Old HTRWW Archive

So, given that I wasn’t going to be able to get this done anywhere near the actual end of the Tour de France, I took a shot a mostly comprehensive take on the GC race into a single episode. Lots of links to other videos (things are interrelated—who knew?) so hopefully YouTube won’t take it…

It’s one stage, and it’s the whole Giro. There weren’t major GC gaps at the top of the classification, but maybe there could have been. Purely speculative ♫…and to be real, it doesn’t matter anyway… ♫

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.

A lot of cool and varied teamwork from a variety of squads, mercifully few crashes, near-fisticuffs, and nicely tactical final k. All in all, not a bad Amstel. Watch on Vimeo if the embed above doesn’t work—it’s a better site anyway.

The cobbles weren’t all that decisive this year—thanks to good weather and a steady tailwind, they were really more a steady grindstone against which the field was reduced. The real tactical action came at the very end, and involved some of Etixx-Quickstep’s best racing this spring, though in the finale, the outcome was pretty much…

A long race with a relatively simple plotline and loads of substories. Sky over-working, Greipel doing everything, Shimano not-so-neutral service, FDJ’s miserable luck, Tiesj Benoot…but as always, to get everything (like those last two), you’ll have to watch the actual race.

Another one of those (lol) Sprinters’ Classics. Nice to have the crosswinds kick the living daylights out of it this time around, resulting in a very different, strangely tactical conclusion.

Sure, it ended in a sprint—but a sprinters’ classic? Hardly. Attacks, crashes, teamwork and especially the ever-present battle for position all played a huge role long before riders reached the final K.

Not my favorite race of the year, but a few interesting GC days more than made up for the lack of crosswinds in the early going. A predictable winner, though he took a strange route to get there. (In Germany or otherwise having trouble watching on YouTube? It’s on Vimeo, too)

Not a lot of tactical subtlety this time around—once the teams hit the hardest section of gravel, it was (almost) every rider for themselves. Still, a few little points to note here and there, modest attempts at teamwork, some impressive individual performances, and inspiring scenery to boot. (In Germany or otherwise having trouble watching on…