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EPIC - Season 1 Part 3
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| Paul23 |
Posted on 29-10-2014 14:02
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Grand Tour Specialist
Posts: 4394
Joined: 10-08-2011
PCM$: 400.00
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Grand Prix Cycliste de Montréal
Welcome to the Grand Prix Cycliste de Montréal. Today the riders will ride above 205 kilometers though the city of Montreal, completing about 17 laps. The main hill is the 211m high Cote Camillien-Houde, which will maybe decide, who will be in the leading group of the final sprint.
Because this is a „One-Day-Classic“, a breakaway will have almost no chances of winning here.
*** Sagan(CAN)
*** Gilbert(BMC)
*** Kakhi(CSS)
*** Costa(MOV)
*** Gerrans(OGE)
** Gasparotto(AST)
** Verboven(EUS)
** Nibali(AST)
** Iglinskiy(AST)
** Hesjedal(GRS)
* Sithembile(SKY)
* Brouwer(BEL)
* Schröder(EUC)
* Stybar(OPQ)
* Henao(SKY)
As soon as the race starts, Gutierrez(Movistar) and Smukulis(Katusha) attack...
Gutierrez(Movistar) and Smukulis(Katusha) are attacking
...but their attack only lasts for about half a lap, because they get reeled in pretty quickly. As soon as they got reeled in, Gutierrez(Movistar) tries again to break free of the Peloton. This time his companion is Pomoshnikov(RusVelo).
Guiterrez(Movistar) and Pomoshnikov(RusVelo) far away. Smukulis(Katusha) got reeled in.
Around 10 km's later, Kreder(Vacansoleil), Mezgec(Argos), Le Bon(FDJ) and Domont(AG2R) try to attack the Peloton in an attempt to close up to the leading duo.
Kreder(Vacansoleil), Mezgec(Argos), Le Bon(FDJ) and Domont(AG2R) try to close the gap
But they don't even reach the leading duo, because Astana has put the pedal to the metal in the Peloton, with sending Kangert and Brajkovic at the front to reel them back in.
Astana leading the pack
As soon as the second breakaway gets caught, it becomes clear, that the leading duo of Guiterrez(Movistar) and Pomoshnikov(RusVelo) are going to be the „Breakaway of the day“, because the pack lets them go further away, as their advantage hits 1 minute.
“Break of the Day“
Suddenly the camera switches back to the main field, where Hushovd(BMC) comes to the front. Does that mean that Gilbert feels good today?
Hushovd(BMC) at the front
80 km's to go. The advantage of the break is about 5 minutes. Euskatel are the first team to put in some effort to catch the duo at the front.
Euskatel at the front, and Sicard(Euskatel) showing his NC jersey once again
With 57 kilometers to go, Novo Nordisk got into trouble, because their squad seems to be to weak for todays race, as they all drop at the same time.
Novo Nordisk in trouble
They have been dropped, because Astana and BMC are now working ogether to bring back the breakaway.
Astana and BMC up the pace.
Shock Moment! 27 km's before the finish line, Sarmiento(Cannondale) has crahed in the small downhill part. Will this have an effect on Sagans performance? Luckily Samiento can hop on his bike again and resume racing.
Sarmiento(Cannondale) is picking his bike up.
Sky are taking over now. They try to get Sithembile in a good postion. But there are still 23km's to go! Isn't that quite early to be at the front?
Sky taking over...
Too early? Sagan used this moment to attack on the ascend and tries to close down on the break which is still 1 minute up the road.
On the downhill World Champion Gilbert(BMC) tries to close Sagan down, but he drags to much attention with him, so he eases off and gets back in the field.
Gilbert(BMC) on the attack...
While his attempt was unlucky, Sagan collected Guiterrez up the road. Only Pomoshnikov can stay in front for a bit longer. Sagan catches him on the finish straight.
Pomoshnikov(RusVelo) tries desperately to not get caught
Suddenly, out of nowhere, a wild Sithembile(Sky) attacks and he closes the leading trio down.
Sithembile(Sky) has caught Sagan(Cannondale)
Meanwhile, we get pictures of Simon Gerrans(Orica). He got dropped! Maybe he wasn't at his best today.
Gerrans(Orica) dropped....one favorite gone...who will win?
On the last hill of the day, Gasparotto(Astana) tries his best. Sagan(Cannondale) and Gilbert(BMC) are directly at his wheel. Nordhaug(Belkin) and Stybar(OPQS) are close behind.
Gasparotto(Astana) digs deep to get rid of the other favorites.
Suddenly Gilbert(BMC) attacks. His attack dropped everyone, but Gasparotto(Astana) and Sagan(Cannondale) can stay at his wheel, while Sagan looks a bit tired, because of his early attack.
The World Champion himself takes over...
And Sagan got in trouble. Gilbert's pace seems to be to high for him. Meanwhile Sithembile tries to close the gap.
The situation at the end of the last hill.
In the following group, Rolland(Europcar) is showing that he wants to show good performances, even when Mr. Europe has stepped down from management. Is he able to catch up to the leading group?
Tribute to Mr. Europe...i guess
Yes he is! But as he arrives there, Gilbert puts in another heavy attack.
Who can follow this one?
Gilbert pulls away! Gasparotto can barely follow. Sagan is done for today. On his wheel are still Rolland and Sithembile.
Small gaps are appearing...
Gasparotto doesn't want to be 2nd here. He wants the 1st place. He pushes as hard as he can to close the gap to Gilbert.
Gasparotto in TT-Mode
Under the 1km banner, Gilbert's gap gets smaller and smaller, because Gasparotto is flying over the road. Nothing is done yet. These two will fill in the top steps of the podium. But in which order?
1 kilometer to go. Will Gilbert win?
Gilbert wins in Montreal! What a great way to win here. Gasparotto seems a bit frustrated over the result, but it's a great 2nd place from him. First Gilbert eliminated guys named Nibali and Nordhaug and then he attacks his followers to a brilliant victory.
Gilbert celebrating, Gasparotto could not stop him.
Sagan takes 3rd, but who will take 4th? Rolland and Sithembile are giving everything the've got.
Sagan 3rd
Sithembile gets 4th and Rolland 5th. Sithembile was the better sprinter there, but still a great result from Rolland there. Costa, Hesjedal, Ballan, Schröder and Kakhi complete the Top 10. The canadian fans, such as valverde321 will be happy about the 7th place of Ryder Hesjedal.
I have interviewed valverde321, to ask if thats right.
Paul23: "Are you happy about Ryder finishing 7th?"
valverde321: "Canada is a great country..."
Paul23: "Great that you're happy about this!"
Sithembile 4th and Rolland 5th.
Sadly, we got only a picture of Gilbert on the Podium.
| Rank | Name | Team | Time | | 1 | Philippe Gilbert | BMC Racing Team | 5h26'08 | | 2 | Enrico Gasparotto | Astana Pro Team | s.t. | | 3 | Peter Sagan | Cannondale Pro Cycling | s.t. | | 4 | Thabo Jango Sithembile | Sky Procycling | s.t. | | 5 | Pierre Rolland | Team Europcar | s.t. | | 6 | Rui Costa | Movistar Team | s.t. | | 7 | Ryder Hesjedal | Garmin - Sharp | s.t. | | 8 | Alessandro Ballan | BMC Racing Team | s.t. | | 9 | Christian Schröder | Team Europcar | s.t. | | 10 | Rajesh Kakhi | Champion System Pro Cycling Team | s.t. |
Spoiler | 11 | Fabian Cancellara | RadioShack - Leopard | s.t. | | 12 | Vincenzo Nibali | Astana Pro Team | s.t. | | 13 | Zdenek Stybar | Omega Pharma - Quick·Step Cycling Team | s.t. | | 14 | Lars Petter Nordhaug | Belkin Pro Cycling Team | s.t. | | 15 | Jelle Vanendert | Lotto Belisol | s.t. | | 16 | Willem Brouwer | Belkin Pro Cycling Team | + 4'44 | | 17 | Francisco José Ventoso | Movistar Team | s.t. | | 18 | Luca Paolini | Katusha Team | s.t. | | 19 | Alexandr Kolobnev | Katusha Team | s.t. | | 20 | Marco Marcato | Vacansoleil - DCM Pro Cycling Team | s.t. | | 21 | Taylor Phinney | BMC Racing Team | s.t. | | 22 | Lue Khamse Khamphan | Team Europcar | s.t. | | 23 | Giampaolo Caruso | Katusha Team | s.t. | | 24 | Chad Beyer | Champion System Pro Cycling Team | s.t. | | 25 | Thomas Voeckler | Team Europcar | s.t. | | 26 | Nicklas Stromberg | Garmin - Sharp | s.t. | | 27 | Maxim Iglinskiy | Astana Pro Team | s.t. | | 28 | Tanel Kangert | Astana Pro Team | s.t. | | 29 | Andrey Amador | Movistar Team | s.t. | | 30 | Nick Nuyens | Garmin - Sharp | s.t. | | 31 | Eros Capecchi | Movistar Team | s.t. | | 32 | Giovanni Visconti | Movistar Team | s.t. | | 33 | Björn Leukemans | Vacansoleil - DCM Pro Cycling Team | s.t. | | 34 | Fabio Aru | Astana Pro Team | s.t. | | 35 | Fredrik Kessiakoff | Astana Pro Team | s.t. | | 36 | Sergey Lagutin | Vacansoleil - DCM Pro Cycling Team | s.t. | | 37 | Johann Nokkvason | Team Europcar | s.t. | | 38 | Bart De Clercq | Lotto Belisol | s.t. | | 39 | Nicki Sørensen | Team Saxo - Tinkoff | s.t. | | 40 | Sergey Chernetskiy | Katusha Team | s.t. | | 41 | Jack Bauer | Garmin - Sharp | s.t. | | 42 | Iván Gutiérrez | Movistar Team | s.t. | | 43 | Diego Johnson | Astana Pro Team | s.t. | | 44 | Tejay Van Garderen | BMC Racing Team | s.t. | | 45 | Thor Hushovd | BMC Racing Team | s.t. | | 46 | Karsten Kroon | Team Saxo - Tinkoff | s.t. | | 47 | Jordan Lewis | BMC Racing Team | s.t. | | 48 | Matthieu Ladagnous | FDJ.fr | s.t. | | 49 | Filippo Pozzato | Lampre - Merida | s.t. | | 50 | Jonathan Tiernan-Locke | Sky Procycling | s.t. | | 51 | Daniele Bennati | Team Saxo - Tinkoff | s.t. | | 52 | Mickaël Delage | FDJ.fr | s.t. | | 53 | Janez Brajkovič | Astana Pro Team | s.t. | | 54 | Luke Durbridge | Orica - GreenEdge | s.t. | | 55 | Richie Porte | Sky Procycling | s.t. | | 56 | Ángel Madrazo | Movistar Team | s.t. | | 57 | Thomas Dekker | Garmin - Sharp | s.t. | | 58 | Reinardt Janse Van Rensburg | Team Argos - Shimano | s.t. | | 59 | Sep Vanmarcke | Belkin Pro Cycling Team | s.t. | | 60 | Simon Gerrans | Orica - GreenEdge | s.t. | | 61 | Simon Geschke | Team Argos - Shimano | s.t. | | 62 | Winner Anacona | Lampre - Merida | s.t. | | 63 | Francis Mourey | FDJ.fr | s.t. | | 64 | Sergei Pomoshnikov | RusVelo | s.t. | | 65 | David Veilleux | Team Europcar | s.t. | | 66 | Marcus Burghardt | BMC Racing Team | s.t. | | 67 | Philip Deignan | UnitedHealthcare Pro Cycling Team | s.t. | | 68 | Alex Fischer | Lotto Belisol | s.t. | | 69 | Vasil Kiryienka | Sky Procycling | s.t. | | 70 | Marc De Maar | UnitedHealthcare Pro Cycling Team | s.t. | | 71 | Rudy Verboven | Euskaltel - Euskadi | s.t. | | 72 | Jure Kocjan | Euskaltel - Euskadi | s.t. | | 73 | Miguel Mínguez | Euskaltel - Euskadi | s.t. | | 74 | Grégory Rast | RadioShack - Leopard | s.t. | | 75 | Romain Sicard | Euskaltel - Euskadi | s.t. | | 76 | Tony Gallopin | RadioShack - Leopard | s.t. | | 77 | Xabier Zandio | Sky Procycling | s.t. | | 78 | Thomas Rohregger | RadioShack - Leopard | s.t. | | 79 | Vincent Jérôme | Team Europcar | s.t. | | 80 | Wesley Sulzberger | Orica - GreenEdge | s.t. | | 81 | Juan José Oroz | Euskaltel - Euskadi | s.t. | | 82 | Manuel Quinziato | BMC Racing Team | s.t. | | 83 | Bryan Coquard | Team Europcar | s.t. | | 84 | Ricardo García | Euskaltel - Euskadi | s.t. | | 85 | Sergio Henao | Sky Procycling | s.t. | | 86 | Pello Bilbao | Euskaltel - Euskadi | s.t. | | 87 | Laurent Didier | RadioShack - Leopard | s.t. | | 88 | Vladimir Karpets | Movistar Team | s.t. | | 89 | Dario Cataldo | Sky Procycling | s.t. | | 90 | Paul Martens | Belkin Pro Cycling Team | s.t. | | 91 | Luka Mezgec | Team Argos - Shimano | s.t. | | 92 | Andreas Klöden | RadioShack - Leopard | s.t. | | 93 | Naveed Alinejad | RadioShack - Leopard | s.t. | | 94 | Matti Breschel | Team Saxo - Tinkoff | s.t. | | 95 | Evgeni Petrov | Team Saxo - Tinkoff | s.t. | | 96 | Matteo Trentin | Omega Pharma - Quick·Step Cycling Team | s.t. | | 97 | Richard Löwenherz | Katusha Team | s.t. | | 98 | Nikolas Maes | Omega Pharma - Quick·Step Cycling Team | s.t. | | 99 | Tom Slagter | Belkin Pro Cycling Team | s.t. | | 100 | Kanstantsin Siutsou | Sky Procycling | s.t. | | 101 | Tarik Chaoufi | Euskaltel - Euskadi | s.t. | | 102 | Johan Vansummeren | Garmin - Sharp | s.t. | | 103 | Julien Bérard | AG2R La Mondiale | s.t. | | 104 | Mattia Cattaneo | Lampre - Merida | s.t. | | 105 | Kristof Vandewalle | Omega Pharma - Quick·Step Cycling Team | s.t. | | 106 | Lloyd Mondory | AG2R La Mondiale | s.t. | | 107 | Axel Domont | AG2R La Mondiale | s.t. | | 108 | Fumiyuki Beppu | Orica - GreenEdge | s.t. | | 109 | Jay McCarthy | Team Saxo - Tinkoff | s.t. | | 110 | Cameron Meyer | Orica - GreenEdge | s.t. | | 111 | Svein Tuft | Orica - GreenEdge | s.t. | | 112 | Federico Canuti | Cannondale Pro Cycling | s.t. | | 113 | Wladi Pedrovski | RusVelo | s.t. | | 114 | Gediminas Bagdonas | AG2R La Mondiale | s.t. | | 115 | Fabio Sabatini | Cannondale Pro Cycling | s.t. | | 116 | Serguei Klimov | RusVelo | s.t. | | 117 | Yohan Offredo | FDJ.fr | s.t. | | 118 | Thomas Damuseau | Team Argos - Shimano | s.t. | | 119 | Julien Vermote | Omega Pharma - Quick·Step Cycling Team | s.t. | | 120 | Ryan Roth | Champion System Pro Cycling Team | s.t. | | 121 | Luca Dodi | Lampre - Merida | s.t. | | 122 | Bert-Jan Lindeman | Vacansoleil - DCM Pro Cycling Team | s.t. | | 123 | Mads Christensen | Team Saxo - Tinkoff | s.t. | | 124 | Juraj Sagan | Cannondale Pro Cycling | s.t. | | 125 | Igor Boev | RusVelo | s.t. | | 126 | Ilnur Zakarin | RusVelo | s.t. | | 127 | Kenny Dehaes | Lotto Belisol | s.t. | | 128 | Ahmed Al Mohney | Lampre - Merida | s.t. | | 129 | Sergey Firsanov | RusVelo | s.t. | | 130 | Sérgio Paulinho | Team Saxo - Tinkoff | s.t. | | 131 | Mauro Da Dalto | Cannondale Pro Cycling | s.t. | | 132 | Tosh Van der Sande | Lotto Belisol | s.t. | | 133 | Cayetano Sarmiento | Cannondale Pro Cycling | s.t. | | 134 | Maurits Lammertink | Vacansoleil - DCM Pro Cycling Team | s.t. | | 135 | Wesley Kreder | Vacansoleil - DCM Pro Cycling Team | s.t. | | 136 | David Tanner | Belkin Pro Cycling Team | s.t. | | 137 | Danny Van Poppel | Vacansoleil - DCM Pro Cycling Team | s.t. | | 138 | Steve Chainel | AG2R La Mondiale | s.t. | | 139 | Manuele Mori | Lampre - Merida | s.t. | | 140 | Stijn Vandenbergh | Omega Pharma - Quick·Step Cycling Team | s.t. | | 141 | Alan Marangoni | Cannondale Pro Cycling | s.t. | | 142 | Hugo Houle | AG2R La Mondiale | s.t. | | 143 | Maarten Tjallingii | Belkin Pro Cycling Team | s.t. | | 144 | Mirko Selvaggi | Vacansoleil - DCM Pro Cycling Team | s.t. | | 145 | Guillaume Boivin | Cannondale Pro Cycling | s.t. | | 146 | Gert Steegmans | Omega Pharma - Quick·Step Cycling Team | s.t. | | 147 | Sébastien Minard | AG2R La Mondiale | s.t. | | 148 | Yauheni Hutarovich | AG2R La Mondiale | s.t. | | 149 | Martijn Maaskant | Garmin - Sharp | s.t. | | 150 | Alessandro Petacchi | Omega Pharma - Quick·Step Cycling Team | s.t. | | 151 | Patrick Gretsch | Team Argos - Shimano | s.t. | | 152 | Joost Van Leijen | Lotto Belisol | s.t. | | 153 | Gatis Smukulis | Katusha Team | s.t. | | 154 | Tobias Ludvigsson | Team Argos - Shimano | s.t. | | 155 | Andreas Klier | Garmin - Sharp | s.t. | | 156 | Johan Le Bon | FDJ.fr | + 8'16 | | 157 | Pavel Kochetkov | RusVelo | s.t. | | 158 | Jens Debusschere | Lotto Belisol | s.t. | | 159 | Leigh Howard | Orica - GreenEdge | s.t. | | 160 | William Bonnet | FDJ.fr | s.t. | | 161 | John Murphy | UnitedHealthcare Pro Cycling Team | s.t. | | 162 | Yann Huguet | Team Argos - Shimano | s.t. | | 163 | Dominique Rollin | FDJ.fr | s.t. | | 164 | Jürgen Van de Walle | Lotto Belisol | s.t. | | 165 | Alessandro Bazzana | UnitedHealthcare Pro Cycling Team | s.t. | | 166 | Alexander Mironov | RusVelo | s.t. | | 167 | Tom Leezer | Belkin Pro Cycling Team | s.t. | | 168 | Emilien Viennet | FDJ.fr | s.t. | | 169 | Ben Day | UnitedHealthcare Pro Cycling Team | s.t. | | 170 | Nelson Oliveira | RadioShack - Leopard | s.t. | | 171 | Jeff Louder | UnitedHealthcare Pro Cycling Team | s.t. | | 172 | Matteo Bono | Lampre - Merida | s.t. | | 173 | Chun Feng | Champion System Pro Cycling Team | s.t. | | 174 | Massimo Graziato | Lampre - Merida | + 10'03 | | 175 | Sam Bewley | Orica - GreenEdge | + 11'13 | | 176 | Biao Liu | Champion System Pro Cycling Team | s.t. | | 177 | Kin San Wu | Champion System Pro Cycling Team | s.t. | | 178 | Cheng Ji | Team Argos - Shimano | s.t. | | 179 | Mart Ojavee | Champion System Pro Cycling Team | s.t. | | 180 | Robert Förster | UnitedHealthcare Pro Cycling Team | s.t. | | 181 | Timofey Kritskiy | Katusha Team | s.t. | | 182 | Martijn Verschoor | Team Novo Nordisk | + 12'24 | | 183 | Chan Jae Jang | Champion System Pro Cycling Team | s.t. | | 184 | Martyn Irvine | UnitedHealthcare Pro Cycling Team | + 13'12 | | 185 | David Lozano | Team Novo Nordisk | s.t. | | 186 | Fabio Calabria | Team Novo Nordisk | s.t. | | 187 | Kevin De Mesmaeker | Team Novo Nordisk | s.t. | | 188 | Christopher Williams | Team Novo Nordisk | s.t. | | 189 | Andrea Peron | Team Novo Nordisk | s.t. | | 190 | Vyacheslav Kuznetsov | Katusha Team | s.t. | | 191 | Stephen Clancy | Team Novo Nordisk | + 14'40 | | 192 | Joe Eldridge | Team Novo Nordisk | + 16'34 |
Fun Fact
Spoiler valverde321 is canadian!
Edited by Paul23 on 29-10-2014 14:26
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| Ollfardh |
Posted on 29-10-2014 14:03
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Tour de France Champion
Posts: 15117
Joined: 08-08-2011
PCM$: 11500.00
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Pfff, Qatar had more GC action than this..
Changed my sig, this was getting absurd.
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| Paul23 |
Posted on 29-10-2014 14:04
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Grand Tour Specialist
Posts: 4394
Joined: 10-08-2011
PCM$: 400.00
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Sorry for posting this not much earlier. I was ill last week, so i had not much time on my hands...
Hope you like it.
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| nacho63 |
Posted on 29-10-2014 14:24
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Sprinter
Posts: 1918
Joined: 14-03-2013
PCM$: 200.00
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Nice report, shame Argos had such a poor race... |
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| Ad Bot |
Posted on 16-03-2026 12:51
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Bot Agent
Posts: Countless
Joined: 23.11.09
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| sutty68 |
Posted on 29-10-2014 14:24
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Tour de France Champion
Posts: 34002
Joined: 22-08-2010
PCM$: 200.00
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A disappointing time in Canada  |
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| Ollfardh |
Posted on 29-10-2014 14:27
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Tour de France Champion
Posts: 15117
Joined: 08-08-2011
PCM$: 11500.00
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Oh, another race!
Now Brouwer goes to win a sprint. Nordhaug keeps redeeming. And what was Verboven doing after all that work for him?
Changed my sig, this was getting absurd.
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| mvhoogdalem |
Posted on 29-10-2014 14:37
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Small Tour Specialist
Posts: 2182
Joined: 30-06-2010
PCM$: 200.00
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PCM is so true to life, with Sagan going on useless attacks. Still, the podium should secure him enough points to win the WT ranking.  |
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| knockout |
Posted on 29-10-2014 15:01
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Grand Tour Champion
Posts: 8342
Joined: 21-12-2010
PCM$: 500.00
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Montreal was okay with both Costa and Schröder inside the top ten.
But that stage on USAPCC just killed me.
| 1 | Maxime Oget | Movistar Team | 4h02'52 | | 2 | Christian Schroder | Team Europcar | s.t. |
What a great stage 
#Ogetisgod
A Big Thank You To All MG Reporters! |
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| Ollfardh |
Posted on 29-10-2014 15:11
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Tour de France Champion
Posts: 15117
Joined: 08-08-2011
PCM$: 11500.00
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Also great to see Novo collectively dropping 
And Astana came really close to their hard win goal.
Changed my sig, this was getting absurd.
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| brewers90 |
Posted on 29-10-2014 15:12
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Classics Specialist
Posts: 3692
Joined: 01-09-2010
PCM$: 200.00
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Is USAPCC on PCM11? Bringing back memories of 30 man sprints on mountains.
Gilbert  . Deserved that after the Quebec bullshit. Sails past 2000 points for the season. Ballan doing really well at last too.
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| Atlantius |
Posted on 29-10-2014 15:33
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Team Leader
Posts: 6753
Joined: 21-07-2010
PCM$: 200.00
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USAPCC is on PCM13.
The only good thing to be said about Montreal on my part is that none of my competitors scored anu points either...
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| brewers90 |
Posted on 29-10-2014 16:19
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Classics Specialist
Posts: 3692
Joined: 01-09-2010
PCM$: 200.00
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I wasn't only talking about USAPCC. I was talking about the whole game. It was notorious for it.
And sort your attitude out. It gets really boring after a while. 
Have you ever made a post without having a sly dig at someone? Everyone here is trying to have fun and I'm guessing that's the reason why nobody has brought it up before. We don't come here to argue so please lighten up.
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| Silvio Herklotz |
Posted on 29-10-2014 16:22
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Protected Rider
Posts: 1246
Joined: 26-02-2014
PCM$: 200.00
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- USAPCC: When I read "Beyer in provisional GC lead" I really thought it could work another time But good racing by Beyer to attack another time in the end. Kinda beginning to like that guy, but he will be sorted out..
And Friedemann survived a mountain stage in the pack 
- Kakhi constantly bringing in results. Another Top10 in Montreal is good. Looking forward to next season
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| Silvio Herklotz |
Posted on 29-10-2014 18:18
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Protected Rider
Posts: 1246
Joined: 26-02-2014
PCM$: 200.00
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@Ollfardh: Yeah, I promised to make it soon. And I stand by my word
PREVIEW:  18th Vattenfall Cyclassics
Although Germany is a beautiful country with a big tradition in cycling (remember: 1/3 of the stages in both 2013 and 2014 Tour were won by Germans), there is only one German WT race at all! And this one is Vattenfall Cyclassics, which we are heading on to now. So you obviously cannot underestimate the importance of this race.
Since 1996, this classic has been raced every year, however, until 2005 it was called "HEW Cyclassics" (HEW: Hamburgische Elektrizitäts-Werke, Hamburg power station). When Vattenfall took over the electric system in Hamburg, they changed the name in "Vattenfall Cyclassics".
As the terrain around Hamburg is relatively flat, the winners have usually been strong sprinters. Among those are Jan Ullrich, Erik Zabel, Johan Museeuw, Paolo Bettini, Stuart O'Grady and Filippo Pozzato. All the winners since the 2006 edition are listed here:
| 2006 |  Oscar Freire | | 2007 |  Alessandro Ballan | | 2008 |  Robbie McEwen | | 2009 |  Tyler Farrar | | 2010 | Tyler Farrar | | 2011 |  Edvald Boasson Hagen | | 2012 |  Arnaud Demare |
The very last edition found its decision in a bunch sprint of a reduced field, where Arnaud Demare edged out Andre Greipel and Giacomo Nizzolo.
The Cyclassics are being raced in and around Hamburg. Right from the start, we leave the inner city to the South making a lap of about 100km, where the riders will see some countryside of Lower Saxony. After returning to the inner city then, the peloton is heading on to the Western lap of 55km, which takes us through Schleswig-Holstein. Here the riders will hit the Waseberg for the first time. We go on with another lap through Hamburg, so we return to the Waseberg then again. After that 2nd passage, we have two small laps around the Waseberg, so the cyclists have to go over it four times. After the last passage, the peloton will race right into the inner city, where the race ends on the prestigious Moenckebergstrasse. All in all, we head out onto 220km of racing.
Above you see the profile of the race. All in all, it is relatively easy, but the Waseberg may be decisive. With it being encountered four times, the weaker riders will surely be sorted out and it gives attackers chances to survive until the end. Of course we predict a sprint of a reduced bunch, but you never know (especially when PCM AI comes into play). You may be confused by only three mountain sprints, but the last climb on Waseberg is unclassified.
The length of 220km (including neutralized start) should not hurt the WT peloton too much, but it makes sure that nobody having an off-day can compete for the win here. One thing is for certain: The organisators tried hard to use the opportunities of a flat landscape.
As it seems spotlights on important parts of races are to everybody's liking, I chose to take a closer look on the Waseberg as well. All in all, the climb is only 700m long. While the first 400m are relatively flat with an average rise of 5%, the gradient kicks up to 15% after a sharp right-hander. That is what makes the Waseberg such a hard climb as the legs will hurt badly when being on top, but that is the exact point where you need to stamp the pedals if you are going to take an advantage. All in all, the elevation is 70m.
You see the startlist right here. If you spot any differences to your sent squads, please tell me, as the race is not raced so far. And I really do not want to do it again. As Maikin and Foliforov from RusVelo are no longer part of the game, I chose two guys in replacement.
With 24 teams of 8 riders each taking part in the race, we have a total of 192 riders competing for the win. Jasha Sütterlin from Thüringer Energie Team is just on the picture, because I like him and hope he will improve further next season.
Due to the uncertainty if a sprinter or an attacker will grab the win, both are part of the list. However, I rate the odds for the sprinters higher, so that is why the non-sprinters are at the end of the list. By the way, leadout men are not considered favourites, so they do not appear among them.
 Marcel Kittel (Argos/ FLA 78/ SPR 82/ ACC 83)
André Greipel (Lotto/ FLA 79/ SPR 82/ ACC 81)
Alexander Kristoff (Katusha/ FLA 77/ SPR 79/ ACC 78/ HIL 74)
Adrien Hanzen (SKY/ FLA 75/ SPR 79/ ACC 79/ HIL 75)
Willem Brouwer (Belkin/ FLA 76/ SPR 78/ ACC 79/ HIL 75)
Matthew Goss (Orica/ FLA 77/ SPR 78/ ACC 78)
Elia Viviani (Cannondale/ FLA 76/ SPR 78/ ACC 78)
Nicklas Stromberg (Garmin/ FLA 76/ SPR 78/ ACC 78)
Giacomo Nizzolo (RadioShack/ FLA 75/ SPR 78/ ACC 77/ HIL 70)
Andrea Guardini (Astana/ FLA 74/ SPR 77/ ACC 78)
Daniele Bennati (Saxo/ FLA 75/ SPR 76/ ACC 76/ HIL 73)
Alessandro Petacchi (OPQS/ FLA 75/ SPR 76/ ACC 76)
Thor Hushovd (BMC/ FLA 76/ SPR 75/ ACC 75/ HIL 73)
Rudy Verboven (Euskaltel/ FLA 74/ SPR 75/ ACC 74/ HIL 77)
Abasi Abundi (CCC/ FLA 70/ SPR 80/ ACC 75)
Yauheni Hutarovich (AG2R/ FLA 74/ SPR 75/ ACC 76)
Danny van Poppel (Vacansoleil/ FLA 74/ SPR 75/ ACC 76)
Filippo Pozzato (Lampre/ FLA 77/ SPR 73/ ACC 74/ HIL 74)
Francisco Ventoso (Movistar/ FLA 74/ SPR 74/ ACC 74/ HIL 72)
Thabo Jango Sithembile (FLA 75/ HIL 80/ ACC 70/ FTR 55)
Fabian Cancellara (FLA 82/ HIL 74/ ACC 76/ FTR 74)
Zdenek Stybar (OPQS/ FLA 77/ HIL 75/ ACC 76/ FTR 77)
Allessandro Ballan (BMC/ FLA 78/ HIL 74/ ACC 73/ FTR 77)
Sep Vanmarcke (Belkin/ FLA 78/ HIL 71/ ACC 73/ FTR 77)
Giovanni Visconti (Movistar/ FLA 73/ HIL 76/ ACC 75/ FTR 77)
Looking at the list above, there is an unbelievable amount of favourites, so it is basically anyone's race. The depth in strength makes it even more unpredictable and that is why everybody loves the Vattenfall Cyclassics. While the likes of Kittel and Greipel would be favourites after an easy race, Kristoff, hanzen and Brouwer seem to be the top guns in case the Waseberg is ridden harder. Some smaller teams like Topsport Vlaanderen, RusVelo or Accent Jobs will surely aim for breakaway action without a leader.
I am a bit sad that nobody selected anybody not fitting the race at all, but that is probably because there is no type of rider who can't use his specific strengths here. Even guys like De Clercq (LTB) and Rebellin (CCC) can contribute to the team's performance due to the Waseberg.
That should be it for now. I am tired of writing, you should be feeling well prepared for the action by now and that is why I can't say anything more than: Wait for the race, join in again, and prepare for the only German WT race of 2013.
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| nacho63 |
Posted on 29-10-2014 18:24
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Sprinter
Posts: 1918
Joined: 14-03-2013
PCM$: 200.00
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I can't wait for this one, that line up is crazy. Go go Kittel! |
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| Ollfardh |
Posted on 29-10-2014 18:29
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Tour de France Champion
Posts: 15117
Joined: 08-08-2011
PCM$: 11500.00
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A really nice preview! With the nationality bonus, it should be Greipel vs. Kittel really, so let's hope Brouwer can claim that final podium spot.
Changed my sig, this was getting absurd.
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| TheManxMissile |
Posted on 29-10-2014 19:07
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Tour de France Champion
Posts: 17864
Joined: 12-05-2012
PCM$: 0.00
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Ollfardh wrote:
A really nice preview! With the nationality bonus, it should be Greipel vs. Kittel really, so let's hope Brouwer can claim that final podium spot.
You've seen Hanzens form right? 
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| Dippofix |
Posted on 29-10-2014 19:46
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Classics Specialist
Posts: 3980
Joined: 29-01-2013
PCM$: 300.00
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USAPCC continues to be the appaling shitefest we've got used to, ending in the most ridiculous rider in the history of mankind grabbing a win, and Andy Talansky doing absolutley fucking nothing in the GC.
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| sgdanny |
Posted on 29-10-2014 20:03
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Classics Specialist
Posts: 3587
Joined: 18-03-2014
PCM$: 200.00
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Good Preview! Abundi will have to be our man, if we want to collect our Easy goal with a Top 15 :3
EDIT : With this line up I don't see how that goal was supposed to be easy...
Edited by sgdanny on 29-10-2014 20:04
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| trekbmc |
Posted on 29-10-2014 20:10
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Team Leader
Posts: 7336
Joined: 11-07-2014
PCM$: 700.00
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Gerrans got dropped in Montreal, surrounded by 3 Vaconsoleil guys...
Top 20 though.
Edited by trekbmc on 29-10-2014 20:11
"What done is, is one." - Benji Naesen
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