Velominati Super Prestige: Tour de France 2017

Favorites ascending. Photo: Gruber Images.

As many of you know, I write a monthly column for Cyclist Magazine where I answer Dear Abby-esque questions, and the most recent query pertained to whether I consider the Tour the best race of the year, or whether it’s an over-publicized circus. The question made me realize something about myself: I have a weariness around the Tour de France not unlike a romantic whose heart has been broken one too many times.

The fact is, as much as I prefer a race like Paris-Roubaix or the Giro d’Italia to the mid-summer shit show that is the Tour de France, nothing gets my anticipation going quite the way the Tour does, which is undeniably the pinnacle of the season; all the classifications and stages are prestigious enough that racers of all sorts are all arriving at the start in peak form. There is a promise of hard racing from day one, but the first week consists mostly of me worrying about the big favorites crashing out. As soon as we get through that mess, my heart is usually broken on the first day in the mountains, when the favorite takes a decisive lead and the rest of the race is most about stages than the GC.

At least, these are the dreads of a man who lived through the Indurain and Armstrong eras of racing.

Nevertheless, the Tour always manages to seduce me, and this year is no different. Maybe this year, she won’t be such a cruel lover. And, maybe this year, I won’t make horrible picks in the VSP. Just maybe, just maybe. You know the drill; get your picks in by the time the clock goes to zero, and you get some swap options on the rest day. Good luck!
[vsp_results id=”104413″/]

frank

The founder of Velominati and curator of The Rules, Frank was born in the Dutch colonies of Minnesota. His boundless physical talents are carefully canceled out by his equally boundless enthusiasm for drinking. Coffee, beer, wine, if it’s in a container, he will enjoy it, a lot of it. He currently lives in Seattle. He loves riding in the rain and scheduling visits with the Man with the Hammer just to be reminded of the privilege it is to feel completely depleted. He holds down a technology job the description of which no-one really understands and his interests outside of Cycling and drinking are Cycling and drinking. As devoted aesthete, the only thing more important to him than riding a bike well is looking good doing it. Frank is co-author along with the other Keepers of the Cog of the popular book, The Rules, The Way of the Cycling Disciple and also writes a monthly column for the magazine, Cyclist. He is also currently working on the first follow-up to The Rules, tentatively entitled The Hardmen. Email him directly at rouleur@velominati.com.

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Jay says:

Jun 30 2017 at 6:16 pm
After sitting out the Giro because my picks did not register, and then delgadoing the Tour de Suisse, I am jumping back into the fray. Although, my picks seem rather lemming-like... And we're off for a three-week adventure just like that.

VSP PICKS:
1. Quintana
2. Porte
3. Froome
4. Bardet
5. Contador
BaltoSteve says:

Jun 30 2017 at 7:49 pm
VSP PICKS:
1. Richie Porte
2. Chris Froome
3. Nairo Quintana
4. Robert Gesink
5. Alberto Contador
litvi says:

Jun 30 2017 at 8:16 pm

@chris

@wiscot

@litvi

@Randy C

@chris

Why is it that no one eve asks me to take part in studies like this?

0

And that is hard to believe !

0

Hard to believe? Try mind-numbingly unscientific. Is 8 weeks enough to build the cardiovascular efficiency, muscle timing, and the capillary delivery of a pro in someone who starts at some unknown base? What about the notion that the pros are the best of the strongest of the fastest to begin with, and only a handful of those are contenders? Among this VERY select few, a 0.1% advantage is an incredible difference – it’s significantly more than the 4 minutes lead Froome had last year at the Tour (4′ is 0.075% of 89 hours and 4-odd minutes [running included]). Keep in mind these subjects are amateurs, not pros. And there is usually a good (/obvious) reason you remain an amateur and not a pro. You don’t make the cut. But wait, here this is: “Professor John Brewer, an expert in applied sports science at St Mary’s University College [in other words an actual scientist], cautioned that the benefits of improved oxygen uptake might be more pronounced in professional cyclists than in amateurs” (emphasis mine) Duh. BTW, not to The Telegraph editors: including that quick nod to peer review in the very last line of the story doesn’t resurrect the “Science” title of this section.

0

I’m not going to discount the psychological benefits of placebos, (I think there are plenty of studies out there that show they can be impresively effective) but from what I’ve read, the effectiveness of EPO really depended upon what your starting/natural hematocrit level was. If it was 49% the chances of significant benefit were much less than it it was, say 45%. Giving a bunch of amateurs, albeit likely fit ones, is not comparable to top professionals. You could give me an 8 week training plan and all the EPO in the world and I wouldn’t/couldn’t hang with the professionals.

0

I always understood 45% to be more advantageous than 49% as it allowed a 5% increase without exceeding the arbitrary 50% limit applied at the time. Although a 55% reading would result in sleepless nights on the rollers.

0

This is an important point, that even the article accidentally hit on, namely haematocrit vs. haemoglobin levels. The concentration (the former) tends to go down in top athletes in peak form, but the theory is they have a higher blood volume. It's worth mentioning the blood does much more than carry oxygen, and just imagine all the fuel consumption, waste production, hormone and endocrine signals, etc., etc. going on for 4 or 5 hours at top level racing. Blood volume - and the ability to circulate it - are two growth processes I can't hardly imagine would pass many noticeable milestones in just 8 weeks among amateurs who, let's not forget, have demands off the bike as well. So again, this article doesn't pass the sniff test with me. Light on science, heavy on agenda. But looking back, maybe that agenda is to heap more humiliation on COTHO. If that's the case, then let's have some more!
Harminator says:

Jun 30 2017 at 9:23 pm
VSP PICKS:
1. Porte
2. Froome
3. Bardet
4. Contador
5. Quintana
Harminator says:

Jun 30 2017 at 9:23 pm
Chica says:

Jun 30 2017 at 11:49 pm
Gah, having such an off year. Shots in the dark...

VSP PICKS:
1. Chris Froome
2. Nairo Quintana
3. Romain Bardet
4. Richie Porte
5. Alberto Contador
Magaramombi says:

Jun 30 2017 at 11:50 pm
Predictable choice. Expecting Quintana to be the 'nearly man' once again.

VSP PICKS:
1. Froome
2. Quintana
3. Pinot
4. Contador
5. Bardet
Tom Mc says:

Jul 1 2017 at 1:35 am
VSP PICKS:
1. Porte
2. Froome
3. Contador
4. Quintana
5. Aru
xyxax says:

Jul 1 2017 at 3:47 am
Holy shit. Just remembered at the last minute. Literally figuratively the last minute!

VSP PICKS:
1. Froome
2. Porte
3. Quintana
4. Aru
5. Izagirre Ion
Randy C says:

Jul 1 2017 at 6:36 am

Ya'll watching the start of this TT? Raining, wet and all the corners and road paint. Nacer Bouhanni may as well get off his bike and walk around the corners as fast as he's taken some of 'em. And he's making a catch too ?!? Super exciting… yahhhnnn… Wouldn't that be classic suck yes? Day 1 and someone finds themselves a pile of time back after they dump it in a wet slick corner full of road paint.