# Giro Stage 19: 197k of climbs



## weltyed (Feb 6, 2004)

I read that Cavendish couldn't finish. Quite surprising. With the chances of him not collecting points the next three days, will he drop out in the mountains? I would like to see him complete the race, but you never know...

Stage 19 is the first of two quad busting days. Cat2, Cat1, Cat1, Cat2, Cat1 summit finish. That last climb is 4 steep kilometers. I think this is teh day Basso puts some time into Ryder. Don't be surprised is someone else takes the stage, but it is unlikely.


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## tazzmacd (Feb 24, 2012)

This stage is going to be a fun one to watch. I think Liquid Gas will set the pace again up the first Cat 1 and see who they can drop. These mountains will suit Basso, but depending on how Ryder is feeling he just might be able to hang in there with him.

I don't think anybody else will take the stage accept for the top GC guys. Basso I think will do this one.


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## CalgaryDave (Jan 7, 2002)

Just looking at that profile makes my legs hurt. I hope The Big Canadian can dig deep enough to keep his time loss TT-able.


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## gusmahler (Apr 7, 2012)

I don't think I've noticed any HC climbs this year. Did I just miss them? Or does the Giro use different terminology?

FTR, last year's TdF had 6 HC climbs.


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## cale262 (Apr 28, 2010)

I think if RH hangs with the climbers in this stage it will give him a huge psychological edge if he doesn't already have it, I thought it was fitting when Basso referred to Ryder as "the Dark Horse".

Either way it will be a fun stage to watch.


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## Fireform (Dec 15, 2005)

gusmahler said:


> I don't think I've noticed any HC climbs this year. Did I just miss them? Or does the Giro use different terminology?
> 
> FTR, last year's TdF had 6 HC climbs.


There's no "HC" equivalent in the Giro--the hardest climbs are the category 1s. The biggest climbs in the Giro are probably harder than those in the TDF. This year, we have the Mortirolo and the Stelvio in the same stage, debatably two of the five toughest climbs in any of the grand tours.


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## Dan Gerous (Mar 28, 2005)

Now for the serious stages. :thumbsup:


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## BillyWayne (Aug 1, 2011)

The next few days are going to be fun. I like the sprint stages but they are like pro basketball games where only the last 2 minutes are worth watching. I am very interested to see the stategy of the top 3 in these big climbs.


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## Dan Gerous (Mar 28, 2005)

Fun days indeed!

I think Liquigas will continue their tactics, take control, a high pace that will make it hard for others to attack and hopefully drop them, then Basso will try to go as he did up the Zoncolan in 2010 on the finishing climb...

Hesjedal will be happy to follow, just not lose time, that's all he needs to do...

But Basso and Hesjedal may be forced to adapt their tactics. The only way Purito or Scramponi can win is by being aggressive and attack, sharp attacks that Basso could have a hard time to match, and hopefully crack Hesjedal. From Scramponi, I doubt he can, he hasn't been impressive in this Giro. Purito will try but will he be able to hold on if he gets away? If he attacks from far out on those long climbs, Basso and Hesjedal could very well high tempo their way back if he fades. Basso is at his best on such long hard climbs and he seems to handle a very high tempo for a long time (which his team, Smyzd will force) and he seems to be peaking at the perfect time.

I think Basso is looking pretty good to repeat...


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## thechriswebb (Nov 21, 2008)

I too think it is between Hesjedal and Basso. I am putting my money on Hesjedal for the overall; maybe Basso will put some time into him but I don't think it will be enough to pad him for the ITT. From the interviews I've been reading, it sounds like Hesjedal is the one that all of the favorites have their eye on. He hasn't really looked weaker than anyone else in the mountains so far and the only advantage anyone has shown over him is Purito's ability to beat him in an uphill sprint. Does that extra kick in a sprint translate to a long suck-fest up a mountaintop finish? It sounds like Possovivo was trying to break him off over the climb yesterday but couldn't.


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## weltyed (Feb 6, 2004)

it would be great to see ryder win, but for some reason i am pulling for scarponi. it will be fun to see if the tactics do change, especially if liquigas sticks together, basically giving ryder a free ride. i think the trick is to somehow get ryder on the front and get some attacks into him. but if he just sticks to wheels like JRod did the day before, he nullifies that. unless they attack, attack, attack, play possum forcing him to the front, then attack again. 

what i love watching is the strategy and tactics unfold. i am no race tactician, so i always like to see the genius they come up with.


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## slimjw (Jul 30, 2008)

The problem for Liquigas is that Ryder has similar characteristics to Basso, in that both are diesels and won't do well trying to match a bunch of sharp attacks from Rodriguez or Scarponi. If the latter two get away tomorrow it will be in both Ryder's and Basso's interest to claw them back but that strategy will benefit Ryder much more than Basso given the time differences between the two. 

Basso has already proven his mettle in past Giros and I seriously doubt he is going to have a bad day over the next two stages. Scarponi is fighting but so far hasn't seemed as strong as the others. It remains to be seen if Ryder has what it takes to hang onto the pace and bring this all home. I'm rooting for him but he is in uncharted territory as he has never been in this position before and I don't envy the suffering he is sure to endure at the hands of all these short guys over the next two days.


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## gusmahler (Apr 7, 2012)

weltyed said:


> I read that Cavendish couldn't finish. Quite surprising. With the chances of him not collecting points the next three days, will he drop out in the mountains? I would like to see him complete the race, but you never know...


Unless Rodriguez overtakes his point lead, I can't imagine why Cav would drop out. You have to finish every stage to win the points jersey. More than that, it's highly unlikely that Rodriguez will take over on stage 19 (he'd have to win both the intermediate sprint and the stage to do that). So if he does take over the points lead, Cav will only find out after stage 20. With only an ITT left, he might as well do it just so he can say he finished the Giro. 

Though I do suppose it's possible that Cav will find out that Rodriguez earned enough points while Cav is still climbing, making Cav not want to finish the stage.


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## BCSaltchucker (Jul 20, 2011)

wowee this is like a bike racing fan's biggest dream. A Ryder from my town has a shot at a Grand Tour! Of course he is going to win! All the way, rah rah rah!

Now realistically speaking, this race is still open and we see some incredible legs at the head of this Tour - who said the TDF is the only meaningful Tour .. oh sorry Lance, you're still the Man. hehe Just kicking myself that I didn't fly over to see it - the guy who works for me just flew out today to catch the last stages.

love it love it


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## Salsa_Lover (Jul 6, 2008)

I think Cav has a big chance to keep the red.

Sky has to send someone on the breakaway to steal the intermediate points, and ensure Uran crosses the finish line before Rodriguez.

Also most probably Pozzovivo or Baso would get the win and so the maximum points the next 2 days.


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## Cinelli 82220 (Dec 2, 2010)

Salsa_Lover said:


> I think Cav has a big chance to keep the red.Sky has to send someone on the breakaway.


Looks like they are doing that today.
As long as there is a break and Rodriguez is denied the points Cavendish will stay ahead. And really, Rodriguez is more concerned with the Pink than the Red jersey. If he picks up points along the way, fine, but he won't be worrying about them.


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## tazzmacd (Feb 24, 2012)

Must not read any more. Need to wait until I get home and watch it on tape tonight.....going to be hard....


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## weltyed (Feb 6, 2004)

dude, if sella takes this stage im gonna be pissed. i picked him, what, 2-3 times and he didnt show!


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## Dwayne Barry (Feb 16, 2003)

Salsa_Lover said:


> I think Cav has a big chance to keep the red.
> 
> Sky has to send someone on the breakaway to steal the intermediate points, and ensure Uran crosses the finish line before Rodriguez.
> 
> Also most probably Pozzovivo or Baso would get the win and so the maximum points the next 2 days.


Could happen but Rodriguez has the best sprint of any climber and I don't think he's shown any weakness yet to suggest the other climbers can drop him. I'd think on the super steep stuff Rodriguez would have the advantage over bigger riders like Basso and Ryder.


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## gusmahler (Apr 7, 2012)

Cav's biggest advantage is that, while Cavendish REALLY wants the red jersey, Rodriguez doesn't seem to care about it at all. In stage 15, Rodriguez was part of the main field after the 10-man breakaway finished. He didn't sprint at the end to get 11th place and 5 points and ended up 18th. In stage 16, he didn't try to respond when Izaguirre passed him for 1st in the last 500m. That's 10 points he gave up in those two stages without a fight.

Cav's biggest disadvantage is that Rodriguez could win the red jersey merely by trying for the pink jersey.

This shows pros and cons of having mountain stages count for the same number of points for the sprint stages. The pro is that it makes the points jersey competition more competitive because its not restricted to sprinters. The con is that it makes it a competition between one who will wear it as a badge of honor, the completion of an important career goal. And one who seems to view it as a consolation prize.


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## Dwayne Barry (Feb 16, 2003)

Rodriguez seems to be sitting awful far back in the bunch, which is usually a bad sign, especially as he's typically placed himself towards the front so far in this Giro.

Maybe not, seems better placed now than he was a few kms back.


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## Salsa_Lover (Jul 6, 2008)

Dwayne Barry said:


> Could happen but Rodriguez has the best sprint of any climber and I don't think he's shown any weakness yet to suggest the other climbers can drop him. I'd think on the super steep stuff Rodriguez would have the advantage over bigger riders like Basso and Ryder.


best sprint for short and steep climbs for sure.

we are talking about long, high and wearing climbs this next 2 days.


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## weltyed (Feb 6, 2004)

due to the double climb, cycling news is wondering if riders might get lapped!

this would have been a day to see the stage in italy!


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## Dwayne Barry (Feb 16, 2003)

Salsa_Lover said:


> best sprint for short and steep climbs for sure.
> 
> we are talking about long, high and wearing climbs this next 2 days.


From memory anytime Rodriguez comes to the finish in a group of climbers, much like Valverde, he's the heavy favorite to win it. Sure if they drop him well then that's not an issue, but any time he's still there I think he's the best bet. Fatigue can always alter the typical outcome but still knowing nothing else...

At this point there is no reason to think Rodriguez will suffer more than Basso or Ryder on the climbs, they've been equal so far. Could change but at least so far that's what it looks like.


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## Marc (Jan 23, 2005)

weltyed said:


> due to the double climb, cycling news is wondering if riders might get lapped!
> 
> this would have been a day to see the stage in italy!


The Eurosport guys were earlier questioning if it is a good idea reusing the same climb twice or more in the same stage...neither Sean nor David thought of the problem of people getting lapped.


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## Dwayne Barry (Feb 16, 2003)

Marc said:


> The Eurosport guys were earlier questioning if it is a good idea reusing the same climb twice or more in the same stage...neither Sean nor David thought of the problem of people getting lapped.


Not sure why it would be a problem the climb seems pretty wide open. Shouldn't be any problem getting around lapped riders. Hell amateur racers manage it all the time, I've been in plenty of races where one field gets passed by another on a loop course.


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## foto (Feb 7, 2005)

well, the "lap" is over 50km, so if you are getting lapped, you missed the time cut, its safe to say.


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## gusmahler (Apr 7, 2012)

Looks like the GC is Ryder's to lose.

Meanwhile, in red jersey territory, Rodriguez finishes third, earning 16 points. Gap is 13 points now, meaning that Rodriguez needs to finish in the top 4 tomorrow to win the red. 5th or below and it goes to Cavendish.


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## shabbasuraj (May 14, 2005)

Ryder!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Crazy effort....


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## thechriswebb (Nov 21, 2008)

At the beginning of the stage, the strategy was to try and put enough time into Hesjedal to get out of his ITT range. 

Then Hesjedal rode away from everybody. 

That was awesome. 

Kreuziger deserved that win; very gutsy ride.

That was a helluva good ride from Purito too, holding onto pink for another day. I thought he had lost it.


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## weltyed (Feb 6, 2004)

ahhhhhhh! the kman finally steps up! i was picking him and sella early on and neither could close. glad to see him hit the stage!

and ryder! holy carp! can he do it again tomorrow? basso and liquigas must exhausted. can ryder get a good nights sleep? he will need it tomorrow.


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## gusmahler (Apr 7, 2012)

gusmahler said:


> Looks like the GC is Ryder's to lose.
> 
> Meanwhile, in red jersey territory, Rodriguez finishes third, earning 16 points. Gap is 13 points now, meaning that Rodriguez needs to finish in the top 4 tomorrow to win the red. 5th or below and it goes to Cavendish.


The bad news for Cav is that there are two scenarios for Rodriguez, and both point to Rodriguez winning the red: 1) he thinks he has no shot at winning the pink, so he'll go for the red as a consolation prize; 2) he still thinks he can win the pink, so will go on a massive breakaway to try to finish first.


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## KenS (Jan 28, 2004)

weltyed said:


> and ryder! holy carp! can he do it again tomorrow? basso and liquigas must exhausted. can ryder get a good nights sleep? he will need it tomorrow.


Ryder looked strong at the end. I think he can do it.

But can Basso get back on the podium?


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## thechriswebb (Nov 21, 2008)

Basso looked like he may have been the big loser for the day. They were all on their limit; the only person that even tried to do anything about Hesjedal was Scarponi. 

Scarponi looked a bit defeated at the end. I think he could have had it in him to win the race; he could still try something tomorrow but I think he came into the big mountains too far behind from the beginning. 

I think we saw who is going to win the Giro today. He simply looks stronger than everybody else.


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## foto (Feb 7, 2005)

That was guttsy. RH had to mark basso, and instead counterattacks! So much for trying to get rid of him in the mountains. I am rooting for RH now, I hope he saved something for tomorrow.


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## cale262 (Apr 28, 2010)

Mission accomplished by RH today, me thinks the rest of the GC field will be loosing sleep to a "Dark Horse" tonight... 20's going to be insane.


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## cyclusaddictus (Dec 8, 2011)

I'm blown away. Well, not totally but that was another impressive ride for Ryder. He's totally come into form in this tour, and man can he climb! For a mountain bike dude from Vancouver Island, he's making Canada proud. I tell you, if he takes it, that will be history in the making - no Canadian has ever won a major tour. We haven't had a serious contender since Steve Bauer.


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## Salsa_Lover (Jul 6, 2008)

Those podium girls are hawt!


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## zosocane (Aug 29, 2004)

Big battle for the other two podium spots this weekend. 2nd and 3rd are very much up in the air.

Congrats to the Giro organizers for putting down a route that kept things close and interesting.


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## thechriswebb (Nov 21, 2008)

cyclusaddictus said:


> I'm blown away. Well, not totally but that was another impressive ride for Ryder. He's totally come into form in this tour, and man can he climb! For a mountain bike dude from Vancouver Island, he's making Canada proud. I tell you, if he takes it, that will be history in the making - no Canadian has ever won a major tour. We haven't had a serious contender since Steve Bauer.


This has been a good year for Canadian cycling. The Canadian podium sweep at exergy was a good showing.


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## weltyed (Feb 6, 2004)

fornaca68 said:


> Big battle for the other two podium spots this weekend. 2nd and 3rd are very much up in the air.


chickens.
eggs not hatched.


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## AdamM (Jul 9, 2008)

Another tough, gritty, fantastic stage. It's really what the Giro is all about. It wasn't that the others cracked, just Ryder was that much better today. It's amazing to see Ryder as big guy not just dieseling up the climbs, but able to do repeated hard accelerations, sort of in the style of Contador. Also, great to see Roman Kreuziger get redemption. Ryder likely bringing Garmin (and Canadian cycling) their biggest win yet.


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## tazzmacd (Feb 24, 2012)

WOW what an amazing ride by Ryder!! and Kreuziger, that was all guts and to prove his management wrong. 

Tomorrow we shall see what happens, I am not ruling out the other GC contenders but dam they will have to have one hell of a day to win it now.

Hey and what about that last push by Ryder's team mates on the last climb!! What a showing they are having.


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## 67caddy (Nov 4, 2009)

That was an incredible stage. Scarponi and Ryder were glaring at each other. It was like a heavyweight prize fight. Scarponi made three solid attacks, each time Ryder would get back up and half wheel Scarponi and glare at him. I think that he really pissed Scarponi off. With about 2k to go, I think Ryder knew he had Scarponi. Scarponi basicly fixed his gaze on Ryders rear hub, sort of the resolved deathmarch mode. Ryder punched it with 1k to go and didn't once look back. Tomorrow should be another great battle. Basso is going to have to come up with a different plan tomorrow, he is 0-2 Wednesday and today.


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