a weekly double-shot of road racing

issue ten rapha.cc

Wednesday 22nd May 2013

rain capes are italian #prostyle

18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26S A T U R D A Y— G i r o d ’ I t a l i a— G l a v a To u r

S U n D A Y — G i r o d ’ I t a l i a — R á s— G l a v a To u r

M o n D A Y— G i r o d ’ I t a l i a — R á s

T U e S D A Y— G i r o d ’ I t a l i a— R á s

w e D n e S D A Y— G i r o d ’ I t a l i a — R á s

T h U R S D A Y— G i r o d ’ I t a l i a — R á s

f R I D A Y— G i r o d ’ I t a l i a — R á s

S A T U R D A Y— G i r o d ’ I t a l i a — R á s

S U n D A Y— G i r o d ’ I t a l i a — R á s

team sky at the giro

Urán’s the ManAs the peloton briefly exits the mountains today, Wednesday, Team Sky will be focused on racing the rest of the Giro without Sir Bradley Wiggins. “As a team, we manage the medical aspect of our op-eration particularly well,” Team Principal Sir Dave Brailsford said. “We very rarely have riders who drop out of races due to illness. However, given the sever-ity of the conditions, and the much larger proportion of the peloton than normal that are ill, unfortunately on this occasion there was nothing we could do.” Instead of working for Bradley, they will be concen-trating on keeping Rigoberto Urán in contention for a podium spot.“Nine became eight in the peloton but the team quickly rallied around Rigoberto,” said Sports Di-rector Marcus Ljungqvist, as the team departed Bussetto for stage 13, the morning Wiggins an-nounced he was withdrawing from the race with a chest infection.Urán had showed himself in stage 10, winning im-pressively on the Giro’s first summit finish as an already ailing Wiggins suffered but hung on. “You could argue we hit the front too early and burnt a few of our matches there but you have to take chances and you have to be prepared to try and make things happen,” Ljungqvist said of that stage. The rest day has given the team a chance to regroup, and with Urán showing remarkable resilience in the bad conditions, making it safely to the finish in the short-ened Galibier stage, there is still everything to play for. The weather will continue to play a part. Despite his grit, Urán will be hoping that it relents and no more mountain stages will be cut short. After all, it is on the climbs that he has shown his competitive edge, while Nibali, in contrast, has looked isolated.The hat-trick of stages starting with the 20.6km uphill time trial on Thursday are key; prosper when the road turns to the sky and Urán might forge his legend on the Stelvio, Gavia and Tre Cime de Lavaredo, some of the Giro’s most legendary climbs. All Rapha Cycle Clubs will be screening coverage of the remaining stages of the Giro.

We d n e s d a y | S TA G E 1 7 | 2 1 4 k mCaravaggio Vicenza Perhaps the last chance for the sprinters, as the final climb is small. Vicenza is home to Campagnolo.

T h u r s d a y | S TA G E 1 8 | 2 0 . 6 k mMori PolsaThe cruellest of stages: a short, uphill race against the clock that will deplete the legs before two big days in the mountains.

F r i d a y | S TA G E 1 9 | 1 3 9 k mPonte di Legno Val MartelloTwo legendary climbs, the Gavia and the Stelvio, plus a summit finish – the Rapha Cycle Clubs are the places to be today.

S a t u r d a y | S TA G E 2 0 | 2 0 3 k mSilandro Tre Cime de LavaredoA third day of high mountains, a third uphill finish. A vicious final test of the gc contenders’ ability to defy gravity.

S u n d a y | S TA G E 2 1 | 1 9 7 k mRiese Pio BresciaA long final procession for whoever has survived the mountains best and taken the maglia rosa to Brescia.

viking of the month

Boasson Hagen’s Home WinCongratulations to Team Sky’s Edvald Boasson Hagen, who stood on the podium for four of the five Glava Tour stages, and took home from Norway both the overall yellow and the ‘super sprint’ green jersey. Boasson Hagen, the Norwe-gian national champion, had to settle for fourth place on his birthday (in stage three), but moved definitively into the race lead after winning stage 4. Alexander Kristoff of Katusha, had been leading up to that point, and it took a concerted team effort on the 198km-long Queen Stage to take the yellow jersey. It was Boasson Hagen and Team Sky’s second consecutive Glava Tour victory.

the giro this week

a weekly double-shot of road racingWednesday 22nd May 2013

rain capes are italian #prostyle

giro comment

One-Stage Giro Heroes Herbie Sykes, author of Maglia Rosa – Triumph and Tragedy at the Giro d’Italia, reflects on the race’s history of one-stage wonders.For all Nibali’s class and the confirmation of Cav’s great-ness, the first remit of any Giro d’Italia is to reacquaint us with the magic of the Giro d’Italia. For that we waited till stage 7 to Pescara. Hith-erto noted principally as a serial grand tour fetcher and carrier, Adam Hansen recalled the great escape art-ists of yore with his miraculous 140-kilometre gallop through the Abruzzese hinterlands. Stirring stuff…Hansen’s exploit proved that, notwithstanding the dreary utilitarianism which increasingly characterises modern grand tour racing, the spirit which conceived it refuses to lie down. Victories like his legitimise the sport itself, and by extension all of us who care.He may win again, but for his own sake it’s to be hoped that he doesn’t. The winning gregari of Giro legend did it just the once, then disappeared back to whence they came.Take Emilio Casalini for example. Winner of precisely zero professional bike races, he somehow conjured a beautiful win on the 28-kilometre behemoth, Monte Grappa, at the 1968 edition. The thing to remember is that Casalini wasn’t riding the Giro because he was good, but because he wasn’t. His Faema team had drafted him in at the behest of Vittorio Adorni, their road captain. A highly intelli-gent man, Adorni was unhappy with the composition of the team, and with the dynamic it would create. He therefore insisted Casalini supplant a more gifted rider, young Mino Denti. Merckx had brought along his Flemish cadre, and Adorni understood that the Italian contingent need be selfless to a man, devoid of pretense. Casalini’s Monte Grappa escape was a great ride, and they still invoke it here. Ultimately though, its reso-nance is rooted in what he, Emilio Casalini, was. When I spoke with him he declared himself a “mediocre” cy-clist, and therein lay his great good fortune. Objectively you don’t win on Monte Grappa by being mediocre, but Casalini’s conviction that he was precisely that is the crux of his story. It was through his innate humil-ity and modesty that the win acquired such mythical status, its symbolism a reflection of his character. Like Hansen’s it was a long overdue victory for a good man, but like Hansen’s it was much more besides; it was a victory for all of his creed.

The full version of Herbie’s feature will be available on the Rapha blog from tomorrow, 23rd May. To read it, visit: rapha.cc/blogs.

tour of california awards

Tejay Wins the Day in Santa Rosa

LondonAt Imperial Works we’re cautiously optimistic about spring. Sunny spells, 16c. Merino Knee Warmers.

San FranciscoSunny periods but feeling a little cool – in the low 60s. Trade Team Jersey, Trade Team Cap.

OsakaMostly sunny and it’s hotting up. Is 29-30c ok for you? Lightweight Jersey, Lightweight Bib Shorts.

BresciaShowery all the way to the line, but at least it’ll be warmer than up in the mountains. Pro Team Race Cape.

Yellow jersey Tejay van Garderen (bmc)

Green jersey Peter Sagan (Cannondale)

Polka dot jersey Carter Jones (Bissell)

White jersey Lawson Craddock (Bontrager)

Mick Rogers Saxo-Tinkoff

Tejay van Garderen BMC Janier Acevedo

JaMiS-HagenS BerMan

2 13

American rider Tejay van Garderen (BMC), one of the pre-race favourites, on Sunday won the Tour of California. The race had started a week earlier in the burning SoCal heat and ended, after an epic ascent of Mt. Diablo, a Golden Gate crossing and two Sagan sprints in Santa Rosa, north of San Francisco. Van Garderen took the yellow jersey on a windy stage 5 to Avila Beach, and kept it all the way to the end.

With a record amount of climbing, this year’s race was a particularly enjoyable one and, while we’d like to congratu-late Tejay on a well-deserved victory, we’d also like to announce the follow-ing Doppio awards:

Best American newcomer (and tallest hair): Lucas Euser (United Healthcare)

Most kickass 41-year-old:Jens Voigt (RadioShack-Leopard)

Most likely to win air guitar com-petitions (post-cycling career): Peter Sagan (Cannondale)

Most likely to have a great Tour de France and surprise everyone: Andy Schleck (RadioShack-Leopard)

1909

the weather this weekend

tour of california official results