Team Sky

[Anonymous]

I get asked even more now why I shave my legs, I still don't have an answer beyond "Because everbody else does in the sport"!

Becuase its a hell of lot easier to treat a wound that isnt full of matted hair, than one that is..

Its also of course much easier to massage smooth legs than hairy ones

 

[blackcat]

I get asked even more now why I shave my legs, I still don't have an answer beyond "Because everbody else does in the sport"!

just say the bo!locks are smoother.

 

[Anonymous]

just say the bo!locks are smoother.

Oh, the old "cos hairy legs look stupid with shaved balls" defence...

 

[pedaling squares]

Agreed, but as a passionate UK cycling fan, for me it's a real shame that such a wonderful (almost undreamt of) thing as a UK registered Pro Cycling team is being so controversial. When you love a sport so much but for so long have only had fleeting moments of national pride over the decades things do get a bit emotional.

I guess some of the blame for this is self-inflicted with the PR around the team, some of the comments and actions of Wiggins, Swift etc are definitely debateable. But the truly special opportunity for the UK guys to feel part of something that is for the most part a progression of the British Cycling journey is understandable for me.

The reality is that the critical mass UK public probably won't take to Pro Cycling at the level of Football (Soccer) etc and this will only last a number of years before cycling slips back into oblivion.

Could some of you guys give us a break and let us Brits enjoy this while it lasts

One good thing about Sky, they will bring new fans to the sport. Some will drift away, depending on the mood lighting, but some will stick around during good times and bad. I say welcome.

Oh, the old "cos hairy legs look stupid with shaved balls" defence...

No pictures please dim.

 

[Potomac]

It has nothing to do with Murdoch, or the riders, or anything British. It is the nationalistic unconditional love for the team that triggers the distaste (aka "hate" to hyperbolic posters.)

The team isn't British.
The team's best rider isn't British.
Britain's best rider isn't on it.
It is in its first season so it is being loved without having establishing any racing history or identity.

For the record I don't hate Team Sky, nor do I hate its supporters. I'm just pointing all this gushing, and seemingly misplaced gushing, is sure to breed critics (aka haters).

 

[lobsterboyuk]

It has nothing to do with Murdoch, or the riders, or anything British. It is the nationalistic unconditional love for the team that triggers the distaste (aka "hate" to hyperbolic posters.)

The team isn't British.
The team's best rider isn't British.
Britain's best rider isn't on it.
It is in its first season so it is being loved without having establishing any racing history or identity.

For the record I don't hate Team Sky, nor do I hate its supporters. I'm just pointing all this gushing, and seemingly misplaced gushing, is sure to breed critics (aka haters).

Some good points well made, but since when has love made any sense?

 

[Anonymous]

Some good points well made, but since when has love made any sense?

three of my favourite riders are at sky (ebh and gt, in fact you can put russ downing in that catagory as well), its essentially a british base, sponsored by BskyB a british company more commonly known as sky, and with british coaches, and the brightest prospect in cycling is there who also happens to be british.

and some of us have been waiting for this since anc halfords.

 

[lobsterboyuk]

Of course Sky is a British team, they drive Jags and have Marks and Spencer as a sponsor. All they need now is Royal Appointment to her Majesty the Queen and the argument is over

ANC Halfords, absolute heroes to be enshrined forever in British cycling history, my earliest memories of cycling and the TdF revolved around these guys and Adrian Timmis was at our club dinner in the very early nineties

 

[dsut4392]

Agree completely, the sky riders have actually said little, it's the media and shoulder chipped riders like hunter and Hammond who are being petulant.

Fair enough, it's only Wiggo who has been opening his trap.

 

[Anonymous]

Fair enough, it's only Wiggo who has been opening his trap.

links?

The team have some great riders, but they need to stop talking out their arses, start pulling their weight, and start letting results speak for themselves, or this won't be the last time they get shafted by the peloton. Gentlemens' rules only apply to gentlemen...

although i did ask for links before.. you see without them i might think your talking out your

 

[blackcat]

if they pick up Nibali, they will be the best team in the peloton next year.

Boasson,
Wigans
G
Augustyn
Lovqvist
Froome
Kennaugh
Arvesen
Cummings

that is my A team.

 

[Anonymous]

if they pick up Nibali, they will be the best team in the peloton next year.

That would be interesting. If Wiggo wants to be more like LA, I wouldn't want to be Nibali in the AC position!

I'm looking forward to seeing how they do in the Tour. If Wiggo lives up to hype, hopefully GT having a breakthrough, and if EBH produces the form we're starting to believe he can, they could have a great one.

 

[Cerberus]

if they pick up Nibali, they will be the best team in the peloton next year.

Boasson,
Wigans
G
Augustyn
Lovqvist
Froome
Kennaugh
Arvesen
Cummings

that is my A team.

If they pick up Nibali they'll have to second tier contenders for the GC some decent helpers and a sprinter (or whatever you want to call EBH) who while talented has yet to prove he can content for mass sprints of a Grant Tour (AKA beat Cavendish). It's a perfectly respectable team, but it's not remotely the best of the Peloton.

 

[blackcat]

if you give them Bruyneel's medical program, they will be the best team. Guarantee it.

 

[Cerberus]

if you give them Bruyneel's medical program, they will be the best team. Guarantee it.

Should I take the fact that you need to introduce a hypothetical Clinic related performance boost, from a DS who's not in actually affiliated with Team Sky, to justify your claim, as a tacit admission that the team you envision is not in fact the strongest in the Peleton?

 

[blackcat]

I just reckon, that Kennaugh, Augustyn, Thomas, and Froome will show themselves as phenomenal talents they are, and Brailsford will work wonders.

And I have a big soft spot for Cummings. Think he can do well too, and he will get under the radar.

 

[Cerberus]

I just reckon, that Kennaugh, Augustyn, Thomas, and Froome will show themselves as phenomenal talents they are, and Brailsford will work wonders.

And I have a big soft spot for Cummings. Think he can do well too, and he will get under the radar.

They might have promise, but I'll take proven performance over promise any day of the week. Saxo Bank can bring a team with a proven performance that's strogner than Sky almost man for man, and many of their rider are also quite young, so can Radioshack (even if the top dogs are getting a bit long in the tooth so perhaps they'll might no be so strong in 2011). Liquigas also has a strong team even without Nibali as has Caisse, though I know less about those teams

 

[sublimit]

Sky are packed with proven race winners and with Brailsford in charge on top of that.

Saxo have some talented riders but i get the feeling Sky will be like the UK track team where they look to crush everybody. Maybe a couple more riders can be brought in next year, its not just a one year project.

 

[luckyboy]

If Nibali went to Sky, Wiggins would be helping him surely?

Also, I really hope Leaky win a GT this year. It'll be interesting to see how Sky and the riders develop over the coming seasons.

 

[Mambo95]

If Nibali went to Sky, Wiggins would be helping him surely?

Not unless Nibali suddenly becomes British he won't. Besides, didn't Wiggins beat Nibali last year?

 

[luckyboy]

He'll (hopefully) improve his TTing this year. He lost 40 seconds to Wiggins on the TTT and 1'23" on the final TT stage.

I thought he could get onto the podium last year - he would've been 3rd if he had Wiggins' TT times. Anyway, this year's course has less TT kms - 59 compared to last year's 95.

I'm gonna say he'll get 3rd after AC and Schleck (everything being well of course).

Hope he doesn't go to Sky anyway.

 

[Credive]

I'm gonna say he'll get 3rd after AC and Schleck (everything being well of course).

Hope he doesn't go to Sky anyway.

I'm actually looking forward to see Kreuziger for the tour. If everything goes according to the plan i think he could match Nibali.
Also Basso stated that he has the most experience and should be the captain

 

[Christian]

Is it just me, or does everyone hate Sky already, including the peloton? I wanted to like them, but I just can't do it.

I definitely feel like they are rather disliked by cycling-fans as well as in the peloton.
To me, they just seem like the cycling version of Chelsea London, even though Wiggins compared them to ManU.

Oh, by the way - today on the live stream on france3.com, they were talking about how Sky's team cars attracted a lot of people at the start of the Tour du Haut Var, and that they were by a "known british manufacturer". Does anyone know who provides the cars for them? Aston Martin??

Anywho, I wonder whether Sky will have success in the long shot, or whether it would have been better to start out small and build up the team slowly.

What's also interesting is that for example Katusha, who also have a crapload of money, don't seem to be disliked by spectators or in the peloton. I personally like them because they started out more slowly and quietly and don't seem so agressive as Sky.

 

[BroDeal]

Oh, by the way - today on the live stream on france3.com, they were talking about how Sky's team cars attracted a lot of people at the start of the Tour du Haut Var, and that they were by a "known british manufacturer".

The cars are actually by a known Indian manufacturer.

 

[Christian]

Sorry I'm probably missing the joke here - don't know anything about cars - so what's the brand?