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Tour of America Discussion
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| tsmoha |
Posted on 20-10-2015 18:55
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Directeur Sportif
Posts: 11819
Joined: 19-07-2010
PCM$: 300.00
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 Tour of America
The Tour of America (now in it's 5th year) comes with a brand new route: leaving California and kicking the Continental Grand Tour at the East Coast instead, where the first ten stages will be held. We're then heading West, with a short visit to Canada and the final stages to be raced in the near of Seattle. A few highlights:
Baltimore, Maryland - the largest city in the State of Maryland, the largest independent city in the United States, and the 26th-most populous city in the country will host the tour with a short prologue and the departure of the first road race.
Glade Hill (Catskills), New York - the Catskills offer some perfect terrain for an early hilly stage (on fifth day). Short, but steep climbs (like the hilltop finish on Glade Hill) will give us a feeling of the well known Ardennes classics and the GC-contenders a first chance to create gaps.
Mt Greylock, Massachusetts - the race will be heading for the Northeastern states, with the Mt Greylock as the first mountaintop finish (on 7th day). It's the "easiest" summit finish of all here, but it will be a first test for the premium climbers.
Mt Washington, New Hampshire - the first ten days will feature the two toughest summit finishes. The famous Mt Washington as the first of two consecutive finishing climbs featuring average slopes of 10+%! An unique landscape and thousands of spectators will make this a special day, for sure.
Beartooth Pass, Montana - After two days of rest (including a long transfer from Vermont to Montana), the race will continue with a challenging flat stage to Red Lodge, where the first of two ITTs will be kicked off the day after. The Beartooth Pass ain't too steep, but this 40km mountain timetrial will definitely make a difference for the GC.
Mt Rainier, Washington - A partly hilly, partly flat second timetrial is then followed by the queen stage (20). A back-and-forth route, which will feature some challenging slopes up to Paradise, with a special view on the famous Mt Rainier. If there's any non-climber in the mix for the green jersey, this is his day to survive.
Ellensburg, Washington - Featured twice on the final three days (as the finish of the second ITT and the final flat stage). A circuit through this beautiful town will conclude the tour.
Who will follow on two-time champion Andrei Kashechkin?
The Startlist
The GC Favorites | MO | HI | TT | | MO | HI | TT |  Berhane | 80 | 75 | 65 |  López Garcia | 77 | 74 | 52 |  Antón | 79 | 74 | 71 |  Popovych | 77 | 73 | 72 |  Anacona | 79 | 74 | 66 | Kashechkin | 77 | 72 | 71 |  Lövkvist | 78 | 75 | 73 |  Iglinski | 77 | 72 | 69 |  Quintana | 78 | 72 | 69 |  Penasa | 77 | 72 | 68 |  Panayotov | 78 | 72 | 68 | Arroyo | 77 | 71 | 66 |  Reis | 78 | 71 | 74 | Maillet | 77 | 70 | 60 |  Pedraza | 78 | 71 | 70 |  Zardini | 76 | 77 | 67 | | Vinhas | 78 | 70 | 62 |  Tvetcov | 76 | 75 | 74 |  Stetina | 78 | 67 | 64 | Ivanov | 76 | 74 | 63 | | Augustyn | 77 | 75 | 71 | Alizadeh | 76 | 72 | 62 |
We may begin with someone, who's been racing the Tour of America with some good success already: Antón podium'd the race twice (3rd in 2013, 2nd in 2012) and is now back to at least achieve the podium-triple with his new team ONCE. His combination of all needed skills is about the very best of all favorites, so the Spaniard surely should be capable of taking the overall victory.
Berhane, Anacona and Lövkvist should build the core of the top-favorites then. Lövkvist as the best TT-specialist, Berhane as the best climber and puncheur amongst the most promising contenders. The Eritrean certainly has a race to loose here!
Several more possible threats for the GC though: Quintana, Panayotov, Reis (best GC-rider against the clock), Pedraza, Augustyn/Stetina, Popovych, Iglisnki, Penasa and - of course - defending champion Kashechkin! The aging stage racer probably won't be his team's first option, but both him or Popovych could pull a surprising result if they hang on in the mountains.
The Stage-Hunters | Sprinter | SP | AC | | Prologue | PRL | | | Van Heerden | 82 | 73 | | Haugard | 79 | | | Castañeda | 80 | 79 | | Oliveira | 78 | | | Granjel Cabrera | 80 | 77 | | Janse van Rensburg | 78 | | | Ulanowski | 80 | 77 | | Gonzalez Salas | 78 | | | Awang | 79 | 83 | | Bonnet | 77 | | | Van der Sande | 79 | 79 | | Pökälä | 76 | | | Soupe | 79 | 77 | | ITT | TT | HI | | Farrar | 79 | 77 | | Haugard | 79 | 60 | | Croket | 79 | 71 | | Oliveira | 78 | 73 | | Manan | 78 | 78 | | Janse van Rensburg | 78 | 68 | | Fonseca | 78 | 77 | | Nascimento | 78 | 68 | | Corti | 78 | 76 | | Gonzalez Salas | 78 | 59 | | Haedo | 78 | 73 | | Bonnet | 77 | 64 |
A (Conti) "Grand Tour" without Daniel Thorsen is always good news for those, who take part: Van Heerden/Van der Sande build a superstrong duo for Eritel. The team could be well amongst the very best in almost every terrain here. We've seen JVH struggling in a few races though..
Castaneda, Granjel Cabrera and Ulanowski make it four 80+ sprinters - while also guys like Soupe, Farrar, Croket, Fonseca or maybe Awang/Manan could be real threats for the sprints. With a promising first week for those fast men, there's definitely a great chance to score good points.
The prologue may be the only realistic chance for pure TT-specialists to go for glory: Haugard, Oliveira, van Rensburg and Salas as the favorites here. Surely some more names could be considered as good bets though. If they recover well from a long race, those guys could be also challenging for the late ITT in Ellensburg. Their TTT-part may be more important however.
Speaking of the Team Time Trial: always a tricky thing with less outstanding TTT-lineups here. Prio-Porto (78,78,75,74) may be considered the favorites, but there's also other teams like Chernobyl (76,73,72,72,71), ONCE (78,74,73,71,70), Project Africa (78,75,71,70) or Swedbank (79,75,73,73) with soe solid squads.. the less strong men behind those best may be the key then.
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| SportingNonsense |
Posted on 20-10-2015 18:58
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Team Manager
Posts: 33046
Joined: 08-03-2007
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Best climber and best sprinter. What could possibly go wrong  (Hint: Everything!)
Not been an amazing season for Berhane so far, but JVH finally started winning recently, so be good if that could continue. So long as Berhane doesnt decide to get involved in chasing the breakaway ... which he probably will!
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| fjhoekie |
Posted on 20-10-2015 18:59
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Grand Tour Specialist
Posts: 4476
Joined: 25-07-2010
PCM$: 200.00
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I'm liking my chances of a good result here. Both Kashechkin and Popovych are amongst the better TT guys with a good MO stat, and the TTT setup is pretty okay with Kononenko who can also survive the climbs very well.
Ulanowski should do well in the sprints judging by his Giro performance, but his support is pretty limited.
Suparman to win a stage too!
Manager of Team Popo4Ever p/b Morshynska in the PCM.Daily Man-Game |
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| sgdanny |
Posted on 20-10-2015 19:00
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Classics Specialist
Posts: 3591
Joined: 18-03-2014
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Interesting race and this years edition should be quite interesting, think Anton will win this one!
Also great opportunity to see if this is a race, which I would want to pursue next year 
Also Ulanowski for the sprints, but Van Heerden can become quite a beast here.
Good luck to all competitors and weird to see a CT team with winning chances too 
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| Luis Leon Sanchez |
Posted on 20-10-2015 19:01
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Team Leader
Posts: 5533
Joined: 12-06-2013
PCM$: 500.00
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Well this should be a great race with many guys who could take the GC!
Really need Arroyo and Lopez Garcia to do well in the mountains with the support of Infantino and Arredondo. Bonnet will hopefully do well in TTs and also Sprint well with Reza.
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| Atlantius |
Posted on 20-10-2015 19:04
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Team Leader
Posts: 6795
Joined: 21-07-2010
PCM$: 200.00
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Really looking forward to this. Made a huge gamble going here with Anacona, but seeing the startlist I'm optimistic.
A podium would be amazing so hopefully this race is big enough for Winner to bother trying...
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| Kentaurus |
Posted on 20-10-2015 19:05
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Classics Specialist
Posts: 3999
Joined: 26-07-2011
PCM$: 200.00
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Very important race for Azteca as we need to prove we can get some points without Danny in the lineup. Quintana has the skills to be top 5 and contend for a podium, and with some luck Farrar may snatch a stage in his home country.
The team time trial is very scary to us though and really could set Quintana behind the other contenders quickly so it will be very important for us to get as much going in our favor on the other stages.
AZTECA - NBCSN  |
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| Ian Butler |
Posted on 20-10-2015 19:06
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Tour de France Champion
Posts: 21854
Joined: 01-05-2012
PCM$: 400.00
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Stage 16: 235 kilometers. Many mountains. Brutal
Glad I'm not here |
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| The Rider |
Posted on 20-10-2015 19:06
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Grand Tour Specialist
Posts: 4543
Joined: 29-02-2012
PCM$: 200.00
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Great preview tsmoha. Hoping for a big turn around compared to last season here.
For the TTT: (I have done the maths) Prio-Porto, ONCE and Bonsucro are pretty much very equal and a cut above the rest: if those three don't finish 1-2-3 in the TTT something is seriously messed up for me.
For us, hoping for a decent GC from Iglinskiy, stage wins from Castaneda, perhaps a stint in the race lead from him) (Reijnen/Mansilla should provide a top lead-out). Though after this season I shouldn't hope for too much.
Oh yes, some breakaways would be nice! |
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| jsh312mufc |
Posted on 20-10-2015 19:16
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Breakaway Specialist
Posts: 794
Joined: 05-02-2012
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Looking forward to mixing it in with the big PCT teams |
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| matt17br |
Posted on 20-10-2015 19:18
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Directeur Sportif
Posts: 10525
Joined: 28-09-2013
PCM$: 200.00
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So many mountains 
Gonna be really fun to follow from the sideline this, especially with an outlook to the relegation battle in PCT and with an eye to DeLaval as well. Taking Anacona here is a big gamble, we'll see if it will pay off: seeing the startlist it could very well, was expecting some stronger line ups really.. 
Picking Berhane to win here, his edge over everyone is quite big and shouldn't disappoint I hope.
Awesome preview there, tsmoha. That detail! 
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| Ad Bot |
Posted on 27-11-2024 21:06
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| Miguel98 |
Posted on 20-10-2015 19:24
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World Champion
Posts: 10497
Joined: 23-06-2011
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Need top 5 and GC and hope Cabrera wins stages. But seeing both Pedraza and Cabrera's performances so far this year.. Shrugs. |
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| viking90 |
Posted on 20-10-2015 19:32
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Grand Tour Specialist
Posts: 4032
Joined: 24-01-2009
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This will be fun! Hopefully
I would love seeing Lövkvist battle for the win or at least a podium which is possible.
A top 5 sprinter here is something I'm missing, could have get some "easy" points. |
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| dev4ever |
Posted on 20-10-2015 19:32
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Small Tour Specialist
Posts: 2282
Joined: 13-03-2011
PCM$: 200.00
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Loved the preview! In an attempt on going all in for Anton i chose to leave the sprinters at home, seing how they performed this season I cant say I regret it
Will take a 1st or 2nd here or I will be pretty dissapointed.. Anton should atleast get one stage win aswell.
Like the Anacona gamble and he should be a clear candidate for a podium atleast.
Prio strongest mt duo here with only two guys Who can compete for a top 5, will be interesting!
Looked forward to this race for so long!
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| knockout |
Posted on 20-10-2015 20:12
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Grand Tour Champion
Posts: 7735
Joined: 21-12-2010
PCM$: 400.00
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This will be very interesting for the relegation battle.
My sympathy for this race are with Bonsucro. After all the drama of last season they deserve to do well.
Also the Anacona gamble is very interesting. Hope it works out!
A Big Thank You To All MG Reporters! |
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| Roextro |
Posted on 20-10-2015 20:21
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Small Tour Specialist
Posts: 2370
Joined: 24-01-2014
PCM$: 200.00
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Will be very interesting watching as a spectator, not really cheering for anyone in particular but I hope the CT teams do well, really looking forward to it |
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| Mresuperstar |
Posted on 20-10-2015 20:31
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Grand Tour Champion
Posts: 8060
Joined: 22-06-2009
PCM$: 650.00
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One of my favourite MG races. Will be cheering on my ex-rider Anton.
BTW it's a fantastic route!
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| trekbmc |
Posted on 20-10-2015 20:32
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Team Leader
Posts: 7366
Joined: 11-07-2014
PCM$: 700.00
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No offense Atlantius, but I'm praying you don't get too many points here... 
I'll be cheering for ONCE, Bonsucro, Sauber and Cherynobyl.
Thanks for the amazing preview tsmoha.
"What done is, is one." - Benji Naesen
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| TheManxMissile |
Posted on 20-10-2015 20:56
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Tour de France Champion
Posts: 18187
Joined: 12-05-2012
PCM$: 0.00
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Stage hunting team really. Chose this for Panayotov once i saw how much the PCT had become a climbers division and he's usually pretty solid and dependable. He won't set the race on fire but should be a solid bet for points come the end. Supported by Ivanov who i hope can get away for a stage win.
Soupe not the best sprinter but he's decent at climbing so the longer the race goes hopefully he'll end up fresher than his competitors. At the very least i hope he'll be contesting sprints and picking up points here and there.
Stage win or two and a Top10 GC as my goal. Up against our direct competitors fighting the drop but this is a less key race to us than it is to them. Just aiming to minimise losses so our better races can make the difference.
Oh yeah, and we race on some of our sponsors home turf again.
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| ryant |
Posted on 20-10-2015 21:27
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Small Tour Specialist
Posts: 2322
Joined: 15-08-2012
PCM$: 200.00
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Tvetcov is here for the GC and I hope we can get the top 10 through consistency. Its an ok team, maybe we can try for the sprints but we dont have a top sprinter and I could bet right now we wont take part in those breaks
All in all, if we get 1000pts from this, I'll be happy
 John St Ledger in Team Bunzl-Centrica and Team U25Red Bull Driver in RFactor
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![imgur.com/KlJUqDx.jpg[/img[img]]https://imgur.com/yUygrQ.jpg](https://imgur.com/KlJUqDx.jpg[/img[img]]https://imgur.com/yUygrQ.jpg)
