Croatia14 wrote:
Sam should have some nice chances in stage 1-2, possibly even 3 & 4. Otherwise a great attacking squad to make this race as hard as Buchmann needs it for a great overall. With this BQ variant it's always that the positioning before the final climb on Stage 5 determines your chances on a good or bad GC result, luckily Pösti and Jay should be the perfect men to ride Emu into position for that. And then, of course, a good day on the TT is needed for a Top10, which could be possible if luck and legs are on Emu's side
Good luck and good legs will be needed indeed Lots of riders that would usually be classified higher than Emu, but he's nearing peak form. Sam really has to step up his game though, with no win yet to his name this year.
Tamijo wrote:
Will be interestion to see how far Buchmann can make it here.
VoetsT wrote:
I see some opportunities for Buchmann on that course
Opportunities are there, and Emu has proven to be on the lookout for all opportunities that present themselves. I'm as eager to see what comes of it as you are
The Vuelta al Pais Vasco 2017 starts in Pamplona, the city famous for its anual running of the bulls, where each year, six bulls are let loose in the streets. The streets will be full again, though this time with cyclists.
It's a flat opening stage, which means that for the first time in over 10 years, a pure sprinter could take the leader's jersey of this prestigeous race.
128 km to go
Lukas Pöstlberger was in the breakaway today. Over the first categorized climb, he is second in the mountain sprint.
He then goes on to win both remaining sprints though and claims the mountain jersey for himself!
5 km to go
Mostly due to the efforts of Dimension Data, Cedric Pineau as the last remaining escapee is caught 5 kilometers from the finish. No real sprint trains have emerged at this point.
And a chaotic sprint ensues. Cimolai of FDJ goes first, Bennett is at his wheel, Wippert and Alaphilippe to the right, Cavendish nowhere to be seen.
1 km to go
Sam makes his move below the flamme rouge.
It's him versus Barbier with 500 meters to go, but the French is already fading. The Dimension Data rider is not Cavendish, but Fraile!
Cavendish made a last ditch effort, but he was positioned poorly and it's not enough! Sam timed his sprint to perfection and takes the win, his first of the season!
Just as stage one, stage two starts in Pamplona, and it's expected to end in a bunch sprint as well. The way to said sprint is a little hillier than yesterday, though, with steeper climbs and a few nasty bumps closer to the finish line in Eltziego.
Sam wants to defend his leader's jersey, which probably means he has to take the stage again - and of course, nothing less can be the goal here today. No goal for me other than to stay healthy.
176 km to go
Lukas Pöstlberger wants to do his mountain jersey justice and attacks right from the start.
The peloton didn't want to let him go, and instead a weirdly strong group consisting the likes of Matthias Frank, Pierre Rolland and Jarlinson Pantano is the break of the day.
33 km to go
So instead of another breakaway, Lukas had to participate in our diligent work leading the peloton. Mendes and Herklotz are right next to him. The group is still 2'30 in front.
Eventually, Jay joined in as well, and with 12 kilometers to go, we got them!
3 km to go
As the rest of the team is pretty tired, Jay and I try to lead out Sam as best as we could. But before we know it, Julien Alaphilippe jumps into the wind very early and Sam immediately grabs his wheel!
And again, with great timing, Sam picks up an incredibly comanding win, more than a bike length in front of everyone else!
Honestly, those were two of the most satifying wins in my recent PCM history. Especially after Sam had performed so poorly up until this point.
blackbox wrote:
are there no time bonification in pcm17 anymore? they are all s.t. in the GC?
on the topic: you need to speed up, i want to read more!
What Martii said. It's a Basque Country thing. And I'm glad you enjoy the story as much as you do, but unfortunately I can't do much more than one post per day and I'd rather give you guys consistent updates than many posts at once and then none for a few days. I appreciate the sentiment though
The first hill stage of the race comes up with no less than six categorized climbs and the first chance to create some gaps in the GC. We run a multifaceted strategy here: First, we want to get into the break of the day. With the leader's jersey still on Sam's shoulders, we would be expected to work in the peloton otherwise, and we don't have the manpower to effectively do so.
The second part of our strategy depends on how the race is ridden: In the unlikely event of a slow pace and a large peloton, we may try to keep Sam within said main group to go for another win. He is a decent puncheur after all. Otherwise, I will do everything I can to gain a few seconds on those GC riders who are better time trialers than I am.
131 km to go
Things went partly as planned: Lukas Pöstlberger initiated the break of the day in his quest for the mountain jersey.
I however hit the tarmac in the first bigger crash of the race. Silvio Herklotz goes down as well, and he leads me back into the peloton, but I'm in pain. This is not the start to the stage that I wanted.
66 km to go
Lukas did what he could but he was no match for the other escapees, among them Pierre Rolland, who would seize the mountain jersey today.
Meanwhile, Sam was losing touch at the back of the peloton. He had good legs, but the pace was just too high. Only myself and Jay McCarthy were left in the main group, that had around 50 riders in it.
17 km to go
The pace didn't slow down until the foot of the final climb. 43 men were still there, but notable absentees included Kelderman and Amador, and I was in a good position, although the crash and the subsequent high tempo had taken a toll on me.
The group was too large to risk an outright attack, but Jay and I increased the pace and atop the final hill, I found myself in a small group with local hero Samu Sanchez, Esteban Chaves and Jay, some 20 seconds in front of the pack.
Valverde and Alaphilippe joined, which didn't incline the group to let us go any further. After some struggle, we were caught within the final 5 kilometers.
0 km to go
I was empty from the attempted escape, but not the two aforementioned: They had enough energy left to fight for the stage win, which eventually fell to the Frenchman. I finish 21st, exhausted but happy knowing that I survived the crash without any time loss and even gained time on at least some of my rivals for a Top 10.
Stage four is, in theory, a little easier overall than stage three, with only two major climbs. Those however pose quite the challenge, and especially the second one, close to the finish, will probably see some harsh selection in the peloton.
Looking at yesterday, it is unlikely that Sam will be in the main group until the end. So once again, it's my turn to try and do something for my overall placement.
22 km to go
We didn't take part in the breakaway this time, and a calm race ensued for us - as calm as a hard stage like this can be. But other than everyone but Jay and me being dropped from the peloton, nothing major had happened so far.
14 km to go
The pace up the hill was unyielding, and I was forced to let go when nine men broke free from the rest of the peloton just under the summit.
Luckily, there were still strong forces in this second group that I found myself in, including overall leader Alaphilippe, so everything got back together at the end of the descent.
In the final few hundred meters, I almost lost touch as I was really exhausted from the climb and the following chase. Fortunately, there were no time gaps awarded. Only 17 riders are now within the same time overall. Most of them are better time trialists than me, and the rest are better puncheurs though, so I really have to have a fantastic couple of days to come close to the Top 10 I'm aiming for.
The final road stage before the concluding time trial gives everyone with bad to mediocre time trialing skills, a spectrum on which I see myself, the last chance to gain some time on their rivals. Nothing less is my goal today, and I'm optimistic: My preparation has been excellent and I feel like I'm in peak form just in time for the crucial moments!
80 km to go
I'm sporting the jersey of best young rider today as a stand-in for overall leader Alaphilippe. While not the same as actually leading the ranking, I'm still happy and I will to my best to honor the light blue jersey.
Pierre Rolland was the lone escapee today after leaving Kaczmarek of CCC behind on the first climb. His mountain jersey wasn't in danger anyway, but the Frenchman was still chasing a stage win.
He was caught 20 kilometers from the finish already, though. No breakaway win today either.
6 km to go
The action started even before the final climb. Romain Bardet, who had lost more than two minutes on the previous stages, attacked. No one reacted.
I had it on good authority that positioning was key in this finale, so I kept myself in the first five to ten riders riding into the ascent. Jay was still there, as always, guiding me.
3,5 km to go
When Valverde and Chaves attacked to catch up with Bardet, I couldn't counter. Once more, I had to find my rhythm, as the climb was still long. The stage win was not my objective.
I rode a lonely race up to the finish, but much more riders were behind me than in front of me. This wasn't looking too badly.
0 km to go
With another late acceleration, Bardet takes the stage win in front of Valverde and Alaphilippe.
I finish 11th, quite some time behind, but reasonably happy with the outcome, looking at the riders behind and in front of me. On a perfect day, more would have been possible, and looking at the GC, a Top 10 spot is close to impossible, but the Top 15 are still very good company.
A great effort on that climb, especially considering Emmanuel might be dealing with a minor injury.
Will be interesting to see who grabs the overall win, there are some big time differences possible on that final TT, but it favours climbers more than TTers from my experience, so bodes ok for Emu. Keep it up
Lots of riders that would usually be classified higher than Emu, but he's nearing peak form. Sam really has to step up his game though, with no win yet to his name this year.
Vuelta al Pais Vasco
Mark Cavendish
Enrico Gasparotto
Rudy Barbier
Wouter Wippert
Michael Albasini
Frantisek Sisr
Bob Jungels
Rohan Dennis
Primoz Roglic
Esteban Cháves
Rui Costa
Tim Wellens
Jakob Fuglsang
