OT: Tour of France.

[demorier]

Finally, some mountains. Was getting very bored with all those flat stages, the crashes were the most interesting thing happening.

[huub vink]

Its an odd Tour the France. After a week the number of people who can actually still win the Tour is already reduced to 3 or 4. Due to the crashes many favourites have all ready left the Tour. One Dutch rider Wout Poels, who fell in this major crash is still in intensive care. (torn liver, torn kidney, perforated lung and 3 broken ribs). Today Samuel Sanchez had to give up (broken collar bone and broken hand). Perhaps the worst thing for most of these riders is that they won't be able to go to the Olympics.

Cheers,
Huub

[Cazzie]

Actually there has only been three flat stages. The lumpy stages are often harder on a bike racer than the long climbs, there is no way to get one's rhythm, one is either screaming down a grade or climbing up a grade. They do not have to be steep. But for sure, the heads of state came to the front yesterday and cemented their positions today. Peter Sagan has been beautiful and animate. Had he not been fenced in by the crash Thursday, I feel he would have won on that slightly upgrade finish too. But the Tour takes more than sprint finishes, as exciting as they might be. One has to have the mountain discipline and the Time Trial discipline. It is a pity Fabian cannot climb mountains, he is such a beast alone. The surprise for me has to be Nibali, Evans and Wiggo are already noted as the heads of state this year. Let's see how good Nibali can do on a long TT, I feel he will fall from his podium position tomorrow.

I have NBC's All Access and watch the tour every morning live and without commercial interruptions, it is my vacation every July. It has been a fascinating tour so far and can only get better in the haute alpes. But this first week has been full of road carnage, lots of favorites are gone and many others riding wounded. Poor Sammy, he may not make the Olympics.

Caz

[demorier]

That Sky team looks so strong (earlier in the year to), I don't think they can be beaten this year. Probably ?

[demorier]

Sunday Stage 14. The highs and lows of sportsmanship. After some miserable wretch threw drawing pins or nails all over the roadway and started puncturing tires, the peleton was told to back off and cruise so the unfortunate ones could catch up...well done teams:)

[Cazzie]

They can credit Wiggo for that, other teams, especially Nibali's, wanted to go after Roland. But Wiggo said they could catch him after Cadel and the others caught up, he was right. There is a chivalry in cycling that you never take advantage of a top competitor, who has had a mechanical or a crash. Only in the last few kilometers can the group not wait up. Remember Lance Armstrong sitting up and holding the peleton after Jans Ulrich had plunged over a precipice. This is a given.

And hasn't Peter Sagan been a thrill? I expect that the only two jerseys really still in the fight are polka dots and white. But the Pyrenees are going to be most entertaining after tomorrow's rest day. There is always the chance that Liquigas-Cannondale will make multiple attacks for Nibali. The question is, what will SKY do if Wiggo is put into a spot of bother? Will they give Chris Froome the go-ahead?

The tacks had to have been strewn after the breakaway topped the climb. After race video showed tacks in the motorcycle and team and official car tires. It is a pity that an event so famous and so followed by true fans, has to be sabotaged by one or two Hooligans!

Caz

[cheezyflier]

afaik, cycling is the only sport that does that.

[demorier]

Even in some of the earlier lead up races Sagan looked very challenging...and so did the Sky team. Roll on the tour, the big mountains next.

[Cazzie]

Well, after today's stage I think we can safely say that barring a serious accident, the jerseys are set to ride into Paris; Wiggo in Yellow, Sagan in Green, Voeckler in Polka-Dot, Van Garderen in White, and Team Radio Shack in team Yellow. I love watching little Thomas Voeckler ride, he is so animate. He has more facial expressions than a blues guitarist. :icon_lol:

I have enjoyed the tour, but I think it was decisive the moment Wiggo went into Yellow. Team SKY has been so powerful in the way they could dictate the race, it has been like watching Armstrong at the height of Team U. S. Postal. The weather for the most part has smiled upon the tour and the views have been fantastic on my 27-in monitor in Hi-Def via NBC's All Access coverage. I have not heard from Dominique, but his country has shown all of its beauty in this year's tour. And the people have turned out in the thousands, everywhere. Too bad about the Hooligans who threw the tacks out, I hope some day they get their just reward.

Tomorrow will be one for the sprinters left I feel, especially Mark Cavendish and Andre Greipel. The sprinter's teams will not let a breakaway get off too far tomorrow, they will chase and catch them inside the last 20 Kilometers. Look for Wiggo to smoke the 53-K TT Saturday, the last TT suited Froome better, as there was more climbing; Saturday's TT is mesa flat. With Tony Martin and Fabian Cancellera gone, it is in Wiggo's hand. I think Tejay Van Garderen has a good chance of finishing second to Wiggo, but he will loose big time. Sunday, Cavendish is dreaming of Sunday along with tomorrow; if he can win both, he will be the all-time stage victory champion in the Tour de France with twenty-three victories under his belt.

Caz, living in France for the time being. :salute:

[demorier]

Been a lot of rain and cooler in mainland Europe lately...so they have been lucky with dry weather and not much wind. I would think the Sky team are headed for some departures later in the year. Can't see the likes of world champion Cavandish, along with Froome, Port and Rogers along with a couple of others in other tours just being content to be Wiggin's water boys after this tour.

[Cazzie]

I think it was a concerted effort on part of SKY to load the team for a Brit victory and it worked. I don't know how good Froome would be without the others from SKY backing him as well, but he is definitely a team leader if he can get a team behind him. I think Wiggo will be content with being the first Brit to win the tour. Cav looked angrily happy today, he bolted like the missle he is purported to be today. The French need to do something like SKY and build a French team around that young Pinot like the Brits did around Wiggins. Cadel should retire, his game is up as a leader. BMC would do well to sign Tejay to an extended contract.

Caz

[demorier]

Got to agree about Evan's....still some front running in the old dog yet, but heading to the end of his tour leader days I think.

[Cazzie]

IMHO, Cadel was the first person to win the Tour de France since Greg Lemond without doping. Even if they were to strip Armstrong of his titles, they would have to strip every winner from 1991 forward to 2011, they all doped to some extent from Indurain on until Cadel won last year. I dare say Cadel ever doped, he's one gritty bloke. I really think Wiggins would have won last year minus the broken collarbone in Stage 7. It would have been an interesting race had he remained in health last year. I think he is the deserving wearer of the yellow Jersey this year and he has done it proud, defended it well, and won a stage to boot, maybe two stages after tomorrow. And I hope Cav can get his number third of this tour on Sunday.

Caz