Velominati Super Prestige: Giro d’Italia 2013, Stage 10

Altopiano del Montasio. Photo via Cycling Passion

Day 5 of the Six Days of the Giro continues with an impromptu VSP event.

Lets have a look at where we are in the 2013 Giro. Wiggins must have spent time training in Luxembourg because he’s been descending like a Schleck when things get dodgy before disappearing into the team van to have a cry about it. Hesjedal has put in some good moves and then proceeded to get creamed in the time trial before getting shelled on the last climb in yesterday’s stage. Evans seems to be riding like he did when he won the Tour though he’s sure to get sick before very much longer, as appears to be his usual approach to racing. Perhaps the biggest shock is that Gesink has managed to both stay in contention and on his bike. And Nibbles is killing it, proving once again that moving to a team with a long history of doping is usually all anyone needs to convert from contender to winner.

We’ve also had climbs, rain, rain, climbs, turns, descents, twists, rain, climbs, and more rain. The Giro is proving once again why it is the best Grand Tour of the year.

In honor of the first big climbing stage and with the time gaps already big enough to suggest some bigger, gutsier moves from some of those riders who have already lost time, this could be a zinger. Most likely some wild cards will escape and stay away, which makes naming your picks even harder than usual, but surely the favorites who are already behind will lay down massive helpings of the V to try to claw time back. The irony is not lost on me that the climb has the word piano in it, when you know the last thing that would ever happen is that they would ride up there at an easy tempo.

Get your picks in by the time the clock goes to zero. There isn’t much time, so get to it.

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

JohnB says:

May 13 2013 at 11:07 am

The sun is out, new tyres fitted. Rapha hastily fit airbags to their kit. Wiggins attacks, Betancur tries again but is happy with another 2nd, Ryder deploys Plan B early doors.

VSP PICKS:

1. Wiggins
2. Betancur
3. Hesjedal
4. Nibali
5. Evans
Balexander says:

May 13 2013 at 11:19 am

I see Uran dropping the shit out of Wiggins. Nibali and Evans are the only "favorites" racing for real, but Gesink is going to blow shit up starting NOW.

VSP PICKS:

1. Rigoberto the Colombiano
2. Pasta-before-a-race Nibali
3. Gesiiink!
4. Butt Chin Evans
5. Wiggo
roger says:

May 13 2013 at 11:26 am

VSP PICKS:

1. Apu Nahasapeemapetilon nibali
2. Dr. Julius Hibbert henao
3. Chief Clancy Wiggum wiggins
4. Capital City Goofball cadel
5. Radioactive Man ryder
mbarston says:

May 13 2013 at 11:26 am

VSP PICKS:

1. Sammy Sanchez
2. Evans
3. Nibali
4. Wiggins
5. Hesjedal
Sauterelle says:

May 13 2013 at 11:28 am

VSP PICKS:

1. Henao
2. Wiggo
3. Nibali
4. Betancur
5. Gesink
Lukas says:

May 13 2013 at 11:28 am

VSP PICKS:

1. Scarponi
2. Uran
3. Hesjedal
4. DiLuca
5. JJ Cobo Acebo
Dan_R says:

May 13 2013 at 11:29 am

I hate to place Ryder back, but this is from my educated expertise...yeah, that's it

VSP PICKS:

1. Nibbs
2. Cadel
3. Ryder
4. Sammy Sanchez
5. Wiggo
snoov says:

May 13 2013 at 11:31 am

I haven't a clue, probably some of the lesser riders take a turn on the telly and whoever guesses right blows the VSP apart. I hate rest days, oh wait is the ToC on Eurosport tonight?

VSP PICKS:

1. Evans
2. Wiggins
3. Nibali
4. Pozzovivo
5. Henao
snoov says:

May 13 2013 at 11:43 am

What I hate about Eurosport though is the ignorance of the pundits when it comes to pronouncing the riders names. Isn't it the case that in the Latin languages the second to last vowel gets the stress (if it ends in a vowel) , unless there is an accent over a letter (MÃ¡laga, Barcelona, Madrid)? Maybe I'm just thinking about Spanish and maybe the Colombians speak it differently. What's doing my head in is the Irish guy who keeps saying PANtano instead of PanTAno. He'd say PanTAni whouldn't he? I need to check the rules. All road races are named as they are in the country in which they occur but do we give the same respect to the riders?
wiscot says:

May 13 2013 at 11:50 am

@snoov

What I hate about Eurosport though is the ignorance of the pundits when it comes to pronouncing the riders names. Isn't it the case that in the Latin languages the second to last vowel gets the stress (if it ends in a vowel) , unless there is an accent over a letter (MÃ¡laga, Barcelona, Madrid)? Maybe I'm just thinking about Spanish and maybe the Colombians speak it differently. What's doing my head in is the Irish guy who keeps saying PANtano instead of PanTAno. He'd say PanTAni whouldn't he? I need to check the rules. All road races are named as they are in the country in which they occur but do we give the same respect to the riders?

I hear you. Could be worse. In the Women's Olympic RR, Paul Sherwen kept calling Armistead Armitage.That's some serious mispronunciation. Mind you, let's be honest, some of those Basque names are horrible to try and pronounce.