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Cricket Web Cycling Team
- Thread starter Magrat Garlick
- Start date
Bobisback
International Regular
Carrying the team tbhCongrats to Dwyer too - 3 stage race wins for the team thus far in the first 2 months, not too shabby.
Nah just kidding, having a good run so far, will be up for some more wins soon...i hope.
Magrat Garlick
Rather Mad Witch
Tour of California
Got a bit carried away with time trial reporting.
Tour of California
Stage Five, 36 km Individual Time Trial, Solvang
Starting order:
30 Mat Mitchell GBR Casson Dairy
35 Zac Gelman AUS Casson Dairy
36 Ryan Dunn AUS Casson Dairy
49 Heath Davis NZL Casson Dairy
52 Sebastian Lang GER Gerolsteiner
67 Bradley Wiggins GBR Casson Dairy
97 Johan Vansummeren BEL Casson Dairy
111 Stefan Schumacher GER Gerolsteiner (+6'03)
112 Christian Vandevelde USA CSC (+6')
113 Cadel Evans AUS Predictor-Lotto
119 Linus Gerdemann GER T-Mobile (+3'54)
120 Volodymyr Gustov UKR CSC (+3'27)
121 Chris Horner USA Predictor-Lotto (+2'30)
122 Bernhard Kohl AUT Gerolsteiner (+2'25)
123 Johan Vandenbroeck BEL Predictor-Lotto (+2'23)
124 Xavier Rose USA Casson Dairy (+2'23)
125 Dario Cioni ITA Predictor-Lotto (+2'21)
126 Vincenzo Nibali ITA Liquigas (+2'21)
127 David Zabriskie USA Team CSC (+2'06)
128 Kim Kirchen LUX T-Mobile (+2'01)
129 Greg Thomas NZL Casson Dairy (+0)
With Thomas' rather dismal opening time trial in mind, the idea of him defending the jersey seemed preposterous. In a time trial only 10 % of this, he'd managed to lose 43 seconds, and some four minutes were expected to be down today. Thus, it was down to Rose to chase time and the jersey, as well as for the specialists to get the stage win.
As shown, most of our specialists started early, and both Mitchell and Gelman were slightly slow out of the blocks; though Mitchell took the lead when he passed the first checkpoint at 19km, he was only 15 seconds ahead of then-leader Rapinski of Navigators Insurance, and Gelman a further 21 seconds ahead when he passed 10 minutes later. Gelman took a comfortable lead in goal, some 30 seconds aheda of Mitchell, and for a long time the pair were one and two.
However, the winner of the prologue had other plans. Sebastian Lang clocked 23'07 at the first checkpoint, ten seconds ahead of Gelman and though no other significant threat materialised as Gelman waited for Lang to arrive, he had to see himself passed by the German, who took the lead by six solitary seconds.
Then came the long wait. Wiggins and Vansummeren both clocked reasonable times, Wiggins even rallying to beat Mitchell, while Zabriskie, Evans and the other guns from the prologue were to start later. The first serious challenge came a good two hours after Lang had passed the goal line, when his team-mate, Stefan Schumacher, clocked 23'33 and third place at the first checkpoint. Christian Vandevelde of CSC was next, and also clocked ahead of Mitchell, and the big guns were just getting news of this as they started.
With Schumacher and Vandevelde forcing up the hill, new times were continually passed in. Evans lost 45 seconds to Lang and could be easily counted out, as could Markus Fothen who started six minutes later, as well as his Liquigas team-mates. By then Schumacher had finished the climb, but had lost time to both Casson Dairy riders as he began the final descent. Linus Gerdemann showed that it was still possible to race quickly, clocking 23'42 and taking over the virtual lead from his position 15 minutes after Schumacher, and the big guns began to attack Gerdemann. For Gustov, Horner and Kohl it all seemed hopeless, as neither had the time trial capabilities and lost half a minute in the first 20km, but Vandenbroeck showed genuine potential, clocking 23'19 and third place. With Rose just behind Vandenbroeck, the standings at the first checkpoint and in goal:
Rose's opening time was, however, not promising. With 23'34, he placed fifth, but had already lost significant time to Vandenbroeck, who remained leader in the overall standings at that point. What was worse, behind Rose Cioni was gaining, clocking into third at 23'18. Then followed Nibali, fifth 26 seconds behind Lang, and finally David Zabriskie, the USA time trial champion of 2006, who looked magnificent as he began the ascent. With a time of 23'11, however, he still needed four seconds on Lang, but the German had not looked too strong in the climbs.
Behind Zabriskie there was little. Kim Kirchen had lost 45 seconds and was level with Rose in the virtual classification, while Greg Thomas clocked at 25'54, last, and was already behind Zabriskie, Cioni and Vandenbroeck. It would be a long, gruelling day for the leader.
Now attention turned to the finish. Evans and Marcus Fothen had already finished without seriously troubling, but Linus Gerdemann's time of 47'44 indicated a strong finish, even though he placed eighth on the stage thus far. The virtual lead quickly changed hands, however, passing into Horner (48'33), Kohl (48'27) before suddenly Vandenbroeck appeared, just seconds behind Kohl in the parcours. He finished with a time 1'30 better than Kohl, just a second behind Gelman, and it seemed Rose was too far behind.
Rose, however, came up with a fantastic sprint. The crowd counted down the seconds as Rose fought with Vandenbroeck's time, and incredibly, the sprint had been strong enough not only to beat Vandenbroeck, but also all other riders. With the time of 46'50, Rose was in the lead on the stage and overall.
The time held out. Dario Cioni rode an excellent time trial, and just beat Gelman by a few hundredths, yet had lost nine seconds to Rose and was seven seconds down overall. Nibali's talents did not extend to the longer time trial, as he finished 34 seconds behind, and it seemed clear the lead would go to an American; after Zabriskie there was only Kirchen and Thomas, who both had eliminated themselves from contention with slow starts. Yet, once more the home crowd had to count. Zabriskie raced the final kilometre in 64 seconds, and though he lost one second to Rose, he still came three seconds ahead; with a 17-second lead from the mountain stages, the CSC veteran took over.
Zabriskie fighting to the line...
Kirchen and Thomas rounded off the stage as expected, but considerable movements had taken place.
Stage result:
1 David Zabriskie TEAM CSC 46'47
2 Xavier Rose TEAM CASSON DAIRY + 3
3 Sebastian Lang GEROLSTEINER + 6
4 Dario David Cioni PREDICTOR - LOTTO + 12
5 Zac Gelman TEAM CASSON DAIRY s.t.
6 Jurgen Vandenbroeck PREDICTOR - LOTTO + 13
9 Bradley Wiggins TEAM CASSON DAIRY + 45
10 Mathew Mitchell TEAM CASSON DAIRY + 47
43 Johan Vansummeren TEAM CASSON DAIRY + 1'53
93 Ryan Dunn TEAM CASSON DAIRY + 3'24
126 Heath Te-Ihi-O-Te-Rangi Davis TEAM CASSON DAIRY + 4'24
129 Greg Thomas TEAM CASSON DAIRY + 4'40
General classification:
1 David Zabriskie TEAM CSC 17h52'55
2 Xavier Rose TEAM CASSON DAIRY + 20
3 Dario David Cioni PREDICTOR - LOTTO + 27
4 Jurgen Vandenbroeck PREDICTOR - LOTTO + 30
5 Vincenzo Nibali LIQUIGAS + 52
6 Kim Kirchen T-MOBILE TEAM + 1'11
7 Bernhard Kohl GEROLSTEINER + 1'59
8 Chris Horner PREDICTOR - LOTTO + 2'11
9 Greg Thomas TEAM CASSON DAIRY + 2'34
10 Linus Gerdemann T-MOBILE TEAM + 2'45
Stage Six: 176 km, Santa Barbara - Santa Clarita
Though two hills threatened to shatter our sprinters, and though Mitchell was cast off the breakaway the team got off with a credible results on the stage to Santa Clarita.
The final 3-km ascent - up 200 metres, at 6 %
Heath Davis scored a fourth place after fighting his way back to the peloton on the final descent, but could not do anything with the in-form Pozzato and Bettini. Rose also attempted the sprint, and got a credible 12th, but no bonus seconds, and the general classification did not change much. A good rehearsal for Milan-San Remo, nevertheless, where the finish is very similar.
Final sprint
Stage result:
1 Paolo Bettini QUICK STEP - INNERGETIC 4h01'41
2 Filippo Pozzato LIQUIGAS s.t.
3 David Vitoria BMC RACING TEAM s.t.
4 Heath Te-Ihi-O-Te-Rangi Davis TEAM CASSON DAIRY s.t.
5 Kirk O'Bee HEALTH NET PRESENTED BY MAXXIS s.t.
12 Xavier Rose TEAM CASSON DAIRY s.t.
59 Greg Thomas TEAM CASSON DAIRY s.t.
61 Johan Vansummeren TEAM CASSON DAIRY s.t.
74 Bradley Wiggins TEAM CASSON DAIRY s.t.
86 Ryan Dunn TEAM CASSON DAIRY s.t.
110 Zac Gelman TEAM CASSON DAIRY s.t.
126 Mathew Mitchell TEAM CASSON DAIRY + 6'55
No change in general classification.
Points classification:
1 Paolo Bettini QUICK STEP - INNERGETIC 80
2 Filippo Pozzato LIQUIGAS 69
3 David Zabriskie TEAM CSC 65
4 Xavier Rose TEAM CASSON DAIRY 55
11 Greg Thomas TEAM CASSON DAIRY 32
12 Heath Te-Ihi-O-Te-Rangi Davis TEAM CASSON DAIRY 30
Got a bit carried away with time trial reporting.
Tour of California
Stage Five, 36 km Individual Time Trial, Solvang
Starting order:
30 Mat Mitchell GBR Casson Dairy
35 Zac Gelman AUS Casson Dairy
36 Ryan Dunn AUS Casson Dairy
49 Heath Davis NZL Casson Dairy
52 Sebastian Lang GER Gerolsteiner
67 Bradley Wiggins GBR Casson Dairy
97 Johan Vansummeren BEL Casson Dairy
111 Stefan Schumacher GER Gerolsteiner (+6'03)
112 Christian Vandevelde USA CSC (+6')
113 Cadel Evans AUS Predictor-Lotto
119 Linus Gerdemann GER T-Mobile (+3'54)
120 Volodymyr Gustov UKR CSC (+3'27)
121 Chris Horner USA Predictor-Lotto (+2'30)
122 Bernhard Kohl AUT Gerolsteiner (+2'25)
123 Johan Vandenbroeck BEL Predictor-Lotto (+2'23)
124 Xavier Rose USA Casson Dairy (+2'23)
125 Dario Cioni ITA Predictor-Lotto (+2'21)
126 Vincenzo Nibali ITA Liquigas (+2'21)
127 David Zabriskie USA Team CSC (+2'06)
128 Kim Kirchen LUX T-Mobile (+2'01)
129 Greg Thomas NZL Casson Dairy (+0)
With Thomas' rather dismal opening time trial in mind, the idea of him defending the jersey seemed preposterous. In a time trial only 10 % of this, he'd managed to lose 43 seconds, and some four minutes were expected to be down today. Thus, it was down to Rose to chase time and the jersey, as well as for the specialists to get the stage win.
As shown, most of our specialists started early, and both Mitchell and Gelman were slightly slow out of the blocks; though Mitchell took the lead when he passed the first checkpoint at 19km, he was only 15 seconds ahead of then-leader Rapinski of Navigators Insurance, and Gelman a further 21 seconds ahead when he passed 10 minutes later. Gelman took a comfortable lead in goal, some 30 seconds aheda of Mitchell, and for a long time the pair were one and two.
However, the winner of the prologue had other plans. Sebastian Lang clocked 23'07 at the first checkpoint, ten seconds ahead of Gelman and though no other significant threat materialised as Gelman waited for Lang to arrive, he had to see himself passed by the German, who took the lead by six solitary seconds.
Then came the long wait. Wiggins and Vansummeren both clocked reasonable times, Wiggins even rallying to beat Mitchell, while Zabriskie, Evans and the other guns from the prologue were to start later. The first serious challenge came a good two hours after Lang had passed the goal line, when his team-mate, Stefan Schumacher, clocked 23'33 and third place at the first checkpoint. Christian Vandevelde of CSC was next, and also clocked ahead of Mitchell, and the big guns were just getting news of this as they started.
With Schumacher and Vandevelde forcing up the hill, new times were continually passed in. Evans lost 45 seconds to Lang and could be easily counted out, as could Markus Fothen who started six minutes later, as well as his Liquigas team-mates. By then Schumacher had finished the climb, but had lost time to both Casson Dairy riders as he began the final descent. Linus Gerdemann showed that it was still possible to race quickly, clocking 23'42 and taking over the virtual lead from his position 15 minutes after Schumacher, and the big guns began to attack Gerdemann. For Gustov, Horner and Kohl it all seemed hopeless, as neither had the time trial capabilities and lost half a minute in the first 20km, but Vandenbroeck showed genuine potential, clocking 23'19 and third place. With Rose just behind Vandenbroeck, the standings at the first checkpoint and in goal:
Code:
1 Lang 23'07 1 Lang 46'53
2 Gelman +10 2 Gelman +6
3 Vandenbroeck +12 3 Schumacher +30
4 Schumacher +26 4 wiggins +39
5 Vandevelde +28 5 Mitchell +41
6 Mitchell +31 6 Vandevelde +42
Next: Rose Next: EvansBehind Zabriskie there was little. Kim Kirchen had lost 45 seconds and was level with Rose in the virtual classification, while Greg Thomas clocked at 25'54, last, and was already behind Zabriskie, Cioni and Vandenbroeck. It would be a long, gruelling day for the leader.
Now attention turned to the finish. Evans and Marcus Fothen had already finished without seriously troubling, but Linus Gerdemann's time of 47'44 indicated a strong finish, even though he placed eighth on the stage thus far. The virtual lead quickly changed hands, however, passing into Horner (48'33), Kohl (48'27) before suddenly Vandenbroeck appeared, just seconds behind Kohl in the parcours. He finished with a time 1'30 better than Kohl, just a second behind Gelman, and it seemed Rose was too far behind.
Rose, however, came up with a fantastic sprint. The crowd counted down the seconds as Rose fought with Vandenbroeck's time, and incredibly, the sprint had been strong enough not only to beat Vandenbroeck, but also all other riders. With the time of 46'50, Rose was in the lead on the stage and overall.
The time held out. Dario Cioni rode an excellent time trial, and just beat Gelman by a few hundredths, yet had lost nine seconds to Rose and was seven seconds down overall. Nibali's talents did not extend to the longer time trial, as he finished 34 seconds behind, and it seemed clear the lead would go to an American; after Zabriskie there was only Kirchen and Thomas, who both had eliminated themselves from contention with slow starts. Yet, once more the home crowd had to count. Zabriskie raced the final kilometre in 64 seconds, and though he lost one second to Rose, he still came three seconds ahead; with a 17-second lead from the mountain stages, the CSC veteran took over.
Zabriskie fighting to the line...
Kirchen and Thomas rounded off the stage as expected, but considerable movements had taken place.
Stage result:
1 David Zabriskie TEAM CSC 46'47
2 Xavier Rose TEAM CASSON DAIRY + 3
3 Sebastian Lang GEROLSTEINER + 6
4 Dario David Cioni PREDICTOR - LOTTO + 12
5 Zac Gelman TEAM CASSON DAIRY s.t.
6 Jurgen Vandenbroeck PREDICTOR - LOTTO + 13
9 Bradley Wiggins TEAM CASSON DAIRY + 45
10 Mathew Mitchell TEAM CASSON DAIRY + 47
43 Johan Vansummeren TEAM CASSON DAIRY + 1'53
93 Ryan Dunn TEAM CASSON DAIRY + 3'24
126 Heath Te-Ihi-O-Te-Rangi Davis TEAM CASSON DAIRY + 4'24
129 Greg Thomas TEAM CASSON DAIRY + 4'40
General classification:
1 David Zabriskie TEAM CSC 17h52'55
2 Xavier Rose TEAM CASSON DAIRY + 20
3 Dario David Cioni PREDICTOR - LOTTO + 27
4 Jurgen Vandenbroeck PREDICTOR - LOTTO + 30
5 Vincenzo Nibali LIQUIGAS + 52
6 Kim Kirchen T-MOBILE TEAM + 1'11
7 Bernhard Kohl GEROLSTEINER + 1'59
8 Chris Horner PREDICTOR - LOTTO + 2'11
9 Greg Thomas TEAM CASSON DAIRY + 2'34
10 Linus Gerdemann T-MOBILE TEAM + 2'45
Stage Six: 176 km, Santa Barbara - Santa Clarita
Though two hills threatened to shatter our sprinters, and though Mitchell was cast off the breakaway the team got off with a credible results on the stage to Santa Clarita.
The final 3-km ascent - up 200 metres, at 6 %
Heath Davis scored a fourth place after fighting his way back to the peloton on the final descent, but could not do anything with the in-form Pozzato and Bettini. Rose also attempted the sprint, and got a credible 12th, but no bonus seconds, and the general classification did not change much. A good rehearsal for Milan-San Remo, nevertheless, where the finish is very similar.
Final sprint
Stage result:
1 Paolo Bettini QUICK STEP - INNERGETIC 4h01'41
2 Filippo Pozzato LIQUIGAS s.t.
3 David Vitoria BMC RACING TEAM s.t.
4 Heath Te-Ihi-O-Te-Rangi Davis TEAM CASSON DAIRY s.t.
5 Kirk O'Bee HEALTH NET PRESENTED BY MAXXIS s.t.
12 Xavier Rose TEAM CASSON DAIRY s.t.
59 Greg Thomas TEAM CASSON DAIRY s.t.
61 Johan Vansummeren TEAM CASSON DAIRY s.t.
74 Bradley Wiggins TEAM CASSON DAIRY s.t.
86 Ryan Dunn TEAM CASSON DAIRY s.t.
110 Zac Gelman TEAM CASSON DAIRY s.t.
126 Mathew Mitchell TEAM CASSON DAIRY + 6'55
No change in general classification.
Points classification:
1 Paolo Bettini QUICK STEP - INNERGETIC 80
2 Filippo Pozzato LIQUIGAS 69
3 David Zabriskie TEAM CSC 65
4 Xavier Rose TEAM CASSON DAIRY 55
11 Greg Thomas TEAM CASSON DAIRY 32
12 Heath Te-Ihi-O-Te-Rangi Davis TEAM CASSON DAIRY 30
Magrat Garlick
Rather Mad Witch
Magrat Garlick
Rather Mad Witch
Tour du Haut Var
A mountainous French classic.
After 80 km, the first serious breakaway attempt, with Fensome joining the wheels of Halgand (CA) and Voeckler (Bouguyes). However, the Casson Dairy rider left everyone alone as they began the largest climb of the day. At the summit, Fensome had a meagre lead of 1'37, but the other teams had to work themselves out in the chase of him.
As such, the group thinned out to 29 over the top, including four quite fit Webheads, and further to 25 over the next climb. Yet, Fensome wasn't able to get more time, as the other teams were desperate to get him back in; with 70 km his lead had shrunk to 1'10.
He was eventually caught on 39 km, having played out the role as bait well. Now, more attacks followed. Mørk left the group on the short but steep hill, and was followed by Kai Reus (Rabobank) - they got a minute over the top, with Marzoli (Tinkoff) placing himself between the two. Reus then attempted to leave Mørk, and got a significant lead, leading to a Casson Dairy effort for Gray instead. With 19 km left, though, Reus still led by 50 seconds.
However, though the group chased with cooperation from both Bouygues, Tinkoff and Casson Dairy, Reus held on for a fine solo effort.
Final rankings:
1 Kai Reus RABOBANK 5h01'39
2 Jérôme Pineau BOUYGUES TELECOM + 18
3 Sylvain Calzati AG2R PRÉVOYANCE s.t.
4 Victor Hugo Peña UNIBET.COM s.t.
5 Nathan Hoy TEAM CASSON DAIRY s.t.
6 Pierre Rolland CRÉDIT AGRICOLE s.t.
7 Jamee Gray TEAM CASSON DAIRY s.t.
8 David Kennett TEAM CASSON DAIRY s.t.
9 Evgeni Petrov TINKOFF CREDIT SYSTEMS s.t.
10 Pierrick Fédrigo BOUYGUES TELECOM s.t.
17 Håkon Mørk TEAM CASSON DAIRY s.t.
21 Alex Fensome TEAM CASSON DAIRY s.t.
34 Amets Txurruka TEAM CASSON DAIRY + 9'30
107 Geraint Thomas TEAM CASSON DAIRY + 29'22
Tour of California
Stage Seven, Long Beach Circuit
Only QuickStep wanted to chase, as we had sent Gelman up in the break. Not quite the wisest move, as despite an attack with 10 km to go he could not get away from the 13-man group, and ended far down in the sprint. To add insult to injury, this was the result of the sprint in the bunch:
Davis, at the back, just ahead...says the jury, anyway
Stage result:
1 André Korff T-MOBILE TEAM 3h12'21
2 Rémi Pauriol CRÉDIT AGRICOLE s.t.
3 Michael Jones JELLY BELLY CYCLING TEAM s.t.
4 Björn Leukemans PREDICTOR - LOTTO s.t.
5 Davide Frattini COLAVITA - SUTTER HOME PRESENTED BY COOKING LIGHT s.t.
11 Zac Gelman TEAM CASSON DAIRY s.t.
14 Heath Te-Ihi-O-Te-Rangi Davis TEAM CASSON DAIRY + 2'31
15 Ryan Dunn TEAM CASSON DAIRY s.t.
19 Xavier Rose TEAM CASSON DAIRY s.t.
63 Johan Vansummeren TEAM CASSON DAIRY s.t.
96 Mathew Mitchell TEAM CASSON DAIRY s.t.
104 Bradley Wiggins TEAM CASSON DAIRY s.t.
108 Greg Thomas TEAM CASSON DAIRY s.t.
General classification:
1 David Zabriskie TEAM CSC 25h09'28
2 Xavier Rose TEAM CASSON DAIRY + 20
3 Dario David Cioni PREDICTOR - LOTTO + 27
4 Jurgen Vandenbroeck PREDICTOR - LOTTO + 30
5 Vincenzo Nibali LIQUIGAS + 52
6 Kim Kirchen T-MOBILE TEAM + 1'11
7 Bernhard Kohl GEROLSTEINER + 1'59
8 Chris Horner PREDICTOR - LOTTO + 2'11
9 Greg Thomas TEAM CASSON DAIRY + 2'34
10 Linus Gerdemann T-MOBILE TEAM + 2'45
25 Johan Vansummeren TEAM CASSON DAIRY + 6'06
61 Bradley Wiggins TEAM CASSON DAIRY + 21'02
85 Heath Te-Ihi-O-Te-Rangi Davis TEAM CASSON DAIRY + 35'01
89 Zac Gelman TEAM CASSON DAIRY + 35'47
96 Ryan Dunn TEAM CASSON DAIRY + 40'02
104 Mathew Mitchell TEAM CASSON DAIRY + 48'05
Points classification:
1 Paolo Bettini QUICK STEP - INNERGETIC 80
2 Filippo Pozzato LIQUIGAS 69
3 David Zabriskie TEAM CSC 65
4 Xavier Rose TEAM CASSON DAIRY 55
11 Heath Te-Ihi-O-Te-Rangi Davis TEAM CASSON DAIRY 32
12 Greg Thomas TEAM CASSON DAIRY 32
15 Zac Gelman TEAM CASSON DAIRY 24
Mountain classification:
1 Greg Thomas TEAM CASSON DAIRY 42
2 Chris Horner PREDICTOR - LOTTO 32
3 Xavier Rose TEAM CASSON DAIRY 30
Next: two cobbled races over the weekend.
A mountainous French classic.
After 80 km, the first serious breakaway attempt, with Fensome joining the wheels of Halgand (CA) and Voeckler (Bouguyes). However, the Casson Dairy rider left everyone alone as they began the largest climb of the day. At the summit, Fensome had a meagre lead of 1'37, but the other teams had to work themselves out in the chase of him.
As such, the group thinned out to 29 over the top, including four quite fit Webheads, and further to 25 over the next climb. Yet, Fensome wasn't able to get more time, as the other teams were desperate to get him back in; with 70 km his lead had shrunk to 1'10.
He was eventually caught on 39 km, having played out the role as bait well. Now, more attacks followed. Mørk left the group on the short but steep hill, and was followed by Kai Reus (Rabobank) - they got a minute over the top, with Marzoli (Tinkoff) placing himself between the two. Reus then attempted to leave Mørk, and got a significant lead, leading to a Casson Dairy effort for Gray instead. With 19 km left, though, Reus still led by 50 seconds.
However, though the group chased with cooperation from both Bouygues, Tinkoff and Casson Dairy, Reus held on for a fine solo effort.
Final rankings:
1 Kai Reus RABOBANK 5h01'39
2 Jérôme Pineau BOUYGUES TELECOM + 18
3 Sylvain Calzati AG2R PRÉVOYANCE s.t.
4 Victor Hugo Peña UNIBET.COM s.t.
5 Nathan Hoy TEAM CASSON DAIRY s.t.
6 Pierre Rolland CRÉDIT AGRICOLE s.t.
7 Jamee Gray TEAM CASSON DAIRY s.t.
8 David Kennett TEAM CASSON DAIRY s.t.
9 Evgeni Petrov TINKOFF CREDIT SYSTEMS s.t.
10 Pierrick Fédrigo BOUYGUES TELECOM s.t.
17 Håkon Mørk TEAM CASSON DAIRY s.t.
21 Alex Fensome TEAM CASSON DAIRY s.t.
34 Amets Txurruka TEAM CASSON DAIRY + 9'30
107 Geraint Thomas TEAM CASSON DAIRY + 29'22
Tour of California
Stage Seven, Long Beach Circuit
Only QuickStep wanted to chase, as we had sent Gelman up in the break. Not quite the wisest move, as despite an attack with 10 km to go he could not get away from the 13-man group, and ended far down in the sprint. To add insult to injury, this was the result of the sprint in the bunch:
Davis, at the back, just ahead...says the jury, anyway
Stage result:
1 André Korff T-MOBILE TEAM 3h12'21
2 Rémi Pauriol CRÉDIT AGRICOLE s.t.
3 Michael Jones JELLY BELLY CYCLING TEAM s.t.
4 Björn Leukemans PREDICTOR - LOTTO s.t.
5 Davide Frattini COLAVITA - SUTTER HOME PRESENTED BY COOKING LIGHT s.t.
11 Zac Gelman TEAM CASSON DAIRY s.t.
14 Heath Te-Ihi-O-Te-Rangi Davis TEAM CASSON DAIRY + 2'31
15 Ryan Dunn TEAM CASSON DAIRY s.t.
19 Xavier Rose TEAM CASSON DAIRY s.t.
63 Johan Vansummeren TEAM CASSON DAIRY s.t.
96 Mathew Mitchell TEAM CASSON DAIRY s.t.
104 Bradley Wiggins TEAM CASSON DAIRY s.t.
108 Greg Thomas TEAM CASSON DAIRY s.t.
General classification:
1 David Zabriskie TEAM CSC 25h09'28
2 Xavier Rose TEAM CASSON DAIRY + 20
3 Dario David Cioni PREDICTOR - LOTTO + 27
4 Jurgen Vandenbroeck PREDICTOR - LOTTO + 30
5 Vincenzo Nibali LIQUIGAS + 52
6 Kim Kirchen T-MOBILE TEAM + 1'11
7 Bernhard Kohl GEROLSTEINER + 1'59
8 Chris Horner PREDICTOR - LOTTO + 2'11
9 Greg Thomas TEAM CASSON DAIRY + 2'34
10 Linus Gerdemann T-MOBILE TEAM + 2'45
25 Johan Vansummeren TEAM CASSON DAIRY + 6'06
61 Bradley Wiggins TEAM CASSON DAIRY + 21'02
85 Heath Te-Ihi-O-Te-Rangi Davis TEAM CASSON DAIRY + 35'01
89 Zac Gelman TEAM CASSON DAIRY + 35'47
96 Ryan Dunn TEAM CASSON DAIRY + 40'02
104 Mathew Mitchell TEAM CASSON DAIRY + 48'05
Points classification:
1 Paolo Bettini QUICK STEP - INNERGETIC 80
2 Filippo Pozzato LIQUIGAS 69
3 David Zabriskie TEAM CSC 65
4 Xavier Rose TEAM CASSON DAIRY 55
11 Heath Te-Ihi-O-Te-Rangi Davis TEAM CASSON DAIRY 32
12 Greg Thomas TEAM CASSON DAIRY 32
15 Zac Gelman TEAM CASSON DAIRY 24
Mountain classification:
1 Greg Thomas TEAM CASSON DAIRY 42
2 Chris Horner PREDICTOR - LOTTO 32
3 Xavier Rose TEAM CASSON DAIRY 30
Next: two cobbled races over the weekend.
alternative
Cricket Web Content Updater
Am i going to race anytime soon.
Magrat Garlick
Rather Mad Witch
March 3
Omloop Het Volk, Gent - Lokeren, 202 km
In the team: our best cobble and flat riders, mainly, though some hill specialists are there too. The team is as follows:
A Fensome
N Hoy
M Reddlapalli
G Steegmans
Ger Thomas
J Vansummeren
C Vasseur
S Wesemann
Other favourites: Boonen, Van Petegem (Quick Step), Burghardt, Klier (T-Mobile), Cancellara (CSC), Flecha (Rabobank), Hincapie (Discovery), Hoste (Predictor-Lotto), Nuyens (Cofidis).
A rotten, rainy day at the start. Welcome to the Northern classics.
Though the first kilometres included this short, but brutal climb, little happened in the first two hours, which were held at a slow pace as the best riders saved energy for the cobbled finale. However, the 30 or so kilometres with seven cobbled sections thinned out the peloton considerably. Two groups gained a considerable lead over the rest, with four Casson Dairy riders in the front group of 19 riders; with no Boonen there, Wesemann, Steegmans and Thomas were sent to work for Hoy's chances. The tactic seemed to work, as the gap grew gradually.
Unfortunately, Hoy suffered a puncture as the front group entered the final cobbled sections, with 35 km to go of the race. With Fensome, Vasseur, Reddlapalli and Vansummeren all way back, the plan was immediately changed; as Hoy was out of the frame the best chance would be for a Steegmans sprint in a small bunch, while Thomas was asked to drop down and work for Hoy to come back. That worked to an extent; Hoy got back into the leading group with 25 km to go, but had wasted a lot of energy, and Boonen had also returned to this group.
Markus Burghardt (T-Mobile) and Tom Boonen (Quick Step) attacked shortly after Hoy rejoined their group, and Wesemann's high pace to chase the attackers set off most of the others. Only five men were in the first group behind Boonen, three of them Casson Dairy riders; Rabobank led the pace behind, but were a minute adrift.
Burghardt and Boonen did not get a gap, as Steegmans took the last final push up to Boonen with 18 km to go, but seemed too shattered to sprint. Indeed, both Steegmans and Wesemann fell off after the very last cobble section, leaving the final match between Burghardt, Hoy, Hoste and Boonen.
Boonen looked to be beaten, but lack of cooperation between the other three meant that he could catch up the small gap, and then sprinted the others into oblivion. Hoy finished best, taking second, while Liquigas' Magnus Bäckstedt rushed from the Rabobank-led peloton to blast past Burghardt and Hoste for third.
Final result:
1 Tom Boonen QUICK STEP - INNERGETIC 5h36'51
2 Nathan Hoy TEAM CASSON DAIRY + 24
3 Magnus Bäckstedt LIQUIGAS s.t.
4 Peter Van Petegem QUICK STEP - INNERGETIC s.t.
5 Luca Paolini LIQUIGAS s.t.
6 Max Van Heeswijk RABOBANK s.t.
7 Marcus Burghardt T-MOBILE TEAM s.t.
8 Juan-Antonio Flecha RABOBANK s.t.
9 Steffen Wesemann TEAM CASSON DAIRY s.t.
10 Leif Hoste PREDICTOR - LOTTO s.t.
19 Gert Steegmans TEAM CASSON DAIRY s.t.
41 Geraint Thomas TEAM CASSON DAIRY + 5'28
56 Cédric Vasseur TEAM CASSON DAIRY + 10'08
59 Alex Fensome TEAM CASSON DAIRY + 12'44
Omloop Het Volk, Gent - Lokeren, 202 km
In the team: our best cobble and flat riders, mainly, though some hill specialists are there too. The team is as follows:
A Fensome
N Hoy
M Reddlapalli
G Steegmans
Ger Thomas
J Vansummeren
C Vasseur
S Wesemann
Other favourites: Boonen, Van Petegem (Quick Step), Burghardt, Klier (T-Mobile), Cancellara (CSC), Flecha (Rabobank), Hincapie (Discovery), Hoste (Predictor-Lotto), Nuyens (Cofidis).
A rotten, rainy day at the start. Welcome to the Northern classics.
Though the first kilometres included this short, but brutal climb, little happened in the first two hours, which were held at a slow pace as the best riders saved energy for the cobbled finale. However, the 30 or so kilometres with seven cobbled sections thinned out the peloton considerably. Two groups gained a considerable lead over the rest, with four Casson Dairy riders in the front group of 19 riders; with no Boonen there, Wesemann, Steegmans and Thomas were sent to work for Hoy's chances. The tactic seemed to work, as the gap grew gradually.
Unfortunately, Hoy suffered a puncture as the front group entered the final cobbled sections, with 35 km to go of the race. With Fensome, Vasseur, Reddlapalli and Vansummeren all way back, the plan was immediately changed; as Hoy was out of the frame the best chance would be for a Steegmans sprint in a small bunch, while Thomas was asked to drop down and work for Hoy to come back. That worked to an extent; Hoy got back into the leading group with 25 km to go, but had wasted a lot of energy, and Boonen had also returned to this group.
Markus Burghardt (T-Mobile) and Tom Boonen (Quick Step) attacked shortly after Hoy rejoined their group, and Wesemann's high pace to chase the attackers set off most of the others. Only five men were in the first group behind Boonen, three of them Casson Dairy riders; Rabobank led the pace behind, but were a minute adrift.
Burghardt and Boonen did not get a gap, as Steegmans took the last final push up to Boonen with 18 km to go, but seemed too shattered to sprint. Indeed, both Steegmans and Wesemann fell off after the very last cobble section, leaving the final match between Burghardt, Hoy, Hoste and Boonen.
Boonen looked to be beaten, but lack of cooperation between the other three meant that he could catch up the small gap, and then sprinted the others into oblivion. Hoy finished best, taking second, while Liquigas' Magnus Bäckstedt rushed from the Rabobank-led peloton to blast past Burghardt and Hoste for third.
Final result:
1 Tom Boonen QUICK STEP - INNERGETIC 5h36'51
2 Nathan Hoy TEAM CASSON DAIRY + 24
3 Magnus Bäckstedt LIQUIGAS s.t.
4 Peter Van Petegem QUICK STEP - INNERGETIC s.t.
5 Luca Paolini LIQUIGAS s.t.
6 Max Van Heeswijk RABOBANK s.t.
7 Marcus Burghardt T-MOBILE TEAM s.t.
8 Juan-Antonio Flecha RABOBANK s.t.
9 Steffen Wesemann TEAM CASSON DAIRY s.t.
10 Leif Hoste PREDICTOR - LOTTO s.t.
19 Gert Steegmans TEAM CASSON DAIRY s.t.
41 Geraint Thomas TEAM CASSON DAIRY + 5'28
56 Cédric Vasseur TEAM CASSON DAIRY + 10'08
59 Alex Fensome TEAM CASSON DAIRY + 12'44
thewizard1o1
International Debutant
This pic clearly shows that Boonan is in the slipstream of the motor bike and it helped him get back to the front three.
Great work by the TCD boys, really done a super job today. Just a shame i couldn't bring the win home for the team
, nevermind TCD is smash Quickstep next race
Magrat Garlick
Rather Mad Witch
We are in BelgiumThis pic clearly shows that Boonan is in the slipstream of the motor bike and it helped him get back to the front three.
thewizard1o1
International Debutant
haha very true!
I'm suprised the others didn't want to put time into Boonan thou...
I'm suprised the others didn't want to put time into Boonan thou...
Magrat Garlick
Rather Mad Witch
Kuurne - Brussels - Kuurne
Team: One change from Omloop 'Het Volk', Jens Voigt takes the place of the unfit Johan Vansummeren.
The other teams are also very similar, so a lot of the same riders come to the fore. Reddlapalli joined the early break, which grew to 13 after 65 of the day's 181 km. Over the next 35 km's hills and cobbles, however, a rapidly-thinning peloton chased down the breakaway, after a high pace from Predictor-Lotto.
At 130 km, things began to chase. Undulating routes with cobbles shattered the peloton, which was down to the following four after Leif Hoste suffered a puncture:
With 55, mostly flat, kilometres left, Gusev was set off the pack, leaving Hoy confident of another podium.
It was not to be. Hoy let go after the final descent, and despite enjoying luck when George Hincapie punctured, he met the hammer in the final kilometres and finished down in seventh place. Boonen was, again, unstoppable, plugging away and eventually winning by more than two minutes - showing that it was the right tactic to hang onto him, despite the poor final placement.
See you in Ronde van Vlaanderen, Tommeke.
Results:
1 Tom Boonen QUICK STEP - INNERGETIC 5h03'12
2 Magnus Bäckstedt LIQUIGAS + 2'03
3 Marcus Burghardt T-MOBILE TEAM s.t.
4 George Hincapie DISCOVERY CHANNEL PRO CYCLING TEAM s.t.
5 Servais Knaven T-MOBILE TEAM s.t.
6 Leif Hoste PREDICTOR - LOTTO s.t.
7 Nathan Hoy TEAM CASSON DAIRY s.t.
8 Andreas Klier T-MOBILE TEAM s.t.
9 Roy Sentjens PREDICTOR - LOTTO s.t.
10 Vladimir Gusev DISCOVERY CHANNEL PRO CYCLING TEAM + 3'01
21 Steffen Wesemann TEAM CASSON DAIRY + 4'03
23 Gert Steegmans TEAM CASSON DAIRY + 5'03
39 Geraint Thomas TEAM CASSON DAIRY + 8'59
45 Cédric Vasseur TEAM CASSON DAIRY + 12'39
54 Jens Voigt TEAM CASSON DAIRY + 17'24
70 Alex Fensome TEAM CASSON DAIRY + 20'19
123 Manjunath Reddlapalli TEAM CASSON DAIRY + 24'43
Team: One change from Omloop 'Het Volk', Jens Voigt takes the place of the unfit Johan Vansummeren.
The other teams are also very similar, so a lot of the same riders come to the fore. Reddlapalli joined the early break, which grew to 13 after 65 of the day's 181 km. Over the next 35 km's hills and cobbles, however, a rapidly-thinning peloton chased down the breakaway, after a high pace from Predictor-Lotto.
At 130 km, things began to chase. Undulating routes with cobbles shattered the peloton, which was down to the following four after Leif Hoste suffered a puncture:
With 55, mostly flat, kilometres left, Gusev was set off the pack, leaving Hoy confident of another podium.
It was not to be. Hoy let go after the final descent, and despite enjoying luck when George Hincapie punctured, he met the hammer in the final kilometres and finished down in seventh place. Boonen was, again, unstoppable, plugging away and eventually winning by more than two minutes - showing that it was the right tactic to hang onto him, despite the poor final placement.
See you in Ronde van Vlaanderen, Tommeke.
Results:
1 Tom Boonen QUICK STEP - INNERGETIC 5h03'12
2 Magnus Bäckstedt LIQUIGAS + 2'03
3 Marcus Burghardt T-MOBILE TEAM s.t.
4 George Hincapie DISCOVERY CHANNEL PRO CYCLING TEAM s.t.
5 Servais Knaven T-MOBILE TEAM s.t.
6 Leif Hoste PREDICTOR - LOTTO s.t.
7 Nathan Hoy TEAM CASSON DAIRY s.t.
8 Andreas Klier T-MOBILE TEAM s.t.
9 Roy Sentjens PREDICTOR - LOTTO s.t.
10 Vladimir Gusev DISCOVERY CHANNEL PRO CYCLING TEAM + 3'01
21 Steffen Wesemann TEAM CASSON DAIRY + 4'03
23 Gert Steegmans TEAM CASSON DAIRY + 5'03
39 Geraint Thomas TEAM CASSON DAIRY + 8'59
45 Cédric Vasseur TEAM CASSON DAIRY + 12'39
54 Jens Voigt TEAM CASSON DAIRY + 17'24
70 Alex Fensome TEAM CASSON DAIRY + 20'19
123 Manjunath Reddlapalli TEAM CASSON DAIRY + 24'43