Gent-Wevelgem

[efaust_o]

I don't think Sagan is recovered:
1. He exhibited more effort than usual bridging to GVA on the Kemmelberg
2. Terpstra shouldn't of bridge so easy to Sagan after the attack
3. No energy or confidence to attack again

We'll see what next week holds...

Yes I'm a Sagan homer...

[echappist]

Originally Posted by FlashUNC

My love for GvA is deep and abiding and also well known.

He rode a really smart race, as he tends to do. You don't have the Spring campaign he's had so far by making bad decisions.

So when did you jump on his bandwagon?

Originally Posted by efaust_o

Yes, Jens was there(almost won), but make no mistake GVA had some power out there today...I'm surprised Sagan didn't bridge the initial gap to the two. Whether physical, mental or both , gotta say GVA has got it going on...

Happy to see JD bridge after Kemmel...he should figure in the weeks to come...

Paris Roubaix, definitely. Next week, i'm not so sure

[Gummee]

Sagan was constantly at the backs of the groups he was in. That has to take some oomph to get back up to speed every corner and hill. Did that play into the ending? Dunno.

GvA is certainly on a roll, tho. Been going gangbusters for the last week or so. Good for him.

Terpstra pulled a boner of a move farting around trying to screw with Sagan and it cost him. Maybe he was thinking they were gonna get caught and Boonen was going to get a placing? Dunno. We'll have to ask him and the DS.

I kept waiting for Sagan to launch after the front 2, but I guess he'd given up by then.

Fun race(s) to watch the last week or so. Can't wait for the next few races!

M

[ultraman6970]

Just saw the last 30 km of the race, I do have to agree. Sagan screwed up falling into terpstra's game, both payed for it. Great win, nothing else to say

Moving to spain, you guys think that sky is like going to suck this season?? If valverde stays like he is performing now for the tour, he well could be the next tour champion.

[MattTuck]

So, what did we think of the plugstreets?

I thought they were going to be like a worn path through a grassy field. Turned out they were just dirt roads. I don't think they were a big difference maker, except for a couple of flats.

Will they be back next year? Not sure. If they are, they should be lined entirely with bag pipers though. That was both surprising and pretty awesome.

Always a reminder of the loss of life to see the number of war memorials on the route. The fact that there are literally war memorials off of dirt roads makes me think they're even more ubiquitous than I thought.

[efaust_o]

Not a fan...OK for a try, but let the cobbles rest on their own merits. More cobbles and/or bergs....yes...

I am a fan of Strada Bianche....can't be all things to all people..

[FlashUNC]

Originally Posted by echappist

So when did you jump on his bandwagon?




Paris Roubaix, definitely. Next week, i'm not so sure

Last couple years. Go check the Olympic thread and any of the recent Flanders threads.

He wins races Sagan is too chicken to ride.

[yarg]

He wins races Sagan is too chicken to ride.[/QUOTE]

Aw Come on man! That is just ridiculous to say. Just doing it to be a provocateur.

[echappist]

Originally Posted by FlashUNC

Last couple years. Go check the Olympic thread and any of the recent Flanders threads.

He wins races Sagan is too chicken to ride.

I jumped on back in 2011 after watching him hang tough during LBL. Victory at Paris Tours cemented it, especially since he was a real dark horse in races back then. He was top ten at that year's Lombardia as well, and i thought it was quite impressive that his performance at all five monuments was well rounded

PS. As much as i like GvA, i wouldnt agree with your last line there. Actually didnt like Sagan as much back then with his incident at RvV, but Sagan has been impressive as of late. That stage win against the GC riders a few weeks ago at Tirreno was impressive

[FlashUNC]

Originally Posted by echappist

I jumped on back in 2011 after watching him hang tough during LBL. Victory at Paris Tours cemented it, especially since he was a real dark horse in races back then. He was top ten at that year's Lombardia as well, and i thought it was quite impressive that his performance at all five monuments was well rounded

PS. As much as i like GvA, i wouldnt agree with your last line there. Actually didnt like Sagan as much back then with his incident at RvV, but Sagan has been impressive as of late. That stage win against the GC riders a few weeks ago at Tirreno was impressive

GvA won an Olympics road race that Sagan said was too hilly for him. If GvA could win it, methinks Sagan would have been in the mix.

GvA was knocking on the door for years. Just took one big win to get over a mental hump more than anything, and now the floodgates are open. Dude is legit.

[PepeM]

Originally Posted by MattTuck

So, what did we think of the plugstreets?

Same as you. I think they were largely irrelevant, although the few people that got flats might disagree. Not sure they added anything.

[Red Tornado]

Originally Posted by efaust_o

I don't think Sagan is recovered:
1. He exhibited more effort than usual bridging to GVA on the Kemmelberg
2. Terpstra shouldn't of bridge so easy to Sagan after the attack
3. No energy or confidence to attack again

We'll see what next week holds...

Yes I'm a Sagan homer...

Yeah, I was wondering too if he's not spreading himself a little too thin. Not taking away from the races already in the books but at least one (Flanders) and possibly two (P-R) of his major spring targets are still to come. Hope he doesn't run out of gas.

[MattTuck]

Not going to bet against him, but Sagan only has 1 top 10 finish at Roubaix. He's an extremely talented rider, but purely looking at results, I think Flanders is a better race for his talents. I see Flanders as a must win for Sagan.

That may just be bad luck at Roubaix, but he also tries to be fit right from OHN and Roubaix may be a bridge too far. Degenkolb, for contrast, did his first one day race last weekend, at Milano-Sanremo.

[nooneline]

Originally Posted by Gummee

Terpstra pulled a boner of a move farting around trying to screw with Sagan and it cost him. Maybe he was thinking they were gonna get caught and Boonen was going to get a placing? Dunno. We'll have to ask him and the DS.

Agree. QS has the syndome wherein when the only tool you have is a hammer, everything looks like a nail. In this case, superior numbers is their hammer. I know they want to set up Gaviria for a big one-day win, but Terpstra in the front group should have been good enough for them. NT letting that gap open was foolish.

Meanwhile Greg is having a gangbusting season. I always expected him to be a star, I just didn't expect him to have the best Classics palmares of his time. Meanwhile, I always expected Sep Vanmarke to be a star ever since the Roubaix before the year he won OHN, and while he's nibbled around the edges for a while he hasn't cracked through to take a big win. He's younger than GVA, still, but I'm starting to get worried.

Meanwhile, Sagan. The expectation that he can win under any set of circumstances if he just plays his cards right is getting tiring to him, it sounds like. Sometimes you play your cards perfectly (MSR) and it doesn't work out, and that's bike racing. Other times you don't, and that's bike racing too.

[MattTuck]

Go back and look at the 2011 Roubaix. Van Summeren won out of the break, but the dynamic between Cancellara and Hushovd (Vaughters, by proxy) was excruciating to watch as a Cancellara fan.

I've said it before. Winning when you are the favorite is that much more difficult than winning when you are just 'in the mix'. Very few people will work with you, its very hard to get away and all your moves are covered. You need to be THAT much stronger as a favorite to win.

Sagan has the double curse that he is regarded as a strong (relatively) sprinter. So that really makes the calculation to work with him a tough one for most riders/teams.

Vanmarcke is struggling since his crash in Strade Bianche with rib injuries, and he was sick last week. Podium at OHN with Sagan and GVA is probably a good indicator of where he'd be this season if he weren't injured/sick. I'm hopeful that another week gives him enough recovery for him to be strong at Flanders and Roubaix. I really enjoy his riding. He always gives 100% to the group he's in. Not always the smartest though.