It's Sunday, it's the final day of the Giro, the Time Trial is over, and my, didn't things change?
I was so excited to see Rigoberto Uran on the podium, along with Basso and Hejerdahl: well deserved for all of them, I thought.
And Cav got the red jersey, well done Cav!
It's a shame those spectators got onto the course and spoiled John Gadret's ride (*laughs unsympathetically*) but it was nice to see so many people lining the route, despite the terrible weather.
OK, I admit it, I'm writing this on Saturday morning and I have no idea what is going to happen. But by the time you read this it will all be over, and you can have a good laugh at how wrong my predictions were!
Well, lets start off with Phinney being led off course by the moto at a loss of who knows how much time.....One could say, he should have known the course (reading those booklets again, it is important) however the race organizers JUST shortened the course! So...Phinney should be gien some time - for their mistake - but he probably won't be. Just inexcusable.
ReplyDeleteBE
OHHH CANADA!!!!!! So happy for Ryder!!.. So happy for Garmin (Boulder based...)
ReplyDeleteFrankly, so happy it's over!!! Great Giro!
BE
Okay, well that made me laugh! As I'm reading the post, I'm thinking, whaaaat ...?? So thrilled for Ryder. So thrilled for Garmin. I must admit to tearing up during the national anthem.
ReplyDeleteIf I may also say, Vaughters is an example of an exceptional leader achieving results with a team on a, relatively speaking, marginal budget. Well done!
Kat
Like Kat, I was going Whaat??? while reading this.
ReplyDeleteI was so excited to see Ryder come through. you never know what can happen at the last minute.
Saturday's race was almost the killer though. Where did DeGendt come from? I was afraid that was it for Ryder when DeGendt was so far ahead at almost the end, but Ryder persevered.
Excellent result, well deserved by all 3 on the podium. Almost an upset by DeGendt at the eleventh hour. Rodriquez held on all the way - before the start I had picked him to win, and of course Ryder with steady strength and excellent team work from Garmin.
I felt bad for Cav losing the red jersey by 1 point. One could blame Ferrari for that! but also Cav got fairly and perhaps surprising beat at the last sprint, on Thursday was it? That would have done it too.
All in all, much better than last year's Giro! I guess because I cared about the outcome this year.
I have never read or seen so much cycling coverage in the general news. O Canada!
emjay
Ditto Kat!!!! It's so nice to see the guys in the "white hats" win!!
ReplyDeleteJonathan is one of the best. I love the philosophy and the communication and openness this team has. And with DZ winning the TT again in Nationals - they are doing alright! Sponsors should be very happy. Bet Jonathan will sleep a little bit better tonight!
So happy for them!
BE
Coug, my tall, awkward Canadian won, and I'm not ashamed to say that I sobbed--I have been a basket case since this morning. I mean moreso! I wrote a mawkish blurb after the Passo dello Stelvio stage: http://thisisnotdianearbus.tumblr.com/post/23842537696
ReplyDeleteFor me, what made this win quite emotional, was that Ryder fought and gritted his way through it. He may not have the explosive talent of a Contador or a Schleck, he just works hard, and I find that personally inspiring. Hard work trumping raw talent.
I hope Hesjedalers are welcome here :)
--
emjay and Kat, are you really getting much press about the Giro and Ryder in your part of Canada? While Sportsnet has been covering the Giro stages live, for about 2 hours everyday, I have to say the press coverage in Toronto has been pretty thin. Just a token mention after CTV and CBC news, nothing like the ballyhoo after Sidney Crosby's gold medal winning gold at the Olympics. Which is a shame, but so infuriatingly Canadian as well.
ReplyDelete--
I guess it's relative. There was never any cycling coverage at all before.
DeleteNow there was a (short) article every day in the provincial paper as well as a half-page story on Saturday about Ryder.
On Sportsnet in the Jays game on Sat the Giro was heavily promoted with Buck Martinez reading the promo and trying to sound Italian as he said "Giro d'Italia".
CBC NewsWorld had a piece in every hourly rotation explaining the situation. They were going to try to get an interview with Ryder after the time trial as well. I don't know if that happened, but definitely more than the usual (non)coverage.
emjay
Sounds like pretty much the same phenomenon of lacklustre coverage as here. When Ryder placed 6th at the 2010 Tour de France, I remember thinking that was a terrific result that got NO PRESS whatsoever. I'm quietly irked that his Giro heroics isn't making more waves--I mean this is massive for our country, it's NEVER been done, and I'll be interested to see if outlets like the Toronto Star, and the National Post, will make it front page news tomorrow morning.
DeleteI laughed when I heard a newscaster on 680 News citing "a cycling expert" to emphasise the importance of the Giro. I remember Patrick Chan whingeing that he had more support from the Chinese community than in Canada--and I kind of see his point. Sports other than hockey get pretty short shrift around here.
Hey Susan and Emjay. I did see a written article on CBC right away and CTV followed shortly after that but I don't know what video any of the stations were running. Our local newspaper had an article; at least people are beginning to talk about cycling. :) This may be a strange thing to say, but I'm kind of glad Ryder lives outside of the country; I hope that he is never crushed by the weight of expectation we can place on our Canadian athletes (at least, this is my perception). Take care! - Kat
DeleteIt's not strange at all--I'm glad Ryder doesn't live here for the most part either, but for slightly different reasons. I wouldn't want him to see the lack of press his accomplishments are getting.
DeleteI actually wanted to pull my hair out watching TSN--they were interviewing Steve Bauer, who had to explain that the Giro is on par with the Tour. GUH.
Anyway, I hope Ryder is named to the Olympic team! No offence to Svein Tuft, but I'm amazed (by which I mean annoyed) that this is even up for debate:
http://www.ottawacitizen.com/sports/Olympics+lock+Giro+champ/6692731/story.html
Hello to our Canadian forum insert!
DeleteThanks for the link Susan. I'm afraid I agree with the article about who might be best to send to the Olympics. Not to take anything away from Ryder's strength and perseverence at the Giro, team work was a huge part of his win. With only 1 permitted entrant, no-one has much chance in the road race and I think Svein would do better at the time trial.
It's a stupid rule anyway - how can it be fair that some countries have a full team and some only 1 person in the same competition?
emjay
I agree, Ryder had great support from teammates like Christian Vande Velde, but I would argue he was riding on his own a lot at the front during Stage 20 (with no help whatsoever from Joaquim Rodriguez), and he seized the day in Milan, riding the time trial of his life. That's the kind of "put it all on the line" kind of grit I want to see.
DeleteI just dislike that arguably our best guy on the road won't go to the Olympics. Can you imagine telling Jonathan Toews, or way back in the day, Mario Lemieux, that the roster is full, and their services won't be needed? It would never happen because of the culture around hockey. But Ryder will probably get excluded, and that SUCKS.
As an aside, I think the way Jonathan Vaughters runs Garmin, is something Bruyneel and company could learn from. Has anyone read this?
http://www.cyclingnews.com/news/bruyneel-only-cancellara-is-assured-of-tour-de-france-spot
Yikes.
Oh I've been haunting Schleckland since about February 2011, and it's honestly a relief to see normal Canadians on here, since I've probably given Coug the impression that we're all weirdos :P
Susan, are you trying to imply that there exists such a thing as a "normal Canadian"?? That term is an oxymoron! ;-}
DeleteAlso, when the roster has only 1 slot... it's really hard to make room for everyone that deserves a spot.
Touché VirtKitty, we are a pretty eccentric bunch with our Curling, bilingual food labels, timbits, and whatnot.
DeleteI think I haven't seen you here since I was figgy! And that was another lifetime ago...
I don't know, in my mind, there's ALWAYS room for Ryder Hesjedal (let's not unpack the Freudian overtones in that), or alternatively, Parliament could grant Quebec temporary separation status, and he could ride for them :p
"Normal Canadian"? Oh dear, I might be letting the side down a bit. ;)
DeleteI have mixed feelings about sending Ryder to London. Is any one rider more responsible for Canada being awarded the one spot for their results internationally or is Canada (or any country) guaranteed that one spot as a minimum? I vaguely remember reading something about this.
Just looking at Wikipedia, Svein's international results may have played a role in earning Canada that one spot. If the races are best suited to him, wouldn't it make sense to send him? On the other side of the coin, Ryder did show that he could go at it alone but that was in the high mountains. Okay, I've already figured out after three sentences that I don't have a clue what I am talking about and am relieved that I don't have to make this decision! Over to the experts. I'll just wave my flag and cheer my favourites from whatever country they are from. :)
Thanks for the links to the articles, Susan and completely agree that Vaughters leadership style is something that Bruyneel would be wise to take a page from.
Thanks for sharing your thoughts ladies!
Kat
LOL ... check this out ... "This section tabulates the heads of qualification in a form suitable to be filled in as events progress. The full qualification rules[3] for cycling (road) published by UCI contain intricate conditions too lengthy for inclusion in Wikipedia."
DeleteYup the qualification rules for the calculation of how many riders a country can send to compete in the Olympic Road Race is so long that even Wikipedia gave up! :D
- Kat
Give it time. We don't get much coverage in the states about cycling - in general. However - it's a double edged sword. We DO have our own access now via live feeds etc - so those who want to know what' happening can find out. Those who don't care - don't have to read about it.
ReplyDeleteIt is growing more and more though on this continent. But, yes frustrating. For Eurosport to cut coverage of the podium ceremonies today to cover tennis...that was crappy.
BE
Oh.....Johan....
ReplyDeletehttp://velonews.competitor.com/2012/05/news/positioned-for-pink-the-evolution-of-hesjedals-tt-position_221534
It can be done!
BE
YAY! Congrats to Ryder and all the Canadian fans out there! I was so pleased when they confirmed Ryder had won; he really deserves it, though I do feel a bit sorry for Rodriguez because he was so close. Looking forward to the Tour now :D
ReplyDeleteBris. Gal
I too am very happy for Ryder and Garmin! Based on the little I've seen, he rode a great race. And I feel a little sorry for Rodriguez too, being in pink on the final day and then losing it must be hard.
ReplyDeleteInge
Does anyone have any thoughts on Andy being awarded the yellow jersey earlier today? - Kat
ReplyDeleteI feel a little sorry for Andy. We all know that that's not how Andy wanted to get the yellow jersey - even we don't want him to achieve it that way. But hopefully one of these days he'll be able to receive it standing on the top podium, in the middle of the Champs Elysee and we'll all be cheering him on (and a tiny part of me will be say 'Yay! He deserves it. Now. I wonder if he'll start focusing on other races?!')
ReplyDeleteMeanwhile, I agree with everyone who's been saying Bruyneel needs to take a leaf out of Vaughters' book when it comes to how to manage and motivate your team. Using fear and threats etc will only motivate people so far before they turn on you. I feel sorry for the guys competing in the Tour of Luxembourg: http://www.cyclingnews.com/news/bruyneel-wanted-to-motivate-frank-schleck.
*big sigh*
Bris. Gal
I just read Johan's statement that Bris. Gal gave the link for. Jeeze Johan!!!! Time to go to mgt. school, since he obviously never has.
ReplyDeleteIf you're going to use intimidation as a tactic...you don't tell people that's what you are doing for heavens sake! Every time he opens his mouth lately, I end up just shaking my head. Sort of like Phil Liggett (for me anyhow, lately) Sometimes it's just time to hang it up instead of embarrassing yourself over and over. What's he going to say now if Frank blows the Luxembourg tour? I don't think Johan understands who he is dealing with. Neither Frank or Andy "need" to race. They don't go home to a hard factory or field job or become unable to support their families if they aren't riding, like some of the other guys who might fall for this intimidation crap, only because they have to. He's not dealing with Armstrong nor should he be acting like him. Those daze are over. It's a new day Johan and you are old school and it's time to learn new things or you will be out of a job! How does intimidation feel bud? I hope Becca is hammering him.
BE
I've always learned that positive stimulation is more effective than negative stimulation, but apparently Bruyneel thinks differently of that...*sigh* When things are already not going as planned and hoped for on the team, taking all your frustrations to the media certainly doesn't help. Unless of course he's trying to get his team going against him.
ReplyDeleteI just watched the video of the TdF ceremony for Andy (it's here: http://tele.rtl.lu/waatleeft/replay/v/20120529/143/63219/ ), and I think he handled it really well. The video they made for him of the TdF '10 was quite nice, and the sports minister fixing his jacket made me smile.
I really hope that one day, he'll get to do it again but then in the way it should be: on the actual date, on the Champs Elysées and with all the joy and festivities that go with it!
Inge
Fränk only lost 12 seconds in TdL TT today.....
ReplyDeleteBarbara
Hey BE ... did you read what Jensie had to say about "your" California?! It sounds just beautiful. :) - Kat
ReplyDeletehttp://bicycling.com/blogs/hardlyserious/2012/05/30/adventures-out-west/
All true! It is a most beautiful, varied state - from desert to beach to high mountains. Colorado is pretty cool too! I've been fortunate to live where I have. Of course, I also need to include England and Switzerland in that as I left pieces of my heart in those places as well!
ReplyDeleteI am happy Jensie likes it. Pleases me.
BE