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!
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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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wiscot says:

Jul 4 2017 at 8:32 am

@Buck Rogers

Fuck! Sagan just took Cav out badly! Curious as to how badly they punish him?

0

Fuck Sagan. That was unacceptable. He put Cav into the barriers with an elbow. I don't want to hear any bullshit about "Oh, I had to or I was going to crash myself" - Sagan is probably the best bike handler in the peloton. He should be thrown out of the race - but they won't because he's good for ratings and world champ.
Buck Rogers says:

Jul 4 2017 at 8:34 am

@wiscot

@Buck Rogers

Fuck! Sagan just took Cav out badly! Curious as to how badly they punish him?

0

Fuck Sagan. That was unacceptable. He put Cav into the barriers with an elbow. I don’t want to hear any bullshit about “Oh, I had to or I was going to crash myself” – Sagan is probably the best bike handler in the peloton. He should be thrown out of the race – but they won’t because he’s good for ratings and world champ.

0

Exactly what I was thinking and it makes me cringe to think it. They will not throw him out b/c he is WAYYYYY to popular but man, that was pretty vicious. Cav was questionably trying to get throw an opening that was closing but Sagan just fucked him straight into the barriers. No excuse.
Rick says:

Jul 4 2017 at 8:47 am

Via Twitter:

Le Gruppetto @LeGruppetto

1m

Selon @BorjaCuadrado, la Dimension Data demande l'expulsion du Tour de France de Peter Sagan, pour son geste sur Cavendish. #TDF2017
Buck Rogers says:

Jul 4 2017 at 8:52 am

@Rick

Via Twitter:

Le Gruppetto @LeGruppetto

1m

Selon @BorjaCuadrado, la Dimension Data demande l’expulsion du Tour de France de Peter Sagan, pour son geste sur Cavendish. #TDF2017

0

"RT @SophieSmith86: Roger Hammond and Rolf Aldag remonstrating with judges after Cavendish crash. Hammond calling for Sagan to go home. #tdf…"
chris says:

Jul 4 2017 at 8:54 am

@wiscot

@Buck Rogers

Fuck! Sagan just took Cav out badly! Curious as to how badly they punish him?

0

Fuck Sagan. That was unacceptable. He put Cav into the barriers with an elbow. I don’t want to hear any bullshit about “Oh, I had to or I was going to crash myself” – Sagan is probably the best bike handler in the peloton. He should be thrown out of the race – but they won’t because he’s good for ratings and world champ.

0

From the overhead Sagan had a lot of space to his left so there's no way he can try to use that as an excuse.

Cycling News are saying there was some sort of tiff going on between Sagan and Greipel over Sagan being a twat in the intermediate sprint.
chris says:

Jul 4 2017 at 8:56 am

Disqualification, relegation or a haircut and a ban on trucker caps?
ChrisO says:

Jul 4 2017 at 8:57 am

Cav was actually in front of Sagan so no way he didn't know he was there. It wasn't Sagan's space.

But the other thing to look at in that finish is Demare. He comes three metres to his left in the last 10-20 and nearly takes Bouhanni out as well, who just manages to check and avoid Demare's rear wheel.

But of course they aren't going to DQ the first French sprint winner in more than 10 years.

Funny that French TV hasn't shown the usual overhead shots.
Buck Rogers says:

Jul 4 2017 at 9:05 am

@ChrisO

Cav was actually in front of Sagan so no way he didn’t know he was there. It wasn’t Sagan’s space.

But the other thing to look at in that finish is Demare. He comes three metres to his left in the last 10-20 and nearly takes Bouhanni out as well, who just manages to check and avoid Demare’s rear wheel.

But of course they aren’t going to DQ the first French sprint winner in more than 10 years.

Funny that French TV hasn’t shown the usual overhead shots.

0

You mean the same Demare that climbed into the backseat of his team car to get up the Cipressa when he "won" MSR in '16??? Nah, no one would ever question him.
Buck Rogers says:

Jul 4 2017 at 9:07 am

@chris

Disqualification, relegation or a haircut and a ban on trucker caps?

0

All three???
Teocalli says:

Jul 4 2017 at 9:11 am

@RobSandy

@Buck Rogers

@Rick

@Buck Rogers

Yes, I am a big Sagan fan but that was unacceptable.

0

Yup. I have always loved Sagan but that was really bad. Relegated to last on the stage for sure, I wonder if anything other punishment?

0

Shit, they are describing it on live text. Sounds like Cav has done a collarbone, tour over?

What about G? Anyone else get taken out in either crash?

The more racing I do, the more pro bunch sprints shit me up.

0

Thomas did go down in the earlier crash but looked like he scrubbed a lot of speed before going over the debris of the crash. Could not spot whether Froome went down or just got held up.