Le Tour - why no action on the final day?
Given 1989 is widely accepted as being the most exciting finish to a tour why don't they hold an individual TT on the final day every year?
I always think the last day is an anti-climax. Albeit Contador would probably still have won yesterday but it isn't unrealistic to say that many other places could have changed hands over the course of a 50km tt yesterday.
Also, in the interests of fairness to the climbers, why not have two mountain TT stages - one in the Pyrenees and one in the Alps each year to balance things up and try to spice things up a bit?
Any thoughts on other changes to the race that could liven things up a bit?
I always think the last day is an anti-climax. Albeit Contador would probably still have won yesterday but it isn't unrealistic to say that many other places could have changed hands over the course of a 50km tt yesterday.
Also, in the interests of fairness to the climbers, why not have two mountain TT stages - one in the Pyrenees and one in the Alps each year to balance things up and try to spice things up a bit?
Any thoughts on other changes to the race that could liven things up a bit?
0
Comments
-
Given 1989 is widely accepted as being the most exciting finish to a tour why don't they hold an individual TT on the final day every year?
The final day is now seen as a yellow jersey procession followed by a bunch gallop on the Champs. Rider protocol is not to attack the GC leader if the gap to second place is more than 30 seconds.
I love mountain TTs, and would like to see them more regularly in the Tour. The Alpe d'Huez one (2003?) was epic.
No more TTTs!0 -
1989 was exciting for spectators, but was hated by the riders themsleves. They just wanted an easy ride to Paris like normal and instead they had to do a time trial.
I've not really been a big fan of a final time trial in the Giro these last few years, I think the riders deserve to celebrate finishing together, rather than pottering round a time trial course,0 -
TakeTheHighRoad wrote:1989 was exciting for spectators, but was hated by the riders themsleves. They just wanted an easy ride to Paris like normal and instead they had to do a time trial.
I've not really been a big fan of a final time trial in the Giro these last few years, I think the riders deserve to celebrate finishing together, rather than pottering round a time trial course,
Couldn't agree more.
I think it would actually kinda suck if the jersey did change hands on the final day. It's a three week race - there are 20 days for the peloton to race all out - and 1 day for the winner to enjoy his achievement with a celebratory ride into Paris. I like it.0 -
Dont think Lemond hated the TT on the last day in 89
0 -
Maybe they could just have a short time trial and call it an Epilogue [img][/img]0
-
I usually watch every stage of the TDF except the for the last one for exactly this reason. I may watch the last 5 mins just to see who won the sprint.0
-
magliaceleste wrote:I usually watch every stage of the TDF except the for the last one for exactly this reason. I may watch the last 5 mins just to see who won the sprint.
So why do you bother watching the first week? Stage 21 is the same any other flat stage... piano for the first two thirds, race for the final third.0 -
1989 was a huge gamble for the organisers - which paid off. It could have been incredibly dull if Fignon had had a bigger lead, with only punctures, breakdowns or crashes changing the result, which would have been a horrible way to lose the tour on the last day.
This year's sprint was a formality for Columbia and Cavendish, but you do at least usually have the excitement of a seriously competitive sprint (occasionally with horrific results - remember Abdoujapirov (sp.?) having to be put back on his bike, barely conscious and with broken bones, and pushed across the line to claim Green after hitting a barrier). I was lucky enough to be in Paris on Sunday and watching Columbia chase down the break was really impressive - ruthless control. Fun to see Hushovd glued to Cav's back wheel for seven laps, too - not much help from the rest of Cervelo and not much good it did him.
Even if the efforts by breakaway groups virtually never succeed (can't think of one in recent times that has) a standard road stage does also give the lower-placed riders a chance of glory - and their sponsors some publicity.
I agree that the yellow jersey deserves a day of rest on the final day and chance to bask in his achievement.
Also agree that TTT's should go.0 -
The Lemond-Fignon year wasn’t the only year the last stage was a TT.
I don’t know how often farther back in time, the last stage was a TT, but it certainly was during Merck’s first Tour years, and in 1969 Janssen won a TT on the last day to snatch the yellow jersey from Van Springel - who like Fignon has probably ever since shared afx237vi’s opinion that it sucks to have the jersey change hands on the last day.
I don’t though. I think the idea of the last stage being for basking in glory and parading wrong. The race shouldn’t be over until the end.
In the mid-70s, they had about 5 years of last days with split stages – TT in morning, ride into Paris in afternoon. So there was no relaxing in the morning, as now the case, and little in the afternoon because of the prestige of the final victory.
I’m actually surprised that more stage towns don’t try to persuade the TdF organisers to allow them to have a stage finish similar to that in Paris, a sort of criterium after reaching the town. I imagine it would bring a stage town a lot more visitors = income and publicity = later income, even if it were costly to arrange.
When domestiques are asked about the last stage as it now is, most answer they think 100 km would be enough. I suppose that morning, they feel the race is over and just want to get the day quickly over with, and get home.0 -
The TdF used to have those final crit circuits in the finish town at the end of a stage. They're still there in other tours, I think they're particularly popular in Italy.knedlicky wrote:I’m actually surprised that more stage towns don’t try to persuade the TdF organisers to allow them to have a stage finish similar to that in Paris, a sort of criterium after reaching the town. I imagine it would bring a stage town a lot more visitors = income and publicity = later income, even if it were costly to arrange.
The problem though is: imagine a breakaway with a 3-minute lead arriving on a crit circuit where eah lap takes 3 minutes to complete........0 -
