The Prophet crushes fools on the way to the Tre Chime in the '68 Giro
This is the most exciting thing that’s happened in Cycling since April. Yes, that’s a full two weeks with nothing exciting happening and its been killing me. I know its been killing you, too.
I love the Giro, the master alchemist of bad weather and big mountains that keeps the racing exciting from the first day through the last. You can generally count on enough climbing in the first week to see the leadership bounce around like one of those singing ping pong balls on Sesame Street. The race has its fair share of provenance as well, with many a legendary battle fought between legendary riders.
This year’s race is also remarkable for the fact that a GC rider is not only racing both the Giro and the Tour, but for Contador’s publicly stated objective of doing the Giro-Tour double, a feat not matched since Pantani crushed it back in 1998. That is an awesome goal, I just wish it was a goal set forth by a rider I could get enthusiastic about. A quick scan of the start list has me wondering who is made of the same stuff Bertie, and I’m coming up short. Uran Uran and Pozzovivo are the standouts; and I have serious doubts about Porte being able to come up with the goods, not to mention my boy Ryder who, despite having actually won the Giro, does not inspire confidence in his ability to repeat the feat. It is looking like energy bars may be Contador’s biggest rival for the title, like in last year’s Tour.
Now that I’ve given you three paragraphs of useless drivel that you’ve probably already skipped over, I feel comfortable getting down to Road Tacks. This is the Giro, people, lots of points at stake. And those points are going towards amazing prizes including a Jaeger frame and a Café Roubaix wheelset. There is plenty of time for you to Delgado the thing, too, so my advice is that you avoid doing that. Give yourself enough time to enter your picks so if something has gone amuck, you have time to hit “reload” or come back V minutes later to try again before the event closes. Remember, your procrastination in this matter will not result in the only Keeper with database skills diving into the backend to enter your picks for you. (And if you do encounter a problem, please be so kind as to take a screenshot and upload it as the descriptor “it didn’t work” doesn’t help us debug the problem.)
The scoring for the Grand Tours is a tad more involved than the one-day races, so look them over before making your prognostications. (One of the best things about the VSP is that I usually get to use the word “prognostication”, an opportunity one should always relish.)
So get your picks in before the countdown clock goes to zero, hit the go button, and good luck.
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View Comments
@rfreese888
Are those icons not obvious enough? I don't want to show them by default but I also want to make it obvious that the mappings are hidden under there.
Whoa! Great win by Geipel today but what's up with Bertie? Can't lift his left arm to put on the maglia rosa? Not looking good.
@Mikael Liddy
Feasible, yes. Likely, no. Pros want their bikes as light as possible. These add too much weight. Not impossible to spot or check for - just remove seatpost and shine a light down there. To say it would be embarrassing for a pro to get caught would be an understatement. A lengthy ban would be in order.
@wiscot
Speaking of arms, anyone of a sensitive disposition should probably avoid photographic reports of today's stage.
The shot of the Fantini rider on the ground has made me feel quite sick. I looked before I knew what I was seeing.
I know that will now make anyone who hasn't seen it want to look. Just don't.
Bet the person who was holding the camera doesn't feel too good about the resultant injury.
Saw the picture earlier & it genuinely took my brain about 5 or 6 seconds to process what it was seeing. Was almost like it was a trick or illusion.
One of these years I'm going to figure out how to watch the Giro / Tour / Vuelta (lives in Canada, doesn't have a TV subscription)
@ChrisO
+1 for Chris's warning. I was also warned by my Sensei not to watch if I was squeamish. Naturally I stopped working and found what I shouldn't have been looking for.
If you remember the paper cut that Thor got from a giant green hand during a sprint finish during the tour a few years ago, and that bothered you, don't look further for coverage of today's finish.
I sure hope the adrenalin of the sprint dulled his senses of what happened to his arm...
@wiscot
Are you talking about drugs or motors? Because this is the exact argument used for drugs, easy to detect, not worth the risk, etc, but that argument has proven positively false. Plus as far as I know a motor has only ever been checked for once, so the risk of being randomly checked seems low. I don't actually think it has happened, but the risk reward seems favorable, and the ability to do it is certainly there. I have to think someone in the peloton has considered it.
@DeKerr
steephill.tv
I also don't have a TV subscription, and this is all I ever manage. It's hit and miss sometimes, but I get what I pay for.
@ChrisO
I saw that, then thought I was having eye trouble, then realized all too sadly what had happened. Having broken bones playing sports (but nothing close to that), I hate seeing athletes badly injured. I have no clue why some goons like watching injury reels. A hard check, sure, but nothing like that.
Yes, PLEASE don't anyone think it's a good idea to post the photo here. I never want to see that again. I'm wincing just typing this.