Finishes or results?
I dont see anyone comparing groups vs solo until you brought it up.
It was simply pointed out that mvdp dominates cross as much if not more than road, therefore he is the outlier, not the sport he grew up in
I did. It wasnt
I find this topic interesting. It turns the world upside down. Iām a mountain biker who got into road through cross. I started riding road, because all the roadies would dust me on flat dry course. I was envious of their fitness, so I got a road bike and started chasing.
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I donāt think so. MvdP and WvA are just two exceptionally gifted riders.
Check for example Joris Nieuwenhuis. He is a top 10 rider in CX and u23 CX world champion. But heās āpretty averageā on the road. Or check any other top 20 CX rider on the road.
But I do think the CX winter regime does help with your fitness on the road in the summer. We just have to put it in perspective.
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No.
Itās that theyāre coming into the early road season with a winter of racing in their legs.
Six day riders would do the same thing in the 70s and 80s.
Whatās different is that rather than trying to drag themselves through the road season on top of their winter season with little rest, the current 'cross+road stars will selectively rest and recover.
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Bernal, Pogacar, WVA, MVDP, Pidcock, and Alaphilippe were in the selection on Saturday, ā¦
Pidcock is also a very experienced cyclocross rider, he was usually mixing it with WVA & MV all winter
This is a fascinating topic. I think thereās more to it than just what CX riders do. There was a really interesting piece on British TV during the TdF coverage this year. There was no IRL racing so going into the race, form was pretty much unknown. Several of the riders were interviewed about their form and ther responses fascinating. Some riders embraced digital platforms and raced (and raced hard) on Zwift. These guys, including GC contenders, said that they had completely revised the way they train now and they werenāt going back to the 6hr slogfests they were doing before. The reason? The racing, which in effort is very similar to CX (races around 1hr long, hard starts, lots of short VO2 max and sprints) meant they were really race ready. The sharp, top end that really makes the difference in racing was there from the start.
Itāll be interesting to see if they have long careers. I read once that the length of a cyclists career is not determined by how long they spend in the red, but how many times they go into the redā¦
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Thatās super interesting stuff. Many of the older (retired) pros fear that all the young guns might burn out rather soon, because they just do nonstop racing since a very early age.
Consent among the old guard seems to be, that cross training is the key to keep the flame alive.
I remember an interview of Adam Hansen about his 23 consecutive grand tours. He said he just did skiing and mountain biking during the winter and when it was time for the first team camp in spring he was hot for the bike. Whereas his colleagues often were already quite demotivated about training from all the long-slog mileage.
Wasnāt he the only rider to place above them?
Of the three he is most likely to become a Grand Tour ride IMO, he is pretty small with big power and repeatability. Although will he become a GT rider?
I think thatās the plan Ineos has for him. To be the next British GT contender. But who knows. Always hard to predict futures.
Thereās also this attitude in amateur cycling. The old guard look down on the riders doing something different by racing all year on Zwift rather than going on the long Z1/2 slogs while they canāt keep up when the intensity ramps up in the spring.
Some people just donāt get burned out either - thereās a core of people that simply just love to ride bikes!!
Yeah especially if you are winning non-stop haha
I thought the same, that things often change with generations and the old guard just doesnāt understand it. It remains to be seen. Either way Iām not sure if there has ever been a time with so much massive fresh talent flooding into the sport. Exciting times to be a cycling fan!
But the Spring Classics riders should also be arriving at their peak, it is now or never. Do they need to rethink their training, as people coming off a hard season of cross are coming into what is their priority of the year in better form (though absolutely take the point MvDP and WvA are pretty special).
The Spring Classics specialists should also be aiming to arrive race ready. Letās see by the time we get to Flanders.
Not at their peak. That will be for San Remo for some, Flanders and Roubaix for others, and the Ardennes for others still.
VdP and WvA are the two of the best one-day riders right now, period. It has more to do with their class than with āooohhh theyāre doing 'cross.ā If 'cross itself were some secret sauce, Strybar would have won a lot more classics.
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Agreedāthereās something going on, but itās not CX.
Heās average at best.
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Time will tell. 
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