GrainBrain

Spoiler - gonna be a long haul!

Here's the info for the mini-league, not my doing but I found this engraved onto granite near some ruins by my home ...Overall

1. Keka76
2. Slcbob
3. Semroc

GrainBrain

Strade Bianche tomorrow, March 4th. Really love gravel - you know who else does too? Quinn Simmons - for sure I added him, then Valter. I'm curious to see how Benoot does. A lot of these guys are do in T-A next week as well.

I wonder if MvdP will stay in the pack and let Vermeesch up the road? Mr. Gravel worlds champion.

slcbob

Well played, sir. Well played.

In a flurry of team picking this morning, I saw this for Paris-Nice. I could sense ooga-booga shivering several time zones away.

Good luck to all who enter the ring.

GrainBrain

What a beautiful race. Quite a few Rui Costa picks, he was looking good. I think Wellens had a mechanical that derailed his race, then Formolo was skunked too and had to chase up the back. Really hope Betiol is ok, he was laying on the road for quite awhile. I had almost picked him, and was delighted to see him really animate the race repeatedly. This is a race that's impossible to control, and I was nervous about not picking the two big favs of Alaphillepe and MvdP but their cost was so high considering the lottery nature of gravel. Speaking of Lotto Andreas Kron another great rider today.

Loved Piddock's attacking decent, loved his control on the bike. Loved how Benoot got mad when it looked like Valter was dragging the group back (he didn't but it looked like it).

slcbob

It's time to make the donuts. Milan-Torino tomorrow. And MSR this weekend.

P.S. races Wed, Th, Fr, Sat this week. Strap in, Superclasico.

GrainBrain

Pretty much a sprinter scatter shot. I threw in Arvid De Kleijn, I think he was quick somewhere?

GrainBrain

Didn't catch this one except for the final km, looked messy! Happy with my Arvid pick (that was an inspired moment) but too bad I snubbed Gaviria. Didn't even look to see where Cav finished, is he done or looking out for bigger game? Nice job Keka!

GrainBrain

Congratulations semroc ! What a fun and wild little race! Literally saw a rider fly into a manure pile at full speed around a corner. I thought I had picked Boasson Hagen but alas I did not.



Around the countryside in northern France it looked like Bjerg and Molano are getting ready for something a little bigger ... Paris Roubaix perhaps? That was a masterclass from UAE!

semroc

Denain was a great race to watch. Bjerg gave a heroic effort. His face told it all. Ya that manure pile wreck was something else!

slcbob

Keka76 / Team Poetovio/sLOVEnia is crushing it. GrainBrain is almost hanging on to his wheel. There are some points to be had in San Remo. Some, including yours truly, will be looking to bridge but I wouldn't put it past that devil Keka76 squad to keep the heat on and break our hearts over the Poggio.

GrainBrain

Why did I snub Welsford the fastest man here when our top three didn't? I was a little worried about a select group getting away on the Burgs and crosswind so I added some long shot firepower.

Jonas Rickaert is back in action after a year off until his three-in-a-row bike change flub up. I absolutely love team TDT-Unibet Cycling Team's Cannondales and their paint schemes - Were these handme downs from last year's Giro? These guys were up there in the last Km with Martijn Budding getting 11th. Not bad for that awful right hander at like 300 meters?

Pour one out for Victor Campaenaerts who is out for the Classics with a fractured lumbar vertebrae. Super disappointed about that.

GrainBrain

This one took me a little longer to post about, having such emotions of triumph and reflection. Ganna Ganna Ganna, it would have always been second no matter who he passed over the Poggio alongside, with that descending. Yet for a moment there was sheer joy as Wout fought to regain contact with his wheel. You could see Ganna reflecting after the race, and we're all wondering ... could he have attacked Tufts in the moment? Could he have found 15 seconds?

Figures I had both Zoccarato and Negasi on my team till I had more cash then swapped them out. Also had Benjamin Thomas for a moment like Xuxo.

Zoccarato had climbed well in Valenciana and took the KOM jersey, been getting in breaks. Negasi a kind of TT specialist from Ethiopia, had some interesting results last year. Young kid. Imagine he's probably a friggin stoked to get his face on world wide TV for that long.

GrainBrain

brugge de panne! Late fyi, got em all locked in. Decided to try for one 4 point sneaky breakaway bonus instead of Mayhofer - I'm thinking Welsford gets it. Pan flat sprinter smorgasbord. Maybe Cav decides tomorrow is his day? You have till 5:30am Central tomorrow ... Best part of waking up, is tons of Belgium racing stuuuuuufffff.

slcbob

I chose poorly. I caught the end of the race, will need to watch some earlier bits for the carnage. Crosswinds are entertaining.

semroc

Great race at Brugge de Panne. Brutal weather. Frison bridging that gap was gnarly to watch, what an effort. Philipsen was real strong. Getting gaps every time he went to the front.

GrainBrain

Well Keka's doing Keka things! I took quite a beating when I neglected to check the weather forecast!! Philipsen is on awesome form, but I'll make note of Kooij being a really great versatile rider. I tuned in just as Caleb was shot out the back and the commentators were mentioning "local boys knowledge of road and weather". So I'm guessing Emilien Jeannière my breakaway pick (who DNF'd) and was raised near France's West Coast might not have enjoyed the weather so much.

Frison? Noted. Check out Molano, he's really performing better then I had thought.

GrainBrain

E3 tomorrow. Forecast says 80% rain chances, low 50's, WINDY like 18mph.

slcbob

Keka 76 is a silent juggernaut. I'm just plain sucking in the classics. I'm crushing Catalunya and he's still there stuck on my wheel like a limpet waiting to dash past. Who are those guys? Curse him.

GrainBrain

Yeah nice picks in Catalunya, I'm hoping my picks are better in Basque country. I had my head up in Superclassico till I was shelled out the back like so many fair weather riders in Brugge-De Panne! Oof 500 vs almost 2000 well played Keka! We'll see how E3 goes, I last minute went more conservative with my picks, loosing Turgis - Hermans. Maybe I'll get my two 4 point picks into a break? But big winds will probably mean big groups. I snubbed Tufts who was there in the initial picks.

slcbob

Well the results are up for Superclasico and that far more evil vexing Spring Classics game. Kudos to those usual suspects who are running amok on the stage and GC podiums (podii?).

My over-arching thought as I viewed the league results as a whole was, gosh darn it, most of the children are above average. The great majority of the netizens of our island of misfit toys are running in the top 50% of the general population. Several are consistently much more elite than that. Take that, Lake Woebegone.

The glaring stand out is my old friend ooga-booga. I guess it has been a BUSY spring. Endeavor to persevere. I hope the glory that is eluding you in Velogames is manifesting itself grandly in personal / professional successes that pay off in the end. I'm glad the short bus still swings by to bring you to the races here for olde times sake. Hasta la Vuelta...

GrainBrain

Congrats to Iron Butterfly and the right JV second string. Ooga took a beating on the DNF side, oof! Bad weather and a "warm up race" will do that I guess. I ride a disc brake bike with thru axles and it blows my mind how long it will takes to change a tire - Vermeesch - unless that poor souigner had to hulf it a half mile? I've pretty much lost hope in that limited transfer world, good thing I'm not a day trader!

diphthong

haha yeah...it was a solid showing. even worserer than when deciding to play the dauphiné by not selecting a rider of more than 10 points one year. sensing a few dfl's in my immediate future.

GrainBrain

Ooo wee I got it handed to me in that cold Belgium rain! Tuned in with 50k to go and thought for a moment that Laporte was helping Wout chase back on! Oof slcbob with that quartet of Jumbo Visma. I didn't think Frison would do well again. Ewan was climbing well. Beautiful photos from this as well. Been too busy to catch the last of catalunya and Gent-Wevelgem, will catch up soon!




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GrainBrain

Yes my picks were spicy and perhaps too fanciful. Although in my defense who would've picked Kristoff and Lazkano for almost winning from the break? Shout out to the bounty for placing second against Keka76 - I'm starting to think I've touched a nerve calling Pogacar tufts and he's come to double down in our realm. Crazy? Maybe - but he did run an Aero helmet that last go around. Not sure what saving 20 watts does when you're sprinting against guys who can do 1300 but whatever. Maybe he should give the sheiks a shake and ride some gravel here. Sagan did it.

I feel a bit like Merlier shaking my head as Trek brought the peloton to a standstill up the Knokteberg.

Seriously I wish Keka would say something, #16 over all in super classico is awesome!

GrainBrain