MN Peloton winter 2013/14 - Posting Through The Dark Months

[Pan]

The world of professional cycling didn't end for 6 months in Tuscan rain!

The route for the Giro 2014 www.cyclingnews.com/news/2014-giro-ditalia-route-presented-in-milan has been announced today, and it looks pretty sprinter-friendly. AND it starts in Belfast and takes in Dublin.

And the Tour course will be out some time soon as well. And with lots of too-ing and fro-ing and dramas and gossip it seemed a nice idea to have something like this to drop into and share from time to time. It's a winter feed station!

So pop in,and if you'd like, save this in 'threads:I'm watching' as a sort of book mark?

p.s you may recognise the title from David Millar's book Racing Through The Dark, which will be in my hot little hands as a b/day pressie this week!

[NicholasTeakozy]

Sprinter friendly! I can see a climber winning it. The little Colombian, Quintana, is my pick. Maybe even Horner if he gets a ride. It depends who's holding back for the Tour.

[Pan]

I'm not so sure on that NT. For whatever sliver of worth that is. .

To me at least it looks more like a 'diesler-who-can-also-climb-a-bit' sort of course. I bet young Mr Roche is looking at it with a realistic eye, though he may not be the team leader? It looks more Wiggins than Froome, for instance. I know the Dolomites a bit and they tend to be short and nasty rather than the elongated Alpine or Pyrrenean climbing stuff. I'd think Horner and Quintana will lose too much on the flats, poss. and be hauled back on the pure climbs. And Valverde as well?

But yes, the Tour is also out in Oct/Nov, when the real heated discussions in teams will happen. Oh to be flies on Sky walls..

[EndoplasmicReticulum]

I've read David Millar's book, really good read.

Everyone here is getting very excited about the Tour. In-laws were surprised that all the hotels are already booked up (duh) so looks like they'll be staying with us then! If I wasn't so keen to watch I'd let my house out and make loads of money, the council have already said that if you have a field you can let people camp on it without planning permission, as they are anticipating about a billion visitors (may be slight exaggeration).

[DramaAlpaca]

Thanks for pointing me this way Nicholas

Ridiculously excited about the Giro coming to Ireland

[Pan]

Hi there DA!

So why didn't I do a linky? That will be because I am a bear of little brain. Many thanks NT.

DM is just starting on injecting 'recovery' vitamins, which he tells himself are okay. During his time on ban he lived in Hayfield in the Peaks, (so he could train at the Velo in M/c) which is just 3-4 miles from where I am. So that skinny bloke I kept creaming on the Snake Pass was David Millar then..........yeah right.

[Pan]

and no, Endo - a billion is a conservative estimate for the visitor number!

[prettybird]

Dh really enjoyed Millar's book (I've not read it yet) - even went out and got from Amazon in the states the training book he'd used as a bible when he started out - but ds resolutely refuses to look at it.

Disappointed not to get any tickets to any of the track events in the Commonwealth Games - not a single person in ds' large youth cycling club (the largest in the West of Scotland) succeeded in getting tickets . At least the road race and time trial will be free and we'll know all the good vantage points

Will need to re-acquaint myself with some of my Yorkshire friends (used to live in Beverley and also worked in Leeds for a while) so that we can go visiting next summer

[Pan]

Finished DM's book. Started into it waving my DM/Scots flag, but was left feeling sort of a bit unconvinced and ambivalent about quite a few bits. Wouldn't want to do a spoiler for anyone intending to read it (and it really IS worth the read imho) but there were too many times when I'd thought the dots didn't quite link up. Be really interested in knowing what others thought about that.
There is a short interesting bit on Lord Wiggo of Wiggoland's behaviour in the 2010 Tour, on which DM makes his feeings plain, and unfortunately you find yourself nodding along thinking' yes, Bradders has form for this sort of thing'. A few of our current heroes have a profile as well, as well as Lance Armstrong and his arrogance that leads him to apparently consider he has a hegemony over the peleton.

that seems odd re the lack of tickets pb doesn't it? The interest in velo sessions will be almost as much as it will be for athletics finals relative to seats available, non? But frustrating for local riders and families.

[Pan]

oh and having read it, you can see why he led the peloton round the Champs this year for as long as he did. He just loves riding his bike and leading out front asking questions of the pack. Just a proper racer.

[Pan]

And the Paris-Tours race is on Eurosport atm. Sylvan Chavenal's last OPQ race before going to IAM next season. I think he's leading from the front right now.

[prettybird]

Apparently there was 25fold over subscription to the track events .

Having said that, even though all the local cycling families applied for multiple events, we all got nowt. I applied to two events for the second most expensive tickets which would have cost me £560 if I'd got them and should have increased my chances as you were automatically entered into the ballot for the cheaper seats (ie two or three more chances) if you were unsuccessful with the more expensive seats.

Still, them's the breaks. Seems a shame that even the coaches get nothing - they give so much time to the kids.

[Pan]

Just looked at the route for TdF 2014 and stage 2 passes 7 miles from my house, on the way to Sheffield!

[EndoplasmicReticulum]

www.thedailymash.co.uk/sport/sport-headlines/yorkshire-tour-de-france-to-allow-old-men-in-bathtubs-2013102480588

Nearly fell off my chair at "T'Tour".

[Pan]

Ha!

Did make me smile when Froome was expressing doubts over the cobbles of N France. Mate, you're starting in Yorkshire!! The home of the cobble. The M1 as it goes through Yorkshire is cobbled.

[EndoplasmicReticulum]

They've promised to fill in some of the potholes before T'tour gets here. Some of the roads here are more pothole than road.
They'll have to hand out pie at the feeding stations.

[Pan]

Just keeping the peloton wheels turning....

We see LA is trying to promise to tell the truth. Should be interesting, though not necessarily in the interests of the sport - anything he says will be taken with a bucket of salt and anyone 'implicated' at all could be responding with a team of lawyers.

Having said that I've no idea what the best solution is.

[Pan]

And...today I met Laura Trott! I know it isn't road racing but....I was biking to work and her and a matey were cycling to the Velodrome in front of me on the way to work near by. We exchange comments on how cold the weather was and then we were off. She was kitted out in her GB Cycling team attire and at one point I could have overtaken her. But it would have been rude to do so, so hung back and admired the view.....

[EndoplasmicReticulum]

Just popped in to share this:

[Pan]

Wow, that was fab Endo! It's fun to see the out takes as well.

On youtube there is something called alley cat racing where couriers ride like lunatics through major city streets. The one I saw lasted 6 mins but I could only watch about half of it through fingers across my eyes. If you feeling brave have a look.

[ivykaty44]

Oh pan that's fan :)

[Pan]

Ms Trott ivy? Yes, we see lots of pro individuals and teams riding round East M/c but you rarely get to identify them, least of all actually stop at traffic lights and have an exchange.
Anyone get bike-related stuff at Christmas? I got a book entitled "Bike Porn" but once you get past the cover title, it's stashed with photos of dreamy road bikes accompanied by zen-style and 'fun' observations on cycling. One says cycling is a better way than playing guitar for meeting girls. Erm......
And a book "Obsessive Compulsive Cycling Disorder" which is a collection of articles from one cyclist over 10 years, which is quite funny.

[ivykaty44]

yes pan - sorry it was meant to say, thats fab ! not fan.. I saw Becky James coming out of the velodrome after the world cup in november as we went back for the loo and a drink in the cafe afterwards, but we just smiled as we past :).

dd gave me mark cav's book and she got my dad a book about a tour jorno who was sent out to report and didn't even know what the race was about and even less about how it all worked - so will get that after dad's read it to have a read. dd got glasses and some cycle clothing that she wanted.

[ivykaty44]

prettybird - guess who is going to 3 round in Mexico and cycling on the track in the womans team sprint and Individual sprint!!

[DramaAlpaca]

DH gave me Nicolas Roche's book. I have a feeling that it's more for him than me, but I'll give it a go. I've just ordered David Millar's book - thanks for the recommendation Pan. They'll keep me going until the other books I want come out in paperback.

BIL gave DH & me a copy of Tour de France: The History, the Legend, the Riders by Graeme Fife. It was originally published in 1999, but this is the 2013 version, updated to include this year's Tour. Should be an interesting read.

[Pan]

oh good DA - be really interested in what you make of DM.
Currently I have 3 bikes - a home made one, my old monster of a hybrid with more suspension than anyone needs, and a my slick CB hybrid that gets a good commuter battering. I don't have a road bike.....and bike-to-work is just round the corner..