Latest News in Cycling

• Power Analysis: Giro d’Italia, stages 4-5

  

  Australian Rory Sutherland (Saxo-Tinkoff) continues to share his data with TrainingPeaks and VeloNews, most recently Stages 4 and 5 at the Giro d’Italia.

  The Giro is known for its aggressive and gritty racing, and the first week certainly fulfilled that description. Lots of rain, technical routes, and mixed terrain made for an exciting week and some interesting time gaps.

  However, Saxo-Tinkoff has been laying low, biding its time for team leader Rafal Majka to make his mark in the high mountain stages. Sutherland has been by his side, guiding him safely to the finish every day.

  Stage 4: Policastro to Serra San Bruno, 246km

  Results
  1. Enrico Battaglin, Bardiani Valvole-CSF Inox
  2. Fabio Felline, Androni Giocattoli
  3. Giovanni Visconti, Movistar
  53. Rory Sutherland, Saxo-Tinkoff

  See Sutherland’s Activity Viewer from stage 4.

  Stage summary
  246.4km
  254 Average Watts
  3.6 w/kg
  326 NP
  124 Average Heart Rate
  85 Average Cadence
  357 TSS
  5694 KJ
  39.6 km/h Average Speed

  During Stage 4, Sutherland and teammate Evgeny Petrov escorted Majka all the way to the top of the last climb, watching many riders fall off the relentless pace being set by the members of Sky. The final descent was wet and technical and resulted in several crashes, but Saxo-Tinkoff was able to get all its riders safely to across the line.

  Sutherland hit his 30-minute Peak Power on the final climb of the day, where so many riders were dropped from the lead group. It took Sutherland 28:30 generating 430 watts (5.7 w/kg) to stay with the leaders, averaging 27 kph (17.1 mph) up the 12.7-kilometer (7.9-mile) climb.

  Once he made it over the climb, the work was far from done though. In the final 6km (7 minutes of the stage) Sutherland punched it over 700 watts 7 times! He did all of this while averaging 343 watts (4.5 w/kg) and an average speed of 52 kph (32 mph)!

  Stage 5: Cosenza to Matera, 203km

  Results
  1. John Degenkolb, Argos-Shimano
  2. Angel Vicioso, Katusha
  3. Paul Martens, Blanco
  100. Rory Sutherland, Saxo-Tinkoff

  See Sutherland’s full power data from stage 5.

  Stage summary
  204.4km
  245 Average Watts
  3.2 w/kg
  119 bpm Average Heart Rate
  84 rpm Average Cadence
  4090 KJ
  44 km/h Average Speed
  243 Training Stress Score (TSS)*
  312 Normalized Power (NP)**

  *Training Stress Score (TSS) quantifies the workload performed by a rider based on the duration and intensity of the effort. A 1-hour, all-out time trial effort would result in 100 TSS points.

  **Normalized Power provides a better measure of the true physiological demands of an effort. It’s an estimate of the power you could have maintained for the same physiological “cost” if your power output had been perfectly constant rather than variable.

  The first 170km of the 203km stage were flat, but the two climbs at the end of the mixed with another day of wet, slippery roads made for a chaotic and fractured sprint to the line. Argos-Shimano’s John Degenkolb earned the victory.

  Saxo-Tinkoff continued with its plan of conserving energy and manpower in the first week of the Giro until the last 8km of the race. At this point, the team set a fast, steady tempo in an attempt to keep the field together and give its sprinter Daniele Bennati a shot at the win. Unfortunately, Bennati fell victim to the crash in the final kilometer and was not able to contest the sprint.

  With two climbs near the end of the stage and several teams determined to see a smaller sprint finish, the second half of the race was quite a bit harder than the first half. Especially painful was the blistering pace on the penultimate climb (Montescaglioso). Sutherland worked hard to maintain contact with the lead group, putting out an impressive 502 watts (6.6 w/kg) for 8:30 while watching many of the sprinters fall to the rear of the peloton.

  Montescaglioso KOM (0:08:34, 3.2 km)
  502 Average Watts
  6.6 w/kg
  258 KJ
  19 TSS
  511 NP
  168 bpm Average Heart Rate
  81 rpm Average Cadence

  Compare Sutherland’s power data from the two halves of the stage below.

  First Half (2:19, 98.4 km)
  200 Average Watts
  2.6 w/kg
  109 bpm Average Heart Rate
  82 rpm Average Cadence
  270 m (885 ft) Elevation Gain
  1672 KJ
  81 TSS
  255 NP

  Second Half (2:20, 106.5 km)
  288 Average Watts
  3.8 w/kg
  128 bpm Average Heart Rate
  87 rpm Average Cadence
  643 m (2110 ft) Elevation Gain
  2411 KJ
  151 TSS
  347 NP

  Editor’s note: Thanks to TrainingPeaks.com, we are looking at Saxo-Tinkoff rider Rory Sutherland’s power data from stages 4-5 of the Giro d’Italia. Today, Shawn Heidgen, a USA Cycling certified coach, former professional cyclist, and Education Specialist at TrainingPeaks, recaps Sutherland’s data from the one-day race. For more, follow Shawn on Twitter.

• Wiggins convinced he can still win the Giro d'Italia

  

  Briton upbeat despite a difficult first week

  
  
  
• Broemmelsiek course

  with all the work going on at Broemmelsiek - what will the course be this year?
  
  Thanks!
  Caleb
• Wanted Time Atac Pedals

  Anybody have a set or two of Time Atac Pedals that they want to unload? Shoot me a message.
  
  Bob
  314-452-6328
• Degenkolb abandons Giro with fatigue

  

  John Degenkolb (Argos-Shimano), winner of the Giro d’Italia’s fifth stage, has abandoned the race, citing declining fitness after a tough opening week.

  “Before the Giro I said that I always want to finish a race, especially the Giro d’Italia, but not at all costs,” Degenkolb said in a team press release on the race’s first rest day. “It was the goal of my team and myself to start this race in top form, and we succeeded in doing so. After a very long and intensive block of racing from the beginning of February onward, I feel that it’s getting really hard to recover. The first week in this Giro turned out to be very challenging and we also faced difficult weather conditions. This has had an impact on my body, and I am simply not fit anymore.

  Degenkolb racked up his sixth career grand tour stage win on Wednesday when he took a chaotic sprint from a reduced peloton. The German said he would return home and rest before refocusing for the remainder of the season. He stopped short of mentioning specific races, but Degenkolb could make his Tour de France debut for Argos in less than two months’ time.

  “I have to admit I am still very young, and I know that I will get stronger every year, so I have to swallow my pride and do what’s best for my body,” he said. “Together with the team we have decided that I will travel home to recover first and then start working toward the next goals. I’m proud to leave this beautiful race with a stage win. I will come back here.”

• Pro Bike: Andy Schleck’s Trek Domane

  

  It’s been nearly a year since Andy Schleck (RadioShack-Leopard) broke his sacrum at the 2012 Critérium du Dauphiné, and the road to recovery has been brutal for the 27-year-old Luxembourger.

  After a meager start to the 2013 season Schleck is looking to regain form at the Amgen Tour of California, in preparation for the Tour de France. He’s racing aboard Trek’s more forgiving Domane frame instead of the racy Madone because he favors the ride quality and more relaxed geometry.

  “The ride quality gives him more confidence,” said Jordan Roessingh, Trek’s road team liaison. The Domane features IsoSpeed technology with a decoupler that increases vertical compliance for a smoother ride by isolating the seat tube from the rest of the frame.

  The Domane has an increased head tube length of 3.5cm and a slightly shorter top tube on a 56cm frame. It also has a longer wheelbase, lower bottom bracket, and longer chainstays, which all contribute to its confidence-inspiring ride. The 71.9-degree head tube angle on the Domane is the same as Trek’s Cronus cyclocross bike.

  Schleck isn’t the first RadioShack rider to opt for the Domane outside the cobbled classics; Fabian Cancellara also uses it throughout the season.

  Whether the effects of his crash require that Schleck ride a bike with more relaxed geometry isn’t exactly clear. But what is certain is that he feels the Domane gives him the best chance to recapture the glory of his former self. Schleck finished no worse than second at the Tour de France between 2009 and 2011, and his performance at the Amgen Tour will be a good indicator of whether he can overcome the setbacks of the past year.

  “There’s a light at the end of the tunnel to get Andy on his way back to being Andy,” Roessingh said.

  And maybe there’s something to that — Schleck finished with the pack on Sunday’s scorcher of a stage, crossing the line 18th.

• Nibali awaits Sky's Colombian offensive

  

  Astana rider tranquillo at rest day press conference

  
  
  
• Garmin-Sharp’s Klier retires, slides into team director job

  

  Classics specialist Andreas Klier, who won the 2003 edition of Ghent-Wevelgem, announced his retirement this morning. Klier will next move into a team director role with his team since 2011, Garmin-Sharp.

  Klier broke the news on Twitter, which was followed up with a story on Garmin’s website.

  The 37-year-old German, who rode for five teams during his career that began in 1996, said he was confident in his decision to step away from the professional ranks.

  “I had the honor of spending many years in the saddle and I have decided that now it is time for me to stop racing and to start a new role,” Klier said in the Garmin story. “In my mind and my heart I know this is the right decision for me, and I have been given the opportunity to move into a director role at Garmin-Sharp. So now, I will stop racing with a big smile in my face and a lot of wonderful moments in my mind and look forward to the future.”

  Klier spent much of his racing career chasing classics victories. 2003 Ghent-Wevelgem was his highlight in that regard, but he also finished second in 2005 at both E3 Prijs Vlaanderen and Ronde van Vlaanderen (Tour of Flanders).

  At the 2007 Vuelta a Espana, Klier won stage 13. He also finished sixth at the Tour of Qatar that season, while in 2009 Klier placed fifth in the Tour of Qatar and Ghent-Wevelgem.

  “I had wonderful years as a professional,” Klier said. “Together with my teammates, we won races, we lost races but above all we were always a team and we share memories that will last a lifetime. These are the moments I will never forget.”

  Klier joked that as a professional rider, all he had to worry about was his role in the race — whether it was leading out a teammate in a sprint finish or getting into a breakaway. In his new job as a team director, he will be responsible for details such as picking up riders’ numbers and leaving them in their hotel rooms.

  “If you ask me today to go and get the numbers for the riders, I probably couldn’t sleep all night,” Klier said. “I have a lot to learn and therefore I am happy that I am allowed to do so in such a healthy environment. I am very thankful for that.”

• Gateway Cross Cup

  This isn't exactly breaking news because Mark already has the race calendar on this site updated, but I thought it was worth mentioning that the Gateway Cross Cup has been moved from mid-September to later this year at the end of October.  Another big change is the move from Wednesday to Saturday, which makes it much easier for people like myself not living in the St. Louis area to make it.  My prediction is that an already big event is going to explode and have a huge turnout.  A Saturday night under the lights when most people don't have to work the next day should create some great entertainment both on the course and off.
  
  http://www.crossafterdark.com/site/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=4&Itemid=5
• 2013 Firebird La Femme results

  • 1. Erin Huck, 1:33:50.3
  • 2. Jen Gersbach-Venzara, 1:35:28.2
  • 3. Amanda Carey, 1:36:06.6
  • 4. Caitlyn Vestal, 1:37:23.8
  • 5. Rebecca Gross, 1:39:23.0
  • 6. Tammy Sadle, 1:41:48.1
  • 7. Hannah Williams, 1:44:13.1
  • 8. Ksenia Lepikhina, 1:46:56.1
  • 9. Michele Novosad, 1:48:18.2
  • 10. Talitha Vogt, 1:49:36.8
  • 11. Terry Stimac, 1:53:18.4
  • 12. Beth Fisk, 1:54:11.2
  • 13. Marina Lepikhina, 1:55:02.4
  • 14. Alyssum Cohen, 1:55:18.6
  • 15. Rachel Beck, 1:55:33.6
  • 16. Linda Wells, 2:02:08.5
  • 17. Kelly Lombardi, 2:03:18.8
  • 18. Brittany Engleking, 2:04:06.8
  • 19. Melinda Mccaw, 2:05:06.0
  • 20. Nadine Davis, 2:08:42.2
  • 21. Danielle Mt. Pleasant, 2:12:45.0
  • 22. Daphne Young, 2:13:19.4
  • 23. Lori Antolec, 2:14:49.0
  • 24. Katie Davies, 2:35:31.4

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