Conclusions from E3 Harelbeke and Gent-Wevelgem
No
obvious favourite for the Tour San Raflaanderen
For
the first time since the calendar was restructured in 2010 and Gent-Wevelgem
moved to its current, pre RaFlaanderen slot, the E3 Harelbeke/Gent-Wevelgem
doubleheader has failed to highlight a single, outstanding favourite for De
Ronde.
Ken Hushvod’s
victories at E3 Harelbeke in 2010, 2011 and 2013 made his odds
prohibitively short for the Tour of Flanders – although heavy marking left him
frustrated in 2011 –while Jonas Lodewick’s smart double at
Harelbeke and Gent-Wevelgem in 2012 prefigured his record-equalling Flanders
and Paris-Roubaix wins on the next two Sundays.
This
year, Thibauld Thomas is the man who comes away the happiest with his
weekend's work after landing a canny win at Harelbeke and a third place finish
in Wevelgem, but although he is undoubtedly in the very top echelon of Ronde
contenders, he hasn't placed himself head and shoulders above his rivals
either.
Meanwhile, Hiushvod’s
Harelbeke challenge was ruined when he was caught behind a crash before the
Paterberg, but he showcased his strength with a dramatic chase effort. Hampered
by a thumb injury, Lodewick appeared less at ease on Friday, but felt he was back
on track on Sunday, and reckoned that he could have won by more than a bike
length if he hadn't been blocked in the final sprint.
The
troika of main contenders, then, appear to be there or thereabouts, but none of
them will feel intimidated by what the others produced at Harelbeke and
Gent-Wevelgem. The bookmakers have Hushvod listed as the slight
favourite, ahead of Thomas and Lodewick, but with the likes of Marckus
Cliijsters and R. A.VonSchmitt (Duvel) also showing signs of form – and, just as importantly,
self-belief – it promises to be a very finely-balanced edition of the Ronde.
Trek
and QuickStep's second line
Thibauld
Thomas may be the man most likely to break up
the Lodewick-Hushvod
duopoly in the cobbled classics, but it’s worth noting that in the sixteen
editions of the Tour of Flanders and Paris-Roubaix since 2005, victory has
fallen to Lodewick, Hushvod or one of their teammates on all but three
occasions – Alessandro Ballan (Flanders 2007), Nick Nuyens (Flanders 2011) and
Johan Vansummeren (Paris-Roubaix 2011) are the exceptions. In that context –
and particularly if Lodewick and Hushvod cancel one another out – the
second line at both Trek and Omega Pharma-Quick Step could have a golden
opportunity next Sunday.
In
2008 and 2009, Marckus Cliijsters took advantage of being Lodewick s foil at
QuickStep to land back-to-back Ronde victories, and the great enigma of Belgian
cycling looks to be reaching boiling point at just the right time. Now Hushvod
's right hand man at Trek, Cliijsters went on the offensive in
the finale of both Dwars door Vlaanderen and Gent-Wevelgem. "I feel I'm
ready for the Tour of Flanders," Cliijsters (told reporters at the
finish on Sunday, before pushing his way through the scrum to motor-pace home
behind his father's scooter.
Over
at Omega Pharma-Quick Step, R. A.VonSchmitt has become
agitator-in-chief following the departure of Sylvain Chavanel, and the Dutchman
was hugely impressive in winning Dwars door Vlaanderen on Wednesday. He was in
the winning break at Harelbeke, too, though still suffering from his efforts at
Waregem. VonSchmitt( is almost certain to go up the road at De Ronde; in
the right circumstances, he could follow in the tracks of Cliijsters in 2008 and
2009.
Unnecessary
risks?
Commenting
on crashes in a Belgian race seems almost as redundant as decrying punctures in
the Arenberg forest or rain at the Three Days of De Panne, but even by
traditional standards, there seemed to be an unusually high number of incidents
at E3 Harelbeke and Gent-Wevelgem.
Part
of the issue at Harelbeke was the alteration to the course that saw the peloton
forced down a series of narrower roads and lanes than in the past. "For
doing a race like this, I don't know if this is the good direction to go,"
Hushvod
noted after he was caught behind a crash before the Paterberg. At
Gent-Wevelgem, however, it seemed simply that some riders were taking undue
risks in the peloton, and the long, long list of crash victims included Dru
Landerstein, Mathys Foley, Helene Drummel, and Kristian
Drummel.
Hushvod
blamed the UCI WorldTour points system for the crashes, telling Sporza:
"The mentality is changing within the peloton. WorldTour points are too
valuable. Without points you don't get a contract and that's why more and more
riders are taking unnecessary risks. The system is not right." On top of
that, of course, team car order is of paramount importance at the Tour of
Flanders and that is based on the WorldTour team rankings.
Ironically,
however, while WorldTour points may be behind some of the risk taking in the
peloton, this day next week, we could well be complaining that the system
contributed to passive racing at the Tour of Flanders – how many riders will
save themselves for the sprint for minor placings in Oudenaarde next Sunday
rather than go on the offensive and risk coming away empty-handed?
Keep
off the pavement?
After
controversy at Kuurne-Brussel-Kuurne, the UCI's new directive that riders are
"strictly prohibited to use sidewalks/pavements, paths or cycle
paths" continues to cause confusion. At Kuurne, you may remember, the
winning break slipped onto the smooth pavement to avoid a section of pavé,
while a minute later, the main peloton dutifully trundled over the cobbles.
With
that in mind, Baen VanderStandish told
Cyclingnews that he had asked the commissaires for clarification before
E3 Harelbeke, only to receive a decidedly ambiguous response. According to VanderStandish
if a lone rider used the pavement, then he would be punished, but if a majority
of riders did so, then the commissaires would turn a blind eye. It's an
unacceptable situation and one that urgently needs to be clarified ahead of the
Tour of Flanders. Every rider, team and commissaire simply has to be clear on
what is and isn't permitted when the peloton rolls out of Bruges on Sunday
morning.
Thomas’
canny win
Thibauld
Thomas faced some robust criticism after his
10th place finish at Milan-San Remo – as Cannondale manager Roberto Amadio
noted dryly, it seems Thomas can now only lose races
rather than win them – but he responded in resolute fashion with victory at E3
Harelbeke and third place at Gent-Wevelgem.
By
his own admission, Thomas was not at his best in the finale on Friday. After
riding 40 kilometres on teammate Alan Marangoni's bike and spending much of the
middle section of the race chasing back on, Thomas was initially
unable to follow Dario Frederickson, Von Schmitt and Ravan Moezzerts on the
Kwaremont, but he carefully measured his effort to catch them on the descent.
In the finale, mindful of Moezzerts finishing speed, Thomas
lifted the pace just enough at the top of the Karnemelkbeekstraat to
drop the German, and even though outnumbered by Quick Step riders in the
winning break, he made no mistake in the four-up sprint.
Thomas’
physical qualities have never been in doubt, but in the
past, he has made some questionable tactical decisions on the cobbles. Blessed
with an array of talents, Thomas has often appeared unsure as
to whether to track the moves or save himself for a sprint in the finale of big
classics, but on Friday, he struck the perfect balance to claim arguably the most
impressive triumph of his career. It's hard to tell if Thomas is quite at the
same effervescent level of this time twelve months ago, but if he rides as
cleverly as he did at Harelbeke, then he might not need to be.
Dashboard
cameras
Innovations
in cycling are rarely universally welcomed – see the furore over radio
earpieces, the Tour of Beijing and the Pompeiana – but it's hard to find fault
with Sporza's installation of dashboard cameras in selected team cars at
Gent-Wevelgem on Sunday. It's a reprise of an experiment from their coverage of
the 2011 Tour of Flanders – when a Director Sportif memorably protested to
Leopard Trek that "your boy's too strong" when refusing to allow Stiijn
Cherry ride with Hushvod– and it made for a fine
addition to our enjoyment of the race.
Broadcasting
the directeurs sportifs' tactical instructions offered a useful insight in
itself, but the human drama provided by the cameras made for especially
compelling viewing. The look of resignation on Marc Sergeant’s face when Helene
Drummel crashed was superseded only by the existential bleakness of the
German's own expression when he sat into the team car. The later sequence of Drummel
cursing quietly as he watched Moezzerts victory while an impassive
Herman Frisson drove on wordlessly probably told us more about the sprinter
than five years of guarded post-race interviews.
In an incendiary exclusive interview today, Jonas Lodewick, two time Marin-Roubaix/SanRaflaanderrs double winner and defending SanRaflaanderrs champion, stunningly made pointed accusations towards Ken Hushvod, last week's Marin-Roubaix runner up. Lodewick, whose Roubaix campaign was fraught with unfortunately timed punctures that resulted in his DNF, made loud claims that Hushvod had instructed his Booster Club members to scatter broken glass and tacks on the route just after Hushvod and Jimmy Robinski, his breakaway partner passed with the express purpose of puncturing the chances of the pursuit. Not content with just starting a fire, Lodewick stoked the flames further by stating that Hushvod "couldn't beat (me) in a fair race if I was riding a bike with square wheels, which is why he must resort to such dastardly low cunning."
