Ok here we go. I've finally set the difficulty as Hard, considering I was winning too much during the tests. So, let's have a look at the team's planning when it comes to form peaks and progression margins. We'll give this a more "player-like" look since it is the very first story who progresses over PCM08.
The Squad (1/2)
Mauricio Ardila - Mauri is a perfect rider to overcome the toughest stage of both the Vuelta and the Giro without taking any worries on the short - redicolous TT's on the way. He'll be our leader for the Giro but, tf Gesink doesn't ride well at the Vuelta, we'd still need him to be there to defend the team colors.
Graeme Brown - The man to watch on the early season: TDU, Mallorca, AndalucÃa, Valencia, California - all of them could be perfect sceneris for a victory to come from his legs. He's not focusing on any GT at all, but saving for the summer PT stageraces (ENECO, Germany and Poland). He'd be a great contender for his national champs if those hills weren't there...
Bram de Groot - Able to keep fit all season long, his performance will be led only to help our leaders. A great domestique overall.
Marc de Maar - A man to follow for the last part of the season. Should be progressing well and fighting on the breakaways. Interesting progression to see.
Thomas Dekker - The Crown Jewel. Nothing to say other than that. His goals are over the Ardennes classics (finally a Dutchman winning the AGR again?), the Tour de France (road captain along with Menchov) and the TT WCh's. Let's hope he does not get into troubles.
Michiel Elijzen - We've planned to send him to the Giro d'Italia in order to give a try at one of the two flat TT's. He'll also peak during the Eneco Tour so he can repeat his excellent performance from 2007, when he won the pologue. He'll take some spots on the early races to complete our squads at e.g. the upcoming Tour Down Under, where we're not expecting to go for the win.
Theo Eltink - His progression got stopped while other talents' ones kept to make them become top guns. He'll be mainly focused on being a helper at the Giro and the Vuelta (and going for a stage, if he has the chance to).
Juan Antonio Flecha - "Jan Anton Pijl" will be again our leader on the cobblestone classics. He's been looking for an "archer celebration" on the Roubaix Velodrome for ages, getting closer and closer in every single year, and we hope to make him do the last step onto the victory under our management. After "his" season, there will be a chance to go for a stage win at the Tour de France, where he'll also help Menchov and Dekker on flat/hilly stages.
Rick Flens - A young man to watch at the end of the season, where he'll fight for stage wins, as well as in road races as in TT's. He'll be peaking at the World's, so it's very likely he'll get selected. Still to improve a little bit, let's hope he does.
Óscar Freire - "Oscarito" is my favourite rider on the team, and he'll be aiming for great goals, even though his season will be a bit too long. A first peak at the Ardennes classics, then going for the "groen trui" at the Tour de France, and a (sort of) last chance to finally reach his 4th rainbow jersey, which would make him directly enter into cycling's legend.
Robert Gesink - Tall Robbie will be completely focused on doing well at the Ardennes, no matter if he'll be elping Dekker or riding for himself, and then taking some relax before the Vuelta, where we're waiting him to "knock on the table" and claim for a GC win. He's the best talent we found for ages.
Matthew Hayman - His main goals will be at the first part of the season. We'll be trying to get some good spot on mass sprints on Paris - Nice, and then trying to reach nice performance on the early cobble classics (Dwars door Vlaanderen, E3 Prijs, even the 3 Days of the Panne). Another chance to get some good results will be at the latter Belgian classics (Leuven, Wallonie). A man to watch at the Aussie champs, even though he won't be fit at all.
Pedro Horrillo - "The philosopher over a bike", as I call him by his deep thoughts and his huge writing skills. More than that, he's a good helper, and most of his season will be linked to Freire's. His success over the general team image will be based on that, too.
Dimitri Kozontchuk - Last chance for the Russian to progress and keep on the team after poor performances over the last two years. He's still very young. Focused on the Vuelta a España, where he'll have to help Gesink if he's not capable doing something by his own (doubtful).
Sebastian Langeveld - One of our best allrounders, able to get a second spot on the comes when it comes to cobble classics and still being a good helper in any race. Will be fit all over the season to keep improving his abilities and reach the top on the future.
Tom Leezer - Directly come into the bigger team from the CT squad, Tom will be a young sprinter to rely on for certain places we've always lacked a real chance to fight: the Giro and the summer PT stageraces (Benelux, Poland and Germany). Also ckeck out for him on the early races!
Gerben Löwik - A veteran rider to perform well and help all season long. He'll be peaking at the cobble season, so it's very possible we send him to be our 8th man on the stones-trio (RVV, GW, PR).
Paul Martens - A very interesting transfer for the 2008 season- Taken from the Shimano squad, He'll be doing at his best on the Giro (where he'll ride of course) and the Eneco Tour, trying to reach what he could not do last time after a brillian escape with big shots like Nuyens or Gutierrez.
Koos Moerenhout - The Dutch champion could play some main role at the spring semi-classics, but he's more likely to get a supporting tactic all over the year. He'll be in good form during the last races though, so let's stay into alert with him...
Grischa Niermann - The German will be completely aiming for a helping role at the Tour de France, where he'll gotta have the best supporter for both Menchov and Dekker. He'll have some chances to shine on the early races.
Joost Posthuma - Set to ride at his best in the last week of the Tour and the World Championships, he'll be the Dutch team's best option to get a medal on the time trial. He's a extremely talented guy, able to win in races like the 3 Days of the Panne without being at his best level.
Kai Reus - Returning from a terrifying crash during a training session on Tignes last summer, he was firstly meant to ride for the Continental Team until he recovered from his injuries, but, considering his great form and acceptable recuperation from the accident, we made him promote again. This will be sort of a "restart" in the pro scene for Kai, and he's still to show what shape is made of for cycling.
Bram Tankink - A Quick·Steppie for the last few years, he's returning to the Rabo ploeg to work for the team leaders, but he'll also get a good chance to win some stages on both the Giro and the Vuelta. Watch him out for the Vuelta al PaÃs Vasco!
Laurens ten Dam - Coming here from dismantled Unibet team, Laurens will be aiming to win the Volta a Catalunya before making his (late) jump to the leadership in 2009. We won't exige too much this time.
Will Walker - We've lost part of the essence of the man who managed to win the Aussie champs in 2006 while being still an u23 rider. He'll try to be fit for the races at his homeland, but the most important part of his season will come on summer, from July onwards. He'll be also one of our Giro d'Italia riders.
(13/01) Australian Championships: "Stu" grants a new jersey
Rabobank badly crack as Hayman and Brown can't keep the pace
Stuart O'Grady seemed to be calm after what happened to be his latest conquer so far. A winner of the 2007 Paris - Roubaix and three-time medalist at the Aussie champs, the leadout man from Team CSC achieved his second victory at the national contest after a brilliant solo ride for the last 13 kilometers to the finish line in Bunniyong. "Not that I'm used to winning like this, but I'm confident I rode at my best. I hope to do so for the rest of the season", O'Grady told to the official media at the post-race press conference.
42 riders took off from the depart at Bunniyong, where the Australian Cycling Federation proposed an "up-and-down" circuit, including the Mt. Bunniyong climb shortly after every lap's start. An early break composed by nine riders achieve an 8-minute gap, 58 kilometres out of the 163 on the race. Lots of attacks into the group led Jonathon Clarke (Toyota - United) and Graeme Brown (Rabobank) into a second group made of riders out of form. The pursuit behind the first group was led by Silence - Lotto riders, while Matthew Lloyd and Cadel Evans sitted into the back of the peloton.
Great story, but 1 mistake imo, at the Team presentation, you sai that Posthuma will be the best option for the dutchies to get a meal at the TT WC, but this, ofcourse, should be Dekker
robert_psv wrote:
Great story, but 1 mistake imo, at the Team presentation, you sai that Posthuma will be the best option for the dutchies to get a meal at the TT WC, but this, ofcourse, should be Dekker
no doubt Dekker won't be in form then
So far I'm liking this story. No random unrealistic signings which I hate
The preceding post is ISSO 9001 certified
"I love him, I think he's great. He's transformed the sport in so many ways. Every person in cycling has benefitted from Lance Armstrong, perhaps not financially but in some sense" - Bradley Wiggins on Lance Armstrong
Great win in a top field. I love your presentations, the details are great and it looks even more professional with your "photo gallery". Great stuff so far
For the first time ever since he was first hosted in 1999, the Tour Down Under has become part of the ProTour calendar, as a new event outside Europe (that never happened yet). The race's route is quite the same as last year's, with an extra stage (up to a total of 6) and the traditional flat "parcours" towards the Willunga Hill on the penultimate day (January 26th).
To be on the level such a race requests, we're sending a quite powerful team as Thomas Dekker will make his debut (58). Graeme Brown (65) and Tom Leezer (64) will be aiming to get good spots within the best 10 sprinters of the race, while Will Walker (64) will be our main contender for the GC. The team is completed by: Michiel Elijzen (56), Matthew Hayman (58, with no spot of his chute at the Aussie champs), Dimitri Kozontchuk (51) and Gerben Löwik (65).
(22/01) Tour Down Under - Stage 1: Mawson Lakes > Angaston
No place for foreigners: Brown stands on "grown land"
Considering the amount of top sprinters who came to South Australia to take part on ProTour's first round, none would have expected an Aussie to win, even when Robbie NcEwen declined to take part on the race for the first time since its foundation. Nevertheless, Rabobank's Graeme Brown made the day of all spectators at the final straight on Angaston by outsprinting - not without any suspense - Erik Zabel (Team Milram) and Tom Boonen (Quick·Step) to claim his first win of the season and take the leadership of the 2008 Tour Down Under.
Brown's win was the result of a huge team strategy over the entire stage. Netherlands's Gerben Löwik was Graeme's "bodyguard" for the first half of the stage, where a KOM climb plus loads of uphill and downhill slopes could break the rhythm on weaker sprinters' legs. Plus, young leadout man Tom Leezer did an amazing work to put the Australian into the right way to the victory. Brown came early from Aaron Kemps and Erik Zabel, while Boonen and Italy's Daniele Bennati (Liquigas) came too late to overcome the home rider.
But where is Menchov
