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Tour de France 2014 |OT| Riding Around 101

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It's like one man versus boys. No one else is even close.

Edit: Maijka has to finish 2nd to Nibali to win the KOtM or Nibali does. Showdown!

Edit2: 3rd will be fine.
 

LayLa

Member
Oof Valverde off the podium places, can't remember the last time a Frenchman was on the podium.
Another great ride from Majka, he's got a great future ahead
Was very amused when Kirby & Kelly on Eurosport were tiptoeing around the question of where it all went wrong for Andy Schleck, without mentioning that his dip in form coincides with his brother getting caught doping. Not that there is any connection there of course *cough*.
 
They didn't give up, they crashed out of the race.

You could make a semi-reasonable argument that Contador's crash was his own folly, and a result of his inability to compete in previous stages. I don't remember circumstances of any of his earlier crashes. Tenuous, but not entirely unreasonable.
 

waypoetic

Banned
I wonder what he means by cut-throat in regards to the tour... I mean, those two things (cut-throat and the tour) makes me think of guys like Armstrong.
 

someday

Banned
Wiggins saying he's not going to ride a Tour again and he's pretty much done with road racing, that it's "cut-throat" with "no kind of loyalty".

Can't say I blame him. I'm pretty sure this was a somewhat veiled reference to Team Sky, Froome, and Brailsford.

As for this year's Tour, I was really pumped for this but with Cav, Froome, and Contador gone, I've lost a lot of interest. I'm happy that there has been a nice race for the white and polka dot jerseys, and that the podium placings have added some spark but the last thing I wanted to see was another year where the yellow jersey was all but decided before the first rest day. The Vuelta should be good this year but it's not televised here (Comcast customer).

Congrats to Nibali but I will continue to wonder if he would have looked this amazing in a field with a healthy Froome and Contador. That said, his performance on the cobbles impressed the hell out of me.
 

Tugatrix

Member
I wonder what he means by cut-throat in regards to the tour... I mean, those two things (cut-throat and the tour) makes me think of guys like Armstrong.

the team replaced him for Froome as soon as they realized Froome was better, that was a bit disloyal, but that's how cycling really his.
 

Loris146

Member
THe last italian who won the TDF was Pantani in 1998... 16 years ago ... 1998 was such an amazing year... Anyway this Nibali is brilliant!
 

Joni

Member
Can't blame Wiggins. Team Sky saw he was doing quite good while Froome lost it completely in the Critérium du Dauphiné. They're reaping what they're sowing. They have lost Cavendish, they have lost Uran, they will lose Wiggins. And it is clear Wiggins doesn't care, he has his fat contract and he is getting old. He'll probably stop in 2016 anyway.
 

Pacbois

Member
Let's hope he makes it because he sure deserves it. In the olden days, too many typical time trial drivers got beaten by the top guy in the yellow jersey race.

Don't think Nibali or Valverde will be able to get him. Don't even think they'll be on the top 5.
 

avaya

Member
This is just shit compared to the Pure EPO days. They are so much slower now. Like they're human.

Armstrong with VO2max of the Gods at Sestriere, those were the days.
 

Pacbois

Member
This is just shit compared to the Pure EPO days. They are so much slower now. Like they're human.

Armstrong with VO2max of the Gods at Sestriere, those were the days.

So glad those days are over. I remember the Alpe d'Huez TT in '04, summit of the bullshit years.
 
So glad those days are over. I remember the Alpe d'Huez TT in '04, summit of the bullshit years.

I though it was great to see all the others, bar Nibali, weaving left and right on the final mountain stage. They were all done.

Valverde nowhere in the TT, French 2nd and 3rd, order still to be decided.
 

Pacbois

Member
I though it was great to see all the others, bar Nibali, weaving left and right on the final mountain stage. They were all done.

Valverde nowhere in the TT, French 2nd and 3rd, order still to be decided.

Nibali is not that surreal in the climb, his average seems to be 417 watts, far from the really dubious 440~ watts of Froome last year.

And OMG a French 2 and 3, this is so gooood.

[Edit] Péraud is a monster, he might finish in the top 3 of the TT.
 

kottila

Member

Pacbois

Member
Well that was a good day :D

I'm going to see the peloton pass in the Paris suburbs tomorrow, i'll try to take some pics for you guys.
 
Well that was a good day :D

I'm going to see the peloton pass in the Paris suburbs tomorrow, i'll try to take some pics for you guys.

That'd be awesome to see!

I was in Switzerland in 1988 and have some slides (yeah, I'm old) of the race -- both in the city (Lausanne) and in the mountains to the southeast of there. I'll try and get them scanned in.
 
Vive la france! Really happy for Peraud, what a monster effort. Especially after last year's disastrous TT. Deserved win for Nibali punctuated with yesterday's final acceleration up the mountains.

Feel bad for TJ -- lost a minute due to a crash on stage 7 and bonked on the first day in the Pyrenees, so he probably would have finished 2nd were it not for those instance. Of course, if we play what if, does Nibali still win with Froome and Contador in the race? If anything, next year's Tour is shaping up to be a doozy now that Valverde is going to be replaced with Quintana. Nibali, Froome, Contador, Quintana, Talansky... plus this year's podium finishers. Is there a salivating emoticon?

Too bad Contador isn't racing this year's Vuelta, but better to heal properly then worry about another grueling 3 week race vs Froome and Quintana. That should be a nice showdown starting next month.

And as Oleg Tinkov said, next year they'll be competing for both yellow and green... all aboard, Sagan!
 

kottila

Member
Yeah, it's not like Sagan relies on his team all that much. Cavendish pretty much needs a team built around him.

Well, he hasn't won a single stage this year and has been struggling for wins in the other races too, mostly brcause of lack of help from a team.
 

Joni

Member
Well, he hasn't won a single stage this year and has been struggling for wins in the other races too, mostly brcause of lack of help from a team.

He wouldn't need help from his teammates if he was as good as last year. He never had a team, but he used to win. He needs a team that will whip him into shape and that reminds him people actually pay attention to him because he wins so much and he is almost universally disliked for his antics when winning. Cancellera doesn't have a team either that could help him in his races aside from Devolder, he gets looked at too, but he lives for racing. The problem is, is Tinkov the man to whip him into shape? He can't control Contador, so how could he control Sagan? I wouldn't compare Sagan to Cav/Kittel/Greipel, he isn't a pure speed sprinter anymore. He is a mix of Cancellera/Boonen and Gilbert.
 

waypoetic

Banned
La Course! What an awesome race. I was hoping my swedish ladies would've ranked higher, especially Emma Johansson (finished 8th) but I'm glad they all were there and partook.
 

someday

Banned
Is the women's race televised in the US? Don't see anything on NBC or NBCSN.
The only women's race I've ever seen here is the world championship. But that might have been on Universal Sports channel and they were pretty good for pro cycling all around. I miss it.
 
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