TdF 2013-Stage 21 ** SPOILERS*** Versailles / Champs-Élysées

RideOnTime

ALIHISGREAT wrote:

I love a bit of cricket



Now can we get back to the cycling?

oh my...

shazzz

Graeme_S wrote:

Exhausted after taking part in the randonnee du tour and then spending 3 hours staking out a spot on the champs. Ended up right up against the railing in the end. Hadn't realised just how big the caravan was. It's huge!

Really impressed with Millar's ride (he looked properly broken when he came through out the back after he was caught). Fair play to Kittel. Saw a few groups of partying Colombians ("Quintana! Quintana! Quintana!"). Heard a little bit of booing when Froome was announced the winner, but nothing major. All in all a great day out and a brilliant end to a fantastic tour!

Are you sure it was booing? I was also on the Champs. There were lots of shouts of "Froooooooooome" in a mooing kind of way. We thought it was booing at first, but it definitely wasn't - at least not where we were.

It was a superb night. Amazing to see Millar nailing it, Vichot chasing back on after two punctures and all the other action that is so hard to follow on the telly. God knows how it must feel to be in that peloton as the roar goes up when they reach the circuit. Awesome.

Managed to chat to Boulting and Imlach afterwards, caught Froome as he arrived back at the Death Star and cheered along as Kittel shaved a mate's hair into a Kittel cut outside the Argos team bus.

A truly great atmosphere. No other sport can match the Tour de France.

RideOnTime

Looks like all watching on Sky.

On ITV4 Liggett sayes (along the lines and I may have embellished a little);

'ooooooh look there's the sun. oh no it's the moon. no, no it is the sun. No, is it the moon, Paul. No, I think it's the sun. No, no IT IS the moon. It's a very full moon. No, no it is the sun. No it's the moon. Well it looks nice whatever it is'

Jesus.

:roll: :roll: :roll: :roll:

bazbadger

Was a great end to the tour.

What a sprint finish - we've not seen one like that for years.

Cav said that perhaps he went too late, you can see him making it back (before he hits the pothole), but really I think his train let him down, combined with Kittel being so quick. Let's not forget that neither Kittel or Greipel did the Giro either. Perhaps Cav is going to have to go a bit 'marginal gains' in the future, who knows, but we should have some great sprint finishes lined up for the next couple of years.

typekitty

I'm glad all the Armstrong stuff came out before the 100e anniversary. All the coverage and associated books and magazines don't feature him at all, unless it's to do with the controversy.

RideOnTime

bazbadger wrote:

Was a great end to the tour.

What a sprint finish - we've not seen one like that for years.

Cav said that perhaps he went too late, you can see him making it back (before he hits the pothole), but really I think his train let him down, combined with Kittel being so quick. Let's not forget that neither Kittel or Greipel did the Giro either. Perhaps Cav is going to have to go a bit 'marginal gains' in the future, who knows, but we should have some great sprint finishes lined up for the next couple of years.

Yes, great finish.

I don't think that pothole cost him, did it? Just a judder.

EPO Delivery Man

I'm just glad Lesley Garrett wasn't invited to muller the f*ck out of the national anthem.

typekitty

EPO Delivery Man wrote:

I'm just glad Lesley Garrett wasn't invited to muller the f*ck out of the national anthem.

Heavens, I'd forgotten about that. Who sang this year? Missed it in favour of getting onto a train.

graeme_s-2

shazzz wrote:

Graeme_S wrote:

Heard a little bit of booing when Froome was announced the winner, but nothing major. All in all a great day out and a brilliant end to a fantastic tour!

Are you sure it was booing? I was also on the Champs. There were lots of shouts of "Froooooooooome" in a mooing kind of way. We thought it was booing at first, but it definitely wasn't - at least not where we were.

You may well be right. My wife did notice that at least one of the people "booing" was also clapping which she thought was a bit incongruous.

graeme_s-2

typekitty wrote:

EPO Delivery Man wrote:

I'm just glad Lesley Garrett wasn't invited to muller the f*ck out of the national anthem.

Heavens, I'd forgotten about that. Who sang this year? Missed it in favour of getting onto a train.

Nobody! National anthem was instrumental only. I think after Garrett-gate they felt they couldn't risk it!

Macaloon

Graeme_S wrote:

shazzz wrote:

Graeme_S wrote:

Heard a little bit of booing when Froome was announced the winner, but nothing major. All in all a great day out and a brilliant end to a fantastic tour!

Are you sure it was booing? I was also on the Champs. There were lots of shouts of "Froooooooooome" in a mooing kind of way. We thought it was booing at first, but it definitely wasn't - at least not where we were.

You may well be right. My wife did notice that at least one of the people "booing" was also clapping which she thought was a bit incongruous.

They weren't exactly camera shy


Good work, Chevalier Graeme

Idiomatic Frankie Bacon touch, Chevalier Gub

frenchfighter

Slim Boy Fat wrote:

frenchfighter wrote:

The animation of the Arc de Triomphe was excellent. The music was very poor.

Indurain didnt look comfortable up there...

"This is one yellow jersey that will stand the test of time." - Froome.

I would have had massive respect if Froome asked them to play the Kenyan anthem instead. He has never even lived in the Uk and owes it nothing.

Apart from his father of course.

Did he mention his dad in his speech? I must of missed it as all I heard was respect for his mum, and rightly so if you know about his background. If you ask him, he would call himself Kenyan rather than British.

disgruntledgoat

frenchfighter wrote:

Slim Boy Fat wrote:

frenchfighter wrote:

The animation of the Arc de Triomphe was excellent. The music was very poor.

Indurain didnt look comfortable up there...

"This is one yellow jersey that will stand the test of time." - Froome.

I would have had massive respect if Froome asked them to play the Kenyan anthem instead. He has never even lived in the Uk and owes it nothing.

Apart from his father of course.

Did he mention his dad in his speech? I must have missed it as all I heard was respect for his mum, and rightly so if you know about his background. If you ask him, he would call himself Kenyan rather than British.

Have you asked him?

kleinstroker

frenchfighter wrote:

Slim Boy Fat wrote:

frenchfighter wrote:

The animation of the Arc de Triomphe was excellent. The music was very poor.

Indurain didnt look comfortable up there...

"This is one yellow jersey that will stand the test of time." - Froome.

I would have had massive respect if Froome asked them to play the Kenyan anthem instead. He has never even lived in the Uk and owes it nothing.

Apart from his father of course.

Did he mention his dad in his speech? I must have missed it as all I heard was respect for his mum, and rightly so if you know about his background. If you ask him, he would call himself Kenyan rather than British.

Legally he can claim British Citizenship so that's all there is to it. The end.

"A child born outside the UK on or after 1 January 1983 automatically acquires British citizenship by descent if either parent is a British citizen other than by descent at the time of the birth."

Macaloon

frenchfighter wrote:

Slim Boy Fat wrote:

frenchfighter wrote:

The animation of the Arc de Triomphe was excellent. The music was very poor.

Indurain didnt look comfortable up there...

"This is one yellow jersey that will stand the test of time." - Froome.

I would have had massive respect if Froome asked them to play the Kenyan anthem instead. He has never even lived in the Uk and owes it nothing.

Apart from his father of course.

Did he mention his dad in his speech? I must have missed it as all I heard was respect for his mum, and rightly so if you know about his background. If you ask him, he would call himself Kenyan rather than British.

Froome can be both, a fluent Swahili speaking screaming inner Kenyan, and 100% qualified to ride for GB. He certainly rides his bike with the air of a man desperate to escape the confines of a train.

I can't imagine the nationality issue being more than another storm in a teacup :P

frenchfighter

majormantra

RideOnTime wrote:

I don't think that pothole cost him, did it? Just a judder.

It caused him to hop his rear wheel, but he'd already lost by then anyway.

thiscocks

Moray Gub wrote:

Not impressed with this kids on the podium thing that seems to be creeping in to a lot of major sporting occasions.

+1. wtf was that about?

frenchfighter

"...je ne pourrais pas dire que je me sens at home la-bas."
-Froome on UK

iainf72

frenchfighter wrote:

Did he mention his dad in his speech? I must have missed it as all I heard was respect for his mum, and rightly so if you know about his background. If you ask him, he would call himself Kenyan rather than British.

Ok, this is where Froome and I are quite similar (we are also great climbers)

I was born in SA to British parents. I grew up mostly in SA, but I never considered myself a Saffer, always thought of myself as "British". Much the same for a number of my friends with Brit parents. If you grow up in a household with a certain identity you tend to associate yourself with that.

Obviously I have chosen to live in London which is different to Froome. He's got a fondness for Africa which I just don't have.

slim_boy_fat

thiscocks wrote:

Moray Gub wrote:

Not impressed with this kids on the podium thing that seems to be creeping in to a lot of major sporting occasions.

+1. wtf was that about?

Father in wanting to share his success with his little kids shocker!

graeme_s-2

RideOnTime wrote:

Looks like all watching on Sky.

On ITV4 Liggett sayes (along the lines and I may have embellished a little);

'ooooooh look there's the sun. oh no it's the moon. no, no it is the sun. No, is it the moon, Paul. No, I think it's the sun. No, no IT IS the moon. It's a very full moon. No, no it is the sun. No it's the moon. Well it looks nice whatever it is'

Jesus.

:roll: :roll: :roll: :roll:

If you replaced "sun" with "my elbow" and "moon" with "my arse" that would pretty much sum up the last three weeks of commentary.

In other news I did catch a glimpse of Phil and Paul while riding up the Champs yesterday afternoon 8)

napoleond

Thought Cav was rather gracious in defeat in the post race interview.

kleinstroker

MajorMantra wrote:

RideOnTime wrote:

I don't think that pothole cost him, did it? Just a judder.

It caused him to hop his rear wheel, but he'd already lost by then anyway.

He did say he looked at his power meter and he was doing 1500W which is usually enough to blast everyone else away, I think he was as surprised as everyone else that he didn't manage to win.

frenchfighter

iainf72 wrote:

frenchfighter wrote:

Did he mention his dad in his speech? I must have missed it as all I heard was respect for his mum, and rightly so if you know about his background. If you ask him, he would call himself Kenyan rather than British.

Ok, this is where Froome and I are quite similar (we are also great climbers)

I was born in SA to British parents. I grew up mostly in SA, but I never considered myself a Saffer, always thought of myself as "British". Much the same for a number of my friends with Brit parents. If you grow up in a household with a certain identity you tend to associate yourself with that.

Obviously I have chosen to live in London which is different to Froome. He's got a fondness for Africa which I just don't have.

I can see where you are coming from but from everything I have read, he lived like an `African` rather than a `Brit` and he hasn`t come to the Uk or has showed any desire to. He has plans for Kenya in the future.

frenchfighter

I've also learned a lot from riding for Alberto. He is meticulous about his bike and equipment, even down to the air pressure in his tyres.

Alberto wakes up in the morning and, for him, it's all about winning. He's not satisfied with second place. Second, third or 20th is all the same to Alberto. Every day, he wakes up and says 'today were going to try this,' or 'we're going to try that'. If it works great; if not, it doesn't matter. He tweeted yesterday that the 2013 Tour is almost finished and he's already excited about 2014. That's how he is. He's got incredible mental strength.
-Roche

Very impressed with how hard Roche worked this Tour.

Give me more

NapoleonD wrote:

Thought Cav was rather gracious in defeat in the post race interview.

Steegmans punctured during the sprint apparently, which I think is why OPQS leadout fell apart. Maybe Cav actually realises that sometimes things just don't go your way.

iainf72

frenchfighter wrote:

I can see where you are coming from but from everything I have read, he lived like an `African` rather than a `Brit` and he hasn`t come to the Uk or has showed any desire to. He has plans for Kenya in the future.

I would expect he'd live in SA?

I'd say he lived like a Brit in another country. I think folks in Europe have their romanticised view of living in Africa. On ES last night they showed Froome training in SA and wild animals being visible. That's going to be an exception, for the most part he'd be on roads that could be anywhere.

disgruntledgoat

iainf72 wrote:

frenchfighter wrote:

I can see where you are coming from but from everything I have read, he lived like an `African` rather than a `Brit` and he hasn`t come to the Uk or has showed any desire to. He has plans for Kenya in the future.

I would expect he'd live in SA?

I'd say he lived like a Brit in another country. I think folks in Europe have their romanticised view of living in Africa. On ES last night they showed Froome training in SA and wild animals being visible. That's going to be an exception, for the most part he'd be on roads that could be anywhere.

I dunno, when I train I see all sorts of wild animals. Usually seagulls and the odd squirrel. :P

above_the_cows

frenchfighter wrote:

I can see where you are coming from but from everything I have read, he lived like an `African` rather than a `Brit` and he hasn`t come to the Uk or has showed any desire to. He has plans for Kenya in the future.

What does living like an African mean? There are 54 fully recognised sovereign states in Africa, so 'Africa' as a denominator of anything is pretty meaningless. My 'African' friends, those that grew up in and in some instances continue to live in SA, Zambia, Kenya, Cameroon, Ethiopia, Egypt and Morocco pretty much 'lived' like I did in the UK, i.e. a comfortable middle class life, the only difference was the weather and in some instances the language.