Velochimp: Astrochimp on Cycling

Tom Boonen is clearly a step ahead in the first face-off of the season winning four stages in the Tour of Qatar. Boonen took the bunch sprint over Petacchi three times and was able to get into a break and avoid cross winds for a fourth stage win. Boonen missed the podium only once when Greg Van Avermaet took the sprint win from a breakaway that managed to hold off the bunch gallop in stage five.

Boonen’s team managed to one up the still in progress Milram train in many different ways. If Boonen either used the Milram train to his advantage such as in stage 1 or leave them chasing as in Stage four when cross winds shredded the peloton. The Boonen -Petacchi Matchup will probably be closer in the next few weeks if they both head to the same races such as the Ruta del Sol and other European races.

Quick-Step’s domination comes a week after former racer and current Quick-Step staff member Johan Museeuw quit the team and admitted to “Not being 100% honest” in his final year of racing. Patrick Lefevere is also under scrutiny with brand new doping allegations. All of this caused Boonen to declare that he did not feel much like racing. Perhaps getting away from the cold in Belgium and going to the endless desert road of Qatar made the racing spririt come back. Once a racer, always a racer. I am sure that once Boonen saw Petacchi’s new yellow DMTs flashing ahead that the adrenaline flowed and helped him get the dominating wins.

As for Alessadro Petacchi, there is not much to complain about overall. Sure a win would be nice, but it is only early February and Petacchi’s main goals will be Milan-San Remo, many Giro and Tour de France stages. No one really remembers what happens in Qatar in February, just what happens in Italy in in May and France in July.

Pics and race info from letour.fr