NorCal Cycling News

This weekend … it’s GO-TIME ~ who will you pick?

We start with the Prologue in Sactown … and I’ve already tossed out my darkhorse to unseat the beast, FabboCancellara.  My needles prick towards Columbia’s Cavendish to steal the show and come out with a blazer full of speed to take the first jersey.

Aside from just digging the cat’s style … i guess the pick is also because I’m hoping that Cancellara has ignored his TT’work some more and focused fullguns on swiping all the early spring classics.  San Remo, Roubaix … already his.  Now it’s time for La Fleche, Amstel, and maybe even Liege.

Get your climb on, Fabbo.

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Stage 1 is a snoozer for the sprinters, for sure

… unless we get another 10K Levi ruling.   What a joke that was.

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But, my pick is going to be for Cavendish to take the win in Santa Rosa.  He’s too fast right now and his squad is too strong.  I see them leading out Mr. Manx for a textbook, balls-to-walls speedfest finish.

And he’ll keep his golden robes.

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Stage 2 … now we’re getting interesting.

This is the stage that will end in a chaotic, manic drop down into the bowels of Santa Cruz.  The climb up BonnyDoon is too staggered, not quite long enough, and not quite steep enough past the first few kilometers to break up the GC contenders … but it WILL break up the field.

There will be climbers going ballistic, big men blowing fuses to keep in contact … and hell bent descents for 20k as they all try and re-group.

This is a day to watch on the telly, yo. Cuz it’s gonna be mayhem.

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My prediction is that we’ll see about 30-50 riders screaming into Santa Cruz as the lead group.  There will be seven thousand attacks on the descent as ones and twos try and shake away from the group for a stage win.  But in the end, one team with a hot prospect will drill the front and think they’ve got a perfecto sprint option.

Personally, i’m leaning towards the notion it’s gonna be a day for one of the Haedo brothers.  They’re coming off a great Argentinian adventure and have the legs to keep it together over the sCruzian mountains.  They will have teammates each, can both descend like rocks, and will be there and ready for the finish.

Of course, there’s always the chance that this will be a great escape stage for somebody like Cancellara … especially if the teams aren’t going to be at full strength going into that final 3 kilometers.  You could see Fabbo crush nutz again with a post-Poggio attack  and get a nice fat foto-opp finish with all the sprinters gasping and grappling to grab him back.

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BUUT … i’m a homeboy.  And I’m never gonna pick ANYbody coming into Santa Cruz who ain’t one of the true-blues.

So, hellyeah ~ it’s Andy Jacques Maynes winning stage 2 of the Tour of California … launching the perfect counter-attack from a set-up move from his badass Bissell bro, Ben.

Look for it on the streets of Santa Cruz folks, BJM sets it up … AJM knocks it down.

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And the Womens?

We get a nice teezer of the Tour of Cali crit with the San Jose Classic.  San Jose on Saturday, and then a Sunday in Santa Rosa for the ladies to scratch each other’s hearts out.

A month ago, i would have called the Cali crit for TIBCO, no questions asked.  But, I’m worried that crit and road champ Brooke Miller might have gotten caught up in the crash at Qatar that took out Janel Holcomb.  Miller was down in time both days and I haven’t heard word yet if she’s going to be healthy for this weekend’s hardcores.

Her TIBCO teammate (and fellow US National rider at Qatar), Kat Carroll was always in the mix, always on the attack in the middle east race … but, it’s hard to say how the travel and recovery will wear on her.  Still, TIBCO has a stellar squad and Starnes is in good form as evidenced by her CherryPie strongarming … so, lots of equations to run.

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With PROMAN having big energy right now and Megan Guarnier (one of my new favorite warrior princesses) firing with confidence … they are going to be a squad that is active, aggressive, and smart.  But, I know for a fact that the Vanderkitten squad is in town this week and though they’ll be recovering Liz Hatch from injury, they will have Sanborn, Hopkins, and badass Jen Wilson there to mix it up.  Wilson is a rider I have high hopes for in these next couple years.

BUT, the team to beat will be the Columbia High Road Priestesses.  They’ll have Fahlin the Scandinavian Sensation ripping up the roads like she is a one-woman marauding horde.  And, you just never know if THE INA will show up and romp everything.  And, I don’t even want to think of how strong Columbia will be if they bring that beast Van Dijk over from Qatar.

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The only way to beat those Columbia women will be with a stick … in their sleep.

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BUUUUT, back to the picks …

Saturday’s San Jose Crit will be horribly fast and furious as women try and shake the travel and nerves out of their systems.  I think it will be a day for the breaks and I see the tenacious MG getting in the move for PROMAN.  Meg is a brawler, she’s a die-hard … sexy as hell and will find her way into the move, or die trying.  Joining her will be TouchStone’s perfect acquisition … Sarah Blamberger.  SB is too smart, too crafty, and can squeeze herself into the winning moves like nobody’s bidness.

But, they will be joined by big-horsepowered women from Qatar … and, they’ll have to be ready for it.  The desert winds have hardened a small group of women coming to Cali this year … and our regulars will need to not underestimate.

If KatCuriMattis is healthy from Qatar, look for her to be forging fire and making the move in San Jose, as well.  She’ll know who to follow from the Columbia squad, and that will seal the deal.

I see 5 or 6 women away in San Jose, taking the win amongst themselves.  And I’m calling TIBCO’s KatCarroll as making the move, and making it stick.

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In Santa Rosa … how can we argue against anything other than a field sprinter’s paradise.  The course is fast, the field is faster, and the finish will be ablaze with wattage and pigtails.  It’s true that a track sprint is different than an over-geared muscle to the line … but, I see PROMAN’s Shelley Olds having the smarts and speed to finally unleash her first real field sprint win.

Olds has realized that being cool under pressure isn’t as hard as she thought … it’s about having fun and being in the moment.

And there’s going to be a moment in Sunday’s crit where the world will stop, the path will sparkle clear, and she’ll launch herself free.

Giant Slayer.

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