Velominati Super Prestige: 2011 Le Tour de France
While a good number of Velominati get all uppity around May and make rash statements like their preferred Grand Tour is the Giro d’Italia, because it has more and bigger climbs, beautiful white roads and crazy tifosi, there’s no denying that Le Tour de France is the real grandaddy of them all.
Admit it, July trumps May every time.
Maybe it’s because of the greater media attention, or the fact that there’s bound to be a controversy, but I for one look forward to this time of year with a fervour that has myself and others residing in the lower half of the world consuming inhuman amounts of caffeine and staving off sleep deprivation for 21 days on end, without question or cause for concern. It’s all about the bike (race) and nothing else really gets a look in. Job? Ah, we can do that blurry-eyed and with concentration levels that are probably below safe standards if operating heavy machinery. Or even computers. In fact, operating a computer becomes the central task of the day, as we check results, reports, the topography and distance of the next stage, and of course our VSP standings.
Which brings us to the Blue Riband event on the 2011 Velominati Super Prestige; Le Tour de France. Who will be resplendent in the Maillot Jaune after three weeks of high-pressure tipping, rest-day swaps and bonus stage picks? Have we seen the last of Steampunk’s yellow reign of terror? It’s time to peak, to climb well for your weight, and move Sur La Plaque to the top of the VSP. Study the guidelines (with a grain of salt, as whatever we say here overrides the guide, so ask if you’re not sure), respect the Piti Principle, and enjoy the next three weeks of the greatest show on earth. As usual, get your picks in by 5am Pacific time on Saturday morning. If you wait until the last moment and bugger it up, don’t come crying, just wait until the first rest day with all the others who pulled a Delgado.
Brett’s Take:
As a Keeper, my own tips don’t count to any jerseys or prizes, so this Tour I think I’ll tip with my heart rather than my head; it’s let me down enough this season anyway, so any ‘logic’ or ‘knowledge’ is to be discarded and replaced with ’emotion’ and ‘taking a stab in the dark’. In fact, I might even target the KOM this time around, try and get in some long breakaways and pick up points over the smaller cols while none of the big contenders are paying any real attention. Yeah, channel the spirit of JaJa, Reeshard and the Chicken. Better get me some juice.
Taking the heart over head approach, I have to say that this is going to be the year of an upset. It’s there for Cadelephant to take. The cards are all falling for him; Cont Of The Highest Odor will fade in the last week, spent from his Giro and without a reliable supply of prime beef to call upon; Grimplette, while he may have been foxing in Switzerland, just doesn’t have the firepower to match it with Cuddles or COTHO against the clock, and hasn’t got the mental capacity to attack in the mountains. Wiggins, Gesink, Grimpelder… they’ll be fighting for scraps.
It’s a three horse race, this one, but at last count there’s only three steps on a podium.
Marko’s Take:
Recently on these pages we’ve at once lamented the loss of the all-rounder GC contender and derided the formulaic predictability that “well-rounded” riders in the modern peloton employ to win races. All the names at the top of the Giants of the Road list, however, excelled at one thing, winning the biggest sporting event in the world. But it isn’t climbing prowess, time trialling efficiency, tactical sense, and winning ability alone that endear riders to us. If it was it would be way easier and really boring to be a cycling fan. So what is the difference between a guy like say, LeMan and a guy like Armstrong? Panache. What we’ve lost isn’t a type of rider but a style of rider. Rather what we’ve lost is panache. If, in the modern day, being a douchenozzle or belladonna means panache, so be it. But if doping scandals and bro-mances make you yawn, keep in mind there is a lot of bike racing going on in le Grand Boucle.
So I ask, where’s the panache as far as GC contenders go? Cuddles (may have blown his panache wad last year), Le Petit Grimpeur (no panache), Sammy Sanchez (panacheicito), Basso (panached-out), Horner (Mcpanache), JVDB (panache-a-be), CVDV (pa-crash), Veino (panachenozzle), and Ryder (trying to get all the Canadian panache that Don Cherry has been hogging for the last 30 years). For me, other than Cuddles, Veino, and Ryder it’s hard to get really excited about any of the GC contenders. But alas, I will not vote solely with my heart like my Aussie bro in New Zealand. I will do my best to garner points for no other reason than pride as I don’t get shit for winning either.
So then, now that I’ve gotten all pessimistic about the GC, what am I looking forward to? Panache, fucktards. I wanna see Faboo tow Frandy through the TTT for Leotard Schleck (thanks Dr C) and then make some perfect amount of dumb remark afterward. I wanna see Cavenisgrowingonmedish win some sprints. I wanna see Farrar beat the Manx Mouth in some sprints or cry trying. I wanna believe in the Rainbow Jersey again. I wanna see if Tomeke still has what it takes. I wanna see Jens hurt EVERYBODY. I wanna see some Russian or Spanish dude I’ve never heard of have the ride of his life and shed some tears on the podium, and I wanna see Gilbert on a long solo break on his birthday get himself a stage win and maybe even the yellow jersey for a bit.
The reason this race is so cool is there are so many races within the race. Sure, you betcha, get drawn into to GC drama but don’t lose sight of the forest for the trees. There’s a shit-ton gonna happen in the next three weeks and it’s gonna be good.
Gianni’s Take:
Burned from the all too predicable days of Pharmy, I just don’t care that much about the yellow jersey, Contador or a Schleck – ahhhh, who cares, skinny little bastards. I’m all in for the drama hidden within each day’s race. A stage win in the Tour can make a rider’s career and every stage has unscripted drama: Stuey O’Grady finishing the stage within the time limit, riding in from 100km out with a broken collar bone. Or Magnus Backstead riding in by himself, dropped in the small mountains, finishing beyond the time limit, his number peeled off his jersey and he is ruined. These things happen every day in the Tour.
I like a good spoiler, like Eros Poli on Mount Ventoux, or the spoiler small break that stays away when the last 40km is a high speed tailwind run, ruining a day for the sprinters. I like Rik Verbruggen, flat back, so aero on his bike, hauling ass, a crazy solo bid for glory. I want to see more of that. I would be thrilled to see one of the Garmin roulers win a stage, and I’ll be thrilled if HTC doesn’t win the TTT.
I can schleckulate about a few things: unless Contador and Cavendish get their front wheels tangled up together resulting in a horrendous career threatening crash, both Andy Schleck and Tyler Farrar are doomed. I’m sorry, Andy can’t go fast unless it’s a steep hill (up) and no one is as good a sprinter as Cav, by a lot. Then again, if my schleckulations were worth anything, I wouldn’t be down in the boggy hole that is the low end of the VSP results.
Frank’s Take:
Every year, it happens. Every single year. It has a bitter taste, Disappointment. It sits on the front of your tongue like a small black weight that is surprisingly heavy for its size. Even though you’re not swallowing it, the taste spreads throughout, slowly – into your jaws first, then the rest of your being.
With one exception, I have never had my chips down for a rider who ended up winning – not since 1990, when I was all-in for Greg LeMond. 1991-1995 was Indurain: I favored first Bugno, then Rominger. 1996: Virenque. 1997: Virenque. 1998: Pantani; it was a long shot, but the awesome little dude pulled it off for once in my life. 1999: Zulle. 2000-2004: Ullrich. 2005-2006: Basso. 2007: The Chicken. 2008: Frank Schleck. 2009-2010: The Grimplette. But I continue to favor the dark horse because I know that when I am redeemed, it will be glorious beyond articulation.
This will be that year. Not because I will change my tactic, but because this is the one for les Fréres Grimpeur. It’s a hilly enough race with enough uphill finishes – we all know the skinny boys have a challenge when the road points down. (You’d really think that with all that practicing they do going uphill that they’d occasionally get a chance to practice going down one as well, but those boys descend like first-year amateurs.) Bertie blew the guns at a very difficult Giro and all the Spanish Beef in the world can’t help you recoup from that kind of effort in time for a similarly difficult Tour. Cuddles is a pipe dream borne from the understandably optimistic thoughts from our antipodal brothers and sisters in Oz and Newz. Wiggo, Vande Velde, Gesink, and Van den Broek will all learn how hard it is to pull out a good Tour ride for a second (or first) time when the pressure is truly on.
I’ve also vowed not to get caught up in my propensity to dwell on the fact that Contador should not be in the race. The fact that a rider who failed a dope test in last year’s Tour has been allowed to start is a reflection of the ineffectiveness of Cycling’s governing bodies, not on Bertie. True, I hate him and would be happy to see him not start, but if I were in his shoes, I admit that would start if I was allowed to. And, lets face it: Andy’s win will mean more when it comes with the defeat of Alberto than with a nonstart.
If you look at the sprint of today, it almost looks like Greipel is bending his wheel. That power…. and major gun envy.
@Marko
Sour grapes.
@ChrisO
I think it’s possible. Frank made a great comment recently that is my new guiding principle:
If I believed the conventional wisdom on bike fitting, I’d be riding a 66cm frame with 250mm cranks and riding in the Sit Up and Beg position, wondering why cycling sucks so much.
Grasshopper must seek his own path out of bike fit darkness.
Those words of wisdom from Frank are actually what got me started really looking into my fit and I’ve also come to the conclusion my frame is a couple sizes too large and my cranks a bit too long.
@drsoul
It’s by no means the first time people have commented on Voeckler’s self-obsessed riding and his publicity hunting style. Many French riders in particular seem to think he’s a bit prone to putting his own interests ahead of the unwritten rules of the peloton. But who cares? He is who he is, and who he is is pretty exciting to watch. Allez, Tommy V!
@Gianni
@Marko
@Oli
My take on Veockler’s “self obsessed” riding is that:
i) he wins races by getting in breakaways;
ii) the longer a breakaway survives, the more likely it is to fall apart (ie. the only time breakaway artists don’t end up attacking each other is when the bunch catches them);
iii) maybe Voeckler’s relative strength allows him to flee the protection of the breakaway earlier than others – so he is seen as the fella who breaks the break; and
iv) its a fucking race. Despite all the unwritten rules about teamwork and alliances, there is one over-arching rule. Do anything you can within the rules to win the race.
Allez Tommee!
As to the points around bike fit above, there is an interesting little bike auction going on right now – Cadel Evans’ BMC that he rode at last year’s World Champs. Cadel is apparently 1.74cm. The size of the BMC, 50cm. Conventional sizing for someone of that height (like me) would see a bike of 53-54cm.
Maybe Cadel likes the smaller sizes as it is the only way he can get his front end low enough…
@Marcus
Re: Cadel’s bike.
Note the 140mm stem as well
@Ron
You can follow Oss’s vital stats (along with those of Jeremy Roy and some others) live here: http://data.srmlive.de/TDF/
Cav and the Cav-nots.
Man that long shot of the peleton passing under the flamme rouge in the rain and mist gave me the chills.
@xyxax
Yeah, and his genuine salutes and excitement at wining make it much more palatable…hate to say it, but I’m starting to come around to the little guy. Is he growing up?
@Marcus
Lol..Cadel might not be very tall but he’s not 1.74 cm. Though from now on I am going to always think of him as such..lol.
@frank
Even with all his experience as a pro and amazing talent, I have to remind myself that I have T-shirts older than he is. Maintaining that youthful exuberance and genuine-ness while dropping the adolescent dickishness is not a needle that everyone can thread. Good on him.
awkward metaphor alert…
@paolo
Imagine how good his power to weight ratio would be if he was!
Am veeeeeery excited about Luz Ardiden. My prediction – Frank Schleck may just take the yellow tonight as he and Andy ride hard on the back of Contador without trying to attack. Cadelephant may lose 5 or so seconds in the drag to the line but will stay close.
Think both Schlecks will be protected riders for now, ie. you won’t see Frank riding tempo for Andy just yet. Reckon jury could still be out on whether Andy is sole leader given how mediocre he has been this year.
And Berty just might not be able to crack them – yet…
Just learned that John Gradet did not started this morning so i am calling out the piti principle
Go things wrong with the piti principle. just asking to be able to swap john Gradet as he DNF’ed
@Marcus
It’s a pretty impressive effort from the guy who initially paid over $15k AUD (that’s about $1m to you Yanks now) to buy the bike in an auction, to now be raffling it off for another charity of his choosing.
For those interested, the tickets to the raffle are $50 AUD & can be purchased here.
Win me a bike
@paolo
I would have thought he was a bit shorter, too. but his bio on BMC site says 1.74, as do a few other sources. Any idea how tall he is if not 5’8″?
“I’m so happy Feillu is going to withdraw after today’s stage.”
@Blah
I think @Paolo was more referring to the fact that it’s unlikely that the Cadelephant only stands at 1.74 centimetres, metres may well be correct but cm’s may be underselling him somewhat.
@Godsight
You’re on. Change him up by 5am tomorrow Pacific time. Sorry for the short notice.
@Marcus
I love that prediction, but you already know that. I wish I had a better handle on the passage of time this week for a VSP, but we’ll do a sub-VSP for the next stage.
I am torn between wanting the Schlecks to twist the knife on Bertie and put him another 30-40 seconds back and wanting them to just sit in and maintain and save their strength for later.
They’ve got to still be on Andy; Fränk has a track record of weakening in the last week…
@frank
yep they still have to be thinking Andy – but they can’t yet bet the house on him by having Frank ride hard tempo to set up an Andy attack (and thereby see Frank crack after he puts in the big effort).
They still need to keep Frank close to GC for extra options…
The other part of my prediction (although this bit is more hope than conviction), Cadelephant stays in touch with Schlecks on GC, Contador can’t get away and Cadel breaks Frandy in the TT to erase the demons of Sastre and Contador. YES!!!!!!!!
@Oli
@Marcus
I get that Voeckler’s known as self-absorbed with regard to his own race results. And I definitely believe there should be sportsmanship in sports. But…yah, it’s a race and when it’s on, it’s on, right?
But I believe this portion of the thread was with regard to it appearing that Voeckler accelerated after the crash and Flecha’s feelings about that. I don’t think he accelerated, per se. The video seems to show him slowing enough to allow them to get back in the break. The reality at that point is that the break was in real jeopardy of being caught (in their minds) and that it was really not the time to slow down for anyone or anything. Voeckler slowed down earlier for the break to reform and he pulled the guys all the way to the finish until Sanchez, who saved all his energy and really never took any pulls at the front of the break, made his move. To me, THAT should get a thread of it’s own. Sanchez wheel sucking until the end and then making a move to win the stage, with that sad thumb-sucking, baby belly victory “salute”.
It amazes me that we as a society believe that Contador and Voeckler and anyone else who seizes an opportunity in a race, particularly at a critical moment of said race, is an asshole deserving of our scorn while those who suffer at the hands of this “strategy” receive our sympathy. Flecha (and Hoogerland) got hit by a car. That sucks, really. And they should be angry and do whatever they can under French and International law should they be effected financially or otherwise (long-term or short) as a result of the driver’s inexcusable actions. But that’s not Voeckler’s fault. He’s in a race involved in a break that is in danger of being caught. You make a break for it hoping to not be caught. He has a chance to win the race (stage). And it’s Le Tour de France!!! Game On!!! Allez, Tom V!!
FWIW, I would have dropped Schleck. It’s the Tour. Yes, I would have apologized later. I would have said something like “Andy, I know there’s an unwritten code. And you would expect me to slow down or wait until you fixed your mechanical. That’s a tough break, breaking down at that critical moment. Any other time, any other moment? OK, maybe I wait. That moment, that time? Had to drop your ass. Don’t talk to me, talk to your mechanic…and HTFU.”
@drsoul
agree with everything you say except for the bit about Sanchez (although his victory salute only ranks behind Sastre and the dummy in Tour Patheticality). Sanchez did what you would expect when you have a guy in the break who is going to get the GC lead. Sanchez had to ride selfish and let Voeckler do all the work because if he contributed and somehow didn’t have enough at the end to win, he would have been rightly pilloried for riding stupid.
I’m the first to say that it’s impressive and exciting to see a sprint finish and the way a team lines up to send their sprinter to the line (Team Sky, HTC Highroad, etc). But am I the only one that feels like the Tour could (and does) get a bit boring if and when Cavendish and his teammates put the same plan in place for every sprint stage…and it succeeds 95% of the time?!?
I sure was hoping a team with a great sprinter other than HTC Highroad (Hello, Garmin…Hello, Team Sky…) would work to get in position. Seemed only Omega Pharma Lotto had a stake in getting to the front (both for Greipel and Gilbert). It’s almost like the peloton says “Well, Cav’s got this one. Nice ride, boys. See you in the morning!”. Is HTC really that good to pace-set and simply muscle out all other teams from forming a lead out train? Sigh.
Thanks Frank
VSP PICKS:
1. Brother grimpeur younger
2. D.Cunego
3. Cadel Elephants
4. Brother grimpeur elder
5. S.sanchez
@drsoul
and by the way, Sanchez is a MASSIVE chance to get hold of race lead tonight…
@drsoul
Being relatively new to the sport (3 years, aside from the idiosyncratic young farmboy cyclocrossing before it had a name), the gentlemen’s rules are very interesting to me.
At what point do you decide being a gentleman is over and step out? How is being a gentleman even defined? Is it giving every effort to be fair? This is not a rhetorical question. I’m genuinely curious to people’s answers.
What I mean is, if one was a gentleman to its bitter end, one would allow someone else the glory and the win at most opportunities, no? The gentlemen’s rules are about making it an “honest” win, so another way to put this question: at what point is it really a fair fight?
“Andy, mi amigo, did you sleep alright last night?”
“Actually, Alberto, no I didn’t. My room was too warm, and Frank was snoring.”
“Ah, si. I take it easy today then to be fair.”
This is where wisdom, common sense, context and historical precedence come to play, I suppose, especially in sport, and most especially our lovely sport of cycling.
“Don’t attack on a mechanical.” Is that any mechanical? What if it’s unknown whether the mechanical was the rider’s fault? They can’t stop and have a quick committee meeting about it.
“So-and-so had a wreck; we ought to slow up.” They aren’t really in GC contention, though. Well, they might have been were it not for the wreck…
The countless recesses of murky gray is what makes it so much fun and allows us to sit around debating endlessly, though, and that’s what makes it so awesome.
@Marcus
Agreed. Depending on form he might hold it for while, too.
@Marcus
Yes, correct, there is that. Phil Liggett suggested during the race commentary early during the break that Sanchez “may be conserving energy for the finish” and, sure enough, he was. I suppose I shouldn’t have much of an issue with that, should I? Yet I do. And it was quite different from today’s (Stage 11) break, which had all cyclists taking pulls to keep the break away from the peloton. So, gamesmanship was certainly in play on the part of Sanchez, for the stage and, perhaps, for the overall Tour. A smart, strategic move.
Should he get the race lead tonight, will he hold it for long? I don’t know. I wouldn’t put odds on him.
@drsoul
I don’t think he’s an asshole! And I wasn’t making any judgements on what happened after the crash, in fact it looked to me like TV did all the right things. I was just saying what I’ve read and heard about him over several years. The word from my friends who work in the scene was that ever since he took yellow in ’04 he matches Virenque for selfish ego, and in several races that has been evident. But, as I said in my earlier post, I don’t care a bit – I like watching him race.
As for Contador being an asshole, it wasn’t the Shleck mechanical that made me think that, in fact I think Contador did the right thing in response to Andy’s attack.
Lastly, I agree with Marcus that LL Sanchez rode a good race. He didn’t need to work, TV did. Easy.
@earnest
dunno where you got the idea that there are “gentlemen’s rules” in cycling.
It is a sport deeply rooted in the working class and the idea of old fashioned professionalism – right down to “buying” victories, etc. Cycling has always been a money game, long before other sports went down this path. The opposite is gentlemen “playing” amateur sports.
Any “rules of the peloton” have grown as simply a circumstance of competing riders with temporarily common goals, eg. two riders from different teams forming an alliance in a break. Same thing with two teams chasing a break together. But those alliances are always temporary.
Other “rules” such as not attacking in a feed zone or in the event of a mechanical are only followed because riders don’t want to one day be on the receiving end of the same treatment. If the prize is big enough, these so-called “rules” will be conveniently forgotten.
Remember the saying is that “It’s just not cricket”. No one ever said, “its just not cycling.”
@drsoul
I’m sure others feel the same way as you but I’m in the opposite camp. I love those days when a breakaway is out there dicing with the peloton and getting caught sometimes in the finishing straight, sometimes not, then seeing a sprinter’s train coming through on rocket fuel.
I like it particularly when it’s Cav now, but equally enjoyed it when it was Cipo’s red train, or in the battles between Zabel, McEwen, Boonen, Petacchi… I love the calculation, the determination, the precision.
I actually prefer that to the randomness that we saw especially in the Giro. Where you sigh about the sprinters, I sigh with boredom at another also-ran fluking their one stage victory and never being heard of again.
@ Oli – Don’t pull an Oli, mate! I trust your judgement and respect your opinion. If Tommy V. has an attitude, okay, he still races like a Champ. But, it’s easy to see Bertie is a COTHO. Easy.
Yeehaw, I’m 1.72 cms. Does that mean I can sprint like Cav?
I loved that finish today. Nothing like seeing the group FLY through the trees and chase down, then gobble up that break.
I’m staying with a friend who only like American sports. No matter what I say, he has zero interest in cycling, even those awesome finishes. What is wrong with people?
Oh well, his loss.
The HTC train work is awesome. Who/what else can stay that focused for that long, then drill it?
Now, I’m off to watch the climb to Luz Ardiden with Phil and Tesh commentating, plus that awesome music…wake me in 6.5 hours for the racing!!!
@Ron
Sprint like Tom Thumb maybe….
Twice in one day…LOL.
Man, so the peleton apparently hit nearly 80kph pulling in Lars B at the end?! Insane. Today’s got to be fireworks, bertie will be primed with fillet mignon espagnol, schleckles will no doubt walk to heel (at least for the start)..could we finally see a bit of drama between these 2 on the tourmalet? rather than the hemaphroditic love-in (c. Cipollini) that we saw last year?
et Basso?
et Good Cadel?
@Ron – totally agree on the HTC train. Bernie Eisel was a beast chasing down Boom and Renshaw couldn’t have been more perfect at the end. It’s a joy to behold.
Interesting comments on Eurosport after the stage yesterday – didn’t catch who the guy in the studio was but seemed to be someone from British Cycling who had been involved with Cav since he was a junior.
Said when they did the physical testing for the BC Performance Programme Cav didn’t even meet the minimum requirements. But he was the only one who had won 12 races so they figured he must have something.
Later they worked out that he was incredibly efficient as a rider, which I guess explains how he can turn on the afterburners so quickly and outsprint bigger guys like Greipel and Hushovd.
@paolo
Easily done… this is what happens when people confuse feet and inches.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Xlf5ucFanpY
@ChrisO
He didn’t have the raw wattage to impress much as a straight sprinter, I recall he was being lined up as a domestique. His success is apparently down to is unique aerodynamics, which are significantly better than his taller, stronger competitors down to the way his pedaling style is more aero. Dead flat feet, no toe down. That and he’s a rangin little mongrel with a nose for teh line.
That awesome that the tests didn’t show Cavendish would be a good rider. I love new gear & developments in cycling, but sometimes the numbers & analysis of riding gets a bit much, a bit too scientific. Hence, I LOVE the V-Meter. And, it’s great that Cav is good despite the numbers not tipping him as a sprinter.
I actually think it’s great that a guy built like Greipel & a guy built like Cav are going wheel to wheel to the line; always two ways to do anything, right? One’s a hulking beast, one’s a miniature beast.
paolo – Tom Thumb I am. Cycling is actually the first sport I’ve even been serious about that makes me happy to be this size. I was always cursing my genes growing up playing other sports. Not good to be the smallest on the field in sports involving collisions. But now I’m a happy fella. Sitting behind big dudes in group rides is a pure joy, and my way of getting back for all the punishment I took by giving up 20-30 kgs to others.
Yes…up too early and the race is on! This is going to be a boss day of viewing!
Good day at work. Then local premiere of last Harry Potter movie for school fundraiser, followed by delicious Thai meal with beloved. Kissed kids goodnight and then headed out on bike into the crisp night air. Beautiful ride up and down quiet Wellington hills with the city lights glistening, reflected in the harbor laid out below. Now relaxing on couch, remote in one hand, Tuatara Pale Ale in other, dog at feet and four hours of the first Pyrennean stage on tv ahead of me. Life is good…
@G’phant
A’Merckx to that.
@Ron , ChrisO and Minion
I’ve read Cav’s autobiography (yes, I am a bit of a fan) and he covers the same story in that. It’s worth a read by the way.
@Ron
Ron, believe me I would never be so rude as to mock someone for being about 5ft 7ins when I am only 5ft 9ins myself. Trust me when I assure you however that you are most definitely NOT 1.72 cms.
@ChrisO
Americans and the metric system are just not meant to be. Although I do find it cute that they try so hard. I know that seems patronising but I do mean it with utter sincerity.
@Marcus
Thanks, Marcus! I think the when of the rules being “conveniently forgotten” is the most intriguing part of the whole thing. As you say, the size of the prize is the key, and it’s interesting to see the differences between riders’ goals in various races.
Stitches be damned! Love it.
Interesting watching Thomas descend, or rather crash over and over. As David Harmon said, the carbon rims don’t brake well. Recently, Lance suggested on his Twitter feed the reduced braking friction could be one cause of the heap of crashes. Imagine people doing The Thomas in the peloton. Seems like it would be problemmatic.
Hmmm. Saying there is sand on the road at that corner, no wonder everyone is fucked. Big props to Tommy V for keeping it up.
Nothing quite says, “This is gonna hurt,” like a wall of parked cars on the outside of a wet corner. I give Thomas a lot of credit for shooting the gap between the car and the four-wheeler.
Man, this descent is greasy.