Monday 8 July 2013

Shleck special offer: Buy One, Get One Free

More news reports today about Frankie being sacked by RadioShambles: now the bosses are saying that the issue has been thoroughly discussed with Frankie, and that he was fully informed months ago that this was going to happen.

Again, I have to say, what a load of crap!

What team management would sit down in a meeting with their rider and his agent, and explain carefully that in a few months' time, but just before the ban expired, he would be sacked?

Frankie wasn't taking a salary, so they would surely have sacked him there and then. Or if it were true, and somehow both Frankie and his agent (who we assume to be a professional business-man and therefore able to listen and comprehend what was said) missed it, then they would announce it on the last day of the ban. Not 11 days before the expiry.

Frankie could have spent the last several months negotiating for a new team and getting used to their training methods - ah, I think I see the point of Shambles' behaviour. How very petty of them.

Mind you, there is another aspect to this - Andy is reported as saying:

Andy Schleck said he believed the decision was not related to Frank Schleck’s suspension. “It wasn’t even anything to do with doping, even the UCI (International Cycling Union) agreed on that,” he added. “But there are other things behind this decision. I don’t think it is anything to do with the suspension.” He added: “To kick him out of the team after 11 months of giving him their support, I just don’t understand it.” 

I don't know what he's referring to, specifically - there was that trouble with the Giro last year, when Frankie pulled out against the wishes of the team.. would they hold a grudge about that, for so long?

Whatever it was,  now we have Frankie looking for a new team, and quite possibly whoever gets him will also get Andy.

In the UK we have a strange marketing phenomenon in grocery shopping, known as BOGOF - lovely abbreviation, don't you think? - which is short for Buy One, Get One Free. It's a cunning way to make us all waste food, as we think the second one is free so it doesn't matter if we don't eat all of it, not realising that the prices have been inflated to cover the cost of the second, "free" item.

But in cycling terms, this could be the start of a whole new marketing strategy! We saw the beginnings of it two years ago, when Uncle Bjarne bought Contador, and got a couple of lieutenants thrown in for free.

Then Sky bought Cav, and got Bernie Eisel as part of the deal. (This has worked out very well indeed for Sky, as they passed Cav on to Omega Pharma, but kept hold of Bernie, who is an excellent rider.)

Now, whoever buys Frankie stands a very good chance of getting Andy! *sounds of Schlecklanders breaking open piggy banks and counting coins in all directions*

As a completely useless, waste-of-time piece of speculation, who do we think might buy them?

The teams with money are Astana, Katusha, Garmin, BMC, Belkin, Orica....

Astana would be great, back with Jakob again, yay! However, if Our Andy joins the pyjama boys, we will have to get used to seeing him in a onesie...hmm, not good, but possibly worth it to have him reunited with Jakob.

Andy as a Dark Lord? Not entirely sure I can see that.

Garmin - well, they have a very enlightened policy towards ex-dopers, so they of all people will not be able to hold their noses and make snooty remarks about Frankie's ban.

BMC - again, I can't really see that, but LLB thinks it's a possibility.

Belkin is quite possible: they are based not far from Lux (they are, as we all remember, what Rabobank turned into) although their kit has no Lux blue in it whatsoever.

Then there's Orica - well, they already have an ally there, Stuey: so there are possibilities there.

And one good thing, if you can call it that - normally riders don't start putting out feelers for new teams until after the Tour, so Frankie is at least well ahead of the game there.

Any thoughts, anyone?

1 comment:

  1. Just breaking open my piggy bank now...

    I wonder if they would accept hire purchase (buy now, pay never!)...then I could buy Andy, Frankie, Jakob, Fabian and Jens! Sounds like a team I used to know.

    I think Jakob and Andy would be competing to be teachers pet...my pets...my playthings....hehehe
    Opps I mean professional bike riders.

    The only thing is though, if Andy and Jakob were in the same team, who would be team leader? Would they take turns? Would they do rock,paper,sicssor? or toss a coin?

    Michelle

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