Pro-cycling thread

I may be wrong but I don't think it would be possible to go pro as a sufferer of depression without significant talent and doping.

Kittel wouldn't be the first up and coming rider who's been unable to cope with the demands placed upon him as a bona fide star and who's training has suffered.

Factor in a long running debilitating illness and the road back to a full recovery is a long one. Hopefully the team won't rush him back, they could still have a successfully Tour with Degenkolb and Barguil.

I would put money on him having developed chronic fatigue syndrome. I've had something like that since I was 15, and pushing your body to exhaustion is exactly the sort of thing that causes it to flare up, usually as symptoms similar to viral tonsillitis.

Oh definitely that too. Combined with low body fat, fatigue, riding through terrible conditions whilst utterly past their red line and I'm sure it can result in catastrophic immune system failures.

Poor old Marco. Sport's a sorry old world for some.

Yeah that all makes sense, it's just the use of the catch-all term 'virus' to explain away entire seasons of under-performance that piqued my interest. I guess they don't want to be too specific about what they are suffering from, patient confidentiality and all that.

It means we'll have to wait another year for the much anticipated Kittel/Cav dust up, with Cav looking in good form so far and EQS looking better organised than last year.

Regarding the Giro, it's hard to look past Contador although he hasn't shown a lot in terms of form this year, and has had to recover from a bad crash. For some reason I fancy Uran, it must be those flowing locks, but it could be the year he changes from bridesmaid to bride. Porte has looked unbeatable but whether he can convert those stage race wins into the top step of a GT...if I was betting man I wouldn't bet on it.

Something looks better about Porte so far this year; more consistency perhaps, which I reckon comes from a bit more self belief. Still, as you say, he's not proved he can do three weeks without a catastrophic day yet. Hope he can sort that though, he rides nice.
Aru's gonna be up there too, but again he's got the three week problem.

Team Sky seemed to have managed to stop the the Porte/Froome winter (over)training sessions and he seems to be on Nigel Mitchell's special cutting diet.

code for mental illness?

Vaguely on topic... I always wondered if Boasson Hagen's frequent 'digestive problems' was an euphemism for stress/anxiety issues?

I'm aware that the topic of EBH not-quite-making-it has been done to death in these threads. It's just that he's such a mellow country bumpkin, perhaps the (suppoesed) military discipline of Sky got to him.

Perfectly normal to have a virus that can take weeks or months to get better, especially if you're not in good health-I knew a police officer who punched a samurai sword wielding junky and cut his knuckles in the process; he was wiped out by a really fucked up virus for almost a year and a half before some US specialist was drafted in to help unpick the petri dish junky-ness of it... I imagine having your body operating on the limits of its physiology for months at a time isn't conductive to fighting off something that a normal lazy person would take six weeks to be rid of.

Porte is a different prospect from previous years based on his form, his weight and the team he's got with him.

Podium will be three of Aru, Contador, Porte and Uran.

I can't see past Contador for the GC but hopefully Porte can put him under some pressure and make race of it.

Looking at the first week profiles, there's going to be some exciting racing. Lots of riders out to snipe a GT win and none of the main contenders will want to be leading until midway.

Gotta say, I'm going for Porte. Contador seems to have entire years which are good or bad- this seems like a bad one so far. Uran for second place, someone unexpected in third, and Contador somewhere next after going on a mad attack and getting dropped.

Contador. He's just come back from 3 weeks training with 3500 alt.m. a day, very focused and has no body fat left (let's hope there won't be any snow this year). And most importantly, bloody serious about this Giro/TdF double thingy.

There's a 54km TT. I'm betting on Uran.

I know this is going to irritate me more and more as the race goes on, but this bloody time trial is 59.2 kms long, please memorise this now.

Uran and his aero mullet to disperse the dirty air as he speeds along the 54k...I mean 59.2kms long ITT

Eh whats 5.2km anyway.

WIGGINS WATCH

He'll be on Desert Island Discs this Sunday on R4

A team time trial on a 6 foot wide bike path? Go on then.

that'll teach them to stay in line! not a lot of corners though as far as I can see

Please could someone pm me a link to a stream? I can't find it.

Not starting til 2 pm

Ah! Great thanks. I was on Eurosport thinking "Motors?! What is this witchcraft?!"

I may be wrong but I don't think it would be possible to go pro as a sufferer of depression without significant talent and doping.

*Pantani wasn't just depressed he was manically depressed from birth and most likely with paranoia and schizophrenia to enhance the flavour of his psychological maladies.*