Velominati Super Prestige: Tour de France 2014
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.
- First place overall wins a Veloforma Strada iR Velominati Edition frame in addition to the customary VSP winner’s VVorkshop Apron
- Second place overall wins a set of hand built CR Wheelworks Arenberg wheelset in a custom Velominati paint scheme laced to orange Chris King hubs. (CR Wheelworks is Café Roubaix’s new wheel goods brand.)
- Third place overall wins a full Velominati V-Kit with accompanying custom orange Bont Vaypor+ road shoes.
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″/]
@Harminator Strong, strong work. Great write up. It takes me straight back.
Great photo, too. Selfie?
@Harminator You are a star. Excellent report on the stones.
@Al__S Nice work too. You guys make Trek’s resin and carbon fiber? Spot on, squire.
@Chris Another fantastic report. Your daughter should have given Brailsford an earful about something. I bet she was more impressed with Bernie.
Bit of viseo from Saturday and Sunday
You’ll have to forgive the lack of editing, I’m still trying to work out why my phone doesn’t need to be plugged into the wall.
@wiscot
that’s an old story from Jens himself about a stage on Alpe D’Huez, he wrote about it on his Bicycling.com blog a couple of years ago.
@Chris is that a Rule #51 violation I spy in the photo of you giving it the berries on the watt bike?
Really ups the excitement to see the routes, riders, and Followers at the first few stages. Thanks for all the photos, ride reports, and tales!!
Kittel is showing himself to be pretty damn fast and Giant is showing they know how to lead a fucker out.
Renshaw…damn, third?! Shows he ain’t just a diesel leadout. But, we all knew that.
And who the hell is Brian Coquard? At first I thought, “That fuck shouldn’t have been wheel to wheel with Gerrans in a sprint.” But damn, he seems like he’s a fast dude for sure. I’d never known of him until Stage 1.
@LeoTea
Indeed. It’s ridiculous. Stand around for hours waiting for the race to come by and the most important thing is selfie or a blurry shot? I get it, if and only if, the person is at least a serious photog hobbyist… And the camera is not an iPhone.
I was already excited for the cobbled stage and after reading that I can barely wait for Tuesday. Thanks for the report.
@Ron
Did you see the intermediate sprint today in Epping Forest? Look for it somewhere. Coquard was smoking hot, quick and fast. Definitely has a big future.
@Minnesota Expat
Meh, if he was that quick he wouldn’t be going for intermediate sprints.
He knows he is doing well to be top 5 at the finish so he has to pick up other points where he can and hope to compete for the green jersey against Sagan the way Hushovd did to Cavendish a few years back.
@Mikael Liddy Er, no. It’s a V-Orange Road ID.
There isn’t a specific rule on the subject but everyone should have one.
@Chris
Agree, Iv got a Road ID, but its black to save confusion. Wrist cock rings are so yesterday !
And Abandy has abandoned. Looks like he has a hurty knee from the fall caused by that absolute pillock with a camera standing in the road……
@LeoTea
Expected that as soon as I saw he had crashed yesterday. Remember years ago when his brother was telling us to wait and see how good Andy was going to be when he turned pro? And he was, for a little while. Now his brother is looking more resilient and may have a longer career. Andy may have gone the way of Beloki after that bad crash a while back.
@Teocalli Sorry, my warped sense of humor didn’t come across. The girl in the green dress was a commoner from Buckinghamshire who got lucky at St Andrew’s Uni and married into a very wealthy and powerful (but highly disfunctional) family by the name of Windsor. Nowadays, Kate is more properly referred to as HRH the Duchess of Cambridge. Apparently, she has lost her sense of fun and doesn’t care to come into close contact with the hoi polloi let alone give Euro-style kisses to Germans. Kind of ironic given the strong German heritage in her husband’s family – well, that and the Greek stuff too. Fortunately, the professional podium girls are back on the job and HRH can go back to doing whatever she does . . . whatever that might be.
Maybe the Princesses Beatrice and Eugenie should become podium girls – maybe for the spotty jumper – Merckx knows they are usually the worst outfits and B and E have no fashion sense so it would be a good fit.
Froome went down… possible wrist injury. That should feel amazing tomorrow on the cobbles!
@Al__S Great shots, thanks for sharing.
@DCR Ouch… With Gerrans and now Frome crashing, looks like my picks will need adjusting…
@wiscot
ah! would have helped if I’d watched the end of the presentations to see it was not the normal set up! My comments still hold about us as what originate oop noorth. Taken VMH and myself near 10 years to get used to hugging our ‘Merican friends when we go to Colorado in the winter.
@Teocalli
I hear you. Growing up in Scotland, hugging was not quite the done thing. After being in the States for almost 25 years, I’m a hugger! Hell, you can’t beat ’em, just join in!
OK, might as well chuck up a first provisional standing. @slideorama takes the lead and I’m shocked to see myself in the top ten. First time this year, I think!
@Chris
I saw a keepers tour t shirt being worn by someone in the park and Harrogate but even I don’t have enough brass neck to say, “who the fuck are you then” to someone I don’t know. And you never know it might have been a try hard wanker who printed his own.
lesson to self, say hi to complete strangers more often, don’t tell your kids that though.
@Chris
I saw a keepers tour t shirt being worn by someone in the park and Harrogate but even I don’t have enough brass neck to say, “who the fuck are you then” to someone I don’t know. And you never know it might have been a try hard wanker who printed his own.
lesson to self, say hi to complete strangers more often, don’t tell your kids that though.
@wiscot
I think it detracts from the awesomeness of the riders when they have someone “famous” presenting them their prizes, did those fuckin leeches ride all those km did they fuck, hence only Sir Bernard of Hinault should be allowed to put the hallowed shirts on the winners, and then promptly fuck off out of the way so the current heroes get the kudos they deserve.
@wiscot
What the fucks wrong with a nod of the head and a quick, “aye”. What has the world come to, fuck I don’t even shake hands unless there’s no other option. Next thing you’ll be saying you do a full on wave when you pass a fellow cyclist instead of said nod, or AT MOST, a single raised finger.
This from Spartacus. Finally, someone says it right. I’m sick of the skinny boys complaining of stages like tomorrow. You think Fabs, Kittel and Greipel like the damn mountains? Take the rough with the smooth.
“I hope nobody crashes and loses a chance of winning the Tour de France because of what happens on the pavé. But it’s racing. Roubaix is Roubaix. We all know what it’s like.”
“I’ve already been asked if I’ll ask for the stage to be neutralised if it rains but this is different. I know that it’s not a nice stage for Froome, Contador, Nibali and even our GC riders. But my reply is: so why not take out the climbs to make it easier for us? That never happens, so it’s only right we race on the cobbles. It’s a risk for everyone, including me, but we’ve got to live with it and calculate the risks involved.”
@Deakus Thanks and best of luck.
@wiscot
Spot on. Faboo is damn right.
@Floridian
I kinda feel sorry for Andy. Let’s face it, who is going to sign him next year? Fragile in both psyche and body. Doesn’t finish much. Not a great domestique. Retirement at the end of the season?
@Harminator Eloquent and enticing. Thanks for this. And, more please.
@wiscot Love that, about time someone told them to stop whining and just get on with it.
@the-farmer
Don’t tell anyone but I really am a try hard wanker even though the shirt is real.
Shame, it would have been good to meet up with a fellow disciple.
@the-farmer
An imperceptible raise of a single eyebrow lest it be taken as an improper advance.
@Chris
Shit I need to get a grip, sometime I do a little flip on the handlebars with all four fingers.
Froome nothing broken
>>>>
Froome injured his wrist but is able to continue after an X-ray revealed he had no problems.
He hit the deck just a few kilometers into Tuesday’s 163.5km stage four from Le Touquet to Lille.
But Sky team manager Dave Brailsford said he was fine to continue for Wednesday’s cobbled stage from Ypres in Belgium to Arenberg, and that the X-ray was merely a precaution.
“We’ve done the tests and we’re relieved,” said Brailsford.”He will start tomorrow and I hope it will be a great day.
“We took precautions, you’re always concerned when you see your leader on the ground but that’s part of sport. “I think we’ve had quite a few crashes so it’s normal to be worried but we’re going on. Chris is a fighter, he’s not someone who gives up just like that.”
His Sky team were initially worried but after a trip back to the Tour medical car, Froome continued on the stage with a splint on his left wrist.
<<<<<<
@Teocalli “Froome injured his wrist but is able to continue after an X-ray revealed he had no problems.” Oh he has problems alright, same side as the Dauphine, dropped it twice in a month, only one team mate with him at the time, not exactly taking a bullet for the Boss, and tomorrow is gonna hurt like hell.
@Teocalli
Yep, and just watch Saxo and Astana drill it on the cobbles tomorrow. If they see a chink in Froome’s armor, they’ll go for it. A couple of minutes could be expected if things go badly for Sky. Throw in the fact that for Fabs and Terpstra this is their playground and it’s either going to be epic or a dud. Here’s hoping for the former.
Happy day in Deutschlandt: Marcel Kittel 3 – the Rest 1; Germany 7, Brazil 1.
Brazil must feel like Cav on Stage 1 – getting almost to the end of the event, looking for hometown glory but seeing it come crashing to an ugly end and exit.
Tony Martin for the win in Paris might be too much to expect though.
@Barracuda
yup, much like my compatriot I opted for the black option.
I could have sworn I saw a Mk1 V-jersey near the banner on the top of Oxenhope Moor in Stage 2 – anyone? Didn’t have the tech or the reflexes to grab a screenshot.
Rain is forecast for the cobbles! In the words of Big Ring Riding, I am fucking excite.
http://www.worldweatheronline.com/Lille-weather/Nord-Pas-de-Calais/FR.aspx
As if this stage wasn’t awesome enough already…rain. Only disappointing part is only one stage of cobbles.
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.