Vuelta 18:00

[Wookie]

I think i will start here too.
Salary will be 461k, too much i think but okay.

1. Michel Zakarian 82-59-71-53-53
2. Shiva Kadeer 74-82-78-60-56
3. Timothan Andersson 63-85-72-50-61
4. Aidan Iginla 56-84-77-51-47
5. Timothy Reynolds 50-83-53-46-45
6. Nyyrikki Niittymaki 50-78-49-48-49
7. Jyrki Töykkälä 49-76-79-50-50
8. Miika Kankaanpera 48-84-60-50-51
9. Stuart Pearson 51-61-65-52-90

Aims: Some stages and the mountain-jersey

[el Galactico]

Seems to become a good field this time. Hopefully we have a good tour this time Not like the Tour de France...

[Equipe Benelux]

My Team and all at once Daaaaaaaaan are thinking about a start here

[Wookie]

I think i will start with Pearson instead of Löflöf

[el Galactico]

Ok after today the team line-up is clear.

-1- Gourgue, leader for GC
-2- Castillo, Mountain helper for Gourgue, Top 20 candidate
-3- Felicandes, helper for Gourgue, escaper!
-4- Perreira, sprint helper, escaper!
-5- Foguete, sprint helper, escaper
-6- Garrido TTT and TT leader
-7- Del Rios, sprint helper and escaper
-8- Daems, sprinter and helper
-9- Callado, sprint leader

541 k!
This makes 166k per day. Impossible! Have to come at least into the Top 3 and some stage wins. Plus one jersey, sprint or mountain!

[Lizard]

And world rule? If you rule the world, I guess you can´t make any red numbers

[el Galactico]

Hmm ok new main goal is to rule the world. (Do you mean rule Heal World?) Its so impossible like the last thing. Will have big problems after the Vuelta^^ Dont want to sell my old guys like del Rios and Foguete before they are 34. But at the moment i have no possibility to ride races without paying over 100k plus^^ Vuelta must become veeery good so...

[Cerro Torre RT]

The decision is made, and there is one guy that is not happy about that at all. Asked about the opinion about that he would not start at the Vuelta, Belaustegui said: "Que no puedo concebirlo. Me dice todo el tiempo el director sportif que voy a participar, y fue todo mis preparaciones para esta carrera. Y ahora, cuando da a conocer la aleniacíon, realizo que no voy a participar. Estoy extremamente triste que no tomaré parte en la grande competición a my país nativo, y tambien muy negro por este puñetero de un jefe." The team direction didn't comment on this statement.

The lineup will be the following

Lionel Terray
David Silva
Aron Palmarsson
Diniyar Bilyaletdinov
Tonci Valcic
Siarhei Harbok
Alberto Entrerrios
Julen Aguinagalde
Juan Mata

That leads to 537k to pay per day, which basicly means the team is committed to succeed.

[JPS Classics]

i have fear! The chances not small for field 2

I am hopping the best ... the first field .... after Training IV the finally Line Up:

1 Manuele diVaio 81-60-76-49-46 Reg: 49 Age: 22
2 Steven Dulac 71-82-70-51-51 Reg: 49 Age: 25
3 Ryder Hesjedal 54-63-69-52-85 Reg: 38 Age: 22
4 Kevin Neirynck 57-76-77-52-50 Reg: 42 Age: 22
5 Vjeko Onishchenko 58-79-76-61-50 Reg: 47 Age: 22
6 Martijn Schoenmakers 64-80-60-61-54 Reg: 47 Age: 22
7 Fjodor Shovkovsky 53-82-74-47-43 Reg: 40 Age: 22
8 Sven Sjögren 63-80-70-51-59 Reg: 63 Age: 22
9 Natane Tuihalamaka 58-82-77-50-54 Reg: 51 Age: 23

[Die Adler]

i will start here too!

[Kandoo]

Oh shit! Field 2...

[JPS Classics]

Oh shit! Field 2...

i am agree^^

[Us Lecce]

Gaurain is scared of Lecce!Gaurain ist scared of Lecce!

[Cerro Torre RT]

So first stage is over, with some unexpected results...

Ok, Demuth winnig the stage is quite what we knew, a victory that has never been in any danger. But behind him, quite suprising developments are to be seen. 2nd place is mine, 19s to GC top favourite Gaurain, which i consider to be a gift, a bonus, nearly as much as one stage win. We have to thank Mata for his perfect effort, doing most of the work, some like 40 to 50% for sure. I am very happy with this stage, the goal is to take over the red jersey latest on Tuesday. Not that there is a big intention to hold it the whole tour, but a step foward to the GC win.

So after first stage, standing between the mountain riders and wannabehubers is the following:

Erik Huseklepp -0.42
Lionel Terray -0.19
Felix Raufe -0.17
Roberto Vera -0.10
Roby Sheringham -0.07
Noé Charby -0.04
Heinrich Quinthardt +0.00
Ethan Heinhardt +0.00
Benjamin Gourgue +0.05
Wesley Boogerd +0.29

[Aixteam]

Gaurain is scared of Lecce!Gaurain ist scared of Lecce!

Chicken Gaurain

[el Galactico]

I love Australia! Dont know how it worked today but have never thought that. Great defeat and first 30 points for the sprinters jerseys.

[Demuth]

Here a little analyse from me:

GC:
*****: Quinthardt(Gaurain Rx)
**** : Boogerd(Egsdorfer)
*** : Vera(Aston Team), Reinhardt(Gaurain Rx), Charby(Pastis Ricard)
** : Raufe(LARAPANA), Huseklepp(Demuth), Terray(Cerro Torre RT)
* : Gourge(Los Galacticos), Sheringham(Aixteam)

Points classification:
*****: Caethoven(VC Aywaille), Callado(Los Galacticos)
**** : Prebois(Gaurain Rx), Pils(Neutrogena)
*** : Vega(Aixteam), Gonzalez(Aston Team),Stieger(Onkel-Eddy)
** :
* : Honorez(VC Aywaille), Birsa(Aston Team), a break-out-man(didn't know a better word for this )

mountain classification:
*****: Terray(Cerro Torre RT)
**** : Gourge(Los Galacticos), Sheringham(Aixteam)
*** : another mountain rider
** :
* : a break-out-man

team classification:
***: Gaurain Rx
** :
* : Demuth, Aston Team, Aixteam, LARAPANA, Cerro Torre RT

All sevices are without guarantee.

[Cerro Torre RT]

Will the mountain classification be won just by the points you can earn in winning mountain arrivals ? If not, Terray will for sure not win it. Just because i don't pay any attention to it, I consider it to be the most useless jersey to be won.

GC, I don't agree with the analyses as well. As there are a lot of mountian arrivels, I clearly think Huseklepp and Charby have to be downgraded, especially Charby who may easily be siebed by Heinhardt. And this Reinhardt has to be downgraded as well as it is nearly clear he is just a helper and won't have a chance to overtake his captain. In general, i think you looked to much at the time trail skills. 46 km sounds much, but it isn't if you consider the 9 mountian arrivals on the other side, each with 20s of time bonification to the winner. So of those that can time trail, only those will have a chance that are able to win some bonifications. And due to this, I think Terray has better chances than you analized.

[Aixteam]

I don't agree in some points too .

GC : Charby no chance , no team . Almost the same for Huseklepp . Heinhardt no chance because he will help Heinrich in all stages .
Red : Terray big favo , far behind Sheringham and Gourgue . I even think an escaper has more chances than Sheringham or Gourgue .
Team : Gaurain will have to work ... I'm not sure Marechal and Cyriel can always go with the favos .

[Cerro Torre RT]

Total ranking of all that may be interesting for GC after the first 2 mountain finishes, both beeing short mountain sprints:


Lionel Terray -0.50
Erik Huseklepp -0.26
Benjamin Gourgue -0.25
Roby Sheringham -0.07
Felix Raufe -0.05

Heinrich Quinthardt +0.00

Roberto Vera +0.05
Ethan Heinhardt +0.14
Noé Charby +0.15
Wesley Boogerd +0.37



compared to the last standing (after the C.R.E.) it developed like following:

Lionel Terray -0.31
Benjamin Gourgue -0.30

Heinrich Quinthardt +0.00

Roby Sheringham +0.00
Wesley Boogerd +0.08
Felix Raufe +0.12
Ethan Heinhardt +0.14
Roberto Vera +0.15
Erik Huseklepp +0.16
Noé Charby +0.19

So the question for the winner is quite difficult. Compared to the expectations, you may call Benjamin Gourge. Seeing that only 2 did win time on him, Quinthardt showed a quite strong effort but ruined that a bit today, it could have looked a lot better even. And Terray, who won the most time, has to feel like one of the winners of those 2 stages, too. Like it had to be expected, differences of more than some few seconds only could be achieved by the stage winners. Next time, on Xorret del Catí, there might be bigger gaps.

So what do you think, who has the best position towards the GC win now?

[el Galactico]

I think its still Quinthardt. At the moment i dont see a chance to beat him.

2. place seems to be clear for Terray. After that it could become interesting...

candidates are Sheringham, Raufe, Vera and Gourgue if i have the luck to beat Terray for at least one time again.

Boogerd destroyed his big chances by this bad TTT at the beginning, i think he has to try sth if he wants to win.

[gaurain rx]

Well, with the Bonisecs at the end of each stages, I don't know how I'll win

[Aixteam]

Great day ...

[Cerro Torre RT]

So at the first rest day, the ranking changed a bit:

Lionel Terray -1.53
Benjamin Gourgue -0.55

Heinrich Quinthardt +0.00

Wesley Boogerd +0.04
Roberto Vera +0.05
Ethan Heinhardt +0.14
Erik Huseklepp +0.35
Felix Raufe +0.42
Noé Charby +1.00
Roby Sheringham +5.52


Which means compared to the last table:

Lionel Terray -1.03
Wesley Boogerd -0.33
Benjamin Gourgue -0.30

Heinrich Quinthardt +0.00

Roberto Vera +0.00
Ethan Heinhardt +0.00
Noé Charby +0.45
Felix Raufe +0.47
Erik Huseklepp +1.01
Roby Sheringham +5.59



So who suffered the most is clearly Sheringham, but with few influence of the manager, due to internet problems. Nevertheless, it shows once again why you should never let your GC captain help anyone else. If Aix disclaimed on that few force points provided to any other teammate the stage ago, he would have lost a minute in worst case. But next time, he won't be named again as his out of GC in total. We'll see if this can pay of on one of the following mountain stages. But too, Huseklepp missed out on Xorret del Catí and lost a lot. To those who did best you have to mention Charby who, compared to his mountain skills, lost quite few to Quinthardt, Boogerd who showed he could have been the mayor contender if he hadn't lost that much on the TTT. But if he keeps on like that 2 stages, he can find his way back into a competiton he was thought to have already lost. And yes for sure Terray who won both and won a minute is very happy about those results.

So what may come... The stage to Andorra, due the the 2 flat stage the next days, is a must-win for Terray. The decission will be made how my team will be able to manage those 3 mountain stages in a raw, what will get very hard. It may be possible as the middle stage to Lagos de Covadonga is quite flat with a very hard finish. And too, it will be interesting to see how Terray will do as in those longer climbs the help provided by Heinhardt will get much more important as on those short climbs where it meant only few. So to win another time the advantage he won until now is not that easy as it looks, and he might need that for the C.R.I.

[Aixteam]

But I was angry after the flat stage when the Belgian didn't wait (they weren't wrong) and so , I quit RSF very fast .. I let the helps , and it happened what you know ..