Monday, February 20, 2006
Are You A Hincapieista?
The good folks at Nike Incorporated have thankfully given us all a truly larger than life example of "over-hyped" with the new Bodeista campaign. Other than Ryan Leaf's illustrious NFL career, one is hard-pressed to think of any other flops of such a gigantic scale. (Sure, Darko may have only 2 career NBA points, but at least he has a ring.)
But in this brave new post-Lance era, Hincapie is being foisted upon us as the new Bode. Ok, the comparison is a bit unfair, because before the Torino Olympics, Bode had actually put together an altogether respectable resume in the Austrian-dominated world of downhill skiing...
Hincapie, on the other hand is a chump. And not a particularly bright one at that. To review, George has not won a major Classic, despite being dubbed by the American cycling press -- such as it is -- as a major force in the Classics. Ghent-Wevelgem remains his only "Classic" victory, and that is over 200 kms, not the 250 km mark the true Classics are raced over. And as more than one pro has put it, "the extra 50 kms come at the end." Rather than the usual inane drivel one would expect from the typical cyclists, its actually an insightful remark -- the hardest racing in the true Classics come in the finale, and it is there that Hincapie has time and again shown his failings.
Chris remarked last year that Hincapie was trying to preserve his podium finish in Roubaix when he unwisely choose to give Boonen a free ride to the finale -- where Boonen easily and expectedly finished him off in the sprint. Perhaps Hincapie was just trying to save his second place. But that separates him from the truly great one-day riders. Champions risk it all for the wins. Also-rans play it safe for a podium finish. The sharpest of contrasts was drawn only one week before with Boonen's daring flyer that launched him to victory at Flanders.
Of course, Hincapie has also been lionized for his impressive win in last year's crowning stage of the Tour de France -- a day which will live in infamy among cheap-shot wins. The day proved rather that Hincapie is lacking in the class that also distinguishes true champions, rather than any athletic pedigree that could one day let him play a major leader's role in Le Tour.
Such fawning could be excused if it were confined to the pages of South Carolina's sports pages or Hincapie's own web-site. But to see such sentiments in the pages of VeloNews (no doubt to be echoed soon in Cycle Sport) is just sad. And also symptomatic of the need to crown a new American hero after the departure of Lance.
Ironically, when Lance first arrived on the scene he was perhaps unfairly characterized as the next Lemond. The careers of the two champs seemed eerily in sync with early World Championship victories by both. But the comparison was unfair to Lance, and overlooked dramatically different styles of the two riders. Armstrong rode with panache and aggression better suited to the one-day races than the stage races Lemond excelled at. Indeed, after pulling out of a pre-cancer Tour, Lance told the American press that maybe he should accept that the overall wasn't in the cards for him, and he should focus instead on stage wins.
Naturally, Lance would stage a Lemond-like comeback (and, really, comparing which comeback is more dramatic is an exercise in a bizaree, macabre folly, no?) and his exploits would largely eclipse those of the American cycling pioneer.
Now, though, we are to believe that Hincapie will undergo a similar transformation and go from third-rate fodder to the new champion of the major tours? I think the chances are better that Bode Miller medals.
In the meantime, let's hope for an early breakthrough by another American -- any American -- to spare us from more of the agonizing Hincapie-as-the-second-coming-of-Lance saga. Even if it becomes the Leipheimer-as-the-second-coming-of-Lance saga, it has to be better. Doesn't it?
But in this brave new post-Lance era, Hincapie is being foisted upon us as the new Bode. Ok, the comparison is a bit unfair, because before the Torino Olympics, Bode had actually put together an altogether respectable resume in the Austrian-dominated world of downhill skiing...
Hincapie, on the other hand is a chump. And not a particularly bright one at that. To review, George has not won a major Classic, despite being dubbed by the American cycling press -- such as it is -- as a major force in the Classics. Ghent-Wevelgem remains his only "Classic" victory, and that is over 200 kms, not the 250 km mark the true Classics are raced over. And as more than one pro has put it, "the extra 50 kms come at the end." Rather than the usual inane drivel one would expect from the typical cyclists, its actually an insightful remark -- the hardest racing in the true Classics come in the finale, and it is there that Hincapie has time and again shown his failings.
Chris remarked last year that Hincapie was trying to preserve his podium finish in Roubaix when he unwisely choose to give Boonen a free ride to the finale -- where Boonen easily and expectedly finished him off in the sprint. Perhaps Hincapie was just trying to save his second place. But that separates him from the truly great one-day riders. Champions risk it all for the wins. Also-rans play it safe for a podium finish. The sharpest of contrasts was drawn only one week before with Boonen's daring flyer that launched him to victory at Flanders.
Of course, Hincapie has also been lionized for his impressive win in last year's crowning stage of the Tour de France -- a day which will live in infamy among cheap-shot wins. The day proved rather that Hincapie is lacking in the class that also distinguishes true champions, rather than any athletic pedigree that could one day let him play a major leader's role in Le Tour.
Such fawning could be excused if it were confined to the pages of South Carolina's sports pages or Hincapie's own web-site. But to see such sentiments in the pages of VeloNews (no doubt to be echoed soon in Cycle Sport) is just sad. And also symptomatic of the need to crown a new American hero after the departure of Lance.
Ironically, when Lance first arrived on the scene he was perhaps unfairly characterized as the next Lemond. The careers of the two champs seemed eerily in sync with early World Championship victories by both. But the comparison was unfair to Lance, and overlooked dramatically different styles of the two riders. Armstrong rode with panache and aggression better suited to the one-day races than the stage races Lemond excelled at. Indeed, after pulling out of a pre-cancer Tour, Lance told the American press that maybe he should accept that the overall wasn't in the cards for him, and he should focus instead on stage wins.
Naturally, Lance would stage a Lemond-like comeback (and, really, comparing which comeback is more dramatic is an exercise in a bizaree, macabre folly, no?) and his exploits would largely eclipse those of the American cycling pioneer.
Now, though, we are to believe that Hincapie will undergo a similar transformation and go from third-rate fodder to the new champion of the major tours? I think the chances are better that Bode Miller medals.
In the meantime, let's hope for an early breakthrough by another American -- any American -- to spare us from more of the agonizing Hincapie-as-the-second-coming-of-Lance saga. Even if it becomes the Leipheimer-as-the-second-coming-of-Lance saga, it has to be better. Doesn't it?
