Weekly Rap - October 1, 2008
By Rick ScottWelcome back to The Weekly Rap. We’re going to break out a new style this week. New rhythm and new flow, but same coverage of the pro cycling beat. We figure you know who won what race by the time you visit us so we’ll be dropping more behind the scenes action, news, observations, personalities and happenings as previously sampled in The Cool Down section of this column. Hit it!
The Beat
Since we last convened, Team Columbia’s Mark Cavendish, sprinter extraordinaire, danced a jig on the field at the Tour of Ireland en route to winning the first three stages before jetting to the Tour of Missouri where he won three more stages. The team not only knows how to deliver Cav to the line, but the feisty Brit, who was smarting from not scoring Beijing bling, is the fastest man in the peloton bar none. Next year will be interesting when he clashes with the former sprint dominators – Boonen, Freire, Hushovd, McEwen and Petacchi - in the biggest races for the biggest prizes.
Speaking of The Show Me State, props to Garmin-Chipotle’s Christian Vande Velde on scoring the GC win at the Tour of Missouri, putting a cherry on top of his best season. He won the pivotal stage 3 time trial and the rest was his to lose – which he did not despite the incessant attacks from Team Columbia. The victory gave the American the USA Cycling Professional Tour Championship ahead of two-time Amgen Tour of California winner Levi Leipheimer (Astana) and Dominique Rollin (Toyota-United), winner of the Amgen Tour of California sprint points title. Amazingly, Rollin won the King of the Mountains title in Missouri. How do you like that for diversity? Look for the 25-year-old Canadian to race the spring classics next season with the Cervelo TestTeam.
Over in Spain, Astana’s Alberto Contador won the Vuelta a Espana to complete his trilogy of Grand Tour wins that began with last year’s Tour de France followed by a rather unexpected Giro d’Italia victory last May. He became the fifth rider ever to win all three Grand Tours and the first Spaniard…and he’s only 25. Leipheimer rode a brilliant Spanish tour, which included winning both individual time trials and finishing 2nd place overall.
At Varese, Italy, German Bert Grabsch won the World Time Trial Championship. When two-time defending champion Fabian Cancellara decided not to defend his title, the field was wide open, but Grabsch aced the 43.7-km course with a healthy 42-second margin over the Canadian surprise, Sven Tuft, with American David Zabriskie ten more seconds adrift. Tuft will join Zabriskie next season riding for Garmin-Chipotle. In the World Road Race Championship, the homers - a.k.a. the powerhouse Italian squad - ruled their native roads with Alessandro Ballan dashing off solo to win the rainbow jersey three seconds ahead of teammate Damiano Cunego. Only Dane Matti Breschel spoiled the Italian sweep by taking 3rd.
There are only a few more weekends left of racing in Europe before this season is his-to-ry. However, two races are fall classics: Paris-Tours (October 12) and Giro di Lombardia (October 18).
The Flow
Seven-time Tour de France champion Lance Armstrong announced at press conferences in New York and Las Vegas last week that he will ride for Astana next year alongside Contador, Leipheimer and Andreas Kloden. Hmm…that should be interesting…
While Armstrong un-retires, two iconic champions have decided to hang up their bikes: German Erik Zabel (Team Milram) and Amgen Tour of California stage winner Paolo Bettini, the Italian Quick Step-Innergetic rider who had won two consecutive World Road Racing Championships. A tip of the cap to these classy athletes as they pedal out to pasture…
Big ups to Team HealthNet and their leader, Rory Sutherland, for winning the National Racing Calendar team and individual season titles for the second consecutive year. While the sponsor bows out of the sport, the team will soon unveil a new title sponsor…
About 23,000 cycling industry peeps from all over the globe lit up Las Vegas last week for Interbike where the 2009 product lines were unveiled. Toys, toys and more toys…and a veritable swag feast. There were quite a few pros in the neon house signing autographs and doing meet & greets. Two races were held in the evenings under the lights, including a cyclocross event (yes, Lance raced after flying in from his NYC press conference) and a raucous crash-filled parking lot criterium (kudos to Toyota-United’s Hilton Clarke for staying upright long enough to bag the win). Check out this website for interviews with Vande Velde and Sutherland…
Speaking of Hincapie, coming to stores will be the new Hincapie line of denim jeans and sunscreen. Watch out Rock ‘N Republic and Coppertone…
Rick Scott is president of Great Scott P.R.oductions, an entertainment and sports public relations, marketing and management boutique. He can be contacted through www.greatscottpr.com
