Stage 16 Bellinzona -> Carì

TCAT took a detour to Switzerland today. Unfortunately not including Ackermann (MMM), who did not get on his bike after the restday. A break including Zana (CFA/CHX), Christen (REX/BDC/VFL), Narvaez (REX/VFL/MMM), Harper (GHS), Rubio  (CFA) and Ciccone (ITW/BDC/CHX) never got much more than 2 minutes from the peloton led by Vingegaards teammates, leaving the GC contenders to fight for the stage. It wasn't much of a fight, as Vingegaard easily outpaced his competitors in the final uphill kilometers. What remains is the fight for second place, where Gall (REX/VFL), Hindley (BDC/GHS) and Arensman (ITW/BDC/GHS/VFL) finished close together in that order. It will be a close race for second place between these three and maybe a couple others in the remaining stages.


The big news of today is that Pellizzari (CFA/VFL/MMM/CHX) will not be in that race anymore. He had been sick but hanging on before the restday, but today he clearly did not have the legs and lost more than 15 minutes, leaving him out of GC contention.

Like the GC, the KOM winner is also pretty much decided at this point. Ciccone did get some KOM points, but he has no chance of ending ahead of Vingegaard.

The points classification however, is still very much an open race. Where Magnier has chances in the sprints, Narvaez keeps gathering points by being in breaks, including today. Narvaez is now only two points behind Magnier with two more stages that seem suited for a succesful breakaway coming up, but Magnier of course can score big in the final stage in Rome. That makes the ciclamino the only jersey that hasnt been decided yet.


Unless crazy things happen, TCAT itself also has been pretty much decided with GHST again getting a big stagewin. Like in previous mountain stages, BDC was best of the rest and gains some places in the standing with a good outlook to climbing further in the stages to come. For the podium chances of the Menceis and Cyclohexane this was a pretty bad day however, due to Pellizzari losing his standing in GC.



Standings after stage 16:

Pos	±		Team	Pts Ove	Pts Today
1st	(=)		Gordon Hiatus Support Team (GHS)	5762	+977
2nd	(=)		Els Talossaes Rexhital (REX)	4900	+504
3rd	(=)		Maritiimi-Maxhestic Mençeis (MMM)	4837	+487
4th	(+3)		Cézembre Caçeirs dals Mailintzarăs (BDC)	4738	+779
5th	(=)		Velociposse Florencia (VFL)	4666	+535
6th	(-2)		Cyclohexane (CHX)	4637	+352
7th	(-1)		Team In The Wind (ITW)	4567	+599
8th	(=)		Cézembre Fieschā (CFA)	2845	+341

Tomorrow we get an intermediate stage that should be one for the attackers. We can safely write down the name of Narvaez to feature in the attack. What names will join him is not as clear.

Stage 14 Aosta -> Pila

Today was the most challenging mountain stage so far this giro, taking place in the autonomous region of the Aosta Valley, near the border with France and Switzerland. The stage had the potential to shake up the general classification quite a bit. A break including Rubio (CFA), Arrieta (CHX), Ciccone (ITW/BDC/CHX), Garofoli (GHS), Narvaez (REX/VFL/MMM) and Christen (REX/BDC/VFL) scored points along the way but never got enough space to make it to the finishline once the GC favourites started going on the final climb. Narvaez did get enough sprint points in the intsprint to take over the lead in the points classification and the Maglia Ciclamino.

 Along the way we got bad news for Els Talossaes Rexhital and the Menceis as Scaroni woke up with a fever and had to drop out.

In the end it was Vingegaard who showed why he was the favourite as he won the stage with a 50 second margin and becomes the new leader in GC with a 2,5 minute lead over the current number 2. By winning the stage he also scored enough KOM points to take a near unassailable lead in the KOM classification. Gall (REX/VFL) came in second and also did well in GC. Hindley (BDC/GHS), Piganzoli (GHS/MMM), Pellizzari (CFA/VFL/MMM/CHX), Arensman (ITW/BDC/GHS/VFL) and Storer (REX/GHS/VFL) took places 3-7 and are all placed somewhere in the top 10 now.

Another big stage win for GHST, who now take the lead in the standing for the first time. They most likely have a big lead in virtual end of tour points as well and more riders seriously competing in the GC stages. It would now require a massive upset for them to be overtaken by any of the other teams, although we still have a full week to go where of course a lot can happen. Els Talossaes Rexhital had a pretty bad day and drop from first place and may well drop even further. BDC were the best of the rest and gain two places in the standing. Unfortunately Cézembre Fiescha keep falling even further behind.


Standings after stage 14:

Pos	±		Team	Pts Ove	Pts Today
1st	(+1)		Gordon Hiatus Support Team (GHS)	4610	+913
2nd	(-1)		Els Talossaes Rexhital (REX)	4237	+422
3rd	(=)		Maritiimi-Maxhestic Mençeis (MMM)	4221	+634
4th	(=)		Velociposse Florencia (VFL)	4044	+635
5th	(+2)		Cézembre Caçeirs dals Mailintzarăs (BDC)	3856	+705
6th	(-1)		Team In The Wind (ITW)	3786	+517
7th	(-1)		Cyclohexane (CHX)	3768	+519
8th	(=)		Cézembre Fieschā (CFA)	2368	+495

Tomorrow a flat stage and almost certainly a sprint. The finish is in Milan. Will Milan be first at the finish?

Todays stage could have been a sprint. However, some teams had different plans, going fast enough on the climbs on the way to drop most of the fastest sprinters (who often struggle uphill). They never managed to return, resulting in a reduced peloton heading towards the finish. Without the organisation of the sprint teams there was room to attack and Alec Segaert used the opportunity to escape and solo to the stage win. Aular (REX/VFL) was the first TCAT rider across the line followed by Narvaez (MMM/REX/VFL) resulting in a pretty low scoring affair. A disappointment for the teams who invested credits in sprinters perhaps. Els Talossaes Rexhital remain in the lead.

Standings after stage 12:

Pos	±		Team	Pts Ove	Pts Today
1st	(=)		Els Talossaes Rexhital (REX)	3740	+261
2nd	(=)		Gordon Hiatus Support Team (GHS)	3561	+137
3rd	(=)		Maritiimi-Maxhestic Mençeis (MMM)	3491	+179
4th	(+1)		Velociposse Florencia (VFL)	3317	+278
5th	(-1)		Team In The Wind (ITW)	3186	+72
6th	(=)		Cyclohexane (CHX)	3114	+81
7th	(=)		Cézembre Caçeirs dals Mailintzarăs (BDC)	3049	+95
8th	(=)		Cézembre Fieschā (CFA)	1809	+72

Tomorrow is somewhat similar to today, except we get climbs that are a bit steeper and a bit closer to the finish, so again we probably won't see a bunch sprint. Yet another opportunity for Narvaez perhaps. Presumably we will see Scaroni or Silva near the front as well. Meanwhile, with opportunities slowly running out ITW and BDC will very much hope Ciccone finally gets a result to prevent GHST from running away with the competition before we get to the mountains again.

Stage 10 (ITT)  Viareggio  -> Massa
This editions only time trial was won by Filippo Ganna. Not entirely surprising, but the big time gap to the number two was impressive. Cavagna (ITW) came in third, but was beaten by Arensman (ITW/BDC/GHS/VFL), who had the best day out of all the GC contenders, improving to third place overall, only 1,5 minute behind Vingegaard, who disappointingly only had the 13th fastest time today and did not manage to take the pink jersey.

Other winners in GC included Gee-West (REX) and Storer (REX/GHS/VFL), while Scaroni (REX/MMM) and Gall (REX/VFL) lost time.
Team ITW had another good day and scored the most points. GHST also saw their overall winning chances increase as Harper, Piganzoli and Storer all improved their position in GC, allowing GHST to expand their virtual lead in end of tour points. Cyclohexane did not have a good day, dropping two places in the standing and seeing their competitors do well due to the strong Arensman result. The fun isn't over yet for Els Talossaes Rexhital as they hang on to the lead.

Standings after stage 10:

Pos	±		Team	Pts Ove	Pts Today
1st	(=)		Els Talossaes Rexhital (REX)	3056	+209
2nd	(+3)		Team In The Wind (ITW)	3026	+478
3rd	(+1)		Gordon Hiatus Support Team (GHS)	3000	+348
4th	(-2)		Cyclohexane (CHX)	2858	+105
5th	(-2)		Maritiimi-Maxhestic Mençeis (MMM)	2857	+119
6th	(=)		Cézembre Caçeirs dals Mailintzarăs (BDC)	2835	+298
7th	(=)		Velociposse Florencia (VFL)	2709	+297
8th	(=)		Cézembre Fieschā (CFA)	1661	+261

Tomorrow a hilly stage that seems well suited for an attack by some of the riders we've seen at the front before (some more succesfully than others), like Scaroni, Narvaez, Ciccone and Christen. Of course we may see some new faces attacking as well. Could be another good day for Els Talossaes Rexhital.

We are getting close to the halfway point, so while we are all watching the ongoing time trial, here are some thoughts on the outlook of the various teams (in ascending order of how much I expect them to win).

The gaps between the first seven teams are unsually small so far, so a lot will depend on the final two weeks.

Cézembre Fieschā (CFA)
Doing a þerxh by picking the three most expensive gc contenders has proven a succesful strategy in the past, but this time it's really not looking like it will work out, especially with the early dropout of Adam Yates. CFA already is falling behind the other teams. If Vingegaard and Pellizzari both do well they might still get out of last place, but several other teams have these too, so I can't see CFA contesting the win this time.
Status: mission impossible

Els Talossaes Rexhital (REX)
It's been a great start for the royal team. Using a balanced strategy usually makes for fun teams and this is no exception with the three 8c unclassed Narvaez, Scaroni and Christen being frequently seen at the front of the race and Gee doing well in GC so far. Unfortunately here too the withdrawal of Yates is going to hurt and without enough of the big GC favourites on board it appears very likely the fun is going to end at some point.
Status: long shot

Velociposse Florencia (VFL)
No Vingegaard likely means they will lose out on a lot of points, but this also creates a lot chances if Vingegaard starts underperforming.
Status: outsider

Maritiimi-Maxhestic Mençeis (MMM)
Like REX profited from Narvaez and Scaroni doing really well, but with Vingegaard and Pellizzari to take points in the end. However I don't think they have quite enough gc contenders on board. At the very least the Menceis need Pellizzari to start performing a lot better than he has in the first couple of mountain stages.
Status: outsider

Cyclohexane (CHX)
Another fun team, with uc picks that have been in a lot of breaks so far, and they've done well so far with good results for Ciccone and an amazing stagewin for Arrieta. On the other hand Milan hasnt scored as many points as he probably should have so far and Pellizzari is looking ok, but not second most expensive rider level ok. The other teams that I put as title contenders all have a couple gc riders instead of one Pellizzari. Still Cyclohexane could absolutely still win this if they keep getting good stage results and Pellizzari lives up to pre-race expectations.
Status: title contender

Team In The Wind (ITW)
They are having a strong debut so far, with a very surprising stage win for Ballerini. Vingegaard, Arensman and Ciccone are all looking pretty good so far. Only Bernal has slightly disappointed. They do need him to get some results to challenge for the win. A problem for ITW is that even if he does there is another team with Vingegaard, Arensman, Ciccone and Bernal. Results in todays ITT by Cavagna and in the remaining sprints by Andresen could put ITW ahead of them in the end.
Status: title contender

Cézembre Caçeirs dals Mailintzarăs (BDC)
A somewhat disappointing start for BDC due to the crash involving Vendrame and Morgado, limiting the points scored in the intermediate stages, but looking ahead to the mountain stages this should be a very strong team, again with Vingegaard, Arensman and Ciccone looking good and Bernal hopefully being able to launch a bit of a comeback in the final week. This team is very similar to ITW, who have a better team for the ITT and the remaining sprint stages. I give a very slight edge to BDC because of how well Hindley is performing in at the moment. An actual result by Christen would also be very helpful. Really its 50/50 which of ITW and BDC has better odds.
Status: title contender

Gordon Hiatus Support Team (GHS)
Some disappointment for GHST as Milan did not score as well as expected in the sprints so far. On the other hand they are one of only three teams to not lose a rider so far and they did score the most points in the mountain stages so far. Harper and Piganzoli are both still in top 20 gc, giving GHST the most riders still in the top 20.  This also includes Storer who is currently in 10th and who hasn't been picked by GHST's main rivals. This puts them in a great position for the remaining stages and the end of tour points. Milan will get more chances in the future. Garofoli has gotten stage results as well. Arensman, Vingegaard and Hindley are shared with BDC, so if BDC or ITW will want to challenge for the win they need to depend on Ciccone and Bernal. So far, GHST is outperforming the competition in the mountains, which should make them the current favourite if that continues to be the case.
Status: favourite

Huh, wittenberg wont allow me to send you a pm apparently. Weird.

my email is [first letter of first non Talossan name].[non Talossan surname written together with no spaces]@hotmail.com

Stage 8 Chieti -> Fermo

Yesterdays stage featured a lot of attacking. A large break was formed halfway through the stage which contained the rider who would eventually go solo an win his second stage: Jonathan Narvaez (REX/VFL/MMM). Scaroni (REX/MMM) came in 6th. The GC didn't see major changes, except for Ciccone (ITW/BDC/CHX) who lost more than 6 minutes which likely puts him out of podium contention.

A good result for Talossaes Rexhital who take back the lead by scoring the most points of the day, but also for the Menceis, who climb to third. Cézembre Fieschā keep struggling and are now far behind the rest of the teams.

Standings after stage 8:

Pos	±		Team	Pts Ove	Pts Today
1st	(+2)		Els Talossaes Rexhital (REX)	2369	+471
2nd	(-1)		Cyclohexane (CHX)	2342	+140
3rd	(+2)		Maritiimi-Maxhestic Mençeis (MMM)	2181	+449
4th	(-2)		Team In The Wind (ITW)	1976	+70
5th	(+2)		Velociposse Florencia (VFL)	1938	+369
6th	(-2)		Cézembre Caçeirs dals Mailintzarăs (BDC)	1921	+143
7th	(-1)		Gordon Hiatus Support Team (GHS)	1846	+197
8th	(=)		Cézembre Fieschā (CFA)	1056	+100

Today starts out flat but ends with a 3rd category climb en route to a 1st category climb which is also the finish. Very much seems like a stage for the GC favourites.

Stage 5 Praia a Mare -> Potenza

Yesterday saw a succesful breakaway attempt involving Campenaerts (CHX), Rubio (CFA), Narvaez (REX/VFL/MMM), Garofoli (GHS), Scaroni (REX/MMM) and Arrieta (CHX). Crazy things happened at the end, where Arrieta crashed and then went in the wrong direction, but somehow still won the stage (I have no idea how any of that happened), giving the most points to Cyclohexane who are now back in the lead. Eulalio took the pink jersey.

Standings after stage 5:

Pos	±		Team	Pts Ove	Pts Today
1st	(+1)		Cyclohexane (CHX)	1463	+350
2nd	(-1)		Els Talossaes Rexhital (REX)	1382	+246
3rd	(=)		Team In The Wind (ITW)	1132	+74
4th	(+1)		Maritiimi-Maxhestic Mençeis (MMM)	1109	+237
5th	(-1)		Cézembre Caçeirs dals Mailintzarăs (BDC)	994	+87
6th	(=)		Velociposse Florencia (VFL)	934	+91
7th	(=)		Gordon Hiatus Support Team (GHS)	865	+171
8th	(=)		Cézembre Fieschā (CFA)	371	+47

Today we have a flat stage towards Naples which seems like one of the last opportunities for sprinters as we head into the mountains tomorrow. The final kilometers feature a short uphill cobbled section though, which might affect the results even if that result is still most likely a bunch sprint.

Stage 3 update later today, but here are the standings:

Tuesday's stage was again a sprint, on very wide roads in the Bulgarian capital. Again Magnier won, followed by Milan (GHS/CHX) with Ackermann (MMM) in 7th place, ballerini (ITW) in 8th and Andresen (ITW/REX) in 9th. The beginning of the day saw more bad news as Adam Yates (CFA/REX) did not start due to his injuries along with Vendrame. Team In The Wind scored the most points for the first time in their debut season, but Cyclohexane remain in the lead.

Pos	±		Team	Pts Ove	Pts Today
1st	(=)		Cyclohexane (CHX)	790	+235
2nd	(=)		Team In The Wind (ITW)	777	+250
3rd	(=)		Els Talossaes Rexhital (REX)	652	+130
4th	(+2)		Gordon Hiatus Support Team (GHS)	578	+232
5th	(=)		Maritiimi-Maxhestic Mençeis (MMM)	578	+132
6th	(-2)		Cézembre Caçeirs dals Mailintzarăs (BDC)	548	+85
7th	(=)		Velociposse Florencia (VFL)	324	+43
8th	(=)		Cézembre Fieschā (CFA)	245	+36

This was the last stage in Bulgaria. Yesterday was transfer/rest day and today TCAT continues in Italy, where a single category 2 climb halfway through the stage might result in a succesful breakaway, but more likely we'll see the peloton regather in time for a sprint. The finish is uphill, which might favour someone like Andresen over the pure sprinters.

Cocteau Twins - Heaven or Las Vegas

80's sounding (apparently its from 1990) dream pop with shiny bright vocals, post-punky basslines, and indecipherable lyrics. I was only vaguely aware of them before. I did not expect to be this blown away.

Best tracks (in tracklist order): Pitch the Baby, Iceblink Luck, Fifty-fifty clown, Heaven or Las Vegas, I Wear Your Ring, but probably it's best to experience the whole thing from start to finish.

Stage 1 Nessebar (Bulgaria) -> Burgas

The Talossan Cycling Association Tour 2026 started with a short flat stage, creating the right circumstances for a bunch sprint. Unfortunately there was a big crash near the end, involving several TCAT riders. Hopefully they are all ok. The stage was won by Magnier, followed by Lund Andresen (REX/ITW). Milan (GHS/CHX) came in fourth place and Ackermann (MMM) in seventh. The royal team takes the first lead of the season as a result in a low scoring stage.

Standings after stage 1:

Pos	±		Team	Pts Ove	Pts Today
1st	(=)		Els Talossaes Rexhital (REX)	232	+232
2nd	(=)		Team In The Wind (ITW)	218	+218
3rd	(=)		Cyclohexane (CHX)	197	+197
4th	(=)		Gordon Hiatus Support Team (GHS)	191	+191
5th	(=)		Maritiimi-Maxhestic Mençeis (MMM)	108	+108
6th	(=)		Cézembre Caçeirs dals Mailintzarăs (BDC)	45	+45
7th	(=)		Cézembre Fieschā (CFA)	28	+28
8th	(=)		Velociposse Florencia (VFL)	12	+12

Tomorrow will be more of an intermediate stage. Most likely not challenging enough for GC contenders to make a big difference, but too much for a big bunch sprint. More likely the winner will be more of a punchy type rider.

Belated introduction tbd

The following teams are participating:

Eeh, well the deadline passed unfortunately :(

8 teams registered

Quote from: Sir Ian Plätschisch on May 05, 2026, 06:25:30 PMLet's a-go!

Quote from: Baron Alexandreu Davinescu on May 07, 2026, 01:26:57 PMMaritiimi-Maxhestic Mençeis are riding, changing sports for better luck!  Off the ice and on the bikes!

Did you both submit teams? They are not showing up in the league yet. (Apologies if you haven't yet. Just wanted to check in case something went wrong)

Quote from: Sir Lüc on May 06, 2026, 06:17:25 AMTwo days to the deadline - make sure you get your registration in, and join the TCAT league on Velogames using code 639289433 (https://www.velogames.com/italy/2026/leaguescores.php?league=639289433)

Tagging other frequent former managers: @þerxh Sant-Enogat @Iason Taiwos @Carlüs Éovart Vilaçafat @Mic'haglh Autófil, O.Be and others - would love to see you all join the fun again!

Also @Marcel Eðo Pairescu Tafial, UrGP @Baron Alexandreu Davinescu @Iason Taiwos @Audrada Roibeardet

Less than 24 hours left to register your team!

Submitting a team is simple and doesnt take much time. It's not required to actually know anything about cycling.

Let's go!

Vingegaard is so expensive :'(

Quote from: Alexandreu Soleiglhfred on April 21, 2026, 01:06:26 PMI will try to send a mail your way.

Sure. Do you have my correct email (hotmail not gmail)?

Azul old friend! How have you been?

I wasn't sure if we would hear from you again. I guess given the circumstances Ill admit I was worried about what the news might be if we did. But Im glad you found your way here and youve carried a bit Talossa with you in the meantime.

The modrad spirit unfortunately hasnt been sighted for a while now, but Lüc and Ian and myself are still around, so who knows, one day...

Fwiw, I am sorry to see you go. I enjoyed your contributions to Talossan culture and fantasy sports and your independent approach to Talossan politics.

As for Breneir, I don't hate him, because I don't know him well enough for that, but I do wish he'd just leave at this point. He's clearly incapable of reflecting on his own actions. The "apology" is really just more evidence of that, because his "compliments" were clearly not given in good faith to begin with (which should be pretty obvious from the context to anyone who saw the original remarks. My own intepretation is that he was being very condescending) and because he doubled down repeatedly many times after knowing it made Lüc uncomfortable. To then explicitly deny any malicious intent and only apologise for how his comments were received is entirely unserious.

It really isn't just some vendetta by AD and Miestră. I haven't been particularly active lately, but I'm pretty sure a majority of active Talossans would be happy to see Breneir gone at this point. Clearly this isnt going away any time soon, which makes me wonder why he is still here just to argue with people that don't want anything to do with him.