I’m still kicking myself for not following my winter training plan like I should have. I’m
still trying to find time to take some real long rides so I can build my
“base.” If you asked my legs what month
it was, they would look at you inquisitively and say, “Why it’s February of
course!” No it’s May. Wait, did I hear
myself correctly? May?!?! Where does the
time go?
I suppose I could rail against it, but time—passing as it
tends to do—can’t be stopped. So I’ll
embrace it. I will embrace the fact that
May is upon us—even though my legs wish they had more time to find
themselves. The classics have passed and
we are in the throes of another long and difficult cycling season. April showers have brought us May
flowers—although it seems as though we are probably in store for some more May
showers.
In cycling, May means one thing: The Giro d’Italia. May brings us the grand tours. The hard men of the cobbles have had their
day in the sun—or rain—and now it is time for the small men of the mountains to
do their thing.
If the classics embody all that is the suffering of cycling,
then the grand tours are all the verve and panache—and The Giro may be the
vervey-est and panachey-est of them all.
The Tour de France may be the oldest and most revered of the three, but
The Giro is the most beautiful. It has
the most life. It’s spirit and flair
make it unique among the grand tours and are a mark of pride for Italian
cycling enthusiasts everywhere. It’s no
surprise either. The Italians’ grand
tour is a reflection of their own vigor for life—think: Cipollini’s sometimes
outrageous skinsuits.
Though not as old as The Tour, The Giro is not far
behind. Its first edition was in 1909,
only six years after the first Tour de France.
Like many of the major bike races in Europe, it was created by a
newspaper—in this case La Gazzetta dello Sport looked to compete with another
Italian newspaper, Corriere della Serra, which had just created an automobile
race around the Italian countryside. La
Gazzetta, with its iconic pink pages (thus the pink jersey for the race leader,
although that did not come about until sometime later), staged the first Giro
d’Italia in May of 1909.
Alfredo Binda, here in the 1927 Giro, would go on to win the race 5 times. One of only three men to do so. |
Italy has an incredible history of domination in its home
grand tour, taking every overall victory from its inception until Hugo Koblet
won the overall classification in 1950.
And if you think this domination has waned recently due to the
“globalization” of cycling—think again.
The Italians recently strung together 11 straight victories from 1997 to
2007. Of the 20 cyclists who have won
the race multiple times, only 4 of them are non-Italians. Italy has won the overall classification an
incredible 67 out of 94 editions of the race (there were no races held during
the two world wars). The country in
second place? Belgium—with only 7 wins.
Fausto Coppi in the 1957 Giro. Coppi is the second of three men to win the Giro 5 times. The other? Eddy Merckx. |
On the list of overall stage wins, only two Belgians crack
the top ten: Eddy Merckx and Roger de Vlaeminck—with the most flamboyant
champion of them all, Cipollini topping the list with 42 stage wins.
The Giro can also boast some of the most creative race
programming of any of the three grand tours, although last year’s edition was
probably a bit too hard for its own good.
Think of stage 7 of the 2010 edition.
Cadel Evans won a mud-ridden stage of dirt roads in the rainbow
jersey. Epic. Definitely one of my favorite stage race
stages I can ever remember watching. The
Giro takes risks like having stages comprised of many dirt roads, and it often
makes for great racing.
Vino and Cadel in stage 7 of the 2010 Giro d'Italia. Evans would go on to win the stage. |
This year’s edition is admittedly easier than last year—as
it should be. It features three time
trials—two individual, including the final stage in Milan, and one team
endeavor—as well as a multitude of mountains and interesting flat stages. Here are a few stages of which to take note:
Stage 2: Herning-Herning (206km)
An uninteresting profile, for sure, but this is what has me
interested in this stage:
There is some very exposed coastal riding there, which could
make for some nasty crosswinds. There is
potential for this stage to be your average sprint stage and a “W” for
Cavendish, but the winds could potentially split the field.
Stage 4:
Verona-Verona (32.2km) TTT
Despite it being early in the race, there is nothing like
starting with a deficit to your nearest rivals.
It’s important for favorites to do well here.
Stage 14:
Cherasco-Cervinia (205km)
The first true high mountain stage of the Giro. This stage is the first time the race will go
over 2,000 meters in elevation—expect that to make a significant
selection. Altitude can wreak havoc on
riders who are not accustomed to riding there.
This will be a mountain top finish to mark on the calendar, no doubt.
Stage 20: Clades Val
di Sole-Passo dello Stelvio (218km)
One of the most legendary climbs in all of cycling ends this
penultimate stage during what is a brutal final week of The Giro. The day before the final ITT, look for the
climbers to make a final decisive blow against the strong TT contenders. Fireworks are all but guaranteed.
So if it isn’t terribly obvious, we’re all pretty excited
about The Giro around here. Follow Off
the Rivet throughout the race for special Giro-themed posts, as well as some
pretty exciting surprises we have in the works for you guys in the month of
May. Catch the Giro starting Saturday May 5th, on many live streaming channels on websites like cyclingfans.com or watch it live on NBC Sports.
I’ll leave you with a video featuring 5 time winner of the
Giro d’Italia, the cannibal himself, Eddy Merckx. Enjoy:
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