Omloop het Nieuwsblad is fast approaching on March 1st, Strade Bianche goes off the next weekend; finally, ladies and gentlemen, we have a season. For me the racing season really has to start in cold, wet Europe. I like the Tour Down Under just fine, I watch it, but it’s too early, too sunny and too hot to signify the start of the racing season. The races in the desert, though I’m sure they are windy and tough, hold no interest for me. Camels and embrocation do not compute. The endless speculation about Faboo’s lack of perfect February form only means every reporter is bored and has no real stories to write.
The most interesting thing about the racing in the Middle East was seeing that Tom Boonen is whippet thin and ready to bring the pain in 2014. Knowing that Boonen is back lets me sleep better at night. He is lining up for Omloop, his team is ready to rumble on the Taaienberg, all is right with the cycling world. Please let it rain, but don’t let Tommeke get hurt.
I need to see some racers with every bit of wet weather gear on, riding into a hell storm off the North Sea. Cold and wet and in Belgium; that is the way we start the season.
The other thing that is great with the cycling world is the Strade Bianche the following week. A gravel race for the professionals? The race is new, not even ten editions have been raced, but it seems so right. San Gimignano to Siena, rolling up and down across the Tuscan countryside, many secteurs of white gravel, this is a stroke of Italian genius.
Another reason to be excited is Peter Sagan. The wheelie poppin’ curb jumpin’ bad boy comes into this season a year wiser. He has watched both Fabs and Tommeke ride away from him in different editions of the Ronde but they aren’t getting any younger and Sagan is only getting better. The younger generation of riders would like to topple the reigning twin kings of the Spring Classics but Boonen and Cancellara are still there because they are the two best Spring Classic riders of their generation. They aren’t going to go without a battle.
If no one breaks bones in the feed zones or gets infected elbows, this all portends a beautiful spring.
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Will be interesting to see how Sky get on after abandoning their ill fated 'classics' build up of last year - but can't see past Boonen, Fabio, Stybar and Sagan for the big ones (can't wait). If Wiggins is genuinely on it and as motivated as he would have us all believe, could he be in the mix at P-R?
Bring the pain boys! And I do hope that there's rain at PR this year. Cold wet snow maybe? Let's get epic (while I watch from the comfort of my living room.)
Can't fuckin wait. I might actually try to keep up with VSP this year.
So help me with the international time thing. Just as a simplified example - If I'm at UTC-9hrs and the race time zone is UTC+3hrs, and the race starts at 10am 1 March in that location, then I watch at 10am-9hrs-3hrs = 10pm on 28 Feb?
@Gianni
If you also happen to be one of those people who downloads things via torrents*, there's a lovely site that Frank's countrymen have set up for a similar purpose - http://www.cyclingtorrents.nl
*given the less than legal nature of this practice in some/most countries, I in no way endorse this course of action irrespective of any usage I may have got out of said site in the past...
As the start of the "real" season approaches I feel excited but not quite ready, like an overweight 80's pro; it's all about to kick off and I don't have enough K's in the legs. @Daccordi Rider gets my hopes up by hinting that Harmon might be back then @Chris informs me that Het Volk is only on Sky Sports. Then @Darren H further confuses things by predicting that Fabio is one of the favourites? Is he a Italian neo pro? Fuck! It's almost Super Prestige time and I have no idea what is going on.
No wonder Langeveld won that race. The V is emanating from the faceplate of his stem.
@Beers
Who the fuck knows? That sounds like one of those IQ questions in an in-flight magazine. Where it tells me my IQ is 40. Is that bad?
@Darren H
Wiggo...I've been thinking long and hard about his chances at P-R and I don't like them. In his favor: he has done the race a bunch of times, he has a huge motor, he understands the full gas concept for each secteur. But, those skinny-ass twiggo legs, something about them that makes me think he will get the shiet bounced out of him, and not be able to float (no one is floating) over the stones. Cancellara has intimated that the grand tour riders are too light for P-R. I hope Twiggo proves me wrong. I usually am.
Der Boss Hogg should be killing it at P-R, he seems a better man for that race. Was he not the great white hope a few years back?
@Gianni Yes, it should be clear that by even asking such a question I'm not the sharpest tool in the shed, 40 sounds good to me?
@Gianni
If only. I'm not getting up a 2am to watch 3 hours of racing. I've got a training ride leaving from my front gate at 4:30am.
There is something that prevents me from paying for televsion, it just doesn't seem right. Sort of like paying for sex. It might be good, even better than the free stuff but it leaves you with dirty feeling (so I am told). Besides, think what extra cycling goodness can be bought with the money paid for pay-tv.