I read in Procycling that Tyler Farrar promised a tight match between us. He says that he's made some improvements. But I'm better. Last year I won every sprint I wanted. Tyler, Oscar Freire, Alessandro Petacchi are great sprinters, but there is still a difference to me. Sorry, but just look at the photo finishes...
over 2 years ago
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Cav's words will probably catch up and pass him before the competition does.
Tyler just needs to win a couple of times to make a big improvement, Cav has a harder job making sure that it doesn’t happen. But his words are just more fuel for the competitions fires.
Flanders, come on. I’ll call him the most gifted rider on the planet if he can maintain his dominance in the sprints and win Flanders within the next four years. He’ll have to learn how to ride with his nose in the wind for more than a few hundred meters first.
Cyclovia: Bogota www.streetfilms.org/archives/ciclovia/
+1
Cav is damn good, but have we ever seen him do anything at all that would make anyone think he could win Flanders. Has he ever been on the front of a race, other than to finish a race up.
Or . . .
has Cavendish ever bridged up to a break, solo, ala Cipo in G-W 2003?
I’m not saying he can’t do it . . . but . . . winning MSR aside, the next couple of years will decide whether he’s a Zabel or a McEwen.
OTOH...
Have we ever seen Cav in a position where he’s needed to bridge up to a break, solo?
I don’t think so and that is in part a credit to his team.
Most of us doubted his chances last year at MSR. Most of us doubted his chances on winning anything with hills on it like the last stage he won in last year’s Tour.
That's Just The Thing
He doens’t need to. He’s got the best lead out going, all he has to do is deliver at the line. I think losing Hincapie will hurt him, but it remains to be seen how much. I think if he’s ever going to be taken serious for RVV, he’ll have to show he can do something independent of the train that exists to get him to the finish.
"Some people are like slinkies - not really good for anything but they bring a smile to your face when pushed down the stairs."
ah
but based on MSR, not being taken seriously plays into his hands – nobody is ever going to want to take him to a sprint
i’d lay money on msr not being a sprint this year
Entirely Possible
It means that Cav will have to be dropped on the Poggio. I can’t see HTC letting anyone get away if Cav is still around.
"Some people are like slinkies - not really good for anything but they bring a smile to your face when pushed down the stairs."
They changed the finish line so that it only comes about a k or so after the descent. It will change the dynamic
so much. Attacks will be flying this year.
I know they changed it
it’ll be fun to see how it plays out
"Some people are like slinkies - not really good for anything but they bring a smile to your face when pushed down the stairs."
Including but not limited to learning some race tactics for himself.
I think I am beginning to understand Oscarito’s comment about there being some very fast riders in the peloton but not very many sprinters who know how to race.
Cyclovia: Bogota www.streetfilms.org/archives/ciclovia/
I say this like a stuck record
but there was that win of his into ?Nîmes that time where he lost his train completely. He can do it, I think, just hasn’t had to all that often.
Just when you start to like someone
They go and stuff their leg in their pie hole! What an arse!!!
If I just had one more gear, I...
Also, I'll say in response to R MC above, he's a McEwen not a Zabel
I don’t see him winning Flanders.
If I just had one more gear, I...
Opinion or incredibly insightful prediction?
“he’s a McEwen not a Zabel "
"It's a lovely thing, feeling that momentum. If you're lucky, it's also about grace." Tim Winton
TA Farrar.. And eeeeh??
"Here the high school level of immaturity will be left to hottitude columns and people like myself." Der Phil. H
Can't you hear him?
He’s sounding his barbaric BAH over the roofs of the world
Staring at the swim team gets you killed by a gang of dancing ninja men who know how to twirl.
by TheFigurehead on Jan 8, 2010 1:31 PM EST up reply actions
Does anyone know Brad?
Can you check and see if he’s passed out?
"The only pain I got time for is the pain I put on fools who don't know what time it is." Edvald Boasson Hagen
by Chris Fontecchio on Jan 8, 2010 2:49 PM EST up reply actions
ba ha ha?
"well...you live in england so: you love the rain. loves the queen. hates cycling. based on mr bean had a tremendous amount of humour. all ride in a mini cooper. all getting drunk before the age of 12. getting drunk at least 3 times a day."- frinking, 7/9/09
There's one word to remind him he's human...
CAV: “I’ve always lived up to my words when I stated a goal. When I want something, I work twice as hard for it and I achieve it.”
ME: “Olympics?”
PRETEND CAV: “Don’t remind me.”
(That’s why I’m not a reporter…but I can pretend.)
Asshat?
Sure, but don’t all sprinting gods have an ego to match Mark’s. I’m pretty sure most of the best fast men in history thought just like Cav. Of course, most of them didn’t go on record saying as much, but this is part what makes him so entertaining. Cav is good for the sport. Now do I like him all that much? Not really.
Interesting point
What is it about Cav that is so… insufferable?
I know that some folks have had trouble stomaching Robbie. Personally, I could never see the problem there (it is just possible that there may be some sort of bias at play there, LOL)… but I’m not sure that Robbie has rubbed as many people the wrong way as Cav manages to…
The "normal" sprinter mental attitude
is “I’m bigger, better, faster than all these other chumps”. I think it is almost a pre-requisite to survive in that environment.
The difference lies in how outspoken they are about it and how they express it. Both Robbie and Cav are pretty blunt and straight personalities so when they say stuff like this they come off as sort of assholic.
'Short Man's Syndrome' I'd say ;)
"How strange it was to see men doing something beautiful. Something pointless and elegant." Tim Winton, 'Breath'
I've found it can cover a multitude of sins...
"How strange it was to see men doing something beautiful. Something pointless and elegant." Tim Winton, 'Breath'
Boonen never gave off this kind of stink.
And his palmares are more impressive.
Cyclovia: Bogota www.streetfilms.org/archives/ciclovia/
so, ale-jet isn't a "true sprinter" then?
"Wizard's first rule. People are stupid. They will believe anything they want to be true or fear to be true." -- Terry Goodkind
As I said , they differ in how they express themselves
Read the interviews from the years when he was dominant. He was pretty clear about who the best in the world was. I seem to recall some talking of himself in the third person.
Flanders?
Yeah, I don’t see that happening anytime soon.
A loud as hell, a ringing bell, behind my smile, it shakes my teeth, and all the while, while vampires feed.
Indeed
It would have to be a REALLY slow Flanders with about 60 guys finishing together.
"The only pain I got time for is the pain I put on fools who don't know what time it is." Edvald Boasson Hagen
by Chris Fontecchio on Jan 8, 2010 2:49 PM EST up reply actions
Well, I think he's probably right
Maybe not about Flanders (though it will be fun to see him go for it), but about his sprint competition.
Cav was far and away the best sprinter in the world last season, and although Farrar definitely seems to be getting better and better, the same could be said of Cav (who’s a year younger than Tyler).
Problem with sprinters
is that their dominance rarely lasts. Boonen, Pettachi, Cipo et. al have al had a season or two when we wondered if they could ever be beaten. Then suddenly they could.
True,
but Cipo’s best year as a sprinter was probably 1999, when he was 32 years old, and Petacchi’s best years were 2003-2005 when he was aged 29-31.
I don’t expect Cavendish to still be the most dominant sprinter in the world five or six years from now, but at age 24, I don’t think he has to worry much about losing his mojo this year.
by Susie Hartigan on Jan 8, 2010 2:14 PM EST up reply actions
Cipo was arguably at his best in '02 when he had 9 GT stage wins plus all his other wins that year.
And at that time he was 35 so it just depends on the rider.
Your defense of Cavendish reminds me of your reports from the Giro.
Didn’t you get a chance to talk to him? I hope he’s reading this and you get another chance to interview him because he knows you are on his side. I love your Giro reports.
Cyclovia: Bogota www.streetfilms.org/archives/ciclovia/
thanks, flying dog!
I just today bought my ticket to Italy for the Giro, so there will be more Giro reports from me this year :-)
I did get a chance to ask Cavendish a couple of questions in Venice on the tirst day of last year’s Giro, and I was favorably impressed by his willingness to answer questions from me and several others in a good-natured way, even though he probably would have prefered to just watch the race on the press tent tv in peace. A week later, at the Milan press conference, he recognized me as he was leaving and stopped to say hello, which I thought was really nice.
I found Cavendish to be very likeable, but even if I’d never met him, I’d still think he was the odds on favorite to be the best sprinter in the world again this season.
by Susie Hartigan on Jan 8, 2010 9:26 PM EST up reply actions
This is the type of stuff that never makes it into the mags
or news sites. Just when I thought he was a complete arrogant ass, I read something like this.
I look forward to your Giro reports, even though I’ll be jealous as hell that I can’t be there myself.
by The Team Chef on Jan 9, 2010 1:07 AM EST up reply actions
I think Cav's theory is that when he's no longer fast enough to win the sprints
he’ll be strong enough to win Classics
i thought that
but then i saw this:
http://www.cyclingnews.com/news/hushovd-lays-out-season-goals
"well...you live in england so: you love the rain. loves the queen. hates cycling. based on mr bean had a tremendous amount of humour. all ride in a mini cooper. all getting drunk before the age of 12. getting drunk at least 3 times a day."- frinking, 7/9/09
knowing cyclingnews
i’d go with the latter. but then i’m pretty sure i read that he wasn’t going for the green jersey elsewhere. i reckon his heart might have been changed for him.
"well...you live in england so: you love the rain. loves the queen. hates cycling. based on mr bean had a tremendous amount of humour. all ride in a mini cooper. all getting drunk before the age of 12. getting drunk at least 3 times a day."- frinking, 7/9/09
I think that the team/sponsors had a chat
Some riders may dream of winning the classics, but it’s success at the Tour which pays the bills. Unless you’ve got a belgian or italian sponsor, anyway.
Agreed re sponsor/manager chat
I see Cervelo going Sastre for Giro/Vuelta, and Thor going for green well supported in the Tour. At least, that’s what I’d like to see.
"Today I was honked at...I caught up and made a great honking noise back...he caught up and said I'm gonna punch you in the face...I laughed."
~DZ
In fairness
He’s right. He’s #1, and Farrar’s improvements are nothing until the race starts. Personally, I think Cav is in for a surprise, but again, thus far, he’s right.
"The only pain I got time for is the pain I put on fools who don't know what time it is." Edvald Boasson Hagen
by Chris Fontecchio on Jan 8, 2010 2:50 PM EST reply actions
+1
I believe he motivates himself partly by putting stuff out there that will ruffle feathers. He wants them to try to prove him wrong – that too will motivate him. He’s driven and it shows. And I think he wants us to know he’s more than just the last man in the Columbia train.
We know he can appear to be a bit of an arsehole, but with his palmares I don’t see why he shouldn’t say what he does.
I can’t put it as simply as saying I like him, based on what I see of him, but I admire him hugely. If you asked me which pro rider I’d most like to go for a ride and chat with he’d undoubtedly be top of the list. I have a feeling that beneath the spiky competitiveness he is a very decent chap.
Yah
That kind of prickly ego can be part of competition, and not so much part of the person. Whether it works, I dunno, I bet it makes Farrar all the more focused.
"The only pain I got time for is the pain I put on fools who don't know what time it is." Edvald Boasson Hagen
by Chris Fontecchio on Jan 8, 2010 7:23 PM EST up reply actions
I just think Cav is going to continue to surprise
rather than be surprised.
And good for you and others for not being so critically judgemental of these quotes.
"It's a lovely thing, feeling that momentum. If you're lucky, it's also about grace." Tim Winton
snark
is why i love sport. when’s the first time they will be matched up? qatar?
"well...you live in england so: you love the rain. loves the queen. hates cycling. based on mr bean had a tremendous amount of humour. all ride in a mini cooper. all getting drunk before the age of 12. getting drunk at least 3 times a day."- frinking, 7/9/09
Cav puts its best....
As he puts it with a grin: “The other day somebody joked that it was just as well it wasn’t me that was (UK’s) Sports Personality Of The Year, otherwise everyone would have thought cycling was full of wankers!”
Source – here
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