In the last few days we've featured a range of tactics for a prize winning strategy in this year's Fantasy Vuelta. Chris from Guernsey (Channel Islands, UK) won a daily stage prize in last year's Vuelta - a pair of BBB's BSG-23 Winner Quick.Step glasses. To win one of these you need a slightly different strategy. Here's what he had to say about his selection strategy:
"Having learned from my mistakes when choosing a team for the Tour de France, where I put far too many sprinters in my team, my first decision was to only have six sprinters, (despite the fact that there were not many mountain stages in the Vuelta this year and was potentially set up better for the sprinters). I tried to pick sprinters that would get a lot of stage points but also crucially who were likely to finish the race i.e. Hushovd.
"For the GC I chose riders who I felt were in form and more importantly who I felt had something to prove, i.e. Vino, Danielson and Valverde. I also looked back to see who had ridden well historically in the Vuelta, which ultimately led to me choosing Beltrán. Sastre and Kashechkin were always going to be in my team whatever and I stuck with Brajkovic after stage six which was my downfall in the end as he capitulated along with Mayo in the bigger mountain stages. Basically one rider made the differences in the end between me coming 27th and the say top five... oh, how I wish I had chosen Samuel Sánchez now! The key I believe is choosing all nine GC riders that place in the top 15, preferably top 10, and chose sprinters that finish, if you achieve this your probably guaranteed to do well."
If you've not taken part already in this year's games you'll find it's a great way to follow the Grande Tours in more detail. Be a professional team manager for the 2007 Vuelta and create your own dream team from any of the real life riders in this year's race. Based on the live racing action, you will take up the challenge of using your knowledge and tactical skill as a race team manager to compete with other virtual managers from around the world. Follow the races live and use your skill and knowledge to win some great prizes.
How to Choose your Mountains and Sprints Riders
If you are relatively new to the Grande Tours it can be a daunting prospect choosing your 15 riders. Fear not! The new ranking system can tell you some of the answers you need to know. Here's some direct links to last year's high scoring riders:
Go to the Top Pro Riders page and click on the "How to find top climbers/mountains and sprinters/points riders..." link at the top of the page to find out more.
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Try the game for free!
Try the game out and see how best to play in stages one to four. It's easy to play the Grande Tour games - all you need to do is pick your dream team of 15 from the riders racing in this year's Vuelta start list. Then each day pick nine riders to race for your fantasy team from these 15. You'll need a good combination of climbers, sprinters and general classification riders. For more details go to the rules section of the site. It's a great way to follow the Vuelta.
There's plenty time to join in the fun at this year's Fantasy Vuelta game at Cyclingnews. You can join until stage 4 begins on Tuesday 4th September.
Good luck from everyone at Fantasy Cyclingnews.com
