Jason N wrote:
pk1 wrote:
he was only penalised 20 secs for drafting whereas others got 2 minutes so either he wasn't getting enough benefit to explain his fast time or more likely he got off lightly due to being an italian in italy - either way something is well off here.
Could also have to do with perceived intent and circumstances. Aru was flagged for drafting a cop, who "should" know to keep their distance from a rider, as the rider has the right to pick whatever line they want. Ulissi and Conti seems like they were penalized for working together in some capacity after Ulissi bridged the 1 minute gap. That shows a different form of intent, and Ulissi can't claim he didn't have a choice but to draft, where to a certain extent, Aru could make that case.
Yes. I would definitely like to see the footage of Aru drafting, because that should really be on the race organisers for not having this happen. The racer can pick whatever line he wants on the road. It's on the person on the MC to get as far in front as to not cause drafting to occur, not on the racer to avoid the line of the MC. I could perhaps see the problem if the MC continues to change line to try and not have Aru get draft, but Aru keeps changing lines to get draft. I can then see it's bad faith on Aru, but I would still say it's ultimately the MC at fault because it should just get further out in front. And if for some reason the MC can't do that then something is wrong with the route, barriers, organisation, or the like.
When this happens it's really a lose/lose situation, because I think the organisers know that it's relly their fault, but the blowback from other riders and the media/fan probably requires them to give him some kind of penalty.
I have tried in TT's that you get to a faster section (e.g. tailwind or down a hill) and the MC is asleep at the wheel and I almost catch the MC around a faster bend. I sure as hell am not hitting my brakes to avoid either catching the MC or to ride a slower line to avoid getting up behind it. So you can either choose to get illegal draft or hit the brakes and stay legal, but lose time due to a fault on the MC/organiser. No good option and when I have been in those situations I get quite annoyed, especially becuase I then wonder how many times this happens for the other competitors and how this might skew the result.
Now for Ulissi and Conti, no excuse for that. That's just bad form and I wouldn't mind them getting thrown all the way to the back in the results for the TT.