Paris - Nice Stage 2 **SPOILER**
Comments
-
iainf72 wrote:andyp wrote:The Millwall of cycling continue their winning ways.
Oh well, at least I don't have to watch the stage now. If Sky continue to be successful I can really cut down on my cycling viewing
:roll: your attitude makes me laugh mate.It's a long time since there was a decent british team actually competing with the best in the world on all fronts.
I for one feel that each and every race is all the more exciting seeing the sky team up front mixing it with the big guns.
I suppose it's a very common british attitude to hate things that are new especially if they are successful which sky clearly are and will continue to be.It's probably due to jealousy and very sad.
How are you all going to feel if cav joins the sky train next year?
0 -
mididoctors wrote:iainf72 wrote:Bertie is saying his took a pretty hard knock today in the fall and his leg hurts.
Will decide in the morning if he'll continue with the race.
PTP meltdown again...
Speak for yourself 8)___________________
Strava is not Zen.0 -
shakey88 wrote:iainf72 wrote:andyp wrote:The Millwall of cycling continue their winning ways.
Oh well, at least I don't have to watch the stage now. If Sky continue to be successful I can really cut down on my cycling viewing
:roll: your attitude makes me laugh mate.It's a long time since there was a decent british team actually competing with the best in the world on all fronts.
I for one feel that each and every race is all the more exciting seeing the sky team up front mixing it with the big guns.
I suppose it's a very common british attitude to hate things that are new especially if they are successful which sky clearly are and will continue to be.It's probably due to jealousy and very sad.
How are you all going to feel if cav joins the sky train next year?
I thought iain was just being a bit tongue in cheek there when he said that.Gasping - but somehow still alive !0 -
Really enjoyed the stage.
Excellent win for Henderson.
Fantastic riding from Caisse.
Great to see Millar looking so good, he looked the best man in that front group.
Would have expected Contador to make that front group, will he make the same mistakes come July?
And others have said, great to have Kelly and Harmon back rocking the mic.0 -
I believe Contador said earlier in the year that Astana were going to P-N to see how they cohered as a team with no great view to winning the GC. I thought the refresher jerseys were pretty much in evidence during the stage - rather more than the Shack, Garmin, HTC etc etc.0
-
The Prodigy wrote:Really enjoyed the stage.
Excellent win for Henderson.
Fantastic riding from Caisse.
Great to see Millar looking so good, he looked the best man in that front group.
Would have expected Contador to make that front group, will he make the same mistakes come July?
.
I am with you on that one was quite surprised he didnt make the front group ok it was only 17 secs or whatever but this race is often won by a matter of seconds. The question could maybe be asked does Bertie have trouble positioning himself in crosswinds ?Gasping - but somehow still alive !0 -
Not sure it this has been mentioned before, but I really don't want to have to read through 8 pages to see, so please ignore me if it has...
But looking at this photo, has Henderson been reading the Mark "Bingo" Cavendish book of sprinting, he looks to have a very low sprinting position...
0 -
Moray Gub wrote:The Prodigy wrote:Really enjoyed the stage.
Excellent win for Henderson.
Fantastic riding from Caisse.
Great to see Millar looking so good, he looked the best man in that front group.
Would have expected Contador to make that front group, will he make the same mistakes come July?
.
I am with you on that one was quite surprised he didnt make the front group ok it was only 17 secs or whatever but this race is often won by a matter of seconds. The question could maybe be asked does Bertie have trouble positioning himself in crosswinds ?
One of my first thoughts when watching was that Lance would have made that group. Might be life in the old dog yet. AC is not unbeatable.0 -
Moray Gub wrote:micron wrote:I believe Contador said earlier in the year that Astana were going to P-N to see how they cohered as a team with no great view to winning the GC. .
Sure didnt look like that after he crashed given the panic to get back on.
His team-mate was waiting to give him a bike before he'd even got up off the floor. Didn't seem much like panic to me.0 -
shakey88 wrote::roll: your attitude makes me laugh mate.It's a long time since there was a decent british team actually competing with the best in the world on all fronts.
I for one feel that each and every race is all the more exciting seeing the sky team up front mixing it with the big guns.
I suppose it's a very common british attitude to hate things that are new especially if they are successful which sky clearly are and will continue to be.It's probably due to jealousy and very sad.
It was great to see a Brit win today wasn't it, adding to that long list of British riders winning for Sky? Oh. :roll:0 -
It is difficult to tell from a photo as there is often a lot of body movement during the sprint - he could just be on a downstroke, so to speak.
Wouldn't surprise me if they have had things like this drummed into them though. On the run in to K-B-K I could swear Stannard was riding very deliberately with his head tilted up - almost like the way you are meant to ride with an aero helmet, to smooth the airflow down the back.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dtURgQvi-eU
He's certainly got a pretty aero road bike position.Le Blaireau (1)0 -
He mentioned afterwards about having to sprint into a fierce headwind, making it seem like a slow motion finale.greasedscotsman wrote:But looking at this photo, has Henderson been reading the Mark "Bingo" Cavendish book of sprinting, he looks to have a very low sprinting position...0 -
afx237vi wrote:Moray Gub wrote:micron wrote:I believe Contador said earlier in the year that Astana were going to P-N to see how they cohered as a team with no great view to winning the GC. .
Sure didnt look like that after he crashed given the panic to get back on.
His team-mate was waiting to give him a bike before he'd even got up off the floor. Didn't seem much like panic to me.
Exactly not the actions of a man not going for GC which is the point i was responding to and the way he attached himself to the rear of the Rabo car did seem to have an element of panic about it .Gasping - but somehow still alive !0 -
I think a lot of the Brits have a smooth style because of our heritage of time trailling. We expect so much of our riders to be good against the clock that it naturall ytransfers to the road.0
-
DaveyL wrote:It is difficult to tell from a photo as there is often a lot of body movement during the sprint - he could just be on a downstroke, so to speak.
Wouldn't surprise me if they have had things like this drummed into them though. On the run in to K-B-K I could swear Stannard was riding very deliberately with his head tilted up - almost like the way you are meant to ride with an aero helmet, to smooth the airflow down the back.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dtURgQvi-eU
He's certainly got a pretty aero road bike position.
That's a fair point, my comment was really just from the photo, only seen the sprint online so difficult to judge from that. But it is something that people have commented that Cavendish does, so I wouldn't be suprised if other teams had looked into it and advised riders accordingly.0 -
Moray Gub wrote:afx237vi wrote:Moray Gub wrote:micron wrote:I believe Contador said earlier in the year that Astana were going to P-N to see how they cohered as a team with no great view to winning the GC. .
Sure didnt look like that after he crashed given the panic to get back on.
His team-mate was waiting to give him a bike before he'd even got up off the floor. Didn't seem much like panic to me.
Exactly not the actions of a man not going for GC which is the point i was responding to and the way he attached himself to the rear of the Rabo car did seem to have an element of panic about it .
Oh, I thought you were referring to the coherence of his team, which seemed pretty efficient despite him missing the split.
If he's not injured, I think he's still almost certain to go for the GC. Why wouldn't he?0 -
afx237vi wrote:Moray Gub wrote:afx237vi wrote:Moray Gub wrote:micron wrote:I believe Contador said earlier in the year that Astana were going to P-N to see how they cohered as a team with no great view to winning the GC. .
Oh, I thought you were referring to the coherence of his team, which seemed pretty efficient despite him missing the split.
If he's not injured, I think he's still almost certain to go for the GC. Why wouldn't he?
I agree with you i was responding to Micron saying that Bertie had said he wasn't going for GC.Gasping - but somehow still alive !0 -
RE: AC - Are the climbs big enough to get the timeback on Sanchez?'Do not compare your bike to others, for always there will be greater and lesser bikes'0
-
shakey88 wrote:I suppose it's a very common british attitude to hate things that are new especially if they are successful which sky clearly are and will continue to be.It's probably due to jealousy and very sad.
How are you all going to feel if cav joins the sky train next year?
Wouldn't make any odds to me - Like all the other riders on Sky, I'm not a fan of Mr Cavendish. That's probably also due to jealousy actually.
If Sky do well, good for them. It doesn't keep me awake or upset me. Today I would've preferred if Tony Martin had won - Because I quite like Tony as a rider. But Henderson won and deservedly so.Fckin' Quintana … that creep can roll, man.0 -
iainf72 wrote:shakey88 wrote:I suppose it's a very common british attitude to hate things that are new especially if they are successful which sky clearly are and will continue to be.It's probably due to jealousy and very sad.
How are you all going to feel if cav joins the sky train next year?
Wouldn't make any odds to me - Like all the other riders on Sky, I'm not a fan of Mr Cavendish. That's probably also due to jealousy actually.
If Sky do well, good for them. It doesn't keep me awake or upset me. Today I would've preferred if Tony Martin had won - Because I quite like Tony as a rider. But Henderson won and deservedly so.
Careful there, you're starting to sound like you know who0 -
I watched it on tv last night properly. When Caisse put the boot down Astana had about 5/6 riders at the front. Then the Astana boys started pulling faces, and then there was a gap. Not sure where Bertie was and whether that was factor, oh, and Eurosport cut to an advert break just as things were happening, which didn't help.
Speaking of advert breaks, who is head of the Sidi marketing department ??? I reckon Alan Partridge managed to get it, some of those Contador bits are cringeworthy !! With his white matador suit, bare feet and holding a pair of shoes, and then I think he did his pistol thing too. :?0 -
Reading in Procycling, that the French seem to dislike the Sky Team as they are a bunch of eggheads who take the artistry and flare out of cycling and turn it into a science project. A bit like the Uk's track team. I can sympathise a bit. I like the way Gilbert attacks (yesterday he was a bit naughty as he attacked just after a big crash), taking his chances and having a go.
Contador seems to get in to trouble with cross winds so maybe a small hope for the others at the Tour de France; get him caught out on the flat stages instead of waiting for the Mountains. Hmmm...
-Jerry“Life is like riding a bicycle. To keep your balance you must keep moving”- Albert Einstein
"You can't ride the Tour de France on mineral water."
-Jacques Anquetil0 -
It's only the latest in a series, from the stupid "Bettini dodge" to last summer's "spinning shoe" campaign.pat1cp wrote:who is head of the Sidi marketing department ??? I reckon Alan Partridge managed to get it, some of those Contador bits are cringeworthy !! With his white matador suit, bare feet and holding a pair of shoes, and then I think he did his pistol thing too. :?0 -
AC said he crashed outside the 3kms hence the necessity to get back on.
The xwind thing has to be of some concern though - maybe he needs some big lads to shield/pull? Rather like Caisse who seem to have the balance of their team about perfect judging by yesterday.
The kick up to Mende is looking ever more crucial for ACs GC chances - if he stays in the race - but it's only a couple of kms so whether he can make enough of a difference (knock to the leg permitting) who knows? Still, the season is suddenly looking just a little more interesting than the supposed 'foregone conclusion' pre race 0 -
Kléber wrote:
It's only the latest in a series, from the stupid "Bettini dodge" to last summer's "spinning shoe" campaign.pat1cp wrote:who is head of the Sidi marketing department ??? I reckon Alan Partridge managed to get it, some of those Contador bits are cringeworthy !! With his white matador suit, bare feet and holding a pair of shoes, and then I think he did his pistol thing too. :?
I appreciate that, and after those similarly cringeworthy efforts you'd have thought they'd have employed someone a bit better.
Maybe folk on the continent love 'em and it's just us missing the point ???0 -
I don't see what would be gained by NOT going for GC.
Lets face it. A team will bond/gel together best when under pressure. Any weaknesses in the team would not show up if they were just using this race to ride around with no goals. They've been doing that all winter. They're probably just trying to confuse the opposition - I'm sure they will be using this time to try out different tactics and experiment a bit, mind games being one important element of that.
It's also early on in the year. I can understand someone not going for GC in a race such as the Giro or the Dauphine Libere but this is different. Traditionally, all the GC contenders go for it for good training and motivation.0 -
pat1cp wrote:Kléber wrote:
It's only the latest in a series, from the stupid "Bettini dodge" to last summer's "spinning shoe" campaign.pat1cp wrote:who is head of the Sidi marketing department ??? I reckon Alan Partridge managed to get it, some of those Contador bits are cringeworthy !! With his white matador suit, bare feet and holding a pair of shoes, and then I think he did his pistol thing too. :?
I appreciate that, and after those similarly cringeworthy efforts you'd have thought they'd have employed someone a bit better.
Maybe folk on the continent love 'em and it's just us missing the point ???
It is. I know I will likely get slated for this, but.... Continental Europe - the land post-modernism forgot.Le Blaireau (1)0 -
Oh no! Bertie broke a wheel : "I've completely broken the front wheel and I've taken a good hit."
Are we going to get another 8-page thread about how Bertie had to stand outside Decathlon this morning with a fist-full of his own money so he could buy a new wheel?'This week I 'ave been mostly been climbing like Basso - Shirley Basso.'0 -
Good to see Valverde and LLS pulling the majority of time on the front to get that break time as well as instigating it. If there were more riders willing to pull then they could have put more time into the bunch (a smaller group in stage 3 managed to put 1min in). They are on my signature for good reasons.
Last 20 mins:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Baeh9G10e4M
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GUdr7Q_A9Us
Versus are doing high definition highlights of each stage, 6 mins.Contador is the Greatest0
