I'd love to see him launch an attack on the Carrefour de l'Arbre while the contenders mark each other out, sort of like Vansummeren a couple of years back.
The problem is that no team would allow Phinney to do what Vansummeren did, which was a fortuitous fluke. But, hey, I don't want to kill the dream.
Maybe, but isn't Thor BMC's main rider for this? If Thor is being marked out, Phinney will have an easier time getting in the decisive break. Besides, if a guy is strong enough (like Spartacus) it doesn't matter, he can ride anyone off his wheel. Remember, Red. Hope is a good thing, maybe the best of things, and no good thing ever dies.
“A few years ago, there was barely a village or an area that wanted anything to do with us. If Paris–Roubaix came their way, they felt they were shamed because we were exposing their bad roads. They went out and surfaced them, did all they could to obstruct us. Now they can’t get enough of us. I have mayors ringing me to say they’ve found another stretch of cobbles and would we like to use them.” — Alain Bernard, President of “Les Amis de Paris-Roubaix”.
That was intense. Mad respect to him for being able to talk while riding one of the secteurs. Imagine doing all that while being surrounded by a hundred other dudes, all jockeying for position on one of those secteurs. Wow.
A reminder of the leaders: Stybar, Terpstra and Vandenbergh (OPQ), Gaudin (EUC), Cancellara (RLT), Van Avermaet (BMC), Eisel (SKY), Boom and Vanmarcke (BLA), Paolini (KAT), Langeveld (OGE) et Flecha (VCD).
And here he makes the moves 23km out Terpstra looks to have blown and he cant/wont chase with Stybar with Cancellara and Van Avermaet has blown too.
4km out and fc tries an attack, but Vanmarcke fights and stays with him.....and lol, then FC flicks the elbow for Vanmarcke to take a turn.
What do you guys think about the remaining Ardennes classics? Is it going to be the Sagan/Gilbert show?