FAV.5 RIDERS OF ALL TIME.

[lukesdad]

Just my personal view in no particular order;

De Vlaemick-Classics Master.
Van Impe-Best climber of all time?
Millar(Robert)-Did it against the odds.
Voight-What an engine.
Sastre-What a nice unassuming guy.

 

[ComedyPilot]

Boonen - He was a charismatic idol to millions
Big Mig - The complete article, physically something else.
Hoy - Kicks ass in a big way
Voeckler - Gutsy rider that catches people napping
Armstrong - Like him or hate him, there's no denying the 7 TDF wins, the empire he's built up took an effort, and to beat cancer also makes him special.

 

[Dayvo]

Jens Voigt - great domestique and a top bloke
Marco Pantani - the greatest climber of all time
Eddie Merckx - say no more
Lance Armstrong - WC at 21, cancer survivior, then 7 TdF wins and a 3rd
Tom Boonen - charismatic and a great rider

 

[dan_bo]

Tomac-style+nutcase
Voigt-hard+nutcase
Gould-Nutcase(in a nice way)
Pantani-Nutcase
Cav-nutcase.

 

[Dave5N]

Graeme Obree
Fausto Coppi
Robert Millar
Djemolodine Abdoujapourov
Sir Chris

 

[jimboalee]

Charlie Holland. Shook his hand.
June Pitchford. Shook her hand
Hugh Porter. Shook his hand too.
Tommy Godwin. Shook his hand.
Lance Armstrong. Shook his hand. I can die now.

 

[Rassendyll]

Not denying the talents of many names above but my watching of pro cycling only started in the Indurain era so I don't think I can call any older riders favourites. Maybe riders I wish I had seen would be another list.

So of those in my experience:

Indurain - his dominance was fascinating
Pantani - don't care what he took but seeing him climbing in form had me cheering
Stuart O'Grady - he could be impaled on his bars and if he could reach one pedal would still ride home
Cavendish - already one of the greatest sprinters of all time
Vinokourov - controversial I know, but at a time when the Tour was more of a procession he could be counted on for some real aggro. Toss-up between him and Boonen who I admire for his classics riding as much as for his sprinting.

 

[beancounter]

FWIW:-

Sean Kelly
Eddy Merckx
Lance Armstrong
Greg Lemond
Robert Millar

bc

 

[Keith Oates]

In no particular order:

Eddie Merckx
Pantani
Lance Armstrong
Stuart O'Grady
Tom Boonen

 

[accountantpete]

Richard Virenque
Miguel Indurain
Mark Cavendish
Marco Pantani
Mario Cipollini

Not a bad line up for a team eh!

 

[Perfect Virgo]

Richard Virenque
Miguel Indurain
Mark Cavendish
Marco Pantani
Mario Cipollini

Not a bad line up for a team eh!

Not wishing to appear overly sycophantic but that could easily be my list too. Virenque was so nearly a Tour winner. And Cipo getting off down south every year to laze on beachs with the babes - what a man!

 

[Alan Frame]

Merckx
Dietrich Thurau
Freddy Maertens
De Valeminck

And perpetual runner up, Raymond Poulidor.

 

[iacula]

Victoria Pendleton she's my fave, I can't think of any others...

 

[lukesdad]

favourite riders remember they dont have to be the best.

 

[Sam the Eagle]

Interesting to see there isn't one mention of Bernard Hinault yet.
Not a particularly likeable character but what a champion! The last true great from an era when the top guys weren't just focusing the TdF. Hinault had to win everything
e.g.
never liked Paris-Roubaix but made a point of winning it to silence the critics
won the WC the year he had to pull out of the TdF
beat the sprinters on the Champs-Elysees once (1979?)
etc.

My top 5 are mostly French and from the 1980's:

Hinault
Fignon
Lemond
Roche
Jalabert