Stage 20: Saturday May 26th, Caldes/Val di Sole - Passo dello Stelvio 219km

[Another_Dutch_Guy]

Seems to me, the forum dwell in a bad mood rather on the occasion of weak Scarponi and Basso than a boring racing or I'm wrong? In my view, the Giro is pretty good so far.

I think your right. At Pampeago the field was shattered, but still nobody was able to create a significant gap.

Buy yeah, it's a pity that Basso and Scarponi are not able to do a better job.

 

[Libertine Seguros]

Yeah, kinda gave up on CN forums by now. The amount of negativity is quite overwhelming. Came here this morning to get psyched up for todays stage, and all you get is whine over how boring this Giro has been.

Sometimes makes you wonder why most posters bother watching cycling. Everything that isn't a HC MTF is apparently a snoozefest. And when one actually shows up people are expecting the favourites to do epic style attacks from 100+km.

Yea, because Aprica is really HC.

In fact, too many HC MTFs ruin racing because everybody's scared of them, so leave it until then.

I'm sorry, point me to where the great excitement in this Giro that I've overlooked has been, and maybe I'll change my tune. But so far I've seen most stages reduced to a group ride until the last few kilometres, and the race has only just begun in earnest... and it's the final weekend. For two weeks nothing happened, then for a week... little has happened.

 

[Lanark]

Yeah, kinda gave up on CN forums by now. The amount of negativity is quite overwhelming. Came here this morning to get psyched up for todays stage, and all you get is whine over how boring this Giro has been.

Sometimes makes you wonder why most posters bother watching cycling. Everything that isn't a HC MTF is apparently a snoozefest. And when one actually shows up people are expecting the favourites to do epic style attacks from 100+km.

I don't think it has anything to do with the CN forums. Other forums (in different languages) complain just as much about this Giro being boring. Hell, I talked to my dad yesterday, who hasn't visited a forum in his life, and he said he thought this wasn't a good Giro. I think wherever you look, the vast majority of people aren't satisfied with this Giro. And why would they? We've seen perhaps 10km of real racing by the favorites.

 

[Gloin22]

A sprinter hasn't won this jersey since 2008

Indeed. and how would that serve Cav meat puppet ? If he didn't crash twice he would have won this easily, just matter of luck. As well as that Cav when he came here said he never expected to win points jersey here and came to take as many wins as possible and make it to Milan as his objectives

 

[airstream]

I think we should wait for the Tour and look. If it will be something similar to the Giro high mountain action, then probably that's cycling we are doomed to watch in the coming years. Natually all this requires rethinking. Although, I don't see any difference between this and say the 2008 Giro in terms of spectacle.

 

[Eshnar]

I don't think it has anything to do with the CN forums. Other forums (in different languages) complain just as much about this Giro being boring. Hell, I talked to my dad yesterday, who hasn't visited a forum in his life, and he said he thought this wasn't a good Giro. I think wherever you look, the vast majority of people aren't satisfied with this Giro. And why would they? We've seen perhaps 10km of real racing by the favorites.

^^
I'm quite satisfied I didn't see one single post in any italian forum claiming this is a good Giro (or single stage).

 

[One Eyed Aussie]

I haven't minded this Giro as much as some people here have, but I do understand where the criticism is coming from.

As things stand all the contenders have been shepherded around the entire course by their teams except for the last few kilometres of the MTF's.

Can anyone comment on the merit of reducing the size of the teams in the race so the individual strength of the GC contenders could more truly be put to the test?

Has it always been nine riders per team in a GT?

Anyway I am hoping for a good spectacle today and I would like to see an English speaking rider win the race.

Also can I presume todays stage will be the longest (time-wise) in this years race?

 

[Eshnar]

I haven't minded this Giro as much as some people here have, but I do understand where the criticism is coming from.

As things stand all the contenders have been shepherded around the entire course by their teams except for the last few kilometres of the MTF's.

Can anyone comment on the merit of reducing the size of the teams in the race so the individual strength of the GC contenders could more truly be put to the test?

Has it always been nine riders per team in a GT?

Anyway I am hoping for a good spectacle today and I would like to see an English speaking rider win the race.

Also can I presume todays stage will be the longest (time-wise) in this years race?

In this very year, surely.

 

[Thibaut Pinot]

Nice breakaway: Slagter, Kreuziger, Denifl, Zaugg, Caruso, Samoilau, Kristoff, Vandevelde, Rabottini, Frank, Serpa, Kreuziger, Perget and Bono.

Kreuziger is possibly still a little bit to close to the maglia rosa to give this group a free pass.

 

[Eshnar]

Nice breakaway: Slagter, Kreuziger, Denifl, Zaugg, Caruso, Samoilau, Kristoff, Vandevelde, Rabottini, Frank, Serpa, Kreuziger, Perget en Bono.

Kreuziger is possibly still a little bit to close to the maglia rosa to give this group a free pass.

Who, Roman or his twin brother?

 

[Sophistic]

what he hell is Van de Velde in the breakaway?with Kreuziger in the group, he should be helping Hesjedal back in the bunch.

 

[Libertine Seguros]

Who, Roman or his twin brother?

Poor tactics. Roman should have one of himself in the break, but keep the other Roman in the péloton, so he will be fresh and able to attack if they are able to bring the other him back.

 

[Eshnar]

poor tactics. Roman should have one of himself in the break, but keep the other roman in the péloton, so he will be fresh and able to attack if they are able to bring the other him back.

................

 

[LaFleur]

Poor tactics. Roman should have one of himself in the break, but keep the other Roman in the péloton, so he will be fresh and able to attack if they are able to bring the other him back.

I thought they were triplets? They should have 1 more Roman in the pack.

 

[Thibaut Pinot]

Poor tactics. Roman should have one of himself in the break, but keep the other Roman in the péloton, so he will be fresh and able to attack if they are able to bring the other him back.

LOL

Clement, Losada and Amador have joined the breakaway.

 

[roundabout]

what he hell is Van de Velde in the breakaway?with Kreuziger in the group, he should be helping Hesjedal back in the bunch.

They are probably looking for him to help Hesjedal after the Mortirolo.

 

[wirral]

That break is looking good for Cav in his awesome quest for the full hat-trick of points jerseys. Too early to say though.

 

[Thibaut Pinot]

Slagter is going to do a "Garate-action" today, for sure: Preventing this Grand Tour to become a totale failure for Rabobank by winning the last mountain stage on a legendary climb!

 

[DominicDecoco]

No way they can let that break go?!

 

[wirral]

No way they can let that break go?!

Let it go, let it go, let the break go.

Don't say too much. The DS's could be reading this.

 

[Mellow Velo]

Nice. Good group and they appear to have got the gap. 1'-45" should now see them go clear.

Back to the "negative" Giro speak.

Take today: We all think the Mortirolo is the place to attack, right?
So, which is better. Put another big climb in before it and finish in Aprica,
or follow it with the Stelvio?
I know which I think is the more likely to trigger the early action we all desire.

Business men know a lot about business, but not a lot about designing great GT courses.

 

[Waterloo Sunrise]

3 minute gap and rising - they're gone.

 

[Red Rick]

I keep saying, Monte Baldo from torbole, the road needs asphalting, as it's concrete but i think it's harder then mortirolo, then replace Stelvio by Monte Stivo (and remove the 20km in between also), which is harder than Zoncolan. No need to attack from 60km cause at 60km riders will be all over the place anyway

 

[hrotha]

Finally, we might get a strong breakaway. And Caruso moving - maybe Liquigas will have woken up. Then again, I guess it's more likely they told him to do his thing since Basso simply can't win.

I can sort of understand those who say we couldn't have expected a better race (I disagree, but their argument has some merit). But to say the race we're seeing has been *good*? That's got to be trolling or something.

PS: Ryo, why are Sky's Colombians so thoroughly tamed.

 

[Bernie's eyesore]

That's got to be one of the strongest breakaway groups seen in a long time.