GrainBrain

Wasn't too bad of a result for Remco today, GC guys just blew the doors off didn't they? Super glad to see Geraint do well - amazing to watch Geraints reaction to second place along with the DS Matteo. Tao seemed subdued about it as well.

OBoile

Well, he won so yes that isn't too bad. But with respect to the GC battle, I'm sure he was hoping to take more time. Last week at this time, I'm pretty sure everyone would have assumed a minute for Remco here. Roglic looked cooked after the first time point, but he totally turned things around.
I suspect today was the result of Remco's crashes because there was a significant drop off between his performance a week ago and today. Plus, he clearly went out hard which makes me think he was expecting to hold a higher power number than he ended up being able to do. Also perhaps the weather as he's not the greatest bike handler.

GrainBrain

^^ Oof just saw the headline that Remco has withdrawn due to covid. Certainly not because he'll began prepping for the Tour this year. Shenanigans.

OBoile

Just saw this myself. I doubt very much he'd leave to do the tour after focusing so much on this race. COVID explains his somewhat underwhelming results of the last couple of days. It's been going around the peloton a bunch there.

Chicago Al 

Our charge just came through and it was about $50 for the year. I guess you could do it month to month and only for the season, but if you take the spring classics all the way to Paris-Nice...

We love it, and the offerings are just getting better as time goes on. Orla Chennouai with multiple former pros in pre and post races shows of the major races is so far above anything NBC ever did it's not funny. And there are so many more races covered! And so many of them have great video!

slcbob

I wasn't aware the Giro on GCN was not geo-restricted in the US this year. Good to know.

Casting to Chromecast on the TV from the GCN Android app is very slick. When the VPN doesn't mess with it. A while back I successfully did that while using a VPN on the tablet, because there was an option to allow the cast app to bypass the VPN. But that seemed to stop working, or at least I stopped being smart. No joy via cast these days. If I am running the VPN now, I pull the HDMI cable out of the DVD and stick it into a laptop, then use a wireless mouse to control the laptop from my coffee table. It works.

That's with VPN running on the individual machines. Many years back, I had the VPN running on the router so the whole net was covered. At that point, all the devices were behind the VPN together so they could talk to each other and the cast would work.

It's always something. Jeez.

Eric F 

Just spit-balling conspiracy theories with a cycling buddy...

Remco's COVID test was apparently done voluntarily by his team, and was not a mandated test. They claim no other members of the team tested positive. Maybe the team withdrew Remco from the race because another kind of positive test was going to show up. It wouldn't be the first time the leader of a Grand Tour was pulled by his team (Michael Rasmussen, 2007 TDF).

I'm probably wrong.

diphthong

yikes...

MinnMan

Presumably that other kind of positive test would show up anyway, even if he withdrew. He won stage 9 and so they surely took a sample, and they don't throw them away just because he's withdrawn.

so, I'm not buying it.

GrainBrain

Agree. Look at the reports from today's stage, Almeida states the whole peloton is sick and it shows. What a rough day today also. Shame for Petilli to leave, he was another sneaky GC top 15. The whole intermarche squad my be leaving. I saw Pozzovivo not start, hoping Riccitello can still do something...

Though I'm certain we will see Remco at the tour. He may have tested positive but he also stated he's at race weight and wouldn't cope well slightly ill in this terrible weather.

OBoile

Agree with everything here except I don't think we'll see Remco at the Tour. My guess is he'll do the Vuelta again. I don't think there's time for him to be 100% for the TdF, and there's not much point of him going there and finishing 3rd - 5th.

A bunch of people have been sick in this race. It's almost certain that's all this was. The race leader in the 2nd most prestigious race isn't going to abandon unless something is seriously wrong. Froome knew he was going to do the Tour and he still stayed in the Giro despite being well behind Yates until his miracle solo attack.

BTinNYC 

All testing and covid protocols were up to the teams this year. Now over 20 are out with covid and the Giro is starting protocols.

MinnMan

Stage 10....what a mess.

I actually turned it off after Bettiol was brought down.

Eric F 

I'm not buying it, either. My friend and I were just throwing out nutty conspiracies. As I said, I'm probably wrong. It wasn't a serious accusation.

GrainBrain

I didn't see that but I did see Will Barta's front fork snapped in two. He was up and looking ok though. Vine I think was down with him. Did you see the part with Sivakov, Caruso, Milan off the front on the decent? A pity I think Milan crashed or something caused them to back off.

These are my favorite stages, not for the crashes but just the opportunities that can appear for some. Sweet win for Magnus Cort. The Triple!

GrainBrain

Mine was, he's totally going to the Tour with no expectations. Him and Merlier - with Alaphillepe? *chefs kiss*

MinnMan

Eric F 

Hmmm...maybe. Horner seems to think getting beaten by Tadej won't be good for his brand/image, and that's why he won't do the Tour this year. We shall see.

surak

I doubt his team wants Remco to go, because they barely had the climbing horses needed to support him in the Giro let alone against the top JV squad with Vinegaard and UAE's improving roster to give whatever little support Pogacar ever needs. With barely any ITT and climbs galore, it'd be akin to their mistake of throwing him into his first Giro coming back from injury and likely to end as poorly.

diphthong

finally! cort gets his! he had been berry berry quiet hunting wabbits.

diphthong

neither the tour nor la vuelta has substantial itt action. tend to doubt remco rides the tour but not beyond the realm of possibility. nothing says he would need to ride the tour as the protected gc rider. could just go for stage wins
and soak up the environment for future visits. the team still needs street/road cred and remco moves the needle. lefevre's gotta justify his employment and stay relevant. alaphilippe's not the automatic contender stagewise as he was the last few years.

79pmooney

There's photo of Remco riding slowly after his TT win. He looks bad. Not just discouraged because he didn't ride better. https://www.cyclingnews.com/news/lef...talia-abandon/

Team gave him the test after the TT, saw the positive and sent him straight home to Belgium. That was Sunday evening. This morning, most of a half dozen riders didn't line up at the start because if COVID. At least a couple of others dropped out sick. Remco really wanted this Giro. I don't believe there is anything underhanded going on. Just what a s****y time to land your first COVID positive. (The toughest one to brush off and ride through?)

GrainBrain

Oh my goodness that was shocking! Love how the guy just trys to jump back into it without looking but got lucky. If they had been closer Betiol would be swinging! The Giro produces some beautiful stages. Bummer about Barguil.

surak

Yeah Remco could go to the Tour for stage wins, but they want to develop him into a premier GC rider and I don't know how stage hunting fits in that plan. The way to develop a GC rider is to have them compete, strive to stay high in GC throughout, gain experience in being consistent and withstanding attacks through 3 weeks of accumulated fatigue. Those are the things Remco needs, not taking it easy and losing time to be allowed to go for stages. If Remco goes to the Tour, he'll be hyped up and viewed as a contender, which will only set him up to disappoint because he and his team won't have the same level of preparation that riders and teams usually spend a year if not more making. Again, a repeat of his first Giro.

Repeating at the world championship, which is close enough to the Tour that targeting both is difficult, would probably be a bigger buzz (though to be fair, Lefevere doesn't pay his riders to win the world champs).

The Vuelta tends to have shorter stages with lesser competition where team strength isnt as big of an issue. If
​​​he goes to defend that, it won't be too difficult for them to prepare for.

diphthong

^guess it all depends on the amount of pressure the sponsors put on lefevere for remco to ride the tour vs the worlds and la vuelta. will be interesting. lefevere hasn't traditionally greeted the few gc candidates on the squad with open arms and latitude. it's generally been more produce now with stage wins vs a overall gc win.