Velominati Super Prestige: Giro D’Italia 2013

Pink Ryder photo:REUTERS/Alessandro Garofalo

Twiggo is dreaming of a Giro-Tour double. He has sent out mixed messages about his Tour ambitions. Will he use the Giro as the ultimate Tour preparation or will be burn all his matches in May and hope he can find another pack for July? He has abandoned his successful 2012 Tour run-up strategy of winning every stage race he entered the previous spring. Now it’s the seclusion of Mount Doom of Tenerife, his coach and his watt meter his only competition. Team Sky is supporting Wig with a very strong squad, including superman, Kanstantsin Siutsou and with Cav no longer a teammate, it’s all the knights of the round table for Sir Twig.

Will the curse of the god-awful Astana kit continue to haunt non-Kazahk riders? Can Vincenzo’s Italian mojo overpower its powerful pale blue and yellow aura? Roman Kreuziger was finally able to win a big race once he shed that kit and pulled on one of Bjarne’s Saxo jerseys. Maybe it was more Bjarne and less jersey that made the difference.

Ryder gets no respect as the defending champion. His little dance at the end of Liége-Bastogne-Liége showed he is fit and ready for a fight. He can time trial, he can climb. Personally I have to back the local boy. And I always hate the overpowered, overwhelming favorite (read Team Sky here) in any race, unless that racer is Fabian Cancellara. No one can say Fabs has won a race this year surrounded with a team as strong as Sky’s. The Shack is just the Shack or a shack. Once Cancellara leaves for the Swiss “I AM” team, it’s lights out in the shack. Frandy, don’t forget to turn out ’em out when you leave.

If Cavendish wins the first day’s sprinter’s stage he will be in pink. He may be out of it after stage two, a team time trial.

But this is the Giro: crazy, unexpected, beautiful things can happen. The spinning wheels of fortuna are less predictable in Italy as they are in France in July. The betting window is now open. The complete start list is not yet available, an incomplete one is here and shall be updated soon. So sleep on your picks, wait for all the teams to make it official, unless you want to go with the obvious all Sky podium. The race begins Saturday so don’t Delgado away a Grand Tour opportunity.

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Gianni

Gianni has left the building.

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View Comments

LA Dave says:

May 26 2013 at 8:12 am

Congrats on the Maglia Rosa strathlubnaig!
strathlubnaig says:

May 26 2013 at 9:13 am

@Ron

@strathlubnaig

@Gianni

@strathlubnaig

You, my friend are now leading the Giro VSP! Well done. Donnie Bugno would like to fight but you beat him to the punch. I don't see the standings changing too much tomorrow.

Holy Mackinaw !!! Well if the Leafs cant win the Stanley Cup then this is the next best thing woop woop

It's still going to be awhile before the Leafs are good. In the meantime, they beat up most of the league this year. Three goons who are also excellent puncheurs on one team makes for a lot of the rough stuff.

I thought it was clearly going to be Penguins V. Blackhawks in the finals. Seems like the Wings have something to say about that. I'm not a Pittsburgh fan but I would love to see Iginla get his hands on a Cup after a lot of seasons with very little supporting talent in Calgary. He did get close one year, but generally had a weak cast.

Hoping myself for a Pens win, if only because they will need to put out Bawston to get there. Be good for the Pride of Cole Harbour to get the cup home again too. Though an Original Six final might be nice too.
snoov says:

May 26 2013 at 9:38 am

Well I'm guilty of swapping out Wiggins for Nibali in the second rest day swaps, that left an open space in second which I hoped might get filled eventually by Uran! So my VSP was saved by Group San problems with ice.

@strathlubnaig Congratulations pal, see you in two weeks for the Cogal.
strathlubnaig says:

May 26 2013 at 9:56 am

@snoov

Well I'm guilty of swapping out Wiggins for Nibali in the second rest day swaps, that left an open space in second which I hoped might get filled eventually by Uran! So my VSP was saved by Group San problems with ice.

@strathlubnaig Congratulations pal, see you in two weeks for the Cogal.

I await official confirmation, but excited by a potential first Grand Tour victory. Might wear the pink coveralls at work tonight.
Deakus says:

May 26 2013 at 10:25 am

@ChrisO

It does seem to be Shimano and Sram but that might be because more teams use it, and that's not necessarily a matter of preference but sponsorship and payment.

However it does seem to confirm the fears of people who are lukewarm on the idea of electronic shifting. If it doesn't bring an advantage, and adds weight to the bike, what's the point.

It is overcomplicating something that was relatively simple, and introducing greater potential for error. Plus, for my mind, it makes the bike no longer a fully human powered vehicle.

I know two people who've had to finish rides on one gear after electronic problems, and I can't think when that last happened with mechanical.

+1 the bicycle is a two wheeled man powered device....no need for that electronic voodoo magic!
JohnB says:

May 26 2013 at 11:16 am

Congratulations on the GC win Strathlubnaig. I think you have to wear pink for a year though. See you on the 8th.
Bianchi Denti says:

May 26 2013 at 1:38 pm

@Deakus

@ChrisO

It does seem to be Shimano and Sram but that might be because more teams use it, and that's not necessarily a matter of preference but sponsorship and payment.

However it does seem to confirm the fears of people who are lukewarm on the idea of electronic shifting. If it doesn't bring an advantage, and adds weight to the bike, what's the point.

It is overcomplicating something that was relatively simple, and introducing greater potential for error. Plus, for my mind, it makes the bike no longer a fully human powered vehicle.

I know two people who've had to finish rides on one gear after electronic problems, and I can't think when that last happened with mechanical.

+1 the bicycle is a two wheeled man powered device....no need for that electronic voodoo magic!

Interesting discussion in the latest Tech 5 podcasts over at http://www.velocast.cc. SRAM went from being the dominant groupset in the Protour to having just 2 teams in 2013, and a major factor seems to be that they didn't offer electronic shifting. In fact, Garmin changed from free SRAM to buying Di2 because the riders demanded it. So I have to think there is some benefit to electronic shifting, at least if you are followed on every ride by a car with a spare bike and a mechanic! Don't really see the point for plebs like us though (well, like me then).
Deakus says:

May 26 2013 at 1:55 pm

@Bianchi Denti I think you have hit the nail on the head. I cannot see the benefit of electronic shifting vs the risks of electronic failure unless you have a team car. Ok it may feel a bit nicer but really? That outweighs the downside of a battery problem or other issue....nope it does not convince me and in fact it also seems to go against the grain of a human powered mode of transport...
Patrick says:

May 26 2013 at 3:44 pm

@strathlubnaig Congratulations on your victory!
Cyclops says:

May 26 2013 at 4:06 pm

@Deakus

I think you have hit the nail on the head. I cannot see the benefit of tubulars and the hassles of flatting out on the road unless you have a team car. Ok it may feel a bit nicer but really? That outweighs the downside of a battery problem or other issue....nope it does not convince me...