TDF 2018, Stage 2: Mouilleron-Saint-Germain > La Roche-sur-Yon 08/07/2018 - 182,5 km *Spoilers*

tonyf34

underlayunderlay wrote:

Blazing Saddles wrote:

TheBigBean wrote:

Green and yellow for Sagan.

If he isn't relegated.

Place your bets, ladies and gentlemen...

After last year I suspect he'll get away with this one.

Why? If you fail to penalise poor bike handling/reckless riding when there was absolutely no need to - just like last year he had no need to go so far across, riders will continue to do it safe in the knowledge the commisaires won't do anything.
Either you have rules and apply them or you don't, he through loss of control or deliberately put another rider at risk for no reason whatsoever, he should get demoted for being a dick ...AGAIN! he's getting to be a liability, pro peleton's best bike handler my arse.

tonyf34

FocusZing wrote:

Itv4 going to be speaking to Cav and G after tik tok time.

Cav seemed to be pulling ugly faces again today, is he unwell or just frustrated he's not as fit as he'd like to be?

FocusZing

Yeah, hes a winner looking to top the most stages. Must be not feeling it. Hopefully it will come back next week.

m.r.m.

tonyf34 wrote:

Why? If you fail to penalise poor bike handling/reckless riding when there was absolutely no need to - just like last year he had no need to go so far across, riders will continue to do it safe in the knowledge the commisaires won't do anything.
Either you have rules and apply them or you don't, he through loss of control or deliberately put another rider at risk for no reason whatsoever, he should get demoted for being a dick ...AGAIN! he's getting to be a liability, pro peloton's best bike handler my ars*.

How does any of this reflect badly on his bike handling? He purposely closed the door on Degenkolb. Was a racing incident. Was certainly not clean and I can understand people seeing it as out of bounds, but I think it's still in the realm of hard racing.

tonyf34

Good interview by Cav as always, he doesn't take prisoners, just straight down the line, he can't do it any other way but he does sound a bit flat.

FocusZing

Yeah great insight from Cav. Explained the emotions and situation on sprint days. I still find the expo 5km action for sprint boring though:)

tonyf34

M.R.M. wrote:

tonyf34 wrote:

Why? If you fail to penalise poor bike handling/reckless riding when there was absolutely no need to - just like last year he had no need to go so far across, riders will continue to do it safe in the knowledge the commisaires won't do anything.
Either you have rules and apply them or you don't, he through loss of control or deliberately put another rider at risk for no reason whatsoever, he should get demoted for being a dick ...AGAIN! he's getting to be a liability, pro peloton's best bike handler my ars*.

How does any of this reflect badly on his bike handling? He purposely closed the door on Degenkolb. Was a racing incident. Was certainly not clean and I can understand people seeing it as out of bounds, but I think it's still in the realm of hard racing.

Well as someone supposedly with his credentials he absolutely shouldn't be doing that, I'd call into question his handling if it wasn't deliberate as he's out of control/reckless. But you seem to be happy be he deliberately cuts across riders at speed which as we've seen recently ends up with someone with a season ending injury?
I don't think that's acceptable, even less so when there was zero need to do it, NONE, there's hard racing and there's reckless and dangerous, this was another example of the latter.

As I said, continue to allow this style of 'hard racing' and do nothing and riders think they can do what they like, sagan's been a prat far too often causing incidents and got away with it in the past because of who he is and he'll continue in the same vein. He has the skill and power to not ride like that yet riders will end up with serious injuries more frequently if you do nothing/slap on the wrist, just in the same way motorists do what they like cos plod do fuck all. The psychology is exactly the same.

BelgianBeerGeek

tonyf34 wrote:

Good interview by Cav as always, he doesn't take prisoners, just straight down the line, he can't do it any other way but he does sound a bit flat.

I’m not a particular fan of Cav, but that was an interesting insight. It’s still unlike him to be that negative - wonder if he’s OK?

BelgianBeerGeek

tonyf34 wrote:

Good interview by Cav as always, he doesn't take prisoners, just straight down the line, he can't do it any other way but he does sound a bit flat.

I’m not a particular fan of Cav, but that was an interesting insight. It’s still unlike him to be that negative - wonder if he’s OK?

above_the_cows

BelgianBeerGeek wrote:

tonyf34 wrote:

Good interview by Cav as always, he doesn't take prisoners, just straight down the line, he can't do it any other way but he does sound a bit flat.

I’m not a particular fan of Cav, but that was an interesting insight. It’s still unlike him to be that negative - wonder if he’s OK?

He doesn't have his Bernie comfort blanket.

FocusZing

shirley_basso

ITV4 coverage/commentators/ pundits have been awesome. Adverts shyte though.

lucan

Shirley Basso wrote:

ITV4 coverage/commentators/ pundits have been awesome. Adverts shyte though.

Really? I thought they were poor today, although I usually find them to be good.

Talking about Demare's team mate having given him a front wheel when said team mate was holding a frame with no wheels on. Not even a comment about where team mate's back wheel might have disappeared to!

And then at the end of the stage, prattling on about how there were going to be lots of time gaps as the riders arrived in groups after the crash less than 3km from the finish.

Was I the only one swearing at their incompetence?

shirley_basso

Yeah perhaps that was weak but it wasn't Kirby and the guests are good for insight although I'm already bored of Millars chat.

Lanterne_Rogue

Above The Cows wrote:

BelgianBeerGeek wrote:

tonyf34 wrote:

Good interview by Cav as always, he doesn't take prisoners, just straight down the line, he can't do it any other way but he does sound a bit flat.

I’m not a particular fan of Cav, but that was an interesting insight. It’s still unlike him to be that negative - wonder if he’s OK?

He doesn't have his Bernie comfort blanket.

Have the cops searched your basement yet?

bobmcstuff

Shirley Basso wrote:

Yeah perhaps that was weak but it wasn't Kirby and the guests are good for insight although I'm already bored of Millars chat.

I was watching it on eurosport and I'd take a bit of an error about time gaps over Kirby having explosive verbal diahorrea for the last 5k

bobmcstuff

Craddock rode with a broken scapula apparently

BelgianBeerGeek

underlayunderlay wrote:

Above The Cows wrote:

BelgianBeerGeek wrote:

tonyf34 wrote:

Good interview by Cav as always, he doesn't take prisoners, just straight down the line, he can't do it any other way but he does sound a bit flat.

I’m not a particular fan of Cav, but that was an interesting insight. It’s still unlike him to be that negative - wonder if he’s OK?

He doesn't have his Bernie comfort blanket.

Have the cops searched your basement yet?

Whose? Mine or AtC’s? God that sounds paranoid.

bobmcstuff

Just watching the highlights, Degenkolb not very happy in the interview... Sagan didn't appreciate the questioning though.

richard_t._biscuit

I think the gap was a bit too big for Degenkolb to complain too much about someone filling it.

RichN95.

PTP Standings

blazing_saddles

Interesting debate on Avondetappe tonight.
Turns out that Sagan not only cut up Degenkolb, but also had a hand in Impey's crash that took out Gaviria and the rest.
Seen in close up, he switches from the left side to the right to dive bomb into the corner and clips Impey, who then has nowhere to go, so hits Pasqualon's wheel.

RichN95.

Blazing Saddles wrote:

Interesting debate on Avondetappe tonight.
Turns out that Sagan not only cut up Degenkolb, but also had a hand in Impey's crash that took out Gaviria and the rest.
Seen in close up, he switches from the left side to the right to dive bomb into the corner and clips Impey, who then has nowhere to go, so hits Pasqualon's wheel.

[cycling journalist] How dare they! Don't they know that he's the greatest bike handler ever. He's a rebel and philosopher in one. He does wheelies and grows his hair long. He is just so dreamy. He's like Harry Styles on a bike [/cycling journalist]

#nedboulting #richardmoore #davidmillar

the article don

Valverde 7th on this stage. Guy is a legend

DeVlaeminck

There is no doubt that Sagan is a fantastic bike handler, what is perhaps in question is whether he puts other riders at risk in his pursuit of victory.

He's nearly always there in a great position at the finale and if he had the top end of a Cav, Kittel or even Gaviria at their best he'd be setting records for sprint wins now. You don't get in those positions by luck and one of the qualities it takes is a willingness to stick your wheel in a gap which is maybe 60:40 in someone elses favour. Cav upset plenty when he was younger, he upsets fewer now but is absent from the finish more often too.

I thought Sagan's sprint today was just about within the bounds of acceptability but I wouldn't mind watching it back again, haven't seen the analysis of the earlier crash hopefully eurosport will pick up on that.

knedlicky

I don't think Degenkolb had much of a case, nor did Greipel did when asked about it at the finish.
Greipel was just inches behind Dege beforehand, on the inside, with Dege on his left, when Dege moved to the inside in front of Greipel. Then Sagan did the same to Dege. Sagan was also accelerating a lot as he overtook, so hardly cut Dege, if at all.
I actually thought it was Colbrelli closely following Sagan, who probably more caused Degenkolb to break his sprint.
Eitherway, yes, all within the bounds of acceptability.

timoid.

It's sprinting. You need to be ruthless. Look back at any year and you will see rough stuff being dished out. The Degenkolb manoeuvre was fine. Need to re-watch the corner incident though.

Tashman

RichN95 wrote:

PTP Standings

Huraah, I'll take that after a poor start

No_Ta_Doctor

Degenkolb could have got himself a far higher placing - and some fantasy points for me - if he hadn't just sat up and waved his arms about. Yes he needed to check his speed, but not ALL of it.

ShutupJens

Ridiculously excited that I'm in a jersey