Can't say I agree on that one. Thor could very well win P-R, only Cancellara and Boonen are better than him in my opinion and as we all know, there's some luck involved in P-R as well...El Pistolero said:
El Pistolero said:
Well he's got 3rd and 2nd in PR, won a cobbled stage in TdF, won Gent Wevelgem. So I think that's a pretty bold statement.
El Pistolero said:
He's won a TdF prologue, and a couple of smaller ones too I think. If you mean in the future, yes then I probably agree.
The Hitch said:
Yeah well, maybe next year with some luck and help from his Garmin team he can wheelsuck Spartacus and take 1st...
A sprint finish. This is what you get when you put the finish line in the same place than last year, but with 6 more flat km in between the KOM and it. Last year, the climb was 11,6km away of the finish. ¿This year? 17,5km.
And i don't know why Unipublic keeps ignoring the beautiful roads that surrounds the begining of Cresta del Gallo, with some uphill bits that would make the stage a lot more interesting. For example, an alternative finish could be this:
http://tracks4bikers.com/tracks/show/19420
And i don't know why Unipublic keeps ignoring the beautiful roads that surrounds the begining of Cresta del Gallo, with some uphill bits that would make the stage a lot more interesting. For example, an alternative finish could be this:
http://tracks4bikers.com/tracks/show/19420
- Jul 16, 2010
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kanari said:
Sprinters can win prologues. Come back when he wins a real time trial at the Tour.
- Jul 16, 2010
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hrotha said:
It's not like Hushovd excels at time trials or anything. Which was my point =/
And it's not like he regularly wins these prologues.
Boonen took second place once in a Vuelta prologue behind Cancellara. Doesn't mean he's a good time trial specialist...
I agree he's never gonna win a longer time trial in a grand tour now. But earlier in his career he was actually a very decent TT'er, he was U23 TT world champ, and he was awesome when Credit Agricole won that TTT in TdF.
As for winning prologues: well, if you win one in TdF you are beating the world's best TT'ers in a time trial. (Albeit a short one). There is a reason Cancellara keeps winning them.
As for winning prologues: well, if you win one in TdF you are beating the world's best TT'ers in a time trial. (Albeit a short one). There is a reason Cancellara keeps winning them.
hrotha said:
How many sprinters has become 7th in an Olympic time trial as a 22-year-old ( the ones who beat him was Ekimov, Ullrich, Armstrong, Olano, L. Jalabert, Teteriuk). And how many sprinters are U23-time-trial champion?
Well Thor Hushovd at least.
- Jul 16, 2010
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kanari said:
That doesn't really mean all that much though. Jurgen van den Broeck was also an U23 TT world champ.
tgsgirl said:
I remember reading somewhere he wanted to start training for them again.
Well as I see it Hushovd has never been a pure sprinter, although he has unsuccessfully tried to become one for some reason. The biggest mistake of his career was to focus on becoming a sprinter instead of practising his time trial and classic skills. In 2000, he was perhaps the biggest time-trial talent in cycling.
He has won a few pure sprints though, such as champs-elysees in 2006, but most of Hushovd's sprint victories are uphill. And to you who claim Hushovd excels at nothing; well, he excels in uphill finishes like the ones he won in TDF 2009, 2008 and 2004, which were slightly too easy for the likes of Valverde, but yet too hard for the other sprinters (interesting fact: both Hushovd's 2004 and 2008 TDF stages were won in front of Kim Kirchen)
He has won a few pure sprints though, such as champs-elysees in 2006, but most of Hushovd's sprint victories are uphill. And to you who claim Hushovd excels at nothing; well, he excels in uphill finishes like the ones he won in TDF 2009, 2008 and 2004, which were slightly too easy for the likes of Valverde, but yet too hard for the other sprinters (interesting fact: both Hushovd's 2004 and 2008 TDF stages were won in front of Kim Kirchen)
El Pistolero said:
TT is special. To really excel at elite level you'll have to have shown the capacity early on and then dedicated yourself to TT'ing for a period of four- to five years to really mature. Hushovd didn't go that route, and asking for a TT-win now is like expecting a classic ballet dancer to excel at street-dance.
Thor is a great athlete, and this year is a year in transit on his way to become a Hard Man for the Classics.
The Worlds may be his venue this year, but then again not, as there's any number of factors that come into play. You can be sure of one thing, though, he's dedicated, with an all-the-time increasing ability to read and understand the tasks at hand. I wouldn't be the least surprised if he wins the Worlds this year.
Ok, mildly surprised, then.
- Jul 16, 2010
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theyoungest said:
Same meaningless victory anyway.
hektoren said:TT is special. To really excel at elite level you'll have to have shown the capacity early on and then dedicated yourself to TT'ing for a period of four- to five years to really mature. Hushovd didn't go that route, and asking for a TT-win now is like expecting a classic ballet dancer to excel at street-dance.
Thor is a great athlete, and this year is a year in transit on his way to become a Hard Man for the Classics.
The Worlds may be his venue this year, but then again not, as there's any number of factors that come into play. You can be sure of one thing, though, he's dedicated, with an all-the-time increasing ability to read and understand the tasks at hand. I wouldn't be the least surprised if he wins the Worlds this year.
Ok, mildly surprised, then.
I never said Hushovd couldn't become a good TT specialist if he trained for it, but he didn't, so he isn't a good TT specialist. At least in my opinion.
He's a decent sprinter, decent classics guy, decent time trialist, but he just doesn't excel in these aspects. He should just focus on one thing, and if I were him I'd focus on the classics.
- Feb 20, 2010
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Remember that the end of the second ITT was on the Valencia Street Circuit, so it still had chicane barriers and the like.
- Jul 30, 2009
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Nice win for Thor. He seems to have attracted quite a bit of negative comment towards the end of this thread - I guess that's what you get for being the buffest guy in the peloton, especially in the Norway jersey.
(Ooops we can talk about that can we)
Even as a Sky fan the idea that he wheelsucked Flecha at P-R LOL And he won the best and toughest stage of the TdF this year I doubt it was 'cadeaux'.
A class act.
Garmin-Cervelo must win a decent amount of classics next year with the team they will have, it will be awesome
(Ooops we can talk about that can we
)Even as a Sky fan the idea that he wheelsucked Flecha at P-R LOL And he won the best and toughest stage of the TdF this year I doubt it was 'cadeaux'.
A class act.
Garmin-Cervelo must win a decent amount of classics next year with the team they will have, it will be awesome
- Jun 14, 2010
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Winterfold said:Nice win for Thor. He seems to have attracted quite a bit of negative comment towards the end of this thread - I guess that's what you get for being the buffest guy in the peloton, especially in the Norway jersey.
(Ooops we can talk about that can we
Even as a Sky fan the idea that he wheelsucked Flecha at P-R LOL And he won the best and toughest stage of the TdF this year I doubt it was 'cadeaux'.
A class act.
Garmin-Cervelo must win a decent amount of classics next year with the team they will have, it will be awesome
I, as much as anyone on this forum, have continuesly argued that Hushovd has balls. He really does. But he did wheelsuck Flecha in PR and then sprint ahead of him at the end. As a sky fan you should reconsider your position on this. Had flecha taken 2nd - it would have been their best result of the year
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