Seriously. Is it almost September? This was not the agreement, this was supposed to be an endless summer. And all you A-Holes down there in the Antipodes are seeing the light at the end of the tunnel, enjoying longer days and shorter nights. I don’t need to tell you where you can take that, but it’s dark and it smells. I have no patience for the changing of seasons when it means I’m going to be benching Number One and busting out the headlight.
I’m not going to lie to you; the Vuelta is my least-favorite race of the year. Part of it is the parcours-it’s hard enough to get excited about flat sprint stages in the Tour, but these stages in central Spain that go down a straight freeway for hours are just too much for my brain to find interesting. Hey look! There’s another shrub! Wasn’t he a President at one point? There will be some redeeming points of the race, I’m sure, and the shit-steep climbs they dot along the route are certain to be highlights of the season. But after you do the math, this is the grand tour with the weakest field, the worst route, and-most damning-the strongest signal that Summer is coming to an end on the half of the world that matters.
I can’t be bothered to sort out the route and what stages are going to matter, but I’ll tell you this: for the last few years, the winner of the Vuelta VSP has won the VSP GC. A few years back, @Marcus complained that he only lost the VSP because @Nate used the second Rest Day Swaps to his advantage to take the win, but after heavily increasing the penalties, he kept losing. Typical of a man who posts photos of his todger on a Cycling site. (@Nate, your win was clean according to the VCI.) Speaking of which, at worst the Vuelta will distract from Pat McQuaid and his bid for losing the UCI Presidency.
He has a strong lead in the 2013 Anti-V competition, however.
Check the start list, get your picks in, and don’t Delgado this baby; it could be your ticket to the shop apron. Bon chance.
[vsp_results id=”26944″/]
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Horner does it again! Some seriously exciting racing in today's stage.
I was sure Nibali was going to reel Horner in when he blitzed the others: sure wrong. When will age catch up with Chris? Surely he can't sustain this for 3 weeks.
Horndog leading a Grand Tour on Stage 10. Never, in my wildest dreams, did that possibility occur to me. As a point of interest, I'm going to check later to see if anyone has him in their picks.
I'm similarly surprised to see @eigthzero lead anything that isn't a queue to the loo.
@ramenvelo
Fixed your post.
@frank this is what cycling news has after stage 10
1
Christopher Horner (USA) RadioShack Leopard
40:29:14
2
Vincenzo Nibali (Ita) Astana Pro Team
0:00:43
3
Nicolas Roche (Irl) Team Saxo-Tinkoff
0:00:53
4
Alejandro Valverde Belmonte (Spa) Movistar Team
0:01:02
5
Joaquim Rodriguez Oliver (Spa) Katusha
0:01:40
@frank
When I was doing my picks for this VSP, Marc (my VMH) said I should pick Horner. I kinda snickered and said there was no way I was picking Horner for the Vuelta. Marc hasn't said "I told you so" but there is a little smirk on his face.
Rock and roll....I remember pony-tailed CHorn when he was a youngster. Heavy metal, Led Zeppelin Chris Horner. Lets see his old legs make it the end.
Out of order but the picks are still there Except for YouRan. Still a long way to go.
VSP PICKS (1st Rest Day Swaps):
1. Valverde
2. J-Rod
3. Nibbles
4. Horner
5. Basso
Check the madness
http://www.rtve.es/m/alacarta/videos/vuelta-ciclista-a-espana/ascension-integra-alto-hazallanas/2010149/?media=tve
that is Steep.
VSP PICKS (1st Rest Day Swaps):
1. Nibali
2. Rodriguez
3. Basso
4. Valverde
5. Horner
VSP PICKS (1st Rest Day Swaps):
1. Nibali
2. Rodriguez
3. Valverde
4. Henao
5. Nicolas Roche