When the dust settles on the 2013 racing season, how will you measure how good it’s been for Aussie cycling and what qualifies as your highlight?
Which rider gets your gong for season’s best and how do you separate what some of our riders have achieved?
As our highest placed ranked World Tour rider, Richie Porte (10th on the UCI rankings, with 327 points) provided some unforgettable moments.
There was his domination of Paris-Nice, hauling Chris Froome up a decisive victory at Ax 3 Domaines in stage eight of the Tour de France, before claiming top 10 places on Alpe D’Huez in stage 18 and on Semnoz on Stage 20.
Oh, and he also finished second in the Dauphine.
Cadel Evans pleased and disappointed in equal measure.
Why did his early season go off the rails so badly before he recovered to almost claim second in the Giro d’Italia, which included nine top ten stage finishes?
And how did he so badly misjudge his ability to back up and ride the Tour when most observers said that’s exactly what would happen?
Ultimately Cadel saved his season and restored his reputation with his ride at the Giro. Clearly he was too knackered to ride a competitive Tour but what we saw at the Giro, in the most insane of weather conditions, was a true example of his class and courage.
The only Aussie to podium at all three Grand Tours believes he can still improve in Italy next year, but beating this year’s Giro will be some feat.
Michael Matthews was my surprise packet of the season, with stage wins at the Vuelta a Espana, Tour of Utah, and top five places at the Tour of California and Tour of Beijing.
Another season like that and Matt Goss may find himself relegated to second choice in the Orica-GreenEGDE sprinters stable.
It was brilliant to see Michael Rogers maintain his performance trajectory of the past couple years. Sixth at the Dauphine and second at the Tour of California plus 16th at the Tour were fabulous results, but not as impressive as his captaincy of his Saxo-Tinkoff teammates in Stage 13 of the Grand Boucle.
On the road to Saint-Amand-Montrond, with Alejandro Valverde isolated with a rear puncture and wind smashing the peloton to pieces, Rogers inspired his teammates to launch a sustained attack on Chris Froome. The race leader lost more than a minute to Alberto Contador over the final 30kms.
With Stuart O’Grady now retired, Rogers showed he is the ready-made skipper for any Aussie team rides he’s chosen for.
Injury robbed us of what could’ve been a spectacular season’s end for Simon Gerrans.
This year started promisingly enough with victory on Willunga Hill at the Tour Down Under, before weather cruelled an expected challenge at Milan-San Remo and a crash early in the Vuelta fractured his hip and crushed his tilt at a rainbow jersey.
Of course ‘Gerro’ also scored a precious lion-infused yellow jersey… But I’ll come to that in a minute.
There was no such bad luck for Rohan Dennis, who brushed off an early season virus to wear the leader’s yellow jersey at the Dauphine before winning a stage and the overall title at the Tour of Alberta and finishing 12th in the worlds individual time trial.
For a guy in his debut season, these performances deserve to push Richie Porte all the way in the race for the ‘Oppy’ as our best cyclist of 2013.
Adam Hansen deserves a medal too, for just being a bloody hard nut. Back-to-back seasons of all the Grand Tours plus the Tour Down Under, Tirreno-Adriatico and Tour of Beijing means he’s raced more than 85 days this season.
Next year he could become the first rider to complete the feat in three consecutive seasons.
Simon Clarke finished the season with one of the rides of the year. Seventh in a brutally wet and cold World Championship Road Race that eliminated 70% of the field was more than special.
A season that included the Tour Down Under, Paris Nice, Liege Bastogne Liege, Fleche-Wallonne and Amstel Gold, plus the Tour and the Vuelta can mean nothing but Clarke itching to get going in 2014. His time is near.
But for an absolute highlight, it has to be stages three and four at the Tour de France.
To see Orica-GreenEDGE win its first Tour de France stage, and then back it up the very next day and put Simon Gerrans in yellow for two days, was unrivalled for pure emotion.
Richie Porte was awesome on numerous occasions this year, as was Rohan Dennis, but in the world’s biggest bike race, an icebreaker like that can’t be topped.
Well unless you disagree that is. Let me know your thoughts.
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