Velominati Super Prestige: Tour de France 2014

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• @Floridian

  Floridian's Guide to Tour de France VSP picks:

  1. Make VSP picks with giddy anticipation of child waiting for Santa

  2. Become depressed and physically ill while watching VSP picks get body slammed all over roads of France for 6 days.

  3. Beat helmet-less head against wall due to inability to use crashed web site to make rest day swaps.

  4. Pray for miracles for 3 out of 5

  5. Open another beer.

  Make that 2 out of 5.  Gritty ride by Talansky though.  I've been knocked off a bike with back injuries and literally felt his pain watching him ride.  Would be surprised to see him on the line tomorrow though, as it only gets harder from here.

• Hmm, don't you think Nibali's ride on Stage 5 is worthy of preventing an "asterisk" making?

  He smashed it hard, ahead of the Classics guys (minus Boom) and put serious time in Contador. Call it bad luck, but Froome crashed a lot in the first few stages, then he didn't even make it to the cobbles. And some of the other riders, such an Greg V.A. and Jurgen VdB are saying Contador risked it all to move up one spot, a long way out.

  Seems to me that Nibali is riding strongly, smartly, and making his luck. And seems that he's being rewarded for being an all-arounder and riding tactically well.

• I don't know who's calling the shots at Lotto but there's some kind of crazed genius to their methodology: Bring a solid CG contender to the biggest race of the year and pretty much ignore him: Bring a top sprinter but forget the lead out. Then after a handful of nothing, let everyone off the leash. Greipel wins, Gallopin wins the MJ and a stage - Voila! Best Lotto tour for years! Shame about the Belgians...

• @Steampunk

  @wiscot

  You know, Froome and Contador are gone and that would have been a great match up, but we have what we have and you can only ride and win against those who take the start line. So let's not have any "well, if XXX and XXX were still in the race, things would be different." Of course they would be but they're not. Let's just sit back and enjoy the race - there's plenty of talent and great stages to come.

  Bang on. I feel a bit badly for Nibali, because history will always put an asterisk beside this win (assuming he can hold on). But you don't fluke into a TdF win, and what's all the more disappointing is that he's got that look in his eye: Froome and Contador might have had real trouble with him.

  GC aside, though, I'm really delighting in the renaissance of French cycling. Gallopin, Bardet (I really like this kid, too!), Pinot, Cocquard, Gautier, Kadri, Bouhanni, Démare, Elissonde, Jeannesson. And don't forget the boys for spring: Ladagnous, Gaudet, Offredo. Fun stuff!

  This might be a questionable option re the seemingly strong French resurgence, but, assholes like Tricky Dicky V aside, I  think the French ran a lot cleaner than a lot of nationalities during the 90s and oughts. Maybe now that the playing field is a bit more level, French riders are starting to show up again in the higher placings. It just seems odd that a country who could produce such stellar talent for so long could suddenly have almost two decades in the wilderness. I for one, am thrilled to see the French riders make a comeback and would cheer a French tour winner.

  I don't think Nibbles will have an asterisk. Oscar Pereiro should have a huge one.  That twat JJ Cobo should have a massive one too. Joop Zoetemelk doesn't have one and had Hinault not had knee problems in the 1980 Tour would anyone really have doubted he would win? Zoetemelk had form and was a worthy winner - he made it to the end, Hinault didn't. I doubt the Badger begrudges Joop's win. Nibbles has won other GTs, he has form and should he win, he'll be worthy.

  Here's a final bad analogy: NASCAR. If a driver gets taken out by a crash, that's bad luck. Maybe he would have won, we don't know. At the end of the day the driver with the skill and luck to cross the line first wins. Tour wins require skill and just as importantly, luck. Froome and Bertie had the former, but not the latter this year. Next year? Who knows.

• @wiscot

  @Steampunk

  @wiscot

  You know, Froome and Contador are gone and that would have been a great match up, but we have what we have and you can only ride and win against those who take the start line. So let's not have any "well, if XXX and XXX were still in the race, things would be different." Of course they would be but they're not. Let's just sit back and enjoy the race - there's plenty of talent and great stages to come.

  Bang on. I feel a bit badly for Nibali, because history will always put an asterisk beside this win (assuming he can hold on). But you don't fluke into a TdF win, and what's all the more disappointing is that he's got that look in his eye: Froome and Contador might have had real trouble with him.

  GC aside, though, I'm really delighting in the renaissance of French cycling. Gallopin, Bardet (I really like this kid, too!), Pinot, Cocquard, Gautier, Kadri, Bouhanni, Démare, Elissonde, Jeannesson. And don't forget the boys for spring: Ladagnous, Gaudet, Offredo. Fun stuff!

  This might be a questionable option re the seemingly strong French resurgence, but, assholes like Tricky Dicky V aside, I think the French ran a lot cleaner than a lot of nationalities during the 90s and oughts. Maybe now that the playing field is a bit more level, French riders are starting to show up again in the higher placings. It just seems odd that a country who could produce such stellar talent for so long could suddenly have almost two decades in the wilderness. I for one, am thrilled to see the French riders make a comeback and would cheer a French tour winner.

  I don't think Nibbles will have an asterisk. Oscar Pereiro should have a huge one. That twat JJ Cobo should have a massive one too. Joop Zoetemelk doesn't have one and had Hinault not had knee problems in the 1980 Tour would anyone really have doubted he would win? Zoetemelk had form and was a worthy winner - he made it to the end, Hinault didn't. I doubt the Badger begrudges Joop's win. Nibbles has won other GTs, he has form and should he win, he'll be worthy.

  Here's a final bad analogy: NASCAR. If a driver gets taken out by a crash, that's bad luck. Maybe he would have won, we don't know. At the end of the day the driver with the skill and luck to cross the line first wins. Tour wins require skill and just as importantly, luck. Froome and Bertie had the former, but not the latter this year. Next year? Who knows.

  No asterisk for me. Nibbles wasn't just good on Stage 5 but he stated his intention from Stage 2. Everyone else has been chasing since then. That might have cause them to crash, it might not but Froome and Contrador's departure doesn't affect the overall achievement in the same way that it would had either of them been in yellow when they crashed out.

• What an amazing image of Talansky grinding it across the line 50m ahead of la voiture balai, and only a just inside the limit. I'm. Fucking. Not. Giving. Up.  Chapeau to you sir.

  Chapeau to Gallopin as well. OK so it's a bit of a proven formula attacking a group with Sagan in it with 2-3k or so to go, but you still need the balls to try, and the V to carry it off. And Gallopin has both. Not satisfied with wearing yellow on Bastille Day, he needed a stage win as well.

  My VSP is shot to fuck, with top two DNF and my 5th place now well out of it, and I Delgado'd the rest day swaps. Never mind, the racing is epic. And, to be honest, if the current top 5 crash out then it would still be epic. There's a certain unpredictability that comes from having a few favourites out - top ten contenders can fight for the podium, top five contenders can fight to win the whole bloody thing. 'ave it.

• The next few days will be epic. Temperatures are currently rising to around 40c in Southern France. It's gonna be utter madness by the time Dutch Corner is reached. This is turning out to be one of the most memorable Tours in years.

• @Steampunk

  @wiscot

  You know, Froome and Contador are gone and that would have been a great match up, but we have what we have and you can only ride and win against those who take the start line. So let's not have any "well, if XXX and XXX were still in the race, things would be different." Of course they would be but they're not. Let's just sit back and enjoy the race - there's plenty of talent and great stages to come.

  Bang on. I feel a bit badly for Nibali, because history will always put an asterisk beside this win (assuming he can hold on). But you don't fluke into a TdF win, and what's all the more disappointing is that he's got that look in his eye: Froome and Contador might have had real trouble with him.

  GC aside, though, I'm really delighting in the renaissance of French cycling. Gallopin, Bardet (I really like this kid, too!), Pinot, Cocquard, Gautier, Kadri, Bouhanni, Démare, Elissonde, Jeannesson. And don't forget the boys for spring: Ladagnous, Gaudet, Offredo. Fun stuff!

  But let's imagine Froome doesn't crash and goes on to repeat as champion. Wouldn't an asterisk also accompany such a victory? What with inhalergate and the recent Therapeutic Use Exemption fiasco? This is not to suggest Froome is a cheater, simply that there is a growing perception (in Europe, it would appear) that he is.

  So how could Nibali's potential victory warrant an asterisk? And let me just say, I understand you are not saying you believe it deserves an asterisk, just thinking out loud through the logic.

• IF, Nibali wins he is a worthy victor, however the cynic in me worries what else was in the letter from Vino!

• @Ron

  As for Gallopin. Oh boy! What a ride. When he crossed the line on Stage 10 a soigneur had to hold him up. That happens. But, then the soigneur took Gallopin's leg and unclipped for him. Talk about leaving it all on the parcours.

  And now I find out that quite cute gal kissing him after his Maillot Jaune ride was a podium presenter and... his gal! Jeez. Oh, and his "uncle" confidante was none other than Laurent Fignon. Imagine having him as a family friend and Sensei?! No wonder he knows a thing or two about going full gas to the line! Must have been pretty amazing to have that guy hanging around at BBQs when he was a kid. Guess he had first-hand knowledge of Rule 33 compliance.

  Not only is she a presenter for Eurosport (and sometimes presenter of the Combativity prize), but she's an ex French RR Champion herself and rides for Lotto Belisol Ladies.

  http://www.procyclingstats.com/rider/Marion_Rousse