Fotoreporter Sirotti
1. Was there something contagious in the  Italian water this past week? Moreno Argentin followed Mario Cipollini’s comments about the de-machoing of cycling with his own, saying “A lot of people aren’t hungry for success,” and accusing both Alberto Contador and the UCI of being spineless and soft. He also said that both Contador and Andy Schleck are basically boring: “Made in a laboratory for one race. They haven’t got any originality.” Has he got a point?
2. A few weeks ago, Musette mentioned Sven Nys’s broken pedal, which either snapped or unthreaded as he was about to wind up a sprint against Tom Meeusen. Meeusen, to his credit, commented that he’d rather win cleanly. He got his chance this weekend, and outkicked Nys in snowy conditions in Kalmthout..
3. Also in Kalmthout, Katie Compton once again won a World Cup race – her third this year, beating Katerina Nash and World Champion Marianne Vos to the top step of the Podium. Can anybody beat Katie Compton? Vos’s third place, however, does not cause her to forfeit any of the many Badass Points she has accrued by winning numerous World Championships in road, track, and cyclocross racing, despite her tender age of 23.
4. From the Files of Overdue Prizes, Fabian Cancellara received his silver medal for the 2008 Olympic Road Race, since Davide Rebellin’s second-place finish was striken from the books due to his EPO-CERA positive.
5. In Vail, Colorado, controversy continues over the case of a hit-and-run of a cyclist and the subsequent refusal by the district attorney to prosecute the offense as a felony.
There you have it folks – your Monday Musette. What else is on your radar screen this morning?
“Made in a laboratory for one race. They haven’t got any originality.†Has he got a point?
Yes. I think that is why we were all so chuffed by Cadel Evans this year. Not only did he ride heroically in so many races, he competed (and won a couple) in really diverse spots all up and down the calendar. His originality and nerve – in the champion's stripes no less! – made him our favorite precisely because it was so original (well, this decade anyway).
Some good words from Argentin in my opinion. Are Contador and Schleck "boring"? Meh…predictable might be a better description for them. We need a few more Gilberts to keep things interesting in the sport. Would love to see some of the top GC TDF contenders get down to business and focus on a Spring Classic or two for a change…
A. Schleck is of course boring – his pedigree is far too good and rise to the top too smooth to make his story interesting. I bet his first bike was a carbon road bike. Contador never interviews in English so comes across sans personality – but is obviously an amazing rider – climber, time-trialist, even his descending skills are great to watch. I think we all get Argentin's point tho' – racing is too controlled by radios and directeurs and racers are too specialized. The Schleck-Contador 'rivalry' is more boring than each of them.
We live in the age of the scientifically controlled stage race, principally an exercise in things NOT happening, w. the occasional deviation. The Tour is paragon example, and those who prioritize it above all else are similarly narrow. Someone called the Tour 'a dull race with a dull winner' and it isn't too hard to see why. Luckily for the obsessed among us, there are plenty of other races to watch.
There must be something about aging and the subsequent diminution of testosterone that makes men of a 'certain age' crabby. Look at 'Cippo, Argentin, and of course that paragon of curmudgeons; Mr Hunault- and myself as well!
Schleck boring, hmm perhaps not the do or die attacks I'd have liked to have seen in the Tour, but the route gave very little favours certainly he's always seemed like a rider who's ready to push, I do wonder whether the sterile environment of Saxobank may have robbed so excitement from his racing? I thought that Evans was the dullest man alive on a bike until this year his utter grit at the Giro, Tour and Worlds certainly prove that a rubbish press conference don't make a rider.
I agree to a certain extent, but can anyone say that watching Schleck and Contador practically doing trackstands half way up a mountain while the rest of the GC contenders disappeared round the corner didn't have them on the edge of the sofa? Also to be fair, Schleck has won LBL solo, so he's not totally a one trick pony….