The Pro Road Cycling Thread

[Shands]

Tour De France 2014 presentation today at 10.20 on Eurosport. Let's see if the rumoured cobbled stage is in there.

 

[Shands]

Route looks good. Cobbled stage is in there. Only one TT, 55km on penultimate stage. At least one descent finish, and enough hilly/mountain stages to allow the GC contenders to get tactical. Pretty exciting all told.

nine climbs on stage 2 including Holme Moss as expected.

 

[discopop]

Route looks good. Cobbled stage is in there. Only one TT, 55km on penultimate stage. At least one descent finish, and enough hilly/mountain stages to allow the GC contenders to get tactical. Pretty exciting all told.

nine climbs on stage 2 including Holme Moss as expected.

Holme Moss will be a nasty surprise to a few of the the sprinters, I can climb and have done some Cat 1 and so on but I hate it with a passion, They have started work on repairing some of the pot holes in the area and I know the Cragg Vale climb has over a 100 items to be repaired

Rest of the route looks pretty good, love a bit of cobble carnage and the last two weeks are taking in some fantastic places.

Cant wait

 

[Shands]

One for Mr Left Knee to get excited about...

Miguel Indurain Jr signs with the Caja Rural development squad

Spanish team aim to develop 18-year-old in their amateur set-up

After recently announced the signing of Miguel Indurain Jr, the son of Spain’s five-time Tour de France winner, the Caja Rural-RGA team has outlined their development plans for the 18-year-old rider.

“It’s a real pleasure having him in our ranks, but we know that we have to go very slowly,” said Caja Rural DS Jaime Garzón.

The winner of the Navarran junior road and time trial titles back in the summer, the son of the Tour de France great will step up into Caja Rural’s under-23 team in 2014.

Speaking to the Spanish Marca newspaper , Garzón explains how Spain’s second most prominent team likes to bring as many riders as possible through their under-23 squad.

“The team acts as a feeder for the professional set-up, but we like to have riders there for at least two or three years to get to know everything about them and be in a position to decide who has the ability to step up,” Garzón said. “We will have to see how he fares as is the case with the rest of the youngsters who have to keep progressing. We have to help form them both from a sporting perspective and a human one.”

Garzón recognises that there is likely to be a lot of interest in 18-year-old Indurain, but insists it’s far too early to say what his potential is.

“He is very young and has to keep developing and we will see how he gets on,” Garzón explained. “His name alone is an incentive to have him in the team. But he’s also from our local region and we think that from a sporting perspective he’s got a long road ahead of him.”

Indurain’s father has understandably played down his son’s move into the under-23 ranks. The Tour winner insists his son’s main focus will be on his law and economics studies. He believes his son’s 2014 season will be nothing more than one of acclimatisation in the under-23 ranks.

However, speaking to El Diario de Navarra, Indurain Sr said: “Genetics are pushing him towards being a rouleur. He’s got big legs.”

 

[Phil Meup]

Jonathon Tiernan Locke has been put on gardening leave by Sky due to an accusation of doping when he was at Endura. Might explain his poor form with Sky.
<a class="postlink" href="http://www.telegraph.co.uk/sport/othersports/cycling/10522378/Team-Skys-Jonathan-Tiernan-Locke-to-face-disciplinary-proceedings-though-Briton-vehemently-denies-charges.html" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;">http://www.telegraph.co.uk/sport/others ... arges.html</a>

 

[Shands]

The winter break is coming to an end and the new season gets going this weekend in San Luis!

A selection of the new kits to peruse.

Lotto

AG2R

Yellow Fluo

Movistar

Garmin

Trek (formely Radioshack)

Giant (Formerly Argos)

Tinkoff-Saxo

 

[Pokes28]

Wow, most of this year's kits are hideous. Normally I'm a fan of the Garmin kit, but I'm not a fan of the 2014 version. Giant and Trek are both pretty decent. AG2R kits are always ugly and this is no exception.

I'm going to miss seeing the orange of Euskaltel out there.

David Harrell

 

[Dave Ewing's Back 'eader]

Wow, most of this year's kits are hideous. Normally I'm a fan of the Garmin kit, but I'm not a fan of the 2014 version. Giant and Trek are both pretty decent. AG2R kits are always ugly and this is no exception.

I'm going to miss seeing the orange of Euskaltel out there.

David Harrell

I think the more they try with jerseys, the worse they get. Yer've to go retro for a decent jersey!

 

[Pokes28]

I think the more they try with jerseys, the worse they get. Yer've to go retro for a decent jersey!

I agree though there have been some seriously nasty looking kits from decades past. I know they feel they have to make changes so that people will buy their new kits. Just like every WC year countries roll out a new version. Even the greatest looking sides are modified sometimes wildly.

David Harrell

 

[chesterbells]

Never mind the friggin jerseys, lets get back on the road. Tour Down Under on the horizon :-)