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re: Tour de France 2014 Thread
Posted on 7/5/14 at 3:41 pm to forksup
Posted on 7/5/14 at 3:41 pm to forksup
I was out on buttertubs pass today, left at 4.30 in the pissing rain and ended up sunburnt to a crisp
Froome has enough time to get ride into his groove and get over his Dauphine crash, there will be fireworks in the moutains but I think he still takes it from Contador.
From the US perspective I think Talansky has a much better chance than TJ, he has shown he can climb with the best, his Dauphine win(despite circumstances) will have given him great confidence and I think he can translate it into 3 week form. Top 5 is still the dream, altho if Vlverde (as always) finds away to lose his GT then theres a chance 3rd could be taken
Froome has enough time to get ride into his groove and get over his Dauphine crash, there will be fireworks in the moutains but I think he still takes it from Contador.
From the US perspective I think Talansky has a much better chance than TJ, he has shown he can climb with the best, his Dauphine win(despite circumstances) will have given him great confidence and I think he can translate it into 3 week form. Top 5 is still the dream, altho if Vlverde (as always) finds away to lose his GT then theres a chance 3rd could be taken
1
Posted on 7/5/14 at 5:31 pm to castorinho
As far as spectacular and beautiful sporting venues are concerned, no other sporting event compares to the Tour de France, thanks to the helicopter cameras.
Posted on 7/5/14 at 11:16 pm to engvol
quote:
Froome has enough time to get ride into his groove and get over his Dauphine crash, there will be fireworks in the moutains but I think he still takes it from Contador.
Not so sure about this. Froome is good but he has never faced AC with this kind of fitness. AC looks like the guy from 2008-9. I think this will be the best TDF since 04.
Talansky is the only real American threat. He could def find himself on the podium at the end. I just worry his team may not have quite the firepower of Sky and Saxo.
TeeJay is a great bike rider but he doesn't have the consistent strength to win a 3 week race. He will do well in the 1 week races, similar to Leipheimer.
Posted on 7/5/14 at 11:18 pm to asphinctersayswhat
quote:
think this will be the best TDF since 04.
I hope so, Contador had no answer in the mountains last year. Nibali gave it a good run.
Can't wait until we get to the good stuff
Posted on 7/6/14 at 12:06 am to castorinho
quote:
Can't wait until we get to the good stuff
Tomorrow wll be a good stage. The course is really lumpy and we will see some fireworks. Tues will be good too. They will go over several kms of cobbles.
Last year, AC was racing at 90% and still had a strong showing. This year he should be able to match Froome and Sky on the high mtns. There is only one TT this year and the race could come down to that on stage 20. SHould be fun to watch.
Posted on 7/6/14 at 12:17 am to asphinctersayswhat
quote:
Tomorrow wll be a good stage. The course is really lumpy and we will see some fireworks. Tues will be good too. They will go over several kms of cobbles
I expect those to be fairly straightforward with an early echapee that will most likely get caught by the peloton with all the sprint teams working together.
shite will start getting real on the stages 12-14 stretch.
Posted on 7/6/14 at 12:34 am to castorinho
quote:
I expect those to be fairly straightforward with an early echapee that will most likely get caught by the peloton with all the sprint teams working together.
shite will start getting real on the stages 12-14 stretch.
You need to watch tomorrow. There won't be many sprinters make to the end of tomorrow stage. We'll probably see a rider like Valverde or Cancelara win tomorrow. I look for Cance to make a big run at it. He loves wearing the yellow jersey.
The directors really went all out on course design this year. They've created course that will have to be raced from beginning to end. They compared tomorrows stage to the Liege Bastonge Liege course and that is on of the hardest one day races on the calendar.
Posted on 7/6/14 at 12:57 am to asphinctersayswhat
Wiggins was left off because he is emotional and not likely to support Fromme....who is the defending champ. And is he is sort of a wild card when it comes to being dedicated to winning the tour. Nobody really knows what he wants. I admire his passion for other things but understand why the team wouldn't want him as a role player in support of Fromme. As far as other teams bringing Wiggins on, he is under contract to Skye....so no possibility. I loathe Contador. I think Fromme wins again and then in 5 years we find out about his drug use.
Posted on 7/6/14 at 6:13 am to asphinctersayswhat
quote:
Not so sure about this. Froome is good but he has never faced AC with this kind of fitness. AC looks like the guy from 2008-9. I think this will be the best TDF since 04.
A.C. Is definetly in great form, but Froome still took a good deal of time on the TT even though it was short, and on the mountain top finish when both were healthy Contador stuck but didnt take time which is what he needs, some say it was justg to prove he could stick with Froome but he was on the edge from what I saw.
Regardless 3 great weeks ahead, todays will be epic, Ive seen the climb with bits of 30% on it and it almost defies logic to me how these guys stay on their bikes, Not sure it will quite be the same as Tirebce lasat year when Nibali, Sagan and someone else escaped and took time of Froome with a Sagan win, but Im hoping for fireworks.
Also really cant wait for stage 5 with the cobbles, and seeing how people handle it, will Cancellara be able to pull through the Schlck this tippme but go for the win aswell? HAve to think one contender will lose time just because its the cobbles and therefore chaos
Posted on 7/6/14 at 8:06 am to Zappas Stache
quote:
I think Fromme wins again and then in 5 years we find out about his drug use.
Cycling takes the brunt of the PED talk but no one wants to talk about that stuff in the NFL, MLB, NBA, Tennis, Soccer, and most college sports.
Cycling is doing more to combat doping and ped use than any of the other sports.
Posted on 7/6/14 at 8:15 am to engvol
quote:
engvol
I don't think Froomes team isn't as strong this year. Richie Porte has been injured most of the year and hasn't had a run up to the tour like he's had that last 2 years. He is critical to Froomes success.
Saxo has a team that seems to be hitting on all cylinders. Several of their guys have been riding at the front of the races.
At the Dauphine, Saxo only sent AC. The rest of the tour team was racing in Switzerland. Not sure why they did that but AC had a pretty good showing without any team support.
Anyway, this should be a fun tour. As long as everyone stays upright, we should have some excitement.
Posted on 7/6/14 at 8:57 am to asphinctersayswhat
quote:
Saxo has a team that seems to be hitting on all cylinders
Contadors top 3 lieutenants are all coming off the Giro, they are on the downward of their peak not the up, its fine them looking good atm, but in the alps I think they will fall off pretty quickly due to fatigue, Majika complained about being in the team once RK was taken out for his bio passport.
I dont think Froome needs a strong team either, he managed fine last year when all he had was Porte as most the team looked fried from destroying the peloton all year round, and when isolated (i forget which stage, but the one where Movistar and Saxo blew it apart Porte lost 15mins)has proven he can cope with the pressure....and even if he gets nervous he just attacks and that blows out the rest of the teams as only the top dogs can follow.
Having said all this(Im coming off as a huge Froome fan boy but really all i want is it to be exciting) I actually want Froome to lose say 45 seconds somewhere in the first week, I want him to go out and try and destroy a field instead of having it wrapped up after 1 attack like last year. Thats when the show downs will happen.
Also th epoint about doping, cycling gets bad press because it actually tries to find dopers, and whenevr one is found its blown up, 3 NFL players got ofund out last week and its forgotten, where as this stuff 'leaves lasting legacys on this years tour' etc.
Posted on 7/6/14 at 10:03 am to engvol
I was wrong, this stage is punishing.
Posted on 7/6/14 at 10:21 am to castorinho
Damn what a fricking finish
Posted on 7/6/14 at 10:27 am to castorinho
Awesome stage. Basically a classics race. Amazing move by Nibals.
Posted on 7/6/14 at 10:27 am to castorinho
Nibali 
Posted on 7/6/14 at 10:36 am to castorinho
That was a beautiful finish. If all the GC guys make it through this week, we will watch an epic battle to the end.
A big chapeau to Nibali.
A big chapeau to Nibali.
Posted on 7/6/14 at 10:40 am to asphinctersayswhat
Both of our American boys had good showings too.
Posted on 7/6/14 at 11:11 am to asphinctersayswhat
I don't know if anyone else caught Jens Voigt's post-race appearance on the set with Roll, Harris and Vande Velde, but that guy is hilarious. He definitely has a future in TV commentary, and perhaps even comedy.
This post was edited on 7/6/14 at 11:18 am
Posted on 7/6/14 at 11:17 am to castorinho
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