It seems we are missing our season start completely. After some difficult opening stages in Gabon, we continue with poor result in San Luin and Tour Down Under. In San Luis, we had Hofland and Bos for the sprints, but Moreno got dropped and Theo finished far away from any points on stage one. In Tour Down Under, Kaha, Riquelme and Renshaw could not agree on a sprinting strategy and that resulted on two pointless stages.
There's no need to panic yet, but it's clear we aren't having the fabulous start we had last year. After GP La Marseillaise, we also have a gap before we can race again, so we really need some points before we start the cobbles, otherwise there would be a lot of pressure on our cobbled squad.
After the preparation races, we can turn to the classics. Belkin has always been a team for the classics, and last year Sep Vanmarcke gave us our biggest win ever, grabbing the win in Paris-Roubaix. His cobble season starts with Omloop Het Nieuwsblad and Kuurne-Brussels-Kuurne. Also on the program are Clasica Almeria, where we have to defend last year's win and Strade Bianche. Some important races for us, so the big names will make their first appearance.
For Omloop Het Nieuwsblad, we are sending what we hope to be our standard cobbles team. Sep Vanmarcke as leader, Lars Boom as shadow leader, and Wynants, Tjallingii, Van Keirsbulck and Stuyven as lieutenants.
Lars Boom Tom Leezer Jasper Stuyven Maarten Tjallingii Jos Van Emden Guillaume Van Keirsbulck Sep Vanmarcke Maarten Wynants
The next day in Kuurne, we want to have a back up plan if it comes to a sprint, so Theo Bos will take Leezer's spot on the team
Lars Boom Theo Bos Jasper Stuyven Maarten Tjallingii Jos Van Emden Guillaume Van Keirsbulck Sep Vanmarcke Maarten Wynants
At the same time, a team is in Spain competing in the Clasica Almeria. Brouwer won last year, so we send Marcel Kittel to defend that win. It will be interesting to see if Movistar's sprinters dare to show up, after promising a tough rivalry. The rivalry with Adrian Hanzen (BMC) and Mark Cavendish (Sky) will probably not be dedided until Milan-San Remo
Jorge Cristobal Riquelme Moreno Hofland Marcel Kittel Mark Renshaw Paul Martens Luis Leon Sanchez Wouter Wippert
Last is the strade Bianche, it's a big race for our puncheurs, so most will be there. With a hilly Paris-Nice this year, they need to be ready.
Jorge Cristobal Riquelme Robert Gesink Bauke Mollema Luis Leon Sanchez Tom-Jelte Slagter Jasper Stuyven
Well actually, it was more of a complete nightmare. Our sprint train never managed to form and only Gesink and Bol actually tried to score points. Robert was there with the best on Willunga Hill, but the jury did not give time gaps so he finished 11th in the GC. Please, not this again.
In San Luis, Wilco Kelderman managed to climb with the best, and with the upcoming time trial, he's looking very good in the GC. Perhaps we can catch up the lost points from Gabon and Tour Down Under there.
I just finished my second race for Belkin and once again I failed to make any kind of noteworthy result and I haven't had much to celebrate about the last days. The team experienced some jetlag on the first two stages of the race and I won't blame that this is the whole reason.
Gabon turned out the wrong way and the time difference and pressure was really overwhelming. Tour Down Under also didn't go down to the pure sprints, which I excel in. It's also been positive in a way of experiencing road racing and I hope that the manager will still trust me with some goals and then reclaim my position as being an important asset.
The PCT teams have been riding really well in this month and I do think that the WT teams will try and reclaim that responsibility before the start of the Giro, which based on the last days can turn into a real horror for the weak.
I've decided to pull down my expectations and find the correct level and develop myself out of this. I will try and focus a little more on my sprinting and hilly abilities for the time being and I might end somewhere I didn't expect to be at.
I think we owe you an apology, we may have had too many expectations from a neopro. It's obvious you're very talented, and we don't want to burn you too soon. You can take it easy for a while and prepare for the Giro. I feel that you can get some nice results there if you pick the stages carefully. A few top 10's should be possible there. From there, we plan the rest of your year.
It was time for the opening classic, the GP La Marseillaise. We had a strong team here, prepared for a sprint (Kittel & Renshaw) or a hillier breakaway group (Vanmarcke&Barguil). As it was raining attacks, we decided to make thing easier by sending Renshaw in the break.
Yes, that rider leading them is of course Juan Manuel Garate, riding for Belkin last year. Renshaw was not the perfect man in the break though, because of the many hills, we decided to close the gap a bit. With Martens, Stuyven, and even Kittel, we had the perfect workers.
And then the race exploded, Henao went, but Vanmarcke brought him back easily. Behind them, Barguil closed every gap. The duo would reach the front group soon, where Garate escaped in time.
And once Vanmarcke made it to the leaders, the would not cooperate anymore. No one wanted to take Vanmarcke and Renshaw to the line. We didn't want to sprint for second, so we kept trying, but is was another win for the breakaway. One with a slight bitter taste.
Et tu, Juan Manuel?
As always, some people claiming to be near death suddenly found the energy to sprint again. It results in an unfortunate 4th and 8th for us, but we had a good race. Warren Barguil finished 12th, so all in all it was a decent race for us, just missing the big result.
While we're still checking out the results from january, we only had one race in february, so it's clear, that the Rider of the Month is...
Sep Vanmarcke
Well, a 4th place in La Marseillaise isn't that spectacular, but yeah. Runner up is Mark Renshaw for his 8th place and 3rd place goes to newcomer Warren Barguil for his 12th place.
After the dissapointment in Australia and Gabon, I needed to get an break and I just agreed with the manager, that I wanted to spend some time with my personal trainer and do my training for myself for a while. Now I'm back only to discover, that the guys back at the compound has begun a "Movie Night", where someone would pick a movie on Netflix and we would see it.
I've never been the guy sitting in front of the TV, but the guys thought that it would be about time, that we all could just enjoy ourselves at times. I've really only liked on film and that was The Lord of the Rings and when I got the chance to pick a movie, I picked just that one! The film is made in my home country New Zealand and I'm starting to feel a little homesick, but I think I'm just at the right place to be honest.
The movie choice was a big success and that night was really important, for me getting back on track and starting training alongside my mates, this has been a great and challenging experience and I hope to form some good friendships among my new Brothers. Now I've done something, that they expect me to participate in and therefore I've invited all for a "Peace Concert" of Maori origin before beginning on the Giro in May, I hope you all will join us in spirit!
San Luis had a time trial today, so one of our guys was smiling: Wilco Kelderman. In his National Champion jersey, he took a very quick start, pulverising the intermediate time so he could put pressure on the guys in front of him. He took back time on all the guys in front of him and they started panicking. Mission accomplished, even though it cost Wilco the day win. Luke Durbridge, not in comptetion for the GC, beat him by 2 seconds. But Wilco does move up to 2nd place in the GC, within striking range of Sagan. Behind him, the Columbian army wants to keep the win in South America, so it will be a great mountain stage to look forward to!
Roma Maxima is new on the calender, so we're a bit unsure of what to expect. We're sending a bit of everything and see where we end up.
Jetse Bol Silvio Herklotz Mark Renshaw Tom-Jelte Slagter Jasper Stuyven Sep Vanmarcke
Next up is Paris-Nice. A bit of an unusual edition with no time tiral and a lot of hills. Mollema should do well here, especially with this support. A top 10 is our goal here.
Warren Barguil Jorge Cristobal Riquelme Moreno Hofland Tom Leezer Paul Martens Bauke Mollema Lars Petter Nordhaug Luis Leon Sanchez
Tirreno-Adriatico is another race where we have a top 10 goal. Looking at the TTT, we decided to get a gap over some other teams there, and hope Wilco Kelderman is able to hold on in the mountains. Aside from our home rider Adriano Malori, we also send a complete dutch squad.
Lars Boom Theo Bos Stef Clement Robert Gesink Marc Goos Wilco Kelderman Adriano Malori Jos Van Emden
Next up is Nokere Koerse, the last test for our cobble team before the important 4 races. A result here should be desired, on the other hand avoiding crashes and injuries will be the priority.
Lars Boom Tom Leezer Jasper Stuyven Maarten Tjallingii Jos Van Emden Guillaume Van Keirsbulck Sep Vanmarcke Maarten Wynants
And finaly, the first monument of the season, Milan - San Remo. It went decent last year, although our sprint train messed up and we didn't get a podium. We have several options, a sprint for Kittel, a small puncheur group for Cristobal Riquelme or attacks from Vanmarcke or Sanchez.
Lars Boom Jorge Cristobal Riquelme Marcel Kittel Paul Martens Mark Renshaw Luis Leon Sanchez Tom-Jelte Slagter Sep Vanmarcke
Edited by Ollfardh on 12-03-2015 10:21
They told us we could be anything, so we became a sprinter team
The Belgian opening weekend was a first big test for us. The cobbled section of Omloop Het Nieuwsblad and Kuurne-Brussel-Kuurne were a first test of our cobble department, while the Clasica Almeria would see how our new top sprinter would work.
On saturday we had the Omloop. The dutch commentator didn't seem that thrilled with it, but we consider this an important race. By sending Jos Van Emden in the break, we put pressure on the other teams.
When the attacks came, Vanmarcke reacted to everything. Together with Sagan, Kristoff and Stybar, he reached the front of the race.
But BMC and IAM bring back the rest and it was going to be a sprint. But Sagan surprises with a late attack and no one followed. We knew how dangerous he is, so we immediatly worked to get him back, but the other teams just took advantage of it and wanted to sprint for second instead. Such lame tactics resulted in only a 17th, 18th and 21st despite having 3 guys in the leading group. We do feel a bit cheated here by the other teams, but Sagan was definitely the storngest, so well done to him!
The next day we had Kuurne and Almeria. The cobble guys stayed in Belgium, out for revenge. The cobbles were not too demanding however, so a big group stayed together for the sprint. Sep Vanmarcke tried to escape, but was brought back. Lars Boom got us a nice 10th in the end, but we were far from a cobbled win this weekend.
In the Clasica Almeria we went for 2/2 after Willem Brouwer's win last year. We kept everything together for Marcel Kittel. Hofland, Martens, Sanchez and Wippert brought back any escape attempts, so Cristobal Riquelme and Renshaw could provide a perfect leadout.
And here he goes! We realise we really have one of the fastest men in the peloton with this young German. An easy win for him, but the thanks goes to the entire team.
Behind the celebrating Kittel, Renshaw holds on to a top 10 while a returning Sanchez does the same. Cristobal Riquelme finishes at his usual 11th spot and Hofland takes 20th for a few points. A great day for the team that more or less saves our weekend after the disappointing results in Belgium.
What Omloop Het Nieuwsblad was for our cobblers and Clasica Almeria for our sprinters, Strade Bianche is the first test for our puncheurs. It were Luis Leon Sanchez and Jorge Cristobal Riquelme who had the best legs today, going with the favourites.
But with a breakaway still out there, the final hill became a slope of chaos. Both out guys got blocked in the narrow streets, so it was only a 18th and 19th for us. Too bad, because more was definitely possible. So we need to look forward to Paris-Nice and Roma Maxima for better results.
The first stages of Paris-Nice were quiet for us, ending in sprints. Jorge Cristobal Riquelme did great, but had to settle for two more 11th places before finaly finishing 9th. We did get an important gap on yesterday's stage, where Mollema, Cristobal Riquelme, Luis Leon Sanchez and Paul Martens all survived. Unfortunately Nordhaug was forced to abandon after a crash. Having narrowly escaped getting fired last year, he seems to be trying even harder this year. I guess we should applaud his determination.
In the Tirreno-Adriatico, we had high hopes in the Team Time Trial, but it was a bit too short for us, just missing the podium. Still, we gain quite some time on some other competitors, so we can call it a small success.
Paris - Nice is coming to its colcusion, so the flat stages are over and we get the hillier stuff. Today we had a summit finish that would probably decide the GC. Warren Barguil lost some time eysterday, so we could send him ahead in the break, so he could assist Bauke Mollema later on, while also picking up some KoM points.
Then the big names launch. Bauke Mollema reacts, while Luis Leon Sanchez just fell short and was forced to chase all day long. An elite group gets away, with osme important names missing. A good development, with our top 10 goal in mind.
And Bauke had a great day. With the support of Warren, he could take it easy in the last 10 kilometres. He followed Kwiatkowski in the sprint.
And he does it! Stage win in Paris-Nice as well as taking the leader jersey. With 2 more days to go, the biggest threath is of course Peter Sagan. We don't think he can get away from bauke, but his sprint is good enough to take the few boni seconds he needs. Our best hope lies in the traditional breakaway to steal those precious boni seconds.
![imgur.com/KlJUqDx.jpg[/img[img]]https://imgur.com/yUygrQ.jpg](https://imgur.com/KlJUqDx.jpg[/img[img]]https://imgur.com/yUygrQ.jpg)
Lars Boom
Jasper Stuyven
Jorge Cristobal Riquelme
Marcel Kittel
Mark Renshaw
Luis Leon Sanchez
Jorge Cristobal Riquelme
Brotherhood
Warren Barguil
Lars Petter Nordhaug
Adriano Malori
