Aug 25, 2006
Vuelta: Danielson’s Chances
(Pic from Velonews)
With a few Grand Tours under his belt and a win in the Tour of Austria this year Tom Danielson is quietly building a good resume as a GC contender. While Discovery Channel were flailing away at the Tour de France wishing that Lance Armstrong never retired, Danielson was winning the Tour of Austria. This was perhaps a glimmer into the future GC contender for Dscovery Channel. At the Vuelta, Danielson will be the one guy that the Discos can pin all of their hopes on. Disco does best when they have one rider to focus on instead of four galloping horses contending for leadership.
Plus, with a stage one team time trial, Discovery Channel might have a chance to right the ship after a season of frustration.
This year’s Vuelta look to be good for climbers. Five mountaintop finishes and assorted stages should make things easier for the guys who like to go fast uphill. Danielson is a gifted climber and is hoping to build on his win in Austria with a high placing in the Vuelta.
Danielson has also focused on his time trialing ability something that the Disco team has a certain amount of expertise. He chnaged his position slightly to give him a lower front end and has been riding the TT bike often to get used to the position and the effort.
With a good mix of time trialing and climbing Danielson has all the tools needed to impove upon his eigth place of a year ago. If you look at the results only Carlos Sastre and Denis Menchov are the only riders that placed higher than Danielson last year and are competeing this year. Others such asSevilla, Heras and Mancebo are out due to Operation Puerto and EPO bust. Others are not riding since Communidad Valencianna are not allowed to ride the Vuelta. Seeing that Sastre and Menchov could be less sharp since they rode the Tour, Danielson has a very serious chance at a podium spot or overall victory. Just hope he does not resort to any testosterone patches like ‘ol Floyd if the going gets tough.