Velominati Super Prestige:
Giro D'Italia 2013
Velominati Community Profile Archive

Velominatus: xponti

Order: Level 4 Velominatus

Location: Somevvhere between rides (Australia)

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@xponti's activity:

Velominati Super Prestige: Giro d’Italia 2012 Stage 20

See that huge mountain over there? The one with the steep, twisty road going up it? The one that is often covered in snow this time of year? Right, race ya to the top.I don’t know what more there is to say about this year’s Giro; four days from the end, with two of the biggest mountain stages yet to come and the G.C., Mountains, and P...

@xponti's posts:

  1. But hey, whast the hell do I know…..I picked Elder for 5th, and Kruz Missile (well he has lived up to the exploding part of that title) for 4th. Couldn’t be bothered changing my picks on the rest day. Oh and I also said that Weight of the Nation was g… »

Velominati Super Prestige: Giro d’Italia 2012

After a winter of long training rides that offered more in the way of numb extremities than it did in acute enjoyment, I have to say that the warming of the air and brightening of the skies have served to remind me that while I love riding in bad weather, I certainly don’t have anything against riding when its nice out.But dont think for...

@xponti's posts:

  1. For me Scarponi wants to win this on the road but will again come second to J. Rod. Basso is still going to hang on but won’t be good enough for 1st spot. Kreuziger will shine despite the team, and Elder will be too busy looking back over his shoulder to … »

Velominati Super Prestige: Luik-Bastenaken-Luik 2012

I thought I’d take this opportunity to move en danseuse on Rule #89 and to refer to Liege-Bastogne-Liege by its less-common Flemish name. It also draws into sharp relief that fact that while Dutch may be every bit as expressive and subtle as French, it certainly sounds less sexy.Some races seem to foster a romanticism that other races of e...

@xponti's posts:

  1. VSP PICKS: 1. Gilbert 2. J Rod 3. Gerrans 4. Sanchez 5. Valverde »

Velominati Super Prestige: Flèche Wallonne Femmes 2012

During the Ronde von Vlaanderen, we of the 2012 Keeper’s Spring Classic Tour were right on the Oude Kwaremont climb as the women big-ringed it up the cobbles. Kristin Armstrong (US Women’s Team) was burying herself to get on Judith Arndt’s (Greenedge) wheel. It looked like the winning break was going right in front of our eyes. Se...

@xponti's posts:

  1. VSP PICKS: 1. Vos 2. Pooley 3. Arndt 4. nicole Cooke 5. Armstrong »

Velominati Super Prestige: La Fleche Wallonne 2012

I just had to use this pic of Tom Simpson in 1965 wearing the Peugeot kit as the title pic for this year’s VSP for La Fleche Wallonne. Rigid hooked himself up on the Keepers Tour with the same kit he purchased at the Flanders Cycling Museum and it’s Grade A nipple lube. Although victory eluded Simpson in this Classic he still looked dam...

@xponti's posts:

  1. Wide open field, this ones could be anyone’s race with Philly Gilly not in form, and the Schleckettes definately 2 months from peaking. VSP PICKS: 1. Vanendert 2. Valverde 3. Nibbles 4. Philly Gilly 5. Freire »

Velominati Super Prestige: Amstel Gold Race 2012

When people think of the The Netherlands, they generally think of flat lands, windmills, and a topography where people claim to “live at elevation” when their home on the third floor of a building. Never the less, this is not entirely true as The Motherland does, in its most southern reaches, boast quite hilly terrain; the province of...

@xponti's posts:

  1. VSP PICKS: 1. Valverde 2. gerro 3. J Rod 4. Sagen 5. Gilbert »

Velominati Super Prestige: Paris-Roubaix 2012

We rode the Pavé of Roubaix in the dry, and any comforting feelings we might have been carrying about with us that suggested we had somehow prepared for them were summarily vaporized as we hit the first secteur. Riding together in a group, unable to reach for the brakes or the shifters, we all were hit with the same realization: these aren’...

@xponti's posts:

  1. VSP PICKS: 1. Boonen 2. Potato 3. Thor 4. Sagen 5. Degenkolb »

Velominati Super Prestige: Women’s Ronde van Vlaanderen 2012

The Velominati Super-Prestige continues with our second Women’s event of 2012, the Women’s Ronde van Vlaanderen. This one is made even more exciting for me by the fact that I now have some small connection to the Women’s Tibco Racing Team, as I watched with envy as they each pulled their bikes off the oversized baggage carrousel...

@xponti's posts:

  1. VSP PICKS: 1. Armitstead 2. Teutenberg 3. Cooke 4. Gunnewijk 5. Pooley »

Velominati Super Prestige: Ronde van Vlaanderen 2012

The Keepers and Rigid rolled into a region in France called Flandres which, without doing any further research into the matter, we assume is the coloquial French term for this region of the world. If its anything like the other regions in Europe, these places have roots that extend way past any modern country’s border and situate themselves i...

@xponti's posts:

  1. VSP PICKS: 1. sagen 2. boonen 3. Sparticus 4. Boss Hogg 5. Ballan »

Velominati Super Prestige: Gent-Wevelgem 2012

Gent conjures up images of the quintessential Flemish city. Age-old medieval architecture rising from the river’s edge is classically Belgian. Gent is also firmly tied to Belgium’s greatest gift to the world, cycling tradition. Many a pro-expat cyclist has relocated to Gent with the hope of testing their mettle in the seat of cycling...

@xponti's posts:

  1. Bugger, wrong Sagen riding for LeakyGas VSP PICKS: 1. Boonen 2. Degenkolb 3. Langeveld 4. Boom 5. Van Avermaet »

  2. VSP PICKS: 1. Sagen 2. Boonen 3. Degenkolb 4. Langeveld 5. Van Avermaet »

Velominati Super Prestige: Milano San-Remo 2012

The Poggio. It’s probably one of the most famous easy climbs in the world; going through old cycling photographs, I rarely come across one where the leaders haven’t moved Sur La Plaque. It has a reputation, however, for being a real leg breaker, mostly because any climb is a big climb once you cross its summit after a paltry 291 kilomet...

@xponti's posts:

  1. VSP PICKS: 1. Sagen 2. Hausler 3. Sparticus 4. cav 5. Goss »

Velominati Super Prestige: Strade Bianche 2012

The Monte Paschi Strade Bianchi is happening this Saturday and it is such an interesting race we are putting it into the VSP.  The route is a mix of pavement and white marble sectors that roam through the hilly Tuscan country and finishes in the middle of beautiful Sienna. It seems early to me but that is because the Giro had an epic stage on the...

@xponti's posts:

  1. Spelling mistake VSP PICKS: 1. Gilbert Grape 2. Nibbles 3. Sagan 4. Van Avermaet 5. Sparticus »

  2. Dart Board says -\/\/——–> VSP PICKS: 1. Gilbert Grape 2. Nibbles 3. Sagan 4. Van Avearmat 5. Sparticus »

Velominati Super Prestige: Men’s Omloop Het Nieuwsblad

The 2012 Velominati Super Prestige kicks off in proper form this season with the debut of Omloop Het Nieuwsblad as part of the series. I’m tempted to stubbornly refer to this race as Het Volk, but I’ll toe the line and refer to the race by its bewildering new(ish) name.This is a tricky race to predict because the big races in April ar...

@xponti's posts:

  1. Nicole is NOT riding the mens race. There’s a problem for you right there @frank VSP PICKS: 1. Van Summeren 2. Baden Cooke 3. Van Avermaet 4. Flecha 5. De Gendt »

  2. Out on a limb for the first race. Big names to not fire for this but use it as recon for later races and a training run. Going to let their Loyal helpers for the bigger races get a chance at victory VSP PICKS: 1. Van Summeren 2. Cooke 3. Van Avermaet … »

2012 Velominati Super Prestige: New Riders, New Races, New Rules

Focus groups are forced marches out of the safety of our locked and darkened offices to delve into group work that would certainly be accomplished by one person, namely you, with much more efficiency and elegance. As it happens, the suspicions you’ve had about the dude you’ve successfully avoided conversation with for three years in the...

@xponti's posts:

  1. @Skip Since they haven’t won a Grand Tour in ages, just keep riding until all the other competitors have retired or died. That’s my strategy to get the UCI Age Group Champs Jersey. Hopefully I will still be riding when every one else has given up. »

Guest Article: Just give me something – something I can use

In our continuing guest article series, @eightzero weighs in on the modern cycling jersey. It’s made of some unholy material which has a half-life of fifty years and unless you crash in it, it’s still in your kit drawer. Yours in Cycling, Gianni …...

@xponti's posts:

  1. I own exactly two team issue jerseys. Both CSC and I can say that I did not purchase them, but was issued them. No I am no PRO, but I did work for CSC and thus know that they are a computer services company (it stands for Computer Sciences Corporation) W… »

The Bikes

The Bike. It is the central tool in pursuit of our craft. A Velominatus meticulously maintains their bicycles and adorns them with the essential, yet minimal, accoutrement. The Rules specify the principles of good taste in configuration and setup of our machines, but within those principles lies almost infinite room for personal taste.It seems in s...

@xponti's posts:

  1. @JiPM and @icm Thanks guys. Yes I am in the Tall Mofo brigade. (6″3′ or 190cm) A climber I am not. @Mouse. Rides quite well, but has taken a bit to get used to. It feels a little skittish in the front end in terms of steering, but not in a bad way. I … »

  2. Hi Guys, Thought it was about time that I posted a pic of my bike that I have just finished building. »

Guest Article: The Ride Starts On Time. No Exceptions.

In light of the first North American Cogal (a Cogal is a gathering of Velominati just like a Cabal was a gathering of Illuminati); this Guest Article by community lurker @gmoosh seems apropos. Except that obviously every ride starts at V past the hour. In this spirit, we have added Rule #87.Message from the Keepers to @gmoosh, it is precisely V p...

@xponti's posts:

  1. If you are not V minutes early, you are V minutes late. »

Reverence: 3T Rotundo Pro

Mimic those who are better than you; this is the underlying principle of nearly everything I do in life, whether in my work, in sport, or hobbies. The less I know about something, the more inclined I am towards this, and the more faithfully I mimic. As my skill and knowledge develope, I mime less and reason more, applying my own mistakes as well as...

@xponti's posts:

  1. @eightzero Which would also mean a change in saddle colour to white as well. Rule #8 »

  2. @frank Frank, if you look at a Ridley Noah, it will have very similar cut outs on the fork for the very reason that it reduces drag and thus saves effort. So it hasn’t fallen by the wayside. »

Guest Article: The Art of Noodling

Like almost anything in Japan, the creation of noodles is a deeply ritualized art. Recipes are closely guarded secrets, and cooks apprentice for many years in the creation of a restaurant’s specific type of noodle. Not surprisingly, this type of ritualization can be appreciated by the Velominati, and Cyclops (who happens to be a bit of a gou...

@xponti's posts:

  1. I prefer Knoodling to Noodling, but I do enjoy when you are just starting up a rise, and a few take off in front of you, but then you do a Cuddles and gradually pull them back over the climb and pass them. Oh and @thejensie is the master yoda of Lvl 3 No… »

Velominati Super Prestige: 2011 La Vuelta a España

Spain is an awesome country. It has amazing scenery, culture, cities and chicas… oh, the chicas. Its football competition features the world’s best players, their national team are the reigning World Cup holders, and they boast world champions in tennis, Moto GP, Superbikes and Formula 1. They regularly kick the collective asses of Fran...

@xponti's posts:

  1. VSP PICKS (1st Rest Day Swaps): 1. Nibali 2. Scarponi 3. Wiggo 4. Menchov 5. j-rod »