CYCLING IMPRESSIONS: 2017

Showing posts with label 2017. Show all posts

Friday, 4 January 2019

Cycling Impressions Interviews: Elena Pirrone

We had the pleasure to interview a World and European Champion: Elena Pirrone.
The talented girl from Bolzano, Italy, is currently riding for Astana Womens Team in the UCI Women's World Tour.
Here is what she told us at the start of 2019 cycling season.

Hi Elena and thank you, I'am excited and a bit nervous. I've never interviewed a World Champion before! I'll try to do my best.
Where does your love for cycling come from?
Hi! It is a pleasure for me too. My passion for cycling comes from my parents.
They are both former riders. When I was younger I loved following my dad at his races to cheer him.

This is nice! When did you jump on a bike for the first time and who put you on it?
To be honest, I can't remember how old I was, probably I was 3 but I'am not sure.
What I remember is that I had a red tricycle which I really loved and with which I always went around.

Let's move to your first races. Did you start with road cycling or cyclocross and which is your favorite?
I don't like cyclocross. When I was sixteen I did a couple of races just for fun but I prefer road cycling.
Cyclocross is too muddy and cold for me! I like watching it on TV.

Ahaha, I see your point. You have already won a World title and a European title, which is something fantastic, but what is your favorite race?
I love hard races in general.
I like Strade Bianche and the Ronde Van Vlaanderen but, unfortunately, I haven't had the occasion to race them yet.

Last question and thank you again for your time Elena. What do you want to say to boys and girls that would like to try to be pro riders?
All I can say is to always follow your dreams and never give up, because if you really want something it will come true.

Thank you very much Elena and good luck! Cycling Impressions will always be a fan of you!
Thank you!

Wednesday, 18 October 2017

Red Hook Criterium Milano

Last Saturday I was in Milano to follow the last race of the Red Hook Criterium Series.
I've to say that I didn't assist to a Criterium, I assisted to a Masterpiece.
Seeing all the riders (men and women) on their minimal bikes and in their colorful leotards made me feel part of an incredible show.
I participated, as a spectator, to all the previous edition, but this time, finally, a new concept of cycling has been reached.
It can be summarized in: Cycling as a work of art.
The riders and the spectators were perfectly mixed and were part of the same big artwork.
The urban circuit has been the perfect scenario for the birth of this new form of art and cycling and where could this happen if not in Italy, the cradle of art and culture?

Tuesday, 10 October 2017

Il Lombardia

What a race! Nibali won again Il Lombardia and brought Bahrain Merida its first Monument.
The race was incredibly hard and nothing more that the words of Pinot can summarize how it went: "I think Nibali is the most complete rider of the Peloton".
Despite all the critics received during the season, the Squalo came out with an incredible victory.
In the interview after the race he has already set his new objective: Innsbruck world championships.
Seeing how these last Italian classics or para-classics went, with the victory of Uran Uran, Nibali, Visconti, Geniez and with first class riders as Pinot, Quintana and Alaphilippe fighting in the up front, next year's World Champs are going to be memorable.
Nevertheless we have a season to watch and comment in which we will still enjoy Sagan wearing its natural outfit.
Stay tuned.

Monday, 25 September 2017

Bergen 2017, History Has Been Made

Love him or hate him, Peter Sagan is in the history of cycling.
For the first time a rider has been able to win 3 world championships in a row.
The third victory has been the hardest of the three for Sagan's admission too.
The circuit was really difficult to interpret and you could play your cards just one time.
Sagan is also doing something incredible, that never happened before in the history of cycling, he is identifying himself with the rainbow jersey.
You don't even know which is the team jersey of Sagan, when you see a rainbow jersey you just think is Sagan's jersey.
What will happen next year when the rainbow jersey will change owner? Will we get used to the new rainbow jersey?
We have time to think about this, but let's enjoy another year of Sagan in his most suitable jersey before.

Friday, 15 September 2017

Rider of the Vuelta a España 2017

This is not a fairy tale, you did it! You have been elected rider of the Vuelta 2017, the last race of your outstanding career!!
Contador's victory of our special classification has been a sort of plebiscite, he has taken 58% of the votes (the second, Froome, 17%, just to give you an idea) and has been elected rider of the Vuelta 2017.
I can just thank this incredible champion and I think we will miss him so much.
I hope he will continue his work with his team of young talents, teaching them to attack and never give up and maybe, in the future, we will have another Contador. Maybe...

Tuesday, 5 September 2017

La Vuelta 2017 Pt. 2

La Vuelta 2017 has been fantastic so far and, with one week to go, the race is still unpredictable.
Froome is struggling to keep his leader jersey as he never did before.
If he will bring the red jersey to Madrid I think this would be maybe his best victory of a Grand Tour.
He has been fighting since the first day, proving that he is able to ride also far away from the flat Tour de France stages.
In case of win, he would complete his first double and he would definitively enter the legends' club.
He would be remembered as one of the most successful Grand Tour riders.
La Vuelta made us discover also a new talented rider named Lopez that is literally bossing everyone when the road climbs.
Will he continue is incredible growth? Has Astana found a new captain? Will Aru leave Astana? What is the strategy of the team?
We can still discover a lot, a new unpredictable week of Vuelta is starting.
Stay tuned!

Thursday, 10 August 2017

August Cycling

May not be the green jersey of le Tour de France but it is always a nice jersey to wear in the land of cycling.
Sagan is dominating another race, proving that he is enjoying his good shape.
I don't understand why the team didn't let Sagan defend his European title.
That is a pity but also the proof that this new race has still a long way ahead to become a "classic" of the cycling calendar.
Kwiatkowski took an incredible victory in San Sebastian, enriching the best year of his career.
It is nice to see that the main characters of the month of August are almost the same of the spring classics, just Van Avermaet is taking a longer break.
The upcoming Vuelta is a show not to miss.
It presents a parterre of contenders better than the one at le Tour de France and with roads full of surprises, perfect for clever riders.
It is gonna be great, stay tuned.

Saturday, 29 July 2017

Rider of the Tour de France 2017

Congratulations Froome, you made it!
The Impressionists have elected you as rider of the Tour de France 2017.
You can say what you want but how you can say he is not a champion? In the end he always win and this is what matters.
Poker of Tours and rider of the Tour 2017, what else do you need?

Monday, 24 July 2017

Tour de France 2017 Finale

One of the most boring Tour de France I can remember, due also to the tracery of the organizers, finally came to an end.
The jurors tried to do everything to provide as much French victories as possible, disqualifying and penalizing foreign riders, but, in the end, as always, Froome won.
There is not a big winner of this Tour, Froome appeared to be more vulnerable than the previous editions but none of his opponents has been able to beat him, due also to his incredible team that controlled every single stage.
From this Tour de France comes out a big martyr, the strongest rider on the road, a man that could have easily won this edition of the Tour de France but he was in the wrong team. All our thoughts are for you Mikel Landa.
Here you can find my grades to the teams, from 1 (very bad) to 10 (very good), you, dear Impressionists, will choose the rider of the Tour de France in the upcoming survey.
Team Sky - 9
They have won their 5th Tour in the last six years this says all. Nevertheless they are a dictatorial regime, there is no space left for unplanned exploits by other members of the team.

AG2R La Mondiale - 8
They tried in any way to win this Tour de France but, unfortunately, for Bardet, even a single kilometer against the clock is too much.

Movistar Team - 5
They lost Valverde during the first stage, the alternative to a Quintana still recovering from a really hard Giro.

Trek-Segafredo - 6
Contador has the heart of a lion but not the legs. They go home with a stage win, at the beginning of the Tour de France they had bigger plans.

BMC Racing Team - 5
They lost their best rider, they didn't have a second plan, they failed.

Astana Pro Team - 1
Is this a team? The strategy was to leave Aru alone as soon as possible? Still wondering...

UAE Team Emirates - 5
A top ten could not be enough for the team.

FDJ - 5.5
They sacrified half of the team with a rider. They won a stage.

Orica-Scott - 7
The white jersey was the main goal, they did it. They could have won a stage.

Dimension Data - 6.5
They lost their main sprinter, they had a second plan, they won a stage.

Quick-Step Floors - 8
They dominated every single sprint they took part. They were helped by a Tour de France with tons of flat stages.

Bora-Hansgrohe - 7.5
They lost their most representative rider after a questionable decision by the jurors. They won another stage.

Team Katusha-Alpecin - 5
They failed all their objectives.

Lotto Soudal - 5
They failed all their objectives.

Team Sunweb - 10
They won, they amused the crowd, they deserved two fantastic jerseys. Team of the year.

Cofidis, Solutions Crédits - 3.5
I discover they were at the Tour when Bouhanni punched another rider. They disappeared again after that episode.

Team LottoNL-Jumbo - 8
Two great stage win, one of them on le Champs Elysdées, what else do you need?

Direct Energie - 7.5
A memorable stage win.

Cannondale-Drapac Pro Cycling Team - 9
Stage win and an unexpected second place in the general classification! What a Tour de France!!

Bahrain Merida Pro Cycling Team - 4
They failed all their mysterious objectives.

Wanty-Groupe Gobert - 5
Big breakaways but that's all.

Fortuneo - Oscaro - 5
Breakaways, that's all. I expected more.

Friday, 14 July 2017

How Long Will This Charade Last?

The jurors continue taking shameful decisions trying to help French riders win at the Tour de France.
Bouhanni did something definitely worse than Sagan and he is still in the race, Bardet took a bottle just like Uran Uran, Bennet and Pauwels but the Jury "did not see".
My question is: is this a World Tour race or the aim of the organizers is just to have a ridiculous French parade?
The race, so far, make me leaning towards the second option.

Monday, 10 July 2017

How Many Riders Will Arrive In Paris?

This is the question murmured on the roads of le Tour de France.
One of the most boring Tour de France I can remember is being sadly animated just by bad crashes.
Nevertheless, they are part of cycling, as mechanical problems.
That's why I think that the weeping Froome should not have complained with Aru about his attack.
Following the policy of Froome I don't understand why the Tour is continuing on Tuesday with another stage. We should suspend the Tour and wait 30 days 'til Porte is fully recovered and ready to battle again. Ridiculous.
I don't even understand why the other contenders did not help Aru in the only true attack of the day at the yellow jersey. They preferred to wait for Froome and to be humiliated by him.
Condator is a former champion that is facing his natural decline and Quintana is still recovering from one of the hardest Giro of all time.
They had a chance, they missed it.

Wednesday, 5 July 2017

Is Still Worth Watching The Tour De France?

The answer is No.
The Tour de France is generally quite a boring race in itself, It is full of flat stages and the climbs are always the same five every year.
What makes the Tour de France a great race is that the most iconic champions are at the start of this Grand Tour and animate it with their talent and their class.
When Valverde is out due to a bad crash and the World Champion is out due to a more than questionable decision of an unprepared jury, why should We still watch this piddling race?

P.S. If organizers are happy just with French victories, they should just decide to turn the Tour de France into the new French national championship.

Monday, 3 July 2017

Tour de France 2017 Pt. 1

The same old Tour is on and nothing seems to have changed.
Froome is again the big favourite and the other teams are already complaining about Team Sky's tactics and materials.
This time under investigation are the skinsuits used by the team during the opening Time Trial that, with their "vortex generator", seem to have provided the riders a notable time gain.
The saddest event is the crash of Valverde in the first stage, the Tour looses one of the most spectacular riders of the peloton. I really hope this won't be the end of the career of one of the last legend of this sport.
One of the most interesting riders to watch out during the first part of this Tour is Phinney, the American seems finally healed and in a good shape. No doubt about his talent, now I'm curious to see what he can do.
Until the stage arrival at la Planche des Belles Filles we can just enjoy watching Sagan that tries to win every stage.
Welcome back to the same old Tour de France.

Friday, 30 June 2017

Rider of the Month : June

Congratulations Jakub, you did it!
Fuglsang is the first Danish rider that triumphs in this special classification.
He dominated the Critérium du Dauphiné and is ready to lead Astana in the upcoming Tour de France.
He is a solid and complete rider and can find in Aru something more than a helper.
The strategy of the multi-captain is one of the best but, so far, there is just one team able to do it tadily and it is Team Quick-Step Floors during the classics campaign.
Nevertheless, it is two years in a row that the rider who won the Criterium du Dauphiné, in late July, won the Tour de France too, will the tradition continue?

Monday, 26 June 2017

Italian National Championships

I've seen so many races during this weekend of National Championships all around the world and the one that impressed me the most was the Italian one.
Aru won like a champion with one of the best attacks I've seen this season.
He attacked on the last climb and never slowed down, always pushing hard on his bike.
Aru's cycling style is particular but fantastic to see in a day like yesterday (extremely hot) and on the hardest climbs.
He is an emotional rider, every stroke of the pedal is like a step towards his personal redemption.
There is the shadow of Scarponi on Aru's victory, he rode with the jersey that his friend gave him while they were training in Spain. This is cycling.
If Aru maintain this shape during the Tour de France, I'am sure it will be a great show.
It is a long time we don't have a Champion so close to the people, with a so expressive way of pedaling.

Sunday, 18 June 2017

Pre - Tour De France Races

What a nice final for the Route du Sud 2017! Scully won the last stage after a thrilling sprint on the racetrack of Novaro.
The Route du Sud gave us great signals about the team Cannondale-Drapac, can we finally expect to see something good at le Tour de France from this World Tour team? I really hope so.
Tour of Slovenia and Tour de Suisse proved that the Team Bora-Hansgrohe is ready to lead their first Tour de France.
Nevertheless, I'am worried because I see so many pretenders for a stage to win in good shape, but I don't see a proper parterre of contenders for the victory of the Tour de France general classification.
I really hope it was all tactics so far but with such a great Giro d'Italia, this year, many Grand Tours riders choose the Giro instead of the Tour.
It is going to be a strange Tour de France this year, but we'll be ready to comment everything is going to happen.