Velominati Super Prestige: Luik-Bastenaken-Luik 2013
There is something to love about a race that makes a deviation to its route for the simple joy of sending a fleet of professional riders up a fiendishly steep and narrow ramp. The Cote du Stockeu offers zero benefit to the route from a logistical standpoint – in fact, all it does is complicate things. On the way down from the Cote de Wanne – usually at breakneck speed – the race enters the small down of Stavelot. Just before hitting the town proper, you make a right turn and ascend a wall that does little more than become steeper as it twists it way up for 2.4km. Riding the route with Museeuw during Keepers Tour, he quietly tried to dissuade us of riding it, “You don’t need to do this for me; I’ve never enjoyed this one.”
At the top lies the monument to Merckx and his 525 victories. Upon reaching it, the route takes a sharp left turn and descends right back down to exactly the same spot from which it climbed up. This is why I love this climb so much; its just free pain for the racers – a steep climb just for the sake of making their legs hurt a bit more. Shortly thereafter, the route rolls down a few valleys and arrives at the Cote de la Redoute (The Fearsome), which signals the beginning of the finale. Its too far from the finish to make a winning move, but if you’ve got bad legs, you’ll be left behind to suffer all the way to Ans.
Amstel has been sorted, as has La Fléche. Both were won by an outsider. I don’t think the big names will let that happen again. Surely Gilbert and the Sag Wagon will have their act together this time around.
Check the start list and enter your picks in by the time the countdown clock goes to zero at midnight on Sunday morning Pacific Time. The winner of this monument will post for the next year with the LBL Winners Badge. Good luck.
[vsp_results id=”23150″/]
VSP PICKS:
1. Gilbert
2. Valverde
3. J Rod
4. Nibbles
5. Froome
VSP PICKS:
1. Nibali
2. Gilbert
3. Valverde
4. Gerrans
5. Porte
Making these picks is not unlike herding cats…
VSP PICKS:
1. Gilbert
2. Valverde
3. Sagan
4. Joaquim Rodriguez
5. Daniel Martin
VSP PICKS:
1. Gilbert
2. Porte
3. Sandy Casar
4. Le Mevel
5. The Little Prince
VSP PICKS:
1. RODRIGUEZ Joaquim
2. KREUZIGER Roman
3. URAN Rigoberto
4. GERRANS Simon
5. GASPAROTTO Enrico
VSP PICKS:
1. Gilbert
2. Sagan
3. Rodriguez
4. Nibali
5. Martin
RODRIGUEZ Joaquim Katusha Team
PCS Ranking: 1 UCI – WT Ranking: 5
(6 La Flèche Wallonne)
KREUZIGER Roman Team Saxo-Tinkoff
Rankings: PCS Ranking: 33 UCI – WT Ranking: 23
(1 Amstel Gold Race)
URAN Rigoberto Sky Procycling
Rankings: PCS Ranking: 26 UCI – WT Ranking: 15
(22 La Flèche Wallonne)
GERRANS Simon Orica GreenEDGE
Rankings: PCS Ranking: 41 UCI – WT Ranking: 30
(3 Amstel Gold Race)
GASPAROTTO Enrico Astana Pro Team
Rankings: PCS Ranking: 182 UCI – WT Ranking: 75
(9 Amstel Gold Race)
(30 La Flèche Wallonne)
(3 Liège-Bastogne-Liège 2012)
Feeling confident on GASPAROTTO for 5th!
VSP PICKS:
1. Gilbert
2. Gerrans
3. Valverde
4. Joaquim Rodriguez
5. Porte
VSP PICKS:
1. Gerro
2. PhilGil
3. Kwiatkowski
4. Rodriguez
5. Mr Pinchy
umm, Sagan’s not racing, right? Go Gerro – another late night beckons.
VSP PICKS:
1. Gerrans
2. Phil Gil
3. Frooooomey
4. J.Rodriguez
5. Sam Sanchez
If there’s one race I love, it’s this one. Since I haven’t picked Ulissi after slotting him in for Amstel & Flèche, he’s a sure thing to podium. You’re welcome.
VSP PICKS:
1. P. Gilbert
2. A. Valverde
3. V. Nibali
4. D. Cunego
5. R. Hesjedal
VSP PICKS:
1. Gilbert
2. Valverde
3. Nibali
4. Froome
5. Hesjedal
VSP PICKS:
1. Froome
2. Valverde
3. Gilbert
4. NIbali
5. Hesjedal
Above will be total bollox because by the weekend team sky will have got the dosages right and froome and porte will come 1 -2 but I cant bring myself to pick them.
VSP PICKS:
1. J Rod
2. Nibbles
3. Danny Boy Martin
4. Rigs Uran
5. Sammy Sanchez
here we go!
1. Valverde
2. Martin
3. Rodriguez
4. Uran
5. Gilbert
VSP PICKS:
1. Valverde
2. Martin
3. Rodriguez
4. Hesdejal
5. Uran
VSP PICKS:
1. Rodriguez
2. Froome
3. Gilbert
4. Valverde
5. Hesdejal
VSP PICKS:
1. Giblets
2. Gerro
3. Valv Piti
4. Purito
5. Martin
VSP PICKS:
1. gilbert
2. jrod
3. froome froome
4. martin
5. henao
VSP PICKS:
1. Gilbert
2. Valverde
3. Martin
4. Nibali
5. Rodriguez
VSP PICKS:
1. Froome
2. Valverde
3. Purito
4. Gilbert
5. Gerrans
Bah, this f’n VSP. Shitheads hiding form and springing it on us without warning. ‘Mo-fucking-reno’, for instance. Bah. Fuck it!
Ok, for now, at least, fuck it. Later, when I return, I’ll psychically divine the top 5 with nary a moments thought, I will. Yes. You best believe it, you early adopter twats. Gerro. At ‘this’ race? Baaaaaah.
I have no clue. That is all.
VSP PICKS:
1. Gerrans
2. Porte
3. Gilbert
4. Martin
5. Valverde
And if we could pick a 6th place, I’d go for Andy. I’m sure he’s been sandabgging for the past year…
VSP PICKS:
1. Froome
2. Betancur
3. Valverde
4. Philippe Gilbert
5. Fedrigo
VSP PICKS:
1. Gilbert
2. Valverde
3. Nibali
4. RodrÃguez
5. Froome
VSP PICKS:
1. The Froome Dog
2. Gilbert
3. JRod
4. Nibbles
5. Valverde
VSP PICKS:
1. Valverde
2. Gilbert
3. Froome
4. Rodriguez
5. Martin
VSP PICKS:
1. Nibali
2. Froome
3. Gilbert
4. Valverde
5. Kwiatkowski
Sky rider you don’t expect is on better form than the others; Betancur works with his countryman again (Bardet is tired and saving himself for a pitch at the Giro); Dan Martin is in the form of his life and someone from Garmin has to be on the podium; Kwiatowski has been good all season – if he had a better team on Sunday he’d be in with a real chance; Kreuziger knows how to win now and C*ntador has had a hard week like Bardet.
What would I know I’m 66th – ask @ramenvelo he’s much cleverer than me
VSP PICKS:
1. Henao
2. Betancur
3. Dan Martin
4. Kwiatowski
5. Kreuziger
@Bianchi Denti
On the basis that all but five abandon, but Andy is the last to do so…
VSP PICKS:
1. Piti
2. Purity
3. G-G-G-Gerro
4. Uran
5. Kwiatkowski
VSP PICKS:
1. J. Rodriguez
2. Valverde
3. Henao
4. I Hernandez
5. Kwiatkowski
VSP PICKS:
1. Hesjedal
2. Gilbert
3. Rodrigues
4. Martin
5. Betancur
VSP PICKS:
1. Gilbert
2. Froome
3. Rodriguez
4. Henao
5. Valverde
VSP PICKS:
1. Gilbert
2. Dan Martin
3. Nibali
4. Rodriquez
5. Froome
VSP PICKS:
1. Gilbert
2. Rodriguez
3. Valverde
4. Martin
5. Henao
Gotta go with the guys with the form and the form in these kind of races. No doubt Froome and Nibbles ante going great but the punchy guys have this in their sights me-thinks. I don’t like backing Valverde but he’s the one to beat.
VSP PICKS:
1. Valverde
2. Gerrans
3. Gilbert
4. Martin
5. Moreno
VSP PICKS:
1. GIlbert
2. Gerrans
3. Valverde
4. Nibali
5. Joaquin Rodriguez
How much pressure do you think Gilbert is under? Last chance saloon for a Belgian to win a Spring Classic. Did you ever think we’d say that? This could finally lead to secession, I tell you!
@Steampunk
I am afraid I am not a Phil Gil fan. Not because he is not awesome and a truly stonking rider, but because I think he really has some flaws in his tactical nouse. He does not currently have his 2011 form and yet he continues to ride out the front, attack too early and then fade and generally make tactical mistakes…..he is not crafty enough. It is a shame because he seems to have an awesome well full of natural talent and ability, but it does not get deployed often enough in the correct way (yeah! like could do any better!!!).
His form is better than 2012 but he is not strong enough to ride all his opponents off his wheel and so ultimately I feel he is doomed, and the greater the pressure the harder he will go at, and ultimately fail. He needs to get a bit more sneaky (I know he is heavily marked) because without boxing clever he will be forced to do all the work and then nailed every time…
Now you watch him prove all of this wrong on Sunday!
VSP PICKS:
1. Gilbert
2. Valverde
3. Nibali
4. J-Rod
5. Froome
Why’s Peter not on the start list?
VSP PICKS:
1. Gilbert
2. Gerrans
3. Martin
4. Nibali
5. Froome
@Deakus Funny you should say so, before 2011 his biggest criticism was he had no idea when to use his obvious strength & he ended up attacking too early. On that note, slight change to have PhilGil leading it out & Gerro pulling an MSR and coming over the top.
VSP PICKS:
1. Gerrans
2. Gilbert
3. Valverde
4. Nibbles
5. Cothodor
VSP PICKS:
1. Valverde
2. Gilbert
3. Gerrans
4. Martin
5. Rodriguez
@Mikael Liddy
OMG! You should never actually listen to me…..! Now I am responsible if he goes Ten Dam on us but succeeds and takes the solo win!!
I promised to give up on Sky, but I reckon they are now ravenously hungry for a win in a spring classic and this is last chance saloon. Trouble is there are a shit load of people who could take this one and a lot of teams have pairs that could go for it so it is really hard to make the VSP pick…e.g you could easily go for Astana and Iglinsky and have Nibali take it (and he is in form!), the same goes for BMC, Garmin Sharp, Sky, Katusha, Movitstar etc etc etc…
Fuck I have no idea what I am burbling about so I am going to have a cup of tea, check out the leaves and roll dice…this should at least assure me 1 point somewhere in the mix!
VSP PICKS:
1. Froomedog
2. Dirty Bertie
3. Dan Martin
4. Nibbles
5. Phil Gil
@Deakus & @Mikael Liddy:
Gilbert strikes me as more of an independent rider, attacking on feel rather than based on a voice in his earpiece: take away the race radios, and I suspect it would work in Gilbert’s favour. He’s out of form, but he’s still been in the mix over the past week or so. Certainly not as invincible as 2011, but he’s never been a one-trick pony. Rather, I think he’s a cagey guy. Compare his 2011 with Sagan’s 2013. Who’s stronger? And who’s smarter? I’d wager that Sagan v.2013 is stronger; Gilbert v.2011 was quite the puppet-master.
VSP PICKS:
1. Valverde
2. Nibali
3. Martin
4. J. Rod
5. Gerrans
VSP PICKS:
1. Mollema
2. Froome
3. Nibali
4. Valverde
5. Ryder
VSP PICKS:
1. Nibali
2. Froome
3. Valverde
4. Gilbert
5. Hesjedal
Free pain? Ah, if only other things in life were free, like a lugged carbon frame & an 11-s Super Record gruppo…
Awesome monument to the Prophet! What is the news on his health these days?
Tough picking on this one. Yes, another outsider or do the Big Shots get it right. Tough to call it, especially if any of the racers get weak Saturday night & enjoy a 4/20 puff!
VSP PICKS:
1. Nibali
2. Dan Martin
3. Valverde
4. Moreno
5. Gilbert