# Tirreno-Adriatico 2013



## LostViking (Jul 18, 2008)

View attachment 276599​
The 48th rolling out of the Tirreno-Adriatico coast-to-coast road race kicks off on Wednesday, March 6th and the battle will be joined to see who comes away with the prestigious Trident Trophy.

Past winners returning to see if they can recaprure the Trident include defending TA Winner Vincenzo Nabali (Astana), Cadel Evans (BMC) and Fabian Cancelara (Radioshack Leopard Trek). 

Challengers will include Cannondale's Moreno Moser and Pieter Sagan, fresh off of thier one-two win on the Strade Bianchi as well as Saxo-Tinkoff's Alberto Contador, who has yet to add a Trident to his trophy case.

Stages four and five look to be the keys to victory.

Startlists:
Tirreno - Adriatico 2013: Start List | Cyclingnews.com

Startlist Tirreno-Adriatico, Tirreno - Adriatico 2013 - CyclingFever - The International Cycling Social Network - Get the Cycling fever!

The Stages:

Stage 1) Wednesday, March 6 2013
San Vincenzo - Donoratico (TTT) 16.9 km

Stage 2) Thursday, March 7 2013
San Vincenzo - Indicatore 232 km

Stage 3) Friday, March 8 2013
Indicatore - Narni Scalo 190 km

Stage 4) Saturday, March 9 2013
Narni - Prati di Tivo 173 km

Stage 5) Sunday, March 10 2013
Ortona - Chieti 230 km

Stage 6) Monday, March 11 2013
Porto Sant'Elpidio 209 km

Stage 7) Tuesday, March 12 2013
San Benedetto del Tronto (ITT) 9.2 km

Course Profile:

View attachment 276604​
Course Map:

View attachment 276602​
About the race:

La Gazzetta dello Sport: Tirreno - Adriatico

Tirreno - Adriatico 2013: Past Winners & Race History | Cyclingnews.com

Dennis Set To Be Tested At Strade Bianche And Tirreno-Adriatico | Cyclingnews.com

MTN-Qhubeka Poised For WorldTour Debut | Cyclingnews.com

De Kort maakt rentree in Tirreno-Adriatico - AD.nl

BMC mikt op ploegentijdrit in Tirreno-Adriatico - HLN.be

Le parcours de Tirreno-Adriatico 2013 - Velochrono - Actu cyclisme, vidéos...

Legendens nevø er Italiens nye cykelhelt - Cykling

Can Phinney Change BMC's Fortunes In Tirreno - Adriatico TTT? | Cyclingnews.com

Nibali Wants To Leave A Mark On Tirreno-Adriatico | Cyclingnews.com

Slagter Hoping To Mix It With Top Riders At Tirreno-Adriatico | Cyclingnews.com

No Pressure On Garmin-Sharp To Win Tirreno-Adriatico TTT | Cyclingnews.com

Tirreno - Adriatico 2013: Preview | Cyclingnews.com


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## AdamM (Jul 9, 2008)

Strange how most of the TDF contenders skipped Paris-Nice for Tirreno-Adriatico. Should be a good race.


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## Dan Gerous (Mar 28, 2005)

AdamM said:


> Strange how most of the TDF contenders skipped Paris-Nice for Tirreno-Adriatico. Should be a good race.


Isn't the weather usually much nicer at this time of the year in that area compared to Paris-Nice?


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## AJL (Jul 9, 2009)

Dan Gerous said:


> Isn't the weather usually much nicer at this time of the year in that area compared to Paris-Nice?


Yes!

Sadly, not on NBC Sports Network. I find I don't like watching cycling on my 22" computer monitor, so I think I'll be switching to Direct TV once my Comcast contract ends.


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## ewarnerusa (Oct 11, 2007)

AJL said:


> Yes!
> 
> Sadly, not on NBC Sports Network. I find I don't like watching cycling on my 22" computer monitor, so I think I'll be switching to Direct TV once my Comcast contract ends.


Hook your computer up to your TV, that's what I do with my laptop. 
It doesn't seem like it from the pics I've seen so far, but is there any kit acknowledgment for being the reigning TTT world champs?


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## LostViking (Jul 18, 2008)

*Stage One*

San Vincenzo - Donoratico (TTT)

Rainy weather failed to put a damper on the World Champion Time Trialing Team of Omega Pharma-Quickstep, which easily put Mark Cavendish in the blue leader's jersey today.

1) Omega Pharma-Quick Step - 0:19:24

2) Movistar - 0:00:11

3) BMC - 0:00:16

4) Cannondale - 0:00:19

5) Astana - 0:00:20

6) Orica-GreenEdge - 0:00:24

7) Sky Procycling - 0:00:25

8) Team Saxo-Tinkoff - 0:00:29

9) Lampre-Merida - 0:00:35

10) RadioShack Leopard Trek - 0:00:36

Garmin-Sharp, a team usually associated with time trailing prowess finished almost a minute behind Omega Pharma-Quickstep. Movistar continues to show great team time trailing ability as they did in last year's Veulta. Dead last honors (22nd Place) - a position seemingly reserved for the likes of Saxo Tinkoff - went to Euskaltel-Euskadi - more than a minute behind the stage winners.

Tirreno - Adriatico 2013: Stage 1 Results | Cyclingnews.com

Cavendish: I've Found A New Motivation Again | Cyclingnews.com

Movistar Impresses With Second In The Tirreno-Adriatico Team Time Trial | Cyclingnews.com

Degenkolb With Dedicated Sprint Train At Tirreno-Adriatico | Cyclingnews.com

Tirreno-Adriatico TTT Creates First Time Gaps Amongst The Overall Contenders | Cyclingnews.com

Horner Back In Action At Tirreno-Adriatico | Cyclingnews.com

Stage Two, from San Vincenzo - Indicatore, is the longest of the race totaling 232 km. It features some nice climbs in the begining, but then quickly levels out so should favor a sprinter like Mark Cavendish. 

Look for Omega Pharma-Quickstep to try to dictate the stage and for the non-sprinters to try thier luck in breakaways after the hills are past. 

I'm picking the Manx Missle to win Stage Two of Tirreno-Adriatico as well.

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## EWT (Jul 3, 2011)

I'm getting English language coverage of Tirreno - Adriatico and some other races (Strade Blanche, and Roma Maxima) via a channel called "BeIn" on Comcast this year. I'm not sure if it is new, or I just never noticed it in the past. I found them via an auto-record on the DVR with the word "cycling."


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## TheMilkMan (Apr 30, 2012)

BeIn is on Time Warner as well, good coverage of Roma and Strada. Daniel Llyod did a good job im commentary. It seems they are covering the races Nbc Sports Network is not


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## LostViking (Jul 18, 2008)

TheMilkMan said:


> BeIn is on Time Warner as well, good coverage of Roma and Strada. Daniel Llyod did a good job im commentary. It seems they are covering the races Nbc Sports Network is not


IMHO - It's great the BeIn has picked up these races. But I have to disagree with the "good" commentary - that crew seem to make more identification mistakes than Phil and Paul - whose mistakes have reached legendary proportions (I refuse to use the word "Epic"). Llyod does a reasonable job of explaining the mentality of the peloton and it's tactics, but that's about the best I can say about the telecaste. Commercials are frequent, long, loud and repetitive - thank the cycling gods for DVR as I'm able to fast-forward through those.

Again, I'm glad that any station is broadcasting these races - but there is room for improvement.


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## The Tedinator (Mar 12, 2004)

Paul Sherwen tweeted yesterday that NBCSports would not be broadcasting the Tour of Flanders. I wonder if this channel will be broadcasting it?


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## LostViking (Jul 18, 2008)

The Tedinator said:


> Paul Sherwen tweeted yesterday that NBCSports would not be broadcasting the Tour of Flanders. I wonder if this channel will be broadcasting it?


I hope so as well. The Tour of Flanders is a great race - would be a pity not to be able to watch the ToF on TV this year. If I recall correctly, broadcasters seem to add races as the year progresses - probably a bargaining tactic to price down the distributor's asking price. We might yet see the ToF on an NBC affiliate.


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## Chainstay (Mar 13, 2004)

Lot's of great photography from the rainy TTT. Also big bubbly blitzkreig on the podium

2013 tirreno-adriatico photos stage-01
Tirreno - Adriatico 2013: Party Time For Omega Pharma-Quick Step After Winning The..., Photos | Cyclingnews.com


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## LostViking (Jul 18, 2008)

*Stage Two*

San Vincenzo - Indicatore

Yet another soggy stage ended in Indicatore when Matt Goss (Orica-GreenEdge) took the stage win edgeing out his rivals in a bunch sprint, but Mark Cavendish, who came in 5th on the day, retains the blue leader's jersey. 

For his efforts, Goss now will wear the Points Jersey during tomorrow's stage, the KOM jersey will be on the back of Garikoitz Bravo Oiarbide (Euskaltel-Euskadi) and the Best Young Rider will be Michal Kwiatkowski (Omega Pharma-Quickstep). 

Cavendish's arch-rival Andre Griepel (Lotto-Belisol) came in 7th on the stage - so for now at least - Cavendish has the bragging rights. Still, Cav was irate - angry with his team for not making a better showing "We should be unbeatable" he said at a post-race conferrence and promised to have words with his teammates back at the hotel later.

Here's your current top ten on GC:

1) Mark Cavendish (Omega Pharma-Quickstep) 6:08:02

2) Michal Kwiatkowski (Omega Pharma-Quickstep) 0:00:02

3) Niki Terpstra (Omega Pharma-Quickstep) 0:00:03

4) Tony Martin (Omega Pharma-Quickstep)

5) Zdenek Stybar (Omega Pharma-Quickstep)

6) Giovanni Visconti (Movistar) 0:00:14

7) Alex Dowsett (Movistar)

8) Juan Jose Cobo Acebo (Movistar)

9) Benat Intxausti Elorriaga (Movistar)

10) Eros Capecchi (Movistar)

Tirreno - Adriatico 2013: Stage 2 Results | Cyclingnews.com

Goss All Smiles After First Win Of Season At Tirreno | Cyclingnews.com

Cavendish Criticizes Teammates After Losing Tirreno Sprint | Cyclingnews.com

Brian Holm: I Like It When Cavendish Speaks Out | Cyclingnews.com

Greipel Left Legless In Tirreno Sprint | Cyclingnews.com

So what of Stage Three?

Stage Three is a 190km ride from Indicatore - Narni Scalo. The first half of the stage starts out fairly flat but gets bumpier in the second half of the stage. However, those final hills do not look challenging enough to cause the sprinters to fall out the back so I'm expecting another bunch sprint unless a breakaway gets lucky.

After the lashing Cav's teammates are recieveing this evening, I expect them to carry him to victory tomorrow - even if he is reclined on a Louie the 14th loveseat!

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## AJL (Jul 9, 2009)

ewarnerusa said:


> Hook your computer up to your TV, that's what I do with my laptop.
> It doesn't seem like it from the pics I've seen so far, but is there any kit acknowledgment for being the reigning TTT world champs?


I have a 24x24x9" tower in the basement, so I won't be doing that (my wife would kill me!). Maybe next year I'll build an HTPC.


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## LostViking (Jul 18, 2008)

*Stage Three - Results*

Indicatore - Narni Scalo

Obviously, Peter Sagan (Cannondale) is not buying into Cav's beliefe that Omega Pharma-Quickstep are unbeatable. Sagan whipped Cav and Grip and the rest of sprinting royalty in the bunch sprint into Narni Scalo.

The top ten on the stage:

1) Peter Sagan (Cannondale)
2) Mark Cavendish (Omega Pharma-Quickstep)
3) André Greipel (Lotto Belisol)
4) Gerald Ciolek (MTN-Qhubeka)
5) Matt Goss (Orica-GreenEdge)
6) Davide Cimolai (Lampre-Merida)
7) Tyler Farrar (Garmin-Sharp)
8) Thor Hushovd (BMC)
9) Manuel Belletti (AG2R La Mondiale)
10) Simon Geschke (Argos-Shimano)

It is probably only a small consolation to Cav that he remains in the race leader's jersey after young Sagan took the veteran to sprint school, but here's the current GC:

1) Mark Cavendish (Omega Pharma-Quick Step)
2) Michal Kwiatkowski (Omega Pharma-Quickstep) 0:00:07
3) Niki Terpstra (Omega Pharma-Quickstep) 0:00:09
4) Tony Martin (Omega Pharma-Quickstep)
5) Zdenek Stybar (Omega Pharma-Quickstep)
6) Peter Sagan (Cannondale) 0:00:18
7) Alex Dowsett (Movistar) 0:00:20
8) Giovanni Visconti (Movistar)
9) Benat Intxausti Elorriaga (Movistar)
10) Juan Jose Cobo (Movistar)

Tirreno - Adriatico 2013: Stage 3 Results | Cyclingnews.com

Cavendish Upbeat Despite Being Beaten By Sagan | Cyclingnews.com

Sagan Savours His First Win Against Cavendish | Cyclingnews.com

Benedetti: Arbeiter auf dem Podium | radsport-news.com >> Profi-Radsport

Cyclisme - Tirreno - Sagan en puissance

Sagan tævede Cavendish og Greipel i spurten - Cykling

Sagan Wins as Sprint Battles Continue on Tirreno - Adriatico Stage 3 - Podium Cafe

Sagan gewinnt die nächste Regenschlacht | radsport-news.com >> Profi-Radsport

*Stage Four: Narni-Prati di Tivo*

Cav will lose his leader's jersey on this stage to a certain rider from Katusha.

Stage Four will be one for the climbers and concludes with a mountain-top finish which will favor Purito's chances - so I'll naturally tip Joaquím Rodríguez (Katusha) to win this stage. 

But I suspect Nibali, Evans and Contador will be nipping at Purito's heels. The GC will be changed dramatically and Omega Pharma-Quickstep's impressive lock on the top five on GC will be irrevocably smashed.

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## LostViking (Jul 18, 2008)

*Looking the Part*



ewarnerusa said:


> is there any kit acknowledgment for being the reigning TTT world champs?


Look closely at Quickstep's jersey. There is a small oval medallion on the upper left chest above the "Quickstep" with a UCI marking - that's it.

View attachment 276908​
Here's another look - this time on Boonen's upper left chest.

View attachment 276912​
You can also check out Quickstep's official web page header for a better look at the medallion itself:

Home | Omega Pharma - Quick-Step Pro Cycling Team

View attachment 276913​
It is a bit understated - perhaps a rainbow jersey is in order?


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## ewarnerusa (Oct 11, 2007)

LostViking said:


> Look closely at Quickstep's skinsuits when in TT-mode. There is a small oval medallion on the upper left chest above the "Quickstep" with a UCI marking - that's it.


That's it? They deserve more! Why was Tony Martin not wearing his ITT WC kit? I seem to remember seeing other national ITT champ kits in the TTT.


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## LostViking (Jul 18, 2008)

ewarnerusa said:


> That's it? They deserve more! Why was Tony Martin not wearing his ITT WC kit? I seem to remember seeing other national ITT champ kits in the TTT.


I would assume different rules apply when your talking about THE World Champ jersey - probably can only be worn in ITTs.


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## JSR (Feb 27, 2006)

LostViking said:


> Obviously, Peter Sagan (Cannondale) is not buying into Cav's beliefe that Omega Pharma-Quickstep are unbeatable. Sagan whipped Cav and Grip and the rest of sprinting royalty in the bunch sprint into Narni Scalo.


Sagan is getting scary. When you can go shoulder to shoulder with Cavendish and beat him, you're pretty darned fast. Reading between the lines of the Cyclningnews report, it might be inferred that Cavendish was unwilling to lay it all on the line in this early-season race, but still...

I can't wait to see Sagan's results in Belgium. I think those races are made for him. He may make people forget all about Tommeke, Museeuw, et al.

JSR


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## albert owen (Jul 7, 2008)

Sagan is a remarkable racer to be sure - a seriously fast all rounder who can sprint with the best of them.
On the other hand, today, Cavendish did not appear to be going anywhere near flat out......Why? I do not know for certain, but I suspect he was being ultra cautious in the wet conditions and he feared that he might get squeezed if he tried to pass Sagan in what was a diminishing space.No point fallin of at this stage of the season when there is very little at stake except for"bragging rights."


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## Mike T. (Feb 3, 2004)

albert owen said:


> Sagan is a remarkable racer to be sure - a seriously fast all rounder who can sprint with the best of them.
> On the other hand, today, Cavendish did not appear to be going anywhere near flat out......Why? I do not know for certain, but I suspect he was being ultra cautious in the wet conditions and he feared that he might get squeezed if he tried to pass Sagan in what was a diminishing space.No point fallin of at this stage of the season when there is very little at stake except for"bragging rights."


This. He had nowhere to go except risk the barriers. If you watch the heli-shot he was going faster than everyone until he ran out of room on the right. Live to fight another day.

But what a great climb by "Frooma" and Horner today. Not so good by anyone else.


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## LostViking (Jul 18, 2008)

*Stage Four*

Narni - Prati di Tivo

Chris Froome of Sky made a statement today and put his stamp on the GC in a big way, Michal Kwiakowski of Omega Pharma-Quickstep holds the yellow jersey, but with only a 4 second advantage over Froome. As predicted, the GC is now a totally new animal:

1) Michal Kwiatkowski (Omega Pharma-Quick Step)	16:04:59 
2) Christopher Froome (Sky)	0:00:04 
3) Vincenzo Nibali (Astana)	0:00:16 
4) Alberto Contador (Saxo-Tinkoff)	0:00:30 
5) Rigoberto Uran Uran (Sky) 0:00:33 
6) Christopher Horner (RadioShack Leopard Trek)	0:00:40 
7) Mauro Santambrogio (Vini Fantini-Selle Italia) 
8) Jonathan Castroviejo Nicolas (Movistar) 0:01:04 
9) Roman Kreuziger (Saxo-Tinkoff)	0:01:16 
10) Joaquim Rodriguez Oliver (Katusha)


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## foto (Feb 7, 2005)

Good racing.


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## JohnStonebarger (Jan 22, 2004)

Great to see Horner up there. Did Andy S sit up on the climb?


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## LostViking (Jul 18, 2008)

JohnStonebarger said:


> Great to see Horner up there. Did Andy S sit up on the climb?


Andy who?


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## albert owen (Jul 7, 2008)

If Froome carries on like this, he is going to do some serious mental damage to Alberto.


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## zosocane (Aug 29, 2004)

albert owen said:


> If Froome carries on like this, he is going to do some serious mental damage to Alberto.


Contador has bigger problems than Froome. Other GC guys who aren't at Froome's world class level are closing in on AC. And it's only March.


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## jd3 (Oct 8, 2004)

I'm impressed with Horner. He is just 37 seconds down to all those hot shot kids.


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## JSR (Feb 27, 2006)

jd3 said:


> I'm impressed with Horner. He is just 37 seconds down to all those hot shot kids.


I'm a big Chris Horner fan, but he is never able to deliver the goods any more. He seems to be content to be able to say "I was there in the big climb with big climbers" while he gets gapped at the end. If he had a killer TT he'd be in a better position, but he's always been that guy who places 15th in the TT - on a good day.

I've been hoping over the last couple of years that he'd snap off a big win and ride off into the sunset. But for some bad luck and team tactics, he might have done it - indeed he's had some impressive results at Bascque Country and Tirreno-Adriatico. 

Unfortunately, I think he's going to fade away now.

JSR


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## LostViking (Jul 18, 2008)

*Stage Six*

Porto Sant'Elpidio

Until the "Tourminator" beat the world's best cyclists in a bunch sprint for the line, your top-ten on GC looked like this:

1) Christopher Froome (Sky) 22:11:53
2) Alberto Contador (Saxo-Tinkoff) 0:00:20
3) Vincenzo Nibali (Astana)
4) Michal Kwiatkowski (Omega Pharma-Quickstep) 0:00:24
5) Christopher Horner (RadioShack Leopard Trek) 0:00:37
6) Mauro Santambrogio (Vini Fantini-Selle Italia) 0:00:52
7) Joaquim Rodriguez (Katusha) 0:00:55
8) Rigoberto Uran (Sky) 0:00:57
9) Roman Kreuziger (Saxo-Tinkoff) 0:01:27
10) Sergio Luis Henao Montoya (Sky) 0:01:51

This circuitous route should favor a sprinter or a low-ranking (on GC) breakaway...

Stage Six Profile:
View attachment 277043​
Stage Six Map:
View attachment 277044​
The revised GC now looks like this:

1) Vincenzo Nibali (Astana)
2) Chris Froome (Sky)
3) Joaquim Rodriguez (Katusha)
4) Alberto Contador (Saxo-Tinkoff)
5) Michal Kwiatkowski (Omega Pharma-Quickstep)
6) Christopher Horner (RadioShack Leopard Trek)
7) Mauro Santambrogio (Vini Fantini-Selle Italia)
8) Pryzemyslaw Niemiec (Lampre-Merida)
9) Andrey Amador Bakkazakova (Movistar)
10) Wout Poels (Vacansoleil-DCM)

So Sagan helped his former teammate "The Shark" take the lead away from Sky's captain Chris Froome. The "Big Four" are together at the top of the GC and the battle royal continues into the next stage.

Chris Horner (RadioShack Leopard Trek) continues to be a relevlation - just when you write him off as an old has-been - he puts in a really solid showing. Meanwhile, Andy Schleck, RadioShack Leopard Trek's team leader, picked up yet another DNF as he withdrew from the race.

Tirreno - Adriatico 2013: Stage 6 Results | Cyclingnews.com

Nibali Gets Better As Weather Worsens In Tirreno-Adriatico | Cyclingnews.com

Froome Admits Minor Mistakes Cost Him Tirreno-Adriatico | Cyclingnews.com

New Pioneer Power Meter Spotted At Tirreno-Adriatico | Cyclingnews.com

Schleck Abandons Tirreno-Adriatico | Cyclingnews.com

Santambrogio Confirms Leadership Ability At Tirreno-Adriatico | Cyclingnews.com

Cyclisme - Tirreno - Sagan gagne, Nibali en bleu

Sagan vandt vanvidsetape - Contador nede som nummer fire - Cykling

Formfattige Schleck stod af - igen - Cykling

Nibali grabs the lead in Tirreno-Adriatico - Podium Cafe

*Stage Seven*, an Individual Time Trial, awaits:

San Benedetto del Tronto

Of the top four, Purito is the only one for which the ITT can be seen as a possible weakness - so it's not unlikely he will fall off the podium unless one of the other three have an exceptionnaly bad day on the TT bike. Conti is looking good, but not yet in form, so I'm thinking this is a shoot-out between Froome and Nibali for the top step on the final podium. Nibali has done this before, so I'll give him the edge in this GC contest.

That said, there are some excellent TTers below the top four on GC - one of them could still take this final stage win.

View attachment 277053


View attachment 277054​


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## foto (Feb 7, 2005)

lulz, pros getting off and walking cause the hill's too steep. You know that must be pretty steep.


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## foto (Feb 7, 2005)

I think we are seeing the ***** in the armor of the Skyborg. 

Hard courses. Go Purito!!


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## albert owen (Jul 7, 2008)

Nibali - what a great ride.
Sagan - those hills and this boy wins again. He is a Monster.
Froome - came back with real courage at the end. A real racer and so much more entertaining than Wiggins. He and Contador deserve each other in the best sense.
Froome and the Sky machine v Alberto will be the big story of this season.


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## foto (Feb 7, 2005)

albert owen said:


> Nibali - what a great ride.
> Sagan - those hills and this boy wins again. He is a Monster.
> Froome - came back with real courage at the end. A real racer and so much more entertaining than Wiggins. He and Contador deserve each other in the best sense.
> Froome and the Sky machine v Alberto will be the big story of this season.


I didn't see that. I saw Froome sucking wheels at the back of the second group, looking like he wanted to puke and wishing it was over soon.

I hope Sagan keeps on winning, he is so awesome. The commentators said he is going to be groomed as a GT weenie. I really hope that's not true.


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## Bill2 (Oct 14, 2007)

LostViking said:


> Porto Sant'Elpidio
> 
> At the startline, your top-ten on GC looked like this:
> 
> ...


Hey, Porto Sant'Elpidio is the town where I bought my used Merckx. Very pretty, steep hills immediately above the beaches.


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## Creakyknees (Sep 21, 2003)

nice to see Taylor Phinney finish the stage, even if dead last and 37 minutes back.

apparently his entire gruppetto abandoned the last time thru the finish and he soldiered on, solo

109	Taylor Phinney (USA) BMC Racing Team	0:37:37


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## AdamM (Jul 9, 2008)

Epic stage. Sets up what should be a great TT battle tomorrow. 

Fwiw, after the last few stages I was worried Froome had gotten one of those motorized bikes, but he looked toasted today.


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## burgrat (Nov 18, 2005)

Ok, Taylor Phinney is a major badass after today's ride. What a heart in the guy to finish that stage solo. Major props to him. Tak note Andy Schleck: if you could muster 10% of the balls Phinney has you might finish something.
Phinney rides emotional, four-hour solo quest at Tirreno


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## vandalbob (Dec 13, 2001)

Yup, the kid has class not unlike his parents. He's turning out to be quite the professional. Impressive guts and fortitude today. Shame he didn't make the time cut.


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## matchmaker (Aug 15, 2009)

I sort of have the impression this stage was a setup from the Italians. It was marked in the roadbook that it was a flat stage, convenient for sprinters. Hell, yeah.... with slopes of 30%! It was quite obvious that half of the peloton was undergeared. This would never happen in the TdF.

Still, a gutsy ride from Nibali and Sagan. It's Nibali's to win now. I can't imagine Froome or anyone making up 34 seconds in 9K or so.


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## ukbloke (Sep 1, 2007)

*Stijn Devolder wasn't the only rider walking his bike up the Sant’Elpidio A Mare*

View attachment 277081


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## Bill2 (Oct 14, 2007)

matchmaker said:


> I sort of have the impression this stage was a setup from the Italians. It was marked in the roadbook that it was a flat stage, convenient for sprinters. Hell, yeah.... with slopes of 30%! It was quite obvious that half of the peloton was undergeared. This would never happen in the TdF.
> 
> Still, a gutsy ride from Nibali and Sagan. It's Nibali's to win now. I can't imagine Froome or anyone making up 34 seconds in 9K or so.


Don't the team managers (if not the riders) look at the stage profile?


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## LostViking (Jul 18, 2008)

@Matchmaker - Agreed, call it home field advantage! 
If you dig back a bit, you'll find similare finesses in the TdF as well set-up to advantage the likes of Hinault and Fignon.

@Bill2 - Yeah , I'm sure they do, but nothing can replace actually driving or, if you have the time, riding the course. If you don't, the advantage goes to those who have. Fair dinkum.

Had they driven the course they might have seen this:

View attachment 277097​
Before they saw this:

View attachment 277098​
Nice bike BTW!


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## LostViking (Jul 18, 2008)

fornaca68 said:


> it's only March.


^ This


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## Bill2 (Oct 14, 2007)

True but wouldn't team managers and riders be able to distinguish a 30% gradient on a profile from "a flat stage, convenient for sprinters?"


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## LostViking (Jul 18, 2008)

burgrat said:


> Ok, Taylor Phinney is a major badass after today's ride. What a heart in the guy to finish that stage solo. Major props to him. Tak note Andy Schleck: if you could muster 10% of the balls Phinney has you might finish something.
> Phinney rides emotional, four-hour solo quest at Tirreno


Totally agree - that's the kind of toughness and mental fortitude that bridges the gap from good to great. I have higher expectations of Phinney after this.


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## foto (Feb 7, 2005)

Bill2 said:


> True but wouldn't team managers and riders be able to distinguish a 30% gradient on a profile from "a flat stage, convenient for sprinters?"


Why do you ask? Were people calling this a sprinter's stage? I think people knew it was going to be hard going into it.


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## LostViking (Jul 18, 2008)

Bill2 said:


> True but wouldn't team managers and riders be able to distinguish a 30% gradient on a profile from "a flat stage, convenient for sprinters?"


You will not get an argument from me - they should be able to do so - if they were surprized by this, it's their own damn fault for not doing their homework.


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## LostViking (Jul 18, 2008)

albert owen said:


> If Froome carries on like this, he is going to do some serious mental damage to Alberto.


Bert is pretty tough - I suspect he'll use it as motivation.


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## LostViking (Jul 18, 2008)

*Stage Seven - Final Results*

9.2km Individual Time Trial - San Benedetto del Tronto

Vincenzo Nibali has won Tirreno-Adriatico 2013.

Astana captain and defending TA champion Vincenzo Nibali had a nice 34 second cushion on his nearest rival, Chris Froome of Sky. Unless Nibali had a total bonk or Froome went stellar - the fight was for 2nd and 3rd step on the podium. Nibali went well and came in only 11 seconds over Froome's time - so no real contest for 1st place in this final stage - Nibali is the first to succesfully defend his Trident Trophy in many years. 

A Sky double of Paris-Nice and Tirreno-Adriatico was only narrowly avoided - and Alberto Contador would do well to note his 15 second deficiet to Froome during this time trial...

*Results:*

Tony Martin has won the final stage of Tirreno-Adriatico 2013 - surprized? 

Martin took the stage, but the podium positions still had to be decided on the road. As expected, J-Rod's weakness in this discipline told the tale.

Here's your final podium:

1) Vincenzo Nibali (Astana)
2) Chris Froome (Sky)
3) Alberto Contador (Saxo-Tinkoff)

Here's a selection of finishing times for this stage:

Tony Martin (Omega Pharma-Quickstep) 10:25
Adriano Malori (Lampre-Merida) 10:31
Andrey Bakkazakova (Movistar) 10:35
Fabian Cancellara (RadioShack Leopard Trek) 10:37
Jonathan Castroviejo Nicolas (Movistar) 10:39
Christopher Froome (Sky) 10:40
Hayden Roulston (RadioShack Leopard Trek) 10:45
Michal Kwiatkowski (Omega Pharma-Quickstep) 10:46
Dario Cataldo (Sky) 10:48
Alex Dowsett (Movistar) 10:48
Tom Dumoulin (Argos-Shimano) 10:49
Vincenzo Nibali (Astana) 10:51
Alberto Contador (Saxo-Tinkoff) 10:55
Chris Horner (RadioShack Leopard Trek) 11:02
Joaquim Rodriguez (Katusha) 11:08

And now on to Milano Sanremo this Sunday - Chao Bella!


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## Wile_E_Coyote (Jul 15, 2011)

So Froome quite a bit better than Contador in the TT. Even Nibali edged him as well...


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## Fireform (Dec 15, 2005)

Tough to get a good steak in Italy these days.


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## Bill2 (Oct 14, 2007)

Wile_E_Coyote said:


> So Froome quite a bit better than Contador in the TT. Even Nibali edged him as well...


Lacks inertia


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## burgrat (Nov 18, 2005)

Here's a photo to show how steep some of the climbs were for Monday's stage. Look at the brick wall (the level line of the bricks) in relation to the gradient of the road. Scary steep!!!

View attachment 277115


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