Velominati Super Prestige: Giro D’Italia 2013

Pink Ryder photo:REUTERS/Alessandro Garofalo

Twiggo is dreaming of a Giro-Tour double. He has sent out mixed messages about his Tour ambitions. Will he use the Giro as the ultimate Tour preparation or will be burn all his matches in May and hope he can find another pack for July? He has abandoned his successful 2012 Tour run-up strategy of winning every stage race he entered the previous spring. Now it’s the seclusion of Mount Doom of Tenerife, his coach and his watt meter his only competition. Team Sky is supporting Wig with a very strong squad, including superman, Kanstantsin Siutsou and with Cav no longer a teammate, it’s all the knights of the round table for Sir Twig.

Will the curse of the god-awful Astana kit continue to haunt non-Kazahk riders? Can Vincenzo’s Italian mojo overpower its powerful pale blue and yellow aura? Roman Kreuziger was finally able to win a big race once he shed that kit and pulled on one of Bjarne’s Saxo jerseys. Maybe it was more Bjarne and less jersey that made the difference.

Ryder gets no respect as the defending champion. His little dance at the end of Liége-Bastogne-Liége showed he is fit and ready for a fight. He can time trial, he can climb. Personally I have to back the local boy. And I always hate the overpowered, overwhelming favorite (read Team Sky here) in any race, unless that racer is Fabian Cancellara. No one can say Fabs has won a race this year surrounded with a team as strong as Sky’s. The Shack is just the Shack or a shack. Once Cancellara leaves for the Swiss “I AM” team, it’s lights out in the shack. Frandy, don’t forget to turn out ’em out when you leave.

If Cavendish wins the first day’s sprinter’s stage he will be in pink. He may be out of it after stage two, a team time trial.

But this is the Giro: crazy, unexpected, beautiful things can happen. The spinning wheels of fortuna are less predictable in Italy as they are in France in July. The betting window is now open. The complete start list is not yet available, an incomplete one is here and shall be updated soon. So sleep on your picks, wait for all the teams to make it official, unless you want to go with the obvious all Sky podium. The race begins Saturday so don’t Delgado away a Grand Tour opportunity.

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Gianni

Gianni has left the building.

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View Comments

ChrisO says:

May 12 2013 at 1:36 am

BTW, speaking of being clean, I see TVG has made an appeal to everyone to have faith in the new generation of riders at his pre-California press conference.

So,, man riding in race sponsored by world's leading EPO manufacturer says "We're clean".

Who says Americans have no sense of irony.

I'm amazed Amgen is still sponsoring it, and that there hasn't been more of a reaction to it from teams, the UCI etc. Although at the end of they day I shouldn't be surprised that it's all about the money.
Mikael Liddy says:

May 12 2013 at 6:53 am

Looks like another proper Rule #9 day (fairly reminiscent of some of the weather the VMH & I experienced on our honeymoon in Florence actually), interesting to see how Sir C*ntalot handles it.
strathlubnaig says:

May 12 2013 at 8:21 am

I think it may be Ryder OOT and Cuddles IN
frank says:

May 12 2013 at 8:33 am

That is another great day sorted. Ryder, whole lotta WTF going on there. I think his performance can be traced down to this moment.
motor city says:

May 12 2013 at 8:46 am

@snoov Mayo's time was set during the ITT in the 94 Dauphine, it wasn't a road stage.
snoov says:

May 12 2013 at 8:48 am

@ChrisO

BTW, speaking of being clean, I see TVG has made an appeal to everyone to have faith in the new generation of riders at his pre-California press conference.

So,, man riding in race sponsored by world's leading EPO manufacturer says "We're clean".

Who says Americans have no sense of irony.

I'm amazed Amgen is still sponsoring it, and that there hasn't been more of a reaction to it from teams, the UCI etc. Although at the end of they day I shouldn't be surprised that it's all about the money.

You expect a sensible reaction from the UCI?!
itburns says:

May 12 2013 at 9:39 am

@ChrisO

@snoov Hear hear... the marginal gains thing is misleading in my view.

That's certainly part of their philosophy but reading interviews with some riders - particularly those who've been on other teams - the 'magic' that Sky have brought is simply to operate the way I think most of would think a sports team should operate.

Most teams haven't changed their way of working since the days of Merckx. Even now they just leave their riders to get on with their own training - a camp at the beginning of the season which may be the only time they ever train together. As for looking at nutrition, training peaks, planned campaigns, psychology and all the other stuff, forgeddaboudit. Imagine if you worked from home all the time and your boss just called you now and then and said go to this meeting.

There were more than marginal gains to be had for some fairly basic approaches to training and team management so I'm not surprised at the way they emerged so far ahead.

This is the same story line Postal used. It would be nice if it is actually true this time.
strathlubnaig says:

May 12 2013 at 9:49 am

Tweet from Vaughters.... Well, on to plan B in the Giro. Rest on the rest day, then figure out how to liven up the race for the 2nd half.

That's gotta hurt Ryder a wee bitty when he reads that.
Steampunk says:

May 12 2013 at 10:09 am

@frank

What?? You stepped out in front of his bike while he was descending Haleakala?
snoov says:

May 12 2013 at 11:08 am

@itburns Let's hope so. I'm quite new to road cycling especially following the whole season of races and gossip so I didn't know that re Postal. I have my doubts that Brailsford would put himself in such a position though, but that doesn't mean anything.