# Cadel plans to wheelsuck AGAIN!



## robdamanii (Feb 13, 2006)

No kidding right?



> E
> vans takes inspiration from Indurain
> Knee not a worry for Aussie fave
> By Andrew Hood
> ...


I'm not scared to attack....sure.


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## Pablo (Jul 7, 2004)

You can only do what you can, I guess.


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## robdamanii (Feb 13, 2006)

Pablo said:


> You can only do what you can, I guess.


I suppose that's true, but I think it's going to be a hell of a boring tour.


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## Einstruzende (Jun 1, 2004)

robdamanii said:


> I suppose that's true, but I think it's going to be a hell of a boring tour.


Not so sure about that. Cunego and Valverde are both targeting the race, and they have been known to attack in the mountains.

As for Evans, folks should stop hatin' on him. The article is 100% correct in that Contador did the exact same thing at this past Giro, and everyone is saying that Contador is on another level.


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## Pablo (Jul 7, 2004)

robdamanii said:


> I suppose that's true, but I think it's going to be a hell of a boring tour.


The thing is, Cadel's "Indurain-esque" plan just really hasn't been working.


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## ExtraSlow (Jul 7, 2004)

*Let's hope he's less critical of his team this year*

As a cycling fan, Evans' whining last year about how he could have won the TdF with a better team left a bad taste in my mouth. I can't imagine his teammates appreciated it, not his sponsors.

Regardless of whether he podiums this time or not, let's hope he's grown up a bit.


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## gray8110 (Dec 11, 2001)

Pablo said:


> The thing is, Cadel's "Indurain-esque" plan just really hasn't been working.


The really funny thing is that there is very little Indurain-esque about Cadel's riding style. Big Mig was a lot more aggressive than people give him credit for. Indurain won 2 or 3 of his tours by making decisive (and unexpected) moves on a variety of road stages... see the <a href="http://www.iht.com/articles/1991/07/20/tour_1.php">stage to Val Louron</a> in his first tour win where he was in a 2 man break with Chiappucci over 2 or 3 passes and took the overall lead after getting outsprinted by the Italian. There's also the <a href="http://www.iht.com/articles/1995/07/10/bike.t.php">1995 stage into Liege</a> where Bruyneel wheel sucked Indurain to the stage win (and a short lived yellow jersey). 

Cadel has shown signs this year that he's willing to ride a bit more aggressively. He's won a couple road stages something he hasn't shown the capacity for in the past. He's definitely not the most exciting (or gracious) rider out there, but I'd say he does as much as he can with the talents he has. I wonder if his epic self destruct while in the Pink Jersey in 2002 is a major factor in his reluctance to race to win. It's easy to fear failure after a day like that.


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## Aquamarinos (Mar 27, 2008)

Einstruzende said:


> Not so sure about that. Cunego and Valverde are both targeting the race, and they have been known to attack in the mountains.
> 
> As for Evans, folks should stop hatin' on him. The article is 100% correct in that Contador did the exact same thing at this past Giro, and everyone is saying that Contador is on another level.


Not quite so.
No matter what people say or think, nobody expected to see Contador in the Giro, himself included.
He did what he could, limit his losses. If he'd have prepared for the race properly, I'm sure we would have seen a different Contador.

Cadel has targeted the Tour for a year now, so his wheelsucking (which will happen) comes as no surprise.

If we see a wheelsucking Contador at the Vuelta, then I will agree with you.


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## iliveonnitro (Feb 19, 2006)

Great, sounds like a new plan for Evans! (/sarcasm)

He sure makes for a boring rider.


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## Guest (Jun 12, 2008)

Well, it better to wheel suck than to just plain suck :wink:


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## Pablo (Jul 7, 2004)

gray8110 said:


> The really funny thing is that there is very little Indurain-esque about Cadel's riding style. Big Mig was a lot more aggressive than people give him credit for. Indurain won 2 or 3 of his tours by making decisive (and unexpected) moves on a variety of road stages... see the <a href="http://www.iht.com/articles/1991/07/20/tour_1.php">stage to Val Louron</a> in his first tour win where he was in a 2 man break with Chiappucci over 2 or 3 passes and took the overall lead after getting outsprinted by the Italian. There's also the <a href="http://www.iht.com/articles/1995/07/10/bike.t.php">1995 stage into Liege</a> where Bruyneel wheel sucked Indurain to the stage win (and a short lived yellow jersey).
> 
> Cadel has shown signs this year that he's willing to ride a bit more aggressively. He's won a couple road stages something he hasn't shown the capacity for in the past. He's definitely not the most exciting (or gracious) rider out there, but I'd say he does as much as he can with the talents he has. I wonder if his epic self destruct while in the Pink Jersey in 2002 is a major factor in his reluctance to race to win. It's easy to fear failure after a day like that.


Great take. I would only add that, whereas Indurain crushed time trials, Cadel doesn't, so being exclusively defensive in the mountains will only go so far.


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## Einstruzende (Jun 1, 2004)

Aquamarinos said:


> Not quite so.
> No matter what people say or think, nobody expected to see Contador in the Giro, himself included.
> He did what he could, limit his losses. If he'd have prepared for the race properly, I'm sure we would have seen a different Contador.
> 
> ...


Well, then go review TdF 2007. Contador wasn't the best climber there, and he couldn't shake Evans either. 

Also, I don't believe for a second that there isn't more to the 2008 Giro + Astana than we are being led to believe. While Contador may not have been at his best (Attacking for the win in 2007 Paris-Nice comes to mind), he certainly wasn't that far off.


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## rogger (Aug 19, 2005)

Aquamarinos said:


> No matter what people say or think, nobody expected to see Contador in the Giro, himself included.


Indeed quite the surprise, I'd like to spend some time on that magical beach myself...


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## Guest (Jun 12, 2008)

Einstruzende said:


> Well, then go review TdF 2007. Contador wasn't the best climber there, and he couldn't shake Evans either.
> 
> Also, I don't believe for a second that there isn't more to the 2008 Giro + Astana than we are being led to believe. While Contador may not have been at his best (Attacking for the win in 2007 Paris-Nice comes to mind), he certainly wasn't that far off.


Unless my memory is failing (and that's possible) Contador did finish ahead of Evans on a couple of climbs, but not with huge gains. And he sure did show some moxie when he needed a tire change in the last few KMs of one of the climbs and then climbed back up with a vengence.

Would you mind explaining the second part of your post, I'm not sure I understand your point.

Cheers!


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## gray8110 (Dec 11, 2001)

AJL said:


> Unless my memory is failing (and that's possible) Contador did finish ahead of Evans on a couple of climbs, but not with huge gains. And he sure did show some moxie when he needed a tire change in the last few KMs of one of the climbs and then climbed back up with a vengence.


Yeah, Contador put good time into Evans on all three mountain stages in the Pyrenees - the Alps weren't so decisive although Contador was certainly aggressive on the Galibier.

http://www.cyclingnews.com/road/2007/tour07/?id=results/tour0714
http://www.cyclingnews.com/road/2007/tour07/?id=results/tour0715
http://www.cyclingnews.com/road/2007/tour07/?id=results/tour0716

Contador was the best climber who wasn't asked to leave the race last year.


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## davidka (Dec 12, 2001)

He doesn't attack because he can't against the 4-5 best climbers in the world, it's no reason to trash talk him. He knows what his skills are and aren't. There are 170 other riders in the Tour that can't ride close enough to Cadel or the other contenders to be called "boring" for not attacking.


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## stevesbike (Jun 3, 2002)

riders used to care about riding with panache; an Hinault would rather lose than win by a boring, calculating approach. Fignon had some great attacks against both Roche and Lemond, though he lost to them both ultimately. Evans is the vanilla ice cream of the peloton (besides by all accounts being a sourpuss) and his head is too big (both metaphorically and literally).


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## iliveonnitro (Feb 19, 2006)

stevesbike said:


> riders used to care about riding with panache; an Hinault would rather lose than win by a boring, calculating approach. Fignon had some great attacks against both Roche and Lemond, though he lost to them both ultimately. Evans is the vanilla ice cream of the peloton (besides by all accounts being a sourpuss) and his head is too big (both metaphorically and literally).


+1. Where did European style go?

I've launched a couple attacks in races I knew I would lose just so I could go out with some flair (and get my name called by the announcer for whoever is there watching for me). Better to lose with panache than lose, or win for that matter, by being boring. Also why contador made for a fairly boring giro -- his TdF was much more exciting.


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## Einstruzende (Jun 1, 2004)

Well, I'd take Evan's ability and boring style over Voeckler's constant attacking and flaming out. (Just naming someone who tends to attack all the time for no result).

I do hope we see some real attacks in the mountains this year. It seems like forever since we had a GT winner come in solo on a mountain top finish. If I recall Armstrong didn't even manage to do it in his last one or two victories.


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## Dwayne Barry (Feb 16, 2003)

Einstruzende said:


> While Contador may not have been at his best (Attacking for the win in 2007 Paris-Nice comes to mind), he certainly wasn't that far off.


If I understand the translation of the French, he was missing 20 watts at "threshold" (exactly what that means would depend) according to this analysis.

http://www.cyclismag.com/article.php?sid=4230


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## Dwayne Barry (Feb 16, 2003)

Einstruzende said:


> If I recall Armstrong didn't even manage to do it in his last one or two victories.



Wasn't that because of allowing breakaways to go? The beginning of the end of fully "prepared" domestiques?


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## Coolhand (Jul 28, 2002)

I just wish it was easier to find big Mig DVD's of his tour wins.


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## enemyte (Jan 31, 2006)

No wheel-sucking today, he attacked up the Joux Plane and distanced Levi and had Valverde in all kinds of trouble


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## Dwayne Barry (Feb 16, 2003)

enemyte said:


> No wheel-sucking today, he attacked up the Joux Plane and distanced Levi and had Valverde in all kinds of trouble



I didn't think Valverde ever looked terribly troubled. The fact he didn't even try to outsprint him for the bonus seconds at the end suggests to me, he has no fear of him.


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## bigpinkt (Jul 20, 2006)

enemyte said:


> No wheel-sucking today, he attacked up the Joux Plane and distanced Levi and had Valverde in all kinds of trouble


to be fair he followed wheels the majority of the way up, he followed Valverde's attack and pulled the final 1 km at the top of the climb.


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## Einstruzende (Jun 1, 2004)

bigpinkt said:


> to be fair he followed wheels the majority of the way up, he followed Valverde's attack and pulled the final 1 km at the top of the climb.


Also, Michael Rogers was only about 1:20 down, which is pretty good considering how anonymous he's been since crashing out of the Tour last year. He could be a dark horse come July.


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## Guest (Jun 13, 2008)

bigpinkt said:


> to be fair he followed wheels the majority of the way up, he followed Valverde's attack and pulled the final 1 km at the top of the climb.


Yeah, but it's pretty normal to make the yellow jersey work harder if you can. If Evans has this kind of fight in him at the Tour, it will be very interesting.


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## bigpinkt (Jul 20, 2006)

I must have turned away from the screen for a while cause I missed the fight. I saw him out of the saddle for 30 seconds and pulling for about 1 km but that is it. It was bike racing 101, if you opponent puts in a big attack and you are able to sit on his wheel, like Evens did, then you counter attack when he is in the red. Valverde was able to hang on. 

in the end it doesn't matter, we are over 4 weeks from a stage that matters. History of full of riders that did well at DL and collapsed at the tour.


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## robdamanii (Feb 13, 2006)

Einstruzende said:


> Not so sure about that. Cunego and Valverde are both targeting the race, and they have been known to attack in the mountains.
> 
> As for Evans, folks should stop hatin' on him. The article is 100% correct in that Contador did the exact same thing at this past Giro, and everyone is saying that Contador is on another level.


Contador got shelled multiple times by Chicken last year. He was pretty well beaten up in the Giro this year.

He's not on another level, but I think he has the potential to be. How he gets there, I'm not sure.



stevesbike said:


> riders used to care about riding with panache; an Hinault would rather lose than win by a boring, calculating approach. Fignon had some great attacks against both Roche and Lemond, though he lost to them both ultimately. Evans is the vanilla ice cream of the peloton (besides by all accounts being a sourpuss) and his head is too big (both metaphorically and literally).


Exactly. Euro style racing of distant years really does appear to be gone.


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## cyclelogic72 (Dec 1, 2006)

Evans had some very handy support from Chris 'love me a Big Mac' Horner last year, who was probably in the peak form of his career and really impressed (at least he impressed me). I look forward to seeing Popovych carrying that torch in a few weeks...


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## roadie92 (Jan 21, 2008)

davidka said:


> He doesn't attack because he can't against the 4-5 best climbers in the world, it's no reason to trash talk him. He knows what his skills are and aren't. There are 170 other riders in the Tour that can't ride close enough to Cadel or the other contenders to be called "boring" for not attacking.


I agree 110% on that!!! He knows he can't attack like Contador and Rassmussen did in last years tour. If he can win the tour and not make all those attacks then all power to him.


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## Guest (Jun 13, 2008)

cyclelogic72 said:


> Evans had some very handy support from Chris 'love me a Big Mac' Horner last year, who was probably in the peak form of his career and really impressed (at least he impressed me). I look forward to seeing Popovych carrying that torch in a few weeks...


Yeah, having one of the best domestiques in the business can't hurt.


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## justinb (Nov 20, 2006)

If we're going to bash the man for wheelsucking, we ought to praise him when he animates the race.


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## tete de la tour (Oct 26, 2006)

cadel s a beast. the guy is turning HUGE gears. Also I'm not sure about the comment about only attacking for the last 1k of a climb. thats a pretty serious attack. Also why attack with the best climbers in the world, thats how you lose a race and then put yourself on the defensive.


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## tete de la tour (Oct 26, 2006)

velownews.:

VN: Evans said he attacked when he saw you suffering a little bit, how was it up the final part of the climb?

LL: I don’t understand what Cadel was doing. People who win the Tour de France don’t race like that. He was just doing Alejandro’s job for him. Now he has second instead of third. You have to race to win and he wasn’t obviously doing that. I was clawing my way back at my own pace and I was close, but with about one kilometer from the summit, Cadel started to pull those guys. I just exploded a little bit and I think *I lost about 30 seconds there. *

Let levi stay home. please.


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## toonraid (Sep 19, 2006)

A few points - there seems to be a few anti-Evans fans on here which is fine as we all have our favs but lets be fair and objective. So its ok that contador won the Giro by wheel sucking and not attacking but its not ok for Evans to do the same! I would also like to take his lack of preparation with a hint of salt - all the italians at the Giro accused him of not playing his cards during the first week (I guess they could tell he was in better shape than he said), there is also plenty of rumours that money changed hands between Astana and Giro organizers in which case it meant they knew they had a chance at entering the Giro which means they were prepared and given the quality of the opposition - the Italians in particular I find it hard to believe Contador won the Giro and was not in shape. 

As for Evans, he has had a well documented knee injury a few weeks ago but of course that's no excuse for not riding aggressive and its definitely not as good a excuse as Contador's beach party! Being the fav for Tdf, Dauphiné Libéré is not his prime objective so its more of a training ride for him but he is sitting pretty at no 2 and given his attack and aggressive style yesterday I'd say he looks in a really good shape for a guy out on a 1 week training ride 3 weeks from the worlds most important race.

I agree with previous posts regarding last years Tdf - he is not a pure climber and therefore what's the point to attack on a climb and blow out against the top 2 or 3 climbers in the world (specially when at least one of them was getting boosters). Besides he was not a fav in last years Tour and I don't think he rode to win just to be better than before and he has shown that every year he has managed to climb a few places. This year is of course different and I expect you will see different style and I think we are seeing glimpses of it already in Dauphiné Libéré.

As for not getting support from his team traditionally Silence - Lotto has been one of the smaller teams aiming for 1 day classics and stage wins as demonstrated by the make up of their team so they are not a Tour team and have not had the right make up for it so its really the past year or two that have have started to get the right cyclists to make a Tour team so if you look at it objectively he was rightin saying that he was not getting the right support for a win at Tdf specially when you see the likes of CSC, Quick-Step and Astana but they seem to be changing the make-up slowly and getting stronger every year.


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## mpetersen16 (Apr 26, 2006)

Evans was really agressive today, which kinda makes his statement that he would but can't seem more plausible, however he could still just get cold feet about attacking in the tour. Honestly though, I think what everyone in here is trying to say is that Ricco is awesome, (his type of rider that is) he is someone who was a lot of damn fun to watch, rather than the cadel/levi ,because levi is pretty much the same way not throwing down any major gauntlets in the tour.


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## toonraid (Sep 19, 2006)

Yeah but he came 2nd in Giro and went on to say that if he had same support as Contador got from his team he would have won ... kind of reminds you of another cyclist who came 2nd in Tdf last year and made same statement but one gets praised and the other lambasted!

All I am saying is up to now Evans did not have the belief that he can win and he played the best game he could to get the highest position but this year is different - he knows he can win this competition and the tour and I am sure you will see a different approach and game plan.


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## Guest (Jun 14, 2008)

Yeah, Evans seems to be growing in confidence and form - this should make the TdF even more interesting.


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## toonraid (Sep 19, 2006)

I agree - hell it could even be more exciting as a few guys who weren't in the picture feel they have a chance now so we will end up with more riders going for glory.


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## TheDon (Feb 3, 2006)

toonraid said:


> , there is also plenty of rumours that money changed hands between Astana and Giro organizers in which case it meant they knew they had a chance at entering the Giro which means they were prepared and given the quality of the opposition - the Italians in particular I find it hard to believe Contador won the Giro and was not in shape.
> .


This would not surprise me especially with all the problems that Series A has had the past 3 years now.


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## jukebox (Sep 6, 2005)

mpetersen16 said:


> Evans was really agressive today, which kinda makes his statement that he would but can't seem more plausible, however he could still just get cold feet about attacking in the tour. Honestly though, I think what everyone in here is trying to say is that Ricco is awesome, (his type of rider that is) he is someone who was a lot of damn fun to watch, rather than the cadel/levi ,because levi is pretty much the same way not throwing down any major gauntlets in the tour.


Ricco did lose Piepoli who was his key helper.


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## peter1 (Apr 10, 2002)

I'm probably one of the few Evans fans out there. He showed a lot of grit after a few years in the wilderness following the 02 Giro. 

In a GT the only reasonable ways to take time are in the TT's and the big hills, and he can TT with the best and is maybe a tick off in the mountains. So why bash him for being a good tactician? If I understand LL correctly he's annoyed that Cadel didn't pull HIM through. Tough. Let the DS's make that deal on the road. 

And, don't forget, a big part of pro cycling these days is keeping your blood and urine clean. So far so good for Evans...


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## robdamanii (Feb 13, 2006)

toonraid said:


> I agree with previous posts regarding last years Tdf - he is not a pure climber and therefore what's the point to attack on a climb and blow out against the top 2 or 3 climbers in the world (specially when at least one of them was getting boosters).


Hell, he can't MARK those moves, let alone attack against those kinds of riders. It makes him a boring champion, IF he wins it. 

He'll fold, like a chair. Bank it.


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## davidka (Dec 12, 2001)

His results the last two years prove he WON'T fold. In the Dauphine he didn't mark many (Valverde's is an exception) moves, he made them. That's new for Evans, who has proven durable. Valverde is proven to be delicate over a race longer than a week. I'd bet Valverde folds under Evan's pressure in week 2 or 3.


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## slhappy (Mar 9, 2008)

"Well, it better to wheel suck than to just plain suck"...:idea: 

Piss on cats...good ole' soap opera b-s b4 the fight:thumbsup: . Just be glad you have somth'n to ***** about OP .


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## toonraid (Sep 19, 2006)

I like Evans - nothing flash but he doesn't have a yoyo form either and as you pointed out has been on a steady climb with a very admirable Tour record - eighth in 2005, fifth in 2006 and second in 2007 and as you rightly said CLEAN which says a lot about the guy.



peter1 said:


> I'm probably one of the few Evans fans out there. He showed a lot of grit after a few years in the wilderness following the 02 Giro.
> 
> In a GT the only reasonable ways to take time are in the TT's and the big hills, and he can TT with the best and is maybe a tick off in the mountains. So why bash him for being a good tactician? If I understand LL correctly he's annoyed that Cadel didn't pull HIM through. Tough. Let the DS's make that deal on the road.
> 
> And, don't forget, a big part of pro cycling these days is keeping your blood and urine clean. So far so good for Evans...


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## Einstruzende (Jun 1, 2004)

toonraid said:


> I like Evans - nothing flash but he doesn't have a yoyo form either and as you pointed out has been on a steady climb with a very admirable Tour record - eighth in 2005, fifth in 2006 and second in 2007 and as you rightly said CLEAN which says a lot about the guy.


I agree with all that, except that I wouldn't say I'm a big fan. I certainly don't dislike him though. He has a good image and a good engine, and we could be a lot worse off than having him be Tour champion.


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## MG537 (Jul 25, 2006)

toonraid said:


> I like Evans - nothing flash but he doesn't have a yoyo form either and as you pointed out has been on a steady climb with a very admirable Tour record - eighth in 2005, fifth in 2006 and second in 2007 and as you rightly said CLEAN which says a lot about the guy.


As many before me have said, Evans may wheel suck, but if that puts him in yellow at the end, who are we to argue? Furthermore, one has to play his own strengths or drag the race to his own level. If he does that successfully, then we are likely to see the first Australian ever to win the TdF.


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## rufus (Feb 3, 2004)

tete de la tour said:


> velownews.:
> 
> VN: Evans said he attacked when he saw you suffering a little bit, how was it up the final part of the climb?
> 
> ...


So, if Levi and 2007 TDF wheelsucking Cadel happen to be in a breakaway together on a mountain stage, what happens? 

Levi sounds like a pu$$y. If you can't hang, don't go pi$$ing and moaning about it, and blame the guy who dropped the hammer on you. 

Yeah, he got second. As I understand it, second wins more money than third.


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## coldass (Oct 8, 2007)

*The M-Y-T-H on Evans and the perceived lack of attacks*

This from the inner tube..........


The M-Y-T-H on Evans and the perceived lack of attacks

2004 Lombardia
2005 Liege
2005 s16
2006 s11
2007 s9
2007 Worlds
2008 Fleche

The M-Y-T-H on Evans and the perceived lack of attacks.

OK, for Anthony and Brian's benefit, we feel they are lacking a degree of objectivity, when assessing the performance of Cadel Evans.
We hear about a "lack of attacking". AKA wheelsucking.
Now, we feel there needs to be a a reassessment with regards to the facts.

Evans has attacked, or ridden on the front, in many races. We will restrict this to just doyennes or the Tour.
In 2004 he went away with Basso and Boogerd in Lombardia, but Cunego and Nardello came back to them. Evans threw in a crucial attack and did his share on the front.
In 2005 Liege Evans threw in the crucial attack on St Nicolas. Vino and Voigt were given too much time by an unwary peloton, and the chasers failed to catch them. Evans took Bettini and Boogerd with them. Evans made the race, attacked at the hardest spot, in the most selective hilly classic on the calendar, when everyone was watching everyone, and no one was allowed to move.
In 2005 S16 at the Tour, Evans was about 11th on GC, and given space by the peloton to go off the front. He lead the breakaway, and attacked the group to take the KOM and get time on GC. Irony, Periero wheelsucked him to win the sprint, when he whinged about Hincapie wheelsucking him and beating him in the sprint on the queen stage the previous day. Evans was allowed the space to go off the front.
In 2006 S11, there were 5 off the front on the first mtn top finish in the Tour. Kloden unhinged. Landis did the most work to distance Kloden, then Menchov and Evans shared the work a little, but Landis definitely pushed the pace. But Evans was in the wind, and did pull. Sastre did not do work. Levi did not do work, albeit Levi lost so much time in the tt, he did not have to ride for GC. Evans unhinged about 500 from the top, and Menchov won the sprint.
In 2007 S9 Evans followed the Valverde shake up, and then crossed to Contador, but was unable to keep up. He spent time in the wind.
2007 Worlds. In the crucial move.
In 2008 Fleche Evans led the charge to pull back Wegemann.

This does not take into account Tour of Austria, and Tour of Germany wins and attacks.

Now, lets address the definition of an attack. An attack is fundamentally different if you are riding in GC contention, and the GC leader has you on a watch leash. It is easy to attack when you sit in 20 on GC, when the peloton is not at the limit.
So, Evans is usually in contention on GC. He has to be stronger than the leader and the leader's teammates to make an attack worthwhile. Otherwise, he penalises himself.
The above examples indicate Evans has the legs in the classics, the most selective days racing in the calendar, and he can go when he chooses those races to bring his form to.
Now, lets address the nature of the top riders, and how can you attack a strong team. There are teams with external testing programs, which formerly had systematic medical regimes within their team. That is as diplomatically as one can state. How can you attack guys, who receive transfusions, within the Tour? Can someone answer me this please?
And look at the riders he is with in 2004 Lombardia and Liege 2005. Both times he is with Boogerd. Michael Boogerd was at the blood clinic in Austria. I do not think any of the guys are squeaky, so this is not an appeal for one rider's purity, above others.
This DOES allege, you cannot attack the riders who are getting transfusions. I believe Brian and Anthony ARE aware of who they are. Do they KNOW and have EVIDENCE. Nope. That is not my definition. This is Orwellian doublethink. They see on the road what is happening. Everyone in the peloton knows what is happening.
So, my thesis is, you cannot attack guys on blood tranfusions, with strong teams which are also on the blood transfusions. It is folly. Now, can someone refute the merit in this argument?
Now, the evidence:
Landis' hematocrit went up a couple of points during the 2006 Tour.
Rasmussen was obviously on all and sundry last year.
There were suspicious performances in the final tt last year by riders from a particular team. Chris Boardman said "if it (the performance) is too good to be true, it probably is". That performance WAS. And, before you suggest the assumption that win=must be doping. No, in a clean sport, there is still a winner and a world record. I am not saying that he wins, therefore he must be doping.
So, lets get Brian, the expert, to have a look at the totality of Evans' performances, and if he manages to hang with guys who are getting transfused, lets offer a modicum of praise. Now, as I said, I am not saying everyone or anyone named herein is pure. But, there is a difference.
Folks can dope, and FOLKS CAN D-O-P-E. Re: transfusions, bus gas prior to tts, etc.
This is an instructive article: http://www.bikeradar.com/news/arti cle/tour-like-a-mobile-pharmacy-10544
So, I would appreciate it, if Anthony, and Brian, can inform and teach their audience, on the difference between the types of attacking. You have Voeckler attacks for housewives, You have Jacky Durand publicity attacks, you have Voigt attacks, all are different from the attacks when riding for GC on the queen stages at the Tour. It behoves you to educate and inform you less knowledgable audience. Attacks when riders are on the limit, in selective classics and queen stages, carry a far different weighting to someone like Voeckler going off the front to justify his milion Euro wage.
We know what happens. We do not have the evidence, and cannot bring it before a court, but you can offer a modicum of reality, and background the racing, put the context at the centre of the screen, when it is obvious guys are putting out 450plus watts on a finishing climb in the Tour. That cannot be achieved in the third week after 200kms. That is unbelievable. Everyone who is a subscriber is a fan, and all have an apprehension of the dirty truth, although some know more than others. You do not have to couch it in other language "health tests" etc. The guys subscribe, you have the revenues, you will not lose the subscribers nor advertisers by speaking a little more openly.


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## tete de la tour (Oct 26, 2006)

Case Closed.


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## robdamanii (Feb 13, 2006)

tete de la tour said:


> Case Closed.


You're right. Evans is now and always will be a loser.


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## coldass (Oct 8, 2007)

robdamanii said:


> You're right. Evans is now and always will be a loser.


You are a goose.


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## robdamanii (Feb 13, 2006)

coldass said:


> You are a goose.


Nah, I'm just not a fan of whiny racers.


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## ti-triodes (Aug 14, 2006)

robdamanii said:


> Nah, I'm just not a fan of whiny racers.




You said it all brother.


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## brett (Aug 14, 2005)

to all you critics out there....why arent you riding the tour instead of punching a keyboard.?
So its a bit rich to bag someone if you dont have the balls or ability to do better. Case closed.


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## robdamanii (Feb 13, 2006)

brett said:


> to all you critics out there....why arent you riding the tour instead of punching a keyboard.?
> So its a bit rich to bag someone if you dont have the balls or ability to do better. Case closed.


Why? Because I'm not paid to ride my bike for a living and I have no desire to train the entire year to blow my wad in 3 weeks.

That said, that does NOT preclude me from saying that Cadel is a whiny ass and doesn't deserve to win a grand tour. Hell, between him and Leipheimer at the Giro, they should have renamed it Giro d'Italia dei bambini.

Evans will blow it; he can't handle the pressure no matter how great a team he has.


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## harlond (May 30, 2005)

brett said:


> to all you critics out there....why arent you riding the tour instead of punching a keyboard.?
> So its a bit rich to bag someone if you dont have the balls or ability to do better. Case closed.


Only pros can be fans? Who knew?


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