The third stage in the Giro d’Italia

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I tell you what, road racing is like eating a can of baked beans and washing it down with a pot of coffee because in both cases, there is a 100% chance of mad skid marks.

Coming to a skid stop
I'm guessing he won't be eating beans tonight...

Take stage 3 of the Giro for example. Watching the stage this morning, you just knew shit was going to hit the fan. Speeds approaching 200 kilometers per hour, bunny hopping over 8 foot barriers, these boys brought out every trick in the book. It’s a shame it came down to the final meters of the sprint, and a bonehead move by a not so sporty Ferrari. I mean, you would expect this lack of control from a Volvo, or a Fiat perhaps, but a Ferrari? This is just staggering. Anyways, here’s the final 5 for those who haven’t seen: YouTube Preview Image

Crash scene. YouTube Preview Image

As for Roberto Ferrari’s penalty:

Asked how he felt about being relegated to the last spot in the peloton for his manoeuvre, [as well as receiving a 200 Swiss Franc fine, a 30-second penalty and losing 25 points from his tally in the points competition] Ferrari responded “I have nothing to say about that.”

Savio himself argued that “Ferrari made a mistake, but” – unsurprisingly – “he didn’t want to make Cavendish fall.”

The organisers seem to have no doubt who was responsible for the pile-up. After Ferrari’s dodgy manoeuvre, the organisers decided that Sky are the leaders of the Fair Play competition with 0 points, (the lowest score being the best) whilst Androni-Venezuela are right at the bottom, with 180 points. That is 140 points less than second-last Rabobank, who have 40.

http://www.cyclingnews.com/news/savio-apologizes-for-ferraris-manoeuvre

And for Boy Wonder? He continues to impress. Love him or hate him, he’s been dealt a couple bad cards the last two days and the kid still musters a smile, ohh and holds the pink jersey.

Big limpin' ankle brace pimpin'

How long will it last for the young gun? Tomorrow is rest day, so I’m cooking beans.

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About Cupcake

I don’t have a beer gut, I’ve developed a liquid grain storage facility.

24 Replies to “The third stage in the Giro d’Italia”

  1. 200km/hr…wow, I definitely missed one stage for the record books!

  2. Check out the Farnese Vini-Selle Italia rider in fluo-yellow bunnyhop the crash at 5:14…

  3. This is why I never succeeded as a crit racer… Tuesday night group rides I could kill even the Cat 2’s in the sprint, then on race day I would hesitate and lose… for fear of being on the pavement… These guys are gods among men, I am not worthy…

  4. …while team manager savio was savvy enough to apologize for the incident, this was ferrari’s take on things – “I made my sprint, I was on my course. I was in front of him [Cavendish], I don’t care what happens behind me.”…ouch…

    …first off, obviously he wasn’t “…in front…” or he could have crossed over without touching wheels but i’m sure somewhere down the road, he’ll be afforded the same consideration when it might serve him best…

    …to ‘chop’ a man & ruin his sprint will likely get you relegated ‘cuz it’s not considered proper sprint etiquette but to chop a man & put him on the ground & then blow off the incident like it was nothing, well that’s the kind of offense that just might have you wanting to watch your back (or front wheel) on that long winding road to milano…

  5. This post is one of the reasons I visit on a regular basis. Where else do you get this kind of race coverage and succinct summary of what matters? Keep up the good work!

  6. Word to that. Badass coverage.

    Ferrari’s attitude to causing such a massive crash is pretty insulting… especially when you consider that he took out the man to beat in any given sprint AND the fucking pink jersey. Cav’ had an Italian rider cross him over in last year’s Giro, too, but I can’t remember his name now. If Ferrari is wise, he’ll own up to his mistake and apologize to everyone so that he can ride the rest of the Giro without a bullseye on his jersey.

  7. Just found this tweet from Bonnie Ford. Well-put!

    ‘Couldn’t watch #giro live, just saw replay. Does the UCI test for crack?’

  8. Ferrari, Schettino. What’s up with these Italians that can’t man up and take responsibility for their actions? Remember Djamolidine Abdoujaparov? “These things work themselves out”

  9. This can only be described as stupid ass Italian autobahn lane change ! You know like coming in from Milano to the Lake disrict on a Fri. night . zipping across the five lane race track with no rear view mirror and goin for it so you can be first . Ferrari should get a red blinking light on the back of his seat post to remind everyone that he is a douche bag !I mean taking out the Pink and Red and Rainbow jerseys all in one act of stupidity is know refered to as an Italian hat trick ………The Italian Job!

  10. Say what you want about Cav, but that dude is HARD! Hit the ground ragdoll-style, got run the fuck over a few times, and still stood up and walked his happy ass to the line.

  11. I think it looked like he looked back after that awful sound of metal on pavement. That was on purpose, I just hope whomever is the enforcer (hockey style!) doesn’t get hurt in retaliation. What would possess someone to injure that many? He was beat like a rented mule at that point anyways.

  12. …if you view the helicopter shot, ferrari deviates from what looks to be a perfectly clear left side with plenty of room…hard to understand what he thought he’d be gaining by crossing over, being as the run-in was perfectly straight at that point…

  13. Dude was gassed. Reminds me of racing in in Austin at crits when they would try to do a Cat 1-4 race. Cat 4’s would be gassed and cause all kinds of dumb crashes. Can’t miracle your way to a victory, need to make sure you have the goods to be there.

  14. @ MM – yep, I was pretty impressed that Cav just walked it off like it was no big deal – hard indeed. What impresses me even more is that there hasn’t been any complaining from him about the crash (unless I’ve just missed it) – perhaps we’re seeing a more mature Manx Missile this year?

  15. He has said some things on twitter, which include his belief that Ferrari should get tossed from the race, but all his comments so far seem pretty professional – at least for him. I definitely think the Cav’ from a couple years ago would have had a much different response.

  16. Not defending Ferrari, but my guess is he went right instead of left to get on Farrar’s wheel. Going left would have put him into the wind. Regardless – the dude in the yellow kit who bunny-hopped Cav, has mad skills.

  17. @Rhys: Someone must have advised him not to protest too loudly, lest he get called out for clipping Farrar the day before.

  18. NEWS FLASH: Tyler Farrar (USA) takes the pink jersey after s5 on Thursday. Go, Tyler!

  19. …not meant to be, sir…the manxman in the world championship kit put himself back on the top step for the 5th stage, while tyler farrar & other notable sprinters were caught short on the day…

    …poor ol’ taylor phinney hit the fucking deck one more time but remains optimistically upbeat…this kid is worth his weight in gold to american cycling…

    …presently, the top 3 on gc are all johhny vaughters garmin barracuda lads but it’s a long way to milano…

  20. Yeah well, it was close. If the kid had hung with the bunch all the way to the line, he’d have worn pink for a day or two. Instead, he ended up on the wrong end of the split and lost about nine minutes.