Velominati Super Prestige: Giro di Lombardia 2014

After the leaves have fallen. Photo: Pedale.Forchetta

I’m getting too old and cranky for all this race schedule changing. I know they already did this last year and presumably I had the same gripings then, but Lombardia is supposed to close out the season and I’m downright angry that Paris-Tours is closing out the books now; it only seems right that one of the most beautiful races should close out the season, not some sprinter’s classic that even The Prophet didn’t bother to win.

Speaking of the end of the year, this season has blown by; it seems only a moment ago that the cobbled classics were in full flight and the whole of the season was stretching out before us. That confirms it: Time is an asshole. On the other hand, time always provides another season so I guess that’s a redeeming quality.

Ok, the caffeine is kicking in and I’m now capable of an emotion other than resentment, so lets get more positive. There’s a beautiful race coming this weekend so get stoked! We have a newly crowned World Champion whose choice of bib shorts color to scrutinize. This is important work, people, and no one else is going to do it. His team has a strong track record for pairing leader and championship jerseys to team-issue bibs, with the glaring exception of Der Panzerwagan’s white (and bloody) skinsuit. My money is on team-issue.

Remember we have some major prizes on offer; @il muro di manayunk has a solid lead, but if he’s out of the points and Der @Steampunk has a good showing, anything can happen. (That might not be true, it might be mathematically impossible but I don’t feel like doing the math.) So prognosticate on the start list and get your picks in by midnight on Saturday Pacific Time (or when the clock goes to zero). Cheers, and good luck.

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frank

The founder of Velominati and curator of The Rules, Frank was born in the Dutch colonies of Minnesota. His boundless physical talents are carefully canceled out by his equally boundless enthusiasm for drinking. Coffee, beer, wine, if it’s in a container, he will enjoy it, a lot of it. He currently lives in Seattle. He loves riding in the rain and scheduling visits with the Man with the Hammer just to be reminded of the privilege it is to feel completely depleted. He holds down a technology job the description of which no-one really understands and his interests outside of Cycling and drinking are Cycling and drinking. As devoted aesthete, the only thing more important to him than riding a bike well is looking good doing it. Frank is co-author along with the other Keepers of the Cog of the popular book, The Rules, The Way of the Cycling Disciple and also writes a monthly column for the magazine, Cyclist. He is also currently working on the first follow-up to The Rules, tentatively entitled The Hardmen. Email him directly at rouleur@velominati.com.

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View Comments

xyxax says:

Oct 6 2014 at 3:46 pm

@Gianni

@Minnesota Expat

Hmmm. 10 hours on the bike didnt improve my vsp picking skills.

Two Harbors is a bustling metropolis, containing my first ever combined car/pet wash. And the snow kept the mosquitos down.
leftsideoverhere says:

Oct 7 2014 at 9:18 am

@frank Harsh, that. One of the highlights of the day for me was seeing him arguing with his DS, refusing to get in the car, and insisting on pedalling on - albeit in a very low gear and essentially at walking pace. His race was over. But his ride wasn't.

That said, does it suggest that the recovery programme from the worlds wasn't quite on track?
Nate says:

Oct 8 2014 at 11:08 am

@Chris

@Steampunk

@Buck Rogers

@frank

@Buck Rogers

@Pedale.Forchetta

Looking good!

And even more support for this kid: "QuickStep confirm that Michal Kwiatkowski managed to finsh the race, despite suffering from very bad cramp with 10 kilometres to go."

We're applauding world champions for finishing races now? HURRAH! A pro did his fucking job! Everyone go celebrate!

Come on now, you just KNOW soooo many of weaker spirit and less panache would have called it a day and packed it in. I do seriously applaud him for not quitting and for honouring the stripes, even if he did cramp so bad he could not move with 10 k to go and being in contention right up to that point and continuning on and finishing many minutes down.

Paging former Strack favourites: Schleck? Schleck? A. Schleck? Did Andy even finish a sentence this year?

Although, I do take @frank's point. The bigger story is he cracked and cramped. Responsibility of the rainbows persuaded him to finish. It's hardly a sign of panache, but it is a sign of character that he felt obligated to finish the race.

We might see a resurgence in Frank's Dirty Schleck Love. The elder Schleck came in a full 9 minutes ahead of the new world champion, 24th at 42 seconds (when I initially scanned the results my brain took that on previous form and put him at 42 minutes).

@frank will have to limit further dirty Schleck love to his namesake: http://www.lessentiel.lu/fr/sports/sports_luxembourgeois/story/Andy-Schleck-arrete-sa-carriere-professionnelle-10667110?redirect=mobi&nocache=0.22063527069985867
Buck Rogers says:

Oct 8 2014 at 11:44 am

@Nate Heard rumors that he might throw in the towel. Damn, who are we going to pick on now???