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Fri, 11 May 2012 03:36:49 GMT

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Thu, 10 May 2012 21:52:04 GMT

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Thu, 10 May 2012 20:45:04 GMT

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Thu, 10 May 2012 16:33:16 GMT

[bike] chirosangaku:

Thu, 10 May 2012 16:21:23 GMT

chirosangaku:

Novinka Northshore 2012 - Technika - Redakční foto - Fotogalerie - MTBS.cz

[bike] Rushing message

Thu, 10 May 2012 12:00:24 GMT

[bike] THIS WEEKEND AT DICK LANE VELODROME

Wed, 09 May 2012 17:35:16 GMT

THIS WEEKEND AT DICK LANE VELODROME

Get ready for The Keirin! This Saturday, the Pro Race Series kicks off with one of the most exciting track races of the year. A quick look at the start list and you can tell things are going to get fast. And don’t forget about the Need For Speed Sprints on Friday night.

Full race flyer is available HERE.

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Wed, 09 May 2012 14:31:26 GMT

[bike] ALPENROSE: ERIC KAUTZKY MEMORIAL RACE

Tue, 08 May 2012 23:09:56 GMT

ALPENROSE: ERIC KAUTZKY MEMORIAL RACE

Jose Sandoval was on the scene last weekend to capture all the racing at Alpenrose Velodrome as the 2012 track season gets underway in the Northwest. See the rest of the set on Flickr.

Results are posted HERE.

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Tue, 08 May 2012 22:28:45 GMT

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Tue, 08 May 2012 19:18:12 GMT

[bike] VELODROME CONSTRUCTION BEGINS IN COLORADO

Tue, 08 May 2012 17:57:39 GMT

VELODROME CONSTRUCTION BEGINS IN COLORADO

As one track shuts its doors, another is born. The Boulder Valley Velodrome project broke ground a few days ago in Erie, Colorado and Daily Camera was there to hear from some of the dreamers who are making this a reality.

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Tue, 08 May 2012 15:55:23 GMT

[bike] THIS WEEKEND IN SEATTLE

Tue, 08 May 2012 14:30:01 GMT

THIS WEEKEND IN SEATTLE

Help to kick off http://velodrome.org/mva/“>Marymoor Velodrome’s 2012 season with some good old fashioned roller racing this Saturday at Hale’s Ales Palladium.

[bike] Monia's Brand new bike from Fixed Photo Garage

Tue, 08 May 2012 13:22:56 GMT

I fully recomended Monia's photo blog - this is photography...not fuckin instagram.

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Tue, 08 May 2012 03:36:23 GMT

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Mon, 07 May 2012 21:24:41 GMT

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Mon, 07 May 2012 15:48:00 GMT

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Mon, 07 May 2012 04:35:52 GMT

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Sun, 06 May 2012 23:46:04 GMT

[bike] Giro d'Italia Stage 2 LIVE

Sun, 06 May 2012 10:25:01 GMT

Herning - Herning 206 km

The race goes out to the western coast of Jutland in search of nasty crosswinds to spice things up.

Podicci's Pazzo Pick: Andrea Guardini

Official site , Startlist , Stageinfo

Live video: 14:00 CEST (08:00 US EDT, 22:00 AUS EST)

Video: RAI , GazzettaTV , steephill , cyclingfans , Procyclinglive , Sports Livez.

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Sun, 06 May 2012 04:50:14 GMT

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Sun, 06 May 2012 00:56:47 GMT

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Sat, 05 May 2012 21:43:33 GMT

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Sat, 05 May 2012 19:10:13 GMT

[bike] Giro d'Italia Stage 1 Results - Phinney Pretty in Pink

Sat, 05 May 2012 17:44:17 GMT

The Giro has started! Pull out your pink and rejoice, people! No, we're not in Italy yet, but racing and pink is here. BMC's Taylor Phinney opened up the racing in the Giro today by winning the 8.7km prologue in the Danish city of Herning with a time of 10'26". In doing so he beat a bevy of TT specialists and scored what is undoubtedly the biggest win of his career.

Taylor Phinney (BMC) 10'26""
Geraint Thomas (SKY) 9"
Alex Rasmussen (GRM) 13"

Full results and more details under the jump.

The course for today's prologue was fairly technical, though fortunately for the riders most of the turns came in the first half before oxygen debt really began to set in. Garmin-Barracuda held an early stranglehold on the leader board with Ramunas posting an early best time that withheld many attempts to unseat him. For the longest time, Julian Dean and Jack Bauer also represented Garmin in the top five.

The sprinters were giving it their all in the prologue in hopes of securing a pink jersey later on, particularly after the team time trial. But an 11 minute race is a little too long for them, so the TT specialists generally had their day. Twice the announcers erupted in excitement as Brett Lancaster and Marco Pinotti came under into the slightly downhill ultimo kilometro with 1:10 to beat Navarduaskas' time, but both times the riders were left a second or two in arrears of the young Lithuanian.

After over an hour in the hot seat, Navarduaskas was unseated by Saxo Bank's Manuele Boaro, who knocked a whopping 8 seconds off the fastest time. But with Geraint Thomas behind him, Boaro did not even have time to make it over to the hot seat before the flying Welshman took a further 6 seconds off the winning time.

Now was the time of the fast men, and Taylor Phinney quickly unseated Geraint Thomas, taking an unbelievable 9 seconds off the winning time. With mostly GC contenders still left to come and Alex Rasmussen and Gustav Larsson unable to come close to his performance, Phinney's time was secure and he took what is undoubtedly his biggest victory of his burgeoning career.

In the overall classification, Phinney now wears the Maglia Rosa. Many of the overall contenders came in with similar times - Kreuziger, Basso, and Joaquim Rodriguez were separated by a mere 7 seconds - but Michele Scarponi and John Gadret must be disappointed to have conceded 30 and 40 seconds respectively to Kreuziger in such a short time trial.

Top Ten

Taylor Phinney (BMC) 10'26""
Geraint Thomas (SKY) 9"
Alex Rasmussen (GRM) 13"
Manuele Boaro (SAX) 15"
Gustav Larsson (VAC) 22"
Ramnunas Navarduaskas (GRM) 22"
Brett Lancaster (OGE) 23"
Marco Pinotti (BMC) 24"
Jesse Sergent (RNT) 26"
Nelson Oliveira (RNT) 27"

Full results here.

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Sat, 05 May 2012 16:51:47 GMT

[bike] Giro d'Italia Stage 1 LIVE... 2nd thread

Sat, 05 May 2012 15:48:11 GMT

Herning 8.7 km TT

Grand Tour season starts here. Herning, in the heartland of Danish cycling, hosts the start of the Giro

Podicci's Pazzo Pick: Geraint Thomas

Official site , Startlist , Stageinfo , Starttimes TT below

Live video: 15:30 CEST (09:30 US EDT, 23:30 AUS EST)

Video: GazzettaTV , steephill , cyclingfans , Procyclinglive , Sports Livez.

1 29 VEN19850225 RODRIGUEZ Jackson VEN AND 15.40'00"
2 152 ITA19840612 BANDIERA Marco ITA OPQ 15.41'00"
3 204 DEN19860420 JÖRGENSEN Jonas Aaen DEN SAX 15.42'00"
4 182 AUT19810217 EISEL Bernhard AUT SKY 15.43'00"
5 62 ESP19860317 SAEZ DE ARREGUI Adrian ESP EUS 15.44'00"
6 47 ITA19840430 SANTAROMITA Ivan ITA BMC 15.45'00"
7 138 BEL19851205 MEERSMAN Gianni BEL LTB 15.46'00"
8 87 NOR19760408 RASCH Gabriel NOR FDJ 15.47'00"
9 35 KAZ19831017 DYACHENKO Alexsandr KAZ AST 15.48'00"
10 100 AUS19861105 GOSS Matthew Harley AUS OGE 15.49'00"
11 211 ITA19790325 CARRARA Matteo ITA VCD 15.50'00"
12 19 FRA19840918 PERGET Mathieu FRA ALM 15.51'00"
13 96 RSA19770422 HUNTER Robert RSA GRM 15.52'00"
14 146 CRC19860829 AMADOR BIKKAZAKOVA Andrey CRC MOV 15.53'00"
15 59 ITA19880822 COLEDAN Marco ITA COG 15.54'00"
16 116 ESP19820228 LOSADA ALGUACIL Alberto ESP KAT 15.55'00"
17 172 BEL19860214 BAKELANTS Jan BEL RNT 15.56'00"
18 79 ITA19890920 BALLONI Alfredo ITA FAR 15.57'00"
19 127 ITA19850218 SALERNO Cristiano ITA LIQ 15.58'00"
20 168 AUS19790409 BROWN Graeme AUS RAB 15.59'00"
21 193 GER19870423 SEUBERT Timon GER APP 16.00'00"
22 7 ITA19800711 PIETROPOLLI Daniele ITA LAM 16.01'00"
23 28 VEN19801214 OCHOA Carlos José VEN AND 16.02'00"
24 158 SVK19850221 VELITS Martin SVK OPQ 16.03'00"
25 203 UKR19770215 GUSTOV Volodymir UKR SAX 16.04'00"
26 187 GBR19740312 HUNT Jeremy GBR SKY 16.05'00"
27 64 ESP19880830 MINGUEZ AYALA Miguel ESP EUS 16.06'00"
28 49 SUI19850826 WYSS Danilo SUI BMC 16.07'00"
29 132 NED19880407 BULGAC Brian NED LTB 16.08'00"
30 88 CAN19821029 ROLLIN Dominique CAN FDJ 16.09'00"
31 38 RUS19780525 PETROV Evgeni RUS AST 16.10'00"
32 101 JPN19830410 BEPPU Fumiyuki JPN OGE 16.11'00"
33 218 AUT19870920 DENIFL Stefan AUT VCD 16.12'00"
34 15 FRA19801113 DUPONT Hubert FRA ALM 16.13'00"
35 94 LTU19880130 NAVARDAUSKAS Ramunas LTU GRM 16.14'00"
36 147 ESP19840116 PARDILLA BELLON Sergio ESP MOV 16.15'00"
37 58 ITA19880804 PAGANI Angelo ITA COG 16.16'00"
38 119 ESP19770413 VICIOSO ARCOS Angel ESP KAT 16.17'00"
39 178 NZL19880708 SERGENT Jesse NZL RNT 16.18'00"
40 78 ITA19740204 MAZZANTI Luca ITA FAR 16.19'00"
41 123 POL19850307 BODNAR Maciej POL LIQ 16.20'00"
42 164 NED19851226 LEEZER Thomas NED RAB 16.21'00"
43 195 POL19801027 HUZARSKI Bartosz POL APP 16.22'00"
44 9 ITA19750114 SPEZIALETTI Alessandro ITA LAM 16.23'00"
45 27 COL19841003 RUBIANO CHAVEZ Miguel Angel COL AND 16.24'00"
46 153 ITA19801127 CHICCHI Francesco ITA OPQ 16.25'00"
47 202 DEN19850214 LUND Anders DEN SAX 16.26'00"
48 186 GBR19870525 STANNARD Ian GBR SKY 16.27'00"
49 63 ESP19890204 IZAGUIRRE INSAUSTI Jon ESP EUS 16.28'00"
50 46 ITA19841007 SANTAMBROGIO 51 135 BEL19880406 BILLE Gaetan BEL LTB 16.30'00"
52 85 FRA19801208 MOUREY Francis FRA FDJ 16.31'00"
53 39 EST19870311 KANGERT Tanel EST AST 16.32'00"
54 102 AUS19890713 BOBRIDGE Jack AUS OGE 16.33'00"
55 214 UZB19810114 LAGUTIN Sergey UZB VCD 16.34'00"
56 13 FRA19870727 BERARD Julien FRA ALM 16.35'00"
57 98 USA19870808 STETINA Peter USA GRM 16.36'00"
58 144 ESP19860320 INTXAUSTI ELORRIAGA Benat ESP MOV 16.37'00"
59 57 ITA19890226 LOCATELLI Stefano ITA COG 16.38'00"
60 115 BLR19791027 KUSCHYNSKI Aleksandr BLR KAT 16.39'00"
61 179 SUI19810509 ZAUGG Oliver SUI RNT 16.40'00"
62 77 ITA19860605 DE NEGRI Pier Paolo ITA FAR 16.41'00"
63 122 ITA19850106 AGNOLI Valerio ITA LIQ 16.42'00"
64 163 NED19830822 BOS Theo NED RAB 16.43'00"
65 191 ITA19870803 BENEDETTI Cesare ITA APP 16.44'00"
66 8 ITA19760328 RIGHI Daniele ITA LAM 16.45'00"
67 26 ITA19860519 DE MARCHI Alessandro ITA AND 16.46'00"
68 154 POL19840429 GOLAS Michal POL OPQ 16.47'00"
69 209 ARG19830418 HAEDO Lucas Sebastian ARG SAX 16.48'00"
70 183 ESP19770917 FLECHA GIANNONI Juan Antoni ESP SKY 16.49'00"
71 65 FRA19840607 CAZAUX Pierre FRA EUS 16.50'00"
72 43 SUI19861209 FRANK Mathias SUI BMC 16.51'00"
73 139 BEL19880627 VANENDERT Dennis BEL LTB 16.52'00"
74 83 FRA19910826 DEMARE Arnaud FRA FDJ 16.53'00"
75 31 CZE19860506 KREUZIGER Roman CZE AST 16.54'00"
76 103 RSA19841206 IMPEY Daryl RSA OGE 16.55'00"
77 213 FRA19840416 FEILLU Romain FRA VCD 16.56'00"
78 16 LUX19871114 GASTAUER Ben LUX ALM 16.57'00"
79 93 NZL19850407 BAUER Jack NZL GRM 16.58'00"
80 143 ESP19851001 HERRADA LOPEZ José ESP MOV 16.59'00"
81 56 ITA19900517 COLBRELLI Sonny ITA COG 17.00'00"
82 114 NOR19870705 KRISTOFF Alexander NOR KAT 17.01'00"
83 175 ITA19890130 NIZZOLO Giacomo ITA RNT 17.02'00"
84 76 ITA19890131 FAVILLI Elia ITA FAR 17.03'00"
85 129 ITA19850218 SABATINI Fabio ITA LIQ 17.04'00"
86 161 AUS19821022 RENSHAW Mark AUS RAB 17.05'00"
87 199 AUT19881021 SCHORN Daniel AUT APP 17.06'00"
88 4 ITA19831111 BONO Matteo ITA LAM 17.07'00"
89 25 ITA19900329 FELLINE Fabio ITA AND 17.08'00"
90 156 BEL19831121 PAUWELS Serge BEL OPQ 17.09'00"
91 201 ITA19740514 TOSATTO Matteo ITA SAX 17.10'00"
92 185 GBR19890615 KENNAUGH Peter GBR SKY 17.11'00"
93 66 ESP19890615 CABEDO Victor ESP EUS 17.12'00"
94 42 ITA19791106 BALLAN Alessandro ITA BMC 17.13'00"
95 137 BEL19830430 KAISEN Olivier BEL LTB 17.14'00"
96 82 FRA19850806 DELAGE Mickael FRA FDJ 17.15'00"
97 37 BEL19860912 SEELDRAYERS Kevin BEL AST 17.16'00"
98 104 BEL19881123 KEUKELEIRE Jens BEL OGE 17.17'00"
99 217 NED19880325 KEIZER Martijn NED VCD 17.18'00"
100 17 SLO19811015 GAZVODA Gregor SLO ALM 17.19'00"
101 92 BEL19810715 ROSSELER Sébastien BEL GRM 17.20'00"
102 145 ESP19760120 LASTRAS GARCIA Pablo ESP MOV 17.21'00"
103 55 ITA19870311 PIRAZZI Stefano ITA COG 17.22'00"
104 112 RUS19820129 BRUTT Pavel RUS KAT 17.23'00"
105 174 BEL19860608 HERMANS Ben BEL RNT 17.24'00"
106 74 ITA19870814 RABOTTINI Matteo ITA FAR 17.25'00"
107 128 POL19780302 SZMYD Sylvester POL LIQ 17.26'00"
108 166 GER19751103 NIERMANN Grischa Jan GER RAB 17.27'00"
109 197 SUI19821015 DIETZIKER Andreas SUI APP 17.28'00"
110 6 POL19800411 NIEMIEC Przemyslaw POL LAM 17.29'00"
111 24 ITA19830309 FERRARI Roberto ITA AND 17.30'00"
112 155 BEL19860409 MAES Nikolas BEL OPQ 17.31'00"
113 206 AUS19770125 ROBERTS Luke AUS SAX 17.32'00"
114 184 COL19871210 HENAO MONTOYA Sergio Luis COL SKY 17.33'00"
115 67 ESP19800207 VELASCO MURILLO Ivan ESP EUS 17.34'00"
116 48 SUI19820701 TSCHOPP Johann SUI BMC 17.35'00"
117 131 BEL19860826 DE CLERCQ Bart BEL LTB 17.36'00"
118 89 FIN19810329 VEIKKANEN Jussi FIN FDJ 17.37'00"
119 36 KAZ19861214 ZEITS Andrey KAZ AST 17.38'00"
120 105 AUS19791115 LANCASTER Brett AUS OGE 17.39'00"
121 219 ITA19850211 SELVAGGI Mirko ITA VCD 17.40'00"
122 14 FRA19870623 BONNAFOND Guillaume FRA ALM 17.41'00"
123 99 USA19760522 VANDEVELDE Christian USA GRM 17.42'00"
124 149 ESP19820506 VENTOSO ALBERDI Francisco J. ESP MOV 17.43'00"
125 54 ITA19870822 BRAMBILLA Gianluca ITA COG 17.44'00"
126 118 LAT19870415 SMUKULIS Gatis LAT KAT 17.45'00"
127 173 ITA19800924 BENNATI Daniele ITA RNT 17.46'00"
128 73 ITA19831216 FAILLI Francesco ITA FAR 17.47'00"
129 126 ITA19801210 LONGO BORGHINI Paolo ITA LIQ 17.48'00"
130 167 NED19890701 SLAGTER Tom Jelte NED RAB 17.49'00"
131 196 SUI19850822 HOLLENSTEIN Reto SUI APP 17.50'00"
132 3 ITA19890715 ULISSI Diego ITA LAM 17.51'00"
133 23 ITA19810109 SELLA Emanuele ITA AND 17.52'00"
134 159 BEL19890726 VERMOTE Julien BEL OPQ 17.53'00"
135 205 ARG19810126 HAEDO Juan José ARG SAX 17.54'00"
136 181 GBR19850521 CAVENDISH Mark GBR SKY 17.55'00"
137 68 ESP19821110 TXURRUKA Amets ESP EUS 17.56'00"
138 45 ITA19760225 PINOTTI Marco ITA BMC 17.57'00"
139 136 AUS19810511 HANSEN Adam AUS LTB 17.58'00"
140 84 FRA19820625 BONNET William FRA FDJ 17.59'00"
141 34 ITA19870117 PONZI Simone ITA AST 18.00'00"
142 106 CAN19850221 MEIER Christian CAN OGE 18.01'00"
143 216 POL19840306 MARCZYNSKI Tomasz POL VCD 18.02'00"
144 12 ITA19851014 BELLETTI Manuel ITA ALM 18.03'00"
145 95 CAN19801209 HESJEDAL Ryder CAN GRM 18.04'00"
146 142 ITA19740615 BRUSEGHIN Marzio ITA MOV 18.05'00"
147 53 ITA19891117 BATTAGLIN Enrico ITA COG 18.06'00"
148 117 ESP19810905 MORENO FERNANDEZ Daniel ESP KAT 18.07'00"
149 177 AUT19821223 ROHREGGER Thomas AUT RNT 18.08'00"
150 75 ITA19890612 GUARDINI Andrea ITA FAR 18.09'00"
151 125 ITA19871012 CARUSO Damiano ITA LIQ 18.10'00"
152 169 NED19871202 VAN WINDEN Dennis NED RAB 18.11'00"
153 194 GER19830713 SCHILLINGER Andreas GER APP 18.12'00"
154 5 ITA19880128 MALORI Adriano ITA LAM 18.13'00"
155 22 COL19790417 SERPA PEREZ Jose Rodolfo COL AND 18.14'00"
156 151 ITA19850317 CATALDO Dario ITA OPQ 18.15'00"
157 207 DEN19840406 CHRISTENSEN Mads DEN SAX 18.16'00"
158 189 COL19870126 URAN URAN Rigoberto COL SKY 18.17'00"
159 69 ESP19800711 OROZ UGALDE Juan Jose ESP EUS 18.18'00"
160 41 NOR19780118 HUSHOVD Thor NOR BMC 18.19'00"
161 133 BEL19850202 DE GREEF Francis BEL LTB 18.20'00"
162 81 FRA19790202 CASAR Sandy FRA FDJ 18.21'00"
163 33 ITA19770708 TIRALONGO Paolo ITA AST 18.22'00"
164 107 CAN19770509 TUFT Svein CAN OGE 18.23'00"
165 212 BEL19861106 DE GENDT Thomas BEL VCD 18.24'00"
166 18 ITA19840106 MONTAGUTI Matteo ITA ALM 18.25'00"
167 91 USA19840602 FARRAR Tyler USA GRM 18.26'00"
168 148 BLR19850525 SAMOILAU Branislau BLR MOV 18.27'00"
169 51 ITA19821130 POZZOVIVO Domenico ITA COG 18.28'00"
170 113 RUS19850507 IGNATYEV Mikhail RUS KAT 18.29'00"
171 176 POR19890306 OLIVEIRA Nelson POR RNT 18.30'00"
172 72 ITA19850101 GATTO Oscar ITA FAR 18.31'00"
173 124 ITA19860613 CAPECCHI Eros ITA LIQ 18.32'00"
174 162 ESP19760424 GARATE Juan Manuel ESP RAB 18.33'00"
175 198 AUT19891207 BRANDLE Matthias AUT APP 18.34'00"
176 2 ITA19810919 CUNEGO Damiano ITA LAM 18.35'00"
177 21 VEN19820218 RUJANO GUILLEN José VEN AND 18.37'00"
178 157 POL19900602 KWIATKOWSKI Michal POL OPQ 18.39'00"
179 208 ITA19871203 BOARO Manuele ITA SAX 18.41'00"
180 188 GBR19860525 THOMAS Geraint GBR SKY 18.43'00"
181 61 ESP19840526 NIEVE ITURALDE Mikel ESP EUS 18.45'00"
182 44 USA19900627 PHINNEY Taylor USA BMC 18.47'00"
183 134 DEN19800116 BAK Lars Ytting DEN LTB 18.49'00"
184 86 FRA19880322 SOUPE Geoffrey FRA FDJ 18.51'00"
185 32 ITA19820322 GASPAROTTO Enrico ITA AST 18.53'00"
186 109 LTU19820204 VAITKUS Tomas LTU OGE 18.55'00"
187 215 SWE19800920 LARSSON Gustav Erik SWE VCD 18.57'00"
188 11 FRA19790422 GADRET John FRA ALM 18.59'00"
189 97 DEN19840609 RASMUSSEN Alex DEN GRM 19.01'00"
190 141 ITA19830113 VISCONTI Giovanni ITA MOV 19.03'00"
191 52 ITA19870619 MODOLO Sacha ITA COG 19.05'00"
192 111 ESP19790512 RODRIGUEZ OLIVER Joaquin ESP KAT 19.07'00"
193 171 LUX19800415 SCHLECK Frank LUX RNT 19.09'00"
194 71 MC19810910 POZZATO Filippo MC1 FAR 19.11'00"
195 121 ITA19771126 BASSO Ivan ITA LIQ 19.13'00"
196 165 NED19820924 CLEMENT Stef NED RAB 19.15'00"
197 192 CZE19841207 BARTA Jan CZE APP 19.17'00"
198 1 ITA19790925 SCARPONI Michele ITA LAM 19.19'00"

[bike] Giro d'Italia Stage 1 LIVE

Sat, 05 May 2012 13:30:11 GMT

Herning 8.7 km TT

Grand Tour season starts here. Herning, in the heartland of Danish cycling, hosts the start of the Giro

Podicci's Pazzo Pick: Geraint Thomas

Official site , Startlist , Stageinfo , Starttimes TT below

Live video: 15:30 CEST (09:30 US EDT, 23:30 AUS EST)

Video: GazzettaTV , steephill , cyclingfans , Procyclinglive , Sports Livez.

[bike] 4 Jours de Dunkerque Stage 2 LIVE

Sat, 05 May 2012 11:19:09 GMT

Berck sur Mer - Montreuil sur Mer 180 km

The four day race in the Nord-Pas de Calais region most famous for actually being a five day race.

FSA DS Cat 5 , Check your roster here.

Podiumcafe random lottery pick: Gert Steegmans

Official site , Startlist , Stageinfo

Live video: 14:45 CEST (08:45 US EDT, 22:45 AUS EST)

Video: steephill , cyclingfans , Procyclinglive , Sports Livez.

[bike] (Image)

Sat, 05 May 2012 06:47:19 GMT

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Sat, 05 May 2012 03:09:20 GMT

[bike] Get well Cam it’s not the same riding without you bro.

Fri, 04 May 2012 22:58:29 GMT

Get well Cam it’s not the same riding without you bro.

[bike] (Image)

Fri, 04 May 2012 19:01:04 GMT

[bike] Viva il Giro! Prologue Preview and Friday Open Thread

Fri, 04 May 2012 18:29:12 GMT

Happy Friday to all! Tomorrow, we will have GIRO. How excited am I? Really, very excited. Italy! Bike racing! What's not to like? Okay, it's not quite Italy yet, there's that Denmark part to get through. Sharing the love, that's what.

Tomorrow's opening stage is a 8.7 kilometer flat time trial. I believe this is actually a prologue, but I never quite remember what the rule is about prologues versus time trials. Because it involves numbers and you know how well that always goes for me. Anyway, this thing is flat in the style of a pancake. The early kilometers are a bit technical with several 90-degree turns. Good bike handling will be key in this section. Then, there's a long straightaway, a final corner, and boom! It's over. Gazzetta has your stage information.

Jackson Rodríguez of Androni-Giacottoli-Venezuela is the first rider and will depart at 15:40 European time. Michele Scarponi of Lampre, last year's winner, will start at 19:19 as the final rider. Here is a prologue startlist with departure times so you can play along at home.

Favorites? Taylor Phinney, interviewed during the presentation show on RAI, said he had good legs and said he dreamed of wearing the Pink Jersey. This flat, fast time trial should suit him well. Geraint Thomas of Team Sky is another to watch for this one. This thingy is probably a bit short for Marco Pinotti, but he is a specialist against the watch, and Italian. The sprinters like Thor Hushvod and Tyler Farrar will likely place well. Sprinters, always looking for that first week Maglia Rosa. I'm just going to go ahead and pick Phinney to win. Why not?

Viva il Giro! Come on in, have some chat. Tomorrow, GIRO!

[bike] FSA DS: How To Win It All at the Giro d'Italia

Fri, 04 May 2012 16:11:23 GMT

The year's first grand tour marks the biggest cache of points on the calendar... potentially at least. All three grand tours give 600 points to the winner, 80 points for stages, and either 120 or 60 points for lesser jerseys, plus the longest list of non-winning points of any race. Of the three grand tours, the Tour de France is the worst opportunity to get ahead of your FSA DS competition, since the contenders are very well known and the spoils get pretty broadly distributed. By contrast, the more provincial Giro and Vuelta are sometimes seized by a smaller pool of contenders, or maybe even a single dominant rider, who can win multiple stages and jerseys. If you've got one of those guys, this is your big moment.

But is this anything like a winning strategy? Can chasing pink put you in the black for the rest of the season? Let's take a look at the contenders for the big pile of points. Douglas's top eight are Basso, Scarponi, J-Rod, Gadret, Kreuziger, Frank Schleck, Pozzovivo and Rujano. I suppose we could go to ten with the CyclingNews list, adding Damiano Cunego and Ryder Hesjedal.

Ivan Basso, Liquigas

Cost: 10

Giro or Bust? Definitely. This category speaks to whether the Giro is the only place for a guy on this list to pay back your investment in him. Basso could theoretically do something at the Tour, but there is no precedent for him scoring significantly outside Italy after a big Giro run. 2010 was his best year and the Giro was his last point.

Likelihood of win: In general, I am accepting Douglas's predictions, so these riders are in his order of likelihood, with a few extra notes. In Basso's case, he has royally sucked all year, but not in a way that should eliminate him, particularly with his history of wins... at least one of which has been rated as terrestrial.

Extra Credit: In Basso's wins he was pretty dominant, with stage wins and minor jersey points: second in mountains in 2010 and 5th in points. If he is on his top form, he could go very big.

Alla flippa for the rest...

Michele Scarponi, Lampre

Cost: 18 points

Giro or Bust? Not entirely. He shows up throughout spring and has some interest in the hillier classics. But his approach to the Giro was a bit quieter this year, so he might be close to done after the Giro.

Likelihood of win: My favorite to win, in part because he's on my team. But it matters that he is the reigning Giro champion, on a course that was brutal.

Extra Credit: Consistent finishes means he might fare well in the points competition, which he "won" last year too. No stage wins since 2010 but he'll be a threat for one.

Joaquim Rodriguez, Katusha

Cost: 26

Giro or Bust? Not even close.

Likelihood of win: He usually blows up somewhere along the way in a three-week race, but there's a first time for everything. His achilles is the time trial, and I guess he could throw away a few minutes in the final stage.

Extra Credit: Big-time stage winner. That could put him high up in the points. He loves those stages, appearing early in the race, with a late, small climb, as well as the true mountain stages.

John Gadret, AG2R

Cost: 8

Giro or Bust? Er, hard to say. Can he really turn around and place high up in the Tour? I'll guess that he scores points at home too. But he didn't last year after his cracking Giro.

Likelihood of win: Not great. Anything he can do, Scarponi can do better. But you never know.

Extra Credit: He bagged a middle mountain stage last year, so there's that. Minor placings in the other jerseys. Hey, for eight points, you get what you pay for.

Roman Kreuziger, Astana

Cost: 14

Giro or Bust? Nope. He's already paid off 60% of his 2011 haul before the first grand tour.

Likelihood of win: With a breakout performance... maybe. The course isn't tilted as heavily toward the climbs as before. If the time trial were 50k, then I might like him more.

Extra Credit: Eh... is he done with the maglia bianca? If so, there goes half his value, as far as past performances are concerned. But again, an improved Kreuziger could show up in the other jersey spots.

Frank Schleck

Cost: 16

Giro or Bust? Not at all. Frank is a consistent 1300+ scorer, largely on the strength of his showing up periodically throughout the year. July will be big for him too.

Likelihood of win: Plausible, if he were on peak form. Which isn't that plausible.

Extra Credit: Stage wins. If he's unfit early on, he could go stage hunting at the end. Nobody in this race has his Tour resume.

Domenico Pozzovivo, Colnago

Cost: 6

Giro or Bust? No, he scored big at Lombardia last year. Fall Italian season is good to him. And he's had a productive spring too. Kind of a bargain if he does anything at the Giro.

Likelihood of win: Uh, he hasn't finished the thing since 2008. But he can climb at least.

Extra Credit: Maybe a stage win? You can't get secondary jersey points, or not many of them, if you can't make it to Milan.

Jose Rujano, Androni Etc.

Cost: 2

Giro or Bust? Definitely. Androni don't get big invites outside Italy, and Rujano likes to go back to Venezuela in summer to put on a show for the home crowd.

Likelihood of win: Puhleese

Extra Credit: Stage wins. Multiple stage wins. Then a massive flameout in the first tactical race or time trial.

Damiano Cunego, Lampre

Cost: 10

Giro or Bust? No, the way he's going this year I'd expect a decent fall campaign too. He is a longshot Worlds candidate, since he's done well in Limburg before.

Likelihood of win: Greater than Rujano's. Of course, he's only plan B for his team, but if he's going well, a rider of his stature could become plan A pretty quickly. Hey, the guy is still in his prime, and was sixth in the Tour last year. As far as I'm concerned he's getting better with age.

Extra Credit: Possible early stage winner. He has a nose for the line in those short-climb finishes. That would in turn make him a big player in the points comp.

Ryder Hesjedal, Garmin

Cost: 6

Giro or Bust? No, although does this mean he's not doing the Tour? If not, then he'll be a possible winner at the summer and fall classics.

Likelihood of win: Sure, why not? But nothing stands out as to why him and not Scarponi.

Extra Credit: Just points, or maybe a KOM effort if his GC hopes slip?

*****

What this says about the Giro's importance is that there are a few guys who, if they're on your team, you'd better hope for something big. That's Scarponi and Basso, for sure. If they don't finish on the podium, you've been soaked. I'd add Kreuziger and Frank Schleck, because if they're doing the Giro, a big effort, then you'd hope they get rewarded for it at those prices. Purito Rodriguez could sew up the season MVP by Milan, considering his near-certain Vuelta scoring. And the lower cost guys, if they're going to do anything, the time is now.

Cunego could be one of the more influential guys. He is on 21 teams, and a win in the Giro out of the blue, along with his other value, could make those 21 teams big players (if they have Boonen and not Gilbert). Anyway, the point is that you can get super-lucky and set yourself up for the season by scoring unexpectedly big in the Giro, but there are only a few guys who can deliver that kind of assistance. Good luck!

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Fri, 04 May 2012 14:52:17 GMT

[bike] Giro d'Italia Team Presentation LIVE

Fri, 04 May 2012 13:01:33 GMT

Herning

Let the Giro festivities start. The danes welcome the teams with cheers and applause as we, the internet people, share their joy (and also mock and take joy in the silliness on stage) . Bring the snark and popcorn. Don't miss out.

Live video: 16:00 CEST (10:00 US EDT, 00:00 AUS EST)

Video: steephill , cyclingfans , Procyclinglive , Sports Livez.

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Fri, 04 May 2012 12:59:55 GMT

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Fri, 04 May 2012 11:34:34 GMT