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[PCT] Kraftwerk Man Machine | Cav wins twice in Deutschland
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| DaveTwoBob |
Posted on 06-09-2017 23:12
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Small Tour Specialist
Posts: 2436
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 Kraftwerk Man Machine
Welcome to the Head Quarters of Kraftwerk Man Machine Cycling Team riding in the PCM Daily's Management Game.
After a very good and lucky transfer season we had a thrilling first year in the CT division leading at the halfway stage and finishing third in the end to gain promotion into the PCT division.
Negotiations with a new sponsor are ongoing but did not conclude in time for this season so the team are riding in the same iconic shirt.
We now have to rebuild the team to compete with the stronger PCT teams so are hoping for the same run of luck in the upcoming transfer season.
Spoiler
Sadly Mrs Kraftwerk is on the injury list so team resources are dedicated to her recovery and looking after Kraftwerk Towers and Kraftwerk Junior so apologies for the cut and paste from last year's HQ. The management are hoping this will not impact transfer activity too badly.
Main Sponsors
Kraftwerk https://www.kraftwerk.com/
The Dusseldorf based Pioneers of Electronic Music and big cycling fans are stepping up from their cycling club Radsportgruppe Schneider, to sponsor a professional team. Here is a great article by Jack Thurston from 2005 that describes Kraftwerk's history and love of cycling following the release of Tour de France Soundtracks in 2003 (eagle eyed members will have spotted my avatar is from the cover of this album  ).
Trivago https://www.trivago.com/
The travel tech company also based in Dusseldorf.
Equipment Sponsors
Dusseldorf base with international mix
Kraftwerk Man Machine are based in Dusseldorf riding on a German licence. The team is comprised of an international squad to reflect the international appeal of Kraftwerk's music, although Germany will always be the best represented nation. The management will look to recruit riders from Germany, France, Japan, Russia and Great Britain. This reflects the fan base and mix of languages sung on various Kraftwerk songs as you can hear on the track Numbers from their 1981 album Computer World.
Here is a live version from the Minimum-Maximum tour (its playback restricted if embedded).
https://www.youtu...3f-JwOGO1A
As Kraftwerk were pioneers in developing new sounds and instruments, the Kraftwerk Man Machine will look to develop new talent. We are open to developing riders on loan from other teams if they fit our nationality profile.
The Kraftwerk Man Machine team name is taken from Kraftwerk's 1978 album The Man Machine. The concept of the Man Machine is of humans, technology and nature combined in harmony with the Rider, Bicycle and Parcours being a prime example. The youtube link below is the live version of The Man Machine from the Minimum-Maximum tour (its playback restricted if embedded).
https://www.youtu...kd7LbQnfIQ
Kraftwerk are as much about image as music and the shirt design was inspired by the iconic cover of the same album.
A BIG thankyou to the_hoyle for the shirt design and for his guidance in keeping the design pure and elegant.
Edited by DaveTwoBob on 25-02-2018 19:06
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| sutty68 |
Posted on 06-09-2017 23:18
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Tour de France Champion
Posts: 34654
Joined: 22-08-2010
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Still liking the shirt  |
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| DaveTwoBob |
Posted on 06-09-2017 23:36
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Small Tour Specialist
Posts: 2436
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Cheers sutty - thought it could do with another year
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| DaveTwoBob |
Posted on 06-09-2017 23:37
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Small Tour Specialist
Posts: 2436
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KRAFTWERK MAN MACHINE SQUAD
HILLS - Aleksandar Flügel
| Fl | Mo | Hil | TT | Sta | Res | Rec | Cob | Spr | Acc | Ftr | DH | Pro | Age | | 69 | 72 | 81 | 65 | 79 | 67 | 69 | 59 | 68 | 74 | 71 | 80 | 65 | 31 |
After a great season helping Wiesenhof - Andritz to promote Aleksandar was our number 1 transfer target and we based all our goals on getting him, thank goodness the deal was sealed.
Aleksandar is supported by Dietmar Mehr-Wenige (78), Florian Scheit (76), Wesley Kreder (75) and in goal races Gennadiy Tatarinov (74).
SPRINTS -  Mark Cavendish
| Fl | Mo | Hil | TT | Sta | Res | Rec | Cob | Spr | Acc | Ftr | DH | Pro | Age | | 73 | 57 | 65 | 66 | 74 | 71 | 80 | 70 | 83 | 81 | 60 | 65 | 76 | 31 |
Our first signing for focus nation GB is a massive one, world class sprinter Mark Cavendish, who we are expecting will deliver in the sprints like Stauff did for us in CT.
Mark is supported by Wesley Kreder (77), Roman Maikin (76), Sang Hong Park (75), Michael Kurth (73), Martyn Irvine (73) and Takero Terasaki (73). Not the strongest lead out train as you can tell by his reaction in the photo.
MOUNTAINS -  Robert Kiserlovski
| Fl | Mo | Hil | TT | Sta | Res | Rec | Cob | Spr | Acc | Ftr | DH | Pro | Age | | 70 | 80 | 75 | 72 | 72 | 75 | 74 | 51 | 57 | 66 | 71 | 66 | 71 | 31 |
Robert is not the strongest climber in the PCT so we will be choosing the right challenges for him like we did with Hacecký in CT.
Robert is supported by Ole Hirschlein (77), Gennadiy Tatarinov (75), Florian Vachon (72), Thomas Bontenackels (72), veteran Linus Gerdemann (72) and youngster Nico Denz (71).
COBBLES - Michael Kurth
| Fl | Mo | Hil | TT | Sta | Res | Rec | Cob | Spr | Acc | Ftr | DH | Pro | Age | | 73 | 60 | 64 | 68 | 74 | 71 | 70 | 75 | 73 | 73 | 65 | 76 | 68 | 31 |
Michael is an OK cobbler with a bit of a sprint but he will not be able to do anything against PCT competition and so his main role will be supporting Cav.
Michael only has Max Walsleben (74) for support.
TIME TRIAL - Thomas Bontenackels
| Fl | Mo | Hil | TT | Sta | Res | Rec | Cob | Spr | Acc | Ftr | DH | Pro | Age | | 67 | 72 | 62 | 76 | 70 | 71 | 74 | 53 | 66 | 67 | 64 | 62 | 76 | 31 |
Thomas is our best time trialler but there are much better in the division. He along with Martin Irvine (75) and Youngster Nils Politt (73) will be very useful in the occasional TTT.
FULL SQUAD
New Recruits in orange and Stagiare in green
Edited by DaveTwoBob on 30-09-2017 22:37
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| DaveTwoBob |
Posted on 06-09-2017 23:37
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Small Tour Specialist
Posts: 2436
Joined: 07-07-2013
PCM$: 200.00
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Here is the racing program for Kraftwerk this season including startlists for all the races and an analysis of race days for our 3 leaders. Goal races are in the Kraftwerk font.
Edited by DaveTwoBob on 04-10-2017 21:44
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| DaveTwoBob |
Posted on 06-09-2017 23:38
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Small Tour Specialist
Posts: 2436
Joined: 07-07-2013
PCM$: 200.00
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Goals/Results Reserve
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| jandal7 |
Posted on 07-09-2017 04:30
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World Champion
Posts: 11406
Joined: 17-12-2014
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Now that Klemme and Stauff are gone I can finally do stuff 
Just kidding, congratulations again on your promotion! Will be following your time in PCT, hope your riders can do that lovely jersey justice  A very nice opening post, will look forward to your HQ updates again
24/02/21 - kandesbunzler said “I don't drink famous people."
15/08/22 - SotD said "Your [jandal's] humour is overrated"
11/06/24 - knockout said "Winning is fine I guess. Truth be told this felt completely unimportant."
[ICL] Santos-Euskadi | [PT]  Xero Racing
5x  x5
2x  x2
2x  x2 |
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| trekbmc |
Posted on 07-09-2017 06:42
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Team Leader
Posts: 7366
Joined: 11-07-2014
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Will be interesting to see how you handle PCT as your team looks like a potential follower of Evonik and Strava based on last season (although take it easy this season against our Poles )
Best of luck next season, hopefully the boys in the red suits can be at it again!
"What done is, is one." - Benji Naesen
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| Ad Bot |
Posted on 23-12-2024 01:17
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| DaveTwoBob |
Posted on 28-09-2017 00:49
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Small Tour Specialist
Posts: 2436
Joined: 07-07-2013
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Apologies for the late replies, I get a bit single minded during transfers season!
@ jandal Thanks and I would love to see you promote this season, good luck
@ trek Feeling the back to back promotion pressure, might have an outside chance if Ruby Twoface can create a purrfect plan
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| DaveTwoBob |
Posted on 28-09-2017 00:50
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Small Tour Specialist
Posts: 2436
Joined: 07-07-2013
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The Kraftwerk Man Machine Press Team have had the usual issues prising information from the rather paranoid Kraftwerk Manager. At last here is some news about Goals and Transfers.
Goals
All the goals were based on recruiting a top puncheur, so nerves were very high during transfers. However the news that the world's best hills man EBH will be riding in PCT this season was a blow to these ambitions, especially the Win goal.
| Tour Down Under | Top 5 | | Milano Torino | Win | | Tour de Pologne | Top 5 | | Tour of Beijing | Top 5 | | Team Standings | Top 10 |
Main Transfer Target
After hearing a proven PCT puncheur might be available Kraftwerk Man Machine had one must get target, Aleksandar Flügel, who helped Wiesenhof – Andritz to promote to PT. The transfer fee went a bit higher than we would have liked at £1.4m, but we were committed and very relieved once the time limit expired.
Ruthless Manager Sells Stars
Kraftwerk Management was ruthless selling our stars Klemme, Stauff and Hacecky, and eventually selling every rider with a wage over 60k.
“It was a tough decision to sell the stars who secured the team promotion but we need to step up to compete in the PCT” said DaveTwoBob.
Bidding Wars and Deals
In a fierce bidding war with the manager of Haute Route – Mavic that included an unfortunate rules issue Kraftwerk managed to secure the services of top sprinter Mark Cavendish for 550k. We were less successful getting a good leadout, being outbid on Joeri Stallaert and Tosh Van der Sande.
We did manage to get a good deal for hill sprinter Wesley Kreder who will be very busy supporting both Cavendish and Flügel.
Having sold Klemme and with all our goals resting on Flügel, the team needed to get him a good Lieutenant and after a long bidding war with the Minions, we managed to secure the services of Dietmar Mehr-Wenige for 190k. This left us without enough cash or time to improve on our leadout man for Cav, getting him in a good position for the sprints will be a big challenge.
Our search for a climber was problematic, failing to tempt Nerz to leave Team Puma-SAP and getting overbid on Ellissonde and Bennett (sorry jandal). We eventually agreed a deal for Croatian champion Robert Kiserlovski for 790k. He should be able to deliver top 10 to 15 places in this very competitive arena.
One of the highlights of the transfer season was a nice deal for focus nations that saw Ikibe go to Tamijo's Japanese Superdry team and Hirschlein join from jandal's Xero Racing.
Transfer Summary
The high risk strategy of selling our stars paid off and we improved our leaders in our three target areas. However they are all aged 31 so we only have 2 seasons before they start to decline. Cobbles and Time Trials will not be bringing us any points in PCT.
| Hills | Flügel | 80 -> 81 | lieutenant 78 | | Sprints | Cavendish | 80 -> 83 | lieutenant 77 | | Mountains | Kiserlovski | 77 -> 80 | lieutenant 77 |
Final Squad (expect for a Stagiare)
Just need to edit the playlists of the new recruits, persuade Ruby Twoface to assist with the planning, and we are ready to go
Edited by DaveTwoBob on 30-09-2017 22:38
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| cio93 |
Posted on 28-09-2017 03:30
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World Champion
Posts: 10845
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Sorry man, you'll get another shot next year Denz or Politt would be interesting swap targets if you develop them well.
Should be a good first PCT season for you, tougher opposition than expected but three red stat riders in that division will always serve you well.
Interesting to see Bontenackels again, throughout the years you tend to forget about the riders you used to (briefly) own.
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| trekbmc |
Posted on 28-09-2017 08:40
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Team Leader
Posts: 7366
Joined: 11-07-2014
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I like your squad. And by that I mean I hate Cavendish and also Flugel, having one of them was enough last season, but now we have Cavendish to kill Vantomme in the sprints too.
Kiserlovski is also a good man to have even if his Acc isn't quite up to scratch, it won't be detrimental. So overall I think you'll have a relaxing first year in PCT with a lot of race wins.
"What done is, is one." - Benji Naesen
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| viking90 |
Posted on 28-09-2017 08:53
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Grand Tour Specialist
Posts: 4032
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great moves you did in transfer, only thing to be a bit worried about is that those three leaders already are 31 y, but still got some years on the top.
So I guess you will have no problem replacing them when they start to decrease.
Weslet Kreder is a very interesting rider to have he could score some great pts for you. |
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| DaveTwoBob |
Posted on 28-09-2017 23:38
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Small Tour Specialist
Posts: 2436
Joined: 07-07-2013
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@ cio - no probs, you only said Nerz was a possible so it was a bit of a long shot. Nice to hear Denz & Politt are good prospects, might need to hang on to Politt looking at our lack of TTers!
@ trek - with Cav on the team I should expect some negative press The jury is still out on whether our squad is strong enough to chase breaks (a bit of an issue with Stauff last year) and get Cav in a good enough position. Will be interesting to see how it plays out.
@ viking - cheers and yep the clock is already ticking on my squad and we haven't even started racing! Next seasons transfers will be key to strengthening the squad. I must admit I do like a hill sprinter so was very pleased to get Wesley Kreder - compensation for not getting Joeri Stallaert, hope he goes well for you
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| dev4ever |
Posted on 29-09-2017 07:15
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Small Tour Specialist
Posts: 2282
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Very nice leaders with Flugel and Cav, theyll do you good no doubt
Less certain about Kiser, Kreder is very nice though, hell do great!
Anyway a solid promotion-team which will have no trouble staying up in your first pct season imo!
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| Croatia14 |
Posted on 29-09-2017 09:44
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Directeur Sportif
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Cav will do the trick. If it wasn't for him I'd be very concerned, as Kis is a shaky leader and Flügel should score a lot less without his big time Wiesenhof hill train. Still I have no doubt that you'll have a solid season. Best of lucky, Ruby's spirit will do the rest.
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| DaveTwoBob |
Posted on 30-09-2017 22:50
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Small Tour Specialist
Posts: 2436
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@ dev4ever - Thanks, Kiserlovski needed some careful planning to get some scoring opportunities, hope I have picked the right ones. Kreder might just be my MVP!
@ Croatia - Pleased you have confidence in Cav, looking forward to the battles with Mohs. Yes Flügel will get less support, I hope for the sake of our goals he can go it alone . Ruby has been hard at work, planning update soon.
Squad reserve post has been updated
https://pcmdaily.c...st_1255946
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| ryant |
Posted on 01-10-2017 18:17
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Good luck in your first year in PCT with your team, I dont think you should be worrying about relegation at all and I'll be looking forward to following your progress this year
 John St Ledger in Team Bunzl-Centrica and Team U25Red Bull Driver in RFactor
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| DaveTwoBob |
Posted on 02-10-2017 02:25
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Small Tour Specialist
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@ ryant - thanks and I will be cheering on the Yorkshire lads to a promotion spot this season.
Planning has been a bit fraught this season with Ruby Twoface hiding from a grumpy Cav who is not too impressed with his support. A few dodgy decisions have crept past the meticulous moggie, nothing too bad I hope.
Our racing program is published here
https://pcmdaily.c...st_1255948
Highlights are
Flügel trying to achieve our goals in Tour Down Under (Top 5), Tour de Pologne (Top 5), Tour of Beijing (Top 5), Milano - Torino (Win).
Cav going for the overall in the Baltic Chain Tour.
Kislerlovski to conquer the Tour of America.
Edited by DaveTwoBob on 04-10-2017 21:45
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| Tamijo |
Posted on 02-10-2017 11:47
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Exiting transfer you had, good luck in the season.
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