Monday Mustte – Worlds, UCI Tidbits, Interbike, and a Ride

by Whit

1. While I can’t say I told you so, I wasn’t surprised to see Cadel Evans finally get the big win he’s so desperately craved. It was a fantastic ride by someone not often known for taking matters into his own hands. With 4 riders in the final lead group of 9, Spain has to be wondering what went wrong after setting-up Sanchez perfectly for the win. As for Italy and Belgium, they were a bit under-represented in the final selection, with Cunego and Gilbert left to fend for themselves. But at that point in te race, if you can’t...Continue Reading

Worlds Road Race Preview

by Whit

Worlds Road RaceThe Start List for Sunday’s Elite Men World Championship Road Race has been finalized, so it’s time for Pavé’s Race Preview. Let’s start at the bottom and work our way up to #1, shall we? Finland (#201)The last rider registered is #201, Jussi Veikkanen. He’s Finland’s lone representative and offers a terrific place to begin our run-down. Clearly a dark horse candidate, several constellations would need to align for him to take the win—but stranger things have happened.Ireland (#’s 195-193)Ireland brings three riders: Philip Deignan, Daniel Martin, and Nicolas Roche. Like their homeland, Ireland’s team this year is...Continue Reading

Worlds ITT Preview

by Whit

While its Start List isn’t as star-studded as Sunday’s Road Race, tomorrow’s World Championship ITT possesses no shortage of riders capable of winning the Rainbow Skinsuit. Luckily, the list itself is short, making it easy to sort the contenders from the pretenders. Let’s take a look at the 10 whom we feel have the best chances for a strong performance. We’ll rank them in their predicted order of finish, beginning with #10.10th Place – Dominique Cornu – BelgiumCornu won the 2006 World U23 ITT title and is always an outside threat to pull a good result in an ITT. He didn’t...Continue Reading

Monday Musette – Interbike, Di2, and the Vuelta

by Whit

While we won’t be making the pilgrimage to Vegas this week, we are eagerly awaiting the various reports and eye-candy that make it one of the most fascinating of the year. Here are some things we recommend you check-out:1. The good folks at IF have posted some pretty interesting photos on their blog about things to look for at this year’s show. While they won’t have a dedicated booth of their own, they’re building bikes to be showcased by companies including Whipperman, EDGE, and Cane Creek. What caught my eye the most was this photo. I can’t place the date, location,...Continue Reading

Weekend Preview – Vuelta and Isbergues

by Whit

The Vuelta wraps-up this weekend with a flat 27km time trial around the ancient city of Toledo and the traditional final stage into Madrid. Friday’s Stage 19 was supposed to provide a last chance for GC fireworks with a summit finish in La Granja. Unfortunately, more explosions happened off the back of the lead group than at the front with Robert Gesink succumbing to his injuries from a crash a few days ago–he lost several minutes and now sits in 6th place overall, a whopping 5:30 down.As for Saturday, look for Alejandro Valverde to hold his lead. The gaps are...Continue Reading