ChengWatch *May contain Lantern Rouge Spoilers*

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  • frenchfighter
    frenchfighter Posts: 30,642
    Got to be a good caption for this:
    CORVOS_00023520-063.jpg
    Contador is the Greatest
  • takethehighroad
    takethehighroad Posts: 6,810
    Although I've not quite seen the last episode of 24 yet, I did chuckle when i saw Cheng was chasing down Jack Bauer earlier
  • RoadPainter
    RoadPainter Posts: 375
    Cheng was off the back at 10km to go on Saturday. I gave him a load of encouragement, only to be a bit deflated by seeing him take a 50m or so sticky bottle.
    Made it in the grupetto up at Risoul, but I'm not a fan of sticky bottle taken too far
  • Mad_Malx
    Mad_Malx Posts: 5,160
    RoadPainter wrote:
    Cheng was off the back at 10km to go on Saturday. I gave him a load of encouragement, only to be a bit deflated by seeing him take a 50m or so sticky bottle.
    Made it in the grupetto up at Risoul, but I'm not a fan of sticky bottle taken too far

    No - you were actually seeing the mighty Cheng pulling the team car.
  • pottssteve
    pottssteve Posts: 4,069
    Uh-oh! He's just been on pulling the doctor's car as well....


    GO CHENG!
    Head Hands Heart Lungs Legs
  • ben@31
    ben@31 Posts: 2,327
    Somebody has to get the Lotto tour-bus to the end of them mountain stages. And that guy towing the 24 tonnes uphill is the Chenmister.


    ... Has he crossed the line yet?
    "The Prince of Wales is now the King of France" - Calton Kirby
  • symo
    symo Posts: 1,743
    Tougher day tomorrow. Hopefully he will continue towing the autobus up the hill.
    +++++++++++++++++++++
    we are the proud, the few, Descendents.

    Panama - finally putting a nail in the economic theory of the trickle down effect.
  • ben@31
    ben@31 Posts: 2,327
    symo wrote:
    Tougher day tomorrow. Hopefully he will continue towing the autobus up the hill.

    He may loose a few seconds to Nibali.
    "The Prince of Wales is now the King of France" - Calton Kirby
  • frenchfighter
    frenchfighter Posts: 30,642
    by Kåre Dehlie Thorstad
    ZUPER-15906.jpg
    Contador is the Greatest
  • Coriander
    Coriander Posts: 1,326
    There was an interesting comment in yesterday's Cycling Podcast about the different treatment from the team towards their star sprinter and the guy who merely pulls the bunch along for hours at a time, despite their very public insistence that each and every member is equally vital and integral to the team's success. I don't say this to have a go at Kittel, if after a stage like yesterday someone sat me down, handed me a drink, wiped my face and brought me a clean top and helped me out of the sweaty, dirty one and into the new one I'd very happily let them.
  • above_the_cows
    above_the_cows Posts: 11,406
    Coriander wrote:
    There was an interesting comment in yesterday's Cycling Podcast about the different treatment from the team towards their star sprinter and the guy who merely pulls the bunch along for hours at a time, despite their very public insistence that each and every member is equally vital and integral to the team's success. I don't say this to have a go at Kittel, if after a stage like yesterday someone sat me down, handed me a drink, wiped my face and brought me a clean top and helped me out of the sweaty, dirty one and into the new one I'd very happily let them.

    It's funny when you consider that CHENG has no doubt got considerably more mentions on here during the last few weeks that Kittel. I mean he has his own thread and basically control over another one (Lanterne thread).

    Where's Kittel's thread eh?
    Correlation is not causation.
  • above_the_cows
    above_the_cows Posts: 11,406
    DELETE
    Correlation is not causation.
  • frenchfighter
    frenchfighter Posts: 30,642
    But is it Kittel vs everyone else treatment or everyone else vs Cheng treatment?
    Contador is the Greatest
  • above_the_cows
    above_the_cows Posts: 11,406
    frenchfighter wrote:
    But is it Kittel vs everyone else treatment or everyone else vs Cheng treatment?

    An important question. Either way if you're Cheng The Breakaway Killer it's a bit rubbish.
    frenchfighter wrote:
    by Kåre Dehlie Thorstad
    ZUPER-15906.jpg

    That is a really lovely photo. I am now a certified heavyweight Cheng fan.
    Correlation is not causation.
  • ben@31
    ben@31 Posts: 2,327
    Come on Chen! Only 3 stages to go.
    "The Prince of Wales is now the King of France" - Calton Kirby
  • symo
    symo Posts: 1,743
    Is there a twitter hashtag for Cheng?

    Lets really raise his profile. He is inspirational.
    +++++++++++++++++++++
    we are the proud, the few, Descendents.

    Panama - finally putting a nail in the economic theory of the trickle down effect.
  • pottssteve
    pottssteve Posts: 4,069
    71km to go and there he is, once again, back on the front where he belongs. Towing the peloton to Paris...

    GO CHENG!
    Head Hands Heart Lungs Legs
  • graeme_s-2
    graeme_s-2 Posts: 3,382
    frenchfighter wrote:
    But is it Kittel vs everyone else treatment or everyone else vs Cheng treatment?
    The implication was it was Kittel vs everyone else. Or more broadly team leaders/star riders vs everyone else.
  • Coriander
    Coriander Posts: 1,326
    Graeme_S wrote:
    frenchfighter wrote:
    But is it Kittel vs everyone else treatment or everyone else vs Cheng treatment?
    The implication was it was Kittel vs everyone else. Or more broadly team leaders/star riders vs everyone else.

    Yes, I understood it as the latter. It wasn't said on the podcast as a dig at Kittel.
  • ben@31
    ben@31 Posts: 2,327
    Come on Cheng, you've only 5h 30m to make up.

    Maybe Nibali will accidentally sleep-in tomorrow and set off 6 hours late?
    "The Prince of Wales is now the King of France" - Calton Kirby
  • pottssteve
    pottssteve Posts: 4,069
    I hope it's not the end of his Tour...
    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZDiqRFwnEVE
    Head Hands Heart Lungs Legs
  • tailwindhome
    tailwindhome Posts: 19,310
    Cheng first off in TT today.

    BtdO96-CQAAd6Ru.jpg

    A maintenance crew will follow to replace the chewed up tarmac.
    “New York has the haircuts, London has the trousers, but Belfast has the reason!
  • dsoutar
    dsoutar Posts: 1,746
    From France 24:

    "I've ​​worked a lot on the final stages and it does not show necessarily. In the mountains, don't get me wrong, but sometimes I have to slow down to wait for my teammates, like Marcel Kittel, for them to finish on time. Maybe you do not see me in the lead group, but I'm working hard in the back. I do not care about the clock. I'm here to help my team."
  • above_the_cows
    above_the_cows Posts: 11,406
    CHENG has finished his TT. He pulled his Lanterne challenger so hard that the pretender to Cheng's crown overtook him.

    Now all that stands in the way of Cheng and his triumphant arrival in Paris, is staying on his bike.

    GO CHENG!



    *As an aside, Cheng really is quite little isn't he. I know they are all 'little' relatively speaking but he's half the size of the man he replaced, Big Bert Grabsch.
    Correlation is not causation.
  • pottssteve
    pottssteve Posts: 4,069
    Good to see Cheng Ji roll in in 162nd place today.

    I hope he enjoys the final stage tomorrow and I expect we will see him on the front in Paris towing Marcel towards the Champs Elysee.

    GO CHENG!!!
    Head Hands Heart Lungs Legs
  • rick_chasey
    rick_chasey Posts: 75,661
    Slightly unfortunate the first Chinese rider in the Tour is also the lantern rouge.

    He's a good and useful rider.
    _
  • pottssteve
    pottssteve Posts: 4,069
    Rick Chasey wrote:
    Slightly unfortunate the first Chinese rider in the Tour is also the lantern rouge.

    He's a good and useful rider.


    Maybe, but he's had more attention than if he had finished somewhere in the middle of the peloton.

    He's had an excellent race; very visible in his role as "Breakaway Killer" on the sprint stages so those of us who understand know how hard he's worked. The Lanterne Rouge means he's doubly visible. He comes across as a really nice, genuine guy and has been a solid addition to the squad. he's getting coverage in Asia also through CCTV (Chinese TV).

    It only remains for me to say,

    GO CHENG!!!!!!!!!!
    Head Hands Heart Lungs Legs
  • above_the_cows
    above_the_cows Posts: 11,406
    Le Tour de France ‏@letour 24m

    .@jicheng369 en route pour Paris / on his way to Paris #TDF

    BtjlKeKIgAAC1Dq.png

    GO CHENG!!!!!!!
    Correlation is not causation.
  • ben@31
    ben@31 Posts: 2,327
    dsoutar wrote:
    From France 24:

    " but sometimes I have to slow down to wait for my teammates, like Marcel Kittel, for them to finish on time."

    So thats the reason.

    Could you imagine if you were able to cycle so fast you had to slow down and wait for Kittel to catch up.

    Would Chen have been a GC contender and have to wait for Nibali ?
    "The Prince of Wales is now the King of France" - Calton Kirby
  • rick_chasey
    rick_chasey Posts: 75,661
    Good little Lionel Birnie anecdote on the podcast.

    Cheng paces Kittel up the mountain, who is obviously struggling.

    Kittel arrives, get's his bike taken away from him, gets given new clothes, washed down, drink in hand.

    Cheng sits there and has to do it all himself.


    Life of a domestique eh?
    _

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