Giro Stage 11

Average day, 88 points and gained 4 places, still 171 points behind 1st though, no bike for me

I've said before, I like technical sprints more than long straight drags but I admit, three crashes (two down to the organisers) is too many and when they as a race want to attract the top sprinters they need to sort it out for next year. Cav, Goss and the other top sprinters won't keep turning up if theres more chance of a broken collarbone than a couple of stage wins as they build up to the TdF.

What a fail today

No-one was at fault for the crash bar the race organisers. They made the corner to tight, MASSIVE exit (plenty of room to drop you bike and slide) and then into a narrow exit. It was always going to happen.

I think it was Modolo who went down first, but it was just a case of riders going into a tight bend and their wheels going from underneath them rather than anyone causing a mass pile up

not sure what happened with the transfer deadline, i'm investigating that

Goss finished 10 minutes down, Kristoff and Guardini nowhere either, Schleck managed to lose 46 seconds today. Forget about TTing, that man can't descend for toffee. There's a huge descent to finish a stage in the next week, that could break Schleck long before the TT.

Chicchi remembered he's the team sprinter!

Not as bad as it could've been, but 28 points lost thanks to the new random transfer deadline :(. I'm ****ed off.X(

Who caused the crash?

Is it me, or did Modolo nearly get his head cut off by someone's front wheel there?!

Ferrari
Chicchi
Vaitkus
Cavdendish
Belletti
Nizzolo
Schorn
Demare

I took Demare out the other day, But i've been playing the tactic that the sprints are not worth transferring in guys for as the routes are shocking, another final corner crash because its FAR to narrow

Any idea what happened to Goss?

pleased i went for cav and not goss

Ferrari
Chicchi
Vaitkus
Cavendish

etc...

Ferrari wins

Ferrari wins

Which is all good for me as i have 2 of their riders

Quote:

Sky really controlling things here as we enter the last 5km. Goss is definitely nowhere to be seen at the front end.

Sounds like Schleck has been dropped on the descent.

EDIT:

Crap

Quote:

Three down on the final corner!

On the final climb, group of 6 in front at the summit, about 10km downhill and flat to go

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Damiano Caruso is one of the leading quartet of riders in the Visconti group. They are being joined by a couple more: Astana's Roman Kreuziger and Lampre's Michele Scarponi. Interesting.

Bah, once Scarponi got across Liquigas shut the break down, sprint finish for sure now.

Didn't Gatto finish 3rd in the Strade Bianche? and I'm sure he was in decent form during the Classics, he's not a bad call at all.

Honestly, I sat here thinking about how I could get Cav, Goss and J-Rod in, then who would be left? Obviously not enough points to keep Hesjedal, so I needed somebody sub 15... and thought "Well, I've been burned by every Farnesi-Vini rider so far. Why not try again?"

Gatto's a good call, I was tempted to pick him up for tomorrow actually seeing as I couldn't fit him in today.

I didn't realise though that today's finish is a mirror of Monday's with a very tight hairpin bend 400m from the finish, plus with the last climb 10km from the finish and maxing out at 8% there's no guarantee that it'll still be together for a sprint finish

I'm super excited about the team today, which means I'm bound to have no luck whatsoever

Cavendish
Goss
J-Rod
Gatto

Guardini
Demare
Rubiano
Pozzovivo
Caruso

I've gone for . . .

Joaquin Rodriguez (KAT)
Ryder Hesjedal (GRM)
Sergio Luis Henao (SKY)
Mark Cavendish (SKY)

Arnaud Demare (FDJ)
Alexander Kristoff (KAT)
Miguel Angel Rubiano (AND)
Elia Favilli (FAR)
Damiano Caruso (LIQ)

Today's breakaway

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Olivier Kaisen (Lotto Belisol), Adrian Saez (Euskaltel), Simone Ponzi (Astana), Stefan Denifl (Vacansoleil-DCM), Manuele Boaro (Saxo Bank) and Mickaël Delage (FDJ-BigMat)

That man Kaisen is there again!.

Can't seem them making it but at 6 with some serial escapists and Boaro (who can TT) they should make a good fist of it.

Also, Goss isn't doing too well and Tom Leezer of Rabobank is out.

Mark my words .... Bonnet sprinting for FDJ today

Missing out on making my transfers means I'm stuffed if it comes down to a sprint. Demare is my only sprinter but he's exhausted so Soupe will probably be FDJ's man today. I was going to bring in Cav, so expect him to win today.

Soupe is cooked

And whilst I'm on puns ... BBC website had a story about some sex toys stolen under the headline "Sex toys snatched" .... how do they get away with it?!

The transfer deadline's closed already??? I'm sure when I checked last night it was 11:35.