Losing hope

Why is luck never on Euskaltel's side? I've had it, I'm so tired of always being let down by a fall, irregular sprinting, block-outs, or, as happened today, by Koldo being directed the wrong way with 2 kilometres to go. It all looked so rosy. The whole team, with Koldo at the end of the line, were at the very front of the pack, taking control of proceedings along with Quick.Step inside the last 10 kilometres. Finally I though it'd be Koldo's, and Euskaltel's, day. But no, it just isn't meant to be. With two kilometres to race, and with Koldo surrounded by team-mates in perfect position on Boonen's wheel, Koldo, another Euskaltel rider, along with four other riders, suddenly find themselves misdirected coming out of a roundabout. The six of them look up and notice they're all alone on the road. Luckily they were directed safely back onto the same road as the other riders, but by then it was all lost. Koldo didn't stand a chance of, first, getting past, say, 30 riders, to get in position in the space of a thousand metres, and then, secondly, to have enough left in the tank to mix it with the very best. With the formidable help of Rubén, though, he nearly pulled off the impossible. But, just for good measure, he was blocked out in the sprint by Haussler and had to settle for 6th place. The result in itself is good, very good actually, considering the circumstances, but Koldo is past the stage where a sixth-place finish is worth celebrating. For him, a rider of his calibre, only the win is good enough. He's got it in his legs, but with the way things are going these days, that might just not be enough.