Pro-cycling thread

QS

Queens of the Stoneage?
Quality Street?
Quick-Step Oh, I get it! Quick-Step! I'm not sure his ballroom dancing is up to scratch.

With Stannard, Rowe, Moscon, Van Baarle, Thomas and the lad who got on the podium at Omloop, I’m pretty sure Sky will be mixing it at Flanders and Roubaix.

Not sure who is riding what but saw Thomas was down for Roubaix.

Bardet and Quintana are doing Dwars Door Vlaanderen tomorrow. That won’t be much fun for them.

He was sick ahead of Gent and missed E3, he definitely had a big dip in form at the start of last year. I like the idea of him doing a Hayman.

True, but it looked like he might become one. When he out-rode those 3 QuickStep riders to win the Omloop. And not just any 3 riders, Boonen, Terpstra and Vandenbergh, Terpstra who we just saw take a stunning wine at E3, but after that he has become largely anonymous in the classics and it makes me sad. Him and Thomas looked great for a while, two of the strongest riders in the classics field.

Sky’s problem is they don’t have a Van Avermaet or Sagan, but they ride like they do.

If they used their strength in depth in a proactive way, rather than falling back to type aka their reactive dna, they’d improve their odds of winning a cobbled monument.

He's doing a Wiggo... come in near the top, then be totally shit for a while, then win it. #maybe

I have to agree that Stannard has gone backwards as a force in the classics. He often used to make the elite selections and be active in the final stages. He was barely visible last year and nor is he this season.

Dunno, Bardet looked pretty comfy (all things considered) during the Strada Bianchi

Don’t think Stannard was ever a force. Bar that one win where QS ballsed it royally when has he stood out as lighting up a race?

The other time he won Het Nieuwsblad? The time he finished on the podium at Roubaix?

Completely different races on different surfaces.

He won the Omloop the year before as well (2014), beating Van Avermaet in a two up sprint. Also has been on the podium at Roubaix and Harelbeke, and top 10s at Dwars Door Vlaanderen and Milan San Remo. All 2016 or before.

If you ever want to refresh your memory on a riders palmares, this is a handy site:

https://www.procyclingstats.com/rider.php?id=140754

He was caught around 200m short of the line in Milan-Sanremo the year Ciolek won after jumping clear inside the last 2km; and he was in the final selection (of five?) at Paris-Roubaix when Hayman won, and like the others, tried several times to get away inside the final 5km, and made the podium.

I think you're perhaps forgetting the brutal crash he had where he broke his back, can't have helped.

But he was strong in 2015 and 2016, after the crash.

This. For a while he really looked like he was developing into one of the strongest hard men in the early season classics, then 2017 happened and he's like the forgotten man. Damn shame.

Anyway, I'm looking forward to Kwiatkowski riding Flanders.

I forgot that win which adds to my point of lighting up races.

Everyone has bad years. Maybe he tried something different early season, it didn't work and he wasn't the force he'd been previously.

OOO going to save that excuse and roll it out later.

Yes, I tried not training. Thought it might be better, apparently not ;)

stunning wine

professional typo, no doubt ;-)

When he out-rode those 3 QuickStep riders to win the Omloop. And not just any 3 riders, Boonen, Terpstra and Vandenbergh

Yup, a great win, though would never have happened if Terpstra wasn’t there.

Fearing a repeat of Niki’s Roubaix win, Tom tried to get away with around 5km left, wearing himself out, when he’d have been a huge favourite for the sprint if he’d sat on. When Stannard had finally caught Tom, Niki immediately attacked, only to be chased down by the tiring Stijn (who was never going to win) working for Tom. Niki goes after Stannard’s late move, and leaves Tom behind. Niki opens up the sprint, only one winner.

That’s an issue with your memory more than it is with Stannard’s ride.

It was a good race with a high quality group - EBH, Terpstra, Vanmarcke, GVA and Stannard - making the race winning move. The last two got away in the closing stages to contest the win.

This is worth a watch to remind people how the race was won;

https://youtu.be/lcjBUU-lgXc

This fast guy recently told me to drink beer and watch bike racing...

Actually, who am I kidding, I've been trying that method for years.

Maybe he was just trying to reduce the competition!?