Attention all Velominati. The Tour VSP is going on line and it should be a good one. Sure, between Froomy and Bertie a person could hedge their bets but Moviestar is all in for Valverde, BMC for TeeJay, Astana for the Shark and Garmin is finally committing to a team leader in Talansky. Some other teams (ahem…Trek Factory Racing for one) have resigned themselves to hunting stage wins. The Tour swings through the Yorkshire Dales, everyone but the riders can enjoy some excellent ales. As the Tour continues to Lille, Norther France and Belgium, the quality pints continue. Yes, it’s hot and the VSP generator has beer on its mind.
The route, the sprints, the climbing and even the final time trial should make this a decent Tour. Here is a start list. Everyone will have a vial in their jersey pocket, but don’t worry, it’s legal.
It is still not too late to win the overall 2014 VSP and we have made it worth your while.
Refer to the VSP page for details concerning scoring and rest day swaps. If you want to call yourself Pedro Delgado, you will only have yourself to blame. The VSP banner on the homepage has the countdown clock, refresh your browser and don’t be late. Good luck and good picking.
[vsp_results id=”30275″/]
I know as well as any of you that I've been checked out lately, kind…
Peter Sagan has undergone quite the transformation over the years; starting as a brash and…
The Women's road race has to be my favorite one-day road race after Paris-Roubaix and…
Holy fuckballs. I've never been this late ever on a VSP. I mean, I've missed…
This week we are currently in is the most boring week of the year. After…
I have memories of my life before Cycling, but as the years wear slowly on…
View Comments
Finally, a return to the cobbles. Looking forward to seeing some dirt and cobbles. Maybe next year some gravel? ??
@asyax
On a similar theme, I was out for a ride last week around the Nad Al Sheba track in Dubai doing a steady pace and a guy riding a BMC tagged on to my wheel for a couple of laps. No problem there (except he was wearing Swiss national kit and he was NOT Fabian Cancellara).
Got back, my Garmin had suffered a meltdown but my friend Tim uploaded his to Strava and as it normally does it matched up to the other guy who had been on our wheels. Turns out his Strava account uses the V-symbol for his photo-image and he calls himself The Artful Dodger.
Anyone we know?
@ChrisO I've given up on the V-Strava group, there's about a squillion members on there and maybe 10 or so who actually participate here.
@Mikael Liddy Well Strava's like that, but actually it also probably reflects this site.
No doubt Frank has more up to date figures but I remember on KT12 him telling that there are hundreds of thousands of unique visits to the site each day, and yet there are what, maybe fewer than 100 who actually post on a regular basis.
The funny thing about this Artful Dodger was that he used the V symbol but was not in the Velominati Strava club, so I don't know if he is actually aware of where it comes from or what the connection is.
@asyax
I wasn't in V-Kit (is it a rule violation to wear cycling kit spectating if one hasn't ridden to the event?) but I was about 500m from the top of Cote de Oxenhope wearing a Keepers Tour T-Shirt. Had a small boy on my shoulders.
@wiscot
Go for a significant time loss for all the climbers so that they have to really go for it in the mountains and not just one key stage to clean up and sit on the time for the last week or so.
@Teocalli
I'm beyond excited for todays stage. Thank Merckx for Tivo, I can watch every moment of the pain and glory in glorious HD tonight... Luckily the work PC's don't block ITV4 player too, so may sneek a peek at some point. My moneys on Geraint Thomas as he performed well for Wiggo at Paris Roubaix.
@wiscot
Will Saxo and Astana be able to drill it? Do we know if Bertie or Nibbles can handle the cobbles? Looking back at the 2010 stage, Bertie finished 1.13 down on the day. As people were pointing out earlier this year, Wiggo showing up at Paris-Roubaix was the first time in years a Grand Tour GC contender had shown up for the cobbles. If we use 2010 as a guide, the most likely winner from the GC contenders is van den Broeck.
@VeloJello
WFH for me and clear of conf calls (so far). Don't you think though that GT will be held back to help Froome/Porte rather than let loose. The other scenario is a significant breakaway with the GC teams then having to work together to try to pull back. Whatever should be a good day and hopefully no injuries for anyone.
hmmm apparently two sections cut from the route due to the amount of rain.