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.
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