Velominati Super Prestige: Men’s Ronde van Vlaanderen 2016
Everybody knows there are two kinds of cobbles. Big cobbles, little cobbles, grippy cobbles, and slippy cobbles. And when it comes to mastering the stones, no one is better than the undisputed King of the Cobbles, Kenny Van Vlaminck. And speaking of cobble legends, there is a great piece on our friend Johan Museeuw over on Rouleur today.
According to the weather reports, there is going to be wind and rain on Sunday. And if you watched the live coverage of Gent Wevelgem last week, the storm that blew in after the race was wicked intense. And, since I’ve decided not to visit Belgium this year, you can be pretty sure that the weather will finally be rubbish. You’re welcome.
We rode the RVV route (the classic route, not the crap new one) in the wind, rain, and hail a few years back, and it was striking how slippy the cobbles on the Paterberg and Koppenberg are in the wet. These climbs are borderline doable in the dry, and if you need to get out of the saddle for some extra juice, it is going to take some good bike handling to keep from spinning out.
And don’t forget we’ve got wicked prizes on offer; Don Walker is giving a free custom steel frame to the winner of the VSP overall, and Café Roubaix is awarding a set of their CR Wheelworks Arenberg wheelsets to the runner-up. Third place gets a free V-Kit. Boom. So get prognosticating and get your picks in before the clock goes to zero. Good luck!
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whoops, forgot to put in a Belgian Hardman – here’s the correction with GVA in place
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How to pick? I’d love to see GT take it but I don’t see it. I’ll keep him in my top five.
Aside from that, Sags and Fabs seem the strongest, but who will cope best with the conditions?
I’m going to go Sagan again due to his mad bike handling skillz.
And will someone please explain ‘Pinchy’ to me?
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@RobSandy
All to do with the now infamous podium girl bottom pinching incident of 2013.
@dinosaurJR
Ah, I get it now. I hadn’t made the connection.
It’d be nice if he can make people forget that by smashing the Ronde and/or Roubaix!
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@RobSandy
I think Pinchy has a rather endearing quality to it? I think he is a sure thing for P-R too.
I can’t believe how wrong you are all getting it. Obviously the whole Etixx squad has been read the riot act and will finally get something right after all the big names are caught the wrong side of a split caused by @the Engine dropping his Malteni on the Kwaremont. Duh.
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@dinosaurJR
Photos on the inter webs it’ll never be forgotten and yes, P-R is all but a certainty (if that is remotely possible)… provided some good fortune. You know, something tells me that he has had the even better fortune of finding himself a better half. Something to be said for that and success that comes from it.
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@wilburrox
I see your point – the stabilising effect of a good woman.
I get the impression that everything up to now has been a warm up – soon the leg warmers will come off and Sparty et al. will be in serious trouble. Sagan is a machine, no doubt.
@the Engine
Ah FUCK, Mate!!! That is AWESOME!!! I should be right there with you next year! Don’t they run a cyclosportif on Saturday over the same route? Might have to do it next year!
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@dinosaurJR
Sagan would be unbeatable if he rode for, say, Molteni. Would Merckx have won as many if he rode for Tink-off?
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@John Irvine
I agree – if Pinchy rode for one of the better organised outfits he would be killer (well, even more killer than he is today). He is more or less riding unaided and although it worked for him at the Worlds, I think for a rider at this level, racing at the total upper limit of the sport – he really deserves a well oiled apparatus around him.
He should be cosseted, protected and then unleashed to lay down the V at just the right moment on the poor bastards around him – not left to his own wits (which are – let’s face it – pretty fucking sharp) to fend for himself.
Merckx was Merckx, though – I think he was strong enough to do well regardless of which team he rode for. I see a fair bit of that in Sagan too, to be honest.
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Sticking with my man Peto.
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@dinosaurJR
Completely agree! He needs to move across to Etixx next year. He would KILL everything even more than he already does!
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Ahhh, here goes nuttin. Heart says Tommeke, head says no. Head and heart says this is where the new TB makes his mark.I just don’t think Tommeke has it on the bergs any more, but for P-R, it’s his race.
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@wiscot
You know that’s a pisstake right?
@Gianni
Yes, Kenny saved me from a dingbat Triathlete vendor at the London Bike Show. It was glorious.
@dinosaurJR
“Pinchy” is endearing the same way calling the sharks “a bit bitey” in Hawaii is endearing.
@Buck Rogers
Call up the Pavé boys instead. The sportives are 75k people trying to walk up the bergs.
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@frank
There are areas of London I’ve heard friends describing as ‘a bit stabby’. Quaint, I thought.
What do I know – hoping to keep my 1 point average I guess
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@frank
It was a work of genius. He was eXplaining thE mechanicals to him also.
@frank
Which is why I’m doing it with the Pave boys also
@frank
@Buck Rogers
Call up the Pavé boys instead. The sportives are 75k people trying to walk up the bergs.
Good to know. Do the Pave’ boys do the whole route, every k? I rode the FULL 250+ km cyclo for Paris Roubaix and it was not too crowded and AMAZING! But with RVV having the hills, I can see how it would get backed up.
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I made the mistake of saying, “oh, Peter will get second” last time. Oh, me of little faith!
The formula for these picks involved a perl script for averaging odds from bookmaking sites, a scan of the picks from you good people, and my own inspiration and studied insights into the greatest sport that humanity has ever sported. Let’s see how we do.
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Updated selection
Go Sparty!
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Off to a rough start so far.
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Thanks I am now addicted to the King of Cobbles, it is awesome
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