Your favourite Giro?

[craig1985]

I'm not going to do a poll since I can only do 10 options, and well, the day they taught mind reading at school, I was absent, so I have NFI on what your favourite Giro's are.

But since the Giro gets under way in a few days time, what is your favourite edition, and why, of La Corsa Rosa?

 

[issoisso]

2005, and mostly 1996.

For how close they were, with so many people being possible winners, and in the case of 1996, the surprises kept coming

 

[craig1985]

It's hard for me to answer this as this year will be the first time I will get proper coverage of the Giro, except for 20 minute highlights of each stage and buying the DVD of the race, and unless I had been living under a rock, on Mars, I already knew who won the race.

 

[bobbins]

The Pro-light is very good but for all round use the Ionos is my favourite.

 

[Dekker_Tifosi]

2005, and mostly 1996.

For how close they were, with so many people being possible winners, and in the case of 1996, the surprises kept coming

The only thing that annoys me about 2005 is how Van Huffel and Ardila rode Savoldelli to Giro victory. I wonder how much money they got for that.

Wish Rujano had won that one

 

[staubsauger]

i have to say firts that i'm to young to know the giro editions before 2002, but in this century i think the 2008 edition was definatly the most attractive and the sportive ambitioust giro (maybe even the best gt of this century on eye-level with the tdf 2003) with contador, ricco, sella, pellizotti, bruseghin and mentsjov fighting every day in the mountains. Alpe di pampeago, plan de corones, dolomite stars that was just a ****ing brutal giro. the low competition at the tdf in the same year was nothing against how heroically sella defeat the dolomites, how courageously contador defend his maglia rosa against the agressive cobra.

2005 comes next, of course. this colle delle finestre stage was the most exciting stage race i have ever seen. i mean anything could have happened there, if the stage just would have had 5km more, rujano would have won that giro.

at 3rd place i think i would prefer the 2003 giro, even if it was a one man show as in 2006 or 2007. but the monte zoncolan stage of that year, was the last moment il pirata showed his strengh and i'm grateful that i just have seen that, because for 1998-1999 i'm a bit to young.

 

[Jan the Man]

Some personal favourites include 1994, 1996, 2005 and 2008.

For unpredicatbility and tenseness I would have to say 2005.

 

[mortand]

I enjoyed the 1997 version. It might be because this was the first time I actually watched the race, but I still remember it as an interesting battle between Ivan Gotti and Pavel Tonkov, with guys like Luc Leblanc and Alexandre Shefer (now, there's a name I haven't written in a while) as supporting cast. It was pretty dramatic too, both Leblanc and Shefer crashing out of the race. I seem to recall Leblanc going straight into a stone wall on a descent in the late TT. Auch! I remember epic mountain wins for the younger Kelme boys Chepe Gonzalez and José Luis Rubiera, too. Besides, there were the typical Italian one-hit-wonders like Nicola Miceli and (to a lesser extent) Daniele De Paoli, whose careers went nowhere afterwards, but down the drain.

Uh, I even remember Mario Cipollini getting through the mountains and taking huge pulls at the front for his captain Gotti. That was a sight to behold

And of course the sad pictures of Marco Pantani, escorted down a mountain by his team mates after hitting a cat (?) on the road. Noone really expected to see him in again in the Tour a month later, but oh my, we were wrong!

 

[Bustedknuckle]

I'm not going to do a poll since I can only do 10 options, and well, the day they taught mind reading at school, I was absent, so I have NFI on what your favourite Giro's are.

But since the Giro gets under way in a few days time, what is your favourite edition, and why, of La Corsa Rosa?

1973, 1990

Bugno in 1990, in the pink start to finish and I thing Eddy also in 1973

 

[SierraRider]

Total homer call (I fully admit this) but i would have to say my favourite is 1988 with Andy Hampsten taking the overall by attacking in a snow storm.

 

[issoisso]

Total homer call (I fully admit this) but i would have to say my favourite is 1988 with Andy Hampsten taking the overall by attacking in a snow storm.

Actually he won it in the mountain time trial
If it wasn't for a mighty performance that day by Hampsten, the Giro would've probably gone to the winner of the stage in the snow, Breukink.

(Then again, if Bernard hadn't crashed it's almost certain he would've won the Giro, as he was dominating. But Hampsten's a nice guy so we I don't want to put him down, eh? )

 

[ferryman]

1987. Roche/Vissentini Carrera in fighting. Millar riding shotgun for Roche in the mountains. Roche wins GC and Millar 2nd with the mountains jersey. Happy memories

 

[Angliru]

The 2003 and 2001 editions because Gibo won them. Now if only I could find the latter on dvd somewhere my life would be complete.

 

[Big Doopie]

1974.

merckx for his record tying fifth. by only 12 seconds over baronchelli. and 33 seconds over gimondi.

he won the giro, tour de suisse and tour de france in the same year (only person to do that). and the worlds to top it off. though not a single classic for the first time in his career.

 

[The_Z_man]

Total homer call (I fully admit this) but i would have to say my favourite is 1988 with Andy Hampsten taking the overall by attacking in a snow storm.

I'll give that a +1.

I couldn't find the exact quote but about the descent of the Gavia, he said something like "I looked at my legs, and they were bright red. I didn't look at my legs again."

 

[9000ft]

I'll give that a +1.

I couldn't find the exact quote but about the descent of the Gavia, he said something like "I looked at my legs, and they were bright red. I didn't look at my legs again."

I'd have to say 88 also if only because that was my first year of serious racing and Hampstien really inspired me.

 

[Berzin]

My favorites-1994 of course, when my man Evgeni Berzin won it.

1995 was an excellent edition, with Tony Rominger holding off Berzin and Urgrumov.

1997 I enjoyed watching Ivan Gotti take it, and the tifosi cheering Chipollini over the mountains.

After that I never really watched any of the races. I've caught some stages of a few Giros the last couple of years but as beautiful as the race is I really can't get into it. To me the riders who show up to race really don't compel me to watch.

This year-Sastre vs. Evans going mano a mano? I'd rather watch paint dry.

2010 Giro-BORING!!!

 

[ViaPagliano]

The Pro-light is very good but for all round use the Ionos is my favourite.

Am I the only one who thought this was hilarious?!

 

[Jonathan]

2004 was my favorite; that year made me a Cunego fan. Still hoping for a comeback at the Giro!

 

[MrContador]

Wow, so many great Giros to pick from, would be hard to choose one. Unfortunately, I haven't seen any footage from the Giro in the 80's, put from the ones I've seen, these ones are standing out:

1994 - Pantani emerging as a top climber.
1998 - Pantani battling Tonkov in the Dolomites.
1999 - Without that sad morning in Madonna di Campiglio, the 1999 Giro would've been my clear favourite. Pantani attacking on all the mountain stages, just toying with the likes of Jalabert, Gotti and Zülle.
2003 - Pantani's last glimpse of greatness and Simoni outclimbing the pack on all the difficult climbs.
2005 - Who can forget the stage to Sestriere? The battle between Simoni, Savoldelli and Rujano was great.
2008 - Ricco and Di Luca constantly attacking Contador. One of the finest Giro's in years. I was a nerve wreck during the whole Mortirolo-stage.

 

[astokes]

1994. You had the unthinkable of a (mostly) unknown 24 year old Russian kid spanking the 3 time TDF and 2 time Giro champ, Miguel Indurain. I think that was the first year they passed over the Mortirolo, and watching Berzin turn himself inside out to keep his Maglia Rosa up that grind was excellent racing. It goes without saying, this was also the edition where a certain Marco Pantani lit things up for the first time, with back to back stage wins in the mountains. He even had a little bit of hair left back then.

1995 was cool too. If only for the humor of watching team mates Berzin and Urgumov openly *****ing each other out on the road racing for second place behind Rominger.

I'm a huge Simoni fan, so 2003 stands out too.

 

[Bicicleta]

I love this thread. E molto educativo.

 

[Garuda]

2004 Cunego vs. Simoni
1987 Roche vs. Visentini
There is just something so twisted about the defending champion and team leader getting overshadowed by a teammate/gregario

Maybe we will see a rivalry emerge this year between Basso and Nibali?

 

[BroDeal]

I liked the 2002 edition. It was good to see Savoldelli eek out a win by grabbing little chunks of time here and there.

I thought 2004 was one of the worst recent Giros. No one showed up. Petachi won nearly half the stages. The only GC competition was between two riders on the same team.

 

[craig1985]

I liked the 2002 edition. It was good to see Savoldelli eek out a win by grabbing little chunks of time here and there.

I thought 2004 was one of the worst recent Giros. No one showed up. Petachi won nearly half the stages. The only GC competition was between two riders on the same team.

And Brad McGee came 8th FFS.