Thomas: Today's stage is only 63 km, it looks flat but those two bumps in the road will certainly hurt.
Julian: I hope to go one place better and get a win in the yellow jersey of this race!
Thomas: A five man group led by KOM jersey wearer Lastras went away in the first five kilometers. Meanwhile Hepburn unfortunately collided with a UHC rider in the opening kilometers, and he never made it back into the peloton.
We kept the break under very wraps, and with 20 km to go the gap was down to just over one minute.
And with 12 km to go, as I pulled off from the front the five escapees had been caught, it was up to the rest of the train now!
Julian: The rest of the train did not do their job very well, and Jens and myself were forced to search for wheels as we neared the final sprint.
We both got boxed in, and with one kilometer to ride, the white jersey of Sonny Colbrelli and the Colombian Duque are way out in front, and look set to take stage honors.
Jens did his best, but he was unable to bridge up to today's victor Colbrelli! Jens takes second with Duque third. Alberto Contador of all people takes fourth ahead of Voekcler. I take sixth on the day, and Thomas finishes safely in the bunch.
Julian: This time trial looks really hard, and maybe I can keep the white jersey if I can do well on the descents.
Thomas: I thought this stage was flatter than it really is. I'd be surprised if I can get a top 10, the big name climbers should all go quicker than me.
On account of losing 15 minutes the first day, I was one of the first starters and I'd be disappointed if I didn't spend some time in first place today.
It wasn't a great day for me, and I set a provisional best time of 28 29. That certainly won't stand up against the big names.
My time didn't even stand up to small names, as Maxime Bouet as the first rider to best my time, riding the course in a time of 28 10.
Bouet was the leader for a long time, but Roman Krueziger bested the Frenchmen by 30 seconds, finishing with a time of 27 40, which was good enough for the stage win.
Julian: I was the second to last rider to start, and my legs felt fantastic as I rode through the hills. I did my best and crossed the line with a time of 28 40.
Julian: Having the lead-out train break down on stage 3 was extremely frustrating, but I'm pleased with my time trial, staying in white for another day is a nice reward for a strong ride!
Thomas: Despite the hilly terrain, I expected to do better today. It was another day for me to forget in this race. I probably won't be back next year. Tomorrow's stage is the GC day, featuring a summit finish. The team plan is put someone in the breakaway.
Thomas: The final stage of the race is going to be really hard, the last climb has grades of over 10 percent. We will try and get a guy in the break.
We failed in getting a guy in the break, as a ten man move escaped right from the gun. The best placed riders were Gorka Izagirre (Movistar), and Przemyslaw Niemiec (Lampre).
The peloton showed little intrest in chasing down the large move, and their gap grew and grew. On the slopes of the penultimate climb, Marc De Maar (UHC) and Izagirre shattered the breakaway with a violent attack near the top of the climb.
Their gap was still over 3 30.
With 5 km to go, Pinot accelerated out of the peloton and the only riders to follow were Contador and Bardet. Meanwhile up the road Izagirre had left De Maar and was riding towards the stage victory and had a shot at winning the GC.
In the final kilometers, Contador attacked and left the two frenchmen behind, but it was looking like he would lose out to Izagirre.
A great win for Gorka Izagirre as the takes the stage win and the GC win with a strong ride out of the breakaway! De Maar is second and Contador crosses the line around 2 minutes behind his compatriot.
Julian: After failing to get a rider into the break, the team just took it easy for the rest of the stage, and we safely finished within the time limit.
Thomas: And with the final stage out time is up in France. It was a successful race, a stage win and three second places is a fair result for a team of out stature. Next up is the Volta Algarve in Portugal. We won't be giving long reports, as out training schedule is ramping up in anticipation of out first WT race.
Thomas: On paper today's stage looks easy, but those two early climbs will put many riders out the back. Both have slopes of over 10 percent gradient. I have no responsibilities today, and will just enjoy the ride to the finish.
Julian: After it became clear the break would take the stage yesterday, I sat up and didn't sprint. We won't have a train and hopefully I can make my way to Marcel Kittel's wheel. A top 5 is the target for today.
The Race
Thomas: Four riders went away at the gun, and the move stuck. They were Pichot (Europcar), Conti (Lampre), Reynes (IAM), and Sancho (Bacno BIC).
The only interesting part of my day was a nice chat I had with Bernie Eisel. Apparently he has a job with Sky as a DS when he retires!
Julian: Mitchell Docker did a good job of keeping me out of the wind today, and with 4 km to go, I had found my way to the wheel of Lotto man Jens Debusschere. The plan was to get Kittel's wheel, but everyone else had the same plan so this was a decent alternative.
It didn't really matter who had the German's wheel, as he powered away from the competition, opening up a gap of over 50 meters. I was having a good sprint, and a podium place was in reach.
It was an easy win for Marcel Kittel, and a good day for myself as I Ariel Maximiliano Richeze just before the line to take third place behind the winner and Trek's Nizzolo. Very happy with today's result!
Julian: Honestly couldn't be happier with my performance today. Beating the likes of Edvald Boasson Hagen, and many others is a good day for me. Tomorrow is a 35 km time trial, and it is the big day for Thomas in this race.
Julian: Today's time trial is 35 mostly flat km, with a little bump in the middle that is easier than it looks on paper. Today's about taking it easy, no need for me to ride hard today.
Thomas: There is a very strong field here for the time trial, we have five guys who could do a good ride, but I think it would be a surprise if Cancellara did not take the stage. I'm not sure how I stack up compared to the other pros yet, so I'll do my best and we'll see what happens!
Our first rider today was Durbo, and he absolutely flew on the opening stages of the course, he caught his 2 minute man just after the first checkpoint. He eventually set the best time, stopping the clock at 48 25.
Unfortunately, I was unable to catch my two minute, and I felt a little disappointed to finish 26 seconds slower than my teammate.
Shortly after I finished, the Swede Kessiakoff shattered Durbridge's time, stopping the clock at 47 57.
Julian: I took it real easy, and eventually finished with a time of over 50 minutes. The last man who could challenge Kessiakoff was Spartacus, but he had a slow ride by his standards, coming in over 40 seconds behind the Astana rider.
GC: Fedrigo Points: Kittel KOM: Pichot U25: Majka Team: Orica-Greenedge
Thomas: I'm not happy with my ride, but looking back I didn't do a bad ride. Most of the guys who beat me have been doing this for a long time, and it just a February race, I'm not in anything resembling my best form yet! Tomorrow's stage is a day for the break, if my legs feel good I might jump into the escape!
Julian: Today's stage should decide the GC, it's an up and down ride through the countryside that could see the breakaway take the honors. Today I'll just save some energy before tomorrow's flatter stage.
Thomas: I'm going to try to stay with the front runners today on the final climb, but I doubt I'll get much of a result after my very average performance in the time trial yesterday.
Today wasn't a fun day to be Damien Howson, as he hit the deck on the descent of the cat 3 climb, luckily he was okay though and managed to rejoin the peloton.
The rest of the day was very uneventful, and the FDJ-led bunch hauled the breakaway back with a little over 15 km to ride.
Thomas: My legs felt great all day, and when I sensed a lull in the pace with around 8 km to go, I shot out of the bunch and quickly opened up a gap!
After riding solo for a few kilometers, I was joined by five riders: Greg Van Avermaet, Horner, Nordhaug, Fedrigo, and Kessiakoff. We had a large margin on the now 45 man peloton.
Despite my best efforts, I wasn't quite able to hold the wheel of the blazing pace at the front, Horner and GVA were really riding hard!
Greg Van Avermaet ended up easily taking the win, riding away from the rest with around 750 m to go. Horner took second and Kessiakoff third. I ended up with a very strong sixth place, a good ride from me today.
Thomas: I'm extremely pleased with my ride today, even though I wasn't able to hold on to the wheel of the leaders, I'm no puncher, and I'd been in the wind on my own for good amount of time. Tomorrow's stage is "flat", but it is quite bumpy, I'll take it easy, but hopefully Julian can get another good result.
Julian: The final stage for this year's Volto ao Algarve is a "flat" stage, but if the break did not take the win, I would be shocked. Not really sure what to expect, as these harder stage suit me, I think a top 5 is doable.
Thomas: My legs are still feeling the effort from yesterday, don't expect anything from me today!
The day's break had six riders, the biggest names were KOM leader Pichot, along with Belkin's Martens and BMC's Cummings.
It was a boring day, Giant and Trek led the chase for Kittel and Nizzolo, and with 10 km to go, the gap was at a reasonable 45 seconds.
With 5 km to go, the two strongest riders from the early move had left the other 4 escapees behind, and led by a gap of 35 seconds over the hard-charging bunch. At this point I sat up and coasted home.
Julian: With 2 km to go, Martens left Cummings behind, and his gap was down to 20 seconds. I was placed far back, it wasn't looking good for a result today.
Martens was able to hold off Nizzolo by around ten seconds for the win, and I came from very far back to finish a respectable sixth place, another day with a decent result!
Thomas: It was a very up and down race for Julian and I. Stages 2, 4, and 5 were days we consider successes and stages 1 and 3 did not go so well. In the end, we did our best, and we got some decent results to build upon for the future. Next up is the Omloop for Julian, I'll be cheering him and the team on from my sofa!
Thomas wasn't able to fight for win with GVA at Stage 4, but it's nice to see again some top 10 places at flat stages for Julian, his results are very promising
Julian: It's just me today, and I can't wait for the start of my first cobbled classic! 10 sectors that should create gaps in what is a relatively weak field for this race. The big 3 of Cancellara, Vanmarcke, and Boonen are here, but many strong guys like Sagan and Kristoff are not here today. I have a free role, and will try to stay at the front for as long as possible.
Four brave souls burst from the peloton from the start. The best cobbler was the Japanese champion Arashiro.
Trek controlled the pace for much of the day, and on the third cobbled section Cancellara had his boys lay the hammer down at the front. Devolder ripped the field to shreds. I was the front of the group, and I made the 18 man section alongside Docker and Tuft. The biggest name missing out was Boonen, but he had many teammates in our front group.
Our front group rode well together, with Trek and Belkin doing the bulk of the work to keep Boonen and the others behind. As we hit the big section of cobbles, the group was down to only 11 riders, but Boonen was bridging the gap only 25 seconds behind.
With Boonen close to rejoining the group, Spartacus went all in to try and keep the Belgian from joining him. It was amazing to see how fast he could go on the cobbles.
At the end of the bumps, Boonen joined my group, and the pace severly lulled, with everyone expecting the Belgian to try and chase Cancellara. With more and more riders coming across the gap to us, I tried to leave this slow chase behind, but unfortunately I was chased down immediately.
The next to attack to Vanmarcke, and the only to follow were Boonen and Nick Nuyens. They caught and passed an exhausted Cancellara, and the front group broke apart into smaller groups of 3 and 4. I was seventh on the road, riding with Jempy Drucker and Marco Bandiera of Androni.
With only 4 km to go, Vanmarcke gave one last effort to dislodge Tom Boonen, and it looked like he had a gap!
But Tom Boonen easily chased him down, and took a great win in the Omloop! Nuyens came around Vanmarcke at the last moment to take second.
I absolutly died near the end, and both Drucker and Bandiera beat me our sprint for fourth place. I was almost caught my a huge chasing group lead in my Matthew Hayman, who had a much easier day than I did after sucking wheels all day! But in the end I come Sixth Place! This is way beyond my wildest expectations!
If you had told me before the race that I would finish in the top ten, I would've called you crazy. I didn't just finish in the top ten, I was at the front for the bulk of the race, I attacked, and was one place away from a top five! A blend of good legs, good positioning, and good tactics culminated in the best result so far in my career, amateur or pro. If I can keep getting these results (probably not), it will be a fun year! Next up is my first WT race, Tirreno-Adriatico, where I rejoin Thomas.
DS: It seems that all of the big names have made their way to Italy for this year's Tirreno Adriatico. The race starts with a team time trial followed by two days for the sprinters. After two days in the big mountains, the race ends with a sprint stage and a short individual time trial. Team goal is to come away with the KOM jersey, and to do our best in the sprint days with Caleb, Julian, and Kruopis.
GC Favorites
Chris Froome
Alberto Contador
Joaquim Rodriguez
Vincenzo Nibali
Rui Costa
Cadel Evans
Nairo Quintana
Sprinters
Marcel Kittel
Andre Greipel
Mark Cavendish
Alexander Kristoff
Peter Sagan
Arnaud Demare
Tirreno-Adriatico Stage 1
Thomas: This will certainly be interesting, as we begin our first WT race with a team time trial. We don't have too many guys for this race, so we just will do our best!
Julian: We haven't ever practiced this, I will be happy if nothing goes horribly wrong today!
We were one one of the first teams to depart, and after the first check, we were already way behind the early best time of BMC. Here's me on the front with Thomas right behind me!
Thomas: Svein Tuft and I did the majority of the work, and at the end we came to the line with 6 riders, and stopped the clock with a time of 22 32, which wouldn't come close to challenging for the stage honors.
BMC's time stood up for a long time, but they were no match for the Sky train, we finished with 7 riders and set the winning time of 21 51!
Stage Results
Rank
Team
Time
General Time
1
Team Sky
21'51
21'51 (1)
2
BMC Racing Team
+ 9
+ 9 (2)
3
Tinkoff - Saxo
+ 12
+ 12 (3)
4
Belkin-Pro Cycling Team
+ 21
+ 21 (4)
5
Team Katusha
+ 26
+ 26 (5)
6
AG2R La Mondiale
s.t.
+ 26 (6)
7
Omega Pharma - Quick·Step Cycling Team
+ 28
+ 28 (7)
8
Astana Pro Team
s.t.
+ 28 (8)
9
Trek Factory Racing
+ 30
+ 30 (9)
10
Movistar Team
s.t.
+ 30 (10)
11
Lampre - Merida
s.t.
+ 31 (11)
12
Garmin Sharp
+ 33
+ 33 (12)
13
FDJ.fr
s.t.
+ 33 (13)
14
Lotto Belisol
+ 35
+ 35 (14)
15
Orica GreenEdge
+ 41
+ 41 (15)
16
Team Europcar
+ 42
+ 42 (16)
17
Cannondale
+ 47
+ 47 (17)
18
Bardiani CSF
s.t.
+ 47 (18)
19
CCC Polsat Polkowice
+ 53
+ 53 (19)
20
Team Giant - Shimano
+ 54
+ 54 (20)
21
Neri Sottoli
+ 1'12
+ 1'12 (21)
22
Androni Giocattoli
+ 1'13
+ 1'13 (22)
Thomas: Not much to say about today, we expected nothing and finished with nothing. I'm very excited for tomorrow though, my first road stage in the WT. It'll be flat, and the sprinters should have a chance for glory.
Thomas: Today's stage is the first of what should be 3 days for the sprinters. I won't try anything silly today, just sit in the peloton and enjoy my first WT road stage.
Julian: There are so many strong sprinters here, I have no idea how I stack up against them! Anything better than a top 10 would be a success for me.
Thomas: After around an hour of racing, the lone escapee, Gilbert, had established himself at the front of the race.
It's hit me as we were riding through the first lap of the finishing circuit, that I had made it. I was in the WT! I look left and right, and I saw the guys I grew up watching on TV and rooting for back at home. It's still crazy that I'm racing alongside names like Rogers, Cavendish, and Cancellara.
That's enough rambling, back to the racing, with 10 (not 20) km to go, the gap to the former world champion was down to 45 seconds, and it was up to Julian and Caleb to fly the flag for OGE!
Julian: I still don't know how I did it, but with 4 km to go I found myself on the wheel of the Manx Missile. I was hoping to follow someone like Swift or Sagan, but when I saw that GBR jersey flash by, I jumped across the road, and I was in the perfect position for the final sprint!
The Omega train did their job, and when Boonen pulled off with 1500 m to go, Cavendish was in the perfect position. I too benefited from the great leadout by the Belgian, and was positioned third on the road.
With 800 m to go, it was obvious the Manx Missile would strike for the stage win. I was still in second at this point, but I was fading fast, the question was how many guys would pass me?
Mark Cavendish take an easy win in the first road stage of Tirreno-Adriatico! Its a good ride for Demare as the Frenchmen takes second just ahead of Kristoff. Kittel is fourth and your's truly takes fifth place ahead of Peter Sagan! What a fantastic start to my first WT race!
Stage Results
Rank
Name
Team
Time
1
Mark Cavendish
Omega Pharma - Quick·Step Cycling Team
3h49'59
2
Arnaud Demare
FDJ.fr
s.t.
3
Alexander Kristoff
Team Katusha
s.t.
4
Marcel Kittel
Team Giant - Shimano
s.t.
5
Julian Woods
Orica GreenEdge
s.t.
6
Peter Sagan
Cannondale
s.t.
7
Ben Swift
Team Sky
s.t.
8
Luka Mezgec
Team Giant - Shimano
s.t.
9
Caleb Ewan
Orica GreenEdge
s.t.
10
Tom Boonen
Omega Pharma - Quick·Step Cycling Team
s.t.
GC: Thomas Points: Cavendish KOM: Gilbert U25: Phinney Team: Sky
I'm honestly way more surprised by this result than my ride in Omloop. The cobbled race had a pretty weak field, but this race sure doesn't! Fifth place ahead of Sagan, Greipel, even ahead of Caleb, who certainly has more top end speed. If I can get another top five tomorrow I'll be over the moon.
Thomas: The third stage of Tirreno is another one for Julian, it'd be awesome to see him repeat his result of yesterday. The team goal is to get the KOM jersey, so I will try and make it into the day's breakaway.
Julian: Team goal for today is to get another top five, another day for me to wheel suck and hope for the best!
Thomas: It took a lot of effort, but I eventually made into the 4 man move that stuck at the front. My companions were Gaudin (AG2R), Thurau (Europcar), and Marangoni (Cannondale).
The first KOM sprint was close, but I took it over Gaudin on the line. The second sprint was much easier., as Gaudin was unable to follow me on the steeper slope. Job done, and I will be in the polka-dots tomorrow.
With so many top sprinters, we never had a chance of surviving to the finish, and with over 20 km still to ride, we were reeled back into the peloton. It won't be a fun ride to the finish for me, come on Julian!
Julian: Today I found myself on the wheel of Peter Sagan, who in turn was on the wheel of yesterday's winner Cavendish.
Both Cavendish and Sagan went early, and I was really struggling to follow them. With both Cavendish and Sagan fading fast, the win would go to Kristoff or Kittel.
It's Kristoff, as the Norwegian takes a great win over Marcel Kittel. Cavendish holds on for third, and yours truly pips Sagan on the line for fourth place!
Stage Results
Rank
Name
Team
Time
1
Alexander Kristoff
Team Katusha
4h27'07
2
Marcel Kittel
Team Giant - Shimano
s.t.
3
Mark Cavendish
Omega Pharma - Quick·Step Cycling Team
s.t.
4
Julian Woods
Orica GreenEdge
s.t.
5
Peter Sagan
Cannondale
s.t.
6
Arnaud Demare
FDJ.fr
s.t.
7
Caleb Ewan
Orica GreenEdge
s.t.
8
Ben Swift
Team Sky
s.t.
9
Chris Froome
Team Sky
s.t.
10
Luka Mezgec
Team Giant - Shimano
s.t.
GC: Thomas Points: Cavendish KOM: Smith U25: Majka Team: Sky
Thomas: Today went perfectly for the team. A jersey, another top 5, two in the top 10, the DS was very happy with us, hopefully that remains a constant. Tomorrow we go into the mountains for the two main GC days, I'll just be pack fodder tomorrow before going back into the break on stage 5.
Tamijo: thanks, I have no idea where this is coming from, his stats are nowhere near those of Sagan and even Ewan, I guess I'm paying way more attention to Julian than Caleb.
Julian: Stage 4 is the first of two days in the high mountains, with 3 hard climbs culminating in a cat 1 summit finish. Nothing for me today, I'll just take it easy.
Thomas: I'm still feeling the efforts of yesterday a little. I'm going to try and hang on for as long as possible though.
Julian: The day's escape featured eight riders, the most notable being Cancellara, Damiano Cunego, and Visconti (Movistar).
The bulk of the work on the front was done by Sky for Froome and Astana for Nibali. They did a good job of keeping the gap down, and over the top of the second KOM point with 60 km to go, the gap was down to 4 minutes.
Meanwhile, it was day over for me as I fell off the back about halfway up that second climb.
Thomas: With 10 km to go, the slope on the final climb had ramped up, and I was immediately out the back of the 38 man "GC" group. The break had a 45 second advantage on a four man group containing Peraud, Ten Dam, Rodriguez, and Froome. Another 20 seconds down the slope was a small group with Nibali, Uran, Pinot and Valverde. The Tinkoff duo of Contador and Majka were nowhere in sight.
Laurens Ten Dam had great legs, and with 6 km to go, he opened up a big gap back to the other 3 with a huge attack.
The Dutchmen was putting in a great ride, but the Peraud, Froome, and Rodriguez clawed their way back to his wheel with 1800 m to go.
And the veteran Jean-Christophe Peraud takes the stage with a brilliant ride in the mountains. Ten Dam is second 9 seconds back with Rodriguez third and Froome fourth. Nibali comes fifth 45 seconds down. crossing the line alongside Uran, Pinot, and Visconti.
Stage Results
Rank
Name
Team
Time
1
Jean-Christophe Peraud
AG2R La Mondiale
6h11'01
2
Laurens Ten Dam
Belkin-Pro Cycling Team
+ 9
3
JoaquÃm RodrÃguez
Team Katusha
s.t.
4
Chris Froome
Team Sky
s.t.
5
Vincenzo Nibali
Astana Pro Team
+ 45
6
Giovanni Visconti
Movistar Team
s.t.
7
Rigoberto Urán
Omega Pharma - Quick·Step Cycling Team
s.t.
8
Thibaut Pinot
FDJ.fr
s.t.
9
Alejandro Valverde
Movistar Team
+ 58
10
Davide Malacarne
Team Europcar
+ 2'03
11
Rafal Majka
Tinkoff - Saxo
+ 2'45
12
Alberto Contador
Tinkoff - Saxo
s.t.
13
Enrico Battaglin
Bardiani CSF
+ 2'58
14
Janier Acevedo
Garmin Sharp
+ 3'07
15
Arthur Vichot
FDJ.fr
+ 3'38
GC
Rank
Name
Team
Time
1
Chris Froome
Team Sky
14h50'10
2
Jean-Christophe Peraud
AG2R La Mondiale
+ 4
3
Laurens Ten Dam
Belkin-Pro Cycling Team
+ 12
4
JoaquÃm RodrÃguez
Team Katusha
+ 21
5
Vincenzo Nibali
Astana Pro Team
+ 1'01
6
Rigoberto Urán
Omega Pharma - Quick·Step Cycling Team
s.t.
7
Giovanni Visconti
Movistar Team
+ 1'03
8
Thibaut Pinot
FDJ.fr
+ 1'13
9
Alejandro Valverde
Movistar Team
+ 1'16
10
Alberto Contador
Tinkoff - Saxo
+ 2'45
Points: Cavendish KOM: Smith U25: Pinot Team: Movistar
Thomas: Not much to say about today, congrats to Peraud on the win, tomorrow is another day in the mountains, and I will be in the day's break. It'd be awesome if the bunch let the break go all the way tomorrow!
Chris Froome
Alberto Contador
Vincenzo Nibali
Rui Costa
Cadel Evans
Nairo Quintana
Marcel Kittel
Alexander Kristoff
Peter Sagan
Arnaud Demare
