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David Veilleux-The Next Canadian Legend
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| DJP19 |
Posted on 08-05-2011 20:12
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Great story so far and nice to see David moving on. Good luck in 2011!
Edited by DJP19 on 08-05-2011 20:12
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| valverde321 |
Posted on 09-05-2011 00:28
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World Champion
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Thanks everyone glad you like this so far.
@Roturn: I should say that I wanted Wiggins to stay, but he thought being 2nd fiddle behind Rodriguez, so Sky needed a new leader.
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| valverde321 |
Posted on 09-05-2011 01:53
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Pro Tour Teams
AG2R's only real big signing was J-C Peraud, who should help them in smaller stage races. The team will again be led by Irishman Nicolas Roche who disappointed with a 24th at last years Tour de France. This team isn't all that great and I could see them relegating at the end of the year.
The biggest move by Astana was signing Alejandro Valverde. Now there is a doping duo of Vino and Valverde. The team has stoked up on climbers and have signed VandenBroeck along with Valverde so maybe some leadership issues later. Other than climbing this team isn't very strong so we should only see them stand out in stage races. VandenBroeck finished 11th @ the Giro and then went to the Tour and got 10th so he could be an outsider for a strong GT performance.
BMC is one of those teams thats built around one rider, being Cadel Evans. Evans finished 5th at the TDF and 10th at the Giro along with 6th at San Sebastien. Taylor Phinney should have a bigger role this year and many expect him to become a TT champ this year.
Cofidis made a shock signing when it was announced Thomas Dekker would be riding for them this season. It helps the team with Moncoutie aging and Taaramae underperforming. Sandy Casar was also brought in after the team promoted to the PT so they might be able to stay above relegation this season.
Euskatel made the greatest signing of any team last season when Alberto Contador signed for them. He adds another strong GT rider to the mix, but many suspect Sammy Sanchez is starting to decline. Igor Anton has emerged as one of the best climbers in the world, he just needs to work on his timetrial.
In order to stay in the PT after promoting last year with Cofidis, FDJ had signed Visconti someone who can do well during April and Ventoso a strong sprinter. The team doesn't really have any climbers and could relegate at the end of the year.
Garmin have built a very strong team in the past few years. With Danielson and VandeVelde starting to decline Garmin decided to sign free agent Denis Menchov to contend in the Giro and Vuelta for Garmin. Farrar has a very strong sprint team in front of him and could win the Green jersey at the TDF. He won the Tour of California and Qatar green jerseys along with 11 stage wins.
Probably the biggest rivals to Garmin, HTC have decided to invest in their young climbers, Velits, Van Garderen, Sivstov and Martin as well as maintaining a strong sprint train with Cav and friends. Kiserlovski is probably the biggest signing.
Katusha have lost a couple of their good climbers as Di Luca has left, however they have also signed Wiggins. Katusha also signed Hoste, Hushovd, Ballan, and V.Efimkin. Clearly Katusha want to build a strong cobbles team and I think they have.
Now were on to Lampre. This team has maybe the most obvious doping ring in cycling, and its quite obvious when Di Luca and Riccardo Ricco join Scarponi and Cunego, but this team will probably win the Giro d'Italia with one of those 4 riders, as Di Luca won it last year and Scarponi finished 2nd. Petacchi is still a strong sprinter but we saw a decline in his results last season.
Leopard Trek have the best rider in the world with Cancellara and also the Schleck bro's. Kim Kirchen was allowed to resume cycling this season and has joined his Lux friends. Leopard Trek also has Steegmans and Bozic joining Weytlandt for the sprints this season so a very strong team all around and could contend for the top place.
Liquigas have built on a strong squad from last year, with Rebellin and Calagarin. Nibali or Bassi are very good GT favourites for which ever they enter so a good team, and then theres Sagan. Only problem is Guarnieri is the strongest sprinter of the team so maybe a little weak in that area.
Movistar had a great squad and actually Contador had signed with them, but they went overbudget and were forced to release him. Still Rojas has become a great sprinter and Ivanov has joined the team as the main classic rider. Now Soler is the lead GC guy and should do decent if he can stay upright.
Omegapharma lost their two best climbers in Peraud and VDB so they will be very weak in that regard. However they still have the best classics rider in Phillipe Gilbert and Veikkanen isn't too shabby. With no GC leader Greipel should be the focus for GT's and we should see him have a breakout season....finally.
Of course Quickstep have a very strong sprinters team with Boonen, Ciolek, Keukeleire, Keisse and Stauff. Terpstra and Chavanel should do well in supporting Boonen at the classics and Dario Cataldo could be an outside shot for the Giro.
Radioshack are like the team that never wants to age. Levi, Kloden, Horner, McEwen, Hunter and McCartney, as well as new signings Pellizotti, Sevilla and Valjavec. Dan Martin is the youngest of the riders who should still perform very well the rest are domestiques or young talents.
The final team in the PT this year is SaxoBank. They saw their leader and basically the only reason they continued last year (Contador) leave this season, so with Porte the strongest GT rider this team could be destined for relegation. Of course there is Machado, Navarro and newest signing Sella there for backup. The team is fairly weak at everything else but Larsen is a good TTer and Nuyens in a good classics rider.
Relegation fav's:
AG2R
Cofidis
FDJ
RadioShack
Saxobank
BMC
Edited by valverde321 on 09-05-2011 18:28
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| BikeRoel |
Posted on 09-05-2011 07:23
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Domestique
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nice and strong teams, why didn't you presented team sky?
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| Pellizotti2 |
Posted on 09-05-2011 08:16
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BikeRoel wrote:
nice and strong teams, why didn't you presented team sky?
Look one page earlier.
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| Ad Bot |
Posted on 25-11-2024 10:58
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Bot Agent
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| BikeRoel |
Posted on 09-05-2011 08:30
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Domestique
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@pellizotti2: okay i didn't see, people can make mistakes 
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| valverde321 |
Posted on 09-05-2011 21:32
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World Champion
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It may be a little too soon for some, but for me it helps to take my mind off of real cycling.
__________________________________________________
Continental Teams
Androni have a very strong team again, like last season. With the 3 South American climbers leading the way they should have no trouble at all in the mountains. The team did lose their biggest rider in Emanuele Sella during the off-season but they still have Ginanni a good climber on short climbs and a decent sprinter. Androni also has a very promising young rider in Salvatore Cenci who could become one of Italy's greatest sprinters.
Acqua & Sapone is maybe the best Italian team in the Conti Division with Stefano Garzeli and Danilo Napolitiano. A&S also has Elia Rigotto a very strong sprinter. Rafaa Chtioui the best Tunisian in cycling has become a very nice sprinter for the team and has been handy in leading out Rigotto.
Bretagne - Schuller made one of the best signings of the season when they signed Rolland the french climber from my former team Europcar. Rolland is a very good climber and he is seen as the next Moreau. I think with him on the team and Vachon the sprinter this team could very well get a wild-card to the Tour de France since most other strong French teams are already guaranteed a place thanks to the rules of the UCI and ProTour teams.
Now we have Colnago-CSF the team that formerly had Petacchi many years ago. Now it has another great Italian sprinter, Sacha Modolo. Modolo had 6 Top 10 places in last years Giro and 3 of which were Top 5's so he's a very consistent guy. Colnago's two biggest signings were Fabio Duarte coming from Geox and Leonardo Piepoli a very good climber back in the day. Another one of their signings is Mattia Gavazzi coming off a suspension for cocaine.
Next its on to my former team, Europcar who have a strong french team. Obviously their best rider is Voeckler who is pretty good at everything. Next I would say is Arashiro who is a great sprinter and should win many stages this season. Turgot and Gautier are also good riders, Turgot being a pure sprinter and Gautier being a puncheur.
Farnese-Vini Neri is a team based in the UK but basically its an Italian squad. Farnese could very well promote this season with a major signing joining them this year in Alexandr Kolobnev the Russian hill specialist. Sinkewitz is also a good climber and so is Bisolti giving the team lots of depth. Speaking of depth the sprinters on the squad aren't that bad either with Miyazawa, Gaurnieri and Gatto. I see this team promoting.
Geox was the team that everyone thought should be in the ProTour, this year they do not deserve that, as the 2 strongest climbers on the team Fabio Duarte and Denis Menchov both left for other teams. Geox does still have Carlos Sastre and Cobo Acebo, along with blossoming superstars Marco Kump and Fabio Felline. I dont see them promoting but they could surprise me.
Miche have improved on the squad from last year, with Janez Brajkovic, who will join Schumacher to form a very strong climbing tandem. Other than those two the only other rider to watch out for is Merlo a sprinter.
The most surprising of the relegated teams last year was RaboBank. With a team that good many thought they could contend for 1st place in the ProTour rankings, so this year everyone is expected to get them back into the ProTour, which I think they can do. I can't say anymore than, this team is bursting with talent lets hope we see it!
Vacansoleil is another good team with high hopes. They have Leukemans and Devolder for the cobbles and Mosquera for the climbs. Vacansoleil is a very well rounded team, and should also fight for a promotion spot. They did lose Bozic their main sprinter so Feillu will have to step up this season as well as Johnny Hoogerland, whenever Mosquera isn't riding.
Teams from the UK
Endura are maybe the most well known British team after Sky so they have high hopes for local races. Bellis and Kiryienka add to the solid team this season and we could see a couple wins from them in big races.
Motorpoint have maybe the oldest average rider age of any team in the world with Elliot, Davis, Roche and Bjergfelt. I dont think Motorpoint will do much but I think they will race with an attacking spirit.
Raleigh are a very cool team. They have a lot of pretty decent sprintes and Muravyev the Kazakh climber. Handley is also a good looknig youngster, maybe he can turn into more than just a good rider.
Rapha Condor are a very exotic team in that they ride in exotic countries. Clancy is the strongest rider as he is a strong sprinter, but Craven is also a good all-rounder.
Sigma Sport Specialized has a couple decent sprinters. They managed to entice Matteo Tossato to sign for them so definitely some experience will be passed over to the younger riders. Tossato hasn't lost his climbing abilty yet though so he become one of the strongest on the team in that area.
Edited by valverde321 on 10-05-2011 00:43
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| kissaha |
Posted on 09-05-2011 21:52
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Sprinter
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Very nice presentation, must have taken some time to prepare  |
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| chrica04 |
Posted on 09-05-2011 22:12
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Breakaway Specialist
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Joined: 23-10-2007
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Looking forward to the next season...this is one great story! |
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| BikeRoel |
Posted on 10-05-2011 06:53
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Domestique
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yes nice presentation, but are you affraid of some riders, who can take your win?
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| valverde321 |
Posted on 12-05-2011 01:49
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World Champion
Posts: 12986
Joined: 20-05-2009
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David's Blog
So with the season just beginning, my race calendar for most of the season has now been planned out. I think these races are going to be really fun. Unfortunately Sky wont be going to the Tour de Beauce so I wont get a shot to win it, but I'm fine with getting picked for the AToC which is the biggest race in North America despite it being a 2.HC race and the Canadian Classics being ProTour, there's just a larger fanbase in the US and especially California. The offseason had been very fun, Hawaii with Ryder and Barry was fun and doing some testing with Sky was good. I was able to do some testing in a wind tunnel which was my first time ever so it was a pretty neat experience. Along with that I also really like the atmoshpere this team has, I could see myself riding for Sky for a long time.
Race Calendar
| Date | Race | Rank | Country | | 3/6/2012 | Strade Bianche | 1.1 |  | | 14/04/2012 | De Brabanste Pijl | 1.1 |  | | 24/04/2012-01/05/2012 | Presidential Tour of Turkey | 2.HC |  | | 16/05/2012-23/05/2012 | AMGEN Tour of California | 2.HC |  | | 18/07/2012 | East Yorkshire Classic | 1.2 |  |
Edited by valverde321 on 12-05-2011 02:26
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| DJP19 |
Posted on 12-05-2011 02:34
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Looking forward to the next season. Good Luck! |
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| lluuiiggii |
Posted on 12-05-2011 02:59
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DJP19 wrote:
Looking forward to the next season. Good Luck!
+1 =)
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| roturn |
Posted on 12-05-2011 09:17
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I think you could do well in Turkey if you don`t have to help your leader.
Do you plan to get ~60 race days with him? |
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| Mresuperstar |
Posted on 12-05-2011 13:04
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lluuiiggii wrote:
DJP19 wrote:
Looking forward to the next season. Good Luck!
+1 =)
+2 
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| valverde321 |
Posted on 12-05-2011 14:11
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@Roturn I also think he could do well just judging by the past winners. And he is planning to race close to 60 days, but that might give away his plans later on now....
@EveryoneThanks for the nice words, hopefully I can start the season off tonight.
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| FreitasPCM |
Posted on 12-05-2011 14:32
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Pretty good calendar. Hope to see David in a good shape in Turkey. |
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| valverde321 |
Posted on 13-05-2011 02:44
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World Champion
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Strade Bianche
My Plan: Today I will be working for our leader Eddy. Arvesen is the breakaway guy but the team said that if I'm still at the front in the final kilometre I go work for myself. Sagan, Di Luca, Hesjedal and Cunego are here so it will be very difficult for us to win.
Here we go starting the stage off. We can see the large breakaway up ahead and the peloton winding through a small forest.
Arvesen makes a move with 20km to go on a gravel section. He is still behind the leading break so he will have to catch up to them, but they are starting to lose their legs after being in the saddle all day.
Arvesen was brought back so the team decided to let Hagen make his move now. I think he made a massive attack, he caught and passed the break, but Lampre started to chase hard.
Eddy was swept up, shortly inside the last km, so I got to be the designated sprinter as Hagen just followed another teams train up front.
Sagan sprinted clear and won ahead of Cunego. My friend Hesjedal finished 5th, I finished 22nd and Barry finished 55th.
Result:
| Rank | Name | Team | Time | | 1 | Peter Sagan | Liquigas - Cannondale | 4h56'41 | | 2 | Damiano Cunego | Lampre - ISD | s.t. | | 3 | Daniele Pietropolli | Lampre - ISD | s.t. | | 4 | Federico Canuti | Colnago - CSF Inox | s.t. | | 5 | Ryder Hesjedal | Team Garmin - Cervélo | s.t. | | 6 | Alessandro Bertolini | Lampre - ISD | s.t. | | 7 | Andrea Moletta | Colnago - CSF Inox | s.t. | | 8 | Vincenzo Nibali | Liquigas - Cannondale | s.t. | | 9 | Edvald Boasson Hagen | Sky ProCycling | s.t. | | 10 | Danilo Di Luca | Lampre - ISD | s.t. | | 11 | Davide Frattini | Farnese Vini - Neri Sottoli | s.t. | | 12 | Stefano Garzelli | Acqua & Sapone | s.t. | | 13 | Pietro Caucchioli | Farnese Vini - Neri Sottoli | s.t. | | 14 | Alessandro Ballan | Katusha Team | s.t. | | 15 | Matteo Carrara | Vacansoleil - DCM Pro Cycling Team | s.t. | | 16 | Mirko Selvaggi | Vacansoleil - DCM Pro Cycling Team | s.t. | | 17 | Luca Paolini | Katusha Team | s.t. | | 18 | Michel Kreder | Team Garmin - Cervélo | s.t. | | 19 | Dario Cataldo | Quick·Step Cycling Team | s.t. | | 20 | Sep Vanmarcke | Team Garmin - Cervélo | s.t. | | 21 | Daniel Lloyd | Team Garmin - Cervélo | s.t. | | 22 | David Veilleux | Sky ProCycling | s.t. | | 23 | Christian Moreni | Acqua & Sapone | s.t. | | 24 | Luca Ascani | D'Angelo & Antenucci-Nippo | s.t. | | 25 | Daniel Oss | Liquigas - Cannondale | s.t. |
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| chrica04 |
Posted on 13-05-2011 05:29
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Great result for David!! |
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| BikeRoel |
Posted on 13-05-2011 08:33
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Domestique
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nice results
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