Pink or Yellow?
We’re into day four of the Six Days of the Giro series, let’s talk trash.
Yes the Tour de France started a few years before the Giro and has always been credited as The Tour to win. You win the Giro, you are a stud. Win the Tour and you are a stud for life. Why is that? Is the Tour longer, tougher, more murderous, more beautiful? In the 2013 edition, the Tour is a mere 25 km longer. The number of stages are the same. The Tour has earned a prestige it will never willingly cede. The Tour is it. Teams send their best riders. No one uses the Tour to train since the world championships were moved to September.
Obviously the maglia rosa is better looking than the maillot jaune, no argument. There is no arguing about podium girls; let us never argue about podium girls. Unless they are dudes, like that overly-politically correct scene where guys were pushed onto the stage a few years back. Either go Chippendale dancers or nothing if you can’t handle beautiful women on the stage. The Giro trophy is much hipper than the Tour fruit bowl. Is a leader’s all pink bike nicer than an all yellow bike? If not tarted up too much a De Rosa pearlescent pink paint job is beautiful. The same can be said for a beautiful yellow frame, but when the hubs, spokes and everything else on it matches the paint, arguing which is nicer is a lost cause.
Is France a more beautiful country to race through? From the rider’s perspective, they might not opine. They are looking at the jersey 1.5 meters in front of them or the next hairpin corner coming up fast. Day to day they might not even know which country they are in. From the high definition helicopter shots it would be a hopeless argument: both countries are incredibly varied and beautiful, like the podium ladies. Pastries, France, café, Italy. Before the advent of traveling team chefs, riders were at the mercy of whichever overworked, disgruntled chef was employed by the hotel. The French are renown gastronomies and renown for the terrible pasta they would serve Tour racers. If one was always fueling up on pasta and rice, one was much happier in the Giro.
What the Tour defiantly has over the Giro is Paris. Yes it is a parade but what a parade route. Riding into Paris and doing laps on the Champs Élysée; that’s how you end a Grand Tour. The Giro doesn’t always end in Milan, like this year’s finish in Brescia. They know the ride around Milan is not something to always be repeating. The Italians are more inclined to send the Giro route over strade bianche, gravel and dirt passes and up viciously steep ski station goat paths. Sometimes they go too far but they deserve credit for their craziness. The Giro has unfortunately always been about long transfers. Couple that with Italian inefficiency and riders may often eat too late and sleep too little. The French can whisk teams around the country in hours on the TGV. The Tour routes are more conservative, hitting the familiar climbs, avoiding the active volcanos.
If the Tour is the big show it’s partially because more money flows there, in almost all directions. There is a long standing fight about how little of that money flows towards the riders. The Giro has started to improve the team’s TV revenue sharing. It’s a smart move, if it benefits the teams financially, they will want to always be invited, they will take it more seriously, the Giro will improve. This could eventually put both the Giro and the Vuelta on a level with the Tour. Then we would really have something to argue about.
When the Giro began a host on beIN sports referred to the Maglia Rosa as the ‘pink shirt‘ – not even the pink jersey, or leader’s jersey. I’ve been wondering ever since whether anyone from the V – community caught this? Even my VMH was scandalized. [almost as much as with my leg shaving] So I Tweeted her with a pointed correction about 96 years of V tradition. So this morning the words Maglia Rosa rolled off her tongue at least three times – as if spoken by a native.
@Gianni
I have subscribed to uk Eurosport it is £5 per month and can be cancelled anytime or subscribe for a year at half the price, the giro is on live in full every day with the previous days highlights preceding…main issue for guys in the states might be time difference but it starts about 2 here so you should be at breakfast on the east coast about then!
The Giro is like going to see an awesome new band at a local club and just loving the shit out of them and the Tour is like seeing them 10 years later rocking the national stadium. You still love them, but the edge and unpredictability have gone and been replaced by the corporate juggernaut which demands consistency and big numbers.
Having said that, seeing Cav storm the Champs Elysees is just an awesome sight and seeing him led out by the yellow jersey last year near brought a tear to my eye! Though it was the epitome of the corporate juggernaut – leaving the first/favourite/biggest selling hit till the very end so nobody leaves early…
Also, watching the tour on ITV4 is much better than the Giro/Vuelta on the laptop through a shitty live stream.
@Rigid
This photo ran a very close second place for this article. I couldn’t really think of a photo that contrasted the Giro and the Tour but this photo seemed to fit the Giro. Riders and tifosi, an easier mix than in France. And this tifosi is wearing proper footwear for spectating on a climb in a bikini. I love the Giro.
The Giro is easier to like for me – I’m Italian, I own a Casati and a Tommasini, and I’ve been to Italy, though to play futbol, not ride bikes.
But hey, hard not to like Le Tour. It gets everyone talking about cycling, which is pretty cool. Then again, you have to face lots of stupid questions and/or harassment. Doping, Lycra, shaved legs, skinny arms.
I also like Le Tour because it was the first cycling I ever saw on television. In between futbol and lacrosse summer camps I recall seeing it on espn before that fucking station became a total shit show that is more drama than sports. And speaking of that, holy fuck does seeing the Eurosport commercials make me year for a station like that. I don’t even like half of the sports they show, but damn, it’s better than some stupid fucking story about some stupid fucking NFL arsehole.
Anyway, pink cycling gear Rules, if done with class. Speaking of that, the De Rosa Mr. Gianni linked…that one wee shot of a DT and frame pump sums up the beauty of the sport and of bicycles. Jaysus, I haven’t ridden in almost 24 hours and it feels like an eternity.
A bit off topic, but hey…
Visiting the in-laws and they have an insanely large television with the standard amount of stations in the U.S., something like 300 of them. I don’t own a t.v. I watch cycling as often as I can via my computer, I watch some movies, a bit of ice hockey, and some international futbol.
I’m here with this big, nice t.v. with all these channels and I can’t even be bothered to watch. You can no longer “flick” stations because you get all the preview info bs. Flicking is fun. Despite 300 stations, none of the NHL playoff games are on. Most shows are fucking horrible. And commercials are worse.
When did television become such garbage? Aside from fast food chains, Citizens United, and car culture, t.v. is another nail in the collective coffin. What a depressing waste of time.
Oh well, at least I have some old Giro footage to enjoy…
@scaler911
ECCOLO LA MAGLIA ROSA… EDDY MERCKX!
@scaler911
Outstanding
First bike race I ever watched was a stage of the 2010 Giro while I was living in Sicily. Made me want to get a bike right away.
I think Tiralongo is wondering why the hell he decided to carry overshoes, leg warmers, and a gilet all the way up that goddamn mountain.
Also, the woman on the roadside in the black & white photo. My gosh! They don’t make ’em like they used to.
Also, where the heck has John Gadret gone? I haven’t heard that dude’s name in awhile…
@unversio I had meant a complete Mavic groupset. Not a fair comparison since they’re not in that game anymore, and also not fully fair since some of Mavic’s stuff from the SSC era is wonderfully quirky. And they did manage to get an electric shifting group (“ZAP”) to market over a decade ahead of anyone else…
@Ron
Ask this guy…
Is it the recession biting, or why are the jersey holders at this year’s Giro wearing easy iron on transfers on the jerseys instead of proper individually logo’d up shirts – not so cool
What I’d like to see is all the big riders taking on the three grand tours by default. Has anybody ever heard of Roger Federer giving the Paris Open a pass in order to be fit for Wimbledon? Does Schweinsteiger not play the Bundesliga so that he can compete in the Champions’ League? I think it would be best to shorten the events so that participation in all three would become the norm.
@Mirko
Almost like a Grand slam for cycling! With Huuuuuuuge £/$ etc etc for the man doing the treble!
@the-farmer
You could shorten all these wierd non english events and have points carried forwards to a FINALE with a threshold points level for entry……the Tour of Britain? Steep hills, shitty weather, vicious winds….it would be like Grand Tour and Spring Classics combined as a Grand Fin to the season……c’mmon tell me this does not have merit!
@LA Dave
Very nicely put! +1
@Mirko
One would have to be Pharmstrong to full off such a feat.
@LA Dave
Perfect! Very well said indeed!
@Buck Rogers
Think about all of that and we are the negative slide for it (you know those little square bits of film going chuck k chuck through the carousel on to your living room wall for those that remember).
My Tour of California stuff starts late and ends late and I have to make the call “Can I get up to go to work this morning”
But positive slide show or negative….its all still wheels sweat and V! (sweat being the key element by the look of yesterdays stage ToC)
Best of it is, Jensy is bunking with someone young enough to be his son!
Time bonuses! That is all for now.
Damn, Hampsten’s sock/shoe combo was pretty impressive. I didn’t even pick up on the titles on RAI being in English. Damn, I guess I’ve been watching the racers too closely. So…what exactly does “corredore” mean?
Also, the stage when Rabotini won after falling, maybe posted in the VSP thread. How incredible is it when the announcer goes bonkers when Rabo overtakes Rodriguez. He’s screaming, not announcing, and I love it.
LA Dave – nice work. And you could even argue the Tour gets extra demerits because for 3 weeks people give a fuck about the sport you love. Interlopers. The rest of the time you’re an outcast that they try to run off the road.
I thought I was the only one getting those Russian bride popups…glad I can explain that away to the VMH.
@frank Fuck yeah! Awesome love!
One thing is for certain, the Giro certainly makes the TDF more interesting. Especially this year with what looks like a resurgent Cadel and a Wiggins with what most certainly looks like something to prove.
Btw, a little off topic but Grimplette didn’t look all bad yesterday in what was a brutally hot stage. Throw in Froome and Contador and we might have some drama.
The Giro, by a long way !
Looking from a far in my airconditioned office in Oz, the Giro has that air of mystery and legend. The Tifosi and the rampant nature of the racing appears much more adhoc than the Tour.
The Tour “feels” more contrived and controlled and “staged” for want of a better word.
Dont get me wrong, both are equally awesome and carry big bags of V.
If I had one shot at visiting a GT it would be the “Pink” variety.
@Deakus
It Does Not Have Merit! Lets see want to go for a bike ride? Spain? Italy? France? Er England, not so much….
seems like the big bucks for cycling is in the Gulf, Tour of Dubai anyone?
@piwakawaka
A Formula 1 or FIFA style globalization might be the danger here, yes. But let’s face it,the idea will never come true anyway, 1. because none of the grand tour organizers will be in favour of it and 2. because the UCI has the same propensity to reforms as North Korea.
@piwakawaka
I grant you the sun is lovely….but I would suggest they are going to have to change some stuff if yesterdays Tour of California was anything to go by.
Meanwhile here in Ol Blighty it is another Rule #9 day again……
@Mirko
It’s the romance and style, almost against the odds, that I love in these bloody things!
I just cant feel like that about a part of the world where money rules…dirty money.
I’m all for them going there, getting their piece, they are Pro’s after all but it will never have what you cannot buy.
@piwakawaka bah! The disc brakes!
@Dr C
Live coverage now. Astana using too much. BMC working nicely together behind, saving energy for climbs.
@the-farmer
Maybe call it a ‘Triple Crown’ & then a couple of decades later you’ll hear about some douchebag buying off teams so they don’t attack him in the last one…sounds kinda familiar to be honest.
@sthilzy
You guys are just kidding here, right? These two noble bastards did well in the Giro d’Italia at some point, admittedly – but can anyone argue that they are anything other than legends of the Tour de France? And that they are among those who have made the Tour de France a race that is decidedly more legendary than any other race on the planet? Please, gemtlemen… let’s not lose our sense of proportion here.
I am in favor of the Giro myself. I am so glad I can actually watch it on tv this year rather than trying to stream it online, bein sports is my favorite channel right now because of this. Although, I do miss watching the giro in Italiano. I can’t put my finger on why I like it better. Maybe it is the architecture of the small towns, the landscapes, the fans, the women, the routes, or the fact that I lived in Italy for a summer but I love watching it.