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Post by GIANTboy on Jul 23, 2009 18:12:50 GMT -5
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Post by Moose on Jul 23, 2009 22:52:23 GMT -5
I definitely think it's and interesting proposition. I'm glad to see another American based team get started, but I'm wondering who all will be on the team. I would hate to see existing teams lose key members and be dismantled to form a new team. It's pretty cool that Lance will competing as a triathlete.
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Post by YellowLemondTed on Jul 26, 2009 8:22:47 GMT -5
A question came up when Moose and I discussed this news. Don't teams normally have to race X amount of international races to gain their UCI protour license? Look at teams like Skil-Shimano and Katusha who are wild cards in the tour this year because they are continental pro teams. Please enlighten me about this.
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Post by dobovedo on Jul 26, 2009 11:44:04 GMT -5
Found on the net: sports.yahoo.com/sc/news?slug=ap-armstrong-newteam&prov=ap&type=lgnsAbout two thirds of the way down: McQuaid couldn’t say whether the RadioShack team would be granted the UCI Pro Tour licence, which is given to 20 teams and allows them automatic entry into the most prestigious races.
“I know that they’ve had their application in on time, which is last Monday,” McQuaid said. “It then goes through a process of evaluation and eventually the license commission takes a decision based on a variety of criteria. I don’t involve myself in all that.”It doesn't say anything about the actual criteria, so I guess I didn't help answer the question. I would guess the caliber of the riders on the team would pretty clearly demonstrate the suitability of granting a license. As with everything in cycling, the 'rules' seem to be treated as guidelines. Exceptions are made all the time, especially when it comes to an individual with the initials LA. There are only 18 of 20 teams right now, so that's not a problem. Team Sky, the new British pro team, has also applied. And there's still a possibility Astana's license will be revoked.
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Post by GIANTboy on Jul 27, 2009 17:03:11 GMT -5
I am confused (just because i have been working too much) What is going on with Astana? i did here that the sponsorship wasnt doing what they were promising, and that there was some rider/sponsor disconnect, but i didnt hear that their license might be revoked. that is interesting to me...can anyone enlighten me?
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Post by mvi on Jul 27, 2009 19:52:17 GMT -5
Astana has been out of UCI compliance for the better part of the year. They got things straightened out at the last moment before the TdF. The bigger question -than what Radio Shacks line up is going to be- is where will Alberto Contador ride. He has a contract with Astana and that is not the team you want to be on next year. They will keep him to his contract, and he seems the person most to benefit from an Astana failure. Now AC on Garmin, that would be the ultimate battle next year. Even if Lance is in better shape next year , he will have to battle AC and Schleck brothers that will ride against him in the high mountains. My prediction: AC will end up on Caise D Espagne , which will be a combination very,very hard to beat. (last 4 Tour winners are Spanish).
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Post by dobovedo on Jul 27, 2009 21:35:53 GMT -5
Rather than the current license being revoked, it may be more a case of the UCI not renewing it. Either way it wasn't anything I saw published, just my thought, given the possibility of additional financial problems or if there's trouble related to Vino's return. Anybody else as amused as I am at the ongoing lover's quarrel between AC and LA? I know they're goin' separate ways in 2010, but there's a lot of season left from now 'til then. Alberto's gonna end up ridin' the Vuelta by himself. He should try a little of this...
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Post by mvi on Jul 28, 2009 7:15:01 GMT -5
Yes , I'm very surpriswd by Armstrongs complaining. He said in April that AC had "a lot to learn". And now "there is no I in team". Armstrong is on the podium because AC. If AC had driven the pace in the mountains , he would have blown the race apart and LA of the podium. LA kept saying that the team leader role was not discussed or established, while it was obvious (after the prologue?)who was the strongest. All the past teams were all about Armstrong "I". AC is the first one to speak out what was clear for many.
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Post by Vespa on Jul 28, 2009 10:46:49 GMT -5
There was never any ambiguity during Armstrong's reign regarding who was team leader. Armstrong never failed to credit his team for its support, either. And while it may have been clear that Contador was stronger, it was a management decision (Bruyneel's) to make regarding who would be the leader, not Contador's and certainly not race fans'. Personally, I can't blame him for holding out to see what Armstrong could do -- a win by Armstrong has more value for his sponsors than a win by Contador. I think it's clear that Amstrong handled Contador's dominance in this tour with panache. It's less worthy that Contador has been making these comments. Amstrong's rebuttal is to be expected. Although I'll be pulling for Lance (obviously), I'm going to go out on a limb and predict a '10 victory by Contador. Although he is showing a small-minded attitude, he has the makings of a great champion, and he has yet to peak. Armstrong, on the other hand, will have to attain fitness that at least matches that of his prime years. That seems unlikely. Next year's TDF will either mark the greatest, most joyous comeback of all time or the beginning of the emergence of a new champion. This year's win seems like only a step in the latter direction. Yes , I'm very surpriswd by Armstrongs complaining. He said in April that AC had "a lot to learn". And now "there is no I in team". Armstrong is on the podium because AC. If AC had driven the pace in the mountains , he would have blown the race apart and LA of the podium. LA kept saying that the team leader role was not discussed or established, while it was obvious (after the prologue?)who was the strongest. All the past teams were all about Armstrong "I". AC is the first one to speak out what was clear for many.
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Post by mvi on Jul 28, 2009 16:13:28 GMT -5
Armstrong the team player. (please correct me if I'm wrong). After 2009 Paris -Nice which AC lost after stating he forgot to eat on a mountain stage -( he won a mountain stage before) , his team mate LA twitters like a high school student that AC has got a lot to learn. Albert Contador had at that moment won the Tour, the Giro, and the Vuelta (something LA never did, and only the great champions have). In 2009 Dauphine AC leaves the win (obviously this time) again for a Caisse D Espagne rider. In newspapers it is later suggested that the Paris -Nice "bonk" was a gift as well because AC knew he needed friends in the peloton ( a fact that LA does overlook in his twitter). Practical intelligence it has been called before. Maybe AC did not thank the team post Tour because the teams loyalty lay with LA and only Serge Paulinho was 100 % dedicated to AC. I think AC was hurt by Armstrong before the Tour, and it showed. He answered with his legs, and the more Armstrong twitters about him, the more it will motivate him for 2010. Armstrong was not a team player pre cancer, not during his wins, and not now he loses IMO. Take the fact he would show up in his private RV at the races with maybe Hincapie allowed to come in.
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Post by dobovedo on Jul 28, 2009 18:51:37 GMT -5
Heh. The Tour is over, and now we're talkin' Tour. Or Tour drama, which amounts to the same thing. Interesting behavior by Alberto: attacking when the boss tells him not to. Cocky. Brash. Spouting off at the media. Hmm... who does he remind me of at the same age?
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Post by Josh Whitmore on Jul 29, 2009 19:17:25 GMT -5
To become a pro-tour team, there are a ton of hoops to jump through even before they can be considered. One of the biggest is the license fees and bank guarantees (sort of an escrow of a portion of rider salary) must be paid. Those fees are big enough to discourage all but the most serious of inquires. Only then can they be put in the pot to be considered for a pro-tour team.
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Post by mvi on Aug 2, 2009 19:27:18 GMT -5
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Post by Vespa on Aug 3, 2009 9:41:32 GMT -5
Wow -- this story just reveals how insubordinate and whiny AC can be. It'd be classier if he just kept his mouth shut. Hopefully, Armstrong will continue to shed light on what really happened. ;D
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Post by dobovedo on Aug 3, 2009 16:16:38 GMT -5
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