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″/]
Froome has come along way since getting towed uphill in the Giro. Sky done good.
Fucking hell. Guilt by dodgy numbers? There isn’t this much speculation when other riders target stages and win, like Gerrans or Kittel? At 86 Kilos Kittel should be out the back on any stage that isn’t dead flat, so he must be on the juice to keep up. Ridiculous isn’t it. I have no doubt that Sky are prepared to within the letter of the law, with a range of supplements that we can only dream of that are nonetheless legal, but they’re available to other teams as well. I had more hope for humankind before Bretto posted that fucking Bicycling article and a bunch of you lost your critical facilities and forgot that Bicycling Magazine is more commonly referred to as toilet paper than a reliable publication.
I for one think Froome’s doing a fantastic job. Lets not forget last year Wiggins had Froome and Rogers dragging him uphill, in a race where TTs were more critical to the overall than the monster climbs in this race. Froome doesn’t have an assistant as capable as he was for Wiggins, and Rogers is sticking the knife in from the other side of the fence, so he’s got to do more of the serious climbing unsupported. He’s kept his powder dry and attacked his competitors on key stages before rest days which from a recovery point of view is sensible, and has lost teammates hand over fist. He’s remained patient and calm under pressure and polite with the media, but made the same points Wiggins made last year (just using different figures of speech.) If all you pack of rugged individualists can see is someone on the juice you’re missing some great aspects of the race.
He does look like a smashed crab humping a radiator though. Doesn’t have to be pretty, just has to be fast.
@minion
How did you get demoted to a 4?
@DerHoggz
I think he had a number of previous posts vacated after testing positive for personality-enhancing drugs…
@ten B
Ouch, sorry @minion, you’d have had a +1 nomination for your last line if it weren’t for @ten B‘s comment above!
In regards to the suspicions, everyone bitched & moaned that no one was willing to question COTHO when he & his team were setting a prohibitively high pace at the bottom of climbs before he broke clear from all of his competitors spinning away at 150 bpm.
Given what we saw on Ventoux last night, the saying ‘once bitten, twice shy’ comes to mind.
I thought that Froome could have just blown past Quintana when he caught him. I assume that he and Quintana agreed to cooperate (and post-stage interviews point in that direction), but I think that Froome’s acceleration that droped Nairo was a low blow. It seems unworthy of the leader to mash on the pedals after they’ve been paced for 5+ minutes by a person they agreed to work with.
I think that the tour hs Froome’s to loose now, I’d just like to see him win in the best way possible.
@minion
Yeah, it’s awesome having people shitting all over what’s been a pretty interesting race thus far… Conversation goes roughly like this;
“Wow, that was an amazing stage in the wind…”
“Dopers”
“Fantastic climbing stage…”
“Dopers”
“Sky…”
“Fucking Dopers”
“Froome”
“What’s he on?…”
“Cool bikes”
Riden by dopers.
Etc, etc.
I get that you’ve all been burned by Armstrong, Pantani, Der Kaiser. Hell, even Merckx doped, though you wouldn’t hear a fucking peep out of anyone here about that.
Yeah it’s a free country/interweb thingy and people should be free to say whatever they like, but like I said before, it’s getting real fucking boring.
Unless you can come up with some real evidence that something funny is going on, perhaps we should sit back and actually enjoy the racing?
Nah, fuck that. Too hard. Much more interesting believing that we get the zeitgeist so we can imagine a future where we can say ” I told you man”…
@minion
@mouse
Its just like going to a Bangkok bar. The girls look fucking hot and they are enjoyable to look at. Beyond that, just dont think about it too much.
Here’s an interesting tibbit.
Adam Hansen finished yesterday’s stage in Position 37, 13 seconds and 2 places better than Andy Schleck!
@mouse did anyone see what happened to Andy? The only footage SBS showed was coming back from a break & it was as if the fans were pushing him to get started after he’d come off the bike…
@Mikael Liddy
He did not come off his bike. He cracked so badly that he almost came to a stop, swerved to the left and ended up riding for a metre or so through the cobbles and crap at the side of the road. He then looked to have completely blown and progressed very slowly from there.
The weird thing was his posing for the cameras as he came up to the line, smiling like he had done an awesome ride or something. I do wonder about that guys mental state!
@mouse
LeMan seems to want to take it at face value…
http://www.cyclingnews.com/news/lemond-there-can-be-spectacular-performances-without-doping
@DerHoggz
Not fucking swearing enough.
@pakrat
He also had Bilharzia last year which affected his performance and he looked pretty strong even then..
@mouse WRT Cotho, he won the fucking race 7 times in a row. With an army of robots. Sky can’t even get last year’s winner to back up 2 tours in a row, and have a team that is falling to bits, so while the comparison is a natural one to make, like most things when you go past the headline and look at the details things are quite different.
What I KNOW I saw last night was a very fit, well prepared rider taking the bit between the teeth on a key stage of the tour. It’s a stage that I’d say Sky had planned on targeting for a long time, and chapeau for getting it right. Of course if he’s still doing it in 7 years time, I’ll but one of those Stupid Giro Air Attack helmets and eat it.
I also like that they sacked the dopers on their staff straight away after the reasoned decision came out. That argument that you need the experience and expertise of cheats has been one I’ve struggled with.
@Deakus think the Bilharzia was when he first signed for Sky & didn’t finish the 2010 Giro after getting a tow up the Mortirolo from a motorbike (was going to be outside the time cut anyway). 2011 Vuelta was the first decent result he had after recovering.
@Mikael Liddy
Quote from Wikipedia, I have not had a chance to verify it but I remember it being mentioned all over again in the news last year.
The early part of Froome’s 2012 season was wrecked by illness. He withdrew from the Volta ao Algarve with a severe chest infection, and blood tests showed his bilharzia parasites had returned
Sagan’s not the only rider who can wheelie…
@minion @mouse The armchair guilty by comparative performance speculation is beginning to piss me off too.
Seems to me that there’s a bit of a changing of the guard going on at the moment. There’s a bunch of riders that everyone expected to be doing well have failed to turn up at all. I’ll bet that if you had a look at the top ten most popular VSP picks you’d see Froome, Contrador and a whole load of disappointment. Cadel – MIA, Valverde – MIA, Porte – MIA, TJ – MIA; Ryder – MIA, etc. Did many people pick Mollema and Ten Dam? And there are a few others that are hopefully going to have a great ride through the Alps – J Rod and Quintana that probably featured in peoples picks but haven’t hit the top 5 yet.
Just because his competitors haven’t performed doesn’t mean Froome is doping, they’re going a long way to making him look incredible.
I absolutely fucking loved yesterday, mental crowds (the size and intensity, not the dickheads in costume), the flares, the motos crashing running into each other, Contrador having the class and decency to say “Chapeau, the best guy won”, Richie Porte’s grin as the Rodriguez group finally ground past him, the fact that Froome attached the fuck out the mountain to the point of needing oxygen. Fucking loved the balls of this guy:
@brett
For some reason that reminds me of a school report
@Chris
I reviewed the highlights last night when Froome was on the podium, despite the smiles he was absolutely fucked, I recognised the ginger steps of someone who has nothing left in their legs as he stepped off the podium they looked like they might give way.
I suspect he went deep in to the red yesterday and may well suffer for it in the Alpes. I am not certain this race is over just yet….but it was stunning to watch!
@Deakus Not only did he look physically drained but he looked like he was struggling to hold the tears back. He was emotionally buggered as well.
@Deakus fair enough, didn’t know about that instance of it.
VSP PICKS (2nd Rest Day Swaps):
1. Chris Froome
2. Nairu Quintana
3. Richie Porte
4. Alberto Contador
5. Cadel Evans
@Chris
This is probably the pic of the Tour so far: absolutely fabulous. Where did you find it?
@Chris
From the look on his face and where he is staring, they have have fallen off.
@chrismurphy92
Ooo..day 2 swaps are very very expensive…I hope Good Cadel appears to save the day!
@Steampunk Found it on Tumblr, I think it was taken by Caley Fretz of Velo News.
I have got to go and ride Ventoux soon*.
soon
indefinite – infinite – unlikely
I have to say, I think Sky must be very happy Wiggins sat this one out. If they had nominated him as leader, I think it would be very embarrassing watching Froome having to wait for him while others scampered up the road. Even if Wiggins was #2, do you really think he’s be hanging with Porte and Froome and Quintana et al?I don’t think so. Blushes all around avoided I think.
Also, I’m getting tired of the “he must be doping” stuff. Sure, we’re all a bit suspicious since COTHO, but just because a rider puts in a great performance, to instantly resort to doping alllegations is tiresome. Remember, Froome targeted this race. His team prepares to perfection. I read a big artuicle onSky team nutrition yesterday. Incredible. Froome knows there are certain stages where he can really gain time and this was one of them. He might have a bad day yet and needs a cushion.
Also, as was posted earlier, guys are finishing stages shattered. Didn’t see much of that in the COTHO era.
I saw some pish on the Cycling News comments (talk about tiresome shite) and someone posted all the Ventoux times. Of course, they just listed straight times. They did not state what the wind was each time and I know that has a huge factor on that climb. Anyone know what the wind was like yesterday?
And while we’re talking doping, three track and field athletes just got busted – so let’s all tar them with the same brush, right? Seems fair?. No.
@Marcus
In light of your Usain’s competitor comment, Tyson Gay has admitted to failing an out of comeptition drug test.
@seemunkee
Excellent, +1 nomination.
Either that or his soigneur has just old him he needs to got to doping control .
“Have you not been paying attention? 240km, a fucking huge volcano in these temperatures and you want me to pee in a cup? There’s nothing coming out of there. I’m done, mate, there’s nothing left, nada. I’ve left it all on the road.”
@wiscot The only time I thought about the wind when when they were out of the woods, it was strong enough to fly a flag but it wasn’t that strong that it was really tugging at them or bending those thin pole people use.
@Marcus
Good point on the conditions. Not sure of wind conditions yesterday vs other road stages up Ventoux.
My first point was that if you are going to try to compare at all, then trying to compare a 242.5 km road stage (this was the longest road stage ever to finish at the summit of Ventoux in the tou’s history and they were holding NOTHING back on the approach) to a less than 36.5 k ITT stage is completely flawed.
But that being said, I still stand on the point that if you nearly beat the WC ITT one day and also destroy the entire field on the only two summit finishes, odds are that you are doing something that everyone else is not, and in our beloved sport, at this lvel, that probably is not due to “marginal gains.”
I’m sure that the COTHO feels sorry for me with my skepticism.
@Buck Rogers
Froome is a very good time trialist demonstrated many times over, and Tony Martin is riding with pretty severe injuries. With respect, I don’t see a great disconnect there.
@Deakus
I don’t think Good Cadel will show up. I had him there all along. I just subbed in Quintana for Valverde. If he happens to come in second I get 15 points minus the 10 point penalty for a +5 total. If not, I was out of it anyway.
@Buck Rogers William of Ockham would probably agree with you
@chrismurphy92
Ballsy move…a guaranteed 10 pt loss for a “potential” 15 point gain….You might have been better off praying to the Lord Merckx for everyone else in front of Malmerde to crash….
@mouse
Martin not only beat Froome by only 12 seconds, he also destroyed 180 other of the sports elite in that time trial. No one else was even within a minute of them. Hurt or not, raises my eyebrows (some of the few head hairs I have left).
Bottom line, I think that Froome is doped and I am a jaded son of a bitch. But I also respect your opinion and truly hope that I am wrong.
I still love the sport and really hope that it is clean. And, believe it or not, I still love watching it all, though performances like Froome worry me.
I’ll try to stop dragging my black cloud of doubt onto the web. Doesn’t really help anything, does it?
@Marcus
Yeah, I think it must be both. Riding both the Giro and the tdf full out at age 36 is a big ask.
I would not be surprised if he hung up his cycling shoes after this season, and it would not be with shame, either. The guy has been awesome, had an awesome career and has been fun as hell to follow (“and his little dog, too”).
Hopefully he’ll stick around another season or two and go for one day classics or shorter stage races, though.
VSP PICKS (2nd Rest Day Swaps):
1. Froome
2. Contador
3. Rodriguez
4. Mollema
5. Quintana
@pakrat
Brailsford seems (quite rightly) to be getting a bit pissed off with having to answer the same questions over and over again.
His suggestion is a pretty good one in fact, as long as it DOES turn out to be WADA and not the fucking UCI who police it!
VSP PICKS (2nd Rest Day Swaps):
1. C Froome
2. R Porte
3. Quintana
4. Cuntador
5. J Rod
@Deakus
Agreed. Also savvy in suggesting that instead of continually asking questions, none of the answers to which will be satisfactory, the press go huddle up and figure out what kind of response would actually put some of this to bed. I don’t particularly care for Brailsford or Sky, but should he prove willing to make a real effort in putting forth some kind of credible data/analysis I’ll tip my hat to him.
Worst VSP ever. Good race, though. No changes. I’ll take my hits.
Personally, I follow cycling because it is fun and I love to ride my own bike. I am not naïve enough to think there isn’t a possibility that somebody is still doping. I think the testing is better so it at least is less likely that EPO is being used rampantly. I am tired of all the doping debate. It takes all the fun out of it. I am giving the current crop of riders the benefit of the doubt. The racing and tactics are very interesting and there is some serious V being put down by several riders. I think it’s great. I also happen to be a Sprint Cup fan. As pointed out in other posts, crew chiefs have been caught and penalized for violating the rules (cheating), but I don’t sit around after every race and speculate whether Jimmie Johnson’s car was legal. This is “sport” and entertainment. I let the refs enforce the rules. I just want to enjoy the competition. If my head is in the sand, so be it.
@Deakus Up until a few minutes ago, I was all for giving Froome and Brailsford the benefit of the doubt but now that Contrador has come out in support of Froome’s drug free status, I just don’t know what to believe.
@VeloVita
Put up or shut up. You can’t fault him on that.
Fucking Merckx. I go camping for 10 days every year at this time. No cell service. No way to keep up on the Tour. Seems I’ve missed a great deal of fine, fine racing once again.
It’s almost a good trade off though: the riding on lightly used, well paved National Forest Service roads (with lot’s of categorized climbs, including a HC) is well worth it. Especially given there’s hot springs 2 miles from camp to soak in after each each trip to the pain cave.
Hey everyone – look over here…
http://www.reuters.com/article/2013/07/14/us-athletics-doping-idUSBRE96D0EL20130714
And let’s not even mention the Turks…yeah only cycling is dirty…
Rest day swaps – trying to limit my losses for the overall season long vsp
VSP PICKS (2nd Rest Day Swaps):
1. C. Froome
2. A. Contador
3. J. Rodriguez
4. A. Valverde
5. TJ Van Garderen
@ten B
I assumed it was because he tested positive for the use of emoticons in postings here…