it's okay; old farts like me and you (and I don't think you are that old) just need to make sure we had a movement in the day when we watch; or we should just wear something trustworthy and Dependable

Sean Kelly style descending

and agreed on Van Aert; seriously strong. Should have been more patient

and GvA was nowhere to be seen; this can't be good

Done! You're right, I do live in the US now but still pretend to be European from time to time. Actually, have been more in touch with family and friends recently so I actually feel closer to motherland than in a long time. None of that is a particularly good excuse for being tonedeaf so again, sorry for that.

Been watching the replays. Someone mentioned that Sagan was watching the other side - true. He also ended up slightly boxed in for a while and had to traverse quite an extra distance to the right to clear himself. He clearly didn't have the finishing power he has at times when he's healthy but he also goofed up his positioning while AlleDepp was spot on. Can't take much away from the kid.

sounds like you'll just have to wait for them to revert to the mean :P

Otoh, when's the last time France has won two monuments in a row?



surely the bantering? where else can you banter about AlaDepp and Decent Knicks without being labeled a bike dork?

Cheers! You are right on that. You all gave me LFF today which Is really annoying her. That is priceless

Sagan was blown, that is it, nothing more. He sort of gave that away in an interview this week when he said this is a fun race....if you are in condition. In addition, i think he expected valverde to start the sprint and was not in great position. He also went very deep to close down some initial gaps that are very hard to recover from when not on top form. I think we can all be happy with this race, just look at that front group and how many current or former world champions were present.

four, if you count Mohoric; five, if you count WvA

i really liked how many national champ jerseys there were

And future world champions. The LFF seems destined to join that group at some point. Maybe even this year. He must like the look of that course.

I thought the same thing. there was some serious "representing" going on.

I also saw ~4 QS riders cross the line together. they really are making this "team thing" work. unbelievable. that is serious ego management.

and now .... let's go back to where its cold and hard and tough men go forward.

I rewatched the last 10 kms of the race and noticed that Alaphilippe did actually cover an attack: that of Mohoric in the closing km. So him outsprinting everyone else should be looked at in the context of that, which is to say, prior to the final sprint, Alaphilippe was the last to lay down serious watts, and he stilled had enough in the sprint.

Not sure if there is cold in Europe right now. What's the weather like in Belgium? Spoke with mom this morning and while she's not in Belgium she's a fair bit north of San Remo and it was 21C there. They've already planted their garden outside. I'm in the Northeast (of the US) and got 2 inches of snow last night...

Big Sagan fan here. Peter was trying for the win; yet, wasn't on the right wheel. Too bad Kwi, finished just ahead of him for the podium. Don't think there is a of of love between Sagan and Kwi at Milan-San Remo.

Good race by JA and his team. He is on form and responding well to whatever comes his way this year.

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Indoor Triathlete - I thought I was right, until I realized I was wrong.

*And* he layed down the most serious attack over the Poggio to get rid of the fat sprinters, taking over for Bettiol. He was a one-man show. Really the only guy he needed all day was DeClerq.

What happened to Degekobble? Dropped the chain of his 1x SRAM AXS? I don't think he was really going to bridge to that final selection, but that's a crappy time to drop a chain.

During the week we had temperatures near 0°C at night but 12-20°C during the day and mostly sunny but windy, little bit of rain but barely any. Today was 8-12°C but gray outside, windy and a bit of rain here and there, ideal weather for the Ronde or something like Liege-Bastogne-Liege ;)

According to Degenkolb on Instagram Jasper Stuyven had problems as well.

I’m glad I could make a small contribution to this thread. This thread is fantastic.

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Dang, it may be a pretty mild spring then huh? Wind is good for racing, though :)

it was in the mid-60s along the Ligurian Coast today

btw, seeing 10 people going into the finale reminded me of this. Cheeky lil b***er

DQS gets a lot of credit for blowing the race up on the Poggio. They softened everyone up to point few had anything left when Alaphilippe went. Really good riding.

Bummer for Degrnkobble. And did you notice how close Oss was to getting back on? If he does and he keeps pace up for a ‘high speed’ sprint it’s likely a different outcome.

Just a side note, but Daniel Oss is one of the best riders/teammates in the peloton. I love watching that guy race. His positioning is phenomenal and he is peerless in his qualities to bury himself for people.

You are right; that race could have been different. Oss was just short of having what it took to get there.

Man I watched the finale like 10 times and Sagan lost that race like he was rookie...

1. Break was formed and he is on the front taking turns like if he was a climber (while Alaphilippe was on the back having a free ride)

2. They get on the flat and Alaphilippe was on the front goes left to get Sagan off his wheel and Sagan is left leading the pack again

3. Sagan stays in MIDDLE of the road looking left and right... should have go left or right so he only had to check on one side

4. He is looking right and the left goes and he didn't hit the gas right away... end up being sixth wheel and by then there is no enough road to make up positions

btw: very impress with Wout!

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The entire event (IM) is like "death by 1000 cuts" and the best race is minimizing all those cuts and losing less blood than the other guy. - Dev

I agree with everything you posted.

Wout is so incredibly strong. Looking forward to the rest of his spring campaign.

Valverde needs a nickname that acknowledges his talent while not overlooking his misdeeds.

Ryan Adams?

That was weird. I was watching live, and you could see a full 1-second hesitation on what was very obviously the end-game move by Alaphillipe. I thought he was just blown and sitting up, but then he was able to put a bit of a sprint together.

Alejandro Valverde Piti Belmonte

Alejandro Balaverde Piti Belmonte

however, neither Balaverde nor Piti is original