And the Giro has finally kicked off! The first stage of this year’s edition is a 19.1km team time trial, that is actually slightly shorter than the 21km race that was initially planned. Still, this should be enough to really sort out which teams have brought their A-game. The only other time check out on course is at the 9km mark and should show fairly well how each team is going.
Jack Wolfskin have been named the favourites, and who would dare to tip against them? Well, some other teams are hoping for an upset victory today. Chief amongst them are B&O, who won last year’s uphill TTT and will be looking for a repeat performance. Festina and Sony are also looking like popular choices for those who like a bit of an outside bet.
First out of the start gate is Festina - Conec, who should set a really good time that will give us some idea of what everyone else is aiming for.
Bernaudeau seems like his particularly good out on course today and does some great turns on the front. Festina go through the half way mark in 12’48” and finish the course in a time of 24’39”. Everyone else has their mark now.
Next up are Nestle, who are relying on Schar and Mottin to do a lot of the work today.
They go through the half way mark in 13’02”, which isn’t too bad, but clearly they used up their two big guns early and slowed down in the second half, coming through in 25’19”. Denifl will have to wait to see how much time he loses on some of the bigger teams today.
Cafe de Colombia are the next team out.
They have come here with no expectations and their ambition seems to be lacking as well, seeing as they go through the first check in 13’20”. They rally together, however, and put together a time of 25’32”, not too far off the time of Nestle.
In stark contrast to the South American team, however, B&O are the next ones out of the gate. They have a truly strong team here today and will be looking to make an impact. And they ride out all-guns-blazing and Steenson leads them over to set a new best of 12’47” at the intermediate check point.
Their energy seems to run out slightly in the run-in and they come through in a total time of 24’45”, just down on the time of Festina. Still, not a bad result for the team, whose Keinath will need every second he can get before the mountains start.
And straight after B&O come another team touted as a chance for today, Sony Ericsson. With 3 time trial national champions in their team, a lot of the worse time trialists can just sit on today. They blaze through the first intermediate in 12’44”, 3 seconds faster than B&O. Have they made the same mistake of going too fast too early?
No they don’t! They pip Festina’s time with a result of 24’38”, putting them in the provisional lead. Kohl should be very happy with that result, especially because his team won’t be a lot of help come the mountain stages.
The first 5 teams look like this:
Team
1st Check
Result
Sony Ericsson
12’44”
24’38”
Festina – Conec
12’48”
24’39”
Team B&O
12’47”
24’45”
Nestle
13’02”
25’19”
Cafe de Colombia
13’20”
25’32”
Next out of the starting area are Pearl Adidas. A lot of half-decent TT riders on this team should keep them in the running.
They go through the first check in 13’01” and finish with a time of 25’02”, which looks like a time that should be somewhere mid-table.
Bacardi - Ignis, another team with some strong TT riders had also been listed by some before the race as a team that could sprint a surprise. They come through the first check in a strong time of 12’55”.
Bacadi continue well, with Ricco in particular seeming to do a lot of work on the front, despite not being the strongest TT rider on the team. They finish in a time of 24’50”, just outside that of B&O. The new top 5 is thus:
Team
1st Check
Result
Sony Ericsson
12’44”
24’38”
Festina – Conec
12’48”
24’39”
Team B&O
12’47”
24’45”
Bacardi – Ignis
12’55”
24’50”
Pearl Adidas
13’01”
25’02”
Next up is the first of the two Continental Tour teams who are here, VolksWagen – Siemens. They haven’t brought any real TT riders along with them to this race, with Ratiy being expected to do a lot of work to ensure that Marzano doesn’t lose much time.
Their lack of any real time trialists shows as they go through the first check in 13’10” and come through the finish line in 25’35”, which is provisionally last.
Next up are Carmeuse - Bouygues Telecom, who will be desperate for some sort of result in this tour in order to stave off the looming threat of relegation.
The team’s riders are left wishing they had spent more time training with Cancellara, because they go through the first check in 13’16”, and finish in a time of 25’37”, the worst result of any team thus far.
Next up are Wikipedia, who are mostly following the wheel of Cameron Meier, the TT champion of Canada.
Their time through the first check is a respectable 12’58”, but there is only so much that Meier can do and so the pace drops considerably and the clock stops on 25’31”. However, without any real GC threat it isn’t such a big problem for the team.
Following Wikipedia is Warner Brothers, who have brought a team more suited to the mountains than the flatter stuff. Jesse Sergent is their only TT specialist.
They go through the checkpoint in a time of 13’06” and then things seem to slip away from them even more as they drop to a time of 25’49”, more than a minute outside of the time of Sony Ericsson, which remains unchallenged at the top of the leaderboard.
Now we watch the Spanish outfit Santander weave their way around the course. Erviti is the only TT specialist on the team, so Arroyo is left to do more work than he might otherwise want to.
Their time through the first point is 13’07”, which seemed ominous. However, they rallied from this news and come through with a time of 25’19”, which should keep Arroyo well and truly near the other GC contenders.
Wiggle – San Pellegrino are the next ones to cross the starting line. Today is mostly about crossing the line in one piece for this outfit than anything else.
With a time of 13’09” at the first point, things are looking decidedly grim, but they find their second wind and come through in an acceptable 25’22”. It seems, from looking at the performances of Santander and Wiggle, that it is better to have a slow first section and then push as hard as possible in the finale. It remains to be seen if the later teams will learn from this.
Milka – Vittel are the next team out on course. They should perform decently today, well enough to keep Sergio Montoya in top 10 contention.
They come through the first gap in 13’05”, but learning the same lessons as the other teams they finish with a time of 25’11”, putting the team in a strong position. The top of the leaderboard has remained unchanged for quite some time now.
UBS – La Pierre are the team that aim to change that, however. In addition to GC leader Amador, they also have Dimitri Champion and Chtioui, the Tunisian TT champion.
Chtioui is clearly burying himself for the team out on course. They go through the first gap in a strong time of 12’55”. This time, however, they manage to keep their speed all the way to the end. However, at 25’04”, they are just 2 seconds outside of the top 5 and will have to be content with a provisional 6th.
Vesuvio erupt out onto the course, lead by Ford and Kittel, with Barth helping a lot too. Frank Schleck will want a very solid time today to help set him up for his shot at the maglia rosa.
Vesuvio set a new best time at the first intermediate check, coming through in 12’41”, 3 seconds faster than Sony managed! Kittel and Ford push very hard, but there is only so much that 2 men can do, and the pace slows somewhat in the second half, with Vesuvio still managing a very strong time of 24’51”. The new top 5 is as follows:
Team
1st Check
Result
Sony Ericsson
12’44”
24’38”
Festina – Conec
12’48”
24’39”
Team B&O
12’47”
24’45”
Bacardi – Ignis
12’55”
24’50”
Vesuvio-Accumalux
12’41”
24’51”
Webeffect are the next team out, and probably won’t do as well as Vesuvio. However, they need to give this TTT everything in order to set Sella up for the best possible GC ride.
Webeffect manage to put in an impressive 12’54” at the first check and surprisingly manage to hold a decent pace right to the line, coming through in 25’11”. Sella will be very pleased with that, as it should keep all the big GC contenders well within his grasp.
Pendleton's Twicer sends their riders out next. There are a few decent TT riders here and they should put in a decent time.
They come through the first check in 12’58”. Wiggins then comes to the front for the final leg and keeps the pace high to ensure a time of 24’57”. Anything under 25 minutes today is to be applauded. Menchov will be happy with this result, as he needs as much time as possible.
Spyker Cars go out now. As predicted, Devolder is forced to do much of the work himself. Their time through the first check is 13 minutes flat.
Spyker come down to the finish with a time of 25’28”. Even though they weren’t expecting anything, this still has to be a disappointing result. Given the youth and inexperience of this team, however, it isn’t too surprising.
Almost at the end of the teams today, and it is time for Vespa – Aprilla – De Rosa to leave the start house. Pozzovivo will want to do well today and the all-Italian team will definitely feel lifted. With Gazzetta De La Sport no longer in the peleton they now carry the weight of the entire nation on their shoulders.
The Italian team have put together a decent TTT outfit and they blaze through the first part of the course, covering it in 12’49”. However, the enthusiasm that started them off so quickly can’t carry them all the way to the line and they come through with a very respectable time of 24’55” that puts them in provisional 6th place.
Finally, it is time for the last team to come out of the gate, the favourites for today; Jack Wolfskin. Anything short of a win would be a complete disappointment for this team, who hope to take the pink jersey all the way to the mountains. They set themselves up well through the first checkpoint in a time of 12’33”, with Cornu and Van Winden doing most of the early work. That is a full 11 seconds faster than Sony did it in.
Then Postuma comes to the front. He barely did anything in the first half, but he led the team through most of the second. They cross the line and everyone looks up at the clock expectantly.
24 minutes and 13 seconds.
That’s 25 seconds faster than Sony managed! Jack Wolfskin have taken the opening team time trial in utterly convincing fashion. Dominique Cornu lead them over the line and so will pull on the pink jersey of race leader. Looking ahead, there shouldn’t be much that will trouble him over the next few days of racing.
