So I'm having a tough time of things. I can handle myself in the mountains, riding "the dot" and protecting my main riders. Cobbles seem to be ok for me as well. My big troubles are with sprints and hilly stages.
On sprints, I don't have a train set up, but I have Freire (using the PCM db, he's the best sprinter in the game at 80sp 85acc). I set him to follow another train, but I can never finish better than 3rd. Even when he is +5 and on good form. How can I win a stage?
Hilly stages. The first stage in Murcia, I protected Cancellara until the last climb was done with. He had +5 form on the day and had full blue and 2 food with 40km to go. I attacked, drained the blue. And on a flat run in, where Cancellara is an 85, the Peleton caught him. I couldn't force Cancellara to hold over 81 or 82 effort because I didn't want his heart to explode. What else could I do? The peleton caught him with -70 flat riders pulling...
I've looked through the guides that are normally posted, and they helped me with the mountain stages and cobbles, even the hilly classics. But the hilly stages in stage races and sprints are just not working for me. Is there a different strategy needed to win on "hard"... I can't imagine what to do on "extreme"
Again with trying to escape on the run in on a hilly stage you would need 95 fitness. Just like escaping and soloing to a mountain victory where you need 95 fitness, the same is for flat run ins after hills. Ideally you want a hill about 15km away from the finish, otherwise don't bother attacking unless other favourites go for it. Then set relay/infinite relay/dot on 85+ effort and hope you can stay away.
With sprints, a lot of it comes down to positioning. I don't use lead outs either, don't have the guys for it, nor the patience. I try and sit on another lead out. Basically the idea place for a sprint in about 3rd or 4th back in the most forward lead out, or the one that looks the strongest. If you are more than 10 riders back from the front, unless they all have 60 sprint, you can rule out a win pretty much. Also i like to try and put off getting in a train until as late as possible (around 6km out) as my riders usually don't have much fitness all the time, or stamina. Remember also that the higher the fitness of the sprinter, the more blue they'll have at the end, and the longer their sprint can last for.
On a flat stage, what do you do with your sprinter before you attach him to a train (I'm more concerned with the last 30km)?
I normally follow at 11.9km and when the mass sprint starts I'm right in there, but by the time I want to start my sprint, about 1km out, the orange sprint bar is completely gone. Is there a way to keep that from going down?
Well i find that if i follow from 12km out the orange goes quickly, hence why i try to keep it a little later.
Basically for my sprinter i have at least 3 others protecting him all race. And as they drop off, take protecting guys off other GC guys or whoever and put them on the sprinter. I also always keep my guys in the top 20-30 of the pack to avoid having to waste energy moving them to the front later in the race.
With losing the wheel, make sure your percentage effort is on about 70%. Then, to win, just follow until as late as possible, usually there is a noticeable change in speed of the rider in front - that's when you go.
