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A New Beginning: Rabobank 2010
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| samdiatmh |
Posted on 14-08-2010 06:33
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Breakaway Specialist
Posts: 892
Joined: 29-12-2009
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hopefully you can get a win or two in march, as there's been slim pickings
keep it up |
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| alexkr00 |
Posted on 14-08-2010 16:10
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World Champion
Posts: 13915
Joined: 05-08-2008
PCM$: 300.00
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Le Samyn
 Lars Boom
Rick Flens
Sebastian Langeveld
 Nick Nuyens
Joost Posthuma
Tom Stamsnijder
Bram Tankink
Maarten Tjallingii
The route looks a lot like the one from Kuurne - Bruxelles - Kuurne, but the startlist is not as strong and the Rabobank riders start as the big favorites
Zabriskie and Flens were the biggest names that got in the breakaway at the start of the race. The Dutch rider was the strongest rider there and he was the last one to be caught, with just 15 kilometers left to ride.
Flens leading the breakaway group on the cobbles
With 5 kilometers before the finish, Nuyens and De Waele attacked. They got soon an advantage of 30 seconds in front of the pack. They were caught inside the last kilometer, but at least Nuyens looked able to keep his position even though Gardeyn and Hammond were looking really strong in the pack's sprint. Gardeyn came with a great acceleration in the last meters and took over Nuyens' place right before the finish line.
Nuyens losing the first place with less than 100 meters before the finish
Gardeyn brougth a great to Vacansoleil, while Nuyens took just the 2nd place in the end, with Hammond third. Boom also had a nice ride and he was the second Rabobank rider in the top 10.
Results
| 1. | Gorik Gardeyn | Vacansoleil Pro Cycling Team | 4h51'17 | | 2. | Nick Nuyens | Rabobank | s.t. | | 3. | Roger Hammond | Cervélo Test Team | s.t. | | 4. | Bert De Waele | Landbouwkrediet | s.t. | | 5. | Peter Wrolich | Team Milram | s.t. | | 6. | Julian Dean | Garmin - Transitions | s.t. | | 7. | Maarten Neyens | Topsport Vlaanderen - Mercator | s.t. | | 8. | Lars Boom | Rabobank | s.t. | | 9. | Kenny Van Hummel | Skil - Shimano | s.t. | | 10. | Nico Eeckhout | An Post - Sean Kelly | s.t. | | 11. | Dominique Rollin | Cervélo Test Team | s.t. | | 12. | David Kopp | Team Kuota - Indeland | s.t. | | 13. | Murilo Fischer | Garmin - Transitions | s.t. | | 14. | Jonas Ljungblad | Omega Pharma - Lotto | s.t. | | 15. | Kurt Hovelynck | Quick·Step | s.t. |
Edited by alexkr00 on 14-08-2010 16:11
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| Maethius |
Posted on 14-08-2010 20:35
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Stagiare
Posts: 155
Joined: 17-06-2010
PCM$: 200.00
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damn!! Nuyens was so close!! |
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| geisterhome |
Posted on 27-08-2010 17:40
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Stagiare
Posts: 188
Joined: 24-07-2010
PCM$: 200.00
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this story is certainly dead
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| Kami |
Posted on 27-08-2010 17:49
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Classics Specialist
Posts: 3485
Joined: 19-06-2009
PCM$: 200.00
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There's probably a bigger chance he's waiting on what Cyanide will do about the AI, that's what i am doing and probably some other story writers to.
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| valverde321 |
Posted on 27-08-2010 18:02
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World Champion
Posts: 12986
Joined: 20-05-2009
PCM$: 530.00
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Kami wrote:
There's probably a bigger chance he's waiting on what Cyanide will do about the AI, that's what i am doing and probably some other story writers to.
Exactly. I might even go back to 08 or 06 with the PPDB Giant. Or the story is on pause right now because of the man game. |
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| alexkr00 |
Posted on 27-08-2010 22:51
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World Champion
Posts: 13915
Joined: 05-08-2008
PCM$: 300.00
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First of all, not updating a story for two weeks it doesn't mean that it's dead.
Yes, I'm taking a break at the moment for both of the reasons mentioned above by Kami and valverde, but I also lost some of my motivation. It should be back quite soon though.
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| geisterhome |
Posted on 30-08-2010 20:24
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Stagiare
Posts: 188
Joined: 24-07-2010
PCM$: 200.00
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i really hope it will
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| geisterhome |
Posted on 08-09-2010 09:37
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Stagiare
Posts: 188
Joined: 24-07-2010
PCM$: 200.00
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so yea, the patch is out the game is fixed, but... the story doesnt go on tho, seems i wasnt all that wrong 
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| alexkr00 |
Posted on 09-09-2010 00:48
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World Champion
Posts: 13915
Joined: 05-08-2008
PCM$: 300.00
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Strade Bianche
Lars Boom
Stef Clement
 Dimitry Kozontchuck
Sebastian Langeveld
Nick Nuyens
Joost Posthuma
Bram Tankink
Maarten Tjallingii
A hilly classic over the dusty Italian roads should bring a lot of interesting fights on the road, with riders such as Cunego or Ballan being some of the main favorites
The first part of the race wasn't as exciting as it should have been with the terrain being perfect for attacks.
The first moves in the pack were made inside the last 25 kilometers. Nuyens and Langeveld were among the riders that tried their luck but proved to be not strong enough to hold on in front of the pack.
Five kilometers before the finish line a strong group, with Ballan and Boom went away. They hanged on for an while and even had a good chance to fight for the win, but they were caught inside the last kilometer by a pack decided to have a mass sprint.
Vacansoleil dominated the sprint and put their Italian leader, Carrara in a perfect position to take the win. But he wasn't able to continue what Gardeyn started in Le Samyn and he lost the victory in the last meters to Mauro Finetto from Liquigas.
Results
| 1. | Mauro Finetto | Liquigas - Doimo | 4h22'37 | | 2. | Matteo Carrara | Vacansoleil Pro Cycling Team | s.t. | | 3. | Emanuele Vona | ISD - Neri | s.t. | | 4. | Peter Sagan | Liquigas - Doimo | s.t. | | 5. | Damiano Cunego | Lampre - Farnese Vini | s.t. | | 6. | Alexandr Kolobnev | Team Katusha | s.t. | | 7. | Luca Mazzanti | Team Katusha | s.t. | | 8. | Alessandro Ballan | BMC Racing Team | s.t. | | 9. | Alberto Ongarato | Vacansoleil Pro Cycling Team | s.t. | | 10. | Romain Feillu | Vacansoleil Pro Cycling Team | s.t. | | 11. | Lars Boom | Rabobank | s.t. | | 12. | Björn Leukemans | Vacansoleil Pro Cycling Team | s.t. | | 13. | Carlo Scognamiglio | ISD - Neri | s.t. | | 14. | Krzysztof Szczawinski | Miche | s.t. | | 15. | Nick Nuyens | Rabobank | s.t. |
Edited by alexkr00 on 09-09-2010 00:49
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| Ad Bot |
Posted on 24-11-2024 18:25
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Bot Agent
Posts: Countless
Joined: 23.11.09
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| Squire |
Posted on 09-09-2010 00:58
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Protected Rider
Posts: 1404
Joined: 24-07-2009
PCM$: 200.00
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Great that you're back writing, your stories are always brilliant! 
But what's with the lack of pictures from Strade Bianche? It's one of the most beautiful races |
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| alexkr00 |
Posted on 09-09-2010 01:15
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World Champion
Posts: 13915
Joined: 05-08-2008
PCM$: 300.00
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I know I could have taken some great screeshots from the race, but there were just only a few attacks so it was hard to find a good moment to take a picture.
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| alexkr00 |
Posted on 09-09-2010 16:30
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World Champion
Posts: 13915
Joined: 05-08-2008
PCM$: 300.00
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Vuelta a Murcia
 Oscar Freire
 Paul Martens
Denis Menchov
Koos Moerenhout
Grischa Niermann
Laurens Ten Dam
Jos Van Emden
Denis Van Winden
Stage 1
The race started with the stage that was most likely to have the biggest impact on the final outcome of the GC.
And Rabobank's tactics for the stage worked perfectly. Ten Dam attacked at the foot of the final climb and took the lead of the race after catching and leaving behind all the escapes. 5 kilometers before the summit, Menchov joined him in front and they head to the finish together, constantly increasing their gap over the other riders.
Menchov let Ten Dam take the stage win, being almost sure that he will have the chance to get the yellow jersey in the time - trial. They won 37 seconds over their first chasers, Pereiro and Sinkewitz.
Ten Dam and Menchov celebrating the 1 - 2
Stage 2
The second stage ended in a mass sprint. Even though he was put in a perfect position by Martens, Freire wasn't able to fight for the stage win and he finished only 5th. The win went to Cesar Fonte from Barbot.
Stage 3
Second mass sprint in a row, but this time it was one for the puncheurs, with quite a hard climb at the finish. Ten Dam, Freire and Menchov had a strong finish taking the places from 5th to 7th. Astana dominated the stage with 3 riders in the first 4, Pereiro taking the win in front of Sinkewitz.
Stage 4
The time - trial will show us who still can dream for the GC win and who lost the fight. Moerenhout, Martens and Van Emden had some really good performances, the last one being very close to take the win, but lost it to Grivko for only 6 seconds.
Ten Dam and Menchov had some rather disappointing times at the finish line, Menchov losing the second place in the race to Pereiro. The good news though was that Ten Dam kept his lead before the final stage of the race.
Ten Dam fighting to keep the yellow jersey
Stage 5
Martens attacked in the very first kilometer of the stage. The first 2 climbs of the day helped him increasing his advantage to almost 8 minutes, which put him in a perfect position for the stage win. Riding alone was tough though and he almost cracked on the last ascent of the day.
The 3 minutes he had left from his advantage helped him keep a few seconds in front of the pack and he took the win. Behind him there were no time gaps between the favorites even though Pereiro did his best to dropped Ten Dam, but he had no chance, with Menchov always bringing the yellow jersey back in Pereiro's wheel.
Ten Dam and Menchov ended safety in the pack it what has been our best of the season yet, with 2 stage wins, the overall win, two riders on the podium, plus two more in top 20.
Martens heading to his second win of the season
Results
| 1. | Laurens Ten Dam | Rabobank | 17h27'18 | | 2. | Óscar Pereiro | Astana | + 13 | | 3. | Denis Menchov | Rabobank | + 14 | | 4. | Patrik Sinkewitz | ISD - Neri | + 47 | | 5. | Andriy Grivko | Astana | + 1'08 | | 6. | Oleg Chuzhda | Caja Rural | + 1'30 | | 7. | Maxim Iglinskiy | Astana | + 1'36 | | 8. | Hugo Sabido | LA Rota dos Móveis | + 1'41 | | 9. | Josep Jufré | Astana | + 1'47 | | 10. | Michal Kwiatkowski | Caja Rural | + 1'52 | | 11. | Kristof Vandewalle | Topsport Vlaanderen - Mercator | + 1'54 | | 12. | Xavier Tondo | Cervélo Test Team | s.t. | | 13. | Koos Moerenhout | Rabobank | s.t. | | 14. | Gregory Brenes | Burgos 2016 - Castilla y Leon | + 2'00 | | 15. | Jesús Del Nero | Centro Ciclismo de Loulé - Louletano | s.t. |
Edited by alexkr00 on 09-09-2010 16:35
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| Squire |
Posted on 09-09-2010 16:41
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Protected Rider
Posts: 1404
Joined: 24-07-2009
PCM$: 200.00
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Wow, that's a successful race for you! And some decent competition too, at least compared to Ten Dam's standards. Love the picture of the 1-2.
I hope the reports from bigger races will be more comprehensive? |
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| alexkr00 |
Posted on 09-09-2010 16:54
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World Champion
Posts: 13915
Joined: 05-08-2008
PCM$: 300.00
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Squire wrote:
Wow, that's a successful race for you! And some decent competition too, at least compared to Ten Dam's standards. Love the picture of the 1-2.
I hope the reports from bigger races will be more comprehensive?
Yes, the reports from the bigger races will be more detailed, one report per stage.
Ten Dam is looking way better now, after Murcia, than at the start of the season. The bad news though is that it looks like he won't accept a renewal with Rabobank.
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| valverde321 |
Posted on 09-09-2010 17:03
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World Champion
Posts: 12986
Joined: 20-05-2009
PCM$: 530.00
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I thought you could send your riders to a leisure camp to get them in a better mood towards the team and then they will sign for you again. Or does that just work for PCM 08? |
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| alexkr00 |
Posted on 09-09-2010 17:12
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World Champion
Posts: 13915
Joined: 05-08-2008
PCM$: 300.00
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valverde321 wrote:
I thought you could send your riders to a leisure camp to get them in a better mood towards the team and then they will sign for you again. Or does that just work for PCM 08?
I didn't know that. I might try it in the end because I definitely don't want to lose Ten Dam now, after the great results he had in Tour de Mediterraneen and in Murcia plus the increased stats.
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| valverde321 |
Posted on 09-09-2010 17:16
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World Champion
Posts: 12986
Joined: 20-05-2009
PCM$: 530.00
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alexkr00 wrote:
valverde321 wrote:
I thought you could send your riders to a leisure camp to get them in a better mood towards the team and then they will sign for you again. Or does that just work for PCM 08?
I didn't know that. I might try it in the end because I definitely don't want to lose Ten Dam now, after the great results he had in Tour de Mediterraneen and in Murcia plus the increased stats.
Well I know for a fact it worked in PCM 08. But like I said I've never tried with PCM 10. I was more saying it in hopes that someone would answer for me/us but it is definatley worth a shot. |
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| geisterhome |
Posted on 09-09-2010 18:07
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Stagiare
Posts: 188
Joined: 24-07-2010
PCM$: 200.00
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awesome! great that your story is back!
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| alexkr00 |
Posted on 09-09-2010 18:09
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World Champion
Posts: 13915
Joined: 05-08-2008
PCM$: 300.00
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The second Pro Tour race of the season will kick off this year with a challenging prologue in Montfort-l'Amaury. This year's route seems to favor puncheurs a little bit more than in the previous years with no mountain top finish.
Luis Leon Sanchez is back in France to defend the title won last year but it's going to be really hard for him to make the double with many top riders riding here. Contador is ready to take his revenge after the defeat he suffered last year, while Evans, Andy Schleck, Leipheimer, Kloden, Basso and Sastre, among others are also looking for a good result.
Boom will lead the Rabobank squad, with the main target being the prologue, which seems to suit him perfectly. Garate and Mollema are also important names for the Dutch squad here, in case that Boom won't be able to follow on the climbs.
Rabobank line-up:
Lars Boom
Stef Clement
Juan Manuel Garate
Steven Kruijswijk
Sebastian Langeveld
Tom Leezer
Bauke Mollema
Tom Stamsnijder
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