Tenerife

[Dear Wiggo]

Andy is off the Mallorca to "train". Why do I think we'll see an improvement in form when he's back?

Was thinking on my ride this morning: what's the bet Andy has a good Tour ;-)

 

[Wallace and Gromit]

Was thinking on my ride this morning: what's the bet Andy has a good Tour ;-)

Well he's never done a bad GT, and assuming he's recovered from last year's crash, the overwhelming probability is that he will ride at the sharp end of this year's Tour so I think your "bet" is a good one, though your odds might be quite short.

 

[Ride to forget]

Well he's never done a bad GT

2010 Vuelta?

 

[Ferminal]

I dunno, going H2H with Stuey mate in the pub is a pretty good effort.

 

[Dear Wiggo]

Well he's never done a bad GT, and assuming he's recovered from last year's crash, the overwhelming probability is that he will ride at the sharp end of this year's Tour so I think your "bet" is a good one, though your odds might be quite short.

Based on his current attitude / ability, I'd say a Giro would be ended by stage 3 for the younger Schleck. A good Tour from here will be a dramatic turn around, IMO. Of the order of a Wiggins finishing Olympics, going on a blinder then 8 months later coming 3rd/4th behind Dopestrong et al.

 

[Don't be late Pedro]

Of course you CAN win a Grand Tour clean.

On the proviso that the entire field is clean.

Well, you have said that you think Basso won the 2010 Giro clean, no? If so, he must have been lucky that the entire field was clean that year.

 

[Ride to forget]

I dunno, going H2H with Stuey mate in the pub is a pretty good effort.

I stand corrected

 

[Wiggo Warrior]

Based on his current attitude / ability, I'd say a Giro would be ended by stage 3 for the younger Schleck. A good Tour from here will be a dramatic turn around, IMO. Of the order of a Wiggins finishing Olympics, going on a blinder then 8 months later coming 3rd/4th behind Dopestrong et al.

He came 3rd/4th in 2005? I must have missed that!

Certainly sounds like no bender went on in 2008 from this
http://www.cyclingweekly.co.uk/news/latest/436524/bradley-wiggins-the-transformation.html

or this

http://www.guardian.co.uk/sport/2012/jul/20/bradley-wiggins-commitment-win-tour-france

Particularly referencing Matt Parker's words here in the second one so clearly he noticed the difference in the two transitions.

To be so switched on in 2009 was quite remarkable, says Parker. "He had just come off a two- or three-year Olympic campaign, but he didn't miss a beat that next year. Before, he had continually switched from road to track and back again, but now he didn't have to keep making the transition. He had never been far off it on the road. He had incredible power, and in 2009 he stripped down in terms of weight."

 

[thehog]

He came 3rd/4th in 2005? I must have missed that!

Certainly sounds like no bender went on in 2008 from this
http://www.cyclingweekly.co.uk/news/latest/436524/bradley-wiggins-the-transformation.html

or this

http://www.guardian.co.uk/sport/2012/jul/20/bradley-wiggins-commitment-win-tour-france

Particularly referencing Matt Parker's words here in the second one so clearly he noticed the difference in the two transitions.

Great! A quote from the PR guy Matt Parker.

No doubt full of substance

 

[Fearless Greg Lemond]

I have been thinking. What if The Bradster/Contador/Schleck/Armsfullofdope all would have went to Tenerife in The Bradster maiden year as a GT contender, what would that have given for a Tour de farce?

Tenerife must be a happy place. Fourth behind 2 known and convicted dopers when only training in Girona and England, training in Tenerife and you will win la Tour.

Vaughters is pulling his hair out by now.

 

[Dear Wiggo]

He came 3rd/4th in 2005? I must have missed that!

You've been following cycling for 6 months yeah? You'll get the hang of it eventually.

Certainly sounds like no bender went on in 2008 from this
http://www.cyclingweekly.co.uk/news/latest/436524/bradley-wiggins-the-transformation.html

or this

http://www.guardian.co.uk/sport/2012/jul/20/bradley-wiggins-commitment-win-tour-france

Particularly referencing Matt Parker's words here in the second one so clearly he noticed the difference in the two transitions.

I have not read your links, so don't feel the need to read mine.

http://road.cc/content/news/51252-b...olympic-double-stephen-roche-queries-team-sky

By his own admission, Wiggins had a reputation as a party animal – gold medals in the individual and team pursuits at Beijing in 2008 were celebrated by his going on a bender that Oliver Reed would have been proud of – but with his 32nd birthday looming, he is aware he is running out of time to achieve his ambitions on the road.

 

[blackcat]

You've been following cycling for 6 months yeah? You'll get the hang of it eventually.



I have not read your links, so don't feel the need to read mine.

yeah, will hang himself

 

[Zam_Olyas]

Altitude training.

Commentary: Disputing Ferrari’s altitude training claims, part 1


http://velonews.competitor.com/2013...rraris-altitude-training-claims-part-1_275249

 

[Wiggo Warrior]

You've been following cycling for 6 months yeah? You'll get the hang of it eventually.

I have not read your links, so don't feel the need to read mine.

That sounds like he's talking about the bender actually in Beijing where he narrowly avoided getting arrested. (My copy of the book hasn't arrived yet to check the detail. Amazon messed up.) If it was it doesn't need to have taken months to get over that.

I have already read your link, I like that site, it has some good articles and is one of my regular haunts.

I'm back to watching track at the moment for the WC, but I enjoyed TDU and Oman TV coverage is patchy on some of the others though.

 

[Froome19]

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-21550591

There is obviously something in the air in Tenerife.

 

[DirtyWorks]

Hahaha. It seems like Sky and Tenerife hasn't lost a bit of it's magic.

given that its Classics squad will forgo both Paris-Nice and Tirreno-Adriatico in order to prepare for the monuments with a training camp in Tenerife.

Het Nieuwsblad and Kuurne-Brussel-Kuurne are thus the final competitive outings for Thomas, Bernhard Eisel and Edvald Boasson Hagen before they line up at Milan-San Remo in three weeks' time

As for what will happen behind away from the cameras at the Tenerife training camp, Knaven was keeping his cards close to his chest,


Away from the cameras, away from the dope testers, where the effects of "altitude" are awesome..

http://www.cyclingnews.com/news/thomas-tests-flanders-mettle-at-omloop-het-nieuwsblad

 

[sniper]

Hahaha. It seems like Sky and Tenerife hasn't lost a bit of it's magic.

given that its Classics squad will forgo both Paris-Nice and Tirreno-Adriatico in order to prepare for the monuments with a training camp in Tenerife.

Het Nieuwsblad and Kuurne-Brussel-Kuurne are thus the final competitive outings for Thomas, Bernhard Eisel and Edvald Boasson Hagen before they line up at Milan-San Remo in three weeks' time

As for what will happen behind away from the cameras at the Tenerife training camp, Knaven was keeping his cards close to his chest,


Away from the cameras, away from the dope testers, where the effects of "altitude" are awesome..

http://www.cyclingnews.com/news/thomas-tests-flanders-mettle-at-omloop-het-nieuwsblad

I'd really like to know whether Sky get OOC tested whilst on Tenerife, or whether the UCI freecard exempts them.
CN/Benson should keep a check on that and make a headline if it turns out there was no OOC testing.

And what is Knaven doing at Sky?
Never tested positive. ffs.

This is insulting. Sky is insulting.

 

[Ferminal]

Sky have a Zero Tolerance policy, obviously if Knaven doped he wouldn't be there still.

 

[del1962]

Sky have a Zero Tolerance policy, obviously if Knaven doped he wouldn't be there still.

Not quite.

If he did not sign the piece of paper he would not be there, and if Sky has no evidence he doped then even if they have suspicions there is nothing they can do about it.

 

[Don't be late Pedro]

Well, Thomas' fate is sealed if he does well in the classics now.

 

[Ferminal]

Well, Thomas' fate is sealed if he does well in the classics now.

Doubt it unless he's up there with Boonen, Cancellara, Pozzato.

 

[Don't be late Pedro]

Doubt it unless he's up there with Boonen, Cancellara, Pozzato.

Or those 3 are up with there with Thomas

 

[Ferminal]

Yes, hopefully Pozzato has been able to find some decent training plans post-Schumi, otherwise he may not be able to compete with the mighty Thomas.

 

[Netserk]

Well, Thomas' fate is sealed if he does well in the classics now.

Thomas' fate was already sealed

 

[del1962]

Thomas' fate was already sealed

At least in the minds of many in the clinic