Velominati Super Prestige: Le Tour de France 2013
The early eighties saw the tide change in the European Peloton. Components were taking on a new, curvy shape as they left their boxy forms behind. The glint of toe clips in the sun would become a rarer sight as the move towards clipless pedals would take hold in 1985. English speakers were winning the big races classically won by continental Pros.
The 1984 Tour could be my favorite edition of the race. In 1983, the rookie Laurent Fignon had won in the absence of Le Patron, Bernard Hinault. The 1984 race saw the two go head-to-head, with Fignon becoming the one and only person in history to have laughed at Hinault and lived. He did more than live, he won. The new guard was here, and they were making their presence known.
This photo is from the stage to l’Alpe d’Huez. LeMond was riding in support of Fignon, and Robert Millar, in his second Tour, was leading the King of the Mountains competition, which he would eventually win. Millar wrote an account of this stage in Issue 13 of Rouleur, which everyone should make an effort to find a copy of. He describes the attacks that come fast and furious on the penultimate climb in such vivid detail, it makes my guns ache. But worse than that is his and LeMonds effort to hold on to Fignon and Hinault’s wheels in the ride through the valley to Le Bourg d’Oisans and the base of the final climb. It is the perfect description of the suffering of the Cyclist. LeMond, in service to his leader, is on the front one moment as he reels Hinault in after an attack, before being cast into the gutter and the back wheel a moment later when the next attack comes.
Just as 1984 was a watershed moment in the Pro peloton, 2013 is a watershed year for the VSP. This year we are offering five amazing prizes from five amazing partners.
Prizes
First prize is a Veloforma Strada iR road frame, painted in an exclusive Velominati color scheme with the newly-designed Velominati Super Prestige logo. Please note that this is a brand-spankin’ new frame for Veloforma. The geometry can be reviewed here.
Second prize is a pair of Café Roubaix carbon tubular wheels. The winner of this prize will be given the choice between the sub-1000g Haleakala wheels or a road version of my beloved Arenberg wheelset. As an additional incentive, anyone who enters their picks in the Tour VSP will get a $200 discount on any wheelset at Café Roubaix.
Third prize is a pair of Bont cycling shoes. The winner of this prize will be assisted in selecting the size, color, and model of shoe.
Fourth prize is a Flandrian Best kit from DeFeet consisting of a wool U-D-Shirt, Arm Skins, Kneekers, Slipstreams, and a pair of V-Socks.
Fifth prize is a wool jersey from our Keepers Tour tour partners, Pavé Cycling Classics.
Many thanks to each of our sponsors for providing such exciting prizes.
Rules
Enter your picks for the top five riders on G.C. by the time the countdown clock goes to zero; Grand Tour scoring rules apply. Check the mapping of your picks by the end of Stage 1 and use the dispute system should it be mapped incorrectly.
We will be enforcing Piti Principle rules much more closely. We will be accepting pick disputes through the start of Stage 2. After that, it will be at The Keepers’ discretion as to whether or not we allow the dispute. If your pick is ambiguous and we map them to the wrong rider, make sure you check your disputes before the deadline; we may reject the dispute after that time. For example, should both Tony and Dan Martin take the start and you enter “Martin” as your pick, we will pick one for you and you will have to live with it if you forget to dispute it before the deadline.
Good luck, and Merckxspeed.
Update: This is the same paint scheme that the winner will have, except the VSP Winner’s Badge will be replacing the V-Lion.
[dmalbum path=”/velominati.com/content/Photo Galleries/frank@velominati.com/Veloforma/”/]
[vsp_results id=”24179″/]
@Joe
@paolo has had 16 years to acclimate. I think it hit 115f at the peak….you looked ok with it on the climbs as you disappeared out of sight up ahead.
I don’t get Aussies being smug, I mean at the end of the day they are still Aussies.
Only failure to finish can stop Sagan being in Green in Paris.
@Joe
Quote today on tv…they are thinking of replacing the phrase “man up” with “Gee up!”……suitable tribute I say!
@Deakus
“… I’m definitely going to keep fighting. It felt a lot better today than yesterday and it felt a lot better [at the finish] than at the start today, but I got a crack at on my bone so it’s always going to hurt.” – Geraint Thomas casually describing riding le Tour with a fractured pelvis as if it were a minor irritation and adding his name to the list of riders who are completely fucking nails in my book.
Alright, so what is a guy in the U.S. without t.v. to do now that steephill has pulled their streaming links (thought they were getting wacky anyway.) So far I’ve been watching via firstrow sports but lots of insane pop-ups. Don’t want to bug up my computer.
I like watching on Eurosport but it looks like I need to be in Europe to subscribe. I guess I could alter my hook-up to make it look like I’m in Europe?
I’m willing to pay $30 USD but I don’t want to watch via NBC. Why? I already thought they sucked and just showed the VMH the final KM from today and fucking Phil built up Sagan, then said he won, the very belatedly said Gerro won. No apology for totally fawning over Sagan and not giving a solid winner any respect. What a fucking jerk.
Hmm, I’m thinking I could pay and sign up to NBC, mute Phil, and then listen to Eurosport or BBC audio.
@Ron cyclingfans.com has links to stream Eurosport’s coverage.
Yeah unfortunately we Aussies are lumped with Phil & Paul, despite them having Matt Keenan on their staff who showed at the Giro that it’s possible to provide commentary & information that actually relates to what is happening on the screen, and get it right the first time.
@mouse Aussies first across the line in Stages 1 & 3 – smug grin on face as well!
Gerrans’ purposely leaving a gap ahead of him with about 300 to go to then launch out of Impey’s slipstream was classic. Even Sherwen noticed it.
Fucking Liggett needs to retire. He has been so inaccurate for so long, then he launched his COTHO defence (he reminded me of Brick Tamland in Anchorman, “I love lamp”) and his mistakes are worse and worse every year.
Chamois-sniffing doping apologist should fuck off to Austin and commentate COTHO’s Strava rides.
@Marcus
Unless I completely misheard this, I’m pretty sure that on Day 1 I heard “Beautiful day here – not a cloud in the sky,” which at least matched the picture on screen at that instant. However, about 10 seconds later the shot from a different point shows plenty of clouds, which seemed like one of those cases where I wasn’t sure if I should believe him or my lying eyes.
Pretty sad.
@ralph And yesterday no mention of Bakelands till he was pretty much on the podium, how hard can it be! Shame we can’t have Dave Harmon and the boys her in Oz, except then pretty much 70% of their commentary is Sky based which also shits me. When is Jens going to retire and start commentating?
@mouse
Reporting for duty also sir, front an centre, yep, thats how you do it, well played Gerro. Excellent lead out by Mr Impey.
Inside line on a corner is the “New Black”
Can I sleep now ?
@Mikael Liddy
Agree, Matt Keenan runs rings around P1 & P2 whos best double act is repeating the same old Cliches over and over. Giro commentary singlehanded and still made it interesting and informative.
@ralph he is watching the same screen as us…
@Daccordi Rider
something has changed with the TV rights here – previous years we got the Tour on Foxtel via Eurosport where you could listen to Harmon and Kelly. Maybe now SBS is doing all stages, they are able to exclude Eurosport (reverse anti-siphoning?). We still get Eurosport doing nearly all the races – save for the Tour. Which makes this sudden move back to Liggett (Sherwen is better) even more grating.
Sometimes I think Liggett must be watching a screen that is a few seconds behind the rest of us…
@mouse
Classy win though!
@Barracuda
Keenan commentry for the whole stage would keep me awake to the finish.
P1 & P2 are a snore fest. Barely make it to the end.
I also loved that Sagan threw his bike so hard he was sittin’ sideways as he cross the line.
Oh, on Eurosport is the Carlton Kirby with Sean Kelly or Dave Harmon? I thought that was Dave Harmon…
Cipo pre-riding stage one. Are steroids used purely for vanity a rules violation?
@Spun Up
Fuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuu…..off to the cold shower!!
@Sauterelle dont do it to yourself. Cipo would ruin the rest of your life as no other man would ever measure up.
@sthilzy
Where can I get spokes like Gerro’s?? Colon hyphen close brackets
I thought Sagan was about to pull a wheely as he crossed the line, now that would have been funny.
Clearly some paparazzo snapping me and Paulo in the colle di Malibu last weekend. Didn’t spot them at the time.
Lovely job by Gerrans today. Wasn’t expecting that at all. With froome dog suffering sky train malfunction all we need is a bovine tb out break in Spain and Cuddles is well in for the tour.
@Marcus
Mario, is that you?????
I have a viewing choice between Eurosport on my computer through a VPN, or Jazeera sport take the ITV feed – it really is a hard choice, between slightly grainy video, prone to buffering at critical times but with decent commentary versus full-screen live HD with those idiots.
They were so up Sagan’s arse yesterday they called him as the winner even though it was pretty clear Gerrans had won, even in real-time.
And another thing – at some moments during the stage there was a graphic of a small microphone and what appeared to be someone in the race cars giving updates on crashes or riders. Not quite race radio but similar.
Unfortunately P&P must have been unable to hear it so they kept talking over it – shame, because the bits I could make out were quite interesting. I assume that wasn’t actually their fault, but some error in the audio mix.
@frank
Can I persuade you to make that “due time” soon? As a velominatus budgetatus, I’ve got a line on a very, very nice deal on a used 2006 Cervelo R3… but now I’m worried about pulling the trigger on it.
Clearly, I should simply HTFU and ride my current bike harder, better, faster, and stronger.
Wow…this will enable me to follow in real minutae how badly my VSP is going. Oh the joy of watching it all slip away!
http://www.cyclingnews.com/news/cyclingnews-launch-free-tour-de-france-tracking-app
@ChrisO
My VMH didn’t appreciate me yelling “Shut up idiots!” at the TV in the early morning hours when that mic icon came up.
@sthilzy
Same reaction here. The ITV feed is just amateur hour. I’m considering synching the TV video with audio from the Eurosport feed on my laptop. Surely it shouldn’t have to come to this!
@ten B
I have eurosport on my ipad and apple TV so I just airstream to the TV…job done. Sean Kelly is not the most animated of commentators but at least he still operates on this planet. Mr Ligget should really spend a little more time on his ranch in South Africa and a little less time on our TV sets!
Ha, glad I’m not the only one digging for ways around having to listen to P1 and P2, a great way to designate them! And also glad I’m not the only one who thought it was ridiculous for them to not give Gerrans any credit, or offer an apology after miscalling such a great win for him.
Yikes, Super Mario is surely looking ready for the beach these days. I don’t know though, a guy that big, that physically gifted…take away hours and hours of in-saddle time, add calories and weights. Could happen without added help. Still, riding shirtless is unacceptable, at least on a bike without a rack and panniers, plus a 6-pack holder up front.
I have no problem with Sean Kelly being a bit static, I think it’s a nice counter to the pedalstroke-by-pedalstroke man.
I think Sauterelle would offer to hold Mario’s 6-pack for him. If she could stay conscious.
I’m watching the Tour on Canal 2 in France. I don’t understand much french, so for me, the commentary is perfect.
More Aussie smugness coming up! Smugness and sleep deprivation.
Smug Aussie here sir – now we have established the beach head it is time to do what we do best – dig in. ‘Nice’ one Gerro and all Orica Green Edge
Ted King blog update. Tough luck for a tough guy. Having had an A/C separation (it fucking hurts and takes a long time to heal), I can’t imagine riding, let along racing, that way. Those guys are unbelievable.
@ChrisO
I would hold anything that he needed held.
@asyax
Holy shit! I didn’t see that coming at all.
We’re going to be insufferable.
ORICA is over the moon right about now! They must of tapped every last bit of “V” they had. Well done.
@mouse
Not as insufferable as Mrs Engine who is now eighth…
@PeakInTwoYears
Shattered for him, he apparently finished 7 seconds outside the cutoff but there’s some dispute over his time as the timing chip wasn’t on the bike he used (roadie with clip ons cos he couldn’t get down on the TT bike) and they think he did a time 8 seconds quicker than the official result.
In other news it’s been some first week for Orica Greenedge!
@the Engine Another insufferable Aussie here; had a punt on Gerro on Stage 3 and OGE in Stage 4, couldn’t be more happy
I really am feeling insufferably smug this morning, what a great job by Greenedge. Our man Cuddles has a bit of work in front of him though. Good to see Berties team hand it to the Skybots.
Here’s the Smug-train coming….go Aussies!
Great team ride, with Svein and Alba just monstering the front, Gerro and Gossy on their local roads, Stuey back to his old form, Burt still fast after all these years, ahh it was like the NRR on a sunny spring morning…
Sky were favourite but well beaten by an un-rated underdog.
Sounds like the upcoming Ashes…
It is worth checking the actual mapped names folks, by pulling down the wee triangle….I had clearly written Quintana but it was mapped by The Computer as Quintero. I made a point of not using a nickname either. Disputed.
@Mikael Liddy
This.
It sucks to see a guy go down (double entendre intended) for reasons extrinsic to his own actions. I doubt he’d make it to Paris in any event now. But the circumstances of this action on the part of race officials are sketchy enough, IMO, that he should be allowed to continue until he’s clearly suffered as long as he’s capable of suffering.
@Abdu
They needed the Canuckian to pull them through I think. On the other hand I thought Garmin were the big let down today.
@Benny
Oh FFS.
How much this time? …And more importantly, what grade are you entered for DDCX?
@strathlubnaig
Yeah, I thought so too based on Garmin’s performance last year. So much for my tipping result for stage 4.
My disappointment for David Millar is overwhelmed by my happiness for Gerrans.
These results will have little bearing on who gets wheels and frames, but here it is. Unversio, well played.
Show this to your friends when they ask you to explain the tour.
http://m.youtube.com/#/watch?v=h7wPa1Hl5ZA&feature=youtu.be&desktop_uri=%2Fwatch%3Fv%3Dh7wPa1Hl5ZA%26feature%3Dyoutu.be
@piwakawaka
Awesome!