aside from the fall, I was also demoralized. My season hasn't been very good, having the jersey of best young rider, I thought all that was going to go away. It's a shame to abandon this race, I was really enjoying my time here. -Romain Sicard

 

[greenedge]

No Theo Won't. He has to wait till Mark Renshaw comes to Rabo before he learns how to position himself.