What's wrong with Roberto Heras?

ATM

Yes, please make it smaller at least.

musette

An interesting theory that Saiz and Heras have been exploring is maybe Heras performs better in his second Grand Tour in a given year than his first (maybe because Heras always does well in the Vuelta), with the possibility that the second is somehow aided by Heras' having participated in the first.

Therefore, they are thinking about having Heras possibly ride the Giro next year, so that the Tour would be his second Grand Tour of the year instead of his first. The problem with that approach is what happens to the Vuelta, if it would be Heras' third Grand Tour participation next year? I guess, if he wins 05 Vuelta, Heras would want to defend properly in 06. If he does not win the 05 Vuelta, Heras would want to try to break the record (I'm not sure about the record point) and have the most Vuelta wins in history by trying for a Vuelta win in 06. So, given the importance of the Vuelta in 06 either way to Heras and given his historically better chances for success in the Vuelta than in the Tour, how would Heras and Saiz decide among the three Grand Tours?

"Q: Manolo Saiz has pointed towards the possibility that next year you could ride in the Giro before the Tour, what do you think of the idea?
Heras: It’s a theory based on the experience of recent years, in which I have not been able to perform well in the first major tour but I have in the second. After a first great effort I may feel better. For the time being, nothing has been decided, we shall see next year."

http://www.libertyseguroswurth.com/...sp?opc=2&ide=78

"Q: Roberto Heras was not able to reach his level, how do you rate his performance? Saiz: ... The fact that [Heras] has not been able to perform well in the Tour in the last two years [his only post-USPS years] has made us consider him riding the Giro next year, which doesn’t mean that he will not ride in the Tour again, as some people have interpreted, but maybe after doing the Giro he could come here with some other kind of guarantee, because we believe that Roberto could be a rider with second strengths, as he proved in the Vuelta."

http://www.libertyseguroswurth.com/...sp?opc=2&ide=77

Dead Star

this post proves that all of your cycling opinions revolve around 'le tour'. have you not considered the possibility that Heras will just not bother with the tour and take part in the Giro as a warm-up to the vuelta instead?

he's not going to be stupid enough to take part in three grand tours in a year. is this yet more criticism of anyone non-discovery and how inferior everyone else is in comparison to them?

musette

Could the reason I referred to the Tour be what the Liberty Seguros Wurth website said, in an interview with Heras?



Oh, and I guess the topic of the thread being why Heras hasn't done too well in the Tour (the only Grand Tour he has ridden this year so far)?

Dead Star

well, this interview is during the tour, and so therefore it will be referring to his possible future non-participation in the tour.

what are you trying to say? Heras' possible non-participation in the tour and instead taking part in the giro shows how awful and lazy he is since he left that guy's hard-working team?

musette

No, that part of the reason for Heras' poor performance in 04 and 05 TdF could possibly be, at least according to Heras and Saiz, that Heras could be a better rider during his second Grand Tour of a given calendar year (as in the Vuelta for his historical TdF-Vuelta combo) than during his first Grand Tour of a given year (as in the TdF for his historical TdF-Vuelta combo).

Therefore, if Heras' combo became (whether he tried for all three Grand Tours or not) possibly Giro-TdF, then the TdF would be his second Grand Tour in a given calendar year and he might do better.

Dead Star

yes, parody yourself why don't you

Heras is probably more interested in a Giro-Vuelta double .

iBanesto

Well, Roberto has finished 5th in the Tour in 2000 where he did not ride the Giro.

Also he went on to win his 1st Vuelta later that year.

__________________
Haimar Zubeldia Agirre
Euskaltel - Euskadi Team

Tour de France GC - 9th Overall
"Rode a steady and smart Tour" - Cyclingnews.com

MJtje

Well the TDF is just not made for Heras..........he shines in the vuelta (less pressure, very few can deal with that it seems!!!!!!!!!!!!). The mountains also tend to be a lot steeper with the angliru for example (sick steep), that also favors a pure climber like Heras.

He will do the giro, because there is also less pressure and the climbs and the racing speed suits him better then the TDF! The people who shine in the giro and vuelta normally don't stand a change in the TDF; that's really a hors categorie race when it comes to racing speed, the teams, media attention etc. Can't compare it with any other race. Ofcourse there are exceptions like Basso who can perfectly do the giro and still get 2nd in the tour, but we are not talking about 'just' someone: he will win a couple of tours after LA!!!!!!

musette

After the recent hiring by Saiz of Vino, I doubt that Heras will even be co-leader in the TdF. Heras either doesn't ride, or rides as Vino's mountain domestique. The reason is that Vino has emphasized throughout the self-promotion process leading up to the signing with Liberty that he is only interested in going to a team where he can be the leader. His age reinforces that need to try soon.

In a recent procycling article (which I can't seen to locate), Vino confirms that he will be the only Liberty leader at the TdF.

hombredesubaru

I dunno but I think its weird. He was 5th in the tour in 2000, stayed with Lance in the mountains several days. Lance said he thought Roberto could win the Tour someday. When I saw Heras come up the Madeleine this year many minutes behind the lead group he looked awful. I think there is some other reason but I dont know what it is. I mean from the best climber in the world, arguably, to someone who cant hold wheels before the attacks really go. Weird.
Did Lance pay him not to ride?
Mayo, clearly not recovered from last year. Beloki and on and on...

musette

One reason for Heras' decline in performance could be that being a domestique to a strong team leader like LA is very different than being a team leader himself. When one is a domestique on USPS, one only needed to do well on designated high mountain stages if one were Heras. Also, there were many mountain domestiques on the team (e.g., Chechu, Beltran) to share responsibilities with Heras, even though Heras was supposed to be the last mountain domestique to stay with LA on certain more difficult climbs and certain climbs where LA hoped to gain time.

This is compounded by the fact that Saiz has traditionally had leaders, such as Beloki, do reasonably well in the TdF.

In other words, the pressure might be affecting Heras. When Heras finished 5th, he was with Kelme, a smaller team and a team whose organization was generally less hierarchical. Heras was also a less established cyclist than he is now, with his now-greater Vuelta wins and his higher-salary contract with Liberty Seguros.

iBanesto

Phil Ligget has also mentioned that riding as a domestique is totally different than as a team leader.

Maybe Heras can't handle the pressure of being the leader???

__________________
Haimar Zubeldia Agirre
Euskaltel - Euskadi Team

Tour de France GC - 9th Overall
"Rode a steady and smart Tour" - Cyclingnews.com

cash player

dunno, but the man has won three vueltas...you would think he has passed the pressure test (well at least hope)