PEZ is linking Millar and Hincapie to Slipstream this morning. Anyone think Danielson should be looking at Slipstream too, after getting jerked around by Discovery this season?

The shelf life of a pro cyclist is pretty short. Any pro rider ought to be looking for the best deal he can find regardless of how well or poorly they are being paid or treated by their current team.

PEZ is linking Millar and Hincapie to Slipstream this morning. Anyone think Danielson should be looking at Slipstream too, after getting jerked around by Discovery this season?

Danielson wasn't necessarily jerked around by Disco.

The man has been ill. Sick to his stomach - literally.

A related question... I know Discovery isn't sponsoring the team after this year. But is the team still going to be around with a new sponsor? Or is it just going to be disbanded?

A related question... I know Discovery isn't sponsoring the team after this year. But is the team still going to be around with a new sponsor? Or is it just going to be disbanded?
The "team" is actually Tailwind Sports with a title sponsor of Discovery or Postal or whoever. If there is no title sponsor, there is tecnically still a Tailwind Sports entity, but without any funding. So unlike Slipstream which is self funded for the most part, Tailwind would probably go away and the riders signed elsewhere.

PEZ is linking Millar and Hincapie to Slipstream this morning. Anyone think Danielson should be looking at Slipstream too, after getting jerked around by Discovery this season?

Enough of Danielson hype - did you consider a possibility that maybe (just maybe) he is just not as good as the best riders in the world? Same goes for Hincapie - no, he can't climb, and he is not a serious GC contender.

There were rumblings on this and other forums that a new sponsor was found and would be announced around TdF time...no press release yet though.

Enough of Danielson hype - did you consider a possibility that maybe (just maybe) he is just not as good as the best riders in the world? Same goes for Hincapie - no, he can't climb, and he is not a serious GC contender.
That may explain their current performance, no?

BTW, why you hatin?

BT

There was an article in the NYTImes around the dawn of this year's Tour about the American advertising/sponsorhip $$ for domestic coverage of Euro pro cycling. Ostensibly the article was about Versus and their decision to 'embrace' the doping issue in their ad campaign promoting their Tour coverage. One ad or media wonk faulted Versus for this position, chiming in with those who feel it is very, very, risky to be associated with pro cycling these days--he himself advised clients against it.

My two cents of conjecture, but I would not at all be surprised to find that Discovery (or Tailwind) will be without a main U.S.-based sponsor for next year (it also won't help things if Hincapie jumps to Slipstream). If Landis loses, and that bomb hits the (slow) front pages of USA Today and CNN this summer, I suspect the liklihood to be even less. Thoughts?

There was an article in the NYTImes around the dawn of this year's Tour about the American advertising/sponsorhip $$ for domestic coverage of Euro pro cycling. Ostensibly the article was about Versus and their decision to 'embrace' the doping issue in their ad campaign promoting their Tour coverage. One ad or media wonk faulted Versus for this position, chiming in with those who feel it is very, very, risky to be associated with pro cycling these days--he himself advised clients against it.

My two cents of conjecture, but I would not at all be surprised to find that Discovery (or Tailwind) will be without a main U.S.-based sponsor for next year (it also won't help things if Hincapie jumps to Slipstream). If Landis loses, and that bomb hits the (slow) front pages of USA Today and CNN this summer, I suspect the liklihood to be even less. Thoughts?

My thoughts are that you are probably right on. There was a rumor (or maybe straight from Brunyeels mouth that they were possibly looking at a Chinese sponsor.

I wouldn't put it past a country like Dubai or Qatar either. They seem to be real into western sports and have oodles of money to through around. It also helps they have some fairly high end races there.

That may explain their current performance, no?

BTW, why you hatin?

BT
Isn't the consensus that people are doping less this year?

There's a difference between hatin' and analysis. Danielson's resulting simply don't stack up to the hype, although that's not his fault.

Slipstream as far as getting into bigger races for sure with Hincapie and Millar. But having Danielson really won't affect that. I think he's pretty much done on the big time Div. 1 scene. I hate to see it, but the truth hurts sometimes. For sure having Hincapie would help Slipstream get into the classics, but would the team be strong enough to support Hincapie provided he could get to the end with the lead group. I'd LOVE to see him win Roubaix or Flanders, but the guy just can't seem to get a break. Well, the right kinda break...

Tommy D be ridin'
Y'all be hatin'

I'm new to this forum and have read some interesting comments about the Fly to the Finish contest. Has anyone heard/read of anyone ever winning? I've entered 30 codes (all good) and always spin out to "sorry."

Any overall impressions about this year's TDF? Don't recall seeing so many different stage leaders in one TDF in years.

I'm new to this forum and have read some interesting comments about the Fly to the Finish contest. Has anyone heard/read of anyone ever winning? I've entered 30 codes (all good) and always spin out to "sorry."

Any overall impressions about this year's TDF? Don't recall seeing so many different stage leaders in one TDF in years.

I think what you need to do is copy your post, then hit the "new thread" button near the top of this forum page and start a new thread with a subject title pertaining to the Saab Fly to the Finish contest.

Zabriske is also signed with Slipstream for next year, as is one of the Backstedt (sp?) brothers, but I'm not sure which one. I think Hincapie is not a completely done deal just yet, but it's looking good. This all comes from one of their sponsors.

Should be a fun team next year for sure. Tailwind may be done.

There were rumblings on this and other forums that a new sponsor was found and would be announced around TdF time...no press release yet though.

I'd guess the time for the announcement would be just _after_ the TDF so as not to undercut the current sponsor- which might make it more difficult to get sponsorship in the future if it looked like Discovery were getting shafted for ending the relationship by giving the new sponsor free advertising during this tour, and might even raise the ire of Discovery's lawyers.

They were going to wait until around Interbike to announce it all, but an Italian web site leaked it this week. If you Google it, they list most of the roster for next year, though I'm not sure it's complete. 'Tis the season.

Ooops, my bad, I thought you were talking about the Slipstream roster, not the Discovery sponsor. When US Postal became Discovery, they announced it right in the middle of the Tour that year (I think that's how it went, anyway - I'm getting old). I thought it was odd timing, but it may have been similar in that the news was going to be leaked anyway.

They were going to wait until around Interbike to announce it all, but an Italian web site leaked it this week. If you Google it, they list most of the roster for next year, though I'm not sure it's complete. 'Tis the season.

Ooops, my bad, I thought you were talking about the Slipstream roster, not the Discovery sponsor. When US Postal became Discovery, they announced it right in the middle of the Tour that year (I think that's how it went, anyway - I'm getting old). I thought it was odd timing, but it may have been similar in that the news was going to be leaked anyway.

No, if i remember correctly they announced it a month or so before the tour.