Velominati Super Prestige: Giro d’Italia 2017

Vincenzo Nibali won the Giro going downhill.

I spy with my little eye a certain Michele Scarponi, who sadly lost his life while out training near his home two weeks ago, in there amongst his teammates after his captain, Nibbles, won the race. I’m torn about a death like Michele’s – we subject ourselves to similar risks every time we climb aboard our bikes and we accept it as part and parcel of our craft. Yet, while every day members of our tribe lose their lives to their trade, it takes a high profile rider to remind us how real that risk is.

But onto lighter topics, Nibali won the Giro last year going downhill, and it happened on the one stage I managed to sleep through which is another way of saying I missed it. But I love waking up to a that WTF feeling only a reshuffled GS can give you.

The race starts Friday morning, which is sooner than I expected, so I’ll stop typing so you can start picking. Get them in by the time the clock goes to zero, and remember that our Grand Tour scoring rules are a little different than the smaller events. So jump on that start list and get prognosticating!

Good luck!

[vsp_results id=”104353″/]

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

Clingon says:

May 7 2017 at 7:24 pm
VSP PICKS (2nd Rest Day Swaps):
1. Nairo Quintana
2. Thibaut Pinot
3. Steven Kruijswijk
4. Bauke Mollema
5. Adam Yates
RobSandy says:

May 8 2017 at 1:30 am
VSP PICKS (2nd Rest Day Swaps):
1. Quintana
2. Pinot
3. G
4. Tom Dumoulin
5. Nibali
KogaLover says:

May 8 2017 at 2:19 am
No rest day swaps but just the first round repeated in appropriate form.

1. Quintano 2 Nibbles 3 DuMoulin 4 Kruijswijk 5 Thomas

VSP PICKS (2nd Rest Day Swaps):
1. Nairo Quintano
2. Vincenzo Nibali
3. Tom Dumoulin
4. Steven Kruijswijk
5. Geraint Thomas
Erik says:

May 8 2017 at 4:13 am
VSP PICKS (2nd Rest Day Swaps):
1. Quintana
2. Pinot
3. Nibali
4. Kruijswijk
5. Doumolin
David Olson says:

May 8 2017 at 5:36 am
Not sure these were my exact picks but pretty sure. I didn't pick Rohan and Dennis' Laugh In, if that's what you are thinking.

VSP PICKS (2nd Rest Day Swaps):
1. Quintana, Nairo
2. Pinot, Teebow
3. Thomas, Gerisn't
4. Kruijswijk, Stejvejn
5. Nibali, Vinnie, Viddie, Vichy
xyxax says:

May 8 2017 at 5:38 am

@David Olson = xyxax, BTW
ChrisO says:

May 8 2017 at 5:58 am
How the fuck is there a rest day after three days... as if starting on a Friday wasn't bad enough.

VSP PICKS (2nd Rest Day Swaps):
1. Quintana
2. Nibali
3. Landa
4. Adam Yates
5. Jungels
Teocalli says:

May 8 2017 at 6:37 am
@ChrisO

I'm guessing it's more of a "how do you open a window after the thing has started to enable selections". I'm assuming (hoping) that @Fraughnk then manipulates everyone back to zero on the deductions perspective when the window closes - though I see the window seems to have another 21h to go!

VSP PICKS (2nd Rest Day Swaps):
1. Quintana
2. GT
3. A Yates
4. Zakarin
5. Pinot
eenies says:

May 8 2017 at 6:42 am
VSP PICKS (2nd Rest Day Swaps):
1. Nibbles at 1
2. Near but so Nairo
3. Yates wine lodge
4. Pinot Noir
5. The ginger ninja Kruijswijk
LeoTea says:

May 8 2017 at 8:21 am

@ChrisO

How the fuck is there a rest day after three days… as if starting on a Friday wasn’t bad enough.

Early rest day is needed because there's a 12-hour ferry ride from Sardinia to Sicily for all the team vehicles. (Riders got a quick plane flight last night).