An aggressively contested classic, pretty much from the moments the cameras came on (and off). Effective, well-executed team work, some nice individual performances, but also kind of an example of how, sometimes, you just gotta be fast. Those in Germany might need to watch on Vimeo.
thanks again for uploading this on vimeo for us poor germans!
Great recap of a great race, LBL is my fave spring classic. Chapeau, Valverde!
Thanks Cosmo, I was waiting for your Flèche recap but I guess you can’t do everything 😉
Valverde rode masterfully there’s no doubt about it, keeping a low profile, being there at the end, and going at just right the moment to catch Moreno.
I guess he’s not well liked because of his involvement in operation Puerto, which I can understand. If you want to enjoy watching pro cycling, I guess you have two choices:
a) hope that the sport has been cleaned up, and remove / excoriate any riders caught doping
b) assume that everyone is doping to the extent they can get away with it and just consider it another element of the sport.
(I’m pretty sure that at :55 it’s not Chavez but in fact Simon Yates — once it’s clear it’s Chavez in the group, you can see he’s in a non-aero helmet. I never did quite figure out how Chavez got up there — as far as I could tell, it wasn’t broadcast, but my guess is that Chavez was in the 2nd group that bridged across.)
Yep—I couldn’t make out the face well enough or a see a number, and missed Yates and Chaves switching places in the first group. I read Yates’ post-race interview in Velonews today and was like “d’oh”. Fortunately, Vimeo lets you upload corrected videos, so I’ll fix it there. YouTube, not so much.
Much thanks!!
Great piece Cosmo, I freak’n love Hansen. Even more now!! Good choice. 🙂