Team returns to racing after 3 months break
Vazquez third in Laigueglia
12 weeks after the abrupt exit from the running Campeonato de los Andes riders
and stuff of Team LunaLounge decided to return to competition. With 25 years old
time trial specialist William Pousson being the youngest rider the teams avarage
age has grown to 31 in the meantime. In order to fulfil the financial obligations for
race inscription multiple cobble race winner Randy Fender has been the first rider
to be sold. A few more are likely to follow, given the fact that many of them would
retire soon anyway.
First objective is clearly to get a new team running and to qualify for the higher
divisions that allow a start at the Giro d'Italia in the elite field in may. Nonetheless
talks were made with the organizers that prospect a possible wild card entry for
being the team of last years overall winner Rodrigo Escobar, whose nephews,
brothers Pablo and Ruben Escobar, promised to be at the start in Amsterdam
if being invited.
But it's a long way till then and many races will be lying on it. Three of them have
been done so far, with Silvano Vazquez scoring the biggest result. Just minutes ago
he reached third place in the Trofeo Laigueglia, where he was part of the winning
group of six that formed shortly after the Cima Paravenna, the last climb of the
day 30 km from the finish.
The next target will be the Ruta del Sol that starts tomorrow. The lineup is still to
be decided.
Team LunaLounge
Moderator: englishmods
Re: Team LunaLounge
Vuelta a Andalucia Ruta Ciclista Del Sol started
Another third place for Team LunaLounge
The second third place finish in row for the team was achieved at the
mountain top finish of the first stage of the Ruta Del Sol by team leader
Pablo Escobar. In absence of his brother, Ruben, he solely winded up the
steep Puerto de la Guardia, with a clear gap behind race winner Arnthor
Valgeirsson (Liberty Seguros) and second placed frenchman Antony Maziloy
from OLcycle. "I was never close to winning the stage. I'd rather had to
fight for third place against the Radler boy than being able to follow the
leading duo.". Escobar referred to best young rider Jean Coulieu who
followed just 2 seconds behind. Now sitting in third overall he has a
podium spot in mind, but is still realistic about it. "It would be really
great if I could hold it to the end. But there is the time trial on the second
last day, where I am not sure to be fast enough to holf off the the more
capable riders. So I would be content if I just could maintain a place
in the top 5".
Tomorrow follows the flattest stage of the Ruta, where the team will work
for sprinter Keenan O'Reileigh.
Another third place for Team LunaLounge
The second third place finish in row for the team was achieved at the
mountain top finish of the first stage of the Ruta Del Sol by team leader
Pablo Escobar. In absence of his brother, Ruben, he solely winded up the
steep Puerto de la Guardia, with a clear gap behind race winner Arnthor
Valgeirsson (Liberty Seguros) and second placed frenchman Antony Maziloy
from OLcycle. "I was never close to winning the stage. I'd rather had to
fight for third place against the Radler boy than being able to follow the
leading duo.". Escobar referred to best young rider Jean Coulieu who
followed just 2 seconds behind. Now sitting in third overall he has a
podium spot in mind, but is still realistic about it. "It would be really
great if I could hold it to the end. But there is the time trial on the second
last day, where I am not sure to be fast enough to holf off the the more
capable riders. So I would be content if I just could maintain a place
in the top 5".
Tomorrow follows the flattest stage of the Ruta, where the team will work
for sprinter Keenan O'Reileigh.
Re: Team LunaLounge
No glory in stage two of the Ruta
Team overwhelmed by late attacks
Heading into stage two with one of two favourites for a possible bunch gallop,
the team dedicated its whole work to its sprinter Keenan O'Reileigh, who had
expected to fight it out with german Bernd Kartoffelsalat from team Radler.
Both teams shared the responsibility of bringing back the attacks of the day
and worked well together for the most part of the race. But unfortunately
they seemed a little overtaxed by the late moves of the stage hunters that
shoot out of the peloton in the final 20 km of the stage. In the end it remained
a significant 5 seconds gap to a group of 13 riders that couldn't be brought back.
O'Reileigh took second place in the sprint of the remaining peloton, not giving
it all, as he knew the race was lost already.
"We all was motivated and the team was working well. But in the finale we
made some mistakes, that led to this group jumping away too far. I don't want
to blame anyone, as I know they led me to big victories in the past. You cannot
expect such a performance on every day. Everything just has to fit together
perfectly and today it simply didn't. That happens. We still lack a little race
practise after our long break. But I know we will learn from it. Maybe there will
be another opportunity at the Ruta", O'Reileigh played it down afterwards.
Team overwhelmed by late attacks
Heading into stage two with one of two favourites for a possible bunch gallop,
the team dedicated its whole work to its sprinter Keenan O'Reileigh, who had
expected to fight it out with german Bernd Kartoffelsalat from team Radler.
Both teams shared the responsibility of bringing back the attacks of the day
and worked well together for the most part of the race. But unfortunately
they seemed a little overtaxed by the late moves of the stage hunters that
shoot out of the peloton in the final 20 km of the stage. In the end it remained
a significant 5 seconds gap to a group of 13 riders that couldn't be brought back.
O'Reileigh took second place in the sprint of the remaining peloton, not giving
it all, as he knew the race was lost already.
"We all was motivated and the team was working well. But in the finale we
made some mistakes, that led to this group jumping away too far. I don't want
to blame anyone, as I know they led me to big victories in the past. You cannot
expect such a performance on every day. Everything just has to fit together
perfectly and today it simply didn't. That happens. We still lack a little race
practise after our long break. But I know we will learn from it. Maybe there will
be another opportunity at the Ruta", O'Reileigh played it down afterwards.
Re: Team LunaLounge
Mendez enjoys life in breakaway attempt
Akoojee suffers in the back
Stage three of the Ruta del Sol saw riders of Team LunaLounge trying their luck
in long escapes. Old Jared Shatterhand was first to make his move, maybe one
of the last ones of his career. The 38 years old stage winner of the 2009 Tour
Méditerranéen broke free together with three other riders on the early slopes
of the first rise of the day, the Puerto de Ojén, just to be reeled in by the
peloton soon after the descent. Next one was mexican Guadalupe Mendez.
At km 33 he left the bunch to find himself in a 5 man group that consisted of
two riders of the Alf Team, one of Los Ticos and one of Radler. This time the
group were allowed to go and it gained a maxium advantage of 4:30 over the
Skullz led main bunch. When they reached the Puerto de Ojén again, as the last
of four climbs of the stage, Mendez attacked his breakaway companions and was
the sole race leader for the following 30km above the top and down the descent,
before he was catched in the flat by the group that would countain the later stage
winner. "It was obvious that the group would fade once the attacks kick off of the
peloton on the final flat. But I wanted to keep it rolling. So I decided to go for
myself. I knew I could extend my lead if I only got over the climb in front of the
remainder of the group. My downhill skills are still adequate. After the descent
I just had to go in time trial mode and try to get as far as I could". It was the
very last intermediate sprint where his adventure ended, 10 km from the finish.
"I enjoyed every single turn of the pedals. That solo ride was one of the greatest
moments of my career!", Mendez were nonetheless happy with his performance.
While riders fought for success at the head of the race, Duncan Akoojee fought
hard to even stay in it at all. He lost contact to the peloton halfway of the stage
and found an ally in OLcycles Tian Lumpoa. Both refused to give up and they rode
hard to stay inside the time limit. In the end they made it by more than 3 minutes.
"We didn't know how slowly we would creep up the little climb to the finish line
and if we would be able to hold on to our bikes. So we gave it all we had in the
last 20 km. There were moments where I really feared we wouldn't make it. Now
I'm glad we did. And I'm glad tomorrow is only the short time trial. I'll take it as
a rest day", an exhausted Akoojee whispered after rolling in.
Akoojee suffers in the back
Stage three of the Ruta del Sol saw riders of Team LunaLounge trying their luck
in long escapes. Old Jared Shatterhand was first to make his move, maybe one
of the last ones of his career. The 38 years old stage winner of the 2009 Tour
Méditerranéen broke free together with three other riders on the early slopes
of the first rise of the day, the Puerto de Ojén, just to be reeled in by the
peloton soon after the descent. Next one was mexican Guadalupe Mendez.
At km 33 he left the bunch to find himself in a 5 man group that consisted of
two riders of the Alf Team, one of Los Ticos and one of Radler. This time the
group were allowed to go and it gained a maxium advantage of 4:30 over the
Skullz led main bunch. When they reached the Puerto de Ojén again, as the last
of four climbs of the stage, Mendez attacked his breakaway companions and was
the sole race leader for the following 30km above the top and down the descent,
before he was catched in the flat by the group that would countain the later stage
winner. "It was obvious that the group would fade once the attacks kick off of the
peloton on the final flat. But I wanted to keep it rolling. So I decided to go for
myself. I knew I could extend my lead if I only got over the climb in front of the
remainder of the group. My downhill skills are still adequate. After the descent
I just had to go in time trial mode and try to get as far as I could". It was the
very last intermediate sprint where his adventure ended, 10 km from the finish.
"I enjoyed every single turn of the pedals. That solo ride was one of the greatest
moments of my career!", Mendez were nonetheless happy with his performance.
While riders fought for success at the head of the race, Duncan Akoojee fought
hard to even stay in it at all. He lost contact to the peloton halfway of the stage
and found an ally in OLcycles Tian Lumpoa. Both refused to give up and they rode
hard to stay inside the time limit. In the end they made it by more than 3 minutes.
"We didn't know how slowly we would creep up the little climb to the finish line
and if we would be able to hold on to our bikes. So we gave it all we had in the
last 20 km. There were moments where I really feared we wouldn't make it. Now
I'm glad we did. And I'm glad tomorrow is only the short time trial. I'll take it as
a rest day", an exhausted Akoojee whispered after rolling in.
Re: Team LunaLounge
Walloon/Shatterhand thinking of retirement
Ruta: Morissey 7th in time trial, Escobar down to 8th overall
While it was an unspectacular day in the Rutas time trial, with Amani Morissey
scoring 7th place and Pablo Escobar loosing his podium spot as expected, there
are two key riders of the team that are close to calling an end to their careers.
The two barbadians Eddie Walloon and Jared Shatterhand both played important
roles in numerous races. Shatterhand won stages in the Tour Méditerranéen and
Tour of Macedonia, respectively, and was close to winning in the Tour du Haut Var
(3rd) and Tour of Saxony (2nd), as well as in some smaller races. But his biggest
runner-up result was the 2nd place in the GP Harelbeke in 2009, where he was
beaten only by his own teammate Eddie Walloon. "That second place didn't came
as defeat, as Eddie and I finished one-two after breaking free in the finale of the
race and finishing just one single second ahead of the chasing group. For me it
was just like winning for myself".
The now 38 year-old Shatterhand was more of the type of a loyal domestique.
Next to the Harelbeke coup another great success for him was being part of the
team in the Giro d'Italia, where he sacrificed himself for defending the overall
lead of Rodrigo Escobar. "Rodrigo gave each of us one of his pink jerseys as
a gift after the Giro was won. It has a special place in my souvenir collection.
I will always keep that in my memories".
Eddie Walloon (35) started his carreer aiming for the italian classics in autumn.
But he was already in great shape in spring, where he led the team in the northern
classics. Shortly after winning the GP Harelbeke by the side of Shatterhand, he won
the even more important Ronde van Vlaanderen. "That was an incredible week.
I barely could realize what happened top me", Walloon was rather confused about
his sucesses. "After it I lost a bit of motivation, as winning that two races was
hardly to overtop". He got his grip again two months later at his home tour, the
Tour of Barbados, where he finished 3rd overall. After it he won another two small
races, but never again found to his old strengh.
Both riders now have announced their retirement from active bike racing, making
place for younger riders, that are needed by the team for further missions. They will
be released from their contracts in the coming days.
Ruta: Morissey 7th in time trial, Escobar down to 8th overall
While it was an unspectacular day in the Rutas time trial, with Amani Morissey
scoring 7th place and Pablo Escobar loosing his podium spot as expected, there
are two key riders of the team that are close to calling an end to their careers.
The two barbadians Eddie Walloon and Jared Shatterhand both played important
roles in numerous races. Shatterhand won stages in the Tour Méditerranéen and
Tour of Macedonia, respectively, and was close to winning in the Tour du Haut Var
(3rd) and Tour of Saxony (2nd), as well as in some smaller races. But his biggest
runner-up result was the 2nd place in the GP Harelbeke in 2009, where he was
beaten only by his own teammate Eddie Walloon. "That second place didn't came
as defeat, as Eddie and I finished one-two after breaking free in the finale of the
race and finishing just one single second ahead of the chasing group. For me it
was just like winning for myself".
The now 38 year-old Shatterhand was more of the type of a loyal domestique.
Next to the Harelbeke coup another great success for him was being part of the
team in the Giro d'Italia, where he sacrificed himself for defending the overall
lead of Rodrigo Escobar. "Rodrigo gave each of us one of his pink jerseys as
a gift after the Giro was won. It has a special place in my souvenir collection.
I will always keep that in my memories".
Eddie Walloon (35) started his carreer aiming for the italian classics in autumn.
But he was already in great shape in spring, where he led the team in the northern
classics. Shortly after winning the GP Harelbeke by the side of Shatterhand, he won
the even more important Ronde van Vlaanderen. "That was an incredible week.
I barely could realize what happened top me", Walloon was rather confused about
his sucesses. "After it I lost a bit of motivation, as winning that two races was
hardly to overtop". He got his grip again two months later at his home tour, the
Tour of Barbados, where he finished 3rd overall. After it he won another two small
races, but never again found to his old strengh.
Both riders now have announced their retirement from active bike racing, making
place for younger riders, that are needed by the team for further missions. They will
be released from their contracts in the coming days.
Re: Team LunaLounge
Team signed its first ever asian rider
Ruta del Sol ends with another solo attempt
Shortly after the Ruta del Sol concluded in Andalucia/Spain, the team
annuonced its new signing, vietnamese Khoi Nguyen. The 27 year-old podium
finisher of the Tour de la Paix in last december comes from amor lux bzh and
is the first rider from the asian continent, who's ever been taken under contract
by Team LunaLougne. Nguyen, whose climbing skills are comparable to those
of the just dismissed Eddie Walloon, is planned as a support rider for the
brothers Escobar in the grand tours of the near future.
"He's not very old. So he can help the team for quite a long time, while he is
still able to develop a little bit", team manager Luna said at a press conference.
"The only problem is his language. No one at our team understands vietnamese.
At Armor Lux Khoi learned a little bit of the french language. But our riders only
speak english or spanish. At this point we have to find a sulution. Of course he
has to learn english now. But for the first time being they'll need to communicate
by eye contact during the race or something like that. I hope that will work".
Nguyens first race with his new team will be the Beverbeek Classic.
At the final day of the Ruta del Sol Jared Shatterhand had his defenitely final
breakaway ride. He was part of an eight man group, that lied on the head of race
for more than 100 km. The break was caught at the Puerto del Tolcal, 40km from
the finish line. The final 30km of the race were marked by a solo breakaway
attempt from Silvano Vazquez, who took off right after the last descent and
extended his lead to a maximum of 35 seconds before being caught by a chase
group and later by the whole bunch. Pablo Escobar scored a nice 5th place at the
finish line in Antequera, 3 seconds shy of a leading quartet.
Ruta del Sol ends with another solo attempt
Shortly after the Ruta del Sol concluded in Andalucia/Spain, the team
annuonced its new signing, vietnamese Khoi Nguyen. The 27 year-old podium
finisher of the Tour de la Paix in last december comes from amor lux bzh and
is the first rider from the asian continent, who's ever been taken under contract
by Team LunaLougne. Nguyen, whose climbing skills are comparable to those
of the just dismissed Eddie Walloon, is planned as a support rider for the
brothers Escobar in the grand tours of the near future.
"He's not very old. So he can help the team for quite a long time, while he is
still able to develop a little bit", team manager Luna said at a press conference.
"The only problem is his language. No one at our team understands vietnamese.
At Armor Lux Khoi learned a little bit of the french language. But our riders only
speak english or spanish. At this point we have to find a sulution. Of course he
has to learn english now. But for the first time being they'll need to communicate
by eye contact during the race or something like that. I hope that will work".
Nguyens first race with his new team will be the Beverbeek Classic.
At the final day of the Ruta del Sol Jared Shatterhand had his defenitely final
breakaway ride. He was part of an eight man group, that lied on the head of race
for more than 100 km. The break was caught at the Puerto del Tolcal, 40km from
the finish line. The final 30km of the race were marked by a solo breakaway
attempt from Silvano Vazquez, who took off right after the last descent and
extended his lead to a maximum of 35 seconds before being caught by a chase
group and later by the whole bunch. Pablo Escobar scored a nice 5th place at the
finish line in Antequera, 3 seconds shy of a leading quartet.
Re: Team LunaLounge
You forgot to mentionned the cheers for Silvanooooooo from the FanClub 
Re: Team LunaLounge
I would have done so if he'd gotten through 
Re: Team LunaLounge
I'm very happy for Khoi ! Very nice rider ! 
Re: Team LunaLounge
Unspecteclar Beverbeek Classic for Team LunaLounge
One year after Keenan O'Reileigh led out his captain Ben Johnson to second place
in the mass sprint at the 12th Beverbeek Classic in Belgium, the now 34 year-old
barbadian was the team's number one sprinter by himself, though without an own
lead-out man and without beeing a real favorite for the win. Last year still rolling
over the line in 13th position, he was not able to reach more than place 15 yesterday
in the 13th edition of the race.
The race was marked by a 6 man breakaway group containing Amani Morissey (29).
The escapees shared their work equally right from the start and reached a maximum
advantage of more than 6 minutes over the peloton by the half of the race. But there
was never any point of getting through. So the main bunch did its work and brought
back the group right in time
The vietnamese did a good job in his first race for the team, carrying water bottles
the whole day long, as it was a task easy to communicate without many words.
One year after Keenan O'Reileigh led out his captain Ben Johnson to second place
in the mass sprint at the 12th Beverbeek Classic in Belgium, the now 34 year-old
barbadian was the team's number one sprinter by himself, though without an own
lead-out man and without beeing a real favorite for the win. Last year still rolling
over the line in 13th position, he was not able to reach more than place 15 yesterday
in the 13th edition of the race.
The race was marked by a 6 man breakaway group containing Amani Morissey (29).
The escapees shared their work equally right from the start and reached a maximum
advantage of more than 6 minutes over the peloton by the half of the race. But there
was never any point of getting through. So the main bunch did its work and brought
back the group right in time
The vietnamese did a good job in his first race for the team, carrying water bottles
the whole day long, as it was a task easy to communicate without many words.
Re: Team LunaLounge
Spring classics season finally open!
Vazquez tucked in final sprint at Omloop
The team started its belgian cobble race campaign yesterday at the Omloop
Het Nieuwsblad in the town of Ghent. In relatively dry weather columbian
Silvano Vazquez went into the race as the dedicated team leader and in fact
found himself in the winning group of six that took off on the Lange Munte,
the second last sector of pavé, 20 km from the finish. It was Vazquez himself
who initiated the move after being seperated from his teammates in a series
of Hellingen in the later parts of the race. But going into the final sprint the
winner of the Souvenir OddBjörn Hjelmeset of the Tour de Pavés 2009 couldn't
find his way past his opponents as being stucked between the riders and the
barriers at the side of the road.
"The race went well for me. I was able to follow the main group on every
climb and at the beginning I had the vietnamese by my side. But after the
chasers came back, containing Lucas and some others of our team , Nguyen
apperently decided to stay with them and left me alone for the rest of the
race, as the junction never could be made again. So I had a little trouble
staying out of the wind until I decided to go for myself on the cobbles. I
should have been surprised how many riders were able to follow. But for the
moment I was happy to have created a gap and started pulling immediately.
Then the sprint went very unlucky for me. It may have looked like I've been
sandwiched, but the truth is, there was a small gap that I simply was unable
to jump into. It was only after that when I realized how weak I actually was,
compared to the others. Maybe I would have been happy with the podium,
but I simply worked too much after the group had formed. So there was no
way", Vazquez made no secret of his disappointment. He ended up in
5th place, what may be seen as just another lost opportunity, after already
coming close to winning at the Trofeo Laigueglia a week ago, where he
finished third.
Vazquez tucked in final sprint at Omloop
The team started its belgian cobble race campaign yesterday at the Omloop
Het Nieuwsblad in the town of Ghent. In relatively dry weather columbian
Silvano Vazquez went into the race as the dedicated team leader and in fact
found himself in the winning group of six that took off on the Lange Munte,
the second last sector of pavé, 20 km from the finish. It was Vazquez himself
who initiated the move after being seperated from his teammates in a series
of Hellingen in the later parts of the race. But going into the final sprint the
winner of the Souvenir OddBjörn Hjelmeset of the Tour de Pavés 2009 couldn't
find his way past his opponents as being stucked between the riders and the
barriers at the side of the road.
"The race went well for me. I was able to follow the main group on every
climb and at the beginning I had the vietnamese by my side. But after the
chasers came back, containing Lucas and some others of our team , Nguyen
apperently decided to stay with them and left me alone for the rest of the
race, as the junction never could be made again. So I had a little trouble
staying out of the wind until I decided to go for myself on the cobbles. I
should have been surprised how many riders were able to follow. But for the
moment I was happy to have created a gap and started pulling immediately.
Then the sprint went very unlucky for me. It may have looked like I've been
sandwiched, but the truth is, there was a small gap that I simply was unable
to jump into. It was only after that when I realized how weak I actually was,
compared to the others. Maybe I would have been happy with the podium,
but I simply worked too much after the group had formed. So there was no
way", Vazquez made no secret of his disappointment. He ended up in
5th place, what may be seen as just another lost opportunity, after already
coming close to winning at the Trofeo Laigueglia a week ago, where he
finished third.
Re: Team LunaLounge
Fairbrother on the attack at Kuurne-Brusseles-Kuurne
The opening weekend of the Flandrian classics season ended with another brave
escape of a Luna rider at Kuurne-Brusseles-Kuurne. Stage winner of the 2009 Tour
des Pavés Lucas Fairbrother made the jump into the early breakaway group, that
actually never was seen again by the main field. Halfway of the race it started to
become clear that the winner will come out of that group of nine. Not beeing known
as a rider who is able to win races in the sprints, not even out of small groups, the
29 year-old Barbadian saw his only in chance in attacking his breakaway companions.
And so he did. At the Cote du Trieu, 70 km from finish, he accelerated and only
Brasilian Luiz Foguete (Los Galacticos) was able and willing to follow him. The two
worked well together an gained a lead of around 45 seconds over the remainder of
the break, who wasn't willing to let the escapes go. Outragous unity amongst the
chasers led to the logical consequence that the duo was caught with 3 km to go.
They subsequently ended the race in 6th (Fairbrother) and 5th position, respectively,
67 seconds ahead of the main bunch.
The opening weekend of the Flandrian classics season ended with another brave
escape of a Luna rider at Kuurne-Brusseles-Kuurne. Stage winner of the 2009 Tour
des Pavés Lucas Fairbrother made the jump into the early breakaway group, that
actually never was seen again by the main field. Halfway of the race it started to
become clear that the winner will come out of that group of nine. Not beeing known
as a rider who is able to win races in the sprints, not even out of small groups, the
29 year-old Barbadian saw his only in chance in attacking his breakaway companions.
And so he did. At the Cote du Trieu, 70 km from finish, he accelerated and only
Brasilian Luiz Foguete (Los Galacticos) was able and willing to follow him. The two
worked well together an gained a lead of around 45 seconds over the remainder of
the break, who wasn't willing to let the escapes go. Outragous unity amongst the
chasers led to the logical consequence that the duo was caught with 3 km to go.
They subsequently ended the race in 6th (Fairbrother) and 5th position, respectively,
67 seconds ahead of the main bunch.
Re: Team LunaLounge
Nothing to win in flat races like Classica Sarda
Yesterday the team took part in the 32rd edition of the Classica Sarda at the lovely seaside
of the isle of Sardinia. 188 km flat roads from the start to the finish. As Keenan O'Reileigh
beeing no real contender for victory in a mass sprint, the team was not considered as a
favourite for this race. A fact that once more led to the decision to send a rider up on the
road to be in the mix in case of a group getting through. This time it was Charles Buccaneer.
The Barbadian is still seeking his first professional win, as most of the time he is fulfilling
team duties for the different riders, that are more capable of scoring high results. So he
wanted to give it a try. After 10km into the race the 33 year-old powerhouse took off and
built a group of 6 riders, that grew to 7 some km later. With no team being represented
with more than one rider, everybody shared his work equally from the beginning. But as
expected, the sprinters teams in the main field did their job and kept the break under
control. After the gap hovered around the 5 minutes mark for most parts of the race, the
main field started to slowly but surely bring back the runaways and eventually caught them
inside the final 10 km.
So it was again Keenan O'Reileigh who was responsible for the result in the bunch sprint.
He crossed the line in 14th position.
Yesterday the team took part in the 32rd edition of the Classica Sarda at the lovely seaside
of the isle of Sardinia. 188 km flat roads from the start to the finish. As Keenan O'Reileigh
beeing no real contender for victory in a mass sprint, the team was not considered as a
favourite for this race. A fact that once more led to the decision to send a rider up on the
road to be in the mix in case of a group getting through. This time it was Charles Buccaneer.
The Barbadian is still seeking his first professional win, as most of the time he is fulfilling
team duties for the different riders, that are more capable of scoring high results. So he
wanted to give it a try. After 10km into the race the 33 year-old powerhouse took off and
built a group of 6 riders, that grew to 7 some km later. With no team being represented
with more than one rider, everybody shared his work equally from the beginning. But as
expected, the sprinters teams in the main field did their job and kept the break under
control. After the gap hovered around the 5 minutes mark for most parts of the race, the
main field started to slowly but surely bring back the runaways and eventually caught them
inside the final 10 km.
So it was again Keenan O'Reileigh who was responsible for the result in the bunch sprint.
He crossed the line in 14th position.
Re: Team LunaLounge
Team having trouble finding free spots in elite field
Since it was only one week before the end of the february season when LunaLounge
returned from its racing break, the time was too short to achieve enough results to
prevent the relegation to 4th division. The bitter consequence is felt now as the
management was unable to find a starting time where the team would have been
allowed to contest the Clasica Almeria in the popular heat 1 beside the elite teams.
So the riders swallowed the bitter pill and got to the start of the second heat, without
television coverage and without the prospect of getting a palmares entry of full worth
in case of winning the race. All riders were disappointed before the race has even
started. Nobody wanted to win such a kind of a race. So it was all about earning some
money and points, both needed desperately for further developement of the team, as
well as for the progression up to higher ranks inside div 4 to hopefully avoid such a
desaster in the future.
Since it was only one week before the end of the february season when LunaLounge
returned from its racing break, the time was too short to achieve enough results to
prevent the relegation to 4th division. The bitter consequence is felt now as the
management was unable to find a starting time where the team would have been
allowed to contest the Clasica Almeria in the popular heat 1 beside the elite teams.
So the riders swallowed the bitter pill and got to the start of the second heat, without
television coverage and without the prospect of getting a palmares entry of full worth
in case of winning the race. All riders were disappointed before the race has even
started. Nobody wanted to win such a kind of a race. So it was all about earning some
money and points, both needed desperately for further developement of the team, as
well as for the progression up to higher ranks inside div 4 to hopefully avoid such a
desaster in the future.
Re: Team LunaLounge
Still no racing at elite level
Team considering options
Another day without access to top level racing broke down on the team yesterday.
Only 3 days before the start of Paris - Nice the riders are getting nervous, seeing
their participation at the Race to the Sun in doubt. "There's no way for us riding
the whole 8 days in France at the B-level. We don't want that. We won't do that",
a rider, whose name remains unrevealed, has been cited by a journalist close to
the team. Team manager Luna finds less drastic words on that matter, but is
equally disturbed about the current situation. "Of course we're aiming to take
part at Paris - Nice. And we would very much like to do that in heat 1. It's a
dodgy situation. But we are working out some emergency plans in the background.
For example we have Ramon Arriazola, whose career is close to its end. He was
planned to be part of the team for Nice. But if it stays as it is right now, we can
imagine to release him from his contract early and buy a rider who has some
ranking points on his card, to ensure to be in a higher position inside division 4.
Maybe that would help us making the cut. But here are two other problems. The
team is not as rich as it could afford to buy any rider we want, even if we sell
Ramon now. And besides, there are not that many riders on the market that suit
us on the one hand and bring enough points on the other hand. We have to wait
and see how things develop. If nothing works, we will just leave out the race and
try to build up in the smaller one day races that take place at the same time".
Team considering options
Another day without access to top level racing broke down on the team yesterday.
Only 3 days before the start of Paris - Nice the riders are getting nervous, seeing
their participation at the Race to the Sun in doubt. "There's no way for us riding
the whole 8 days in France at the B-level. We don't want that. We won't do that",
a rider, whose name remains unrevealed, has been cited by a journalist close to
the team. Team manager Luna finds less drastic words on that matter, but is
equally disturbed about the current situation. "Of course we're aiming to take
part at Paris - Nice. And we would very much like to do that in heat 1. It's a
dodgy situation. But we are working out some emergency plans in the background.
For example we have Ramon Arriazola, whose career is close to its end. He was
planned to be part of the team for Nice. But if it stays as it is right now, we can
imagine to release him from his contract early and buy a rider who has some
ranking points on his card, to ensure to be in a higher position inside division 4.
Maybe that would help us making the cut. But here are two other problems. The
team is not as rich as it could afford to buy any rider we want, even if we sell
Ramon now. And besides, there are not that many riders on the market that suit
us on the one hand and bring enough points on the other hand. We have to wait
and see how things develop. If nothing works, we will just leave out the race and
try to build up in the smaller one day races that take place at the same time".
Re: Team LunaLounge
Finally heat 1 one again
Nguyen scores first result for his new team
For the Giro del Friuli the team was granted entry into a big, undevided field of
more than 20 teams, in which the riders found back their motivation for bike racing.
The team was active the whole race long. Maxican Guadalupe Mendez performed
well in being part of the early break that took off in the first km and was brought
back only 3 km from the finish, while Silvano Vazquez tried to benefit from the
low tempo during the last of six final laps. He got away together with team mate
Charles Buccaneer and two other riders with 20km to go. Buccaneer pulled hard to
bring the group into a good position for the last climb before he dropped back.
The remaining three fought well but were caught by the main field just at the same
time when they reached the front group. So it came down to a sprint of a larger
group, in which Khoi Nguyen achieved his first top ten placing for Team LunaLounge
since he was hired one week ago. The vietnamese crossed the line in 9th position.
Nguyen scores first result for his new team
For the Giro del Friuli the team was granted entry into a big, undevided field of
more than 20 teams, in which the riders found back their motivation for bike racing.
The team was active the whole race long. Maxican Guadalupe Mendez performed
well in being part of the early break that took off in the first km and was brought
back only 3 km from the finish, while Silvano Vazquez tried to benefit from the
low tempo during the last of six final laps. He got away together with team mate
Charles Buccaneer and two other riders with 20km to go. Buccaneer pulled hard to
bring the group into a good position for the last climb before he dropped back.
The remaining three fought well but were caught by the main field just at the same
time when they reached the front group. So it came down to a sprint of a larger
group, in which Khoi Nguyen achieved his first top ten placing for Team LunaLounge
since he was hired one week ago. The vietnamese crossed the line in 9th position.
Re: Team LunaLounge
Vlaamse Pijl
Cobbles breaking the neck of O'Reileigh
The Vlaamse Pijl is traditionally one of the early spring races in Belgium that
contains no too much cobble sections, giving the riders a chance that are not
necessarily specialised on that kind of roads. However, for the teams sprinter,
Keenan O'Reileigh, that was one cobble section too much. 50 km from the
finish in Harelbeke the 35 year-old barbadian lost contact to the main peloton
and couldn't brought back by his team mates Charles Buccaneer and Lucas
Fairbtrother, who tried some km, but gave up soon. "That was unlucky. I'm
not used to these belgian roads. Some riders in the peloton know every single
cobblestone by name and know how to ride on the several sections. But when
you are riding midst the bunch and you don't really see the obstacles, that lie
directly in front of you, it may happen that you get surprised by one or another
bigger stone that towers above the others. So happened to me. Suddenly I just
couldn't get the crank down, tumbled a little, put my left foot on the road and
had to accelerate again. But then it was already done. The group rode away
without me. I'm sure that wouldn't had happened to me some years earlier.
I'm slowly starting to feel the effects of my age", O'Reileigh said after
the finish.
While the sprinter was strugglnig in the backfield, there was another rider of
the team far on the road. Austrian Harald Umwerfer has seldom been seeing
on the head of a race. Usually he's busy carrying water bottles or making some
tempo in the first part of the races until he gets dropped as soon as it gets
steeper. This time he was allowed to try his luck in the escape. He launched
his attack on the first km's. Together with two riders from Chense he gained
an advantage of more than 13 minutes, before the main bunch started a
furiuos dash to chase the trio down, reaching such high speeds, that O'Reileigh
simply was out of the race once he got dropped on that above mentioned cobble
section.
After the breakaway was caught a few km from the finish a mass sprint was
inevitable. Silvano Vazquez tried to jump in for the lost sprinter but wasn't
able to do better then 20th place.
Cobbles breaking the neck of O'Reileigh
The Vlaamse Pijl is traditionally one of the early spring races in Belgium that
contains no too much cobble sections, giving the riders a chance that are not
necessarily specialised on that kind of roads. However, for the teams sprinter,
Keenan O'Reileigh, that was one cobble section too much. 50 km from the
finish in Harelbeke the 35 year-old barbadian lost contact to the main peloton
and couldn't brought back by his team mates Charles Buccaneer and Lucas
Fairbtrother, who tried some km, but gave up soon. "That was unlucky. I'm
not used to these belgian roads. Some riders in the peloton know every single
cobblestone by name and know how to ride on the several sections. But when
you are riding midst the bunch and you don't really see the obstacles, that lie
directly in front of you, it may happen that you get surprised by one or another
bigger stone that towers above the others. So happened to me. Suddenly I just
couldn't get the crank down, tumbled a little, put my left foot on the road and
had to accelerate again. But then it was already done. The group rode away
without me. I'm sure that wouldn't had happened to me some years earlier.
I'm slowly starting to feel the effects of my age", O'Reileigh said after
the finish.
While the sprinter was strugglnig in the backfield, there was another rider of
the team far on the road. Austrian Harald Umwerfer has seldom been seeing
on the head of a race. Usually he's busy carrying water bottles or making some
tempo in the first part of the races until he gets dropped as soon as it gets
steeper. This time he was allowed to try his luck in the escape. He launched
his attack on the first km's. Together with two riders from Chense he gained
an advantage of more than 13 minutes, before the main bunch started a
furiuos dash to chase the trio down, reaching such high speeds, that O'Reileigh
simply was out of the race once he got dropped on that above mentioned cobble
section.
After the breakaway was caught a few km from the finish a mass sprint was
inevitable. Silvano Vazquez tried to jump in for the lost sprinter but wasn't
able to do better then 20th place.
Re: Team LunaLounge
Double podium at Monte Paschi Eroica
Fairbrother smashes the peloton
Charles Buccaneer and Silvano Vazquez finished 2nd and 3rd, respectively,
yesterday at the Monte Paschi Eroica Strade Bianche after the Barbadian
lied on the head of the race for more than 50 km before he got caught by
Alexandr Kolobnev from Astana only on the last rise up to the finish in
Siena. Buccaneer was one of only three riders, who were able to follow the
acceleration of Lucas Fairbrother on the third last section of the white
gravel roads, that make the race such a special one. Fairbrother put his
hammer down shortly after team Krone made a first selection to the field
3 km earlier. As a result of that two manoeuvres the whole peloton was
shatterd into many groups, with more than half of the field simply taken
out of the race ultimatively. Only a group of 10 to 12 riders led by Astana
stayed on striking distance to the leading group of Buccaneer, Fairbrother,
Stefan Mohr (Montages SG) and Alex Ovechkin (Krone). But Fairbrother
did a good job in keeping the chasers on distance at the undulating 20km
to the last and second last sectors, before he dropped back to Silvano
Vazquez, who kept lurking in the group of Kolobnev.
The remaining three of the leading group extended their lead slightly, while
behind them Kolobnev was forced to start taking turns by himself in order
to keep the gap under control. 15 - 20 seconds lied between the leaders and
Kolobnev when they reached the bottom of the final climb to the finish.
Buccaneer attacked his breakaway companions right from the beginning of
the ascent and tried to solo his way up. For moments he looked like the
winner of the race. But the Russian flew past him in one of the final bends
and won the race by four seconds over the Barbadian. Silvano Vazquez also
came from behind and almost catched his team mate but missed him by
three seconds, finding himself on third place, what was just another podium
finish for the Columbian after several other near-wins in the past weeks.
"It's a shame. We had only a few guys with the pure focus on this race. If we
all had been in right shape we surely would have been able to win today. Next
time we will have to prepare better.", team manager Luna lamented to the
press in the finishing area right after the race.
Fairbrother smashes the peloton
Charles Buccaneer and Silvano Vazquez finished 2nd and 3rd, respectively,
yesterday at the Monte Paschi Eroica Strade Bianche after the Barbadian
lied on the head of the race for more than 50 km before he got caught by
Alexandr Kolobnev from Astana only on the last rise up to the finish in
Siena. Buccaneer was one of only three riders, who were able to follow the
acceleration of Lucas Fairbrother on the third last section of the white
gravel roads, that make the race such a special one. Fairbrother put his
hammer down shortly after team Krone made a first selection to the field
3 km earlier. As a result of that two manoeuvres the whole peloton was
shatterd into many groups, with more than half of the field simply taken
out of the race ultimatively. Only a group of 10 to 12 riders led by Astana
stayed on striking distance to the leading group of Buccaneer, Fairbrother,
Stefan Mohr (Montages SG) and Alex Ovechkin (Krone). But Fairbrother
did a good job in keeping the chasers on distance at the undulating 20km
to the last and second last sectors, before he dropped back to Silvano
Vazquez, who kept lurking in the group of Kolobnev.
The remaining three of the leading group extended their lead slightly, while
behind them Kolobnev was forced to start taking turns by himself in order
to keep the gap under control. 15 - 20 seconds lied between the leaders and
Kolobnev when they reached the bottom of the final climb to the finish.
Buccaneer attacked his breakaway companions right from the beginning of
the ascent and tried to solo his way up. For moments he looked like the
winner of the race. But the Russian flew past him in one of the final bends
and won the race by four seconds over the Barbadian. Silvano Vazquez also
came from behind and almost catched his team mate but missed him by
three seconds, finding himself on third place, what was just another podium
finish for the Columbian after several other near-wins in the past weeks.
"It's a shame. We had only a few guys with the pure focus on this race. If we
all had been in right shape we surely would have been able to win today. Next
time we will have to prepare better.", team manager Luna lamented to the
press in the finishing area right after the race.
Re: Team LunaLounge
The Lounge at the start of Paris - Nice
Morissey 5th in prologue
When the spectators saw some riders in Luna colours in the start area of the prologue
of Paris - Nice yesterday, it was obvious that the team made the cut to take part in
the elite field of the "Race to the Sun". No emergency plans were needed to proceed,
no riders sales, no step down to the alternate one day race programme. Just lucky
faces everywhere in the teams camp. The 3rd participation at Paris - Nice, after '07
and '09, is underway.
The team has a great history with the race, scoring 3 stage wins in total. Back in 2007
Carlos Escobar won the final stage around Nice and subsequently claimed 3rd overall,
just days before he announced his retirement from the sport. His son Rodrigo didn't
make the podium, but however won the mountain top finish at stage 6 of the edition
in last year, where Argentinian Matias Medici also won the prologue in Amilly, followed
by 6 days in the yellow jersey. Rodrigo finished 12th overall in the end.
Also a mountains jersey was won. 2007 it was Barbadian Jools Krieger who took the
lead in that competition at the third last day and defended it until the end.
So a heavy heritage lasts on the shoulders of the riders. Especially Pablo Escobar
wants to keep the family tradition alive and score a stage win, just like his forefathers
did before. "Maybe I can do something at the stage to Mende. The final climb suits my
abilities, although it's a difficult finish with the cat 2 mountain right before it. But also
at the two last stages it may be possible for me to achieve a good result", the nephew
of Rodrigo said after he finished his prologue in 14th position. "General classification?
I don't think of it now. Let's just try to win a stage. If it leads to a high overall rank
than it's okay. But I don't give it priority".
Escobar already lost some seconds on the pretended overall contenders, but is still in
striking distance, while Barbadian Amani Morissey clocked the fifth fastest time at the
8 km course in the outskirts of Paris.
Morissey 5th in prologue
When the spectators saw some riders in Luna colours in the start area of the prologue
of Paris - Nice yesterday, it was obvious that the team made the cut to take part in
the elite field of the "Race to the Sun". No emergency plans were needed to proceed,
no riders sales, no step down to the alternate one day race programme. Just lucky
faces everywhere in the teams camp. The 3rd participation at Paris - Nice, after '07
and '09, is underway.
The team has a great history with the race, scoring 3 stage wins in total. Back in 2007
Carlos Escobar won the final stage around Nice and subsequently claimed 3rd overall,
just days before he announced his retirement from the sport. His son Rodrigo didn't
make the podium, but however won the mountain top finish at stage 6 of the edition
in last year, where Argentinian Matias Medici also won the prologue in Amilly, followed
by 6 days in the yellow jersey. Rodrigo finished 12th overall in the end.
Also a mountains jersey was won. 2007 it was Barbadian Jools Krieger who took the
lead in that competition at the third last day and defended it until the end.
So a heavy heritage lasts on the shoulders of the riders. Especially Pablo Escobar
wants to keep the family tradition alive and score a stage win, just like his forefathers
did before. "Maybe I can do something at the stage to Mende. The final climb suits my
abilities, although it's a difficult finish with the cat 2 mountain right before it. But also
at the two last stages it may be possible for me to achieve a good result", the nephew
of Rodrigo said after he finished his prologue in 14th position. "General classification?
I don't think of it now. Let's just try to win a stage. If it leads to a high overall rank
than it's okay. But I don't give it priority".
Escobar already lost some seconds on the pretended overall contenders, but is still in
striking distance, while Barbadian Amani Morissey clocked the fifth fastest time at the
8 km course in the outskirts of Paris.
Re: Team LunaLounge
Paris - Nice, day 2
Marco Pinotti once said something like: "Bike racing is like going on a bike tour with
some friends, chatting, enjoying the fresh air and the landscape, and at the last 20km
giving it all and fighting each other". That was pretty much the procedure of yesterdays
stage of Paris-Nice.
Right from the start a group of 5 riders were allowed to leave and build an advantage
of around 13 minutes, before teams Skullz and Bratbecker started to control the gap
on a long leash. With such a stable race situation the riders in the peloton had some
time to get to know each other, talking about this and that, making jokes and just
beeing happy about rolling through good weather on good roads.
Only at the last 50-70km the pace slowly started to grow and the riders became silent
in order to concentrate on the tasks lying ahead. Riders began to position themselves
for the run-in to Contres, where a mass sprint was expected by the ones, while the
others would try to spoil the party with some attacks at the final kilometers. And that's
what it was. 15 riders broke free 10km from the finish and for some minutes it looked
like the stage winner would come out of this group. But since many teams missed the
move, there was a massive chase from the peloton, which actually managed to reduce
the gap from initially around 10 seconds to 2 seconds with three km to go and finally
catch them all under the flamme rouge. So it ended up in a mass sprint.
Charles Buccaneer, recently 2nd at the Monte Paschi Eroica, was the only Luna rider who
was part of the late move. "If I just had Silvano by my side I maybe would have taken
part in setting the tempo for the group. But since I was all alone it didn't make sense for
me to contribute. All I could do was trying to break free at the finale kms. But there was
no way to escape". Silvano Vazquez, who Buccaneer referred to in his statement after
the finish, ended up in 12th position in the mass sprint, two places behind his columbian
team leader Pablo Escobar.
Marco Pinotti once said something like: "Bike racing is like going on a bike tour with
some friends, chatting, enjoying the fresh air and the landscape, and at the last 20km
giving it all and fighting each other". That was pretty much the procedure of yesterdays
stage of Paris-Nice.
Right from the start a group of 5 riders were allowed to leave and build an advantage
of around 13 minutes, before teams Skullz and Bratbecker started to control the gap
on a long leash. With such a stable race situation the riders in the peloton had some
time to get to know each other, talking about this and that, making jokes and just
beeing happy about rolling through good weather on good roads.
Only at the last 50-70km the pace slowly started to grow and the riders became silent
in order to concentrate on the tasks lying ahead. Riders began to position themselves
for the run-in to Contres, where a mass sprint was expected by the ones, while the
others would try to spoil the party with some attacks at the final kilometers. And that's
what it was. 15 riders broke free 10km from the finish and for some minutes it looked
like the stage winner would come out of this group. But since many teams missed the
move, there was a massive chase from the peloton, which actually managed to reduce
the gap from initially around 10 seconds to 2 seconds with three km to go and finally
catch them all under the flamme rouge. So it ended up in a mass sprint.
Charles Buccaneer, recently 2nd at the Monte Paschi Eroica, was the only Luna rider who
was part of the late move. "If I just had Silvano by my side I maybe would have taken
part in setting the tempo for the group. But since I was all alone it didn't make sense for
me to contribute. All I could do was trying to break free at the finale kms. But there was
no way to escape". Silvano Vazquez, who Buccaneer referred to in his statement after
the finish, ended up in 12th position in the mass sprint, two places behind his columbian
team leader Pablo Escobar.
Re: Team LunaLounge
Paris - Nice, day 3
Escobar grabs time bonus with 2nd place in mass sprint
Another unagitated stage took place yesterday at Paris-Nice. Seems like all teams try
to save their energy for the deciding mountainous stages that lie still ahead. One lonely
escapee marked the day, breaking away at km 2 and brought back by the peloton shortly
after the last intermediate sprint, 35 km from the finish.
The bunch reached the line almost altogether, contesting the uphill mass sprint, in which
Pablo Escobar scored an impressive second place behind new race leader Jesse Alba from
Skullz. Along with the podium finish Escobar received a 5 seconds time bonus, what lifts
him from 14th to 9th place overall. Looking for the general classification now?
"No. I'm happy with what I've done today. And the time bonus may in deed help me achieve
a good result in the end. But I make no plans before the stage to Mende is done. After it
we'll see where I stand. Then you can ask again", the Columbian played down the possibility
of winning the whole race.
Escobar grabs time bonus with 2nd place in mass sprint
Another unagitated stage took place yesterday at Paris-Nice. Seems like all teams try
to save their energy for the deciding mountainous stages that lie still ahead. One lonely
escapee marked the day, breaking away at km 2 and brought back by the peloton shortly
after the last intermediate sprint, 35 km from the finish.
The bunch reached the line almost altogether, contesting the uphill mass sprint, in which
Pablo Escobar scored an impressive second place behind new race leader Jesse Alba from
Skullz. Along with the podium finish Escobar received a 5 seconds time bonus, what lifts
him from 14th to 9th place overall. Looking for the general classification now?
"No. I'm happy with what I've done today. And the time bonus may in deed help me achieve
a good result in the end. But I make no plans before the stage to Mende is done. After it
we'll see where I stand. Then you can ask again", the Columbian played down the possibility
of winning the whole race.
Re: Team LunaLounge
Paris - Nice, day 4
Stage 4 from St Junien to Aurillac saw another win of yellow jersey Jesse Alba.
This time Pablo Escobar landed out of the time bonusses on 5th place, although
he send some team members to the front at the final 40km to keep things
together. With 4 km to go the Columbian launched an attack at the final rise,
testing his legs and securing to stay in the action if there were some classics
riders bouncing away from the diminished main bunch. However, the front
group of 50 riders reached the line as a whole with Silvano Vazquez leading out
the sprint for Escobar.
Next stage it's getting serious. Many work awaits the team, as its leader has
big plans for the mountain top finish in Mende. Also the general classification
will be re-shuffled, pointing the way for the further course of the race.
Stage 4 from St Junien to Aurillac saw another win of yellow jersey Jesse Alba.
This time Pablo Escobar landed out of the time bonusses on 5th place, although
he send some team members to the front at the final 40km to keep things
together. With 4 km to go the Columbian launched an attack at the final rise,
testing his legs and securing to stay in the action if there were some classics
riders bouncing away from the diminished main bunch. However, the front
group of 50 riders reached the line as a whole with Silvano Vazquez leading out
the sprint for Escobar.
Next stage it's getting serious. Many work awaits the team, as its leader has
big plans for the mountain top finish in Mende. Also the general classification
will be re-shuffled, pointing the way for the further course of the race.
Re: Team LunaLounge
First win since teams break
Escobar shines at La Croix Neuve
Columbian climber Pablo Escobar achieved his longed for stage win at the
mountaintop finish of the 5th stage of Paris-Nice yesterday after battling
it out with Bearclaw's Matthew Bearclaw in the final metres of the race.
Escobar, whose win is also the first of his career, attacked right from the
start of the final climb, but couldn't get rid of his Canadian antagonist,
who strongly sticked to his wheel. After only watching each other for a
few hundred metres they got caught up by the chasing duo of Phillipe Thys
(Berlin Marks) and Wilmer Esmander (RP KMT), who rode strictly to take
over the overall lead, what eventually worked out. Under the flamme rouge
Bearclaw accelerated in an attempt to seperate himself from the front
group, but Escobar was able to follow and dragged himself past his
opponent to claim the win by not more than a wheel lenght.
"That was hard work. During the stage I didn't feel so well and started to
doubt if I would be able to take the win. I didn't tell my team mates, 'cause
I didn't want to worry them. Then the final 20km to the the finishing climb
hurt me also, since the tempo got higher. And, you know, I don't really like
riding fast in the flat. But when we got to the final km mark I knew, this is
my chance. I got to the wheel of Matthew and thanks to my explosiveness
finally came around him. I'm very happy now. I have to call my brother at
home who surely watched the race on TV."
In the general classification Escobar now sits in 3rd place, 7 seconds
behind new leader Esmander. Now the question about going for the overall
win should be allowed. "Definitely. The first 5 riders on GC are seperated
by only 13 seconds. Everything can happen now. Since I have my stage win
I have nothing to lose anymore. I will try to become the first Escobar, who
ever won Paris-Nice."
Escobar shines at La Croix Neuve
Columbian climber Pablo Escobar achieved his longed for stage win at the
mountaintop finish of the 5th stage of Paris-Nice yesterday after battling
it out with Bearclaw's Matthew Bearclaw in the final metres of the race.
Escobar, whose win is also the first of his career, attacked right from the
start of the final climb, but couldn't get rid of his Canadian antagonist,
who strongly sticked to his wheel. After only watching each other for a
few hundred metres they got caught up by the chasing duo of Phillipe Thys
(Berlin Marks) and Wilmer Esmander (RP KMT), who rode strictly to take
over the overall lead, what eventually worked out. Under the flamme rouge
Bearclaw accelerated in an attempt to seperate himself from the front
group, but Escobar was able to follow and dragged himself past his
opponent to claim the win by not more than a wheel lenght.
"That was hard work. During the stage I didn't feel so well and started to
doubt if I would be able to take the win. I didn't tell my team mates, 'cause
I didn't want to worry them. Then the final 20km to the the finishing climb
hurt me also, since the tempo got higher. And, you know, I don't really like
riding fast in the flat. But when we got to the final km mark I knew, this is
my chance. I got to the wheel of Matthew and thanks to my explosiveness
finally came around him. I'm very happy now. I have to call my brother at
home who surely watched the race on TV."
In the general classification Escobar now sits in 3rd place, 7 seconds
behind new leader Esmander. Now the question about going for the overall
win should be allowed. "Definitely. The first 5 riders on GC are seperated
by only 13 seconds. Everything can happen now. Since I have my stage win
I have nothing to lose anymore. I will try to become the first Escobar, who
ever won Paris-Nice."
Re: Team LunaLounge
Paris-Nice, Day 6, one for the escapees
Umwerfer with mixed feelings after breakaway adventure
The signs for the 6th stage of Paris-Nice were clearly set before the race has even started.
This time a breakaway group would come through. As a consequence the group of the day
was bigger then on any other stages till then. And to not be left out of it, Team LunaLounge
also sent one of its riders onto the road. Austrian Harald Umwerfer was the one, who got
the order to represent the teams colours at the front. And he found himself in a bunch of
8 riders, that got easily away and never really chased by the peloton.
Since Umwerfer was by far the weakest rider in the group he started early to detract from
taking turns and dropped to the last position of the group, lurking, saving energy. But all
the tactics were pointless. 20 km from the finish he lost contact to the group for the first
time. A slight rise of not more than 3% was already too much for him. Luckily he was not
alone, as he had Kazim Zézak from Bratbecker by his side. Together they managed to come
back somehow, but only to be left behind once more a few km laters. This time he was all
alone and was never seen again at the front. Meanwhile the remainder of the group fought
it out with Skullz taking their 4th stage win at the tour in person of Jenson Presley.
The group finished with four and a half minutes ahead of the peloton with Umwerfer sitting
somewhere in between, finishing 7th, what nonetheless is his best ever personal result in
a professional race.
Later at the hotel he told a little bit about his day in the break:
"When the team told me to go I was at first a little disgusted, as I was little hurt from all
the work yesterday. Also I am far from topform. All that they should have known, but pushed
me anyway to attack. As if that were not enough, I am really bad in climbing and really, really
bad in sprinting. To be honest I didn't quite know what I should do out there. So I stopped
working halfway of the race. When they dropped me first I already knew, even I got back I
would have no chance to stay with them until the end. But of course I didn't want to do the
rest of the stage on my own. So I tried together with that Bratbecker guy to come back.
When we made the junction I had not even found back to my breath than they accelerated
once more. That was too much for me. For a moment I thought about sitting up and dropping
back to the main field. But than it came to my mind that this could be my very first top ten
result of my career. And this is Paris-Nice. So i kept going and pick it up. Now, some hours
later I am happy and satisfied. But at that time I was a little down. There was that guy with
the moto came. He didn't want to leave me alone on my ride in the middle of nowhere.
That annoyed me lot. But it's good that I held on. At least I got some public attention of that."
For his ride Umwerfer was rewarded with the red number for the most aggressive rider.
So he will get some extra attention during the next stage, as he will be easy to spot by
the spectators.
Umwerfer with mixed feelings after breakaway adventure
The signs for the 6th stage of Paris-Nice were clearly set before the race has even started.
This time a breakaway group would come through. As a consequence the group of the day
was bigger then on any other stages till then. And to not be left out of it, Team LunaLounge
also sent one of its riders onto the road. Austrian Harald Umwerfer was the one, who got
the order to represent the teams colours at the front. And he found himself in a bunch of
8 riders, that got easily away and never really chased by the peloton.
Since Umwerfer was by far the weakest rider in the group he started early to detract from
taking turns and dropped to the last position of the group, lurking, saving energy. But all
the tactics were pointless. 20 km from the finish he lost contact to the group for the first
time. A slight rise of not more than 3% was already too much for him. Luckily he was not
alone, as he had Kazim Zézak from Bratbecker by his side. Together they managed to come
back somehow, but only to be left behind once more a few km laters. This time he was all
alone and was never seen again at the front. Meanwhile the remainder of the group fought
it out with Skullz taking their 4th stage win at the tour in person of Jenson Presley.
The group finished with four and a half minutes ahead of the peloton with Umwerfer sitting
somewhere in between, finishing 7th, what nonetheless is his best ever personal result in
a professional race.
Later at the hotel he told a little bit about his day in the break:
"When the team told me to go I was at first a little disgusted, as I was little hurt from all
the work yesterday. Also I am far from topform. All that they should have known, but pushed
me anyway to attack. As if that were not enough, I am really bad in climbing and really, really
bad in sprinting. To be honest I didn't quite know what I should do out there. So I stopped
working halfway of the race. When they dropped me first I already knew, even I got back I
would have no chance to stay with them until the end. But of course I didn't want to do the
rest of the stage on my own. So I tried together with that Bratbecker guy to come back.
When we made the junction I had not even found back to my breath than they accelerated
once more. That was too much for me. For a moment I thought about sitting up and dropping
back to the main field. But than it came to my mind that this could be my very first top ten
result of my career. And this is Paris-Nice. So i kept going and pick it up. Now, some hours
later I am happy and satisfied. But at that time I was a little down. There was that guy with
the moto came. He didn't want to leave me alone on my ride in the middle of nowhere.
That annoyed me lot. But it's good that I held on. At least I got some public attention of that."
For his ride Umwerfer was rewarded with the red number for the most aggressive rider.
So he will get some extra attention during the next stage, as he will be easy to spot by
the spectators.
Re: Team LunaLounge
Furious attack at the final day remains futile
Pablo Escobar misses overall win by only 2 seconds at Paris-Nice
Going into the last stage of Paris-Nice team leader Pablo Escobar was lying on third place overall, 7 seconds behind RP KMT's Wilmer Esmander. And the objective for the traditional mountainous run around NIce was just one: to seal the overall win of the race! As the stage was a relatively short one, with 119 km, the break of the day couldn't let go very far this time, as Pablo had planned to be the first at the top of Col d'Eze, the final climb of the day.
"That was the plan. Right after the top, there was that intermediate sprint in Eze. I wanted to get those extra seconds as a basis, and then reach at least third place at the finish at the Promenade des Anglaises. Any other time bonus would have moved me past Esmander in the GC."
After the breakaway group was caught at the bottom of the climb, Pablo attacked, just like his uncle Carlos did 3 years ago. At that time Carlos was caught on the downhill run into Nice but still won the sprint out of the front group. "I knew that story, and I knew that the was too long for Carlos. That's why I hoped not to be alone this time. Throughout this whole Paris-Nice I got Bearclaw on my wheel whenever I attacked. So I counted on him to be with me one more time. He is strong downhiller and even on the flat he's got a punch of high quality, at least for a climber. That worked out very well. Again he was the only one
who could follow me when I made the move. He was just that ally I needed for my mission. He was still looking for a stage win, while for me it would have been enough to get second behind him".
The two worked well together and created a gap of around 45 seconds at the top of the Col d'Eze. But unfortunately RP KMT were strong in the chase. After the leading duo stayed in front for the whole descent, it was just around the one km to go banner when they got swallowed up by Esmander and his boys. Both reached the finish line in the front group, but Escobar failed to reach third place, what would have gained him another 3 seconds on his overall time.
As a result the Columbian moved up from third place to second place in the general classification, only two seconds shy of race winner Esmander.
"Two seconds! When I won in Mende, there was a moment of hesitation. I only wanted to win the stage there, so I didn't care about going as fast as I could. Probably I lost that 2 seconds there. But I would have jeopardized my stage win, what had been my main goal for this race. If there will be one of my younger cousins or a nephew racing here next year, I will tell them to concentrate solely on the overall and not to care too much for a stage win. Now our family has proved enough that we are able to win stages here. Next step must be the overall win", the Columbian reflected about the missed opportunity.
Pablo Escobar misses overall win by only 2 seconds at Paris-Nice
Going into the last stage of Paris-Nice team leader Pablo Escobar was lying on third place overall, 7 seconds behind RP KMT's Wilmer Esmander. And the objective for the traditional mountainous run around NIce was just one: to seal the overall win of the race! As the stage was a relatively short one, with 119 km, the break of the day couldn't let go very far this time, as Pablo had planned to be the first at the top of Col d'Eze, the final climb of the day.
"That was the plan. Right after the top, there was that intermediate sprint in Eze. I wanted to get those extra seconds as a basis, and then reach at least third place at the finish at the Promenade des Anglaises. Any other time bonus would have moved me past Esmander in the GC."
After the breakaway group was caught at the bottom of the climb, Pablo attacked, just like his uncle Carlos did 3 years ago. At that time Carlos was caught on the downhill run into Nice but still won the sprint out of the front group. "I knew that story, and I knew that the was too long for Carlos. That's why I hoped not to be alone this time. Throughout this whole Paris-Nice I got Bearclaw on my wheel whenever I attacked. So I counted on him to be with me one more time. He is strong downhiller and even on the flat he's got a punch of high quality, at least for a climber. That worked out very well. Again he was the only one
who could follow me when I made the move. He was just that ally I needed for my mission. He was still looking for a stage win, while for me it would have been enough to get second behind him".
The two worked well together and created a gap of around 45 seconds at the top of the Col d'Eze. But unfortunately RP KMT were strong in the chase. After the leading duo stayed in front for the whole descent, it was just around the one km to go banner when they got swallowed up by Esmander and his boys. Both reached the finish line in the front group, but Escobar failed to reach third place, what would have gained him another 3 seconds on his overall time.
As a result the Columbian moved up from third place to second place in the general classification, only two seconds shy of race winner Esmander.
"Two seconds! When I won in Mende, there was a moment of hesitation. I only wanted to win the stage there, so I didn't care about going as fast as I could. Probably I lost that 2 seconds there. But I would have jeopardized my stage win, what had been my main goal for this race. If there will be one of my younger cousins or a nephew racing here next year, I will tell them to concentrate solely on the overall and not to care too much for a stage win. Now our family has proved enough that we are able to win stages here. Next step must be the overall win", the Columbian reflected about the missed opportunity.
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