2014 World Tour Races.

ben_1301

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Jul 5, 2005
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Hate this term.
Yeah it's not good and I don't underestimate what it takes to pick the right moves and hold the right wheels, but Gerrans & Valverde are known for their negative tactics at the ends of races.
 

chargers 09

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Yeah it's not good and I don't underestimate what it takes to pick the right moves and hold the right wheels, but Gerrans & Valverde are known for their negative tactics at the ends of races.

Both also have magnificent records. Valverde has now won 6 medals at WC.
 

alfy!

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Aug 24, 2008
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Yeah it's not good and I don't underestimate what it takes to pick the right moves and hold the right wheels, but Gerrans & Valverde are known for their negative tactics at the ends of races.
I don't see them as negative tactics, just different types of tactics to those who attack early/regularly to win. Not everyone can be a Contador.

Valverde as of late is nowhere near this kind of rider anymore anyway.

The only position that matters at WC is first

Don't agree with this one either.
 

alfy!

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Aug 24, 2008
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Giro 2015 route announcement:



  • Six mountain finishes, six stages for the sprinters
  • 59.2km individual time trial
  • Race starts with a team time trial
  • Full route of 3,481km, from May 9 - 31
 

TheBigT

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Nov 15, 2007
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I like it, would have preferred another ITT, and that Cervinia stage could be so much better, but it's better than this years course.
 

alfy!

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Oleg Tinkov is ready to offer a €1 million to Alberto Contador and his Grand Tour rivals if they will compete in all three Grand Tours in 2015.

Tinkov launched his Grand Tour triple challenge at the Giro d'Italia presentation in Milan after Contador confirmed that he will target a Giro d'Italia-Tour de France double. Tinkov believes that the best Grand Tour riders in professional cycling should go head to head in the three Grand Tours. He first called on riders to ride all three Grand Tours via Twitter. Now he has backed his offer with a significant cash incentive.

"If Quintana, Froome, Nibali and Contador all agree to ride all three Grand Tours, I'll get Tinkoff Bank to put up €1 million. They can have €250,000 each as an extra incentive. I think it's a good idea," Tinkov told Cyclingnews.

"It's good that Alberto is going for the Giro-Tour double but I think the biggest and best riders should race against each other and ride all three Grand Tours."

http://www.cyclingnews.com/news/tinkov-offers-a-eur1-million-to-contador-and-his-grand-tour-rivals
 

BlackWhiteBlood

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Sep 6, 2014
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Starting with the TTT has to give the OGE boys a good shot a wearing pink for a few days which is not a bad thing. One long ITT is much better then two shorter ones as it helps separate the contenders from the pretenders.
 

alfy!

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TdF 2015 route sounds very interesting and brutal.

Cobbles are back, lots of tough mountains and mountain top finishes, minimal time trialling, a later TTT and finish line time bonuses for the first chunk of the race.



 

TheBigT

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Nov 15, 2007
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So... positives for the Tour.
Bonus seconds, cobbles (although poorly incorporated), the Pra-Loup stage is ok, possibility for crosswinds in the first week.

Such a horrible parcours, both overall and for individual stages.
No ITT apart from the Prologue is ridiculous.
A TTT on stage 9, after a cobbled stage is even worse. What happens when we get rain and leave teams with 5 or 6 riders?
Horrific Mountain stages.
Stage 10 - Who decided that using Unipublic's approach to MTF was a good idea?
Stage 11 - Horrible use of the Tourmalet, watch everyone get back on and we finish with an uphill sprint from Valverde
Stage 12 - It`s not bad, but the final connection from Port de Lers to PdB is way too long.
Stage 17 - Good, if not for the fact it's the best mountain stage.
Stage 18 - Too short, the climb to Les Sybelles isn't steep enough
Stage 19 - Again too short. Good one for Phil and Paul to pump up though.

Stupidly unbalanced, and despite favouring the climbers, can't even provide decently designed mountain stages.
 
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