Tour of Oman - Muscat Classic 2024 , February 9-14

[Samamba]

if they are just going to use the 2nd half of the original stage tomorrow (distance would fit), it may actually lead to a more interesting day than planed. The big climb was likely to be ridden at slow pace anyway before, but with everyone fresh, it could be a different story.

It's Oman, everyone is fresh no matter the distance. They ride like 150W before the last km every day. It's basically the same stage.

EDIT: even worse than I thought, today the smaller guys did between 130 and 140W before the last 5km lmao. When someone asks "would you be able to follow the pro peloton" the answer is always "yes in Oman".

 

[Lequack]

So almost 800W for more than a minute, not too shabby

https://twitter.com/x/status/1756985884585423002

View: https://twitter.com/Domestique___/status/1756985884585423002

 

[hayneplane]

Not great camera work but it looked as though Magnier was trying to lead out Lamperti but was just too strong for the entire field.

 

[proffate]

So almost 800W for more than a minute, not too shabby

https://twitter.com/x/status/1756985884585423002

View: https://twitter.com/Domestique___/status/1756985884585423002

Power meters are a good training tool but knowing the pros' numbers for me takes away a lot of the romance. Like now we hypothetically know exactly who could have beat him if they were present. How many times did MVDP match that interval at Glasgow? Let me check my spreadsheet 🤓

And honestly it's never mind mind blowing because of course I expect a pro to have some high number. It's only relevant compared to other people who also have elite mitochondrial density. Mind blowing is when Mads Pedersen pulls all day then still outsprints everyone for his third win in a row. Like imagine if you were able to do that at just your local club run of weekend warriors and mamils. You'd feel like a demigod.

 

[search]

Not great camera work but it looked as though Magnier was trying to lead out Lamperti but was just too strong for the entire field.

yeah, in post race interview, Lamperti said that the plan was to sprint with himself

View: https://youtu.be/e0vNNkjZwAA?t=70

 

[Tim Cahill]

They're going to have trouble eventually if they keep sending those two to the same races, hopefully they will split their programs, far too strong and both deserve leadership.

 

[KZD]

Magnier and Lamperti are quite the duo, Quick-Step definitely did a good job in this transfer season but can't see the team holding them both in the long run.

 

[GenericBoonenFan]

Magnier and Lamperti are quite the duo, Quick-Step definitely did a good job in this transfer season but can't see the team holding them both in the long run.

You would think Specialized would prioritise the American prospect, whilst plenty of French teams should be fishing for Magnier's services.

 

[search]

In case anyone else was wondering why he has golf for breakfast: today the race is on a different channel:

AYN TV - البث المباشر

البث المباشر

ayn.om

 

[Squire]

Capiot not winning the most-top-10s-without-a-win this year.

 

[Faserr]

Where was Quick-Step? Big group at the end.

 

[Berniece]

Where was Quick-Step? Big group at the end.

I didn't understand their tactics. At a moment they were pacing the group when it was going uphill, but it was clear Lamperti wasn't feeling well because he almost dropped already. So I don't get why they kept pacing. Eventually Lamperti lost the GC.

 

[ingsve]

Johannes Kulsets results this season have been remarkably consistent. In 8 starts so far he has not been worse than 26th and not better than 16th.

He has finished 16, 26, 20, 21, 20, 17, 18, 16.

Hopefully he can get a top 15 finish in the last stage of Oman and at least that type of place in the GC as well.

It does show he has a good sense of keeping a good position in the peloton which is a good sign for him as a GC rider for the future.

 

[search]

he should be able to do better than that, I think. There are something like 5 good climbers in the race only.

 

[ingsve]

he should be able to do better than that, I think. There are something like 5 good climbers in the race only.

There's a few more than that I think. But ya a top 10 would be great for him.

 

[Roku]

he should be able to do better than that, I think. There are something like 5 good climbers in the race only.

I don't think he will go much better than a Top15:
UAE: Yates, Fisher-Black, Ulissi
Bora: Adria, Buchmann, Zwiehoff
Intermarche: Meintjes, Rota
Soudal: Hirt, Masnada, Vansevenant
Others: Barguil, Charmig, Herrada, Cristian Rodríguez, Kudus.

I see most of them finishing ahead of Kulset. I see him in the 13th-17th range.

Personally intrigued about Faure-Prost tomorrow.

 

[ingsve]

Based on Kulsets consistent results around 15-20 it got me thinking.

You are guaranteed to finish 15th in every single race you enter for your whole career other than GC which will be whatever it ends up with based on your 15th spots. Or you are guaranteed to win one race per year and nothing else and otherwise you finish at the back of the field like above 100th place.
What would you choose?

 

[Roku]

Based on Kulsets consistent results around 15-20 it got me thinking.

You are guaranteed to finish 15th in every single race you enter for your whole career other than GC which will be whatever it ends up with based on your 15th spots. Or you are guaranteed to win one race per year and nothing else and otherwise you finish at the back of the field like above 100th place.
What would you choose?

Hard to choose between the Monfort way (except for his early-days setback when he managed a couple of GC wins) and the (Steve/Stephen) Cummings-Williams route.

 

[ingsve]

Personally intrigued about Faure-Prost tomorrow.

I had hoped to get some GC points from Gil Gelders tomorrow but he lost almost 3 minutes today so that chance is basically gone.

 

[Squire]

Based on Kulsets consistent results around 15-20 it got me thinking.

You are guaranteed to finish 15th in every single race you enter for your whole career other than GC which will be whatever it ends up with based on your 15th spots. Or you are guaranteed to win one race per year and nothing else and otherwise you finish at the back of the field like above 100th place.
What would you choose?

Unless that one win is a massive one most of the years, 15th in every race is much better for optimizing your earnings as a pro. That can even bag you some GC wins in the right circumstances. Could actually be a fun exercise to try and find a race where 15th in every stage would win you the race. One where a big breakaway went on one or several stage(s) might be a candidate.

 

[Netserk]

Based on Kulsets consistent results around 15-20 it got me thinking.

You are guaranteed to finish 15th in every single race you enter for your whole career other than GC which will be whatever it ends up with based on your 15th spots. Or you are guaranteed to win one race per year and nothing else and otherwise you finish at the back of the field like above 100th place.
What would you choose?

Riding for myself to get a result or helping my teammates? Goes for both cases.

Of course, breakaways means that you can get a very good GC position by always being 15th. In the Tour last year, it'd give you a GC result around 6th thanks to stage 19.

EDIT: I suspected the 2017 Tour would give a good result, and with a quick estimate I think you'd be 2nd in the end.

 

[ingsve]

Riding for myself to get a result or helping my teammates? Goes for both cases.

Of course, breakaways means that you can get a very good GC position by always being 15th. In the Tour last year, it'd give you a GC result around 6th thanks to stage 19.

EDIT: I suspected the 2017 Tour would give a good result, and with a quick estimate I think you'd be 2nd in the end.

I was thinking 2001 would be a good year but there were only 14 riders in the break that got 35 minutes and 15th was with the peloton.

 

[ingsve]

I was thinking 2001 would be a good year but there were only 14 riders in the break that got 35 minutes and 15th was with the peloton.

With 2001 how it was then 15th on all stages would have been 6th in GC. However if we allow 15th to have the same finishing time as no 14 on stage 8 rather than be first in the peloton then we would end up winning that Tour by 12:49,

 

[Armchair Cyclist]

Fausto Masnada came 15th in the non-hypothetical world this morning, and I guess that once Capiot had stayed with that group I guess the sprint was a foregone conclusion. I didn't see any of it, but I do like seeing the mix of riders in a top ten and thinking, "what the hell sort of race was that?"

 

[Logic-is-your-friend]

You would think Specialized would prioritise the American prospect, whilst plenty of French teams should be fishing for Magnier's services.

I think i read Magnier had a lot of interest from French teams before signing with SQS, but he sent them packing because the year before, when his results were not as great, they didn't want him.

As for now, to be honest, he seems to be the biggest talent of the two. If he leaves, it's not going to be for AG2R imho. If the team can develop them alongside each other and bond them, it might be an interesting option to keep them both. Merlier is 30, i'm not sure they're going to hang on to him for another 2 to 3 years. Kind of doubt it. He also wants to ride the TDF which is not going to happen anymore now at SQS. On the other hand, the two youngsters might be willing to wait another few years before they feel the need to do the TDF. If they get along well, who knows, the current dynamic might work great for a few seasons. Sending both to the same races, have them lead-out each other depending on who has the legs or who the finish suits best. They might not need a dedicated train, just strong guys that fit a GC team as well, to drop them off in the final few kms. It would certainly give the team a few easy wins each season and extra versatility without having to invest in a dedicated sprint team like they did in the past.