Het Volk (it will always be Het Volk to me) and now the Strade Bianche may well mark the sentimental beginning to the season, but those are specialized, pre-season races that appeal mostly to riders who are preparing for bigger objectives later in the year, such as the Cobbled or Ardennes Classics. Same goes for Tirreno Adriatico and Paris-Nice; there are preparatory events – none of the marquee names have these events in their programme as primary objectives.
The season doesn’t really start until Milano Sanremo, the first Monument and the first race of the year that any Pro would proudly define their career by winning, and so that’s where we start the fifth installment of the Velominati Super Prestige. Last year saw our biggest turnout yet, with sponsors kicking in some serious prizes for the Tour de France VSP. This year we’ve built on that momentum to offer three major prizes for the season-long VSP:
So, without further ado, check the start list, review the VSP Scoring Guidelines and get your picks in by the time the countdown clock goes to zero at midnight PDT on Sunday the 24th. If you think we mapped one of your picks wrong, use the dispute system and we’ll review it. Also remember to be precise enough in your description so we know which rider you mean; in other words, if you enter “Martin”, we will use our discretion (read: wild guess) to decide if you mean Tony or Dan – and that choice will not be negotiable once the the countdown clock goes to zero, so be sure to give yourself enough time.
Good luck, and don’t let these awesome prizes ruin your Rule #43 spirit.
[vsp_results id=”29200″/]
[dmalbum path=”/velominati.com/content/Photo Galleries/frank@velominati.com/VSP Prizes/”/]
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I am but a budding Velominatus, so don't read too much into my picks. Dang that would be a nice bike to promote to #1...
VSP PICKS:
1. Sagan
2. Faboo
3. Tornado Tom Frites
4. Degenkolb
5. Kwiatkowski
May the V be with them
VSP PICKS:
1. Fabian Cancellara
2. Tom Boonen
3. Peter Sagan
4. Michael Matthews
5. John Degenkolb
VSP PICKS:
1. Sagan
2. Cancellara
3. Cavendish
4. Greipel
5. Degenkolb
VSP PICKS:
1. Sagan
2. Boonen
3. Cancellara
4. Cavendish
5. Degenkolb
Gawd, this is a tough one, given the start list and the parcours. I'm going all-in with the notion that the sprinters get left behind somewhere. Boonen said that if the Pompeiana climb was cut from the race that he would be going for the win. That, along with the fact that he's yet to place first in MSR and that he has something to prove after last year's disappointing injury, pretty much forces me to put him at the top of the list, despite the flat run-in to the finish. Sparty and Sagan won't let him get there without a fight, however. Kwiatkowski and Stannard have been pretty impressive this spring, which earns them the last two spots in my top five.
VSP PICKS:
1. Tommeke
2. Spartacus
3. Billions and billions
4. Kwiatkowski
5. Ian Stannard
And by the way, holy SHIT is that some nice swag!
You know this is the winner
VSP PICKS:
1. Sagan
2. Cancellara
3. Cavendish
4. Degenkolb
5. Gerrans
You know this is the winner
Sweet baby Merckx on a stick those are some nice prizes... I suck at sports pools almost as much as I suck at keeping my legs smooth, but I'm in.
VSP PICKS:
1. Cancellara
2. Kwiatkowski
3. Kreuziger
4. Moreno
5. Sagan
For no good reason; picked Sagan, Cancellara, Hushovd, Phinney, and Langeveld.
VSP PICKS:
1. Peter Sagan
2. Fabian Cancellara
3. Thor Hushovd
4. Taylor Phinney
5. Sebastian Langeveld