We came tantalizingly close to adding a foray up the Mur de Huy during our excursion to Liege-Bastogne-Liege during this year’s Keepers Tour. But good sense and the Anti-V prevailed, as they are wont to do, and only two of us were left wanting a dig at the most notorious finishing climb in the Classics season.
I write this, then, woefully ignorant of the ferocity of the climb, particularly when combined with with a few hundred k’s of racing and scaling it several times in the process. Such is the nature of this event, and it doesn’t even have the dignity of holding a weekend spot on the calendar for its troubles.
But the Huy is a brute. Steep, long, and steep. Did I mention steep? We’re talking 26% steep. And long? We’re talking 1.3km. Even the best climbers in the world fade when the effort is dished out too soon. Keep the powder dry was ever thus.
Throw the formulas out the window; its best to resort to your eye of newt for this one. Whoever wins will have good finishing speed on an uphill finish and it also won’t be Andy Schleck. That’s about all the farther anyone can narrow this puppy down, the rest is guesswork. Enter your picks by the time the countdown clock goes to zero.
Good luck, regular rules apply.
I might have posted this last year as well, but this is my favorite finish of La Fléche to date, Pre-Cancerian Pharmy notwithstanding. He takes a flier in the only spot on this climb with some easing of the gradient. Its beautiful work, that.
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@wiscot
Make sure you contest it.
The Uber-VSP machine picks Martin, Tony before Martin, Dan, because he is German and built like a bastard. And Dan Martin, not so much. And he is English, ooops, Irish.
L-B-L article, this Friday? Interesting. I'll have to look at the Uber-Guest Article Radom Generator Selector Device. Funny, it requires copious amounts of Belgian Ales too.
@wiscot, @Gianni
I had the same issue. Thanks to pouring some Belgian ale into the dispute box, it has already been resolved. Thanks. Although I do have a dispute from the ladies' Ronde that didn't -- Gianni, what is the appropriate libation for that race?
@Gianni Dear G,
Will do. Tony M doesn't ride these events so I forget about him. Consider some virtual Belgian ales coming your way for the L-B-L article. Unless the forecast changes, something tells me it won't be a weather epic like M-SR.
@Pedale.Forchetta
Right you are! So why was it Moreno who did, in fact, cross my mind as a candidate for today's race? Simply nimble Spaniard who showed well at last year's Vuelta?
@Steampunk I think that finishing 5th in last year Vuelta while helping Rodriguez (3rd) made him progress in the team ranks.
Laurens Ten Dam spent time in the break today, then motorpaced home to the Netherlands:
http://app.strava.com/activities/49306938
Almost a year Since Andy Schleck last finished a race
@sthilzy actually he did not too bad today all in all, 85th or something ? but importantly, he finished some 4 minutes ahead of the skybot Porte.
@Nate
He's a great follow, very interesting numbers.
@Gianni
I had that same dispute as well, Dan Martin for fourth.