Umm.... May I ask you who are your top rivals in this year's Vuelta ?

K.Seeldraeyers and E.Capecchi

Ok but I wanna ask you : Where's Valverde ? Didn't saw him in the list of GCE !

Also, keep on going with the story. I'm sorry about the fiasco that was made from the tour. hope Vuelta will be more intresting.

Valverde is at Quickstep.

OK, but I hope they got a good explanation for why he isn't here in the vuelta.

P.S. What are your aims for this race.

Stage 2

Stage 2 is slightly hilly but it might come down to the sprinters if a team can control the peloton. Right from the beginning attack began and we sent Mario Hita, our young trainee. He eventually made it to the leading group of 3.



Eventually the group of 3 became a group of 6. They built a huge gap and it became apparent they would stay away. They had a 10 minute lead with less then 30 kilometers left. Back in some riders began attacking. I attacked too, along with Hesjedal.



Up front the group were preparing for the sprint finish and Hita couldn't put sprint them so he tried to attack. Unfortunately everyone caught Hita's wheel and they made him leadout.



Sokolov won the stage and took the yellow jersey. Hita couldn't out sprint any of them and finished 6th.



14 minutes behind was me and the other favorites who were in a group of about 20 riders a minute ahead of the peloton.



It was a great race for us because now other teams hold all the responsibility of chasing breakaways. Hita had a very successful day in his first stage of his young career and he is the King of the Mountain.

Game crashed before I could export.

Stage



GC

stage win, top 3 overall, Win young rider classification.

Stage 3
Stage 3 is classified as hilly but it is fairly flat with only one small climb. The sprinters could fight it out today unless a breakaway survives today. There was a group of 11 that were trying to have a repeat of yesterdays stage.



The heat was brutal, it was 104 F (40C) so most people wanted to sit back and not do too much. Millar and Hita even had a chance to have a chit chat, both wearing leader jerseys.



Yet again the breakaway survived and Jonas Ljungblad won the stage for Silence Lotto.



Back in the peloton, there were almost no attacks on the final climb and Moreno led the bunch sprint followed by Joly and Sutton. Jon Andoni Checa was dropped and lost about 5 minutes. Tomorrow is a flat stage for the sprinters or maybe another breakaway.


Stage
1 Jonas Ljungblad Silence - Lotto 3h29'02
2 Jérémy Roy Française des Jeux s.t.
3 Ramon Sinkeldam Vacansoleil Pro Cycling Team s.t.
4 Baden Cooke Vacansoleil Pro Cycling Team s.t.
5 Pasquale Muto Cervélo Test Team s.t.
6 Jonathan Bellis Team Saxo Bank s.t.
7 Kurt-Asle Arvesen Team Saxo Bank s.t.
8 Matteo Bono Lampre - N.G.C s.t.
9 Maciej Bodnar Liquigas s.t.
10 Christophe Brandt Silence - Lotto s.t.
11 David Loosli Lampre - N.G.C s.t.
12 Javier Moreno Andalucía Cajasur + 57
13 Sébastien Joly Française des Jeux s.t.
14 Christopher Sutton Garmin - Slipstream s.t.
15 Campbell Dodds Garmin - Slipstream s.t.
16 Reinier Honig Vacansoleil Pro Cycling Team s.t.
17 Wesley Sulzberger Française des Jeux s.t.
18 Vicente Reynès Team Columbia - High Road s.t.
19 Daniel Martin Garmin - Slipstream s.t.
20 David Millar Garmin - Slipstream s.t.
21 Jurgen Roelandts Silence - Lotto s.t.
22 Gorik Gardeyn Silence - Lotto s.t.
23 Matthew Goss Team Saxo Bank s.t.
24 Trent Lowe Garmin - Slipstream s.t.
25 Guillaume Blot Cofidis, le crédit en ligne s.t.
26 Ryder Hesjedal Garmin - Slipstream s.t.
27 Bradley Wiggins Garmin - Slipstream s.t.
28 Simone Ponzi Lampre - N.G.C s.t.
29 Nikolai Trussov Team Katusha s.t.
30 Sergei Lagutin Vacansoleil Pro Cycling Team s.t.
31 Amets Txurruka Euskaltel - Euskadi s.t.
32 Francisco Javier Carrasco Ramirez Andalucía Cajasur s.t.
33 Jose Rujano Cofidis, le crédit en ligne s.t.
34 Bauke Mollema Rabobank s.t.
35 Anthony Geslin Française des Jeux s.t.
36 Jaume Rovira Pous Astana Cycling Team s.t.
37 Johann Tschopp Bbox Bouygues Télécom s.t.
38 Andrea Grendene Liquigas s.t.
39 Tiziano Dall'Antonia Quick·Step s.t.
40 Linus Gerdemann Team Milram s.t.
41 Radoslav Rogina Vacansoleil Pro Cycling Team s.t.
42 Maarten Wynants Quick·Step s.t.
43 Manuel Ortega Andalucía Cajasur s.t.
44 Josep Jufré Fuji - Servetto s.t.
45 Marco Marzano Lampre - N.G.C s.t.
46 Nicki Sørensen Team Saxo Bank s.t.
47 Esteban Plaza Andalucía Cajasur s.t.
48 Marco Marcato Vacansoleil Pro Cycling Team s.t.
49 Marcus Ljungqvist Team Saxo Bank s.t.
50 Mikaël Chérel Française des Jeux s.t.


GC
1 Evgeni Sokolov Bbox Bouygues Télécom 7h19'04
2 Paul Voss Team Milram + 42
3 Steffen Wesemann AG2R La Mondiale + 1'09
4 Manuele Mori Lampre - N.G.C + 1'39
5 Murilo Fischer Liquigas + 1'51
6 Mario Hita Garmin - Slipstream + 1'58
7 Maarten Tjallingii Rabobank + 2'43
8 Ricardo Serrano Fuji - Servetto + 3'02
9 Frantisek Rabon Team Columbia - High Road + 3'25
10 Alan Pérez Euskaltel - Euskadi + 3'37
11 Boris Shpilevski Fuji - Servetto + 3'49
12 Mikaël Chérel Française des Jeux + 3'55
13 Ben Swift Team Katusha + 4'00
14 Domenik Klemme Team Saxo Bank + 4'06
15 Marco Marcato Vacansoleil Pro Cycling Team + 4'48
16 Manuel Ortega Andalucía Cajasur + 6'17
17 Javier Megías Fuji - Servetto + 8'55
18 Linus Gerdemann Team Milram + 13'43
19 Maciej Bodnar Liquigas + 13'51
20 Ivan Rovny Team Katusha + 13'53
21 Kurt-Asle Arvesen Team Saxo Bank + 13'56
22 Ramon Sinkeldam Vacansoleil Pro Cycling Team + 13'59
23 Jonas Ljungblad Silence - Lotto s.t.
24 David Blanco Fuji - Servetto + 14'06
25 Baden Cooke Vacansoleil Pro Cycling Team s.t.
26 Maxime Monfort Team Columbia - High Road + 14'10
27 Javier Moreno Andalucía Cajasur + 14'12
28 Jaume Rovira Pous Astana Cycling Team s.t.
29 Daniel Martin Garmin - Slipstream + 14'13
30 Ryder Hesjedal Garmin - Slipstream + 14'14
31 David Millar Garmin - Slipstream + 14'16
32 Jonathan Bellis Team Saxo Bank + 14'17
33 Bauke Mollema Rabobank + 14'18
34 Bradley Wiggins Garmin - Slipstream + 14'19
35 Josep Jufré Fuji - Servetto + 14'21
36 Jérémy Roy Française des Jeux + 14'23
37 Josu Agirre Euskaltel - Euskadi s.t.
38 David Arroyo Caisse d'Epargne + 14'24
39 Oliver Zaugg Liquigas + 14'25
40 Benoit Vaugrenard Française des Jeux s.t.
41 José Iván Gutiérrez Caisse d'Epargne s.t.
42 Volodymyr Gustov Team Katusha + 14'27
43 Johannes Fröhlinger Team Milram + 14'29
44 André Steensen Team Saxo Bank + 14'30
45 Sebastian Lang Silence - Lotto + 14'31
46 Tadej Valjavec AG2R La Mondiale s.t.
47 Jose Rujano Cofidis, le crédit en ligne + 14'32
48 Laszló Bodrogi Team Katusha s.t.
49 Stef Clement Rabobank + 14'34
50 Kevin Seeldraeyers Quick·Step + 14'37

Bbox is gonna do all my work now. I hope I can make up 14 minutes. Also I'm gonna edit Wiggins hill stat because he was almost dropped on a climb that sprinters didn't get dropped from.

today I had same situation in tirreno adriatico, my team had leaders jersey I didn't relay at the front and breakaway of 4 guys had won by 14 minutes on GC only brusegin survived wining by 6 minutes

hopefully that wont happen to me. . Stage 4 was very similar to stage 3 of the real life tour de france. Stage 4 coming soon.

Stage 4
Stage 4 is mostly flat with only one climb at the very beginning. The climb was only a kilometer long and there weren't many points so Hita didn't bother going for them. Once we got over the climb a lot of riders tried to breakaway. It took many attempts before a group successfully got away. It was a small group made up of an Astana, Cofidis, and Ag2R rider.



They built a pretty big lead but eventually Quick Step took control and worked to bring back the breakaway. There pace was so fast and the wind speed was so high that there was a split in the peloton.



All 9 of our team's riders were in the front group. Quickstep kept the pace high despite Seeldraeyers being in the group behind us. Eventually Checa was dropped because he just wasn't strong enough. Sutton went to the front and put the hammer down. Our gap kept increasing and increasing. With 10 kilometers left the peloton was nowhere in sight.



At the end of the stage, after all the breakaway riders were caught, it came down to the 29 riders in the leading group. Sutton was worn out from leading the peloton but Dodds was feeling good and took the wheel of Silence's train.



Unfortunately Dodds still isn't a good enough sprinter an had to settle for 3rd behind fellow Aussie, Wesley Sulzberger.



But how big was the gap? It turned out to be over a minute and the better news was that K.Seeldraeyers and E.Capecchi were in the chasing group. Plus Hita is now in 2nd place overall!


Stage
1 Wesley Sulzberger Française des Jeux 3h52'46
2 Jurgen Roelandts Silence - Lotto s.t.
3 Campbell Dodds Garmin - Slipstream s.t.
4 Anthony Geslin Française des Jeux s.t.
5 Wouter Weylandt Silence - Lotto s.t.
6 Sebastian Lang Silence - Lotto s.t.
7 Trent Lowe Garmin - Slipstream s.t.
8 Daniel Martin Garmin - Slipstream s.t.
9 Nico Eeckhout Silence - Lotto s.t.
10 Bradley Wiggins Garmin - Slipstream s.t.
11 Mauro Facci Quick·Step s.t.
12 Maarten Wynants Quick·Step s.t.
13 Jürgen Van de Walle Quick·Step s.t.
14 Dario Cataldo Quick·Step s.t.
15 Ryder Hesjedal Garmin - Slipstream s.t.
16 Mikaël Chérel Française des Jeux s.t.
17 Anthony Roux Française des Jeux s.t.
18 Christophe Brandt Silence - Lotto s.t.
19 Sébastien Joly Française des Jeux s.t.
20 David Millar Garmin - Slipstream s.t.
21 Mathieu Ladagnous Française des Jeux s.t.
22 Johan Coenen Française des Jeux s.t.
23 Alan Pérez Euskaltel - Euskadi s.t.
24 Mikel Nieve Euskaltel - Euskadi s.t.
25 Christopher Sutton Garmin - Slipstream s.t.
26 Andoni Lafuente Euskaltel - Euskadi s.t.
27 Mario Hita Garmin - Slipstream s.t.
28 Carlos Torrent Tarrès Euskaltel - Euskadi s.t.
29 Blas Muez Euskaltel - Euskadi + 1'22
30 Matthew Goss Team Saxo Bank s.t.
31 Sergei Lagutin Vacansoleil Pro Cycling Team s.t.
32 Mattia Gavazzi Lampre - N.G.C s.t.
33 Tiziano Dall'Antonia Quick·Step s.t.
34 Yukiya Arashiro Bbox Bouygues Télécom s.t.
35 Aitor Galdos Euskaltel - Euskadi s.t.
36 Reinier Honig Vacansoleil Pro Cycling Team s.t.
37 Pablo Urtasun Euskaltel - Euskadi s.t.
38 Borut Božic Vacansoleil Pro Cycling Team s.t.
39 Manuel Belletti Lampre - N.G.C s.t.
40 Thijs Van Amerongen Vacansoleil Pro Cycling Team s.t.
41 Marcus Ljungqvist Team Saxo Bank s.t.
42 Ben Swift Team Katusha s.t.
43 Matthé Pronk Vacansoleil Pro Cycling Team s.t.
44 Simone Ponzi Lampre - N.G.C s.t.
45 Nikolai Trussov Team Katusha s.t.
46 Michael Barry Team Columbia - High Road s.t.
47 Vicente Reynès Team Columbia - High Road s.t.
48 Jonathan Bellis Team Saxo Bank s.t.
49 Marcin Sapa Lampre - N.G.C s.t.
50 Matej Marin Team Katusha s.t.


GC
1 Evgeni Sokolov Bbox Bouygues Télécom 11h13'12
2 Mario Hita Garmin - Slipstream + 36
3 Paul Voss Team Milram + 42
4 Steffen Wesemann AG2R La Mondiale + 1'09
5 Manuele Mori Lampre - N.G.C + 1'39
6 Murilo Fischer Liquigas + 1'51
7 Alan Pérez Euskaltel - Euskadi + 2'15
8 Mikaël Chérel Française des Jeux + 2'33
9 Maarten Tjallingii Rabobank + 2'43
10 Ricardo Serrano Fuji - Servetto + 3'02
11 Frantisek Rabon Team Columbia - High Road + 3'25
12 Boris Shpilevski Fuji - Servetto + 3'49
13 Ben Swift Team Katusha + 4'00
14 Domenik Klemme Team Saxo Bank + 4'06
15 Marco Marcato Vacansoleil Pro Cycling Team + 4'48
16 Manuel Ortega Andalucía Cajasur + 6'17
17 Javier Megías Fuji - Servetto + 8'55
18 Daniel Martin Garmin - Slipstream + 12'51
19 Ryder Hesjedal Garmin - Slipstream + 12'52
20 David Millar Garmin - Slipstream + 12'54
21 Bradley Wiggins Garmin - Slipstream + 12'57
22 Sebastian Lang Silence - Lotto + 13'09
23 Jurgen Roelandts Silence - Lotto + 13'18
24 Sébastien Joly Française des Jeux + 13'26
25 Wesley Sulzberger Française des Jeux + 13'29
26 Christophe Brandt Silence - Lotto + 13'35
27 Christopher Sutton Garmin - Slipstream + 13'38
28 Anthony Roux Française des Jeux + 13'41
29 Jürgen Van de Walle Quick·Step + 13'43
30 Linus Gerdemann Team Milram s.t.
31 Carlos Torrent Tarrès Euskaltel - Euskadi + 13'48
32 Mathieu Ladagnous Française des Jeux + 13'50
33 Ivan Rovny Team Katusha + 13'53
34 Kurt-Asle Arvesen Team Saxo Bank + 13'56
35 Campbell Dodds Garmin - Slipstream + 13'57
36 Mauro Facci Quick·Step + 13'58
37 Jonas Ljungblad Silence - Lotto + 13'59
38 Maarten Wynants Quick·Step + 14'02
39 Baden Cooke Vacansoleil Pro Cycling Team + 14'06
40 Maxime Monfort Team Columbia - High Road + 14'10

great result in stage 4

K.Seeldraeyers and E.Capecchi are now over 2 minutes behind me! So far its been a great Vuelta.

You're definitely winning the vuelta.. What''s Seeldrayers and Capecchis mountain stats

Seeldrayers - 80
Cappecchi - 81

Hey. Great story. Shame about the weird TdF, though. I'm kind of new to these forums (first post, actually), so I hope I'm not out of line asking this:

How do you do you time trials? Are you keeping an even percentage (as it's hinted in the manual) or keeping an even pulse, as I have seen recomended on these boards?

Keep up the good work with the story..

Good job paying attention for split!

it's fine for you to ask . I try to find the perfect percentage. The first few riders I try to figure out that percentage. you need to make sure the green bar finishes as soon as you cross the finish line.

its a good think I always make sure I'm at the front. I have never taken advantage of a split before. even going back to PCM 07.