Velominati Super Prestige: Paris-Nice 2012

The master of Paris-Nice: Sean Kelly

It’s right around this time of year when the little voice in my head that spurs me on in cold, wet, Rule #9 conditions starts getting overpowered by all my other personalities who at this stage are gathering stones and crowbars and getting ready to enforce their will on him regarding their preference for riding in nice, warm, sunny conditions. I feel bad for the little guy, too, since he helps me a lot in a climate like the Pacific Northwest; but truth be told, my fingers still haven’t regained their feeling from last week’s ride and I admit it would be nice to arrive home after a ride triumphant and warm instead of frozen and soaked like a wet rat.

It appears I’m not the only one ready for some warmer weather, and Paris-Nice traditionally holds a place of honor as “The Race to the Sun” for its timing is such that the race often starts in the French interior with rain (and possibly snow), and arrives on the sunny Cote d’Azur in Nice in balmy conditions.

With that we start our first stage race of the season, along with an opportunity to expose more bugs and logical faults in the VSP software. But never mind that; the same basic rules apply as do with one-day races, expect the stakes are a bit higher with 10 points for first place, 8 for second, 7 for third, 5 for fourth, and 3 for fifth plus two bonus points per rider in the top five regardless of the rider’s placing. Should the race be exciting enough to merit its inclusion, The Keepers may elect to include a bonus round on the VSP for one of the stages along the way. Watch this space for news in that arena.

Check the start list and watch the countdown timer as picks close at 5am Pacific on Sunday; up for grabs is the personalized Velominati Shop Apron to the contestent who wins the season-long competition. Check the Main VSP page for scoring guidelines and rules. Seeing as this is the first stage race, I strongly encourage you to enter your picks early, knowing that you can make changes all the way up until the VSP closes. If you notice something behaving strangely, please let us know and we’ll have time to resolve the issue.

Good luck.

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

Steampunk says:

Mar 4 2012 at 6:26 am

Fantastic ride from Wiggins. Brave stuff in the wet, especially since the other late starters seemed to let up a bit. Also liked the "Wiggo" on the side of his skinsuit. Good to see Bruyneel's magic on the Schlecks; they seem to have turned into super TT riders overnight (insert bucket of sarcasm to the tone). Par for their early season form, but it would have been nice to see them try to bury themselves in TTs between now and summer, no?
936adl says:

Mar 4 2012 at 6:27 am

Fantastic result for Wiggins! He's looking strong.

Andy and Frank were just shocking.
Blah says:

Mar 4 2012 at 6:27 am

@harminator

@Blah
But still a better pick than my No. 1 Cam Meyer who was on the startlist yesterday but not today...

Ooooouuuuch!
marko says:

Mar 4 2012 at 6:28 am

@Ron
You sir, are a ray of sunshine.
Steampunk says:

Mar 4 2012 at 6:29 am

@marko
It's taken me awhile to come around on the Modfather, but I started warming up to him last year. That was a brilliant ride today (especially in the rain). Sky's also brought a strong team to support him here. With the amount of pressure he's facing this year, seeing him ride while maintaining his cool-as-a-cucumber character is pretty impressive.
Steampunk says:

Mar 4 2012 at 6:34 am

@Ron

(it takes me 25 minutes to get out of the city so if I only have an hour, silly to spend most of it getting in/out of town). Oh, and an hour outside is still better than an hour on rollers!

One of the smartest things I've ever done: when we moved here, we intentionally looked for a place that wasn't buried in the city. I'm a 10-minute ride to work (along a trail), 3-minute walk to groceries, and 5 minutes to get to half a dozen hills that will put me on rural roads by the time I get to the top (we live in a valley). And with lots of options for riding. Every ride starts at home and next to no city riding.
ChrisO says:

Mar 4 2012 at 6:59 am

Tom Boonen 11th in a TT, nine seconds ahead of Tony Martin.

I wonder how many no balls they bowled ?
Tobin says:

Mar 4 2012 at 7:14 am

Wow...stunning TT by the Brothers Grimpeur. I wonder how many Euros went in the swear jar after the two TDF stages added distance?
Marko says:

Mar 4 2012 at 7:26 am

@Tobin

Wow...stunning TT by the Brothers Grimpeur. I wonder how many Euros went in the swear jar after the two TDF stages added distance?

If by "stunning" you mean "typical" then, yes. A Schleck will not win the Tour unless.
Tobin says:

Mar 4 2012 at 7:32 am

@Marko
It just amazes me how bad they are at them....must be the Camelbaks.