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.
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Dammit. I knew I should've changed out Tommy V for Eggtimer while I had the chance.
Oh wow, exciting finish in Italy...Again, what a morning. A mtn. finish in France, then ten minutes later a sprint finish in Italy. Awesomeness!
Really cool to have to see teams like Sky so skillfully split up their squads for two big races.
Michael Matthews crashed out in the Tirreno, he is now on his way to the hospital.
Blel Kadri has crashed in P-N and is in the hospital as well...
Lieuwe Westra! Nice! Vacansolei is off to a strong start this year.
Is it just me or did Cav lose a ton of weight in the last few weeks?
@frank
No doubt. It hasn't gone unnoticed by many in the peloton, either.
@frank
I was thinking about that the other night while watching the NBC Sports coverage of Parisnice. They did one of those "in focus" things on Sky, and when Cav came on, he talked about the fact that he actually really likes to climb, and likes to train to climb. I wonder if he's getting a little sick of being spit out the back on every mountain stage?
@The Oracle
I'm sure after finishing after the time cut at last years Tour an improvement in climbing will only help him keep a hold off the Green Jersey should he gain it.
@The Oracle
Ditto on that!