USA team for the worlds...

[ultraman6970]

Do you guys think that grand pa Chris Horner would have been nominated??

[kramnnim]

Who?

[thwart]

Ah, kids. How soon they forget.

;)

[Johnny P]

No.

[harlond]

Doesn't seem like the course for him.

[kramnnim]

Don't you need some kind of results to qualify?

[earlfoss]

If results were required, Phinney wouldn't be attending world's this year.

[Uncle Jam's Army]

It baffles me that Ian Boswell isn't on the team.

[kramnnim]

Phinney got a few points in Utah... I guess Horner has more, though.

[Lewis Moon]

Don't you need some kind of results to qualify?

This.

[ultraman6970]

The one I dont get is Tyler Farrar...

[Gordito]

The one I dont get is Tyler Farrar...

Some lame Farrar bashing here! Whether you like it or not he's still the most capable US rider for that kind of event.
Plus, he's always performing well late in the season.

I think Reijnen would deserve a spot though. He's good at this kind of terrain/circuit.

[jmoore]

The one I dont get is Tyler Farrar...

America's Green Jersey Hope (tm)

[ultraman6970]

Not that i dont like him the problem is his consistency. For example Teo bos, the dude probably sprinted more than anybody else over the face of the planet at some point but in the road he did not live to the expectations, at least he had like zillions of word champion jerseys at his name, but with Farrar what you can hope?? that he doesnt crash? or that somebody dont let him pass???

For example, you can't discount valverde again, i know are different type of riders but valverde is not a sprinter either and you can't get him out of the picture as a possible winner, sucker has more top 5s than anybody else in the face of the planet. So you cant hope that he is not going to do something... that's the difference between one and the other rider... consistency...

[sandyrs]

Not that i dont like him the problem is his consistency. For example Teo bos, the dude probably sprinted more than anybody else over the face of the planet at some point but in the road he did not live to the expectations, at least he had like zillions of word champion jerseys at his name, but with Farrar what you can hope?? that he doesnt crash? or that somebody dont let him pass???

For example, you can't discount valverde again, i know are different type of riders but valverde is not a sprinter either and you can't get him out of the picture as a possible winner, sucker has more top 5s than anybody else in the face of the planet. So you cant hope that he is not going to do something... that's the difference between one and the other rider... consistency...

The same can be said of Kiel Reijnen as can be said of Valverde, albeit on a smaller stage. The guy is up there in everything. He definitely should be on the team for this parcours.

[Gordito]

Yep, not a specialist about US riders, but I'm definitely surprised about Reijnen missing the selection.

Also, with only 6 riders at the start, you should be lining up more riders with the right profile: I think Craddock or Ben King will be kind of useless. Hard workers aren't required when you don't have a pre-race favorite.

Overall it looks like they only select Pro Tour riders just for the sake of it.

Brookwalter has been outdoing himself this year, he could be in a late move but hasn't got a lot of options.

[hoonjr]

I cannot disagree more about Ben King. He's from North Garden, VA. An hour from Richmond. His entire extended family will be there and he'll turn himself inside out for the protected rider. He may not finish but he'll bury himself doing work for the team.

[Mark McM]

Don't you need some kind of results to qualify?

Not necessarily. Specific results can guarantee automatic qualification. But in the case that not all automatically qualified slots are filled (which is usually the case), the remaining slots are filled with discretionary selections.

[sessl]

Often guys choose not to ride Worlds because by this point in the season they are cooked. Oddly Being Stateside adds a level of complexity for the ProTour guys. They need to shut down their European homes and get home for the Winter. Doing so post Vuelta/pre worlds would be rushed.

[azrider]

I'd take Marcotte or Reijnen over Farrar any day of week and twice on (what day are they racing again?)............you get the idea.........

[ultraman6970]

Marcotte... the USA champion 2014???

Good pick.

[acorn_user]

I cannot disagree more about Ben King. He's from North Garden, VA. An hour from Richmond. His entire extended family will be there and he'll turn himself inside out for the protected rider. He may not finish but he'll bury himself doing work for the team.

I concur. Lawson Craddock worked over time for Dumoulin in the Vuelta and is another good pick. Even without a stand out candidate, you need a workhouse rider and/or someone who can ride in the break. Ben can ride in the break. See his Nationals win or in the Criterium International this year.

(I am biased because I know him and his family)

[atrexler]

Even without a standout pre-race pick I'm sure they'll have a team strategy and pick somebody to ride for. That guy is going to need workers to protect him (King, Howes, Craddock) . Brookwalter seems like the obvious choice as the strongest guy on the team. 4th at Austria, 3rd at Utah, 2nd at Colorado. Boom boom boom. I think a guy like Farrar is a good choice for "road captain" or whatever. Its the course for him but I don't think he'll be the protected rider.

In general I would think that selecting Pro Tour guys for the sake of it with a country like the US where we havent got alot of protour guys is probably a decent strategy. There's a reason they're in the Pro Tour...

I'll be there and cheering for the entire team USA regardless.