Velominati Super Prestige: Milan-Sanremo 2013

Eddy Planckert and Marc Sergeant photo:cor vos

Finally, we have Milan-Sanremo. I hope pedale.forcetta is ready to shoot some pictures, especially black and white because it will be cold and possibly wet. Throw in a little wind and a race of this distance will weed out the less hardy. Recently, but not too recently, this race would be won out of a decent size field sprint. And yet, besides Fabs winning in 2008 it does come down to a sprint finish of some size. That race was setting up for a field sprint when Cancellara bolted and no one could catch him. The solo charge to the finish just doesn’t seem to work here. It is such an interesting race because the finish is unlike any of the other monuments. Moreno Argentin lost the race because he was not as good as descender as Kelly. Getting down the Cipressa and Poggio well is not easy. The descents are tight narrow Italian roads, hairpin turns, madness. Fabs and Sagan are two excellent descenders and Sagan has a killer sprint. NIbali just won Terreno. Thor has recovered. Boonen is back with Cavendish, on the same team! Gilbert is wearing the rainbow jersey. Andy Schleck has pre-dropped out. God Damnit, if you are going to get up at some weird hour of the night to watch a race this year, this is it people.

An American has never won one of cycling’s monuments and Sunday’s race does not seem to be where it is going to happen. Tyler Farrar would have to latch onto a special train and surely Cancellara will not be towing people to the line this year. The odds of Australian riders winning the last two editions were very long but it demonstrates how exciting and unpredictable this race is.

Here is the incomplete start list, it will be updated when available. No Delgados, no whining, the betting window is now open. Get you picks in before the countdown timer goes to zero at midnight Pacific Time. The winner of this event is awarded the MSR comment badge for the remainder of the season.

Here is a little video from last year, interesting more for the behind the scenes action and the amount of bleeped out cursing.

[vsp_results id=”22700″/]

Gianni

Gianni has left the building.

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View Comments

paolo says:

Mar 17 2013 at 11:05 am

@motor city

HUGE ride from Stannard. I enjoyed that a lot.

Boonen should have ridden for the team and supported Cav, he didn't have to contest the race. Dropping out following the restart would have been a better move if the conditions were still that bad. If he wins PR this will take the shine off of it.

A fifth PR? HA! Bet you eveything you have that today wouldn't take even the slightest glint off it!
LA Dave says:

Mar 17 2013 at 11:39 am

@Skip

@Frank - That may be a new record for getting the results up! Chapeau!

+1
Buck Rogers says:

Mar 17 2013 at 12:11 pm

Just back from a two hour hike with the VM and kiddos and now it is almost time for the Barca game to start! What a great day!!!
Buck Rogers says:

Mar 17 2013 at 12:33 pm

@Steampunk

If you can't see that, it's best to keep your fingers off the keyboard while you sit on the couch...

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QsogswrH6ck

It's all about expressing our opinions here, not discouraging free thought, or at least I thought so?
strathlubnaig says:

Mar 17 2013 at 12:58 pm

@Steampunk someone said it earlier, but to repeat, it is not the jacking in, it's the whining which aggrieves more.
the Engine says:

Mar 17 2013 at 1:13 pm

Ride bike is snow and freezing rain and then come home to watch other people doing the same thing only faster - I mean what more could you want out of a Sunday?
strathlubnaig says:

Mar 17 2013 at 1:29 pm

@the Engine chapeau. Would expect nothing less from a caledonian hardman though.
Russ says:

Mar 17 2013 at 1:39 pm

@the Engine

Ride bike is snow and freezing rain and then come home to watch other people doing the same thing only faster - I mean what more could you want out of a Sunday?

Umm... to have your #2 or ( Rain Bike ) cleaned and your kit washed by your little ones after you get home while your watching the race. Oh with a cold beer in hand!
Deakus says:

Mar 17 2013 at 2:05 pm

@Steampunk

Wow! Lots of Boonen bashing. I thought I'd never see the day.

1. It's pretty easy to criticize from the couch.

2. Boonen's targeting a pretty important week in the not-so-distant future; MSR was always a long shot.

3. He's been hurt and sick this winter. Why risk 2?

4. He gets paid to race his bike, not risk life and limb.

5. What help was he going to provide Chavanel?

6. Getting in the bus today does not dampen any performance at PR. Apples and oranges. Completely.

7. Damage to the Belgian reputation?? I don't even know what that means.

I'm a strong adherent/admirer of Rule V, but there's a danger we lose sight of its value if we just jabber Rule V at every turn. These are great athletes and hard men (by definition, in having created the opportunity for themselves to be invited to line up at the start of a pro race). If you can't see that, it's best to keep your fingers off the keyboard while you sit on the couch...

All these are good reasons and make sense...right up until he started bleating about it. So it's OK to (quite rightly) to slag off Schleck the younger when he whinges...but not Boonen....sorry, I prefer to be consistent with my criticism. He was not wrong to quit....many did....maybe my hardman view of him has been a little dented, but I will get over it, and if he redeems himself with a PR win I will wax lyrical about his performance but today, I am afraid he let his mouth run away with him and it never comes across well no matter who it is.
Chris says:

Mar 17 2013 at 3:17 pm

A trawl of tumblr throughs up some absolute gems...

[dmalbum: path="/velominati.com/wp-content/uploads/readers/fleeting moment/2013.03.17.22.05.51/1/"/]

But I rather like this one, reputed to have been taken mid race when everyone else was looking miserable. Sagan might not have won but he's fairly irrepressible.