Meyer takes out nationals thriller
I was stationed for most of the day on top of Mt Bunningyong and early on in the race I noticed Cam Meyer slightly off the back over the climb and in a bit of trouble, but he kept getting back on each time he lost ground. He persevered and rode with experience.
It came down to just a handful of guys in a sprint finish... on paper Cam was not the fastest, but again he used his smarts and somehow got the job done. Quite possibly the best men's edition we had witnessed at Mt Buninyong.
Classic edition of Melbourne to Warrnambool
This was a real treat. For the first time we got to show the last 80 kilometres live of this great old race and It didn't disappoint. There were plenty of attacks on the run into Warrnambool, but it was the sprinter Plowright who waited until Raglan Parade and then unleashed a devastating attack that simply no one could follow.
He could have waited for the sprint, because for me he was the quickest, but he showed some real class and versatility. Another young Australian stepping up in 2022!
Taco's Giro Special
The best quote I saw post stage 3 of the Giro d'Italia. "Taco Tuesday came a day early" which happened to be on a Monday. For those that had watched the whole stage, I don't think there was a single person that didn't want Taco Van Der Hoorn to cross the finish line in first place.
It was your typical early break of the day, that on paper was always going to get caught. As the stage hit the final hour, one by one the Van Der Hoorn either dropped or rode his fomer breakaway companions off his wheel. Until it was just himself out in front of an angry peloton - by this stage were starting to realise they may have underestimated the little-known Dutchman.
In the end, it was a victory by just 4 seconds, a brilliant ride by Taco and a masterstroke by his team directors. As they pointed out post-stage, yes indeed, we planned to win from the break.
O'Connor announces himself at Tour de France
After the crashing out of Caleb Ewan early on in the race, we were looking to see who could step up for the Aussies and jag a stage win. Thankfully we only had to wait until Stage 9. It was one of those tough Alpine stages, high altitude and terrible wet and cold conditions for the riders, but for Ben O'Connor nothing seemed to bother him this day.
He went searching for the early break and then one by one dismantled the talent on the tough Alpine slopes. When he seemed to have the stage in his grasp, we began to ponder...... could this young West Australian possibly be Australia's next hope to challenge for a top spot on the general classification come Paris? Two weeks later it would be confirmed.
An Odd leader
The Vuelta for me this year, stage per stage, was possibly the best of the three Grand Tours. To put it simply there was not one boring stage.
For season 2021 the Team Of Intermarche-Wanty had punched way above their weight. For a World Tour team, they operate on one of the smallest budgets, with few stars. However, they didn't let this fact decide their fate. With success already at the Giro with a stage win, then other smaller victories throughout the season they went to the Vuelta with some clear objectives.
They delivered in spades with first a stage win and the overall lead on Stage 3 by Rein Taaramae, replicating their early Giro Stage 3 success. Then on Stage 10 it was Norwegian Odd Christian Eiking who snuck into the break, took the overall lead and held onto it all the way to Stage 17. At one point we couldn't help but ponder how long in red could Eiking actually hold on.
In the end, we know the result, but what a race by Intermarche-Wanty and more importantly what a season, their results certainly in the top half of the echelon of world cycling for 2021.
Paris-Roubaix
Was it the best version we've seen? Well, certainly for at least 10-15 years, maybe even longer.
It had been over 900 days since the last edition, and being in October the heavens finally opened on this race. We hadn't witnessed a wet Paris-Roubaix for many years and let's be honest, it certainly heightened the spectacle.
The winner, an Italian competing for the first time. In fact, the podium were all on debut. But for Sonny Colbrelli, because of the fact that it was in October as opposed to the traditional April slot meant that he could target the Hell of the North... some might say it was fate!
