Vino and Chris Horner, not to mention The Chicken made this a pretty fun tour to watch. Horner and Vino seem to be basically the same kind of rider, all cojones all the time. Vino's just a better version of the American.

I thought the days of F 'em all guys like Jacky Durand were over.

Sure, I'm glad Lance won his 7th, but I hope next year brings more gung ho riders like Horner, Vino and The Chicken out of the Peloton.

Can I get a hell yeah?

Both of those guys can be proud of their performances, even if Horner came up just a bit short. And for Vino to be able to ride so agressively and still do so well in the GC is just awe-inspiring.

I feel kinda bad for Horner, though, because now his cover is blown but he didn't get a stage for his efforts. The peloton probably had no idea who he was for most of the season (especially since he was out injured) and now they know they have to mark him.

But they already know that about guys like Vino and Voigt and they manage to get away... I bet Horner's DS is feeling pretty good about bringing him to the TdF. And Vino might have added another zero to his new contract with today's performance.

My big hope is that CSC doesn't get a huge infusion of cash, enabling them to build a TdF-dominating machine a la Postal/Disco. Disco has the team, but they don't have a leader on par with Basso. So hopefully next year will be even less controlled, and even more exciting.

Let's not forget Zabriskie too, who rode wonderfully on the first time trial and then had a most unfortunate crash during the final stretch of the team time trial, which eventually cost him the yellow jersey and, ultimately, the Tour de France. Zab rode strong and with spectacular form, he is still young and I hope he is at the top of his game for next year's TdF.

I feel sorry for the team leader wherever Vino ends up. Sure he loves to attack, but this tour he rode for himself.
Horner is what 33? He did get some attention on his breaks but where did it get him?

And if the chicken didn't get the time from the break where would he have been?

I agree. I think my style closely matches that of Vino. (Unfortunately my skill is only a fraction thereof :D) So yea, Vino and Paolo Bettini are my favorite riders. "Scrappy" guys.

I have no problem with Horner either. He is obviously a great rider. I would have liked to see him take a stage. Oh well, maybe next year if he has a spot and the desire.

I suspect whoever picks up Vino does so with the intent of making him the leader, so these issues of Vino doing things "against" the team become moot.

I agree. I think my style closely matches that of Vino. (Unfortunately my skill is only a fraction thereof :D) So yea, Vino and Paolo Bettini are my favorite riders. "Scrappy" guys.

I have no problem with Horner either. He is obviously a great rider. I would have liked to see him take a stage. Oh well, maybe next year if he has a spot and the desire.

I suspect whoever picks up Vino does so with the intent of making him the leader, so these issues of Vino doing things "against" the team become moot.


I thouroughly enjoyed watching Bettini during the Spring. I really like Vino's style. It makes for some great viewing. Vino beating out the field sprint today was great. I don't see him going to Disco, I don't think he can win the Tour. Will Bettini ride the Tour? I don't know his history as I really did not follow him much til this year. With their styles they can really shake things up at the Tour next year.

Let's not forget Zabriskie too, who rode wonderfully on the first time trial and then had a most unfortunate crash during the final stretch of the team time trial, which eventually cost him the yellow jersey and, ultimately, the Tour de France. Zab rode strong and with spectacular form, he is still young and I hope he is at the top of his game for next year's TdF.


I don't think he is a climber. He won't last in the mountains.

I thouroughly enjoyed watching Bettini during the Spring. I really like Vino's style. It makes for some great viewing. Vino beating out the field sprint today was great. I don't see him going to Disco, I don't think he can win the Tour. Will Bettini ride the Tour? I don't know his history as I really did not follow him much til this year. With their styles they can really shake things up at the Tour next year.

Bettini rode last year but was pretty non descript after the first couple of days. No wins or anything.

He'll ride again i'm sure. Hope so anyway. I like the cricket.

I agree. I think my style closely matches that of Vino. (Unfortunately my skill is only a fraction thereof :D) So yea, Vino and Paolo Bettini are my favorite riders. "Scrappy" guys.

I have no problem with Horner either. He is obviously a great rider. I would have liked to see him take a stage. Oh well, maybe next year if he has a spot and the desire.

I suspect whoever picks up Vino does so with the intent of making him the leader, so these issues of Vino doing things "against" the team become moot.


Some reports have Vino going to one of several French teams who have no clear leader. If no French riders are currently able to challenge for the podium or even the top ten, the maybe the French teams are willing to open up like Cofidis and get behind a non-French challenger.

I head Vino was likely to go to Liberty Seguros; am I wrong, or is that the team with the infamously controlling DS who specifies everything down to the riders' positions on the bike? If so, it could be interesting, with a loose cannon like Vino clashing with a control freak DS. Either they'll end up worse than T-mob, or Vino will turn into a serious GC threat...

I don't think he is a climber. He won't last in the mountains.

This thread isn't about climbers

Vino and Chris Horner, not to mention The Chicken made this a pretty fun tour to watch. Horner and Vino seem to be basically the same kind of rider, all cojones all the time. Vino's just a better version of the American.

I thought the days of F 'em all guys like Jacky Durand were over.

Sure, I'm glad Lance won his 7th, but I hope next year brings more gung ho riders like Horner, Vino and The Chicken out of the Peloton.

While I did love the one or 2 days where Horner was aggressive, and I look forward to watching him race more in Europe, I'm not sure where you guys are getting this Horner love from. The man had one good day of attacking, and almost got away with a stage, which would have been awesome, but in comparison to what Vino did during the Tour, the 2 rides cannot be compared at all I don't think. Horner's results cannot be compared to Vino's not even remotely. I like Chris Horner a lot, and hope he does well though over in Europe. As far as someone else mentioning that he was "invisible" to the rest of the peloton, believe me, they knew who he was after he won a stage of the Tour de Suisse, he didn't come into the Tour unknown at all. As far as being a marked man, not so much, he'll still get some latitude in stage races, because he hasn't proven he can be competitive over 3 weeks yet. Not bad at all though for his first Tour, it's too bad it's coming so late in his career.

Someone else responded on this thread about Zabriskie losing the Tour this year. Man, get a grip. That kid would have been dropped like a hot potatoe in the mountains first time they hit a good uphill section. There was no way he was even in the running to win the Tour this year. He would have been shredded not long after the TTT if he had been able to keep his bike upright on that one. Zabriskie had no chance of winning at all. Nada, zip, zero, zilcha...

Someone else responded on this thread about Zabriskie losing the Tour this year. Man, get a grip. That kid would have been dropped like a hot potatoe in the mountains first time they hit a good uphill section. There was no way he was even in the running to win the Tour this year. He would have been shredded not long after the TTT if he had been able to keep his bike upright on that one. Zabriskie had no chance of winning at all. Nada, zip, zero, zilcha...

I was the guy who mentioned Zabriskie, but if you had actually read through my post you would have noticed that nowhere did I mention that he had a chance to win the Tour. I just said that he had a great Time Trial, showed great form and was great on the TTT until the fateful crash. Yes he would have been dropped in the mountains. That is his weakness right now, and since he is young, it's something that he can (hopefully) work out and improve. Like I said, he is young and has time to flourish. Win the 2005 Tour without the fateful crash? Imporssible. 2006? Nope, but if he devoted himself to losing becoming a better hill climber he could be a contender in the future. But the kid is too prone to accidents (he just had another nasty crash in Denmark that actually cut his wrist and had lots of blood...) so his future might be to just crash his way into cycling notoriety.

I was the guy who mentioned Zabriskie, but if you had actually read through my post you would have noticed that nowhere did I mention that he had a chance to win the Tour. I just said that he had a great Time Trial, showed great form and was great on the TTT until the fateful crash. Yes he would have been dropped in the mountains. That is his weakness right now, and since he is young, it's something that he can (hopefully) work out and improve. Like I said, he is young and has time to flourish. Win the 2005 Tour without the fateful crash? Imporssible. 2006? Nope, but if he devoted himself to losing becoming a better hill climber he could be a contender in the future. But the kid is too prone to accidents (he just had another nasty crash in Denmark that actually cut his wrist and had lots of blood...) so his future might be to just crash his way into cycling notoriety.
I read he did not get the injury in a crash, he got the injury trying to open a door:

http://www.velonews.com/race/int/articles/8632.0.html

It is a pretty freakish accident. I thought that stuff only happens to you after you win the World Championship.

He's a terrific talent, but how would he fair in that Classic? I would think that he would do well.

BT

Conventional wisdom would scratch Horner from the list of P-R contenders because of his relatively slight build. Plus there's the whole issue of pave - some people do well on it, others do not. The hillier Ardennes classics would probably suit him better. I hope Horner stays with Saunier Duval (he only had a 1 yr contract, right?) because, unlike many teams, seem open to an attacking style.