General Race Thread 2023 **spoilers**

griffin100

Would love to see a Degenkolb - Philipsen sprint as a finale. Not sure the big two will hang around in this group until the end though.

retalivity

MVDP stretching the legs before probably pushing everyone on Mons-en-Pevele

Mefistofelino

MVDP bobbing on the bike more than usual. Has he punched his own lights out?

retalivity

FFS

Squidgy Black

That’s going to be controversial.

Feel bad for Degenkolb

Morris Garren

AH REFEREE!!!!!!!!! PENALTY!!!! 😀

retalivity

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120458084#Comment_120458084

oooffff.... mvdp going for a gap that wasnt there??

griffin100

Could be a DQ coming for one of the Alpecin riders?

Squidgy Black

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120458100#Comment_120458100

Reckon they’re going to call it a racing incident.

Arguably bad positioning from Degenkolb in the first place to be on the grass, since he lost the front wheel after the nudge, but yeah was arrogant of MvDP to try squeeze into that gap

retalivity

Game over here

Mefistofelino

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120458037#Comment_120458037

Well that's my punditry career in the crapper

Richard Hillman

I'm sad we didn't get a Wout-Van Der Poel showdown in the Velodrome but Van Der Poel made his own luck. Him and Wout got ahead and it was a 50:50 showdown with lady luck.

Brian?

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120458200#Comment_120458200

Wout was beaten no matter what, I reckon. The puncture just finished it early for him.

I love Wout. He’s an exceptional cyclist, but he’s jinxed against MVDP over cobbles.

retalivity

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120458348#Comment_120458348

I think he rode a lot smarter today, kept his nose out of the wind, and would have kept pace with MVDP if he didn't get the puncture. Once Ganna & Kung decided they werent going to pull in the chase behind, and Phillipsen definitely wasn't, it was game over.

Degenkolb though, I feel worse for him. He may not have won, but he was riding super all day, and was in bits at the end

https://twitter.com/OutOfCycling/status/1645080286730809345

mewso

Nothing wrong with scepticism but I'm not sure the speed of a race is healthy source of it. For me it's about effort, recovery etc. Quite often we find ourselves thinking during races "great effort to recover from x, bridge across to y but that will cost them" only for them to leave everyone for dead later on. Still it's innocent until proven guilty for me.

Anyway Paris-Roubaix never disappoints. Thoroughly enjoyed that. Plenty of what ifs for WvA and Degenkolb. The DNF list is a veritable who's who. For the record Ryan Mullen came in 20 minutes down in 116th.

MyDarkArts

Real shame about the timing of the WvA puncture. That and Degenkolb crash probably killed off the race as a contest in the space of about two minutes. Would've been nice to have luck being less of a factor today.

Weepsie

Mod note:

Doping speculation and quoting posts deleted. Poster warned. Have a look at the sticky and charter folks.

And before anyone cries foul, there are very obvious reasons for it to be deleted and are nothing to do with burying heads, ignoring history, blah blah blah

Morris Garren

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120459275#Comment_120459275

It was remarkably reminiscent of Boonen winning in 2009- Flecha fell in Carrefour-de-Larbre, took out Van Summerin, then Hushovd ended up on his arse a minute later, Pozzato ended up 2nd I think; I'm still in awe of how fast they travel on the cobbles but eventually fatigue and bad luck conspires to kill off the dreams of some. At least Degenkolb has his TdF stage win from 2018 along with his PR win from 2015 to cushion the pretty sore feeling from today

joujoujou

I know, he's a thriatlete, so different kind of human, but fair play to him anyway.

https://cyclinguptodate.com/cycling/cameron-wurf-runs-half-marathon-following-brutal-paris-roubaix

https://twitter.com/medicinexthings/status/1645151526690668546

Macy0161

I think Ganna should be asking could he have done more?!

I do wonder whether JV just push the marginal gains too much for Roubaix? That's two years running they've been disproportionately affected by punctures - when does it stop being "luck" and become equipment/ set up choices? I do feel for WvA, as his nemesis just seems to be able to step up for the big ones, both CX and Road.

I really felt for Dege - picked him on Sunday morning as my outsider as I just felt he was knocking around all spring. Gutted to see him go down, but would go with racing incident. No more than Stybar, and Sagan in Flanders, riding in the gutter is increasing your risk (albeit completely understand having experienced flanders "not as rough as roubaix" cobbles!).

breezy1985

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120464198#Comment_120464198

I think for Ganna to win he needs a lucky year.

This year he was up against some classics superstars and a top sprinter or two.

So he couldn't attack or wait for the sprint.

retalivity

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120464198#Comment_120464198

JV were using some new-fangled adjustable tyre pressure system, There's been no word on whether that impacted them Laporte also had 2 punctures at different stages of the race.

Macy0161

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120464335#Comment_120464335

Although roubaix should suit him, I'm not sure he'll ever have the bike handling skills to compete with WvA and MVP?* Possible this year was a sweet spot between wet and dry and dusty (which causes it's own issues).

*I say this with the knowledge that compared to me, he has amazing bike handling skills, just relative to the CX superstars

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120464441#Comment_120464441

Not all bikes (not WvA), although Laporte did start with it. Laporte in Arenberg this year, WvA had the whole wheel collapse in Arenberg last year. I believe Alpecin and JV were running the same tyres, but I guess that's only one aspect of the wheel set up. Inserts don't appear to be a thing after a few teams using them a few years ago in Strade.

Mefistofelino

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120464198#Comment_120464198

What's becoming quite noticeable is that apart from perhaps a (slight) increase in tyre width, how "normal" P-R winning bikes have been over the past few years. This year - Canyon Aeroad, 2022 - Pinarello Dogma F, 2021 - Merida Reacto. All aerobikes, ~50mm carbon rims, no suspension /damper widgets and some riders are not even running with double bar tape or even mitts.

seaviewphotos

Just wondering what a people's thoughts on all the punctures, might have cost WVA the race (not sure he would have beat MVD). Also I see clip on line where a tyre as fully come off a rim?

breezy1985

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120465602#Comment_120465602

WVA's puncture was at the end of the last real hard section so I'm not sure VdP beats him in a sprint.

But WVA only got away because VdP was involved in a crash with his own teammate which stopped a VdP attack so there are maybes on both sides.

dahat

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120465602#Comment_120465602

Punctures are apart of racing & I’ve seen Roubaix called the race of luck by a few over the weekend.

WVA for me has the edge in a two sprint so MVP would have tried & tried to drop him well before the velodrome.

Mefistofelino

One of the dumber suggestions I saw on another website over the weekend was "MVDP should have waited for WVA after his puncture".

Squidgy Black

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120465602#Comment_120465602

Was an Astana rider who’s tyre came off completely in the breakaway, likely running too low pressure plus tubeless.

Punctures are part and parcel of Roubaix, it’s a massive gamble of going too low in pressure to try and get grip over the cobbles or too high and it being unbearable from the vibrations plus the slickness of the cobbles.

Mefistofelino

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120466257#Comment_120466257

That was probably Derek Gee of Israel Premier-Tech. Rumour is that the rim cracked, deflated the tyre and then the tyre came off, before the wheel collapsed entirely.