2016 Wiskota League Rules

Rules

Each club consists of 12 riders.

Each club director earns their rider's UCI points.

Club directors only receive the UCI points their rider's earn while they have them on their roster.

Trades and transfers are only allowed during transfer periods and on draft day.


If a player trades multiple draft picks in order to move up in the draft they will still get 12 riders, extra rounds will be added at the end as needed.

Transfers open at 8 am the first day of the transfer period and close at midnight the last day of the transfer period.

All trades and transfers must be approved by the league commissioner.

Wiskota is a “keeper” league; directors have the option to franchise two (2) riders from last season.

By default, keepers are allotted in the initial round(s) of the draft. Our league allows two “keepers”, the first two rounds of the draft will be occupied by default by each director’s keeper selections.

Draft order to be decided by drawing the day of the draft.

Draft will proceed 1-? and then invert with the ?th overall pick picking next and the first overall pick picking last. The draft will continue this way until everyone has a full roster.

Draft day pick and rider trades to be approved by the league commissioner.

All UCI World Tour events will be in play. In addition, Worlds, The Olympics and all other UCI santioned road races will count.  Please refer to the NEW POINT SYSTEM. 

Winner receives a trophy; dinner and drinks paid for by the other members of the league at the end of the season league banquet in November or December; and drinks of their choice at the next year's draft party.

Team Wiskota Dynamic Wins the 2012 Wiskota Fantasy League Championship

Director Sportif Luke rides off into the sunset as a champion

It came down to Team and Country as Dynamic's first place country points (Spain) and second place team points (Omega Pharma Quick Step) just edged out Bill the Neo Pro for the overall victory.  A great season by the Neo-Pro who will definitely be in need of a new name more befitting of his cycling prowess next season.  Rounding out the podium in a strong third place was Team Volpe.  The first place team finish (Sky) and the second place country finish (Great Britain) solidified his placement.  Gregario Forza was able to stay out of the basement, but as he puts it he "came in last of the people who were trying".  The lanterne rouge goes to Michaelito Indurain powered in part by such flops as Thor (6 UCI pts.) and Jacob (my team won't let me race in UCI events) Fuglsang. 

Overall a great season.  I had fun and I hope others did as well.  Look for a wrap up post and I appreciate any input on changes for next season, banquet and draft schedules, new team directors, etc.  Wiskota! 

Beijing Update

Only a few more chances to make fun of Andy Schleck this season

As Bill the Neo-Pro's chances of overall victory hang in the balance it is comforting to know that he still has the man beast that is ANDY SCHLECK.  With a good result from Andy at Beijing, Bill just might win this thing...

... "although some additional drama was provided by the news that Andy Schleck (RadioShack-Nissan) had taken a tumble while riding from the hotel to the start. The Luxembourger appeared relatively unscathed, however, and completed the stage 15 minutes down, as he continues his comeback from a fractured pelvis." -Cycling News

Well, that can't be that far back.  And he is up against some pretty stiff competition...

135	Andy Schleck (Lux) RadioShack-Nissan	0:31:55
136	Kun Jiang (Chn) Champion System Pro Cycling Team	0:32:49
137	Biao Liu (Chn) Champion System Pro Cycling Team	0:33:52

There are two other Chinese dudes who are beating him too.  As for this picture...

Down to the Wire

Martin Takes Early Lead

Down by a mere 93 points and with Tony Martin looking like he may repeat in Beijing, Bill the Neo-Pro is still in the hunt for the Wiskota Fantasy League crown.  However, it is looking like he may need more than just the 100 points Martin could bring with GC victory.  The Neo-Pro's unorthodox early round selection of team and country may not pay off as well as some of his other gambles (namely Contador, Froome and Vino).  Team Wiskota Dynamic has Spain, the leading country, this 200 points may be the winning difference.  Can Bill get enough points from Belgium and BMC?  Will Martin and Andy Schleck go 1,2 and earn Bill crazy points.  I like Martin to win.  Andy on the other hand...

And it all comes down to this...

Tour of Beijing 10/9 - 10/13

Startlist

http://www.cyclingnews.com/races/tour-of-beijing-2012/start-list

Paris Tours

Fuglsang Comes in 12th!

An impressive burts of power secured Fuglsang the coveted 12th place overall. This world class effort earned Miguelito Indurain 6 huge points and secured his position as 5th overall in the Wiskota Fantasy League.  Better luck next season.

Il Lombardia

JRod is the #1 UCI World Tour Rider!

Only needing a few points to overtake Wiggins as the top UCI point earner this season, Rodriguez destroyed his competition by taking the maximum 100 points in the fall monument victory.
This unexpected win may have sealed the Wiskota Fantasy League victory for Team Wiskota Dynamic, but with two events to go Bill the Neo-Pro still has a chance.

Massive Attack!

Gilbert Wins Worlds Road Race!

The rainbow jersey was secured by Gregario Forza with a blistering attack on the Cauberg.  This win saved the season for the Wiskota Fantasy League's first overall pick.  However, with another strong finsh by Eddie the Boss, Volpe maintained their podium position.  Thanks to a third place finish on the day by Valverde, Team Wiskota Dynamic regained first overall by a mere 3 points.  With only three events to go it couldn't be any closer.

Martin Der Mund!

WORLD TT

Bill the Neo-Pro scores big with Tony Martin and Alberto Contador, securing sole possession of first place.

A Two Way Race?

With only a few races to go Team Wiskota Dynamic has regained its advantage over Bill the Neo-Pro.

With a 500 point lead over third place and only 5 races to go, it would seem like the Wiskota fantasy season has come down to a 2 man battle.  However, two of those races are the World's TT and Road Race.  These hold as many potential points as the Olympics and we all saw how one team can rack up crazy points in a short amount of time.  Team Volpe still has a chance to move up, or down,  as Gregario looks to sneak onto the podium.  How will this all play out?  Will the Worlds decide it all?  Lombardia?  Will Tony Martin repeat in Bejing to seal the deal? 

Viva la Vuelta!

The Contador gamble pays off, but the spanish sweep of the podium keeps the Wiskota leader board close at at the top.

Broom Wagon

Cleaning up after the weeks races.

USA Pro Cycling Challenge and the GP Plouay


 


School is back in session and so is the blog.

From the Commish: Transfer #3

The third and last transfer period of the season opens tomorrow 8/2 at 8 am and closes on Sunday 8/5 at  8 am. The Eneco Tour kicks off the final stretch of the season which includes big point races like the Vuelta Espana, Il Lombardia and the Worlds.
As before simply leave a comment to make a transfer.

Vino and the Trifecta

Bill continues to pile on the points with gold in the road race and a sweep of the podium in the TT. 630 points in 5 days!

Maillot Jaune Guillaume!

Wiggins wins Le Tour as Bill the Neo Pro earns a league high 516 points.

Tour Panache

Opening a comments thread. Still waiting for updates from our Tour corespondent, Patrick. I'll try a recap on the rest day.

Le Tour Beer Challenge

Prolouge - Greg: Cancellera, Luke: T. Martin - Greg +1
Stage 1 - Luke: Sagan, Greg: Gilbert - Even.
Stage 2 - Greg: Cav, Luke: Greipel - Greg +1
Stage 3 - Luke: Sagan, Greg: Gilbert - Even
Stage 4 - Greg: Cav, Luke: Greipel - Luke +1
Stage 5 - Luke: Greipel, Greg: Cav - Luke +2
Stage 6 - Greg: Greipel, Luke: Goss - Luke 2
Stage 7 - Luke: Valverde, Greg: Costa - Luke +2
Stage 8 - Greg: Chavanel, Luke: Valverde - Luke +2
Stage 9 - Luke: Cancellera, Greg: Wiggins - Luke +1
Stage 10 - Greg: Nibbles, Luke: Evans - Luke +1
Stage 11 - Luke: Evans, Greg: Zubeldia - Luke +1
Stage 12 - Greg: Boassen Hagen, Luke: Valverde - Luke +1
Stage 13 - Luke: Greips, Greg: Chavanel - Luke +2
Stage 14 - Greg: Voekler, Luke: Sagan - Luke +2
Stage 15- L: Greipel, G: Cav - Luke+2
Stage 16- G: Nibali, L: Evans - Luke +2
Stage 17 - L: Nibali, G: Wiggins - Luke +2
Stage 18 - G: Cavendish, L: Greipel - Luke +1
Stage 19 - L: Wiggo, G: Froome - Luke +2
Stage 20 - G: Cav, L: Greipel - Luke +1

Luke wins 1 beer!

Tour Talk

Let's get some chatter going about the Tour.

I am interested in hearing people's picks for the top ten.  Post a list.

Also, would anyone be interested in separate competition just for Le Tour.  Maybe a pick the stage winner thing like they do on TV?  Anywho.

The Broom Wagon

Blog posts have dramatically slowed with the beginning of summer break.  Normally just a diversion at work, summer blogs require a little more concerted effort.  Well, we'll keep'em coming as long as people keep reading them.
The last few weeks saw the completion of the two big Tour tune up races.  Great race's in there own right,  the Dauphine and the Tour de Suisse provided lots of high def action for our viewing pleasure.  Let's recap how our Wiskota team riders did.

Dauphine

Bill the neo pro's strategy of drafting GC riders is really starting to pay dividends.  At the time I thought his pick of Wiggins may have been a bit high.  i could not have been more wrong.  Wiggo won another stage race racking up 111 points for Bill.  If this form keeps up we may not be able to refer to Bill as the neo-pro for much longer.  Froom scored points as a high GC finisher and Tony Martin added a few with a high TT finish.  In the end Bill racked up 176 points.  The clear winner at the Dauphine.

Nipping at his heels was Team Volpe and namely, Cadel Evans who animated the race all week.  82 points from a high GC and an exciting stage win, yet the discussion was about his less than stellar TT.  Will he improve for the Tour.  Van den Broeck added points with his GC performance and Bo Haug (Bo Dogg?) even snatched a stage win.  140 points for Volpe.

Team Wiskota Dynamic saw the premier of there two new riders, Menchov and Brajkovic.  Menchov was silent without the assassin.  Brajkovic stayed in contention with a solid TT and good climbing earning the team all of their 30 points.

The Dauphine was a disapointment for both Gregario Forza and Miguelito Indurain.  Sammy Sanchez crashed early on but managed to finish the week out.  However, no points here.  Forza brought 5 riders to the race and not one managed to earn any points.  Biggest disappointment? Probably, Nibbles.  This was a forgettable race for these teams.

Suisse

Miguelito Indurain scored some much needed points at the tour de Suisse.  Frank Schleck continues to prove that he is the better Schleck attacking in the mountains and securing a 2nd place overall.  Gesink keeps improving his TT skills and his high GC finish has many, including myself, marking him as a Tour contender.  147 points for Mikey.

Gregario's recent pickup has finally started scoring points this season.  Lil Levi Leipheimer wheel sucked his way to a podium placement.  If his TT can get back to where it was he may be able to wheel suck his was back to a Tour podium.

It took three riders to for Dynamic to try to make up for the loss of Levi.  Sagan keeps kicking ass and scoring double digit points in every race he enters.  Tommy D scored a top ten finish and had a chance for a better result but apparently Frank doesn't like to work with anyone but his brother.  Valverde sacrificed a higher finish for his teammate Rui Costa's overall victory, this should be repaid at Le Tour.

Volpe welcomed new race Roche with a tenth place finish.  Unfortunatly, that is only worth 4 little points.  Cancellera came in 2nd in the TT to a suprisingly fast Peter Sagan.  12 points overall for Volpe.  Not gonna catch Dynamic with finishes like that.

A child is screaming at the library and my wife, rightly, wants to go so I will wrap up quickly.  Bill the neo-pro scored 40 with Kreuziger who was dropped on the biggest climb and then allowed to get back into the main group because riders like Levi wouldn't pull.

Great result for Rui Costa.  If I had a picture of me holding his TdF stage win trophy I would put it in now. 

Exclusive NVGP Coverage

This is a great time of year for the Wiskota Fantasy Cycling League as the Nature Valley Grand Prix rolls into town for a week of exciting, fan friendly racing.  Many top notch American cyclists will be returning to the Twin Cities area again this year.   However, the Palmares of one rider far outshines his competitors, one Fast Freddy Rodriguez.   He has donned the stars and stripes three times as US road champion, won a stage at the Giro d’Italia, rode in all three Grand Tours and won the points jersey at the Tour de Suisse.  He has recently made a comeback with Team Exergy and has shown some of that world class form in races such as this year’s Tour of California.

Fast Freddy came out guns a blazin’ this morning at the opening TT coming in a respectable 17^th only losing 31 seconds to the overall winner.  After the race Wiskota Fantasy Cycling caught up with him via cruiser bike for an exclusive 30 second interview.

Wiskota Fantasy Cycling:  Nice ride Freddy.

Freddy Rodriguez:  Yeah…it got wet.  That turn-around was tricky.

WFC: Got any stages in mind to win this week?

FR: The road races.

WFC:  Cannon Falls?

FR: Yeah

WFC: You’ve had a pretty good season so far, actually.

FR: Yeah, been pretty good.

At that point a member of his team crew rode up. 

FR: Do we have to go later for the drug testing?

Dude: No, not till tonight.

I pedaled ahead and began documenting this historic interview onto my phone when he caught back up.

WFC:  Good luck, man.

FR: Thanks

There you have it, exclusive Wiskota Fantasy Cycling coverage of the Nature Valley Grand Prix.  Look for Fast Freddy to win in Cannon Falls and for drug testing to take place after the St. Paul Crit. 

On the Rivet

Wiskota fantasy lineups:

Dauphine

Gregario Forza:  Gilbert, TVG, Nibali, Voekler

Volpe: Evans: D. Martin, Van den Broeck, Boassen Hagen,

Wiskota Dynamic: Menchov

Bill the Neo Pro: Tony Martin, Andy, Froome, Wiggins,

Miguelito Indurain: Sammy Sanchez,


Tour De Suisse

Gregario Forza:  Leipheimer, Mollema, Horner

Volpe: Boonen, Cancellera

Wiskota Dynamic: Danielson, Cunego, Sagan, Valverde,

Bill the Neo Pro: Kloden

Miguelito Indurain: Gesink, Frank, Fuglsang

From the Commish

Transfer period 2 is now close.  Bring on Le Tour!
Updated rosters are found at the bottom of the page.

This has nothing to do with the Wiskota Fantasy League, but its awesome.

Panache'

Transfer 2 week is upon us and the action is heating up. Team Gregario Forza capitalized on the draft blunders of the Commish, otherwise known as Matt Millen, and swiped up American, Levi Leipheimer, to compete in this year’s Suisse/Dauphine/Le Tour/Olympics portion of our season. It’s hard to say what Levi will be able to do but I have to say I was impressed with how he rode in California. I don’t expect Levi to repeat at Suisse but I do think he can place in the top ten in France. USA! USA! USA!

The Commish, aka Team Wiskota Dynamic, aka Billy Beane, continued his free agency moves, that bagged him a many a Giro point, by dropping Tyler Farrar and John Gadret and adding Denis Menchov and Andre Greipel, formerly of Team Wiskota Dynamic. Denis Nikolayevich Menchov, the Silent Assasin, has been around the circuit. In 2003 he was 11^th in the Tour and best young rider, 2005 he won the Vuelta, 2006 5^th in Le Tour, 2007 another Vuelta, 2008 4^th in the Tour, 2009 he won the Giro, 2010 2^nd in Le Tour, and in 2011 he placed 5^th in the Vuelta and 7^th in the Giro in a year most would consider a wash under the Geox sponsorship.  Is there a pattern here? I fear this move as The Pope has the ability to climb with the best and TT as well as any other GC contender. I just blew the Commish’s mind!

I expect the remainder of the Wiskota Fantasy Cycling League team managers are doing their homework (read the blog, hit the links). There are many Tour contenders remaining. I know I have my eye on a few. I also think the addition of the Olympics to this portion of the season may add some serious pointage; A masterful move by the scheduling committee. Who are those riders? Tony Martin, Cav, Zabriskie?

I know I have said this around every corner but this may be my favorite part of the season. The Tour build up, Suisse, and Dauphine all have the propensity to be massive/epic. Let’s take a look at the Criterium du Dauphine.  The Dauphine has been a proving ground for Le tour since 1947. Most of the great’s have won here, Poulidor, Merckx, Hinault, LeMond, Indurain, and Armstrong to name a few. Most recently Wiggins, Brakjovik (available), and Valverde have worn the yellow jersey with the red stripe. The Dauphine region of France is mountainous so expect a climber to win here. This year’s edition could entertain the likes of Tony Martin as the stage 4 time trial may be decisive. However some big climbs are left to be had in stage 6. The parcours look tough but maybe not decisive. Many Wiskota Fantasy riders and Tour contenders are here. Evans, Wiggo, Nibbles, Voekler, Sanchez, D. Martin, TVG, Schleck, Menchov, Van den Broek, and I mentioned the big German, the Mouth, Mr. Tony Martin. Other, unsigned, contenders include Vallendert, Brakjovik, Le Mevel, Peraud, Cobo, and the Reign of Terror, Rein Taaramae. Westra?

The Tour de Suisse, one of Gregario Forza’s favorites, is also used to measure one’s form before the La Grande Boucle. This race has been run since 1933 only taking 3 years off for WWII. Like the Dauphine, many of the greats have won here. Merckx, Bartoli, De Vlaeminck, Kelly, Armstrong, and Der Kaiser, Jan Ulrich all won the Tour de Suisse. Recent winners include Leipheimer, Franklin Schleck, and even Fabulous Fabian Cancellara, the great Swiss time trailer. Tour contenders and Wiskota Fantasy riders litter this tour as well with Leipheimer, Gesink, F. Schleck, Tommy D., Sagan, Valverde, Boonen, Cunego, Mollema, Cancellara, Fuglsang, Horner, and Kloden all set to take the start. The parcours of this race look awfully climby. Stage 1 features a short TT, stage two only has 2 climbs but they happen to be hors categorie and they finish on top of the second, stage 3 is lumpy, stage 4 is wicked lumpy, stage 5 has 6 category 3 climbs (massive lumpy), stage 6 is a lil’ less lumpy, stage 7 tough ass TT, stage 8 climbs a category 2 into a beyond category summit finish (epic), and stage 9 will be a celebratory finish over 2 hors categorie climbs and a category 2 summit finish (massive). That sounds like some decisive parcours!

I know that many of the favorites and current Wiskota Fantasy riders will shine in the coming weeks. However, what makes this such an awesome time during the cycling season is that there will inevitably be a new comer or 2 who will show up to be a Tour de France contender or a tour animator (Johnny Hoogerland). The Classics, Giro, and California are in the rear view now. We got the Tour, it’s buildup, the Olympics, Vuelta, Worlds and Lombardia to look forward to. I can’t wait to see what Philippe Gilbert will do.

Forza!

Chapeau

Chapeau! to the Giro di’ Italia. The race for pink did not disappoint in 2012. The race organizers wanted the race to come down to Milan and that was exactly what happened. Although the riders were accused of waiting to get the race started, I thoroughly enjoyed this race from the very start. I loved watching Taylor Phinney early on. Not a fan of Denmark, for a start to a grand tour, other than that it’s probably cool. I enjoyed the chaotic sprints; thanks to Cav and Ferrari, beautiful stages, epic climbs, the Giau, Stelvio and Giro girls. There was a lot to like about this Giro.

Chapeau! to Ryder Hesjedal. The Weight of the nation rode himself into the history books as the first Grand Tour winner for Canada. The Climbing Canuck was simply grandissimo. He proved that he truly does get stronger during a three week race. He brilliantly marked the attacks on the climbs and even attacked himself when the tactics called for it. I have always liked this guy, never thought a Grand Tour would be on his palmares, and I even cheered for him when he became a member of Team Wiskota Dynamic. Well done, eh!

Chapeau! to Joaquin Rodriguez. El Purito was unbelievable during this Giro. I thought for sure he would pop on the Stelvio but he looked as comfortable as any of the favorites. His TT skills have improved greatly this season and that should propel him to a true GC guy in races to come. If Contador wasn’t racing the Vuelta I would have said J-Rod is the favorite for the final grand tour.

Chapeau! to Thomas De Gendt. Wow! Did that just happen? The 25 year old from Belgium podiumed in only his second grand tour. Sono impressionato! When I first heard that De Gendt was riding for GC and not attacking I thought to myself, hmmm, he doesn’t stand a chance. However, he stayed close enough during the mountain stages to mount an attack on the penultimate stage up the Stelvio pass. It was the decisive move of the Giro and it worked. De Gendt is an all-rounder who is mostly known for his time trialing skills, so when he was up the pass with a gap of over 5 minutes, the favorites had to take notice. Ryder originally started the chase but soon it was evident to Scarponi that he was about to be kicked off the podium. Well, the man from Belgium named for a city in the Netherlands did hold on to enough time to scare all the GC favorites and TT’d his way to a spot on a podium. Chapeau!

Chapeau! to Tony Martin. After being hit by a car, Quickstep should really find some new roads to train on, Tony Martin has come back to do what he does best, TT. Der Panzerwagen beat all of his rivals by over 45 seconds and rode himself into the red jersey, the leader’s jersey for this tour. It was nice to see the German’s mouth wide open again, winning TT’s, and looking forward to him in Le Tour where he could finish surprisingly high.

Some others deserving of a tip of that hat but not worth writing about at this time.

Chapeau! to Andre Greipel for winning three stages at the Tour of Belgium.

Chapeau! to Michael Rogers for a TT stage win, a road stage win, and the overall in the Bayern-Rundfahrt.

Chapeau! to Alessandro Petacchi, for winning three stages during the Bayern-Rundfahrt. Can any of these guys beat Cav in July?

This week’s contra-performance goes to Italian Cycling. This is the first time since 1995 that an Italian has not been on the podium in their tour. Before the Giro it was an almost certainty that Michele Scarponi and Ivan Basso would each hold a step on this year’s podium. However, Scarps lost too much time in the Stage 1 TT and team TT and Basso looked too old. Now, it’s not like Italian cycling is in trouble, they had a number of stage wins, Nibbles was absent, and they are still second in UCI points for countries. Let’s be honest, Gregario Forza is just mad at Basso and Scarponi.

Forza

The Broom Wagon

Cleaning up after the week's events.

Oh Canada!

The Giro is complete and the second transfer period is open.  Let’s look back at how the points played out.

The big winner at the Giro is obvious, Team Wiskota Dynamic landed the top two GC spots, won a couple stages, the points jersey and oh yeah they also placed 6^th and 11^th.  Crazy points.  The big story is the win by Canadian rider Ryder Hesjedal.  A huge pick up by team Wiskota Dynamic at the first transfer period.  Will he go for a Giro, Tour double?  Does Wiskota keep him on the team?  The other big story here was the incredible race put in by the second overall pick, Joaqium Rodriguez.  The little man looked tough and even put in a pretty decent TT on the last day.  But, in the end he would lose the pink jersey by 16 seconds.  The new UCI points leader has already justified his high draft pick place.  Will he score even more points?  Cunego had a funny ride, no big stage wins but he ended up with a pretty high overall placement.  Is that his plan for Le Tour?  Gadret was right there in all the big climbs, but ultimately the TTs were too much to make up.  Team Wiskota Dynamic did have one bad ride at the Giro.  Farrar disappointed his team director for the last time as his early withdrawal from the Giro sealed his early withdrawal from Team Wiskota Dynamic.  Will this be another transfer blunder for Dynamic, like dropping Levi and Greipel or will it be a huge boost like the Hesjedal pick up?  Either way, with an almost 500 point buffer, the question must be asked; can Wiskota Dynamic be caught?

It was a bittersweet result for Gregario Forza.  Fourth and fifth place are pretty good results.  But we all know Forza was hoping for more.  Scarps just never got the chance to make up time and Basso, who looked tough coming in, was just one step behind on the last few days.  Gilbert squeaked out a few points at the Tour of Belgium, but really that only reminded us of what could have been.  Gregario’s team was built to be strong in the first part of the season.  Gilbert and a whole lotta Italians.  The spring classics have come and gone as has the Giro and Greg is in third.  A strong third, but shouldn’t he be in first right now?  Can he make up points when so many other teams are built for late season heroics?  In reality Gregario had a very good Giro and scored a lot of points gaining a lot on Team Volpe, so don’t look so sad Greg, you’ve got Levi now.

Team Volpe managed to fend off an attack from Forza to stay in second place.  Riguberto Uran had great final week and ended up taking the young rider’s jersey.  Look for this Colombian to be a factor at the Vuelta.  With Cadel Evans on the team, Volpe has been looking forward to this part of the season.  The Dauphine, Tour de Swiss, Olympics and of course Le Tour de France.  Best part, they are all on T.V.

Miguelito Indurain is the only team director who has managed to take significant points with a sprinter.  Cavendish has done well and Goss even threw in a few points.  Cav just missed out on a points jersey but it looks like he can be counted on to score throughout the rest of the season.  Also, it must be noted that Millar came in 12^th at the Bayern Rundfahrt scoring Miguelito a fat 6 points.  Are you gonna drop this guy yet or what?

When Bill the Neo-Pro wasn’t slappin’ the skins at the Driftwood Char bar he was scoring big points in Belgium.  Not so much at the Giro, but Bill knows where he can win.  Big Tony Martin has rebounded nicely from injury and secured an overall win with a dominant TT performance.  Winning one of these euro stage races is worth a lot and it just might be Bill’s ticket out of the cellar. 

Don’t forget to make transfers if you want them.  This is really the best part of the season.  More on that to come.

From the Commish

Transfer period 2 opens at 8 am tomorrow morning. Make a transfer by leaving a comment below. Transfer period is open from 8 am Monday 5/28 to 8 am Friday 6/1. GET YOUR TOUR TEAM SET!

On the Rivet

A look at who else is racing hard this week.

It is hard to pry my attention away from the Giro, but we do have two more races starting today.  The Wiskota Fantasy schedule committee (Greg) in their infinite wisdom has included two euro league races before the next transfer season.  The Tour of Belgium and Bayern Rundfahrt (Tour of Bavaria) are both 2HC so they are worth a lot of points.  Unfortunately we do not have a lot of riders there.  Here’s a quick preview.

Tour of Belgium:

Gregario Forza brings reigning champ Phillipe Gilbert back to his home country.  He needs a win.  Look for Gilbert to make some moves.

Bill the Neo-Pro has Tony Martin on the start line.  So far it has been a horrible season for Martin.  Perhaps Bill should have taken that draft day trade for Cunego.  On the other hand, Martin’s season could just be getting started.

Team Wiskota Dynamic does not have a rider in this race but it should be noted that this “super team” may have made their first transfer blunder of the season.  Greipel was not signed up for this race but now he is in and has already won a stage.  His Team Wiskota sprinter counterpart Tyler Farrar didn’t even make it through the second week at the Giro.  Dropped the wrong guy? Perhaps. 

Cyclocross fans should take note that Zydnek Stybar lines up for Omega Pharma Quick Step.  Could be cool.

Bayern Rundfahrt:

This race marks the return of Fabian Cancellera for Team Volpe.  The rest of the Wiskota Fantasy league is not looking forward to Spartacus raking up points again, but on the other hand it’s just not as cool without him.

Gregario Forza has Tomas Voekler starting the Bavarian race today.  It’s hard to figure out what kind of rider wins here, but Voekler is as good a guess as any. 

I’m sure these races are cool and Bavaria is beautiful, but the Giro is on.  I mean, the Giro, come on!  Is anyone going to try to watch a stage at the Nomad with me?  Friday 3:00?

On the Rivet

GIRO!     GIRO!     GIRO!

The final week of the Giro is going full throttle and so are our riders.  All Wiskota teams have at least one rider left in the race and many are at the top of the leaderboard.  But that could all change as we head into the serious mountains this weekend.  Three high mountain stages left, culminating with the epic massive Stelvio climb.  Check it out

Fucking nuts!  And that’s not even the whole thing.  Not to mention the huge mountain they climb right before it. 

Well, who are we cheering for this weekend? 

Miguelito Indurain comes into the final week looking to snatch one more stage win with Cav and with that wrap up the green jersey competition.  Cavendish has delivered a lot of points so far.  Another stage and the bump for points jersey could make a mighty fine Giro for the team.  Unfortunately for Miguelito his GC threat pussed out and went home to cry to his little brother.  That’s what you get for picking a Schleck.

Team Volpe only brought one rider to the Giro, but that man is making a run at the white jersey.  Rigoberto Uran is battling his teammate, Henao, for this prestige.  Few Wiskota Fantasy points for this, but a high placement and a little bump could help Team Volpe limit his damages before we move into Le Tour.

Bill the Neo-Pro is looking for a big finish from his lone GC man, Roman Kreuziger.  I was upset when Bill picked him up with his last pick, cause I thought for a minute he would be around to pick up for this race.  At 1:27 back he has a very good chance to finish high and maybe even podium or win.  He likes the long climbs and it’s really all about who’s left something in the tank for the final week.  It could be the Big Czech.

Gregario Forza enters the last 5 days of racing with two riders positioned for victory.  Basso in third and Scarponi in sixth both less than 2 minutes back.  Scarponi benefits from shorter climbs and is not the best TT guy.  I’m going to go on a limb and count him out of a podium.  On the other hand, Basso is right where he wants to be.  He has done no work so far, he has the best lieutenant (Szmyd), the long diesel climbs of the end suit him and he has proven that he can be the strongest at the end.  And that is all that counts.  Right now it is hard to say that he will not win this thing.  Either way, Forza is in for some massive Grand Tour points.

I suppose one could argue that Basso is in the best position and thus Forza is in the best position.  However, in this case the numbers do not lie.  First and second place are held by Team Wiskota Dynamic riders Rodriguez and Hesjedal, respectively.  JRod has been taking time out of the field on punchy finishes (note the pic at the bottom).  The long climbs of the weekend and the TT, although vastly improved, are not his specialty.  But, he has over a minute in hand on everybody else and a pretty could group of climbers (the three musketeers, most notably Moreno) to assist him.  Can he hold on?  The situation for the man in second could not be more different.  He likes the long climbs and is an excellent TT guy.  If Vande Velde can hang around to help, Hesjedal just might win this.  Let’s not forget about Wiskota Dynamic’s other GC men.  At about 3:30 back Gadret and Cunego could still manage some top ten finishes.  I expect Gadret to make a push, Cunego may be done.  All in all, Team Wiskota Dynamic should expect some massive points coming their way.

I am hoping to watch some Giro Friday and Saturday. Possibly at the Nomad round 3ish.  Let me know if you are interested.  Also, sorry I just realized now that I can post pictures, here are a few Giro picture treats.

JRod about to take the maglia rosa at Assisi with the Basilica of St. Francis in the background.






Cav dominating the points jersey competition but still pouting about something.






I read a quote where a guy said "the difference between the Tour and the Giro is that the Tour has podium girls and the Giro has a bus full of podium girls"

Also, they do a little extra.  Note the blond on the left.

Chapeau!

Sorry for the long hiatus but Gregario Forza has been amongst the tifosi watching some excellent bicycling racing. So there is about two weeks of the Giro and a Tour of California to throw out some chapeaus, good games, and maybe a slap on the behind or two. 

First of all Chapeau! to Luke, aka the Commish, for lining up and finishing the “Hipbreaker” stage of the Tour de Trempealeau. The Commish was seen dominating the bluffs of southwest Sconny and according to him; he finished just ahead of an old guy and a fat chick. I would have liked to see him go for the Laterne Rouge but he was just too fast on the climbs. Chapeau! Commish.  Way to represent Team Wiskota.

Also, Chapeau! to Team Volpe director, Pat, and Bill the Neo Pro for the completion of the Alamonzo. Maybe the toughest 1 day race in the U.S, this is definitely an impressive feat for Team Wiskota. Chapeau! boys. Chapeau!

Chapeau! to Taylor Phinney for being only the third American to wear the Maglia Rosa. Dominant opening TT and had 3 days of hell to try to keep it. I can’t wait to watch this young man develop to be the greatest classics racer America has had since, well, George Hincapie.

Chapeau! to Joaquin Rodriguez, El Purito has had 2 TT’s and actually took time on his rivals. The Giro is now just heating up but has J-Rod done enough to win this thing? Don’t count him out but the Stelvio and one more race against the clock are looming in the coming days.

Chapeau! to Ryder Hesjedal, the Climbing Canuck, the Weight of a Nation and the first Canadian to wear the Maglia Rosa. I really like this guy. He is tough, tactically smart, and takes chances. When he jumped on Basso during stage 14 it showed that he is definitely a contender for the GC in this race. Oh Canada………. Man, I love maple syrup!

Chapeau! to Mark Cavendish. Cav has shown, once again, that he is the fastest man in the world. The last few years I have felt like he was a product of a great lead out train. However, since the Worlds, I have to say that he is winning most of the races because he is just so fast. The Manx Mouth is truly the best sprinter in the world. Ever? Discuss……..

Chapeau! to Peter Sagan. The Terminator won everything but the overall in California. He was fast, in fact fast enough to win 5 stages and to place second in another. Thank God for Mt. Baldy or else we would have had to rename the ToC to the Sagan Gran Fondo Race Series, or the US Pro Tour Challenge, more on that in an upcoming Panache. I have to admit, although I don’t like to watch the Commish stack points like hot cakes, I do really like watching this kid race. I figure I better like it because he will win a lot over the next decade. Is this a keeper league?

Chapeau! to Robert Gesink. The Condor of Varsseveld has finally put all that skill to a result. I have been tough on this guy ever since he was named a potential Tour contender by a Mr. Eddy Merckx. I just never saw it. I know the guy has had many high placing’s in the Vuelta, Tirreno, and even a 6^th place in Le Tour in 2010. However, I just didn’t see it. Now my eyes have been open by seeing the Condor open up his wings and soar to victory on Mt. Baldy Road.  That was very impressive and that immediately puts him in the contenders list for this year’s Tour, more on that in the upcoming Panache. Chapeau! Condor, Chapeau!

This week’s contra-performance goes to Frank Schleck. Dude? Really? C’Mon man! First, blaming Rasmussen for being caught out in a Grand Tour, weak sauce; no other contenders were far enough back to be caught out by water bottle carriers and gregarios. Second, dropping out of a Grand Tour due to an injury in which your team director and doctors don’t see as an issue is well, weak sauce.  Finally, quitting a grand tour should be the hardest decision a bicycle racer ever makes. I know this isn’t the Tour, however, this is a grand tour, an honor, a privilege that many professional cyclists dream about their whole careers. Frank, don’t bring that sauce to this state fair, because it’s weak. Go home to your little brother. I’m sure he misses you. We’ll see if Frandy Schlecks are ready for July. I hope so, cuz they seem to be putting a lot of stock into a race with a lot of TTing. Last I checked, they were no good at this discipline.

Forza!

The Broom Wagon

Cleaning up after the weekend's racing.

The weekend is over and as it ends so does this year’s addition of the Tour of California.  The 2012 ToC ended up featuring a lot of large group sprints.  We had an epic breakaway survive and the TT definitely shook up the GC standings.  Yet we relied on Saturday’s stage for the real action.  The penultimate stage at Mt Baldy did not disappoint, just as expected, the overall winner was crowned that day.  There were a few more surprises along the way and all of the Wiskota fantasy Teams represented at the race managed to earn some points.  Some more than others, of course.  So how did we do?

A big congratulations goes out to Miguelito Indurain’s team as they came away with their first GC win of the year.   Robert Gesink set up his win with an excellent TT on Thursday coming in 4^th just over 30 seconds back.  But it was his move on Mt. Baldy that will be remembered.  Gesink’s push on the last third of the climb buried his rivals.  He eventually caught the breakaway Colombian and snatched the win with a sprinty kick at the line, earning an extra 20 points for the stage win.  Gesink is starting to look like a steal as a 6^th round pick.  He has been long considered a Tour favorite amongst his fellow Dutch.  With good time trial abilities and an obvious affinity for climbing, can The Condor of Varrseveld soar to a podium finish?  I am starting to think so.  But before we get ahead of ourselves, Miguelito should enjoy the moment.  T of C on the Nomad patio, overall GC victory and a jump past Bill the neo-pro to get out of the cellar.  Looking good.  

Gesink 1^stGC=  100pts, Stages: 1^st=20pts,4^th =7, 1 day in leader’s jersey=10pts,   Miguelito Indurain=137pts

Although it was a big win for Gesink it can be argued that the real story of the T o C was Team Wiskota Dynamic rider, Peter Sagan.  The Terminator racked up a crazy amount of points winning 5 sprint stages, coming in 2^nd in another and wearing the leader’s jersey for 4 days.  Sagan repeatedly beat Hausler and Boonen at the line and a few times he even had time to try out his new “I’m watching you” celebration.  I still think he is trying to get an Italian sunglasses endorsement.  Sagan continues to impress on American soil.  Looks like he knows where the money is, he even attempted a little English in the final interview.  Sagan looks like a strong contender for stage wins in his first Tour de France.   Team Wiskota Dynamic’s GC rider was one of the last men standing on Mt. Baldy.  But a less than top tier TT combined with a crazy strong Gesink meant a 3^rd place finish was all Tom Danielson could muster.  Still pretty good points.  A very respectable showing for Tommy D and an outstanding result for Team Wiskota Dynamic.  Enough in fact, to move past Team Volpe into first place.  Huzzah!

Danielson 3^rd GC=40pts, Stages: 5^th=6pts , Sagan Stages: 5 1^sts   =100pts, 2^nd 14pts, 4 days in leader’s jersey=40pts         Team Wiskota Dynamic=200 pts

Gregario Forza came into the race with very high hopes.  First overall? A podium sweep?  Well, it didn’t quite work out that way.  Despite what seemed like great form, Nibali obviously was not here to race.  With a teammate like Sagan dominating everyday perhaps Nibali decided he could take the week off.  Chris Horner lost a lot of time in the time trial and it seemed that his chances of a high GC finish were slim and an overall out of the question.  However, Horner went early on the Mt. Baldy stage, stretching his lead out enough to be the “virtual leader” on the course.  But the day was just too long and Horner did too much work.  His Colombian breakaway partner left him behind and eventually Horner was swept up by several other riders.  Horner managed to squeak out an 8^th place finish overall, not a whole lot of points.  Coming into the Mt. baldy stage  30 seconds of the leader Tejay Van Garderen seemed primed for an overall victory.  But, once again TVG blew up in the last few kilometers of the climb.  He held on for a 4^th place GC finish, pretty good really.  But he was visibly disappointed as was his Wiskota Fantasy Team director, Gregario Forza.

Horner 8^th GC= 10 pts, Stages: 8^th=2, 6^th=5   , TVG 4^th GC=  30 pts, Stages: 3^rd =8  ,   Gregario Forza=55 pts

It seemed like a bad race for Team Volpe rider Tom Boonen.  He only really contested one sprint but was in there for several more.  So, Tommeke, even on a bad week, still snuck out 29 points.

Boonen Stages: 3^rd=8pts, 4^th =7pts, 2^nd=14pts      Team Volpe=29 pts

So ends the 2012 Tour of California.  Overall, a pretty good race, yet I would like one more decisive stage.  Well, there is always next year.  But as for us, the heart of the Wiskota fantasy season is around the corner.  The final and decisive week of the Giro is upon us and I still haven’t had a Negroni.  Is anyone interested?  Can Purito hang on for the win?  Will Basso dominate the long climbs?  Will Greg let us watch the race?  These questions and more to be answered in a forthcoming Panache'.

On the Rivet

Welcome to the second installment of the special two part edition of “On the Rivet”.   After discussing the merits of the biggest American Cyclists in the peloton yesterday, today we turn our attention to the biggest American race.  None other than the Tour of California.  Much has been written already about how moving this race to May has been a God send, however it really can’t be stressed enough.  In the last few years we have seen more and more top notch riders attends this race.  This year’s lineup is no exception.  The addition of riders such as Tom Boonen, Peter Velits, Robert Gesink, L.L. Sanchez, Vincenzo Nibali, Peter Sagan, Rinaldo Nocentini and Robbie Mc Ewan make this the most international field yet.  Add to that top American cyclists such as Leipheimer, Horner, Danielson, Talansky and TVG and we have quite the race on our hands.  We will talk more about these favorites and our Wiskota Fantasy riders in a bit. But, I would be remiss if I didn’t mention our continental teams and their fun to route for riders.  When we talk about these riders it starts and ends with Rory Sutherland, 7^th place last year he is a legitimate GC rider.  McCarty, Baldwin, Jacque-Maynes, are stage hunter/breakaway guys.  Marcel Kittel might take a sprint and look for Zirbel and Zwizansky of local favs Kelly Benefits (now Optum Pro Cycling) to make a good showing at the TT.  Here stateside the quality of the coverage of the Tour of California is right up there with Le Tour.  In some ways it can be better.  We get about 2 hours of live coverage a day usually starting at 4 o’clock.  If riders from the Almonzo are back in town Saturday afternoon we may have to gather to view the Queen stage of Mt. Baldy, coverage begins at 6.  Let me know if you are interested.

On to our riders.  Who do we have and who is favored.

Coming into the race with three real threats to take the overall Gregario Forza has to be the favorite for the ToC.  Chris Horner is reigning champ.  This is what he has built his season around and he has a strong team.  Will he take off on Baldy securing an overall victory?  Quite probable.  The new addition of TeeJay Van Garderen to the Forza squad brings some young legs to the competition.  This is supposed to be his race to win this season, he has put in the work and his team is there to support him.  However a questionable ride in Romandie has left some to wonder if he has what it takes. I am most intrigued by Gregarios third GC prospect, Vincenzo Nibali.  Of all the riders at the race this is the one who has actually proved that he is on good form.  Is he here to win or simply to keep his form up for July?  However, it plays out, Gregario has a very good chance for some serious points.

Team Wiskota Dynamic made a last minute controversial move dropping three time champion Levi Leipheimer and picking up podium finisher Tom Danielson.  It is still questionable if Levi will take the line.  If he does and outclasses Danielson this could be the blunder of the season.  On the other hand, Tommy D has made this race a target of his season.  9^th at Le Tour and 3^rd at ToC, Danielson is a clear favorite.  Team Wiskota Dynamic takes the line with the biggest wildcard of the race, Peter Sagan who always seems to find himself on the podium.  Prolific stage winner Sagan spends more time surrounded by hot California girls than Diamond Dave.  Zibbidy Bop!  No wonder he loves this race.  A former winner of the young rider and the points jersey (in separate years) Sagan will come for some points.  Look for Team Wiskota Dynamic to score as well. 

Team Volpe brings their one man wrecking crew to California.  I would say Volpe is lacking some riders but really who do you need besides Tom Boonen.  The points machine is single handedly dominating our league.  He said he would like to win in LA on the final day, so look for Volpe, or should I say Team Tommeke, to score some more.

While Michelito Indurain racks up all of the sprint points in Italy his team send one lone rider to California to try his luck.  Robert Gesink is really too good to be considered a dark horse, but he is kind of under the radar right now.  Make no bones about it, he is world class and this might be just the kind of race he could win.  Rabobank is a weird team, but maybe this is the race they have targeted.  Look for Gesink to compete in the climbs.

If I was Bill the Neo-pro I would be writing a very strongly worded letter to one Andy Schleck.  Is he ever going to race.  He came here last year.  Sorry Bill, no one in the race.  It’s still a fun race to watch and I hope you are free after the Almonzo.

Wiskota Fantasy Podium:

Horner, Danielson, TVG

Spoilers:

 Velits, Talansky, Sutherland  

On the Rivet

Welcome to the first installment of a special two part edition of “On the Rivet” as we look forward to our first big American race of the season, the Tour of California.  Today we begin with the long awaited discussion on the state of American cycling.  Who are the top riders now?  Who are the riders of the future?  Can we compete with the rest of the world?  Questions, questions, questions…well, let’s begin.

While researching this article (yes, all Wiskota blog entries are thoroughly researched) I came to the realization that American pro cycling is in a very unique predicament.  It is not quite appropriate to speak of the top cyclists of today or of tomorrow.  Rather, it is more appropriate to consider the level of the cyclist right now.  This is due to the dramatic extremes in age of our best cyclists.  A quick look at the UCI points from this and last season would lead you to believe that our best cyclists, the American cyclists in their prime, are Levi Leipheimer, Chris Horner and Tom Danielson.  However, the aggregate age of these riders is 38 years old.  How can these riders be in their prime?  On the other hand, the other riders of note, namely: Taylor Phinney, Andrew Talansky and Teejay Van Garderen are all 23 years of age or younger.  How can we say that these riders are in their prime?  And so we come to conclusion that America lacks a cyclist in the prime of their career able to dominate this year as well as a few years to come.  But perhaps I am still looking at this the wrong way.

Maybe we need to broaden our scope, explore the different types of riders.  How do we stack up here?  GC riders get most of our attention and garner most of the UCI points, thus we will start here.  This is where our old timers are yet still our best riders.  Leipheimer and Horner can full on win big stage races.  Last year Horner won TofC and looks like he could do it again.  Levi had one of his best years last year, winning the Tour de Swiss.  In addition, he had a strong opening to the season before all of his bad luck.  With his TT skill he still has a chance to be a factor in stage races later this season.  Tommy D has been showing that he deserves to be mentioned as a serious GC threat, placing 9^th in last year’s Tour.  Andrew Talansky just scored big with a second place finish at the Tour of Romandie.  Climber with TT skills, that’s the formula.  TVG hasn’t been able to show much at the world level, but he must still be considered one of our best GC guys.  It has been argued (by me mostly) that this is the golden age of the puncheur.  These guys are light enough to go skyward but big enough to do it quickly.  Super fun to watch.  Who do we have?  Unfortunately, I can’t think of any.  How about Roleurs?  Big George Hincapie is no longer a real threat to win in these races, but he is still solid.  Taylor Phinney’s strong finish at Paris Roubaix would probably rate him as our best current Roleur. America still can be said to have a pretty strong time trial lineup.  From Levi, to Zabriske to Phinney we can challenge in this discipline.  A few countries specialize in the pure climber, Colombia and Spain in particular.  However, America does not field an impressive group of climbers.  Horner is probably the closest thing we have to a pure climber.  Talansky is also of note.  What we lack in other categories we make up with domestiques.  We have a lot, Danny Pate, Matt Busche, Christian Vande Velde and the incomparable Big George Hincapie.  If only they had some better riders to protect.  Finally we get to the sprinters.  This is where we have one rider who is in his prime, or at least should be, Tyler Farrar.  That’s right Tyler.  Give up the other races and focus only on sprinting.  At 27 he could be our best chance for immediate results.

When considering American cycling based on types of riders I cannot say that America is a top cycling country.  But really we never have been.  The last few years we have hovered around 8^th in UCI rankings.  So how can we make this seem better?  How can we make the world take notice?  Well, instead of being all around good, we must win big races.  Which brings us to our next and final discussion, what races can we win?  Well, let’s start with the Monuments.  It would seem that our best chance at winning a monument lies with Taylor Phinney at Paris-Roubaix.  This is his kind of thing, U23 dominant, and a top ten last year.  He is our man.  The other Monuments seem more elusive.  However, I still don’t see why Chris Horner couldn’t win Lombardia or Leige for that matter, but of course he better hurry up.  Farrar was our best chance at the Ronde or Milan San Remo, but I think that ship may have sailed.  Stage races have been a forte of the Americans.  We need Levi to win a few more big ones, Paris Nice in particular.  The Grand Tours are an interesting proposition.  Levi, Horner,TVG and perhaps Talansky could make a run at one of these.  Le Tour? Probably not.  This year the US squad has the added bonus of the Olympics.  A TT medal would be nice. It will be interesting to see who competes. 

In summation we have riders that may be great and riders that are on their last chance to be great.   Does this make for a great squad? Not really, we will not overtake Spain or Italy any time soon, but as long as we can stay ahead of France and battle it out with the likes of Germany and the Netherlands we are doing okay. Of course I am missing riders who will show up and make me look dumb, and I hope they do, but for now we must admit that the future of American cycling is balanced on the edge between veterans and up and comers.  In a few years that could easily slip into has beens and never made its.  Or, as I hope, into past legends and current stars of cycling.  Which group will make the most noise this year?  To be determined.  God bless America!