Velominati Super Prestige: Giro di Lombardia
No event of the year is more likely to provide piles of Rule #9 in the Five and Dime than il Giro di Lombardia. A hilly circuit around Lake Como ensures lots of climbing and that the bunch is blown to bits before the finish. Add to that its position as the last classic of the season, nestled in amongst the falling leaves of mid-October, and you’re nearly certain the weather will be terrible. The fact that it is being moved from October to September is distressing on several levels, not least that I’m certain the weather will be better. Good for the riders, bad for us; the way you hear some of the race organizers and the UCI talk, you’d almost thing they actually put the riders’ well-being before the amusement of the public. That can’t be right.
But most importantly, the Giro di Lombardia represents the final edition of this year’s VSP. The results are all but buttoned up for Nate, although both Marcus and G’Phant are in with a mathematical chance of taking over the win with a perfect score and Nate pulling a Delgado.
VSP G.C.
1. Nate (120 points)
2. Marcus (109 points)
3. G’phant (107 points)
(Antipodal VSP Podium. Interesting.)
You know the drill, get your picks in by 5am Pacific on Saturday. Depending on how things go, we may be late to post the final results as the race organizers and the UCI scheduled the event in conjunction with the Seattle Cogal. Oh, and if you don’t know what time 5am Pacific is and your Google Skills are not sufficient to elucidate that for you, I suggest you simply don’t cut it too close.
Good luck.
Thanks @frank for getting this up — possibly my favorite race of the calendar and I would not have wanted to finish the season with the Keepers pulling a Delgado.
Also, mate, whilst I reckon I occassionally pepper my posts with Antipodeanisms, I’m a Amurican.
VSP PICKS:
1. Gilbert
2. Van Avermaet
3. Nibali
4. Purito Rodriguez
5. Uran
Really wanted to put Stannard in but he is not listed as a starter. Sentimental fav.
VSP PICKS:
1. Phil Gil
2. J Rod
3. Slammin Sammy Sanchez
4. Can-he-go
5. Mollema
There will be nothing better than Phil Gil signing off the season in style.
VSP PICKS:
1. Phil Gil
2. J Rod
3. Van Avermaet
4. Moreno
5. Roche
VSP PICKS:
1. PhilGil
2. Visconti
3. Scarponi
4. Samuel Sánchez
5. Nibali
VSP PICKS:
1. Gilbert
2. Roche
3. Van Avermaet
4. Rodriguez
5. Conego
I read about them switching the race to one week after the Worlds Road Race, ergo into September. How much does that suck?!?!
Now Paris-Tours (a worthy race) and the final stage of Beijing (really, Beijing???)are the last races of the season? Soooo wrong. The Giro di Lombardia IS the Tour of the Falling Leaves. Man, the UCI just really screws things up, huh?
VSP PICKS:
1. Gilbert
2. Sanchez
3. Marcato
VSP PICKS:
1. Gilbert
2. Sanchez
3. Marcato
4. Voeckler
5. Cunego
VSP PICKS:
1. ten Dam
2. Cunego
3. Samy Sanchez
4. Gilbert
5. Voeckler
VSP PICKS:
1. Gilbert
2. Ballan
3. Sammy Sanchez
4. Cunego
5. Nordhaug
@Nate
Are you sure? Frank’s rarely wrong about these kinds of things. Every post is meticulously researched.
VSP PICKS:
1. Gilbert
2. Fuglsang
3. Van Avermaet
4. Nibali
5. Voeckler
The reasoning for the move to September is quite obvious. They are trying to increase the importance of their pet project, the Tour of Beijing.
Did anyone watch a stage? Completely dead in terms of fans, rather uneventful, and overall I thought, a huge failure from a fans prospective. Of course they are touting it a huge success. How? Who’s going to sponsor a race that none of the locals are even allowed to watch?
Anyways, I’m excited to watch the race. I’m going to do the dumb thing and bet against the three-peat for Gilbert.
VSP PICKS:
1. Roche
2. Voeckler
3. Sanchez
4. Cunego
5. Peter Velits
VSP PICKS:
1. Gilbert
2. Van Avermaet
3. Voeckler
4. Sanchez
5. Ballan
@Nate
You’re ‘Murcan? Berkley, no less. So you’re snobby, too. Shocker. I wonder why I thought you were from down under?
Ah well, just when you think you know someone. Oh, and thanks for reassuring me that the articles actually get read.
VSP PICKS:
1. Duran Duran
2. Giblets
3. Cobo Cabana
4. Roche
5. Voeckler
VSP PICKS:
1. Gilbert
2. Roche
3. Sammy Sanchez
4. Voeckler
5. Conego
@King Clydesdale
Exactly. Agree 100%. Also LOVE the Roche pick. I would love to see him win! He seems to have some form as well. Not a bad call.
VSP PICKS:
1. Gilbert
2. Roche
3. Voekler
4. Van Summeren
5. Van Avermaet
Ahah! I’d love to see this result!
VSP PICKS:
1. Michele Scarponi
2. Vincenzo Nibali
3. Damiano Cunego
4. Alessandro De Marchii
5. Thomas Lövkvist
@Buck Rogers
Yreah, but Patty McQuaid’s gotta get another sweet foreign trip in and impress people who can be impressed by him. I doubt anyone in Europe respects him anymore. Maybe he’ll try and get the Chinese to make all their production subject to UCI approval and get that wee sticker. IMHO, the Tour of Beijing will become like the Japan Cup – something a few riders do to end their season but not something that really matters in the big scheme of things. A nice wee anomaly and nothing more.
VSP PICKS:
1. Moreno
2. Cunego
3. Mollema
4. Gilbert
5. Nibali
Beijing may well be a factor, but until the relatively recent moves in the calendar Lombardy used to be raced the weekend following Worlds so I think it’s great to see the UCI restore that tradition. Better debut showing for the Maillot Arc-en-Ciel than Paris-Tours, fo sho.
VSP PICKS:
1. Gilbert
WTF
VSP PICKS:
1. Tommy V
2. Urano
3. Sammy Sanchez
4. Sandy Casar
5. Gerrans
Alternate Seattle Cogal VSP FTW.
VSP PICKS:
1. Cyclops
2. Scaler911
3. Frank
4. EightZero
5. mcsqueak
VSP PICKS:
1. Gilbert
2. Cunego
3. Nibali
4. Voeckler
5. Samuel Sanchez
@Buck Rogers
Well the results from the Giro del Piemonte cemented him in the top. AG2R is looking for points bad right now, so he will be working hard again this weekend.
Avermaet may replace velits still, i’m going to sleep on it.
@Steampunk
Aren’t you some sort of professor? You should be able to tell that Frank abhors research without him having to tell you so.
@frank
Can’t say why you thought I was antipodean. Yes, Berkeley. Curious why you think that makes me a snob (above and beyond the fact that I appreciate the obsessive commentary around here).
And of course the articles get read. They are meticulously crafted, and I am honored to have been the object of your research-aversion.
Also, has Pierre Rolland been up to anything since Alp d’Huez? This would be a decent classic for him but he didn’t make the startlist.
Ah what the hell… good luck to the top 3 VSP candidates, this could go down to the wire!
VSP PICKS:
1. Cunny lingers
2. GVA
3. Giblets
4. Dirty Sammy
5. T5
@Nate
I adhere to much the same standard in my professional work. Which is why I need to back Frank up like this…
And further to this…
1. Wallabies
2. Wales
3. All Blacks
4. France
Don’t count on doing any business with New Zealand next week. It will be closed for mourning.
VSP PICKS:
1. Van de Walle
2. Gerro
3. Gilbert
4. Basso
5. Chris Sorensen
Basically an unexpected break stays away. Not likely, but since everyone else has already picked Gilbert to win, this would be the only way to move up a place or two.
VSP PICKS:
1. Maxime Bouet
2. Jose Serpa Perez
3. Maxim Iglinskiy
4. Sylvain Chavanel
5. Stijn Devolder
VSP PICKS:
1. Gilbert
2. Visconti
3. Voeckler
4. Sella
5. fedrigo
Philly finishes the season with a bang?
VSP PICKS:
1. Philbert
2. JRod
3. Nibali
4. Sam Sanchez
5. Cunego
@Rose City Rolleur
Like your style, RCR! Logic and skill wins VSPs, but panache wins hearts.
VSP PICKS:
1. Visconti
2. Fedrigo
3. Gerrans
4. Chavanel
5. De Gendt
Sorry to disappoint, but it looks like fair weather with high pressure in control. May be a bit breezy at times however, with winds gusting past 25 knots.
@King Clydesdale
Are you actually Al Roker?
@mcsqueak
He graduated from the same college as me. But he majored in Graphic Design and Broadcasting. I studied meteorology with a math minor. He donated the money for an impressive tv studio on campus, he gave ZERO to the meteorology program.
The fact that he gets paid as much as he does makes me sour.
Gotta give it to the crocodile…wanna see him sign off in style.
Also @harminator I love your work but the frogs will cream the dragons, can’t wait for us to knock off the sheep botherers though.
VSP PICKS:
1. Philbear
2. Dirty Sammy
3. J-Rod from the Rokkit Sqwad
4. Lil Gerro
5. van Arvemaert
@Mikael Liddy
A-Merckx! Must confess that I failed to get the littlest Steampunk tucked up with her crocodile before Copenhagen; I’ll be on the ball tomorrow eve…
@Steampunk
Well it’s only fair that there’s some sharing, also he does have a nasty Rainbow Turd type tendency when in special jerseys so maybe him avoiding the bands wasn’t a bad thing. Cav seems to be wearing them properly…
VSP PICKS:
1. Gilbert
2. Sammie Sanchez
3. Scarponi
4. Cunego
5. Voeckler
Some names I wanted to see podium earlier, wishful thinking.
VSP PICKS:
1. Costa
2. Mollema
3. Casar
4. Van Avermaet
5. Gilbert
VSP PICKS:
1. Giblets
2. Voeckler
3. Van Avermaet
4. Purito
5. Vino!
@harminator
SHUTUPSHUTUPSHUTUPSHUTUP NOTLISTENINGNOTLISTENING SHUTUPSHUTUPSHUTUPSHUTUP
Will Quickstep work for Phil given his move to BMC, he was complaining at last race that the team did not do enough, still I will tip him for the win. Ballan has done nothing but cost me points this year so best I tip him again.
VSP PICKS:
1. Gilbert
2. Ballan
3. Nibali
4. Mollema
5. Gerrans
@minion
Love this race. Wish I could be there. Buuuut, absolutely salivating over the RWC semi’s.
Wallabies all the way.
The Kiwi’s play in black because it takes less time to look like their mourning
VSP PICKS:
1. Gilbo
2. Gerro
3. Roche
4. Rodriguez
5. Fuglsang
Grimpelder comes out of nowhere, surprising everyone by the fact that he’s (probably) not on the start list and winning anyway. What a stud. Blows GIblets guns off.
VSP PICKS:
1. Grimpelder
2. GIblets
3. Cunego
4. Scarponi
5. Dirty Sanchez