B. McPherson
Mark Cavendish(Omega Pharma), aka The Manx Missile chalked up his 100th career win with a soggy sprint into Treviso at the end of stage 12 of the Giro d’italia. Cavendish has dominated the sprint scene in professional bike riding for the past few years. He has had great lead out men, but showed today why he is the man to beat in the high level racing circles.

Vincenzo Nibali(Astana) continues to hold the top place in the Giro d’italia with a 41 seconds lead over Cadel Evans(BMC).

Today’s stage was a wet, dangerous one. Race officials had to shorten the official length from 134 km to 129 when a vehicle incident blocked the starting section. They also deemed that those riders who had already crossed the line marking the final 3km would be given the same finishing time as the first across it. This was decided to avoid a melee at the finish line with competitors jockeying for fractions of seconds advantage.  Riders who had not made it to that final 3 would be assessed time penalties. You can bet that there would be a run on hot showers at the end of today’s grueling trek. Most of the athletes rode with rain capes, leg warmers and arm warmers. BMC riders also had on what looked like thick waterproof gloves.

Five riders went off the front of the peloton early and maintained their distance for most of the race. They were swept up by the train within the final kilometre by the sprinters.

Fortunes can change quickly in these Grand Tour races. Today Bradley Wiggins(Sky) was a casualty. He has a chest infection which has knocked him back. His Sky team rallied around him helping him through this nightmare day, but his hopes of grasping the top prize are now distant. He places 13th with a 5’22” time deficit. Last year’s Giro winner Ryder Hesjedal(Garmin) has also been knocked out of top contention with medical problems.

Tomorrow the stage is a long one, 254 km from Busseto to Cherasco.

Stage 12 Finish

1.       Mark Cavendish, Omega Pharma Quickstep

2.       Nacer Bouhanni, FDJ

3.       Luka Mezgec, Argos Shimano

4.       Giacomo Nizzolo, Radioshack

5.       Brett Lancaster, Orica

Race Standings

1.       Vincenzo Nibali, Astana

2.       Cadel Evans, BMC Racing

3.       Rigoberto Uran Uran, Sky

4.       Robert Gesink, Blanco

5.       Michele Scarponi, Lampre

For racing details on this and previous stages, a good English language site is Steephill TV.

B. McPherson
The Giro d’Italia Stage 9 was a sodden affair with heavy rain and puddles on the tarmac. A daring descent by Maxim Belkov(Katusha) made him untouchable. He led the race for the last 60 km. He was challenged but no one could touch him. The peloton was strung out over the course as the mountain stages and wet took their toll.

Some of the race favourites struggled to stay in contention. Last year’s winner of the Giro, Ryder Hesjedal(Garmin) fell further in the standings to eleventh place with a deficit of three minutes 11 seconds.

Monday will be a rest day for the cyclists, giving them a chance for rest and recuperation before the next two weeks of racing. They will be challenged by the terrain in Stage 10. There are two category 1 peaks on the 167 km route from Cordenons to Altopiano del Monasio with an uphill finish.

Stage 9 Finishers

1.       Maxim Belkov, Katusha

2.       Carlos Betancur, AG2R

3.       Jarlison Pantano, Columbia

4.       Tobias Ludvigsson, Argos-Shimano

5.       Cadel Evans, BMC

Overall Standings

1.       Vincenzo Nibali, Astana

2.       Cadel Evans

3.       Robert Gesink, Blanco

4.       Bradley Wiggins, Sky

5.       Michele Scarponi, Lampre

Some TV channels carry the Giro live. For us on the west coast of N.America, the coverage starts early but is excellent live and close up. For further references and background  info, try Steephill TV.

Giro d Italia Stage 19 Hesjedal Shaves Rodriguez Lead to 17 Sec.


B. McPherson
  The Giro d’Italia Stage 19 saw Roman Kreuziger, Astana finish first in today’s grueling slog through the Italian Dolomite Mountains. Ryder Hesjedal, Garmin-Barracuda shaved 13 seconds off Joaquin Rodreguez, Katusha’s overall lead. Ivan Basso, Liquigas is also one of the favoured to finish top of the podium in Milan. Basso and his team tried to outride the pack and his rivals but the strategy did not work as planned.

The uphill finish after nearly 200km sorted out the peloton to see Roman Kreuziger, Astana take the stage win. An unusual twist to today’s stage saw the pack cross the finish line twice as the route continued further uphill to complete a loop.

Tomorrow’s stage sees another challenging route of 219km with five catagoried climbs. This hard on the climb today which saw stretches exceeding 16% grade.

Canadians are starting to recognize the possibility that Ryder Hesjedal will garner first prize in the Giro. If he does, he will be the first Canadian to claim a Grand Tour victory.

Stage 19 Stage Finish

1.       Roman Kreuziger, Astana

2.       Ryder Hesjedal, Garmin-Barracuda

3.       Joaquin Rodriguez, Katusha

4.       Michele Scarponi, Lampre ISD

5.       Domenico Pozzovivo, Colnago-CSF

6.       Ivan Basso, Liquigas

Stage 19 Overall Standings

1.       Joaquin Rodriguez, Katusha

2.       Ryder Hesjedal, Garmin-Barracuda +17

3.       Michele Scarponi, Lampre ISD +1.39

4.       Ivan Basso, Liquigas +4.45

5.       Rigoberto Uran Uran +3.21

For good statistics and further background information about the Giro, Steephill TV and CyclingNews are good English language sources.