Giro wrap

Photo by flowizm, Creative Commons licensed.

The 2012 edition of the Giro d’Italia wound up on Sunday night (the 27th May - Australian time). It was a dramatic end to the three-week stage race, with Ryder Hesjerdal only narrowly capturing the pink jersey.

I’m a little late with this post and I don’t have much more to say other than it was a brilliant race and Hesjerdal was awesome. Like Cadel’s first Australian grand tour win in the TdF in 2011, I’m sure this will be huge in Canada and will do massive things for cycling in that country.

I read some news reports in Canadian newspapers and it made me smile to read that the cycling shops, cafés and bars were packed out early in the morning to watch Hesjerdal in the final time-trial. It reminds me of the TdF last year when we were all on the edges of our seats, watching Cadel clench the yellow jersey in the final time-trial.

Hesjerdal’s win just goes to show that nice guys can finish first! I just wish I had some money on Hesjerdal for the win – the odds would have been great!

The course and the race overall was also a victory for the new race director Michele Acquarone. After the tradgedy of Wouter Weylandt’s death in the 2011 edition, and the general rider dissatisfaction with the course, the previous director stepped aside. Taking up the reigns of the race, Michele Acquarone had four objectives; he wanted to make it more fan friendly, safer, international and slightly easier (so riders could also compete in the TdF). I think Acquarone achieved his goals, the start in Denmark gave the race huge exposure, and the well thought out, easier and safer course was also a positive change.

The racing was exceptional also – some of my own highlights I’ve already listed in the previous post. The 2012 World Tour is heating up now as we head into June and there is some great racing to look forward to – particularly the Dauphine.

It's Giro Time!

For me, this year, the Giro has seemed quite tame. Yes, there have been some great breakaways, some spectacular sprint finishes and some gruelling mountain ascents, but there is something lacking. Compared to the drama of last year’s edition, any tour would seem tame, but for me, this edition has definitely been impacted by the lack of the really big names.

I love watching cycling races where all the big names are there, when everyone is racing to their full capacity, and the one that wins can truly call themselves the best. Unfortunately, because of the way the Pro Tour is set up, the winner of the Giro wont be able to say this. Everyone knows that the race would play out very differently if Andy Schleck was there, or Evans, Sanchez, Van Den Broeck, Wiggins, Nibali, or even Cobo.

The cycling diehards out there will tell me that this is the way it’s always been, and that no true Tour de France GC contender would dare taking a chance on the Giro, in fear of burning themselves out. I know this and I get it. I’m just saying that for the spectator, some of the thrill is lost when the big names are absent.   

I suppose this is one of the reasons why the Tour de France is the biggest race in the world – it attracts the best of the best.

Anyhow, we are now at the pointy end of the race. Cavendish has once again asserted his dominance and taken three stages (and possibly a forth tonight). I was ecstatic to see Gossy pick up a stage win, edging out some of the best sprinters in the world to claim the first Giro stage win for Green Edge. Current race leader, Rodriguez, has taken two dominating stage wins and we’ve seen some brilliant solo victories (in particular from Amador and Rabottini). Taylor Phinney’s domination of the stage one ITT was also a huge highlight, 8.7km’s in 10 minutes and 26 seconds – that’s an average speed of over 50 kmph!

Tonight we should see Cav take his fourth stage win on a relatively flat and short stage 18, and confirm his hold on the green jersey. We will then see the main protagonists of the GC fight it out in the ridiculously hard mountain stages 19 and 20. I never thought he would be able to do it again, but Basso is looking really strong and is a good chance to take his third Giro. Scarponi and Rodriguez are strong chances as well – though they will need to attack fiercely to take some time gaps that will see them safely through the final time trial.

My money? Well that’s on Hesjedal. The big Canadian has a fire in his eyes that screams of his desire to take the overall win. If he can minimise his losses in the next few days he should be able to take the win in the final time trial.  

Giro d'Italia Wrap

The Giro is finally over after three weeks of drama, mountains, sprint controversies, and Contador domination. The Giro is a different beast than the other Grand Tours, it doesn't have the polish and reputation of the Tour de France, it doesn't have the heat of the Vuelta a Espana, but it does have the passion of the Italian fans, difficult stages and an element of danger. This years course was widely criticised for being too long, too mountainous, and having too many difficult descents. Despite this, it wasn't the most interesting of races. The field lacked many of the current stars, and as Aussies, we didn't really have any riders to cheer for. Richie Porte and Cameron Meyer did a great job as domestiques for their respective teams - but they were never let off their leash to have a real crack.

Things got off to a shaky start - with the tragedy of Wouter Weylandt's death on the third stage, then there was the neutralised stage afterward and the subsequent exit of team Leopard Trek out of respect. Then things once again got going in earnest with a few successful break-aways. But after the awesome win by Contador on the top of Mt Etna on stage 9, the race was a foregone conclusion and we were left to just marvel at the domination of one of the world's best cyclists.

There were some great moments though. As already mentioned, Contador's win on Mt Etna was awe-inspiring. He broke away from the other major players effortlessly and no one was able to match his speed on the steep gradients. Stage races are won on the mountains and this is where Contador won the Giro. The perfect organisation and meticulous execution of a race plan by HTC Highroad as their lead out train delivered Mark Cavendish to two brilliant victories, was also a highlight. I loved Igor Anton's brilliant win on Monte Zoncolan and finally, David Millar's speed on the final time trial in Milan was amazing. The time trial specialists, like Millar and the infallible Cancellara (who wasn't competing in the Giro) always blow me away with their inhuman high average speeds (Millar averaged more than 51kph on the 21.5km stage).

So that's it, the Giro done and dusted for another year. I've got to give a mention to SBS before I sign off though (the only station in Australia that gives any airtime to cycling). SBS did a cracking job of presenting 4 live stages of the tour and aired a half an hour update show each day. Hopefully it all rated well so we get the same or better coverage in 2012. The SBS Cycling Central website was brilliant as usual. Most of the time I'd fall asleep on the couch when watching the live stages, so watching the stage updates on the web the morning after is a necessary and enjoyable ritual, and one I'm sure other cycling fanatics can relate to! Thanks SBS!

Sad news at the Giro

The Giro d'Italia has started in tragic circumstances this year with the death of Wouter Weylandt on the third stage of the classic. The crash happened on a decent considered to be one of the tamer decents of this years course, which some pro's have argued is too dangerous. This is a terribly sad accident. All cyclists know the dangers of what we do - but you can't think about it, you just ride and hope for the best, and most of the time it's fine. But every once in a while something like this happens and it reminds you of the nature of our crazy sport. RIP Wouter and good luck to the Leopard Trek team for their re-building process.