Tour de France 2013 - Race Chat
Comments
-
Katusha
Pavel Brutt, Alexander Kristoff, Aliaksandr Kuchynski, Alberto Losada, Daniel Moreno, Joaquim Rodriguez, Gatis Smukulis, Yuriy Trofimov and Eduard Vorganov.Contador is the Greatest0 -
Corsica will likely be a crash fest.
(Currently chomping on blueberry pancakes with one hand and getting syrup on my phone)
I'm expecting high attrition generally.
Any good route analysis I missed? ?0 -
Cumulonimbus wrote:Yes, i understand why those people would have to be up the front but it just seems that maybe some people are wrongly putting themselves in that category. Then again i suppose that people going for the best young rider would want to be up front too.
Yeah, maybe. But then I sort of think a rider deserves a chance. Maybe they need to start the race with a mountain stage. That would sort out who should be up there or not.
Cumulonimbus wrote:Fair enough, i havent had time to read the whole thread. I did think that it would have been mentioned somewhere though. Back to page 8 i go...
You make it sound like a punishment! :shock:0 -
frenchfighter wrote:Katusha
Pavel Brutt, Alexander Kristoff, Aliaksandr Kuchynski, Alberto Losada, Daniel Moreno, Joaquim Rodriguez, Gatis Smukulis, Yuriy Trofimov and Eduard Vorganov.
What! No Spilak??0 -
Bmc for TdF. Brent Bookwalter, Burghardt, Evans, Gilbert, Amaël Moinard, Steve Morabito Manuel Quinziato, Michael Schär Tejay van Garderen
No Thor!“New York has the haircuts, London has the trousers, but Belfast has the reason!0 -
21 stages
OPQS to take 7-9 of those.
There are going to be a lot of teams coming away empty handed....“New York has the haircuts, London has the trousers, but Belfast has the reason!0 -
TheBigBean wrote:greasedscotsman wrote:TheBigBean wrote:I missed that. I need a new Cannondale frame, shouldn't be a problem, right?
I doubt they would be giving them away. A small sachet of washing liquid on the other hand...
Handy and very thoughtful, especially for removing bike grime, but it's not going to fix the crack in my frame! Back to searching ebay for me then...
She could always stand next to Sagan and when he goes for a grope someone could swipe his bike for you.0 -
TailWindHome wrote:Bmc for TdF. Brent Bookwalter, Burghardt, Evans, Gilbert, Amaël Moinard, Steve Morabito Manuel Quinziato, Michael Schär Tejay van Garderen
No Thor!
I would have been disappointed had he been included.Contador is the Greatest0 -
frenchfighter wrote:TailWindHome wrote:Bmc for TdF. Brent Bookwalter, Burghardt, Evans, Gilbert, Amaël Moinard, Steve Morabito Manuel Quinziato, Michael Schär Tejay van Garderen
No Thor!
I would have been disappointed had he been included.
I've liked the big fella since that green jersey winning ride in the mountains.
He seemed to be rediscovering a bit of form too.
I assume he'll go to Poland. Hope he wins a stage there, it'll be good for the confidence.
“New York has the haircuts, London has the trousers, but Belfast has the reason!0 -
He has shown well in the past yes and I really liked his ride for green that year. Doesnt mean he should come this year though. Decidedly lightweight all year.Contador is the Greatest0
-
Just read that Danny van Poppel will be at 19 years old the youngest rider to start the Tour de France since WWII :shock:
You'd think his DS is protective enough of him to make the right decision about whether or not it's too early for him 8)0 -
FJS wrote:Just read that Danny van Poppel will be at 19 years old the youngest rider to start the Tour de France since WWII :shock:
Wow. Imagine if he finishes.Contador is the Greatest0 -
Dutch TV reporting that Slagter is not in Blanco's TdF selection purely because he didn't want to already sign a contract with the team for next year...0
-
Why? Because of the wild pigs that stray on to the roads there, or because of the wild goats which do the same? e.g. here on the climb of the Col de San Martino before reaching Porto (second climb in stage 3).Rick Chasey wrote:Corsica will likely be a crash fest.
Most roads on the Corsican stages are amply wide, just the descents from the second, third, and fourth climbs on stage 3 have biggish drop-offs to their sides with only low parapet walls to discourage going over, e.g. if distracted by the great view over the Golfe de Porto when coming down the San Martino.
(The fourth climb on stage 3 is the Col de La Croix, and it and the fifth climb, Col de Palmarella, are both uncategorised)0 -
You wink but that's what they did in the Tour de Suisse (if you ignore the stage 1 prologue), and are doing in the Tour of Poland and the Tour of Austria, so seems some organisers actually like the idea.greasedscotsman wrote:
Yeah, maybe. But then I sort of think a rider deserves a chance. Maybe they need to start the race with a mountain stage. That would sort out who should be up there or not.Cumulonimbus wrote:Yes, i understand why those people would have to be up the front but it just seems that maybe some people are wrongly putting themselves in that category. Then again i suppose that people going for the best young rider would want to be up front too.
In fact, Poland and Austria each start with two mountain stages; it'll be interesting to see how they develop thereafter.0 -
With no Thor and no real sprinter, maybe BMC are giving Gilbert a freehand to go after the green jersey in his fashion.TailWindHome wrote:Bmc for TdF. Brent Bookwalter, Burghardt, Evans, Gilbert, Amaël Moinard, Steve Morabito Manuel Quinziato, Michael Schär Tejay van Garderen
No Thor!
It could be an interesting 4-way duel for the green jersey then: two sprinteurs, one rouleur, one puncheur.
Stage 1 looks like Cavendish territory and stage 2 could be between Sagan and Gilbert, while Kittel could snatch either.0 -
Bennati:
G: "At the Tour, you'll have to help Contador conquer the yellow jersey, but we hope to see you as a main player in some sprint finishes and maybe get some victories...”
B: “No, I don't think so. Ever since last year, when I signed my contract, Bjarne has always told me that the Tour was this year's goal, and so I've been working only with a victory for Alberto in mind."
G: "Surely, but when a sprinter like you sees the sign indicating the last 10 km, the last five, the last three, two, the red triangle....at that point, the desire to try for the sprint emerges, doesn't it?.”
B:"This year we'll arrive in Paris in the evening, so if Alberto is wearing the yellow jersey, I'll try to find an opportunity for myself.”
G: "You’ve already won in Paris and Madrid, another victory there would be something special.”
B: "It would be fantastic, but I repeat: My goal is to support Alberto. A cyclist who has won seven grand tours deserves it.”
G: "What kind of Tour will it be, meaning the race and the rivals?"
B: "I won a Vuelta with Nibali, but I think that this Tour will be a stressful experience for me. In particular, this year the start in Corsica presents a technically difficult parcours, and I'll have to support Alberto from the first kilometer to the last. It will be stressfull, and full of tough rivals, first of all, Froome.”
G: "What’s Alberto Contador like? What kind of person and teammate?.”
B: "Alberto is a quiet and humble person, and a good teammate. He's very professional, methodical, he leaves nothing to chance. A fuoriclasse in every way.”
G: "A second place recently in the Tour of Swisse behind Sagan, but but in front of the World Champion Gilbert. More satisfaction or disappointment?.”
B: "For me it was like a victory because Sagan is unbeatable in these kinds of finishes. Besides, the early part of this season has been the toughest of my career due to a neck problem that slowed down my preparation. I agreed with Riis that I would participate for only two weeks in the Giro, and this has allowed me to find the right fit.”Contador is the Greatest0 -
knedlicky wrote:You wink but that's what they did in the Tour de Suisse (if you ignore the stage 1 prologue), and are doing in the Tour of Poland and the Tour of Austria, so seems some organisers actually like the idea.
In fact, Poland and Austria each start with two mountain stages; it'll be interesting to see how they develop thereafter.
Stage 2 of the 1992 TdF went over the Marie Blanque, gave Virenque a day in the yellow jersey. Not sure I would have called it a mountain stage though.0 -
frenchfighter wrote:FJS wrote:Just read that Danny van Poppel will be at 19 years old the youngest rider to start the Tour de France since WWII :shock:
Wow. Imagine if he finishes.
I hope his DS has the good sense to withdraw him long before Paris. At 19 the body is still fragile. A Tour finish at that age could damage him and disrupt his development.0 -
so, no Arnaud Demare for FDJ and Cadel is leader for BMC.
Strange.0 -
Joelsim wrote:Richmond Racer wrote:Vacansoleil squad:
Kris Boeckmans, Juan Antonio Flecha, Thomas De Gendt, Johnny Hoogerland, Sergey Lagutin, Wout Poels, Boy van Poppel, Danny van Poppel, Lieuwe Westra.
A brace of van Poppels! Van Poppel the younger is just 19
Boy van Poppel and Toddler van Poppel.
Both sons of the 1987 Tour Green Jersey winner Jean-Paul van Poppel...0 -
skylla wrote:Joelsim wrote:Richmond Racer wrote:Vacansoleil squad:
Kris Boeckmans, Juan Antonio Flecha, Thomas De Gendt, Johnny Hoogerland, Sergey Lagutin, Wout Poels, Boy van Poppel, Danny van Poppel, Lieuwe Westra.
A brace of van Poppels! Van Poppel the younger is just 19
Boy van Poppel and Toddler van Poppel.
Both sons of the 1987 Tour Green Jersey winner Jean-Paul van Poppel...
...and who's currently a DS with Vacansoleil0 -
Richmond Racer wrote:skylla wrote:Joelsim wrote:Richmond Racer wrote:Vacansoleil squad:
Kris Boeckmans, Juan Antonio Flecha, Thomas De Gendt, Johnny Hoogerland, Sergey Lagutin, Wout Poels, Boy van Poppel, Danny van Poppel, Lieuwe Westra.
A brace of van Poppels! Van Poppel the younger is just 19
Boy van Poppel and Toddler van Poppel.
Both sons of the 1987 Tour Green Jersey winner Jean-Paul van Poppel...
...and who's currently a DS with Vacansoleil
Hmmmm there's a word for that, begins with N, although I'm sure that is not what is happening here at all, no, no, not at all. :roll:Correlation is not causation.0 -
Well, it does save on Mrs Van Poppel's food bill for the next 3.5 weeks, I s'pose0
-
Richmond Racer wrote:Well, it does save on Mrs Van Poppel's food bill for the next 3.5 weeks, I s'pose
That would be Mirjam Melchers!0 -
Richmond Racer wrote:Well, it does save on Mrs Van Poppel's food bill for the next 3.5 weeks, I s'pose
The Dutch love a way, any way, to save money. Correlation is not causation.0 -
greasedscotsman wrote:Richmond Racer wrote:Well, it does save on Mrs Van Poppel's food bill for the next 3.5 weeks, I s'pose
That would be Mirjam Melchers!
Is that a type of food stuff?
Talking of Team Sunny Holidays, Rujano's announced he's retiring end-season. One more, erm, 'old skool' rider to be gone from the peloton
http://www.wielerupdate.nl/wielernieuws ... ielrennen/0 -
And Gesink's setting a first - falling off his bike even BEFORE the Tour starts
http://www.cyclingnews.com/news/crash-k ... mpionships0 -
That's her old name. She is now called Wife Van Poppel.greasedscotsman wrote:Richmond Racer wrote:Well, it does save on Mrs Van Poppel's food bill for the next 3.5 weeks, I s'pose
That would be Mirjam Melchers!Twitter: @RichN950 -
Sprints could be interesting this year with Greipel and Cavendish wearing very similar jerseys.0
