Velominati Super Prestige
The Velominati Super Prestige is a season-long competition wherein readers will be submitting their predictions for the top five finishers of each qualifying race. In order to qualify, your picks via the VSP Picks form above the posts section of the VSP Event article pertaining to the race in question by the time the countdown clock goes to zero at midnight on the day of the race start. These articles are clearly marked and are generally posted at least 72 hours in advance of each event. The current leader of the competition has the honor of posting on the site bearing the VSP Leader’s badge; winners of select races (the monuments and Grand Tours) similarly gain the honor of posting with a dedicated badge for the remainder of the year. Prizes may be given for key events; these prizes will be announced on the associated VSP Event. Points will be tallied as the season progresses and the winner will be announced after Paris-Tours. Prizes to be determined.
Scoring (One-Day Races)
Readers who wish to enter shall enter their predictions for the top five placings of each race by the time the countdown clock goes to zero at midnight PDT on the day of the race. Regular Points Points will be scored in reverse order of finishing order: 7 points for first place, 5 points for second, 4 for third, 3 for fourth, and 2 for fifth. Readers will also earn 1 bonus point for every other rider named in the top five, regardless of the rider’s placing, but riders are not scored twice. Tie Breaking In the event of a tie, the first reader to submit their predictions will be named the winner.
Scoring (Grand Tours)
Readers who wish to enter shall enter their predictions for the top five placings on General Classification of each Grand Tour by the time the countdown clock goes to zero at midnight PDT on the day of the first stage or prologue. Points Points will be scored as follows based on the final G.C of the race: 20 points for first place, 15 for second, 10 for third, 7 for fourth, and 5 for fifth; plus 3 points per rider in the top five regardless of the rider’s placing, but riders are not scored twice. Changing of the Picks* Contestants are allowed to make line up changes on one of the rest days of the Grand Tours but not both. These changes will come with a point penalty. You will be allotted one (1) rest day to make swaps in grand tours; you may pick either the first or second rest day. The penalties for swapping will be lower for the first rest day than the second. This will allow you to swap out a rider(s) who gets caught in some first week nervousness with a 5 point penalty for each swap. Or make some go for broke/doomed to fail break-away swap on the second rest day for a 10 point penalty for each swap. That’s it. You make one swap or five on either rest day for the corresponding 5 or 10 point penalty per swap. Additionally, if one of your riders crashes out, DNF’s, or DNS’s, you may swap them out on a rest day with corresponding penalties if you haven’t already used up your one rest day swap. Tie Breaking In the event of a tie, the first reader to submit their predictions will be named the winner. Minor Stages We will be posting VSP’s for minor stages as well. Scoring is similar to one-day racing, except no bonus points are in play for getting the rider in the wrong placing.
Scoring (Minor Stage Races)
Readers who wish to enter shall enter their predictions for the top five placings on General Classification of each Minor Stage Race (less than three weeks) by the time the countdown clock goes to zero at midnight PDT on the day of the first stage or prologue. Regular Points Points will be scored in reverse order of finishing order: 10 points for first place, 8 for second, 7 for third, 5 for fourth, and 3 for fifth; plus two bonus points per rider in the top five regardless of the rider’s placing, but riders are not scored twice. Tie Breaking In the event of a tie, the first reader to submit their predictions will be named the winner.
Posting Badges
The following badges will be worn by current leaders of the competition and sub-competitions:
| Overall Super Prestige Leader: |  |
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| Milano Sanremo: |  |
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| VVomen’s Ronde van Vlaanderen: |  |
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| Men’s Ronde van Vlaanderen: |  |
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| Paris-Roubaix: |  |
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| Leige-Bastogne-Liege: |  |
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| Giro d’Italia Leader: |  |
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| Giro Rosa Leader: |  |
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| Tour de France Leader: |  |
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| Vuelta a Espana Leader: |  |
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| Giro di Lombardia: |  |
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| Overal Super Prestige Lanterne Rouge: |  |
2016 Velominati Super Prestige Schedule
Les Hommes
Start |
End |
Event |
Race Website |
| 18.03.2017 | 18.03.2017 | Milano-Sanremo | www.milanosanremo.it |
| 26.03.2017 | 26.03.2017 | Gent-Wevelgem in Flanders Fields | www.gent-wevelgem.be |
| 02.04.2017 | 02.04.2017 | Ronde van Vlaanderen – Tour des Flandres | www.flandersclassics.be |
| 09.04.2017 | 09.04.2017 | Paris-Roubaix | www.letour.fr |
| 16.04.2017 | 16.04.2017 | Amstel Gold Race | www.amstelgoldrace.nl |
| 19.04.2017 | 19.04.2017 | La Flèche Wallonne | www.letour.fr |
| 23.04.2017 | 23.04.2017 | Liège-Bastogne-Liège | www.letour.fr |
| 05.05.2017 | 28.05.2017 | Giro d’Italia | www.giroditalia.it |
| 04.06.2017 | 11.06.2017 | Critérium du Dauphiné | www.letour.fr |
| 10.06.2017 | 18.06.2017 | Tour de Suisse | www.tds.ch |
| 01.07.2017 | 23.07.2017 | Tour de France | www.letour.fr |
| 29.07.2017 | 29.07.2017 | Clasica Ciclista San Sebastian | www.klasikoa.net |
| 19.08.2017 | 10.09.2017 | La Vuelta ciclista a España | lavuelta.com |
| 08.09.2017 | 08.09.2017 | Grand Prix Cycliste de Québec | www.gpcqm.ca |
| 10.09.2017 | 10.09.2017 | Grand Prix Cycliste de Montréal | www.gpcqm.ca |
| 20.09.2017 | 20.09.2017 | Mens World Championship Time Trial | |
| 24.09.2017 | 24.09.2017 | Mens World Championship Road Race | |
| 07.10.2017 | 07.10.2017 | Il Lombardia | www.illombardia.it |
La Femmes
Start |
End |
Event |
Race Website |
| 26.03.2017 | 26.03.2017 | Gent-Wevelgem In Flanders Fields | www.gent-wevelgem.be |
| 02.04.2017 | 02.04.2017 | Ronde van Vlaanderen / Tour des Flandres | www.flandersclassics.be |
| 16.04.2017 | 16.04.2017 | Amstel Gold Race | info@amstelgoldrace.nl |
| 19.04.2017 | 19.04.2017 | La Flèche Wallonne Féminine | www.letour.fr |
| 23.04.2017 | 23.04.2017 | Liège-Bastogne-Liège Femmes | www.letour.fr et www.pesantliege.be |
| 30.06.2017 | 09.07.2017 | Giro d’Italia Internazionale Femminile | |
| 20.07.2017 | 20.07.2017 | La Course by Le Tour de France | www.letour.fr |
| 29.07.2017 | 29.07.2017 | Prudential RideLondon Classique | www.ridelondon.co.uk/events/classique |
| 17.08.2017 | 20.08.2017 | Ladies Tour of Norway | www.ladiestour.no |
| 26.08.2017 | 26.08.2017 | GP de Plouay – Lorient Agglomération | www.grandprix-plouay.com |
| 29.08.2017 | 03.09.2017 | Boels Rental Ladies Tour | www.hollandladiestour.nl |
| 10.09.2017 | 10.09.2017 | Madrid Challenge by la Vuelta | lavuelta.com/Madridchallenge |
| 19.09.2017 | 19.09.2017 | Womens World Championship Time Trial | |
| 23.09.2017 | 23.09.2017 | Womens World Championship Road Race |
Standings
[vsp_gc year=”2017″/]
Past Results
[vsp_gc year=”2016″/]
[vsp_gc year=”2015″/]
[vsp_gc year=”2014″/]
[vsp_gc year=”2013″/]
[vsp_gc year=”2012″/]
[vsp_gc year=”2011″/]
2010 VSP G.C.
*The Changing of the Picks rules are designed to promote fair play and keep the competition fun and open throughout the three-week race. Abuse of these rules will be managed through the “Piti Principle”: if we we feel you are attempting to exploit loopholes or otherwise take advantage of the Changing of the Picks rules, we will penalize you by deducting points from your total score. Much like the UCI doping suspensions, the amount of points deducted will be based on how egregious the abuse was.
@andrew That’s an awesome story. Chapeau and a fucking huge tub of nipple lube to Eric Kester.
Obviously, I want to be faster than the next guy or even the bloke on the club run who never looks like he’s out of breath but at the end of the day the only person I can really compare myself to is myself and that paragraph sums that up beautifully.
@Minnesota Expat
In the past 5 years I have lived in 3 very different locations and have been on an upward trajectory of fitness spurred by the goal of joining the A ride in each place – Long Island, Great Barrington and now Miami. In all three I came into the groups out of shape and slowly, getting dropped, barely hanging on and finally riding into fitness to hang with some honor. These were/are once a week suffer fests where drafting is key and paying attention to the subtle changes and not so subtle changes in pace make the difference to survival. Last weekend was the first time I successfully made 2 laps of Key Biscayne with the Bridge and near the end of the second lap a guy I had been trading verbals jabs with allowed how for an “old fart” I rode “pretty good”! Believe me for this part of the world where there are probably more old farts than young in the group it is no big deal but after of six months work and weight loss I felt like it had paid off.
Jump in and enjoy the curve up to where it is the day of the week you most look forward to! I know I do.
@andrew , @Chris
It was the writing that caught me and then the question of wether he would finish a quarter of it in sneakers! In the end he showed more V than most and also so beautifully got IT.
@Rob
@ Minnesota Expat, join that A-group. You will push yourself harder to stay with them than you would training by yourself. I did the same a few years back, I called it my Thursday Death Ride. And while it felt good to progress to staying on the back of the group and eventually being in there, the comments from others on the progress I’d made felt best. That was a few months after ACL reconstruction, and turned out to be my best year on the bike since the mid 80’s.
@Steve-o
@ Minnesota Expat, join that A-group. You will push yourself harder to stay with them than you would training by yourself. I did the same a few years back, I called it my Thursday Death Ride. And while it felt good to progress to staying on the back of the group and eventually being in there, the comments from others on the progress I’d made felt best. That was a few months after ACL reconstruction, and turned out to be my best year on the bike since the mid 80″²s.
“Thursday Death Ride” ++1
@Gianni
I note there are three rest days in the Giro, are swaps allowed on all three? If only two, as in the rules above, which two?
Fine Oirish hospitality
@piwakawaka
No, swaps are not allowed on the last (3rd) rest day. Or the penalty would have to be so steep to make it sporting, i.e., points would be subtracted from all of one’s VSP earnings in 2014. This whole subject of rest day swaps makes me angry, it’s my punitive Irish-Catholic side floating to the surface, and I’m neither irish or catholic. Take you fucking punishment and enjoy it. Dan Martin crashed and burned and you picked him to win, well, better luck on second through fifth. Don’t get me started. OK, now you got me started. My chest hurts, why is my left arm going numb, must rest…
@Gianni don’t get you started?!? Don’t get me started !! Dan Fuckin Martin, seriously keep the rubber on the road !! First LBL now this….
TOUR of CHONGMING ISLAND WORLD CUP
@Gianni
OK so the second rest day on the 19th is the last time to make swaps for the Giro. That’s tough still two weeks of racing left a lot can change in that time
@San Tonio
I heard you can make swaps on the final rest day but the penalty is one testilcle.
I seem to appear twice in the 2014 standings, once at 46th and once at 278th? Lets hope it is the former, and not the later! Hoping those 2pts get added to the total :)
In a similar vein to Beers, can I get my incompetance at #331 removed?
@Beers
You appear to have posted under two email addresses, a crime for which I don’t give a shit enough to put in the time to correct and consolidate your points.
(In case you’re wondering, software generally doesn’t give two flying fucks about the name you choose to give yourself but instead picks something more unique than your whim. In this case, I’ve chosen to code all of it on the globally unique identifier known as the email address since I’d like to allow people to participate without requiring them to register. If, however, you change emails like my puppy changes squeak toys, you’re fucked.)
@frank My apologies then
Ooh, just spotted my Lantern Rouge badge. I shall wear my Maglia Nera with pride!
33 days
@unversio Those two really don’t like each other do they?
http://www.cyclingnews.com/news/wiggins-left-out-of-team-skys-tour-de-france-team
@unversio
My VMW tells me there are some bikes and cyclists in the above……..
@Deakus
So where do you think Wiggins will end up? I really can’t seeing his staying at Sky. I think he’s ok for money, so that won’t be a prime factor.
I like Wiggins because he has a bit of a personality and has done amazingly well at different aspects of the sport. Froome I am completely ambivalent about. There just doesn’t seem to be much of a character there. A 2015 tour with Wiggins and Froome head-to-head would be fun to watch!
@wiscot He has said he’s speaking to “differeent people”. I can only imagine if money were an issue then the likes of OPQS and Tinkoff would be the only teams with the financial input to pay… Orica have stated they have no intention of taking on either Wiggo or Cadel, and are pinning their future Grand Tour hopes on the Yates et al.
Giant may be a feasible option?
Personally, I’d love to see him throw caution to the wind and join IAM or Belkin…
@wiscot
I think that OGE would be a fine landing spot for Wiggo. They’re looking for a true GC contender, and Adam Yates could learn a lot from him. Plus, that team does one hell of a TTT already–can you imagine adding one of the best TTers in the world?
The 2015 tour could shape up to be one for the ages. I would love to see Froome, Wiggins, Quintana and some others really battle it out!
@KW Bannen isn’t playing ball with that idea…
http://cyclingtips.com.au/2014/06/feature-bannan-plays-down-talk-of-wiggins-or-evans-moving-to-orica-greenedge/
@Deakus
“I felt that the team weren’t prepared to recognise that I was a potential winner. If I wasn’t allowed to try, accepting that would involve a very significant sacrifice on my part: they hadn’t treated me in the way that had been promised.” — Froome. Sky should have stood by Wiggins. Froome whined along the way up. (article)
And I’m freaking out over his crazy long arms. “Don’t touch me!”
@unversio
http://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/0/cycling/27729769
Wiggo being very pragmatic about it in the interview …
@unversio
Looks like Froomie’s trying to get some shnacks out of Porte’s pockets there! Ritchie’s body language says” hey, carry yer own friggin’ snacks, skinny boy!” To which Froomie replies, “But Ritchie, carrying all the extra weight of a gel packet really screws up my power-to-weight numbers and renders my data untrustworthy!”. “FFS” says Ritchie . . . .
@VeloJello Now that (interview) exemplifies patience — and cool — and grace.
@wiscot Frail orangutan arms.
@wiscot
It’s probably just the angle of the image and the flex of Froome’s arm, but the difference between upper arm and forearm is really quite disconcerting if you look closely. Can Froome’s be called the pedalling gumby? (I was going to say Stretch Armstrong, but I’m not even going there.)
@wiscot
Monkey arms.
@unversio
Zippy could kick Froome’s ass by the looks of things. One punch . . .
How the hell is Froome going to get thru stage 5 on the cobbles?
@unversio My feelings entirely. Wiggo has matured nicely over the last couple of years, and a change of team could be a great stepping stone to the final years of his career. He’s talked about being a Super Domestique (like Jensie et al) and if you see how he performed at Paris Roubaix, I can see him filling that role well at the right team. Now the right team…
Is there a lexicon entry for the organisers failing to arrange an event/stage that had been advertised as part of a championship?
Could this henceforth be known as a ‘Strack’ – as in, ‘the Tour of Chongming Island World Cup got Stracked’?
So, what’s the storyline from the second stage of the Dauphiné today? Contador couldn’t go around Froome or Contador didn’t go around Froome? He seemed the more comfortable of the two, and has expressed less interest in winning than in testing his form. If I’m Brailsford, I’m thinking I’ve got more of a challenge next month than last year. And if Porte goes to the Tour and pulls what he did today, the media will assplode with tirades about excluding Wiggins…
@Geraint
Won’t work! There are too many actions and events where Frank did not fail and too much appreciation going for him.
@Geraint Don’t take these things for granted. It’s unbecoming.
@unversio @Nate
I was just taking the piss, chaps. I thought that was in the spirit of the site. Apologies if it came across any other way.
@Steampunk
Sidebar to the story, reprinted from the archives: Chris Froome looks like a spider humping a lightbulb when he’s riding a bike.
Don’t get me wrong, the guy can go that batshit fast on a bike, but I seriously have a hard time watching him do it. And that fucking power meter, for Merckx’s sake.
@Geraint understood, just pointing out that the Keepers work hard at running this place especially the VSP. Plenty of opportunity exists for piss-taking based on what the publish.
@unversio
Chris Froome looking at stems.
@Steampunk
Looked to me like Contador couldn’t go around. He was eating a Froome pain sandwich. He knew he needed the bonus seconds to get back on more even terms.
Porte has been, shall we say, unremarkable this season. I don’t know the details of course, but when your #1 team-mate finishes 10 minutes down on the first mountain stage, that’s not good. If Porte has a bad Dauphine and a less-than-stellar tour, the cries for Brailsford’s head will be loud and clear as Wiggins has shown form this year.
@wiscot Agreed. Contador tried to go around but couldn’t. Looked like he hoped to snatch the stage but Froome was having none of it. Its good to see Froome racing so hard. He’s not exactly Mr Charisma but I’m warming to his way. Contador may be playing the long game – he was very alert and did better than the rest at marking moves.
@wiscot @Harminator Agreed, it looked to me like Bertie was giving it everything to just about stay within a metre of Froomedog’s wheel. There was a surge with about 50 to go, but apart from that he just managed to hold on. I don’t think he had any more.
Porte going out the back so soon was odd, maybe he’s ill, but it does question Froome’s preference for him over Wiggo as the second in command for the Tour.
@Geraint
But hasn’t that been the issue with Porte all season? Illness? What happens if he goes to the tour at Froome’s chaperone and is sub-par on the cobbles? CF could loose time big time. You know OPQS are targeting that stage and might draft Boonen to help with that. I could see OPQS really drilling it to win and letting the chips behind fall where they may. If Cav gets yellow in England, he could still have it by State 5 and we know Boonen works well for teammates. We saw that Wiggins can handle himself ok on cobbles, jury’s out on CF. Mind you, in fairness to Contador, no-one could get past Froome today. He’s not my favorite rider by a long shot, but he’s laying down the gauntlet and saying “beat me if you can . . .”
@Steampunk, et al
And of that front group, with Kelderman, Talansky, VDB putting in attacks and Froome covering while Contador just stays on his wheel. Seems like Froome put in a much bigger effort overall and still held him off. Bertie seemed in much pain but credit to him for taking it to the end. Unlike Nibs. oh, Nibs.
@wiscot I agree with you totally. Part of the build up to the latest shitstorm at Sky was Froome’s stated preference for Porte over Wiggo as his 2IC at the tour. To me, that smacked of buddy-ism rather than picking the best rider. He was picking his roommate over a rival. Porte’s performance today will throw the whole lot back up in the air, and make it easier for Wiggo to go to the Tour. Given the backlash against Wiggo not getting picked for a Tour that starts in Britain, I wonder if Porte was told to have a bad day today, then no-one loses face when there’s a U-turn. Wiggo has already made a good case with his performances at P-R and ToC.
@xyxax Absolutely. Froome had to produce more watts for longer than everyone else there, and still won. Pretty impressive stuff.
@Geraint
It do be fine. Just shutting down irregular post(s) — in the true spirit of this website.