Vingegaard has okay Giro time trial and is happy.

Was this the plan or did he underperform? Is this the Dane in chill mode?

Jonas Vingegaard went out hard, he looked fast and in control but he didn’t have a good time.

Or maybe he had a great time. Maybe this was the Visma Lease-a-Bike strategy to make his Giro d’Italia as least taxing as possible before his tilt with Tadej Pogacar.

At the end of the pan flat 43k time trial through Tuscany, he did not take over the pink jersey from race leader Afonso Eulálio. The Dane cut 2 minutes off his deficit but still trails by 27 seconds.

Many experts had Vingegaard taking over the maglia rosa but Eulálio is hanging tough and making him earn it. We have a feeling Jonas doesn’t mind having the Portuguese rider doing the media duties for a bit more.

While the Visma captain called his effort “terrible,” he also said “I’ve never been super good at this kind of effort, and honestly, I think I rode pretty well today.” Yup, flat TT’s are for big guys like Filippo Ganna (Netcompany INEOS) who scorched the course — and everyone else on it.

“Pretty well” is just dandy with Visma. “I’m in a good place right now. I’m happy with where things are,” said Vingegaard. Because 27 seconds is nothing with more mountains to come.

In other words, the Visma “chill” strategy for overall victory is right on track. Vingegaard didn’t kill himself on the road from Viareggio to Massa. He gained time on his chief climbing rival Felix Gall and that’s the main plus.

If you heard the interview with Visma director sportive Marc Reef, he didn’t seem concerned in the least. He was smiling the entire time, not a care in the GC world. It seemed like a tell, a giveaway that today pink wasn’t a requirement.

There’s obviously a significant talent drop-off between Vingegaard and the rest of the contenders. Really, only Adam Yates was a worry and he crashed out. The real rival the Dane worries about isn’t at the race but Tadej Pogacar looms over the proceedings.

GC riders measure out their energy down to the watt on every stage. Save as much as possible, never go deep unless it’s for the kill, manage your precious resources. That’s doubly true when you plan to jump from the Giro right into a Tour de France battle with the Slovenian superstar.

So the Chill Giro continues. The Take It Easy tour rolls on. Vingegaard plans to wear pink in Rome and exhaustion isn’t part of the strategy.