Blimey, a heavyweight breakaway has 7'48 on the Pink...
Properly rolling out too, not pansying around... this might just be it.
Properly rolling out too, not pansying around
who you callin' a pansy ? 😉
oooooo those cross winds look nasty
Watching c'dale on the front and thinking that I'm a tall skinny bugger, but Hugh Carthy is something else. I'm 189 and 73Kg, he's listed at 189 and 63Kg - that's insane! Wiggo at Tour weight was supposedly ~68Kg (190cm)
... and the gap is not coming down that quickly given the way cannondale are riding. It needs to start coming down on this first little ramp to keep the peloton interested.
this is going to the wire, breakaway jumped with 100m to go ? !
wow fab descent 🙂
breakaway has it! though it's getting cagey.
Wow, break held all the way !
Good lads !!!
Stage 7 Castrovillari > Alberobello [b]Over the Arch[/b]
Over the first 140 km, the route is essentially flat (with just a short descent after the start), mainly on straight and wide roads, and only becomes more elaborate when crossing urban areas. After cresting the Bosco delle Pianelle KOM summit, the final part of the stage is more complicated, as the route passes through several urban areas, with roundabouts, traffic dividers, pedestrian islands, setts paving and speed bumps being the main obstacles. The final 40 km are undulating, and going slightly up, with arrival in Alberobello, stage town for the first time. The final kilometres are fairly complex, as the route runs partly on wide and straight roads, and partly on city roads marked by series of bends and partial narrowings. From 5 to 1.5 km to the finish, the route runs mostly uphill, with a short descent that ends 700 m before the finish. The route climbs slightly in the stage finale, with a few mild bends. The finish line sits on a 100-m long and 7.5-m wide asphalt straight.
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Exertion
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Frustration Elation
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Epic screw up by Cannondale yesterday, Woods actually won the sprint for the minor places, he's got to be raging, and for good reason.
Anyone got a link to a live video?
very strung out with a hint of echelon at the moment, will anyone take advantage ? looks like they've had a chat and the peloton slowed down back to a bunch.
Sprinter to win.
Nice to see Rusvelo out front for a change.
Adam Yates saddle looked very low.
Have Sky been squeezed out ? Don't see their train 😕
Good sprint finish !!
Have Sky been squeezed out ? Don't see their train
They don't have a sprinter so don't have a train. They were up the front to keep Thomas and Landa out of trouble.
It wasn't the usual number of riders, single rider took G to the front then left him and dropped back. Perhaps they had taken on board complaints from the sprinters teams. though moviestar didn't seem to 🙂
Everyone on TV gets such a hard-on about Caleb Ewan's super-low sprint position. But in reality he's no lower than anyone else in terms of actual body position. It's just that he's so tiny that he has practically zero saddle to bar drop - because he can't actually get a smaller bike - so his bars are up under his chin.
happy orica
Must admit, i'm craving a bit of GC excitement now really. Especially considering there's a lack of Sagan/Cav excitement.
Greipel must be spitting feathers after yesterday, just got totally boxed in and left himself in an impossible position to try for the sprint. Good sprint though for the win from Caleb.
Stage 8 Molfetta > Peschici
The stage starts from Molfetta, for the first time in the history of Giro. The route is on flat and straight roads in the first 90 km, while the following 100 km are constantly undulating, with several curves and changes of direction. Past Manfredonia, the stage clears the Monte Sant’Angelo categorised climb, and then takes the entire scenic route, all the way to Peschici (with a KOM climb in Coppa Santa Tecla and an intermediate sprint in Vieste) which has already been stage town for other four times (one starting and three arrival). The stage finale is fairly complex, with a fast-running descent from 5 to 3 km to the finish, followed by a short flat stretch, up to 1,500 m from the finish. Here begins the closing climb, which grows increasingly steeper as the finish draws nearer (with peaks reaching 12%), and with several sharp bends. The home straight (200 m), on 7-m wide stone-paved road, has a 9-10% uphill gradient.
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Yeh, just a bit too twisty & narrow* wasn't it - even 4 or 5 back turned out to be a riskGreipel must be spitting feathers after yesterday, just got totally boxed in and left himself in an impossible position to try for the sprint. Good sprint though for the win from Caleb.
*your cynic might say that the lead-out man was careful not to be too careful when he dropped off too
Good breakaway here, last 30k will be interesting
Landa Attack!
Like trails on a 29er, will today's stage see the GC battle come alive? Looking forward to it 🙂
Stage 9 Motenero di Bisaccia > BlockHaus
Unprecedented stage start from Montenero di Bisaccia. Then the first part of the stage runs along the Statale Adriatica (ss. 16), on wide roads, along the coast, following a wavy profile. The route heads inland past Francavilla a Mare, and reaches Chieti (a short climb with a few punchy bits) where the intermediate sprint is set. When leaving the ss. 5 to reach Manoppello and Lettomanoppello, the roads become narrower, and the surface is worn out at points. The final climb (13 km) begins past Roccamorice. Arrival at Blockhaus (last KOM in 2009 Franco Pellizotti). The last 13 km go up steadily on narrow road, with several hairpins. Gradients are over 9% for almost 10 km, with peaks reaching as high as 14%. There is a very short counterslope 500 m before the finish. The home straight (200 m long, on 6-m wide asphalt road) has an uphill gradient of approx. 8%.
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more from the jokers
will today's stage see the GC battle come alive?
light (9kph) headwind on the climb with the slight risk of thunderstorms. Another breakaway win due to the GC contenders playing silly buggers ?
2 questions
1) why does a southern Italian town have a German name?
2) what do the little "TV" symbols mean on the stage maps?
GPM – Gran Premio della Montagna – categorised climb for King of the Mountains
TV – Traguardo Volante – Intermediate Sprint
R = Rifornimento – Feed Zone
Grazie 🙂
I really want to punch the smug **** from CA technologies
still no joy with hugh for the orica lads 🙂
break caught really racing into the climb! movistar out front but I fancy an attack from nibali
why does a southern Italian town have a German name?
The Name: blockhaus doesn’t sound very Italian but remember that Italy has only recently started speaking Italian. Back in the 1860s it was common for many military officers to have links to the Hapsburgs and the Austro-Hungarian. The block house was a small garrison designed to allow the army to control the Abruzzo hills for military and economic reasons, a strategic point to monitor the land and any smugglers. One visit to the top and you can see the view for yourself and why the government wanted to control the terrain from this point. The Giro says Blockhaus but the roadsigns in the region say Block Haus.
