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[PCT] Valio - DeLaval | Award time
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| Atlantius |
Posted on 27-04-2017 18:20
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Scorchio wrote:
Delighted to see the continuation of the cow spot (perhaps that should be 'cow splat'?) Valio jersey into 2017; one of the most distinctive and cool jerseys in the MG peleton. Also enjoying the various season wrap-up write-ups.
With riders developing there is a solid foundation to cement your position in the PCT with space to expand your leadership cohort beyond just Lo Cicero and Paillot who both had stand out seasons alongside team talisman Vastaranta.
Thanks for the kind words to the jersey.
Happy you enjoy the wrap-ups. Hopefully we'll be able to expand and be less dependant on Lo Cicero.
Further comments on how "stand out" the seasons we're will be left for their respective turns 
 Sakari Lehtinen 
Lehtinen did not have the easiest of seasons at Vesuvio.
While he actually did get a few chancs to ride for himself he was generally part of overmatched teams or setups where the big leader failed to deliver.
On top of that he was put in races such as Roubaix for the experience and that is clearly not terrain suited for a rider like Sakari.
Future:
While that is not saying a lot he is the best Finnish climber which will be sufficient for him to score a contract.
 Emils Liepins 
The young Latvian champion joined us from Evonik ahead of this season with the goal of developing into a part of our sprint train.
This season was mainly spent in the role of the helper with a few breakaways along the way.
Future:
Talents are signed with the goal of developing them. Liepins have reached a level where he would benefit from spending a year on PT level next season.
 Philip Lindau 
Lindau spent the seasoon alongside Kulppi on Evonik.
Generally he was used as all-rounders are used best: Doing grunt work, but he did get a couple of times in the breakway securing him a stage 6th in Ukraine.
Future:
As a very handy all-rounder it seems likely we'll be able to find a spot for him next season.
 Ivano Lo Cicero 
Obviously the Italian was a bit of a gamble having been without big results recently as a PT-rider.
However when we saw the route of our home race Baltic Chain Tour we made a shortlist as short as 3 available riders that could win that very race for us.
Lo Cicero turned out to be the cheapest of them and our trust in him weren't shared by many to say the least.
With a total of 18 podium finishes incl. 8 wins he surely proved that we had signed the right rider and that he had found the right team to shine.
While his points are the reason we comfortably stay in PCT he also secured two (additional) goals along the way making it obvious to anyone with the slightest knowledge of cycling that Il Toro had a great season alltogether.
Future:
Guess what: We've grown quite fond of him and wouldn't mind one bit to have him on the team next season as well.
Matti Manninen 
After having done nothing for a couple of years Manninen found a new version of himself ahead of this season inspired by his NC jersey.
While he is destined for a future as lead sprinter he spent this season sa part of Lo Ciceros leadout.
He certainly improved immensely compared to his first two seasons with us and on many stages he was a key member of the train and thus has earned his share of the honour surrounding Lo Cicero's magnificent season.
Future:
He will remain on contract with us and should be able to reach his full potential while wearing our jersey.
 Dominique Mayho
While Mayho rode a great Tour de l'Avenir he did not impress in our jersey.
His main role was as the weakest link in our TTT-setup where he played his little part in the Monterrey podium finish.
Future:
That will be left up to his owners at World Cycling Centre for whom he rode such an excellent l'Avenir.
Edited by Atlantius on 27-04-2017 20:43
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| Atlantius |
Posted on 28-04-2017 17:12
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Krists Neilands
Neilands joined us from our friends at Evonik-ELKO to learn this season.
He put in a strong efforts on the cobbles and even found his way to a few breakaways making him a worthwhile addition.
Future:
For now he will need to approach the Evonik-management to discuss contract renewal. If he fails to find an agreement with them we'll likely have a chat with him.
Roope Nurmi
Nurmi started the season with a massive effort showcasing his big engine at the continetal championships
Roope is young and still learning but he had a good season crowned with his 2nd place at stage 3 of De Panne.
Future:
He will likely have a spot on our team for several years to come as he is not yet done developing.
 Ingvar Omarsson
The Icelander was signed to provide depth in bumpy terrain and to our TTT-squad and he did just that.
Even found his way to a couple of breakaways along the way.
Future:
It seems highly likely that he will fulfill the same role on the team next season - now wearing a champions jersey.
Paavo Paajanen
After having spent some time abroad we finally have Paajanen joining our side for this season.
He have developed into a solid classics-style helper.
Seeing as we haven't had the level of leaders that makes us pull at te head of the peloton he had a fairly anonymous season only being noticed in the break at GP Herning.
Future:
As for several others his passport will probably help him to a new contract in a domestique-role
 Yoann Paillot
Our young French hope for anything with a TT in it.
After a strong start to the season he lost a bit of form mid-season before finally living up to our hopes in Ukraine.
Future:
With what he showed on his best days a contract renewal seems likely.
Samuel Pökälä
After a prominent role in our CT-time the Finnish TT-beast had to step down the hierarchy a bit.
Nevertheless he put in a good season with the 3rd places at Duo Differdange and Monterrey as clear highlight combined with a few breakaway attempts.
Future:
Obviously the best Finnish TT'er will be on contract with this team.
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Posted on 23-11-2024 09:01
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| Atlantius |
Posted on 29-04-2017 17:23
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 Branislav Samoilev 
The Belarussian Beast was an important figure in our promotion.
However racing in his home colours every day was less inspiring than hoped.
Future:
Much will depend on his demands in the contract negotiations. He will certainly have to accept a role as a pure helper (and the wage of such) to stay on the team, and even then he could see his way out in the transfer window.
His age isn't helping his situation either...
 Ignacio Sarabia
While Ignacio have been a valued team member in our CT-time he is another rider that didn't quite make the step up needed to impress big.
He did show his old agressive self in Eritrea earning a short stint in the KOM-jersey and a stage 4th but that was all we saw from him all season.
Future:
It looks very much like retirement for him unless a CT-team picks him up. His style of riding could still provide the occasional result on lower level despite of starting to affect him.
 Chris Anker Sørensen
Two times rider of the year we were exited to see what Chris could achieve on PCT level.
As most of our other climbers he spent most of the season giving Anacona the best conditions to save energy for, well nothing really.
He had a good time at the Tour de France spending a couple of days out in front and even hitting the Champs Elysses as one of the first.
That being said a stage 8th from Ukraine is far from what he had shown in previous years just as his aggressive style had vanishes this season.
Future:
Odds are that he will at least have to take a step down next season, but despite age starting to affect him he could still provide some mountain depth should we go for that kind of leader next year.
Everything is possible really. FA, staying to help or transfer to CT level. Time will tell.
 Mateus Taciak
Who? You might say, and you would be right.
He was one of the first riders signed and probaly was offered one too many contract renewals of pure nostalgic reasons.
Still he was mong the first 5 finishers in Monterreey so he does have his share of the success there.
Future:
He will have to look for a contract elsewhere. Could provide some depth to a CT-team I guess...
Sami Tiainen
The former Finnish champion was mainly part of Lo Cicero's leadout train this season.
Despite being ridiculed before the season he really stopped up providing some great working give him a big share of Ivanos season.
In fact he rode so well that I regret not fielding him more often.
Future:
New contract. No doubt about it!
Oskari Vainionpää
The third of our stagiaires.
He showed the right kind of spirit in l'Avenir, but didn't come off quite as strong as Kanerva.
Future:
At this moment it seems unlikely that he will be given a full-time contract for next season.
Jukka Vastaranta
The beast. The Legend. The very reason a Finnish cycling team even exist!
We always knew that Vastaranta would have a hard time following up his results from last season after promotion.
That much bigger the surprise after his massive effort in San Luis where he took the win on a stage after getting dropped twice in the finale ultimately securing a GC podium.
Sadly that kind of legs didn't present themselves again this season.
Future:
Surely a legend as him won't get kicked off the team, but w will have a have a chat with him to get him on a salary that suits an ageing rider who can't be expected to produce many results in the future.
Trols Vinther
While his signing were a bit of an odd one we quickly grew to love our fast Dane.
Not only for his many strong lead-outs that more than once saved Lo Ciceros sprint but also for the way he grabbed his own chances when they presented.
Future:
Never change a winning team...
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| knockout |
Posted on 29-04-2017 17:44
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Grand Tour Champion
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Very nice way to sum up the season for each rider!
2 small things :
- Kulppi didn't really step down the team hierarchy but basically grew with the team. Only new cobbler that stepped ahead of him was Bagdonas who replaced Ingels while Meersman, Marzuki and Grand were all on a similar or slightly lower level compared to Olli. He also overtook Flaksis.
- The possibility of Neilands failing to reach a new contract is not even considered ;)
It hurts to see Vastaranta declining. Time for the next generation to step up :)
A Big Thank You To All MG Reporters! |
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| Atlantius |
Posted on 29-04-2017 22:00
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I just had a feeling that he was generally used a bit earlier this season usually finishing as around 4th best Evonik rider in the races where I checked. Last season he appeared to more often be 2nd/3rd best. It's not done in any scientific way though so my impression could be wrong
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| knockout |
Posted on 30-04-2017 00:00
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Grand Tour Champion
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Our depth was quite a bit better this season so daily form had a big impact on which domestiques helped at which point. From memory I'd say you're right about him finishing like 4th Evonik rider often but i seem to remember that he stayed with Greg longer than e.g. Flaksis before dropping back behind those others in a couple of those instances.
A Big Thank You To All MG Reporters! |
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| baseballlover312 |
Posted on 30-04-2017 00:44
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You took everyone I wanted a spat them back out when they started declining. 
RIP Exxon Duke, David Veilleux, Double Feature, and Monster Energy |
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| Atlantius |
Posted on 30-04-2017 12:10
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Noone have been spat out just yet, but of course they need to be able to contribute in order to stay on. Perhaps CAS should have been shipped off to you last year but after two years as rider of the year for us it didn't feel right to let him go.
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| Atlantius |
Posted on 01-05-2017 17:24
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Team Leader
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| Atlantius |
Posted on 10-06-2017 19:51
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Team Leader
Posts: 6795
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| whitejersey |
Posted on 11-06-2017 12:26
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Gotta say those NCs are super sleek nice job to the creator, will certainly help spice up the peloton for the next year!
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| matt17br |
Posted on 11-06-2017 14:06
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Atlantius is the creator
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| Atlantius |
Posted on 11-06-2017 16:53
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whitejersey wrote:
Gotta say those NCs are super sleek nice job to the creator, will certainly help spice up the peloton for the next year!
Thanks. As matt says they're home made
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| Atlantius |
Posted on 11-06-2017 20:43
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Team Leader
Posts: 6795
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Season Awards
With the absolute final race of the season finally over it's time to hand out some awards. As last year it will be up to you guys to vote for the winner by following the link at the end of the post.
All season summaries can of course be found in recent posts but will be reposted after the announcement of the nominees.
This year we have three awards: Loan in of the Year, Loan-Out of the Year and Bull of the Year.
Loan-In of the Year
For obvious reasons we have two nominees here: Krists Neilands from Evonik - ELKO and our most exotic rider Dominique Mayho from World Cycling Centre.
Spoiler  Dominique Mayho
While Mayho rode a great Tour de l'Avenir he did not impress in our jersey.
His main role was as the weakest link in our TTT-setup where he played his little part in the Monterrey podium finish.
Future:
That will be left up to his owners at World Cycling Centre for whom he rode such an excellent l'Avenir.
Krists Neilands
Neilands joined us from our friends at Evonik-ELKO to learn this season.
He put in a strong efforts on the cobbles and even found his way to a few breakaways making him a worthwhile addition.
Future:
For now he will need to approach the Evonik-management to discuss contract renewal. If he fails to find an agreement with them we'll likely have a chat with him.
Loan-Out of the Year
Again the nominees are rather obvious as we had three riders loaned out.
Olli Kulppi who was part of the team around GVA, Philip Lindau, who was an allrounder at the same team (Evonik - ELKO) and Sakari Lehtinen who rode for Vesuvio gathering among other things a full set of monuments.
Spoiler Olli Kulppi
Olli took a couple of steps down the hierachy at Evonik as the team took a step up the latter.
However he did occassionally give samples of his talent. Especially when he reduced the favourite group to a mere 7 riders in Strade Appia Antica was impressive and his race in the B Worlds makes us exited for next year.
Future:
Olli will be given a prominent role on our cobbles-team next year when he comes home after two years in Latvia.
Sakari Lehtinen
Lehtinen did not have the easiest of seasons at Vesuvio.
While he actually did get a few chances to ride for himself he was generally part of overmatched teams or setups where the big leader failed to deliver.
On top of that he was put in races such as Roubaix for the experience and that is clearly not terrain suited for a rider like Sakari.
Future:
While that is not saying a lot he is the best Finnish climber which will be sufficient for him to score a contract.
Philip Lindau
Lindau spent the season alongside Lehtinen on Evonik.
Generally he was used as all-rounders are used best: Doing grunt work, but he did get a couple of times in the breakaway securing him a stage 6th in Ukraine.
Future:
As a very handy all-rounder it seems likely we'll be able to find a spot for him next season.
Bull of the Year
The way to get a nomination for the main award is simple: Win Bull of the Month at least once. That leaves us with a total of five nominees with palmares of different strength, but common for them all is that they at least one month stood out above the rest.
The nominees in chronological order of first win are: Ivano Lo Cicero, Jukka Vastaranta, Matti Breschel, Yoann Paillot,  Essa Khalifa.
Spoiler Matti Breschel
Breschel was one of the final additions to the team and onw of the relatively high earners.
While his season was far from miraculous he did a good job scoring us some points in races that would otherwise have been clear 0-pointers.
Especially his solo ride to 4th place in Gent-Wevelgem brings fond memories.
Future:
Matti is not getting any younger, but if we can agree on a salary he might get another season as lieutenant for Kulppi.
Essa Khalifa
As in earlier seasons Khalifa rode his way in to our hearts with som agressive riding with many breaks.
Obviously his stint in the KOM jersey of Tour of Northern Europe stands out.
Future:
For every season that passes we grow more and more fond of Khalifa. Odds are he will be offered a contract, but it would also be interesting to see him in a bigger role for a team focusing on his home region.
Ivano Lo Cicero
Obviously the Italian was a bit of a gamble having been without big results recently as a PT-rider.
However when we saw the route of our home race Baltic Chain Tour we made a shortlist as short as 3 available riders that could win that very race for us.
Lo Cicero turned out to be the cheapest of them and our trust in him weren't shared by many to say the least.
With a total of 18 podium finishes incl. 8 wins he surely proved that we had signed the right rider and that he had found the right team to shine.
While his points are the reason we comfortably stay in PCT he also secured two (additional) goals along the way making it obvious to anyone with the slightest knowledge of cycling that Il Toro had a great season all together.
Future:
Guess what: We've grown quite fond of him and wouldn't mind one bit to have him on the team next season as well.
Yoann Paillot
Our young French hope for anything with a TT in it.
After a strong start to the season he lost a bit of form mid-season before finally living up to our hopes in Ukraine.
Future:
With what he showed on his best days a contract renewal seems likely.
Jukka Vastaranta
The beast. The Legend. The very reason a Finnish cycling team even exist!
We always knew that Vastaranta would have a hard time following up his results from last season after promotion.
That much bigger the surprise after his massive effort in San Luis where he took the win on a stage after hetting dropped twice in the finale ultimately securing a GC podium.
Sadly that kind of legs didn't present themselves again this season.
Future:
Surely a legnnd as him won't get kicked off the team, but w will have a have a chat with him to get him on a salary that suits an ageing rider who can't be expected to produce many results in the future.
Edited by Atlantius on 11-06-2017 20:49
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| Croatia14 |
Posted on 11-06-2017 22:13
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votes are in 
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| Atlantius |
Posted on 12-06-2017 15:57
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Thanks. Hopefully more will follow
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| Marcovdw |
Posted on 12-06-2017 16:14
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Grand Tour Champion
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I don't have to register afterwards right, when I click 'Klar' my votes are in right? My Danish is not as good as it used to be
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| Atlantius |
Posted on 12-06-2017 19:30
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Team Leader
Posts: 6795
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Marcovdw wrote:
I don't have to register afterwards right, when I click 'Klar' my votes are in right? My Danish is not as good as it used to be
No need to register unless you feel like making a poll of your own.
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| knockout |
Posted on 12-06-2017 20:12
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Grand Tour Champion
Posts: 7735
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Now this were some easy decisions 
Spoiler If someone needs a little decision helper for loaned out rider of the year take a look at these summaries from my HQ. Imo there can only be one deserving winner for that.
knockout wrote:
Olli Kulppi 74 CB, 70 ACC, 67 HI Olli was one of the most important domestiques for Greg Van Avermaet this season. He often was amongst the last men at his side and delivered some notable performances throughout the year. In particular, he raised some eyebrows when he single handedly chased down an attack by Burghardt, Bewley and Vanspeybrouck in Strada Appia Antica. He also was seen in the morning breaks in the Dauphine and the Tour de France. If he continues to perform as in the past two seasons with us then Valio will enjoy his service for years to come. Philip Lindau 73 HI, 71 FL, 68 MO Philip was a quiet domestique who did the dirty part of carrying the water bottles from the team cars to his team mates. His best result was a 6th place on a Tour of Ukraine stage from a break and his most notable appearance was as part of the Tirreno Adriatico stage 4 break. Also, the experience of riding the Ardennes triple will surely help him growing to the future.
A Big Thank You To All MG Reporters! |
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| Atlantius |
Posted on 03-09-2017 17:28
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Team Leader
Posts: 6795
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Season Awards
With contract negotiations for 2017 done with I guess it's about time to reveal who was the best/most popular of last season.
Thanks to everyone who voted!
Loan-In of the Year
With as much as 92 % of the votes:
Loan-Out of the Year
This one wasn't quite as clear-cut but still Evonik managed to take 100 % of the votes with the winner bagging 86 % of the total votes:
Bull of the Year
The main award was also the closest one!
Khalifa and Paillot didn't get any votes while Breschel managed to get 7%
On 2nd place we had local hero Jukka Vastaranta with 21 % of the votes leaving 71 % for the unsurprising winner:
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