Talossan Cycling Association Tour Season 3 Leg 2 Firenze -> Nice

[Glüc]

Talossan Cycling Association Tour
2024
Second Leg
Firenze -> Nice


_{(Logo created by Sir Lüc)}

And we're back again. Two new teams and one returning team have joined 8 teams from leg 1 to cross the border into France. 3498 grueling kilometers of climbing, sprinting and racing against the clock await in the coming three weeks while the team captains sit at home and enjoy the show. The goal is to score the most points by winning stages and doing well in three classifications: the King of the Mountains classification (polkadot jersey), the points classification (green jersey) and the general classification (yellow jersey) which determines which individual rider wins this leg of TCAT.

The following teams are participating:

- Banqeu da Cézembre Tavulairs - (BDC, Cézembre, leg 1: 11925) Pogačar Bilbao Carlos Rodriguez Vlasov De Lie Gee Mohorič Naesen A. Yates -----------------------------------------------------	- Cyclohexane - (CHX, Benito, leg 1: 8746) Pogačar Bilbao Carlos Rodriguez A. Yates Coquard Bettiol Turgis Gee Buitrago -----------------------------------------------------	- Gordon Hiatus Support Team - (GHS, Benito, leg 1: 8671) Pogačar Bilbao Carlos Rodriguez Buitrago Philipsen Lapeira Gee Williams Gaviria -----------------------------------------------------
- Cézembre Fieschā - (CFA, Cézembre, leg 1: 7648) Pogačar Vingegaard Haig Poels Van den Berg Boivin Moscon Gibbons Evenepoel -----------------------------------------------------	- Maricopa Cabana Boys - (MCB, Maricopa, leg 1: 7478) Roglič Mas Carlos Rodriguez Hindley M. Pedersen Pidcock Laporte Bettiol Jakobsen -----------------------------------------------------	- Port Maxhestic AC - (PTM, Maritiimi-Maxhestic, leg 1: 7463) Vingegaard Evenepoel Bernal Carapaz Van Aert Cort Declerq Naesen Bardet -----------------------------------------------------
- Dead Last - (DED, Vuode, leg 1: 4992) Vingegaard Evenepoel Gall Hindley Groenewegen Cort Gee Abrahamsen Ackermann -----------------------------------------------------	- Dead2Last - (VFL, Florencia, leg 1: 4865) Vingegaard Roglič Bernal Hindley M. Pedersen Cort Kragh Andersen Grignard Rickaert -----------------------------------------------------	- Naziun Cjovani - (CJO, Benito) Pogačar Vingegaard Bernal Harper Ackermann Allegaert Bissegger Armirail Denz -----------------------------------------------------
- Maricopan Manilows - (MAN, Maricopa) Roglič Almeida Carlos Rodriguez Bardet Philipsen Wellens Van der Poel Healy Kulset -----------------------------------------------------	- Ardita Benito - (ARB, Benito) Vingegaard Almeida Martinez S. Yates De Lie Van der Poel Van Gils Laporte Ackermann -----------------------------------------------------

Links:
Registration thread
Information about the route and riders

[Glüc]

Some stats:

2 spinters -> 4 teams (Usually a good strategy)
3 climbers -> 3 teams (There were a lot of good climbers available this time)
4 unclassed -> 3 teams
3 all rounders -> 1 team (And all three belonging to the big-4 too. Impressive þerxh managed to fit all three of them in. Fiescha are definitely one of the teams to watch this edition.)

Big four:

Pogacar -> 5 teams. Notably every team that picked Pogacar for leg 1 picked him again and every team that didn't pick him left him out again. Last time that ended well for the Pogacar teams. Of course this time there may be a little bit more competition for Pogacar.

Vingegaard -> 6 teams. Last years winner of course and still cheaper than Pogacar so makes sense.

Roglic -> 3 teams. The two Maricopan teams are the only two that didn't pick either Pogacar or Vingegaard, but they do both have Roglic.

Evenepoel -> 3 teams. Always in combination with Vingegaard


Another interesting note: both of the completely new teams did not use all 100 credits. A very brave strategy.

[Tric'hard Lenxheir]

So I went to velogames and it is still showing my roster from the 1st leg. I can't find the new roster or results from yesterday.

[Glüc]

So I went to velogames and it is still showing my roster from the 1st leg. I can't find the new roster or results from yesterday.

That's odd. If you go to the main page and then log in -> visit team it should show the correct team. Well either way you can find the current scores here: https://www.velogames.com/velogame/2024/leaguescores.php?league=639289433

(Neither you nor Dead2Last are actually last, but theres only one point between you which is interesting.)

[Sir Lüc]

Stage 1 Firenze -> Rimini

Two years after TCAT began in Copenhagen, welcome to the second leg of season 3 - the seventh overall! We're very glad to have you with us.

Well -- not as glad as Romain Bardet (MAN/PTM) was to win the inaugural stage and therefore wear the yellow jersey of the general classification leader in his last Tour de France before switching to cyclocross next year. The Frenchman attacked with 50km to go and was helped by a teammate in the early breakaway to pull away and then successfully fend off the charging peloton with a few hundred meters to spare.

Wout van Aert (PTM) ultimately won the sprint for third place, ahead of Tadej Pogacar (BDC/CFA/CHX/CJO/GHS) and Maxim van Gils (ARB), which means Port Maxhestic score almost twice as many points as everyone else, gifting them an early lead in TCAT França 2024.

Finish photo:



Standings after stage 1:

Pos	±	Team	Pts Ove	Pts Today
1st	(=)	Port Maxhestic AC (PTM)	645	+645
2nd	(=)	Cyclohexane (CHX)	335	+335
3rd	(=)	Cézembre Fieschā (CFA)	318	+318
4th	(=)	Maricopa Cabana Boys (MCB)	317	+317
5th	(=)	Banqeu da Cézembre Tavulairs (BDC)	306	+306
6th	(=)	Maricopan Manilows (MAN)	280	+280
7th	(=)	Gordon Hiatus Support Team (GHS)	266	+266
8th	(=)	Naziun Cjovani (CJO)	244	+244
9th	(=)	Dead2Last (VFL)	226	+226
10th	(=)	Dead Last (DED)	225	+225
11th	(=)	Ardita Benito (ARB)	177	+177

[Glüc]

Stage 2 Cesenatico -> Bologna

Today we got a hilly stage finishing in the city known for naming the most famous pasta sauce and having at least one more leaning tower than Pisa. The stage included two climbs of a short but rather steep section near the finish that could potentially be used by gc contenders to get a headstart on their opponents. The stage was suited a for a break and indeed the early attack did succeed, with Abrahamsen (DED) being the first TCAT rider across the line. Abrahamsen was wearing the polkajersey after yesterday but will now also add the green jersey to his collection as he takes the lead in the points classification.

Behind the break there were four GC riders to get a 20 second gap on the others: Vingegaard, Pogacar, Evenepoel, and, surprisingly, Carapaz! (PTM), who actually finished first in their little group. Pogacar takes the yellow jersey for now however. It's a good sign for Vingegaard as this is the kind of stage where Pogacar might be expected to beat him and some thought Vingegaard would lose time and strike back in the third week.

As a result the stage bodes pretty well for Port Maxhestic, who extend their lead, getting the second most points today. However, today's winner are Dead Last, due to the performance by Abrahamsen. They jump into second place.

Standings after stage 2:

Pos	±	Team	Pts Ove	Pts Today
1st	(=)	Port Maxhestic AC (PTM)	887	+242
2nd	(+8)	Dead Last (DED)	622	+397
3rd	(=)	Cézembre Fieschā (CFA)	509	+191
4th	(-2)	Cyclohexane (CHX)	442	+107
5th	(=)	Banqeu da Cézembre Tavulairs (BDC)	422	+116
6th	(+2)	Naziun Cjovani (CJO)	381	+137
7th	(-3)	Maricopa Cabana Boys (MCB)	381	+64
8th	(-1)	Gordon Hiatus Support Team (GHS)	369	+103
9th	(-3)	Maricopan Manilows (MAN)	347	+67
10th	(-1)	Dead2Last (VFL)	311	+85
11th	(=)	Ardita Benito (ARB)	278	+101

Tomorrow should be the first opportunity for the sprinters as we move into Turin for the final Italian stage before we cross the border intro France.

[Sir Lüc]

Stage 3 Piacenza -> Torino

Boring flat stage for sprinters which only got interesting right at the end (as these often do). A major, late mass crash with three kilometres to go split the peloton. Many delayed riders, among them potential contenders for today's stage win Jasper Philipsen (MAN/GHS), Wout van Aert (PTM) and several top GC contenders.

Non-TCAT Biniam Girmay ultimately triumphed for a second grand tour stage win and a first at Tour; second place for Fernando Gaviria (GHS), third place for Arnaud de Lie (ARB/BDC) with Mads Pedersen (VFL/MCB) and Dylan Groenewegen (DED) rounding out the top 5.

No time losses for the general classification, however Richard Carapaz (PTM) takes maillot jaune off Tadej Pogacar (CHX/CFA/BDC/CJO/GHS) due to a lower combination of results - the Ecuadorean taking full advantage of not being delayed by the crash -and- of teammate Marijn van den Berg (CFA)'s leadout to secure a 14th place which was more than enough to make up the results gap with Pogacar.

Third day and third different stage winner for TCAT as well, with the Cabana Boys leading the field due to Pedersen and Fabio Jakobsen (7th), ahead of GHST and Dead2Last. Port Maxhestic retains a healthy lead.

Finish photo:


LTR: De Lie (ARB/BDC), Ballerini, Pedersen (VFL/MCB), Girmay, Gaviria (GHS), Bauhaus

Standings after stage 3:

Pos	±	Team	Pts Ove	Pts Today
1st	(=)	Port Maxhestic AC (PTM)	1020	+133
2nd	(=)	Dead Last (DED)	850	+228
3rd	(+3)	Maricopa Cabana Boys (MCB)	695	+314
4th	(+1)	Banqeu da Cézembre Tavulairs (BDC)	666	+244
5th	(+3)	Gordon Hiatus Support Team (GHS)	650	+281
6th	(-2)	Cyclohexane (CHX)	627	+185
7th	(-4)	Cézembre Fieschā (CFA)	625	+116
8th	(+2)	Dead2Last (VFL)	576	+265
9th	(+2)	Ardita Benito (ARB)	506	+228
10th	(-3)	Naziun Cjovani (CJO)	477	+96
11th	(-2)	Maricopan Manilows (MAN)	421	+74

Today is Col du Galibier time as Tour crosses the Alps into France! Expect action and potential early trouble for major contenders!

[Carlüs Éovart Vilaçafat]

Heck yeah! Go MCB!

[Sir Lüc]

Stage 4 Pinerolo -> Valloire

As predicted, first significant stage for the general classification! An early breakaway including Stephen Williams (GHS), Bruno Armirail (CJO) and Mathieu van der Poel (ARB/MAN) was caught on the slopes of the mighty Galibier, as the peloton was soon reduced to eight riders: the big four of Pogacar (CHX/CFA/BDC/CJO/GHS), Vingegaard (DED/ARB/VFL/CFA/CJO/PTM), Roglic (VFL/MAN/MCB) and Evenepoel (DED/CFA/PTM), plus two more TCAT riders, Rodriguez (CHX/BDC/MAN/MCB/GHS) and Almeida (ARB/MAN).

It was of course Pogacar who attacked first, around a kilometer from the summit, and had a decisive 10" edge on Vingegaard as the descent to the stage finish began, which extended to a 35" gap at the finishing line on Evenepoel, non-TCAT Ayuso and Roglic, while Vingegaard and Rodriguez finished a further two seconds later. Almeida placed in eighth, and a much more delayed Santiago Buitrago (CHX/GHS) rounded off the TCAT top ten finishers.

Tadej Pogacar thus regains the leader's jersey with a lead of 45" over Evenepoel and 50" over Vingegaard, with former holder Richard Carapaz (PTM) losing a full five minutes and plummeting down the order. These gaps are expected to endure until Friday's time trial, which will be the next opportunity for GC riders to make or close the gaps.

In TCAT, Fieschă makes the most of holding all of Pogacar, Evenepoel and Vingegaard to finish top of the table, with teams heavy with top GC contenders rounding off the top half of the daily standings. Port Maxhestic still leads in front of Dead Last, with Fieschă vaulting to third.

Finish photo:



Standings after stage 4:

Pos	±	Team	Pts Ove	Pts Today
1st	(=)	Port Maxhestic AC (PTM)	1473	+453
2nd	(=)	Dead Last (DED)	1359	+509
3rd	(+4)	Cézembre Fieschā (CFA)	1335	+710
4th	(+2)	Cyclohexane (CHX)	1235	+608
5th	(-1)	Banqeu da Cézembre Tavulairs (BDC)	1221	+555
6th	(-1)	Gordon Hiatus Support Team (GHS)	1209	+559
7th	(-4)	Maricopa Cabana Boys (MCB)	1033	+338
8th	(+2)	Naziun Cjovani (CJO)	1017	+540
9th	(-1)	Dead2Last (VFL)	984	+408
10th	(+1)	Maricopan Manilows (MAN)	902	+481
11th	(-2)	Ardita Benito (ARB)	826	+320

Both Wednesday and Thursday feature sprinter stages; a chance for two-sprinter teams to shine after a very atypical sprint on Monday? GHST, MCB, Ardita and Dead Last will want to maximise their intake - Ardita in particular can also hope to score with leadouts Laporte and van der Poel - with Cyclohexane also looking to place "unclassed-sprinter" Turgis in the points.

[Glüc]

35. Who saw this coming?

[Carlüs Éovart Vilaçafat]

Whelp that was short lived lol

[Glüc]

Before I do my tcat update, some note on historic achievement.

I'm sure if I were to ask Tric'hard or Breneir 'who is the greatest cyclist of all time?' they would tell me without any hesitation: 'Eddy Merckx of course!'. They would be correct. Belgian legend Eddy Merckx, the cannibal, has won so many things it's impossible to list them all. He could do anything on a bike. There are many reasons why he is considered the goat of cycling, but one of them is winning, between 1969 and 1975, a total of 34 Tour de France stages, an absolutely incredible number.

We will likely never see anyone like Merckx again. That's however not just down to his skills, but also due to the nature of cycling. The competition has not just become stronger, but more specialised. The fastest riders have become really fast, even if they are less likely to get over the Tourmalet within the time limit. To win stages therefore you also need to be really fast, which requires power, which means you need to bring some weight. That weight however is a problem when going uphill, where suddenly you are more likely to face skeletons on a bike, who are now so light they barely notice they are going up on a 20% gradient.

As a result cyclists just can't do everything anymore and the sport has become compartmentalised. Sprinters go really fast in the final km, rouleurs aren't as explosive but can keep going for a long amount of time, puncheurs are explosive and great at hilly or rolling terrain, climbers are good uphill. This is the reason why none of the riders currently doing tcat have won anywhere near 34 stages.



...well, except Mark Cavendish of course. No he can't do everything like Merckx, but he is really really good at one particular trick: sprinting. At his best he was unbeatable. In 2009,10 and 11 he won 6, 5, and 5 Tour de France stages. Imagine how many velogames points that would have scored!! However, that was more than a decade ago. Cavendish is old now. In 2021, at age 36 he won his 34th tour stage, equalling the record set by Merckx, but it was unclear if he could ever beat that. He was supposed to retire last year. 2023 was his final shot at beating the record, and while he got a couple decent results in the first week, he did not win a stage. The competition has become too strong. His final tour prematurely ended in disaster as he crashed in stage 8 and broke his collarbone.

Still he got close enough that he decided to change his mind and cancel his retirement. One more shot at eternal glory. Let's be honest, we didn't think he would succeed. None of us picked him. The greatest sprinter of all time for only 8 velogame credits? Nope, too old, probably wouldn't even make it to the finish. No TCAT for Cavendish this edition. Well, we were wrong. Mark Cavendish won today, beating current best sprinter Philipsen. 35 stage wins, a new record! Greatest cyclist of all time? Merckx of course, but Cavendish won more tour stages...



Mark Cavendish (no team), beats Philipsen (GHS, MAN) to win his 35th ever tour stage. Source: letour.fr

[Glüc]

Stage 5 Saint-Jean-de-Maurienne -> Saint Vulbas

Except for the final kilometers a pretty unremarkable stage as we move away from the Alps towards the north west (we'll come back to the Alps don't worry). As predicted the stage ended in a bunch sprint. Jasper Philipsen (MAN/GHS) was the first TCAT rider across the line, with De Lie (ARB/BDC) in 4th, Jakobsen (MCB) in 5th, Ackermann (DED/ARB/CJO) in 6th and Van den Berg (CFA), Gaviria (GHS), Groenewegen (DED), Coquard (CHX), Turgis (CHX), Bissegger (CJO) and Gibbons (CFA) also in the top 20.

Pedersen (VFL/MCB) unfortunately crashed in the final km. He didn't suffer any fractures, but it's still not clear if he'll able to continue. More on that tomorrow morning. Also bad news for Port Maxhestic AC, as Wout van Aert didn't bother with the sprint. PTM should very much want him to participate in these in order to stay in the points race.

As a result they are overtaken by Dead Last, creating a funny situation where Dead Last is actually first and Dead2Last is last in the standings. However, it is GHST who scored the most points today, due to the results by Philipsen and Gaviria. They jump into third place.

Standings after stage 5:

Pos	±	Team	Pts Ove	Pts Today
1st	(+1)	Dead Last (DED)	1599	+240
2nd	(-1)	Port Maxhestic AC (PTM)	1548	+75
3rd	(+3)	Gordon Hiatus Support Team (GHS)	1526	+317
4th	(-1)	Cézembre Fieschā (CFA)	1509	+174
5th	(=)	Banqeu da Cézembre Tavulairs (BDC)	1462	+241
6th	(-2)	Cyclohexane (CHX)	1405	+170
7th	(+1)	Naziun Cjovani (CJO)	1230	+213
8th	(-1)	Maricopa Cabana Boys (MCB)	1218	+185
9th	(+1)	Maricopan Manilows (MAN)	1177	+275
10th	(+1)	Ardita Benito (ARB)	1139	+313
11th	(-2)	Dead2Last (VFL)	1074	+90

Tomorrow another day where a bunch sprint should be expected, hopefully including Mads Pedersen.

[Iason Taiwos]

(This has absolutely nothing to do with the race, Glüc, but your comments on Merckx reminded me of hockey's Wayne Gretzky. He's still the GOAT in hockey, but the sport has changed so much since he was around, it's highly unlikely there'll ever be another player able to do what he did.)

[Sir Lüc]

Stage 6 Mâcon -> Dijon

I forgot to do yesterday's update bc UK elections! Another boring sprint stage! Dead Last win thanks to Dylan Groenewegen and extend their lead!

Standings after stage 6:

Pos	±	Team	Pts Ove	Pts Today
1st	(=)	Dead Last (DED)	1975	+376
2nd	(+1)	Gordon Hiatus Support Team (GHS)	1787	+261
3rd	(-1)	Port Maxhestic AC (PTM)	1735	+187
4th	(+1)	Banqeu da Cézembre Tavulairs (BDC)	1691	+229
5th	(-1)	Cézembre Fieschā (CFA)	1621	+108
6th	(=)	Cyclohexane (CHX)	1574	+169
7th	(=)	Naziun Cjovani (CJO)	1459	+225
8th	(+2)	Ardita Benito (ARB)	1420	+281
9th	(-1)	Maricopa Cabana Boys (MCB)	1311	+93
10th	(-1)	Maricopan Manilows (MAN)	1301	+124
11th	(=)	Dead2Last (VFL)	1179	+105