Heroes & Villains, the Aston Villa fanzine
Off Topic => Sports Arena => Topic started by: Jon Crofts on February 25, 2018, 01:39:28 PM
-
In all the excitement I forgot that Spring is here, almost.
Yesterday was Het Omloop, today is Kuurne-Brussels-Kuurne & then it all really starts properly next weekend......
Strade Bianche Mar 3
Milan - San Remo Mar 17
E3 Harelbeke Mar 23
Gent - Wevelgem Mar 25
Tour Of Flanders Apr 1
Paris Roubaix Apr 8
Amstel Gold Apr 15
La Fleche Wallone Apr 18
Liege Bastogne Liege Apr 22
Looking forward to Paris Roubaix, I'm riding it again on the Saturday (why do I do this shit?) & hope to see Geraint Thomas win it on the Sunday, also going to Liege Bastogne Liege.
-
I'm currently re-reading Peter Cossins' The Monuments in readiness.
I have to say that anyone who chooses to voluntarily spend their weekend riding of over pavé in freezing and/or wet weather is just a little bit mad...
-
Looking forward to Paris Roubaix, I'm riding it again on the Saturday (why do I do this shit?)
Me too, the 145km version. I fancied the velodrome twice :)) I take it as you've done it twice it's a good 'un?
-
Looking forward to Paris Roubaix, I'm riding it again on the Saturday (why do I do this shit?)
Me too, the 145km version. I fancied the velodrome twice :)) I take it as you've done it twice it's a good 'un?
I did it in 2016 it was glorious weather, the pave was even dusty in parts, just hit the cobbles as fast as you can and keep turning the cranks, when you slow down and start trying to pick your way you’ll fall off, ride the gutters if you can and remember every move you make needs full commitment, half arsed moves to leave or enter the gutters will see you crash. Fit wider tyres if you can, I’m running 32mm front and back and drop pressures to 85/90 psi, some people fit 2 rolls of bar tape, I didn’t think it made any difference to be honest and get your bike serviced before you go, Roubaix will find a faulty part and break it.
Last year I did Flanders, the cobbles were smoother but riding cobbles hills at 25% is a a much fun as drowning, Paris Roubaix is flat for 140km, Flanders was 1600m of cobbled climbs in 140km, brutal.
It’s a great weekend and the bars and the beers are epic.
-
Strade Bianche today was absolute nails and it also turns out the following day there's a Strade Bianche sportive, definitely interested in doing that next year.
-
Brilliant performance by Benoot today at Strade Bianchi. He looks as if he could replace Tornado Tom Boonen as the Belgium big hope in the Spring Classics.
-
The game's up. The entire sport is full of cheats.
-
Or it’s full of people exploiting the very limits of legality.
And what makes you think it’s just cycling? When curlers at the Winter Olympics get pinged for doping where will it end?
-
It’s a good job football is absolutely squeaky clean and nobody has ever taken performance enhancing drugs.
-
It’s a good job football is absolutely squeaky clean and nobody has ever taken performance enhancing drugs.
If any of our players took performance enhancing drugs in the last seven years I'd be absolutely gobsmacked. And I'd hope they kept the receipts.
-
Milan - San Remo tomorrow, must be Sagan this year, must be.
-
Have you seen Cavs crash? How did he not break anything?
-
Milan - San Remo tomorrow, must be Sagan this year, must be.
Sanremo, please. Unless, of course, you hold a torch for Mussolini.
-
Have you seen Cavs crash? How did he not break anything?
He's not had the best of luck of late to put it mildly. The fast finishers let it slip today, all dozing when Nibili made his move.
-
Tour of Flanders today, , be interesting to see if Sagan or GVA csn beat the QuickStep riders, anyone of 4 of them seem to be capable of victory.
-
Great ride from Terpstra and Pederson. Kwaremont and the Paterberg looked dry and dusty, hope it stays that way for next week and Paris Roubaix as I really don’t fancy the pave in the wet.
-
Looking forward to Paris Roubaix, I'm riding it again on the Saturday (why do I do this shit?)
Me too, the 145km version. I fancied the velodrome twice :)) I take it as you've done it twice it's a good 'un?
What a glorious day for the hell of the north!
All done and about to get on the sauce having seen the Villa score they can fuck off. Having a few cold ones in the Roubaix velo club bar, Jupiler and Leffe on tap. May get messy.
-
Looking forward to Paris Roubaix, I'm riding it again on the Saturday (why do I do this shit?)
Me too, the 145km version. I fancied the velodrome twice :)) I take it as you've done it twice it's a good 'un?
What a glorious day for the hell of the north!
All done and about to get on the sauce having seen the Villa score they can fuck off. Having a few cold ones in the Roubaix velo club bar, Jupiler and Leffe on tap. May get messy.
Which route length and how many mechanicals / punctures?
-
Looking forward to Paris Roubaix, I'm riding it again on the Saturday (why do I do this shit?)
Me too, the 145km version. I fancied the velodrome twice :)) I take it as you've done it twice it's a good 'un?
What a glorious day for the hell of the north!
All done and about to get on the sauce having seen the Villa score they can fuck off. Having a few cold ones in the Roubaix velo club bar, Jupiler and Leffe on tap. May get messy.
Which route length and how many mechanicals / punctures?
145km
0 mechanicals
0 punctures
-
My prediction for today is a QuickStep rider and well done both of you.
-
Looking forward to Paris Roubaix, I'm riding it again on the Saturday (why do I do this shit?)
Me too, the 145km version. I fancied the velodrome twice :)) I take it as you've done it twice it's a good 'un?
What a glorious day for the hell of the north!
All done and about to get on the sauce having seen the Villa score they can fuck off. Having a few cold ones in the Roubaix velo club bar, Jupiler and Leffe on tap. May get messy.
Which route length and how many mechanicals / punctures?
145km
0 mechanicals
0 punctures
Well done. What was your time / Average mph?
In sympathy I did the Strava challenge and did 265km since Monday.
-
Looking forward to Paris Roubaix, I'm riding it again on the Saturday (why do I do this shit?)
Me too, the 145km version. I fancied the velodrome twice :)) I take it as you've done it twice it's a good 'un?
What a glorious day for the hell of the north!
All done and about to get on the sauce having seen the Villa score they can fuck off. Having a few cold ones in the Roubaix velo club bar, Jupiler and Leffe on tap. May get messy.
Which route length and how many mechanicals / punctures?
145km
0 mechanicals
0 punctures
Well done. What was your time / Average mph?
In sympathy I did the Strava challenge and did 265km since Monday.
15.9 mph or 25.5 kmh. Total ride time was 5 hrs 42 mins.
-
Looking forward to Paris Roubaix, I'm riding it again on the Saturday (why do I do this shit?)
Me too, the 145km version. I fancied the velodrome twice :)) I take it as you've done it twice it's a good 'un?
What a glorious day for the hell of the north!
All done and about to get on the sauce having seen the Villa score they can fuck off. Having a few cold ones in the Roubaix velo club bar, Jupiler and Leffe on tap. May get messy.
Which route length and how many mechanicals / punctures?
145km
0 mechanicals
0 punctures
Well done. What was your time / Average mph?
In sympathy I did the Strava challenge and did 265km since Monday.
15.9 mph or 25.5 kmh. Total ride time was 5 hrs 42 mins.
I might look into that next year. I will see how I do with my first Gran Fondo attempt next month and Cardiff Velo in July.
-
G out on the first section of cobbles.
-
Ramping up to be a great finish.
-
The one time I don't predict a Sagan win. Brilliant.
-
I had Sagan in our group, ha more beer and chips they owe me.
-
Not good.
http://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/cycling/43691211
-
That's terrible. Any information about how it happened?
-
Michael Goolaerts has died of a cardiac arrest following the crash at Paris Roubaix.
Very sad news of a young life taken far to early. RIP.
-
That's terrible. Any information about how it happened?
Seen a quick vid, looks like hg lost control an a slight descent on cobbles at a corner and went into an embankment. However the actual cause is Cardiac Arrest which might be more the stresses on the heart on racing and then the accident was too much for it rather then the injury itself.
I thought it might have been the Movistar one who face planted early on at first when I saw the headline.
-
Any death is terrible, but it is perhaps a little more understandable if it is the result of an undetected heart condition rather than an accident itself. Professional cycling dying during races is thankfully rare (and when you watch the kamikaze descents from Alpine or Pyrenean cols or the chaos of a sprint finish, it is a miracle that there isn't more), but if even one can be prevented by medical screening, then it is something that the UCI need to pursue.
-
Michael Goolaerts suffered a cardiac arrest that then caused him to crash.
http://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/cycling/43731577
-
Valgren wins Amstel Gold to add to his Omloop victory back in February and a 4th in Flanders, very impressive especially considering how different these races are.
-
Valgren wins Amstel Gold to add to his Omloop victory back in February and a 4th in Flanders, very impressive especially considering how different these races are.
All the big names marked each other out, always pleased when Valvarde doesn't win.
-
Liege-Bastogne-Liege today.
Looks wide open, be good if Dan Martin could win, anyone but Valvarde please.