Giro Stage 18: Jens Gets His Day

Jens Voigt, the aging veteran escape artist of CSC, took a much deserved win yesterday in the Giro. The old schooler was Mr. Gruff only a day before, as he complained about riders taking illegal car pulls on earlier mountain stages. Other riders raising such concern would draw cynical glances, but not Jens. If there was ever a fair cyclist, it's Voigt.

The German all-arounder has taken the Criterium International title four times, and in each victory he has made the race. Unlike some race leaders who depend on stronger teams or riders to dictate tempo, Voigt, when on a good day, makes the race himself. It is this characteristic that makes watching him so enjoyable. He rides with a fiery confidence, is unflappable in pressure situations, and more times than not his fearlesslessness leads to success.

So was the case yesterday as Voigt powered away from an elite 12 man group composed of the big German Voigt, Bosisio, Nocentini, Cárdenas, Rodriguez, Lezaun, Spilak, Bennati, Bettini, Giovanni Visconti, Ardila Cano, and Nikolay Trusov. Of note here is that of the twelve riders of the day's break, only Lezaun (of the Euskaltal-Euskadi team) was a lesser known rider. It shows Jens Voigt's ability that he was able to outclass such a talented, select group of riders.

Voigt is known as a laid back cruiser, at least to his fans

Voigt is doing what he has done for more than 10 years: win races by being stronger mentally and physically than his competition. While uniforms and equipment have changed, Voigt's attacking style hasn't. Expect Mr. Gruff to growl again in about a month at the biggest race in the world, the Tour de France.