Discussion Topic |
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mooch
Trad climber
Tribal Base Camp (Kernville Annex)
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Topic Author's Original Post - Jun 27, 2017 - 10:37am PT
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It's that time again! The Grand Daddy Of The Classics kicks off on July 1st. Looks like this years' tour will most definitely be decided in the mountains since the ITT is the 1st stage. My personal GC picks for the podium:
1st: Chris Froome (Team Sky)
2nd: Richie Porte (Team BMC)
3rd: Nairo Quintana (Team Movistar)
And taking the Green Jersey.......that's a no-brainer
Peter Sagan
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DaveyTree
Trad climber
Fresno
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Jun 27, 2017 - 10:43am PT
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YES!!!!
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Craig Fry
Trad climber
So Cal.
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Jun 27, 2017 - 10:44am PT
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Richie Port will be one of the stars of this Tour
He is on fire!
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mooch
Trad climber
Tribal Base Camp (Kernville Annex)
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Topic Author's Reply - Jun 27, 2017 - 11:29am PT
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Agreed! He just needs to stay forward and conservative in the peloton for the first few stages and avoid getting caught up in the "pre-game" jitters. Contador made that mistake last year.
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mike m
Trad climber
black hills
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Jun 27, 2017 - 11:43am PT
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Will any Americans have a chance?
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mooch
Trad climber
Tribal Base Camp (Kernville Annex)
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Topic Author's Reply - Jun 27, 2017 - 11:58am PT
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Our best hopeful is Tejay Van Garderen. He looked good during the Giro d' Italia back in May. But its likely he'll be helping Richie Porte, his BMC teammate, in the mountains to take the general classification.
Now that most teams recruit internationally, the days of "Us vs. Them" really don't exist. These days, fans watch for raw talent and guts, from wherever that cyclist may come from. I'm a fan of Peter Sagan (Slovenian), long before he came to Liquigas....while he was gassing out as a Mtn cyclist. ;) Although he may never be a GC contender and is clearly a sprinter, he's a true master at bike handling!
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BruceHildenbrand
Social climber
Mountain View/Boulder
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Jun 27, 2017 - 12:28pm PT
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Tejay won't be riding the Tour. Look for him at the Vuelta. Here is the complete BMC roster:
Damiano Caruso (ITA), Alessandro De Marchi (ITA), Stefan Küng (SUI), Amaël Moinard (FRA), Richie Porte (AUS), Nicolas Roche (IRL), Michael Schär (SUI), Greg Van Avermaet (BEL), Danilo Wyss (SUI).
I understand the TV broadcast will be using real-time CGI to make it appear that Chris Froome is actually comfortable while riding a bike.
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mooch
Trad climber
Tribal Base Camp (Kernville Annex)
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Topic Author's Reply - Jun 27, 2017 - 12:30pm PT
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That's interesting news. When did BMC announce that?
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Craig Fry
Trad climber
So Cal.
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Jun 27, 2017 - 12:31pm PT
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Froome looks like Sheldon from "Big Bang Theory" on a bike
his head bobbing, his spindly arms shaking and twisting in what looks like intense pain
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mooch
Trad climber
Tribal Base Camp (Kernville Annex)
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Topic Author's Reply - Jun 27, 2017 - 12:33pm PT
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I love having our local brewery change the channel to watch the Tour, as all the baseball weenies moan out, "Geez, this sh*t?! Who wants to watch doods in tight shorts?"
Bwahahaha.....suffer biotches!
King Of The Descent!
[Click to View YouTube Video]
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Kalimon
Social climber
Ridgway, CO
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Jun 27, 2017 - 06:39pm PT
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Froome does not seem as dominant as in the past. I predict he will not win Le Tour . . . Unless of course the doping protocols are better than ever.
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BruceHildenbrand
Social climber
Mountain View/Boulder
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Jun 27, 2017 - 07:51pm PT
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Mooch,
BMC sent me a press release on June 22. Tejay did the Giro(and won a stage) then the Tour de Suisse so he is probably due some rest.
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Richie Porte Ready to Lead BMC Racing Team at the Tour de France
22 June, Santa Rosa, California (USA)
BMC Racing Team is backing Richie Porte in the pursuit of the yellow jersey at the Tour de France when racing gets underway in Dusseldorf on Saturday, July 1.
Sports Director Fabio Baldato said a strong team has been assembled to support Porte from Dusseldorf through to Paris.
"To have Richie Porte on the podium at the Tour de France would be a great result. Of course, we are lining up to win the race, to win the yellow jersey. We are going all in for Richie. All nine of our riders are coming to the Tour de France in good condition and we have a strong team. When we started planning for the Tour de France in December last year, these were the nine riders we had in mind," Baldato explained.
"We expect Damiano Caruso and Nicolas Roche to be the last two teammates with Richie in the big mountains. We have riders like Alessandro De Marchi and Amaël Moinard who will be crucial before and between the medium mountains. For the flat stages when the race is fast and difficult, we have our rouleurs; Stefan Küng, Michael Schär, Greg Van Avermaet and Danilo Wyss. These are the riders who will protect Richie and bring him to the line safely."
"We would love to start things well with the time trial in Dusseldorf. Stefan is really motivated and we saw at Tour de Suisse that he is in great shape. It is his Tour de France debut but we expect he will be on the podium, which means starting the race well, with a good position on the General Classification and with a good car position. Our absolute priority is the General Classification with Richie Porte but in Greg Van Avermaet we have the Olympic champion, two-time Tour de France stage winner and wearer of the yellow jersey in 2016, so we would love to see Greg win another stage when the conditions are right and Richie is safe."
BMC Racing Team General Manager Jim Ochowicz affirmed Baldato's appraisal of the team.
"Tour de France team selection is always hard and it was again for us this year. We have a strong and motivated team around Richie Porte and I think our objectives are clear. Richie and the rest of the team are clearly coming in with a lot of confidence from performances in recent races. We are confident but everyone starts from scratch in Dusseldorf. We hope to get off to a good start and keep the ball rolling across the 21 stages that lie ahead of us," Ochowicz said.
Porte is confident after recording one of the best seasons of his career in the lead up to the Tour de France, including victory at the Santos Tour Down Under, Tour de Romandie and second place at the Critérium du Dauphiné.
"The Tour de France is the big goal of the season and it has been a great season so far. I can definitely take confidence from my races and I feel like I'm where I need to be knowing that July is when I need to perform. BMC Racing Team has put a great team together around Greg Van Avermaet and me. I think we have strength in all of the areas needed," Porte explained.
"I am definitely a mix of excited and nervous. You can't deny that the Tour de France is the biggest goal of the season, but that means it's also another level of stress. It's a balance of being well-prepared and fresh enough to race at the highest level across 21 stages, but I feel like I'm in that position now. I'm just really looking forward to rolling out for the time trial next Saturday in Dusseldorf and then having a good three weeks of racing until we reach Paris."
Van Avermaet will line up in Dusseldorf as leader of the UCI WorldTour ranking and targeting a third Tour de France stage win.
"I'm going into the Tour de France with the same goal as always; to win a stage. After winning a stage in 2015 and 2016, and then wearing the yellow jersey last year, it would be really special to win a third stage this year. There are a couple of stages that are well-suited to me and aside from that, I'll be there to support Richie Porte to go for the win. I think if we finished in Paris with a stage win and a good result on the General Classification, it would be a really successful Tour de France from BMC Racing Team," Van Avermaet said.
Tour de France (1-23 July)
Rider Roster: Damiano Caruso (ITA), Alessandro De Marchi (ITA), Stefan Küng (SUI), Amaël Moinard (FRA), Richie Porte (AUS), Nicolas Roche (IRL), Michael Schär (SUI), Greg Van Avermaet (BEL), Danilo Wyss (SUI).
Sports Directors: Fabio Baldato (ITA), Yvon Ledanois (FRA), Valerio Piva (ITA).
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ms55401
Trad climber
minneapolis, mn
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Jun 27, 2017 - 08:18pm PT
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not gonna lie, I'm gonna be doping through the entire event
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drF
Trad climber
usa
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Jun 27, 2017 - 08:20pm PT
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He who stays off the tarmac will......
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rottingjohnny
Sport climber
Sands Motel , Las Vegas
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Jun 27, 2017 - 08:38pm PT
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Sounds like what Alexi Grewal said way back...
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enjoimx
Trad climber
Yosemite
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Jun 27, 2017 - 11:01pm PT
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Quick question for those of you who follow professional cycling:
Do you think doping, in some capacity, still occurs? Like maybe they do certain things during training, but don't dope near race time.....or maybe they still dope successfully for races even??
Just curious. I love cycling, but after watching the Lance Armstrong documentary on Netflix, got insight as to how rampant doping is/was.
I plan on watching the Tour this year....
I also plan on riding Tioga Pass tomorrow morning :)
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Gunkie
Trad climber
Valles Marineris
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Jun 28, 2017 - 05:12am PT
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rottingjohnny
Sport climber
Sands Motel , Las Vegas
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Jun 28, 2017 - 05:33am PT
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Haven't seen any Livestrong wrist bands lately...?
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John Mac
Trad climber
Breckenridge, CO
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Jun 28, 2017 - 06:21am PT
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I think Richie Port has his best chance of winning the tour if he can stay healthy over the three weeks. However, I wouldn't rule Froome out at this stage since Team Sky has so much dominance. Froome could also be hiding his cards close to his chest and be in better form that people think.
I really hope Contador can be competitive and liven up the tour.
I think TJ should either become a super domestic and help the leaders or go for shorter races. He seems to always get sick after a week or two...
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Craig Fry
Trad climber
So Cal.
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Jun 28, 2017 - 08:03am PT
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Talk about downhilling expertise
Froome basically won the Tour last year by taking a summit then speeding off to the downhill while the rest of the pack was regrouping
and then risking it all on the descent at speeds no one could match,
he was even pedaling while in a low tuck, which was a new tactic not seen before.
It was quite the sight!
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dee ee
Mountain climber
Of THIS World (Planet Earth)
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Jun 28, 2017 - 09:02am PT
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According to Velonews only 3 Americans in The Tour this year.
Andrew Talansky
Taylor Phinney
Nathan Brown
Taylor and Nathan are Tour 1st timers.
Andrew is the only "GC" guy.
EDIT....I thought Brent Bookwalter was going as well but....Is he injured?
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G_Gnome
Trad climber
Cali
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Jun 28, 2017 - 09:54am PT
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And yes, one must assume that they all still enhance their performance with drugs. It is generally in the interest of drug manufacturers to keep the drugs being used ahead of the drug tests so that they can sell them both.
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mooch
Trad climber
Tribal Base Camp (Kernville Annex)
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Topic Author's Reply - Jun 28, 2017 - 10:24am PT
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I also plan on riding Tioga Pass tomorrow morning :)
Good on you!! Love to hear folks who enjoy climbing the grades. Get sum!
UCI has created a whole new aggressive structure on testing athletes for drugs. I remember the UCI held a conference 4 or 5 years ago, inviting sponsors and teams to finalize the testing policies and procedures. I think both fans and athletes are so tired of seeing their sport bruised and battered by the selfish ambition of those who can't hack the training it takes to be a world class cyclist. Just my 2 cents.
I'd prefer not to steer this topic into a "Doping Thread" but instead build the excitement to this upcoming classic.
Hoping the UCI has worked hard to keep the cyclists safer from the support motorcycles. Too many accidents within the last several years!
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mooch
Trad climber
Tribal Base Camp (Kernville Annex)
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Topic Author's Reply - Jun 28, 2017 - 10:49am PT
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Taylor Phinney
Speaking of kick ass descents, that Stage 5 win in Santa Barbara during the 2014 AMGEN TOC was amazing!! Snuck away at the top of the grade as everyone was recovering from the climb and STAYED AWAY for 25 miles!! Not even the combined efforts of Cannondale and Katusha could reel him back. Total Time trial frenzy!!
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mooch
Trad climber
Tribal Base Camp (Kernville Annex)
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Topic Author's Reply - Jun 28, 2017 - 10:51am PT
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Green Jersey hype........Go PETER!!!
* check out the sprint at 2:20!
[Click to View YouTube Video]
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mooch
Trad climber
Tribal Base Camp (Kernville Annex)
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Topic Author's Reply - Jun 28, 2017 - 11:08am PT
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Used to do laps on Montazuma, as well as laps on Palomar. The ultimate climbing day: "4x4" of Palomar....up South Grade, down East Grade, up East Grade, down South Grade.....times four! Good suffering! Having moved to Kernville, my new climb is up from Kern River to Sherman Pass, then down from Kennedy Meadows to the base of Nine Mile Canyon by the 395.....then back! nearly 17,000' of elevation gain total. There was an old event called The Son Of Death Ride. Great name for the ride, sh*tty event coordination. No longer exists.
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StahlBro
Trad climber
San Diego, CA
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Jun 28, 2017 - 11:44am PT
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Those are killers. Palomar laps is a full day for sure. The descent of Montezuma is a freaking blast if you do it during the week when there are no cars or road slugs. You do have to watch for rocks though.
DEE, some of the RADS and I did a pretty epic MTB ride at Sherman Pass back in the day. A bunch followed an old MotoX trail, but mostly single track.
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StahlBro
Trad climber
San Diego, CA
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Jun 28, 2017 - 12:13pm PT
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It was a big loop. I think Cannell was part of it. Hopefully DEE can add some more info.
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mooch
Trad climber
Tribal Base Camp (Kernville Annex)
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Topic Author's Reply - Jun 28, 2017 - 03:40pm PT
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Any predictions/speculations on the KOM jersey? I'm going with Rafał Majka. Bora has a great German backed team. Of course, the Sagan Brothers are part of the overall effort (not as climber, of course). ;)
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10b4me
Mountain climber
Retired
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Jun 30, 2017 - 07:24am PT
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the Sagan Brothers are part of the overall effort (not as climber, of course). ;)
Peter can climb when he wants to, but not a KOM type.
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dee ee
Mountain climber
Of THIS World (Planet Earth)
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Jun 30, 2017 - 04:25pm PT
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Yes Rob , that was a Mike McDonald birthday ride. It is an annual event that the RADS still celebrate.
If I remember correctly it was from... CANCEL THAT I just dug out the old Sequoia Map that I marked all the B.day rides we did on. I did Mike's rides for more than 10 years straight but missed this year due to being not fit enough. Mike celebrated his 74th year this time.
On that particular year we started at the Horse Meadow Campground and rode up to Big Meadow, then up east of Sirretta Peak and down Snow Creek to Machine Creek. Up MC, through Boone Meadow and to Sherman Pass. Then down Cannell, past Mosquito Meadows and finished on the Deadwood single track turnoff to Horse Meadow Campground.
All those rides had roughly the same stats...35-45 miles, 7000-8000 feet of climbing and 97-100% singletrack.
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dee ee
Mountain climber
Of THIS World (Planet Earth)
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Jun 30, 2017 - 04:30pm PT
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But back to Le Tour.
This year is Tommy Voeckler's last Tour.
I will surely miss that guy!
Just bought 2 Tour Guides, one came with a "free" pair of yellow "Tour" cycling socks! WHEEEEE HOOOO!
HERE WE GO!
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StahlBro
Trad climber
San Diego, CA
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Jun 30, 2017 - 04:44pm PT
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I will miss Voeckler's facial expressions for sure.
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Craig Fry
Trad climber
So Cal.
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Jun 30, 2017 - 05:26pm PT
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Sherman Pass
I did one of the Mike McDonald B-Day rides, 90s
We went up, and down, and up again
and repeat
Awesome
I did the Sequoia Needles to town ride a couple times, it doesn't get any better
Wish I knew the real names
One of the weirdest time, at the Needles
was when Richard Leversee told us to meet him at home in the evening and we'd have a BBQ
I think Rob may was there
we go there and hang out, but Richard never comes back
it starts snowing
so we bivy on his porch
we took off in the morning and never saw him or his crew
turns out he had some epic bivy in the backcountry
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ms55401
Trad climber
minneapolis, mn
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Jun 30, 2017 - 05:31pm PT
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long-time cyclist, casual fan here
just need to know when the mountain stages are, and what channel I can watch it on
thx
bye
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wilbeer
Mountain climber
Terence Wilson greeneck alleghenys,ny,
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Jun 30, 2017 - 05:35pm PT
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Any streaming links?
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drF
Trad climber
usa
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Jun 30, 2017 - 08:08pm PT
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This year is Tommy Voeckler's last Tour.
I will so miss Voekcler.
Bobbin' weavin' attackin' style.
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BruceHildenbrand
Social climber
Mountain View/Boulder
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Jun 30, 2017 - 08:15pm PT
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I apologize if these stories start to repeat, but at the 2009 Giro I shared a hotel for a few days with Thomas Voeckler and his team. There was a short stage from Chieti up the Blockhaus(they stopped that year at about 1800m) and Voeckler got in the early breakaway with a couple of other guys. They got to the bottom of the climb with about 1 minute, but pulled the plug and Pelizotti ended up winning the stage.
At dinner that night I asked Thomas about the stage. He said for a climb of that length and difficulty(6000' vertical gain) he needed at least four minutes at the bottom to have any chance of winning the stage. He said the guys in the breakaway wouldn't work hard enough to get that big of a gap. I looked at him and said, "TV time?" His reply was "yeah, TV time."
We were referring to the fact that the other guys just wanted to be off the front for a while to get themselves on TV.
Bonne route y bonne chance, Thomas!
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Chaz
Trad climber
greater Boss Angeles area
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Thanks to The Interwebs, I can find out what the sponsors are hawking.
I followed this race for years without ever knowing what Hoonved, Molteni, Fagor, La Vie Claire, Systeme-U and a bunch of others were.
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Kalimon
Social climber
Ridgway, CO
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Team Sky comes out of the gate strong . . . Quintana loses a crucial man . . . Sagan and Yates looking good. Team Orica could have some effect. This should be an interesting Tour.
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dee ee
Mountain climber
Of THIS World (Planet Earth)
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Craig, you never did a Mike McDonald birthday ride.
"What I remember I remember perfectly." unquote.
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Craig Fry
Trad climber
So Cal.
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WRONG
Ask Conklin or Wonderly
"How the F*#k would you know if I did one or not" unquote
Did I just remember something that never happened?
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Craig Fry
Trad climber
So Cal.
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Not that one
His nick name was "The Fossil"
He was old in the nineties, and he's probably still riding hard
He makes cabinets in Laguna Canyon
I gotta catch this thread in morning before the days results are posted
Nothing worse than knowing who won before watching.
Phinney is looking really good, as I watch today's stage
Not sure about having the ITT on the first day
It forces the GC guys to defend their time so early in the race
I bet there will be a lot break aways of non-GC riders, and they just let em go.
I will be interesting
I've been following the Tour since 1978, I remember watching the Hinault -Lemond battle, Spencer Lennard turned me on to Pro Road Racing
I got Winning Magazine for decades
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Chaz
Trad climber
greater Boss Angeles area
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I can't believe you're not watching it live!
Live. From France. ( or Germany, or Belgium, or wherever )
For years, if you wanted to follow the race, you read the results in the fine print in the back of the L.A. Times Sports Section, and that was it. We would have killed to see the race broadcast live back then.
Later, after the Americans entered the race, CBS would do a weekly wrap-up once a week, mixed in with golf and horse racing, donkey basketball, and a bunch of other crap. Maybe twenty minutes worth, if you were lucky.
Now, it's broadcast LIVE from France, sometimes the entire stage, start to finish. We've never had it so good, and you're sitting it out.
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Q- Ball
Mountain climber
but to scared to climb them anymore
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I know nothing about cycling, but gave a former Tour de France winner a float trip on my farm last week. He was thrilled to just chill out and drink beer with no fans mobbing him.
I said, "we could use an extra man for a kayak mussel survey on the Obed next week". He said he needed to get to France for some bike race : ).
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StahlBro
Trad climber
San Diego, CA
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On my way back from counting sheep. Looking forward to the replay tonight!
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Craig Fry
Trad climber
So Cal.
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"I know nothing"
as in you will have to see what happens
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ms55401
Trad climber
minneapolis, mn
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what channel is broadcasting it live
if it's live on the internet, not gonna bother
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BruceHildenbrand
Social climber
Mountain View/Boulder
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In the USA the broadcast network is NBCSN which on DirecTV is 220. On the weekends NBC will sometimes show it on the NBC broadcast channel as well.
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10b4me
Mountain climber
Retired
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First mountain stage is July 9th.
Should be good. 22% grades, and a technical descent.
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BruceHildenbrand
Social climber
Mountain View/Boulder
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Great quote from Taylor Phinney about how long he can hold onto the polka dot jersey:
“Man everyone wants to know how long,” Phinney said to NBC. “Just live in the moment man."
Go T!
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Darwin
Trad climber
Seattle, WA
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I loved Taylor's racing today.
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10b4me
Mountain climber
Retired
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Sagan takes Stage 3.
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Chaz
Trad climber
greater Boss Angeles area
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I'll bet losing his pedal gave him an extra added surge of adrenaline.
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10b4me
Mountain climber
Retired
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I'll bet losing his pedal gave him an extra added surge of adrenaline
I wondered what happened when he stopped pedaling for a minute
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Brandon-
climber
The Granite State.
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After watching the tour for pretty much my whole life, Ligget is like my favorite uncle who I only get to see every July. He can commentate the sprints like nobody else. Fun stage to watch, looking forward to more.
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Oldfattradguy2
Trad climber
Here and there
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Make the tour great again, get rid of American coverage and get Eurosport over here, they actually show bike racing.....
GO TAYLOR!!!!!!
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Chaz
Trad climber
greater Boss Angeles area
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It's a contact sport.
It looked at first like Cavendish broke a collarbone from the way he was carrying his arm, but after seeing him walking around afterward, apparently he didn't. But I'm no doctor.
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Kalimon
Social climber
Ridgway, CO
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Hopefully he will be OK . . . there was no where to go right of Sagan but into the barriers. Poor decision on Cavs' part . . . Sagan was ridng defensively.
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BruceHildenbrand
Social climber
Mountain View/Boulder
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Peter Sagan has been disqualified from the Tour. That means he will no longer be in the race. The UCI race jury decided his move was in violation of race rules.
When I was covering the Tour in 2010 there was an incident involving Mark Renshaw, Cavendish's leadout man, into the sprint finish in Valence. Renshaw clearly threw two or three head butts. He was disqualified and removed from the race.
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mcreel
climber
Barcelona
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There may not have been much room to Sagan's R, but that elbow was pretty blatant.
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Brandon-
climber
The Granite State.
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It looked to me like the elbow was unintentional. Seems like a BS DQ to me, but I'm obviously no expert.
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StahlBro
Trad climber
San Diego, CA
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DQ'd? Dang.
Must have been blatant. Missed it this morning, will check out the replay.
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Marlow
Sport climber
OSLO
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Brandon
I am not able to see anything unintentional about that elbow. Scary stuff. Cav is tasting his own medicine...
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Brandon-
climber
The Granite State.
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Looked to me like Cav bumped Sagans rear wheel trying to find passage where there was none, and Sagan corrected the swerve accordingly.
I could be way off though.
Edit; Upon further review, looks like I'm wrong.
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stevep
Boulder climber
Salt Lake, UT
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Looked to me like Sagan slamming the door on Cav. Not clear how much contact there was with the elbow, but it was clearly pretty dangerous riding by Sagan. I'm a fan of his, but I think this was the correct decision.
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wilbeer
Mountain climber
Terence Wilson greeneck alleghenys,ny,
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Sagan Disqualified,man.......
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PSP also PP
Trad climber
Berkeley
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Based on that video it does not look like Sagan actually made contact.
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Oldfattradguy2
Trad climber
Here and there
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Great viideo, I would blame Cav just as much. Perhaps they couldn't find another way to keep Sagan from winning the green Jersey.
Hopefully he is booked on a direct flight to SLC for the Crusher in the Tusher!
Sprinting stages are dumb and dangerous.
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WBraun
climber
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Cavendish = fuking aszhole.
You all forget that fuked move he made in the Olympics years ago?
Put the leader in the hospital with a dirty move.
Karma's your bitch now, Cavendish.
Cavendish is notorious for this sh!t.
He should have his ass kicked .....
The French judges need their eyeballs examined.
Stoopid French dipsh!ts !!!! LOL .....
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StahlBro
Trad climber
San Diego, CA
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No way that constitutes a DQ. Cavendish is just as much to blame. That elbow was just a reaction to the contact.
Edit
After watching the front view, Sagan's elbow didn't even touch Cav.
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crankster
Trad climber
No. Tahoe
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Yep. The DQ should be rescinded. Cav was working a tight line along the barriers and lost it before the elbow.
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Chaz
Trad climber
greater Boss Angeles area
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Cavendish = broken shoulder.
He's out too.
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10b4me
Mountain climber
Retired
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Sagan's team has appealed.
Back to the crash. Looked like Cavendish was on his way down before any contact with Sagan. Cavendish took a poor line a way. Where was he going to go? There was no room between Sagan, and the barrier.
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Hardman Knott
Gym climber
Mill Valley, Ca
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Cycling is soooo very fast and scary during these bunch sprints. You need that big punch and insane stability ...
That's the thing - with the video played in real time, it looks like he elbowed him. But when you slow it down frame by frame it's obvious he did knott. Were the officials too lazy to really take a good look at it, or did they have an agenda? WTF?
Werner, tell us how you really feel about Cavendish LOL
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Srbphoto
climber
Kennewick wa
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I'm surprised Bouhanni's team isn't protesting Demare's move. He was against the barrier, made a hard left behind Kristoff, just about knocked Bouhanni down and went around the left side of Kristoff. I thought you are supposed to "hold your line".
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mcreel
climber
Barcelona
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Yes, in the slowed video, Sagan's elbow moving out looks to be simply a balance move after Cavendish's head pushes him to the L.
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Reilly
Mountain climber
The Other Monrovia- CA
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I agree the elbow was insignificant but it seemed clear to me that Sagan cut off Cav.
BITD that woulda been called racing, n'est ce pas?
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Gary
Social climber
Desolation Basin, Calif.
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Looks to me like Cavendish was on Demare's wheel and Sagan just pushed him aside.
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mooch
Trad climber
Tribal Base Camp (Kernville Annex)
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Topic Author's Reply - Jul 5, 2017 - 08:05am PT
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It looked to me like the elbow was unintentional
Absolutely. Sagan's elbow was flagged simply because his balance was off, based on Cav's initial contact with him. The UCI committee clearly blew this call. Very disappointing. Even so after Sagan went over to the team RV to check on Cav. I can see putting him 115th overall but kicked off the Tour?!?!
Watch Sagan's forearm catch Cav's brake hood, which caused him to flag the elbow. And clearly, no elbow contact was made.
https://www.instagram.com/p/BWKUOwzgJGf/
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Craig Fry
Trad climber
So Cal.
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it's final
World champion Peter Sagan has left the Tour de France after being disqualified for causing the crash which ended Mark Cavendish's race.
His Bora-Hansgrohe team had protested against the decision, but race organisers will not allow an appeal.
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mooch
Trad climber
Tribal Base Camp (Kernville Annex)
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Topic Author's Reply - Jul 5, 2017 - 08:17am PT
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UCI is f*cking up, big time!
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WBraun
climber
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UCI is f*cking up, big time!
Those pussy French dipsh!ts did it on purpose so that Frenchman can have better chance to win the Tour.
If an airplane fell out of the sky and caused it they still would have blamed Sagen :-)
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Barbarian
climber
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And taking the Green Jersey.......that's a no-brainer
Peter Sagan
I'm guessing not....
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mooch
Trad climber
Tribal Base Camp (Kernville Annex)
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Topic Author's Reply - Jul 5, 2017 - 09:45am PT
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Had the worst breakfast croissant this morning. Must be Sagan's fault.....
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Kalimon
Social climber
Ridgway, CO
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Cav may have been trying to take Sagan out, he's a naughty little bloke . . . who knows? What a bummer to lose both of these guys, especially Sagan of course, as he is perhaps cycling's most colorful character.
The show goes on . . . Froome and team Sky have a stranglehold on the yellow jersey; Fortunately Aru emerged from the field and showed some challenge to Froome, the other GC contenders did not . . . perhaps he is the David to slay the Goliath.
Hopefully things will shake up and we won't have to watch team Sky wear the yellow into Paris.
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StahlBro
Trad climber
San Diego, CA
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Aru looked like he left it all out on the road today. It will be interesting to see how he recovers tomorrow.
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ms55401
Trad climber
minneapolis, mn
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so far, werner's posts have been more entertaining than le tour
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Kalimon
Social climber
Ridgway, CO
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Are you really sure that really is the real Werner really posting such inflammatory thoughts?
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ms55401
Trad climber
minneapolis, mn
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like, in an ontological sense?
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dee ee
Mountain climber
Of THIS World (Planet Earth)
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If they even cared about looking fair they should have DQ'ed Cav in spite of his injuries.
It was a bad and ridiculous call but the race goes on.
If I were PS I would be pissed off but the organizers run the show, so he has to bend over and take it if he ever wants in the race again.
Fuking Prudhomme and his lackeys suck.
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rottingjohnny
Sport climber
Sands Motel , Las Vegas
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My mental speculation says Cavendish didn't have room to pass and Sagan was protecting himself from Cavendish's desperate move by sticking his elbow out ...? Isn't that what you do to keep another rider from taking you down...? Anything goes when you're trying to avoid road rash...
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Hardman Knott
Gym climber
Mill Valley, Ca
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I read today that Cavendish broke his scapula. That's pretty brutal. Here's what mine looked like three years ago:
-but knott before posing for the camera:
-the next day (had this as a Tinder pic for a bit)
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Chaz
Trad climber
greater Boss Angeles area
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If it were F1 instead of TDF, Cavendish would have been the one penalized.
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rottingjohnny
Sport climber
Sands Motel , Las Vegas
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Hardman Knott ...And they say climbing is dangerous...
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10b4me
Mountain climber
Retired
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Cavendish is second, to Merckx, in TdF stage wins, and third, to Merckx, in Grand Tour stage wins. Cavendish will do anything to win. Even get a fellow competitor disqualified. I think he sees Sagan as the second coming of Mark Cavendish.
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Ghost
climber
A long way from where I started
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Couple of things. First, Sagan's team (Bora-Hansgrohe) has lodged a formal appeal to the Court for Arbitration of Sport (CAS) with "an urgent motion to suspend the decision" to expel Peter Sagan from the race. Apparently, the CAS has overruled the Tour bosses before, so this could be interesting.
Second, regarding scapula fractures, I once pitched off my bike trying to take a corner way too fast. Along with a bunch of other fractures, I shattered my scapula. My doc (whom I often rode with) told me later that, after seeing the x-ray of my shoulder, the radiologist in the hospital I'd been taken to went running around, waving the film at other docs, and shouting "Look at this! Look at this! I've never seen anything like this before!!"
He (the radiologist) later told me that scapulas (scapulae?) are almost impossible to break, because they kind of float rather than being firmly anchored, and that the only way he could imagine mine being shattered that way was for someone really big to have slammed it from behind with a baseball bat.
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10b4me
Mountain climber
Retired
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Couple of things. First, Sagan's team (Bora-Hansgrohe) has lodged a formal appeal to the Court for Arbitration of Sport (CAS) with "an urgent motion to suspend the decision" to expel Peter Sagan from the race. Apparently, the CAS has overruled the Tour bosses before, so this could be interesting.
I think the appeal has been denied.
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mooch
Trad climber
Tribal Base Camp (Kernville Annex)
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Topic Author's Reply - Jul 6, 2017 - 09:46am PT
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Just saw that from The Guardian. Total BS!!!
I love how they (The Guardian) stated the following:
"Sagan was kicked out of the Tour on Tuesday after elbowing Briton Cavendish off balance at the end of the fourth stage."
WTF?!?!?!?
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ms55401
Trad climber
minneapolis, mn
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what a joke
I'm going to start following sports with more integrity now, like dwarf-tossing and female mud wrestling
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WBraun
climber
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We all know real honest investigative journalism is dead in this lame day and age.
It's all just quick brainwashed soundbites.
Stoopid lame ass partisan Britons ......
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mooch
Trad climber
Tribal Base Camp (Kernville Annex)
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Topic Author's Reply - Jul 6, 2017 - 01:21pm PT
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LOL!!! Werner, you're always keeping it real.
How do you feel about the Welsh?
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Ghost
climber
A long way from where I started
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How do you feel about the Welsh?
Definitely second-class. Or, at least currently in second place.
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Brandon-
climber
The Granite State.
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I'm not reading anything you guys posted from today because I'm just now watching today's stage, but I have to say that I'm not sure what to think of Phinney's FaceTime episodes. Kinda funny, but, damn millenials!
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dee ee
Mountain climber
Of THIS World (Planet Earth)
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I guess the takeaway of the Sagan/Cavendish incident is that you can get DQ'ed if someone crashes anywhere near you, no matter who is at fault.
I'm not sure how that bodes for the future of racing.
It's very subjective.
Apparently it's up to a "jury" to decide, a French jury.
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dee ee
Mountain climber
Of THIS World (Planet Earth)
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Oh yeah.
Kudos to Aru, the Italian Champ, yesterday!!!!
Love that guy.
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dee ee
Mountain climber
Of THIS World (Planet Earth)
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...and last of all.
I love Taylor Phinney's video posts..although, he makes me feel OLD!
Nonetheless, the dude is cool.
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Chaz
Trad climber
greater Boss Angeles area
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He's definitely his father's son.
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WBraun
climber
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Apparently, it's up to a "jury" to decide, a French jury.
Yep .... a bunch stoopid moron French partisan biased dipshits.
Cav causes this sh!t all the time and has a huge history of this sh!t.
Cav is a total aszhole.
cavendish knocks the arm of veelers!! (tour 2013)
[Click to View YouTube Video]
It's a no brainer that Cav has been sent to the hospital for all those crashes he's purposely caused on others especially that criminal move he did in the Olympics.
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dee ee
Mountain climber
Of THIS World (Planet Earth)
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I loved how Calemejane was channeling his teammate Tommy Voeckler today with tongue out and head shaking!!!
I was a little gripped when he started cramping though.
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10b4me
Mountain climber
Retired
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Yep .... a bunch stoopid moron French partisan biased dipshits.
Cav causes this sh!t all the time and has a huge history of this sh!t.
Cav is a total aszhole.
cavendish knocks the arm of veelers!! (tour 2013)
pretty blatant. stoopid brit.
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Kalimon
Social climber
Ridgway, CO
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Cavs a little cry baby . . . Sagan is a real warrior.
The boring team Sky continue to hold the Tour hostage . . . can Contador or Quintana stir the pot and make this a battle?
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StahlBro
Trad climber
San Diego, CA
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Tomorrow will be epic
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10b4me
Mountain climber
Retired
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Tomorrow will be epic Should be interesting.
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Ghost
climber
A long way from where I started
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Should be interesting.
Wouldn't that be nice.
And on that note, here's a piece from the Velonews website today. Title is "Do boring, long stages belong in a modern Tour?"
You can read it at: http://www.velonews.com/2017/07/tour-de-france/boring-long-stages-belong-modern-tour_443050
Riding a big tour is one thing. Totally badass. Watching a big tour, on the other hand, is something that makes one thankful for "fast forward." The finish might be exciting, but five hours of 200 guys pedaling through the countryside is...
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rottingjohnny
Sport climber
Sands Motel , Las Vegas
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Looked like Veelers grabbed Cavendishe's arm and pulled him in causing the crash...?
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ms55401
Trad climber
minneapolis, mn
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five hours of 200 guys pedaling through the countryside is...
,,, foreplay
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Kalimon
Social climber
Ridgway, CO
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Looks like there is not much hope for Contador and Quintana after Stage 9. Aru shows the most promise to challenge Froome. Still a lot of riding to be done though and anything can happen, just ask Geraint Thomas.
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Q- Ball
Mountain climber
but to scared to climb them anymore
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I hope the BMC rider is okay. A few years ago my buddy was in the tour... Top guy on the team went down but they all had to keep riding.
He saw his wife cheering on the side, pulled over gave her a big kiss and hopped back on.
A French rider yelled above the cheers, " whatch out, the American has strength now!"
I love that!!!
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Darwin
Trad climber
Seattle, WA
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I'm not sure what we're doing about spoilers. Sorry if I give too much away.
I thought Dan Martin was one class act today. As far as I could tell he was the main guy successfully arguing to hold up when Froome had his mechanical, and yet when Martin gets taken out by "the event", no way his fault, nobody held up for him. F*#king A, here's to his grit to finish. His after race interview was the definition of stoic uncomplaining graciousness. And yes I hope to heck "the BMC" guy is OK.
Darwin
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Kalimon
Social climber
Ridgway, CO
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I was not aware of the heinous Richie Porte crash . . . total bummer, as he was a potential Froome rival. The field is thinning out at the top unfortunately. It sounds like he escaped with severe abrasions and fractured right clavicle and hip, neither of which will require surgery. He will be back next year for the Tour no doubt . . . these guys are tough.
Rest day tomorrow.
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Craig Fry
Trad climber
So Cal.
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I thought Dan Martin was one class act today. He has been very impressive this tour.
He just takes off the front over and over,
I hope the crash didn't take the spunk out of him.
Looks like Froome has it wrapped up
he's just too smart, too strong and too calculating for any real challenge
but it's far from over
Go Froome..!!
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ms55401
Trad climber
minneapolis, mn
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wanna see Quintana get off
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Darwin
Trad climber
Seattle, WA
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what ^wtf said.
oops not worthy of top of page, but I'm not pulling it!
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Kalimon
Social climber
Ridgway, CO
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Froome is a slippery guy . . . he will do what is best for Chris. I felt that there were some theatrics involved in this incident and was glad to see Uran ride away . . . too bad they let the yellow back in.
Remember when Contador rode away from Schleck as he dropped his chain? Andy was pissed off.
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crankster
Trad climber
No. Tahoe
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Aru wasn't going far, much ado about nothing.
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Srbphoto
climber
Kennewick wa
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Remember Lance waited for Ullrich when he crashed. The leaders waited for Lance when he crashed in a tour.
I think it's ok to go. How come it was ok for everyone to ride off when Froome was running up the road last year?
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10b4me
Mountain climber
Retired
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Great finish.
In regards to waiting/not waiting, in the old days it was called racing.
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BruceHildenbrand
Social climber
Mountain View/Boulder
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I covered the Tour in 2010 when Alberto Contador was accused of attacking when Andy Schleck dropped his chain on the Port de Bales. We were driving to our hotel that night when we passed the Team CSC hotel and lo and behold there was a mechanic out front working on Andy's bike(it was pretty easy to spot because it was yellow).
We pulled to stop, grabbed the video camera and ran over to talk to the mechanic. I asked him what had happened to Andy's bike. His response was that the bike shifted fine before the stage and shifted fine after the stage. Then he looked at me and said that I better talk to the team boss, Bjarne Riis, for an official statement. Heh, heh, heh. We had all we needed!
Clearly, Andy dropped his chain because of a shifting error. Contador shouldn't have had to wait because Schleck didn't know how to shift his bike.
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enjoimx
Trad climber
Yosemite
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Jul 10, 2017 - 07:57am PT
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Clearly, Andy dropped his chain because of a shifting error. Contador shouldn't have had to wait because Schleck didn't know how to shift his bike.
Uhh I think he knows how to shift his bike gear. He is riding the Tour de France. He has probably shifted gears many times Shifting a bike is super easy. Maybe it was just mechanical malfunction.
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Reilly
Mountain climber
The Other Monrovia- CA
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Jul 10, 2017 - 08:10am PT
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enjo, Bruce knows of what he speaks about, in spades.
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StahlBro
Trad climber
San Diego, CA
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Jul 10, 2017 - 08:43am PT
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Anyone can drop a chain if they try to downshift too fast at the wrong time.
I tend to think you wait if something happens that is beyond the riders control, like fan interference, moto's knocking riders over etc. Mechanicals and crashing are part of racing, so you don't wait.
I understand the 'beat the man at his strongest" mindset, but I think the unwritten "rules" need some revision.
I will probably get my membership in the Velominati revoked for saying this ;-)
Uran had a brave ride. Those are kind of things make the TdF such a great event.
Don't want to forget Dan Martin either. Wow
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TLP
climber
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Jul 10, 2017 - 10:57am PT
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Re stage 4, Demare committed a much more flagrant and dangerous line deviation than Sagan; he's the one that should have been DQed, if anyone. There's video of Sagan, just last year, making exactly the same tight against-the-barriers move as Cavendish and winning the stage, so there was room there, which he closed off in what looks to me as just racing. He definitely leaned over and took the space, but if that's a DQ, there would be at least a couple in any sprint finish. WB is right though, karma goes around then comes around.
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Dolomite
climber
Anchorage
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Jul 10, 2017 - 11:18am PT
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Bob Role said a cool thing about Richie Porte's crash: "Imagine jumping out of a car moving at 45mph in your underwear, wearing a styrofoam cup for a hat."
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BruceHildenbrand
Social climber
Mountain View/Boulder
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Jul 10, 2017 - 12:25pm PT
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Andy Schleck was running a non-conventional setup with his rear deraileur. He had substituted the normal pulleys which came with his SRAM Red deraileur with some oversized pulleys because someone supposedly did a test which showed that larger pulleys gave less rolling resistance. This made the already finicky shifting with SRAM Red even more problematic. You had to be very careful when you shifted to not drop the chain.
So, when Contador attacked and Schleck was in his small chainring, rather than shift up into the big chainring he decided to shift his rear deraileur to the smallest diameter in the cog in the back. This "small/small" combination is never recommended because of low chain tension and the chain came off. Andy should have known better. It was his fault.
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Cragar
climber
MSLA - MT
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Jul 10, 2017 - 12:58pm PT
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dang, cross-chained it eh?! One of the first things I learned when I got a geared bike. Why he would even go that route considering the loss of leverage when hammering and if need be, a rear switch is hella easier when sprinting?
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mooch
Trad climber
Tribal Base Camp (Kernville Annex)
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Topic Author's Reply - Jul 10, 2017 - 01:09pm PT
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Remember when Contador rode away from Schleck as he dropped his chain? Andy was pissed off. .
Sure do! Unfortunate as it was BUT Andy made an error in shifting. It was clear he was caught loading his small chainring. I've done it during a race, Sh*t happens. Now, if he had a DI2 shifter at the time, it might have been a different story. ;)
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mooch
Trad climber
Tribal Base Camp (Kernville Annex)
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Topic Author's Reply - Jul 10, 2017 - 01:13pm PT
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Re stage 4, Demare committed a much more flagrant and dangerous line deviation than Sagan; he's the one that should have been DQed,
Well, karma is a bitch for that French tard.......he missed the cut off time yesterday. He even struggled in the groupetto!! BYE BYE!! :)
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BruceHildenbrand
Social climber
Mountain View/Boulder
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Jul 10, 2017 - 01:27pm PT
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The 2010 Tour was a strange one indeed! It turned out that in Paris, the time Andy Schleck lost when he dropped his chain on the Port de Bales(a great climb, BTW) was the difference and he came second to Alberto Contador.
I always enjoyed interviewing Andy. He gave such heartfelt and genuine answers. I talked to him in Paris about losing due to dropping his chain and he said was not going to dwell on it. He felt that maybe he should have tried to take more time out of Contador in the mountains then it wouldn't have made a difference.
In an interesting twist of fate, Contador was DQed due to Clenbuterol and Andy ended up wining the race after all!
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dee ee
Mountain climber
Of THIS World (Planet Earth)
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Jul 11, 2017 - 09:33pm PT
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FUc that, no more waiting for Chris.
Attack.
Attack.
Attack.
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BruceHildenbrand
Social climber
Mountain View/Boulder
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Jul 11, 2017 - 11:03pm PT
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When Peter Sagan won one of his Tour stages in 2012 after he crossed the finish line he did a running impression which he called "Run Forrest, Run" from the movie Forest Gump. His Cannondale team came up with this video on that theme.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fHqpjawKk9w
I asked Peter to do a bit of a reprise of his finish line salute at the pre-season training camp.
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StahlBro
Trad climber
San Diego, CA
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Jul 12, 2017 - 08:27am PT
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What 's up with Alberto Crash-a-dor?
Geez
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Srbphoto
climber
Kennewick wa
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Jul 12, 2017 - 09:12am PT
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What 's up with Alberto Crash-a-dor?
Trek-Segafredo is making quite an impact at this Tour. Unfortunately, it's with the ground.
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mooch
Trad climber
Tribal Base Camp (Kernville Annex)
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Topic Author's Reply - Jul 12, 2017 - 10:21am PT
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Curious if Peter will represent his country again for 2020 in Tokyo. Double flatting that race had to been frustrating. Wouldn't doubt he'd medal in cross country tricycle!
[Click to View YouTube Video]
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dee ee
Mountain climber
Of THIS World (Planet Earth)
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Jul 12, 2017 - 07:16pm PT
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OMG, Bodnar held them off till the end (almost.)
He sat up for a few seconds at 1.1 km to go and then said F-it!
He put his head down and gave another insane kick and was passed at 400-500 m to go.
Bummer dude.
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Kalimon
Social climber
Ridgway, CO
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Jul 12, 2017 - 09:57pm PT
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Froome/Kittel Tour 2017.
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dee ee
Mountain climber
Of THIS World (Planet Earth)
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Jul 13, 2017 - 08:36am PT
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Bob D'A
Trad climber
Taos, NM
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Jul 13, 2017 - 11:10am PT
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Now the race begins...good stage today.
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10b4me
Mountain climber
Retired
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Jul 13, 2017 - 12:40pm PT
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Yes, it was. Froome may have lost the race today. We shall see.
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donini
Trad climber
Ouray, Colorado
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Jul 13, 2017 - 12:55pm PT
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This is the year for the Continentals.
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BruceHildenbrand
Social climber
Mountain View/Boulder
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Jul 13, 2017 - 02:24pm PT
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The final TT in Marseilles is only 22km long which means riders such as Bardet, Martin, Aru will likely lose 1:30-2:00 to Froome. That means that those riders still have some work to do in the Pyrenees and the Alps. The race just got a lot more interesting, not just because Froome lost time and the yellow jersey, but once a rider shows vulnerability his competitors gain some strength.
Let's hope that tomorrow there aren't any tacks on the road on the Peguere as there were last time they rode it.
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Kalimon
Social climber
Ridgway, CO
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Jul 13, 2017 - 05:28pm PT
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Yes . . . some drama to make things interesting again. The other GC will need to put some serious time into Froome before the TT.
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Mike Honcho
Trad climber
Glenwood Springs, CO
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Jul 13, 2017 - 05:46pm PT
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Literally unwatchable due to the commercial to race ratio. A shame..
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StahlBro
Trad climber
San Diego, CA
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Jul 13, 2017 - 06:19pm PT
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The 400M 20% grade to finish was a nice touch!
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BruceHildenbrand
Social climber
Mountain View/Boulder
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Jul 13, 2017 - 11:38pm PT
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^^^^^^^^
I used to attend the Health Net pre-season team camp. I think it was around 2005 or so and we were in Solvang at a big dinner for all the riders and sponsors. Over at one table there was a big ruckus going on. It appeared that a couple of the riders were really tying one on.
I remarked to one of the riders at my table that the merrymakers must be letting off some steam before the racing season starts. His reply was,"that's Greg Henderson and Hayden Roulston. They leave tomorrow for NZ to compete in their country's national championships." Ah, the Kiwis!
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Craig Fry
Trad climber
So Cal.
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Jul 14, 2017 - 08:03am PT
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What happened to Froome, it looked like he had a mechanical just below the finish
They might have discussed it after the race, but I missed that part
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10b4me
Mountain climber
Retired
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Jul 14, 2017 - 08:06am PT
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What happened to Froome, it looked like he had a mechanical just below the finish
I didn't hear anything about a mechanical. He just cracked.
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Bob D'A
Trad climber
Taos, NM
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Jul 14, 2017 - 08:37am PT
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Cantador stills has some legs and lungs left. Great stage.
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Kalimon
Social climber
Ridgway, CO
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Jul 14, 2017 - 08:53pm PT
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Excellent stage . . . number 13! Perhaps the tide has turned and the tour could see an upset. Uncertainty is the spice of life . . . bless the remaining riders.
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BruceHildenbrand
Social climber
Mountain View/Boulder
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Jul 14, 2017 - 10:21pm PT
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My guess is that one reason why stage 13 was so exciting was that because it was so short and everybody seemed to be going from the gun, the "robotizing" effect of race radios was minimized.
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drF
Trad climber
usa
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Jul 14, 2017 - 10:26pm PT
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Cantador stills has some legs and lungs left. Great stage.
WTF is Canatdor?...he still looks good?
Bob in on knobbin
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dee ee
Mountain climber
Of THIS World (Planet Earth)
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Jul 14, 2017 - 10:31pm PT
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Yes, what a fun stage and so fitting that Barguil won on Bastille Day!
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BLUEBLOCR
Social climber
joshua tree
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Jul 14, 2017 - 11:58pm PT
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It's some kind of Tour,,That's for shour!!!!
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drF
Trad climber
usa
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Jul 15, 2017 - 12:32am PT
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^^^^
Is that Cantador?? Did he win?
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Craig Fry
Trad climber
So Cal.
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Jul 15, 2017 - 07:26am PT
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I'm not sure if it was me, but yesterday's stage was the best Tour Footage ever.....
The angles and persistence of staying with the riders for longer sequences
and the downhills....
they are virtual roller coaster rides
my wife can't watch, she says it makes her car sick
I can't get enough
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StahlBro
Trad climber
San Diego, CA
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Jul 15, 2017 - 08:49am PT
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I feel bad for Aru. Astana just doesn't seem to be able to defend the jersey.
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10b4me
Mountain climber
Retired
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Jul 15, 2017 - 03:13pm PT
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I'm not sure if it was me, but yesterday's stage was the best Tour Footage ever.....
The angles and persistence of staying with the riders for longer sequences
and the downhills....
they are virtual roller coaster rides
my wife can't watch, she says it makes her car sick
I can't get enough
both thursday, and friday had excellent finishes.
I feel bad for Aru. Astana just doesn't seem to be able to defend the jersey.
Astana just doesn't have a team. Aru lost 24 seconds today.
looks like the race is Froomes's to lose.
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Darwin
Trad climber
Seattle, WA
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Jul 15, 2017 - 10:25pm PT
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I know Sky has as awesome a team as has ever been assembled, although Lance had some pretty darn good Spanish climbers supporting him.
But given the number of contenders within striking distance, the Alps and final TT upcoming and Froome having shown vulnerability, I don't think it's over. Boy I wish Landa could ride for himself! I have to admit, that Froome has grown on me. He's really shown spunk. D. Martin has to be one of the luckiest/un-luckiest person ever, he (along with the rest of them) has totally captured my admiration.
Bruce HB; I don't know, out of all of those below, is Froome likely to be the most powerful in the final, TT?
# Rider Name (Country) Team Result
1 Christopher Froome (GBr) Team Sky 59:52:09
2 Fabio Aru (Ita) Astana Pro Team 0:00:18
3 Romain Bardet (Fra) AG2R La Mondiale 0:00:23
4 Rigoberto Uran (Col) Cannondale-Drapac 0:00:29
5 Mikel Landa (Spa) Team Sky 0:01:17
6 Daniel Martin (Irl) Quick-Step Floors 0:01:26
7 Simon Yates (GBr) Orica-Scott 0:02:02
8 Nairo Quintana (Col) Movistar Team 0:02:22
(in edit: I'm wondering if Uran might be serious contender for Yellow in Paris, just 'cause I don't have clue how he TTs)
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BruceHildenbrand
Social climber
Mountain View/Boulder
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Jul 16, 2017 - 12:46am PT
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Darwin,
unfortunately, none of the other riders in the top 10 are very good time trialists compared to Chris Froome. Of all the GC contenders for major tours only Richie Porte(who crashed out on stage 9), Gerraint Thomas(who crashed out in stage 9) and Tom Dumoulin(who won the Giro and isn't racing) are in Froome's class.
Vincenzo Nibali is an OK time trialist but he's not riding. Alejandro Valverde(who crashed out on stage 1) used to be pretty good but he has slipped a bit in the past few years as has Alberto Contador.
BTW, it appears that the organizers tried to make this a Tour that others beside Chris Froome had a chance to win. Normally, the Tour has a couple of time trials in the 40km range. This year there are TT's of 15km and 22km. That's a significant difference and not by accident.
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rbord
Boulder climber
atlanta
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Jul 17, 2017 - 01:19pm PT
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Astana just doesn't have a team.
Did you see Valgren's interview? After learning that his team leader lost time and the yellow jersey to Froome, Aru's teammate said "good." With teammates like that, agreed, Aru doesn't have a team.
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Kalimon
Social climber
Ridgway, CO
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Jul 18, 2017 - 09:40pm PT
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Stage 17 will be the last opportunity for someone to dethrone Froome. I have to give Chris a huge amount of respect, even though I am rooting for a dark horse . . . is there anybody out there? The time gaps are close for the top GC as we say goodnight, perhaps tomorrow will bring a miracle.
Bye to Sky? Only the shadow knows.
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BruceHildenbrand
Social climber
Mountain View/Boulder
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Jul 18, 2017 - 10:24pm PT
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Interesting history about Wednesday's stage which finishes in Serre Chevalier(they used to hold a World Cup climbing competition there). In 1993 there was a stage very similar to this one that also finished in Serre Chevalier.
Back then, Miguel Indurain and Tony Rominger were the heavy hitters. In fact, they were so much better than everyone else that they made a secret pact for the stages in the Alps. Rather than beat each other up, they agreed that if they were together at the finish of the two big alpine stages that they would split the stage wins.
So, on the first day when they came into Serre Chevalier, Indurain, always the gentleman, let Rominger win. Unfortunately, on the next day's finish at Isola 2000, Rominger let his excitement get the better of him and when he came to the line with Indurain he won that stage, too. Obviously, there was not much that Indurain could do. News of such collusion between two supposed rivals would not have gone over well with the public. There is an epilogue to this story, but that' for another day.
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Darwin
Trad climber
Seattle, WA
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Jul 18, 2017 - 11:16pm PT
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Thanks Bruce.
I will not bring up doping, I will not bring up doping ... .
As an aside, I came close to idolizing Indurain back then.
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BruceHildenbrand
Social climber
Mountain View/Boulder
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Jul 21, 2017 - 08:23pm PT
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The final TT should be interesting. Going into the final weekend Froome has yet to win a stage. It is considered a bit of a letdown if the Tour de France winner doesn't win at least one stage.
Other than maybe Tony Martin and Primoz Roglic, Froome is probably the best time trialist still in the race. He is only has about 30 seconds ahead of Bardet and Uran, but both are so-so time trialists. But, even if those two don't think they can beat Froome, they are locked in their own private battle for second and third place on the podium so they both have motivation to dig deep.
They are all starting within four minutes of each other(2 minute intervals) so it will be difficult for Froome to gauge his effort since by the time he gets the first time check on his two main rivals he will already have been out on course right behind them.
So, does Froome try to ride a less risky, more controlled TT. Or does he look at all the factors and feel that he really can't especially if he wants the stage win as well as yellow. If Tony or Primoz smokes the course that might answer one question, but not the other, especially if someone like Uran finds some wings. It's should be great!
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10b4me
Mountain climber
Retired
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Jul 21, 2017 - 09:12pm PT
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Bruce, isn't the TT course a little technical? Might Froome be a little conservative?
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BruceHildenbrand
Social climber
Mountain View/Boulder
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Jul 21, 2017 - 11:11pm PT
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The course is highly technical. But, if Uran and Bardet are willing to take risks to try to win then the gap to Froome isn't big enough that Chris can afford not to take risks as well. And, if Chris has to take risks, then maybe he decides to go for a stage win as well to "legitimize" his tour win. Froome has enough days in yellow and stage wins, but is he really concerned that he needs to win at least one stage to really win the Tour?
If the start times for these guys were separated by 30 minutes like you might have in a prologue at the beginning of the Tour, then Froome, if he started after Uran and Bardet, could figure out what he needed to do to win. But, since they all start one after another, I am not sure the split times, unless they are really bad, will have any affect. They are all going to have to ride pretty flat out.
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Kalimon
Social climber
Ridgway, CO
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Jul 21, 2017 - 11:33pm PT
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As much as I have been a Froome detractor, I must give the man ultimate respect. He is the most probable winner of the Tour and has been for pretty much the entire ride. I expect him to win the TT and vanquish any doubts regarding his superiority. The early losses of Cav and Sagan had a huge impact on the sprint classification . . . the highs and lows for Kittel, wow. Kudos to team Orica for their "Backstage Pass" . . . a wonderful insight and tribute to all things Tour de France.
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drF
Trad climber
usa
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Jul 22, 2017 - 08:12am PT
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The course is highly technical.
L0L. Clueless. Lots of long, flat straightaways with a mini-climb
Froome will ride at 80% and increase his advantage. Bardet and Uran will ride to not lose their spot to Landa.
Froome is the epitome of "class act"
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StahlBro
Trad climber
San Diego, CA
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Jul 22, 2017 - 08:38am PT
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Bardet pulled himself inside out to stay on the podium.
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dee ee
Mountain climber
Of THIS World (Planet Earth)
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Jul 22, 2017 - 09:13am PT
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Pretty exciting finish for Bardet (and us) staying ahead of Landa by 1 second!
I knew Rigoberto would bump Bardet for 2nd but still hairy with his near dismount at the end.
I'm stoked for Bodnar and Bora since they got screwed in the first week.
I have a feeling the podium battle isn't over yet.
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BruceHildenbrand
Social climber
Mountain View/Boulder
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Jul 22, 2017 - 10:29am PT
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I think one of the reasons why the TT course didn't look very technical on the TV is that there were several sections, such as the descent off the Notre Dame de la Garde, where there was no TV coverage so you didn't see the technical nature of the course. Also, this course was on downtown, city streets and not country roads. Constant vehicle traffic can lay down a thin film of oil on the roadway. Lastly, there were many cobblestone sections, some in turns. If it had been raining cobbles and the oil would have been very treacherous.
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rottingjohnny
Sport climber
Sands Motel , Las Vegas
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Jul 22, 2017 - 10:35am PT
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drF... We'll give you an aero helmet and a fat tire bike with electric motor and turn you loose on the course.. : )
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BruceHildenbrand
Social climber
Mountain View/Boulder
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Jul 22, 2017 - 10:47am PT
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A little bit more about the technicalities of grand tour tt's:
In 2009, as a journalist, I was given the opportunity to ride the final TT at the Giro d'Italia just before the riders. The course was in downtown Rome and was designed to pass most or all of Rome's famous sites. There were numerous cobblestone sections, some off-camber. Not only were the cobblestones very polished by all the traffic, they were also slippery from oil dropped by vehicles.
I finished before it started to rain. I was talking to Jens Voigt just before he started and when it began to rain he turned to me and said something along the lines of 'anywhere but here.' If you remember, Denny Menchov, who ultimately won, crashed on the cobbles just before the finish.
At the 2009 Tour, I also got to ride the final TT. I was supposed to be filmed for a Lance Armstrong documentary, but the film crew got lost getting to the start and by the time they arrived the first rider was set to leave in just 15 minutes.
That close to the start, the officials wouldn't let the car out on course, but they let me go out telling me that if a rider caught me I had to pull over and wait for the TT to finish. At that time I had about a 10 minute head start and I was on my road bike, but I somehow manage to go fast enough on the 40.5km(25mi) course to get in before the first rider. Whew!
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Reilly
Mountain climber
The Other Monrovia- CA
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Jul 22, 2017 - 11:01am PT
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Geez, I don't even like to walk on the bloody cobbles, especially in my heels!
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10b4me
Mountain climber
Retired
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Jul 22, 2017 - 11:29am PT
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Sure, the guy who is a professional cycling journalist, who's attended more of these in person than most of us have even watched, who knows the players personally for decades is "clueless". Massive eyeroll. Thanks for reminding everyone that you're a d#@&%ebag though, "drF".
exactly what I was thinking.
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rottingjohnny
Sport climber
Sands Motel , Las Vegas
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Jul 22, 2017 - 05:12pm PT
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I can't wait to see Reilly's heels...
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SC seagoat
Trad climber
Santa Cruz, Moab, A sailboat, or some time zone
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Jul 22, 2017 - 05:53pm PT
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Skin suit. Luscious.
Susan
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BruceHildenbrand
Social climber
Mountain View/Boulder
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Jul 22, 2017 - 07:59pm PT
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dr F,
I have had a chance to talk to a few other journalists and we agree that while the feeling before the TT was that it was going to be a highly technical course, it turned out not to be so, other than maybe the descent off of Notre Dame de la Garde. I think the main reason here is that, traditionally, inter-city courses are technical because of all the factors mentioned previously, oil on the road, tight turns, cobbles, etc.
I think where we erred here, we rarely get to preview a TT course before we write about it, is that Marseille is a big city, in fact it is France's 2nd largest city with 850,000+ people. Because of that they have built a lot of wide roads to deal with the traffic and the organizers, for the most part, decided to use these roads.
Regardless, it was a great TT and to watch Romain Bardet go to the limit and come up with one second in hand was incredible! It was nice for some positive drama for the French! Hey, it is their race.
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drF
Trad climber
usa
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Jul 23, 2017 - 02:21am PT
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Never mind the mostly flat course profile and fine tarmac. My opinion was based on four different rider interviews(pre-race). They all said it was average technical.
Sometimes the "press" doesn't get it right.
You are correct, it was a great race.
I'm stoked for Bardet. He fought the good fight. By one second...W0W
To the rest of the whiner tacotards....
SMD from the backside
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Srbphoto
climber
Kennewick wa
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Jul 23, 2017 - 06:30am PT
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I was shocked to hear Phil mention the "L" word when talking about how many Yellow Jerseys Froome will have.
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rottingjohnny
Sport climber
Sands Motel , Las Vegas
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Jul 23, 2017 - 07:46am PT
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Bruce.. couldn't load the 81 tour American team that never was but found some interesting articles on George Mount and Phillipa York...thanks for your posts..
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BruceHildenbrand
Social climber
Mountain View/Boulder
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Jul 23, 2017 - 11:05am PT
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George Mount was one of the riders who started the American revolution in Europe along with Mike Neel, Jonathan Boyer and Greg LeMond. He lives in the Bay Area and still rides his bike. He's still a unique individual, always fun to be around.
Back in 1979 when Andy Hampsten and I were racing Superweek, Andy, then an 17-year old Junior racer entered the PAC Criterium with George. His only request was that he was going to get close to George at some point and could I get a photo of him racing alongside the famous George Mount. Little did we know at that time that Andy's accomplishments would far outweigh George's.
Philippa York (AKA Robert Millar) has some great insights into the sport of professional bike racing. If you ever come across something she has written it is definitely worth a read.
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mooch
Trad climber
Tribal Base Camp (Kernville Annex)
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Topic Author's Reply - Jul 24, 2017 - 02:18pm PT
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Looks like Bora is focused on Sagan prepping for the worlds in Norway for a shot at a "hat trick". No Vuelta but Eneco seems to be his next race. Speaking of Vuelta, Froomie is has a good shot at the Grand crown at Vuelta. Your thoughts Bruce?
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Brandon-
climber
The Granite State.
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Jul 24, 2017 - 02:23pm PT
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Anybody know what the rider turnout for the Tour of Utah is going to be? Any way to stream it? I really enjoyed watching the now defunct Pro Cycling Challenge in CO online. Hopefully the organizers in Utah do the same thing.
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Oldfattradguy2
Trad climber
Here and there
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Jul 24, 2017 - 04:14pm PT
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You should be able to stream it,
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BruceHildenbrand
Social climber
Mountain View/Boulder
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Jul 24, 2017 - 06:31pm PT
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Tour of Utah...I covered it last year and it was a really fun race for a journalist. Good racing, but pretty low key on the media side of things such as access to riders, start/finish locations, etc. Also, the scenery is off the hook! Too bad they are staying in Northern Utah this year. The scenery isn't as spectacular as southern Utah, but there are definitely more spectators. I am not at liberty at this time to comment on the race rosters.
Stage 2 has some good climbs near the end(North Ogden Divide(3mi of 10%) and Snow Basin Resort) and stage 6 has the traditional slog up to Snowbird. The organizers, Larry H Miller, have a nice deal with Fox so you should be able to catch the race, live or tape delayed, on a whole host of Fox Sports stations. Todd Gogulski and Steve Brown will be the main guys on the desk.
The Vuelta... it will be interesting to see how Froome recovers from the Tour. We saw what the Giro did to Quintana. Froome has never won the Vuelta when he has won the Tour. His best finish was last year when he was 2nd overall. Of course, it also depends on who shows up and wants to challenge Froome. Just about every grand tour GC contender has ridden either the Giro or Tour or both so it might depend on who can come down from a peak and refocus for the last grand tour. I remember talking to Richie Porte a month after the 2013 Tour. Richie had packed on 6 kilos. Needless to say he wasn't climbing all that well.
It will be nice to have Sagan back racing. Look for him to do something a bit crazy to signify his return to the pro peloton. Nothing disrespectful but some sort of meaningful gesture.
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ms55401
Trad climber
minneapolis, mn
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Jul 24, 2017 - 06:44pm PT
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Richie had packed on 6 kilos
no 'Merican has any idea what a kilo is, or will bother to google the conversion to a real metric
but some 'Mericans will bitch about your use of kilo
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BruceHildenbrand
Social climber
Mountain View/Boulder
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Jul 24, 2017 - 09:12pm PT
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There is a new 4-day stage race that will run in Colorado, the Colorado Classic, which will run August 10-13. Phil and Paul told me they are signed on to do the commentary so it looks like NBCSN or the Olympic Channel will be showing it.
You can see the details here:
https://www.veloramacolorado.com/colorado-classic/
The second stage, in Breckenridge, looks to be difficult. It incorporates the final few KM of the USA Pro Challenge course with multiple climbs and descents of Boreas Pass Road. The third stage, climbs to the Peak-to-Peak Highway at 9000', but the long descent back to Denver may nullify and advantage gained on the ascent.
Cannondale, BMC and Trek-Segafredo are all signed on. If they send some good riders it could be an interesting race.
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mooch
Trad climber
Tribal Base Camp (Kernville Annex)
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Topic Author's Reply - Jul 25, 2017 - 09:24am PT
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There is a new 4-day stage race that will run in Colorado, the Colorado Classic, which will run August 10-13. Phil and Paul told me they are signed on to do the commentary so it looks like NBCSN or the Olympic Channel will be showing it.
SIK!!!! Stoked to hear the news! Can't wait to check it out. Still hoping to drive up to Ogden and watch the TOU. One of my cycling mates from Temecula, Jon Hornbeck, rode for Holowesko|Citadel last year. Went to the Zion stage to cheer him and Carpenter on. Yep, pretty awesome when the stages were in So. Utah!
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BruceHildenbrand
Social climber
Mountain View/Boulder
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Jul 25, 2017 - 09:39am PT
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Jon Hornbeck is a great story. I used to announce the Etape du California where mere mortals get to ride a stage of the Amgen Tour of California. In 2011 it was the Claremont to Mount Baldy stage. The organizers had timing chips so they could award a KOM and QOM. Unfortunately, and for some reason I can never understand the timing always seems to be an issue. They can never get the timing correct.
At that time, Jon was very young and had just started racing. He was a strong climber and was the first person to finish the stage. But, the timing results had some other guy as the first rider in. I told Jon not to get upset and to just wait for a while as we sorted everything out. He was super chill and sure enough about 45 minutes later he was declared the winner.
I have followed his career ever since as he has worked his way up the ranks to become a pro. When Jon started racing the real Amgen Tour of California I suggested to Velo News that they do a piece on him, especially before the Mount Baldy stage with the human interest angle of him winning the Etape du California there years before.
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rockermike
Trad climber
Berkeley
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Jul 31, 2017 - 10:49pm PT
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Howard Stern interview with Lance...
I should add that I was one of the first guys on Taco and amongst my cycling buddies to call him out....way before it was official, and I still hate him for the way he treated his detractors. ... but he's 45 now with 5 kids and I find his reappearance in public interesting at least.
https://youtu.be/8qJ8slJ6n6Y
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mooch
Trad climber
Tribal Base Camp (Kernville Annex)
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Topic Author's Reply - Aug 1, 2017 - 07:01am PT
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Holloweski-Citadel did a great job on the lead out yesterday for Ty to win the stage at Tour Of Utah. Kinda bummed I couldn't go this year. I hope they go back to southern Utah again next year. The Zion/Bryce stages were amazing! 9 more days until the Colorado Classic. Looks like NBCSN will air it. Nice!
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rottingjohnny
Sport climber
Sands Motel , Las Vegas
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I had forgotten about Hampsten going with Banesto.. He must have been hired to work for Miguel...? What an honor to ride with Miguel... I read something about him hanging in the announciing booth at the tour one year and falling asleep ... His 32 bpm resting heart rate had to have something to do with his ability to nap on command...? Cool article Bruce...
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BruceHildenbrand
Social climber
Mountain View/Boulder
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Yes, Andy was hired to ride for Miguel, but it never happened due to some unforeseen circumstances. After riding with the team in Colorado, they invited me to the 1996 Tour de France to see Miguel win his record breaking sixth win. I couldn't make it which turned out to be good since Miguel didn't end up winning.
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mooch
Trad climber
Tribal Base Camp (Kernville Annex)
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Topic Author's Reply - Aug 7, 2017 - 11:51am PT
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Sagan did well during the Tour de Pologne. As usual, he took the overall Sprinters Jersey. Even shaved off his locks.....the new "Aero-Peter"!
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