Word came from Spain yesterday that Jose Luis Rubiera had won stage 2 of the Tour of Muricia. It was the queen stage with big climbs and when it started snowing it turned into a mini-epic. You have to be happy for Chechu, Rubiera's nickname. In his final year of a storied career, the affable rider from Gijon in Northern Spain is a true class act and winning in difficult conditions just adds to the legend.
Less than two weeks ago, he was Levi Leipheimer's right-hand man on the big climbs and rainy, windy flats at the Amgen Tour of California. It was the Chechu of old, pacing his team leader to yet another major stage race win. For me, it was one of the feel-good stories of the race and it was great to see Rubiera riding again at such a high level.
Chechu has amassed an impressive record throughout his professional career. He rode nineteen grand tours and finished top ten in four of those tours. He won several stages of the Tour de France as a member of the US Postal Service/Discovery Channel team time trial squad and also won two individual stages of the Giro d'Italia. Of course, he was by Lance Armstrong's side from 2001-2005 for the Texan's last five Tour victories.
He rode strongly in all, but the 2002 event. I once asked him what happened in 2002 and he replied that he had tried to do Lance's pre-Tour training program and it had burned him out. "Lance is like a motor bike of 1000cc and I am a 250cc or even less. We can't do the same training, we can't," noted the modest Spaniard.
But, Chechu will retire at the end of this year and join his wife, who is a lawyer, in Gijon. He has a degree in industrial engineering which he received while racing as a professional many times cracking his books in his hotel room after an exhausting six hours in the saddle.
I will miss his infectious smile; his positive attitude and his professionalism. The guy is truly one of the gentlemen of the sport and a class act. To be winning mountain stages and paving the way for your team leader to win a big stage race is truly the best way to exit stage left. We will all miss you. Buena suerte, amigo.
Bruce
Active Expert: Bruce Hildenbrand
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Bruce Hildenbrand
Cathy,
fixed! Thanks! Yeah, the nickname is from a radio sopa opera character that his mother liked.
The UCI has put itself in a difficult position. It is really hard to take a stand when you aren't standing on anything. The UCI has to backdown here and not force ASO to take all the Pro Tour teams into its events. This is the same thing the UCI was trying to force the grand tours to do when it all came to a head last year. Supposedly, when the UCI let the grand tours remove themselves from the Pro Tour late in 2007, that removed the restriction on inviting all the Pro Tour teams to the grand tours and ASO events.
Now it appears that the UCI was just really planning an end run as they still want the grand tours to take all the Pro Tour teams into their events. What was the purpose of removing the grand tour and ASO events from the Pro Tour if all the Pro Tour teams are still supposed to be invited? That just doesn't make sense. The UCI has to give on this point. Why can't the UCI make an agreement with some races that want to be part of the Pro Tour and put
their energies into marketing and promoting those races so as to upgrade the prestige of those events to rival the races put on by ASO?
I don't know where the money goes that the teams pay to be part of the Pro Tour. One place it doesn't go to is to the winner of the Pro Tour. The rider who wins the Pro Tour gets a jersey and that's it. No money, not even a token $10,000. They get no money for winning the Pro Tour. I am sure the UCI could tell you a bunch of places the money goes, but I doubt I would believe them.
Yes, it sucks that Astana may not be in the 2008 Tour de France. I understand where ASO is coming from, it is more about Johan and Lance than it is about the current team. It is too bad that riders like Levi and the rest of the team have to pay for the supposed sins of the past.
Bruce
A Fan
in response to: Bruce Hildenbrand
What if the UCI agreed to reduce the number of PT teams, say to 15, then ASKED each team if there were any (original calendar) PT events they would opt out of, thereby opening up X number of spaces at each of those races? Would ASO and RCS be happy and invite all that wanted to come? What would the drawbacks be?
Also, I thought the tour teams were supposed to be announced on Feb 29th--did I miss the list? I heard from pretty good sources at Amgen that Rabo definitely will not be invited and they already know it. What have you heard?
Bruce Hildenbrand
Cathy,
yes! I proposed the exact same thing a few blogs ago. Here are the details. First off, reduce the number of Pro Tour teams to 15(or so). Secondly, if the reason for having the Pro Tour is to help teams get sponsors then the UCI should take a cut of that sponsorship money and stop trying to go after ASO's TV money. The UCI would deserve a cut of the sponsorship money if they helped get it. However, they have done nothing to deserve any of ASO's TV money.
Bruce
ps - I haven't heard that Rabo isn't getting invited. My guess is that Rabobank was offered a deal by ASO at last year's Tour. Basically, if Rabobank tossed out Rasmussen they would be invited back. ASO had no legal right to toss out Rasmussen so they used an invite to future Tours to get Rabobank to do it for them.
It's just 'Chechu' -- one word, not two. He was given the nickname by his mom when he was a little boy and she got it from a character in a Spanish soap opera. Everyone calls him that, not just a family name.
Can you splain a few things: what is up with UCI saying to the teams if they don't care to participate in the grand tours they can re-vote on the issue? Is this offered because UCI know they won't change their minds? And if they DID change their minds, wouldn't the need for the PT be nullified? Also, where does the money paid by the teams to be a PT team go--can't cost that much to sponsor the worlds.....I'm sure if we were walking from Mandalay Bay to the Venetian we could talk about this the entire way!
BTW, ASO has over-stepped the boundaries and lowered the quality of all their races by not inviting the best teams, especially Astana to the TDF with last year's winner. They need to be knocked down a few notches, and if UCI is the only agency that can do it then I will side with them, although I certainly have been no fan in the past. Their political posturing is boring and I for one am happy they are finally getting some grief over their poor behavior. Me thinks they need a time out!