Levi

Where are all the bashers of Levi's preparation? Seems to be working OK for
the Dauphine. Probably wont win the tour but...



--
"We dont slow down because we get old. We get old because we slow down."


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Rick Roof wrote:
Where are all the bashers of Levi's preparation? Seems to be working OK for
the Dauphine. Probably wont win the tour but...



Obviously racing NorCal is the way to train for the Tour. I'm looking
forward to an exiting spring racing season here next year. Maybe
Eurosport will come cover the Wente Hills road race.

If this catches on, maybe we'll see some pro teams coming over for the
Early Bird criteriums in Jan. and Feb.

Gabe Brovedani

Rick Roof wrote:
Where are all the bashers of Levi's preparation? Seems to be working OK for
the Dauphine. Probably wont win the tour but...



--
"We dont slow down because we get old. We get old because we slow down."


--------- __o
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------ (*)/ (*)
******************

Why do you say he probably won't win the Tour? He's certainly one of
the favourites.

Andre

Rick Roof wrote:
Where are all the bashers of Levi's preparation? Seems to be working OK for
the Dauphine. Probably wont win the tour but...






Dumbass -


If he keeps talking about the Dauphine being "a beautiful race" I'm
gonna puke.

What a gratuitous ass-kisser. Once is cool. Twice is fine. Fifty times
makes me wanna toss my cookies.


thanks,

K. Gringioni.

Andre wrote:
Rick Roof wrote:

Where are all the bashers of Levi's preparation? Seems to be working OK for
the Dauphine. Probably wont win the tour but...

--
"We dont slow down because we get old. We get old because we slow down."

--------- __o
------- _`\,_
------ (*)/ (*)
******************

Why do you say he probably won't win the Tour? He's certainly one of
the favourites.

Andre

No doubt, he's one of the strongest GC guys around, but I suspect
the team Gerolsteiner sends to support him won't be as strong as
CSC, for example.

A lot of ex-Posties have done well for themselves on other teams,
haven't they? Even that World Champion guy...

~bob

In article
. com,
"Andre" wrote:

Rick Roof wrote:
Where are all the bashers of Levi's preparation? Seems to be working OK for
the Dauphine. Probably wont win the tour but...

Why do you say he probably won't win the Tour? He's certainly one of
the favourites.

It's easy to say someone will not win the tour. Take your
pick.

--
Michael Press

Michael Press wrote:
In article
. com,
"Andre" wrote:

Rick Roof wrote:
Where are all the bashers of Levi's preparation? Seems to be working OK for
the Dauphine. Probably wont win the tour but...

Why do you say he probably won't win the Tour? He's certainly one of
the favourites.

It's easy to say someone will not win the tour. Take your
pick.

--
Michael Press

I know it's easy to say. Levi looks strong enough not to need too many
domestiques around.

Gabe Brovedani wrote:
Rick Roof wrote:

Where are all the bashers of Levi's preparation? Seems to be working
OK for the Dauphine. Probably wont win the tour but...



Obviously racing NorCal is the way to train for the Tour.

No. Racing NorCal is the way to train for the Dauphine.

Rick Roof wrote:
Where are all the bashers of Levi's preparation? Seems to be working OK for
the Dauphine. Probably wont win the tour but...

Huh? Bashers? Levi is a guy that can set a steady pace very high but he
doesn't seem to be able to rise too much beyond that (albeit really
pretty fast level). I was trying to figure out who is actually trying
to win this race and I am sad to say that even though Levi is talking
about what a great race it is (true) the problem is that so many riders
are hoping to have a breakthrough Tour this year it seems like nobody
planned to really "race" to win in June this year.

In the Tour, Levi will take the place that Ivan Basso had several years
ago. Climbing in the front groups until the last attack (and losing on
a handful of seconds here and there) and placing top 10 in the TTs. Add
them up with or without a "jour sans" and he will be just off the
podium...unless either Basso or Ullrich (or both) fail fantastically or
every except those 2 plus Levi choke big time. That is the only way for
Levi to show his face on the final podium. Heck, I can't even imagine
him lifting the pace enough to win a stage.

The US is not so hard up for really strong riders so I am not a fan on
that basis though I have nothing against him. I did notice I was a bit
disappointed that Mayo was too poorly placed to exploit his strong
showing on the climbs. Ah well. To end on a positive note, if Levi can
show up in July with the form he seemed to have in Germany last
year...who knows...with a choking Basso, Ullrich, Vino, Menchov,
Rasmussen, George Hincapie, Floyd, Mercado and Moreaux along with
Valverde riding conservatively for future success along with Popovich,
and any other young guys I forgot, then Levi has a fantastic chance to
take this years final yellow in Paris!

Seriously though, it could go either way for Levi in that this year is
very likely the last chance he will have to seriously think that all of
the stars will align just right (especially whatever stars helped him
hit strong form in the Tour of Germany last year). Either after this
Tour or already, he knows he is not really a GC rider to actually be
able to win outright. Not without the kind of astounding luck that just
never happens all at once. He is actually fortunate to be so
consistent. That is the them of everything I have said about him. It
cuts both ways though. The Vuelta he rode in 2001 was a GT that shows
the kind of form he has shown up with at half a dozen GTs since then.
Going for he Dauphine win rather than trying to get his form just right
for the Tour makes a lot of sense at this point in his career, based on
results and his age. Levi may have been thinking this way since he
arrived at Gerolsteiner or maybe things have just worked out that way.
He will also get a lot more press with a top ten placing after arriving
as the Dauphine champ than he would otherwise. He is racing smarter
than ever these last 2 years.

in message ,
Michael Press ') wrote:

In article
. com,
"Andre" wrote:

Rick Roof wrote:
Where are all the bashers of Levi's preparation? Seems to be
working OK for
the Dauphine. Probably wont win the tour but...

Why do you say he probably won't win the Tour? He's certainly one of
the favourites.

It's easy to say someone will not win the tour. Take your
pick.

Raymond Poulidor will not win the Tour.

You heard it here first.

--
(Simon Brooke) http://www.jasmine.org.uk/~simon/

-- mens vacua in medio vacuo --