Cycling podcast reviews XV: The Flammecast

Flammecast

My last review was of the VC Don Logan podcast. It’s infrequent but I liked the dry Scottish humour and the edgy style, the way they brought some sarcasm and wit to deal with some of the sadder elements of pro cycling. I mentioned it was a substitute to the now defunct Velocast.

But now one half of the Velocast is back, with John Galloway’s in the hot seat with Irishman Derek Troy. Galloway is superb with a warm voice, an assured broadcasting style and plenty of enthusiasm and knowledge too. Troy’s got a different style, he’s not afraid to swear, but if his radio manners aren’t as polished as Galloway, he makes up for it with tactical analysis and punditry that’s great fun and insightful.

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Giro Stage 16 preview

Giro stage 16

The “further, higher, faster” nature of the Giro d’Italia is on pause today. Stage 16 is 12,7km and if it’s a mountain time trial, the first 5,000m are about rolling out of town before the actual climb to the Nevegal plateau and ski station starts and even then, the final part eases up. It’s not at all like the Plan de Corones course used in previous years when riders winched themselves up a tricky road. The middle part of the course includes some tougher gradients, with 10% for a while and sections at 12% and one short ramp at 14%.

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A rest day still means riding

Team Sky rest day ride

It’s a rest day in the Giro d’Italia today. With two weeks of racing you’d imagine there are some tired riders by now but yesterday saw riders doing seven to eight hours across the mountains, with 6,500 vertical metres in one go. I think it was the most mountainous stage of any race ever seen at pro level.

Add in the cold weather to mean even more calories get burned up, not to mention the previous day’s leg busting climb of the Zoncolan and if there was every a welcome day of rest it’s today.

But what do the riders do? It varies. Many simply have nothing to do. Used to a daily routine of eating, racing, travelling and sleeping, suddenly there’s a change, a lot of time to waste. It’s welcome but can feel awkward too as time can pass slowly, stuck in a sleepy hotel in a ski resort normally that’s more at ease in winter.

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On amnesties

Pro cycling struggles to escape the past. As much as we want to look to future races, scandals from a decade ago rumble on. Even watching live coverage of a race means noting riders linked to ongoing investigations, appeals as well as those previously banned and maybe some you just can’t bring yourself to trust.

So the idea of drawing a line under a colourful history is attractive, a way to distance the sport from events that are getting pretty old. Some are calling for an amnesty, for cycling’s version of the “truth and reconciliation” hearings that helped to heal a post-Apartheid South Africa. In return for coming forward and confessing to past mistakes, those who go public could get an amnesty from prosecution. Only I just don’t see this working.

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It’s not about the bike rider

60 minutes

Just a short post to say with all the talk of Lance Armstrong’s former team mates singing to the media and the ongoing investigation, one thing to remember is that this isn’t the trial of Lance Armstrong. Instead it’s an investigation into a potential misuse of public funds in the US.

Obviously Lance Armstrong is very prominent, he is a celebrity whose name goes well beyond the sport of cycling and few know about Johan Bruyneel or Bart Knaggs. But this isn’t about Armstrong, or rather it’s got the potential to involve a much wider cast of characters.

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A long week ahead in the Giro for riders and fans alike

Contador and Rujano

If Monte Crostis is off the menu following a ruling from the race jury last night, today still sees the climb up Monte Zoncolan. This is probably the hardest climb used in any major race. It’s just 10km long but averages 12% and has sustained sections of over 20%. But for all it’s difficulty, it looks like Alberto Contador and José Rujano are on a higher level than the other contenders.

There’s still over a week to go in the Giro and as exciting as today’s stage looks on paper, I worry the result is a foregone conclusion. The climb up Etna saw Alberto Contador take the lead, with José Rujano clinging to his wheel. Yesterday saw the same scenario, with Contador attacking and only Rujano could follow. In the end Contador appeared to gift the win to the Venezuelan.

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It’s almost impossible to write about Armstrong

Tyler Hamilton Lance Armstrong Floyd Landis

This might appear contradictory but I struggle to write about Lance Armstrong each time a new controversy blows up… yet here’s some words on the subject. Today’s allegations by Tyler Hamilton are the latest instalment of an ongoing saga. It’s not that the subject matter lacks ideas, angles to explore or it’s irrelevant to the sport. Quite the opposite, Lance Armstrong’s name reaches well beyond the sport of cycling and it covers everything from sport to business to law and more.

No, it’s the way everything goes around in circles. Someone accuses Armstrong of doping. We get the “most tested athlete” response from the man. Then cycling fans rally. Many loyal ones point out that no court and no sporting body has ever convicted him. On the other side fans dredge up a variety of circumstantial evidence. We go nowhere.

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