The Lanterne Rouge Thread 2021 **SPOILERS**
Comments
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Yes, yes. yes - heard it too many times 'boring. boring, boring mountains' but but but look at those daring souls who tried their best to get right up the leader board on stage 9 and by some timing quirk got sent home.
What a joke.
Arnaud Demare, Bryan Coquard et al blew the Autobus to smithereens and Cav used his lead off train in spectacular fashion. Not many riders can be at both ends of the race with such consistency. It does make you wonder why he's racked up 32 losses when he obviously has some untapped innate ability.
So today is another chance for riders to slip off the front of the bus in a bid for glory. When there's too many on the bus ganging up on these brave souls and blocking the road, there has to be some sort of intervention.
Valverde will be hoping once again that it's a bit chilly and raining but he's far too old yet oddly far too inexperienced to get involved in proper glory.seanoconn - gruagach craic!0 -
Wow. Just wow. That must have been one of the all time great performances of the Tour. Riders these days tend to specialise in one discipline or another, so to find someone who can climb like that and then transmogrify into a sprinter is utterly mind-blowing, and surely qualifies him as the greatest rider of the 21st century.
Wout van Who?
Yes, today saw the birth of a new superstar as Søren Kragh Andersen judged the time limit to absolute perfection. Having climbed like a lovesick angel (viz. unable to eat, mooning around on your own, and shortly due a trip to the clinic to treat an unsightly rash), he then judged his sprint to perfection - beating the clock by seconds with a desperate bike throw on the line.
What grace! What effort! What an absolute waste of time! Team DSM should hang their heads in shame for failing to support him properly - he now sits 67th on GC, far from the position his talent demands.
SKA's two-tone talents distracted from one of the Tour's bigger rooster-ups of recent years. Whilst the three second hero was on my radio, someone working under too much pressure apparently left his keys at the top of Mont Ventoux and returned to fetch them. That probably wouldn't have been a problem had the person in question not been responsible for leading the race around the stage, treating an enraged peloton to a second jaunt up the mountain for no good purpose. You can tell it wasn't planned because nobody was trolling them with "I got you babe" as they crested the peak.
Elsewhere on Mont Ventoux, the bunch were undergoing a selecter to identify the specials. Ineos were on the front of the bunch working hard and driving the pace. Eurosport and ITV were wondering what the heck they were playing at. Perhaps it was a cunning plan to allow Pogacar to yet again streak of the front, and maybe, just maybe, this time explode in a cloud of his own hubris? Those who follow the Tour's most romantic competition knew better - Luke Rowe, 2017's Lanterne, had attacked off the back and Ineos were driving the pace to ensure Wout van Aert kept working to increase Rowe's gains.
Unfortunately the timing problems that had rendered the position of the grupetto a complete mystery sealed Rowe's fate. Convinced that they had plenty of time in hand, Rowe was told not to push on the descent - or frankly anywhere else - and promptly found himself hors delai after taking too much too young.
Rowe wasn't the only Lanterne candidate leaving the race. Tony Martin climbed into an ambulance having tried to hide in one ditch too many, a victim of Jumbo Visma's 11-day effort to literally trip over themselves in their eagerness to copy Ineos. Russo and McLay also climbed off from the top ten, leading to something of a shake up on HD.
Kluge still leads after a relatively safe finish ten minutes inside the cut off, and finally a word for France's own attempt to emulate the Manx Missile, with underpowered rocket NASA Bouhanni snatching 40 bonus seconds for unspecified offences. Well done that man.
Stop your messing around:
147 MARK CAVENDISH 55 DECEUNINCK - QUICK - STEP 05h 58' 23'' + 00h 40' 40'' - -
148 MICHAEL MØRKØV 58 DECEUNINCK - QUICK - STEP 05h 58' 23'' + 00h 40' 40'' - -
149 TIM DECLERCQ 56 DECEUNINCK - QUICK - STEP 05h 58' 23'' + 00h 40' 40'' - -
150 IVAN GARCIA CORTINA 64 MOVISTAR TEAM 05h 58' 23'' + 00h 40' 40'' - -
151 DRIES DEVENYNS 57 DECEUNINCK - QUICK - STEP 05h 58' 23'' + 00h 40' 40'' - -
152 CARLOS BARBERO 192 TEAM QHUBEKA NEXTHASH 05h 58' 23'' + 00h 40' 40'' - -
153 MADS PEDERSEN 45 TREK - SEGAFREDO 05h 58' 23'' + 00h 40' 40'' - -
154 JÉRÉMY CABOT 203 TOTALENERGIES 05h 58' 23'' + 00h 40' 40'' - -
155 NACER BOUHANNI 132 TEAM ARKEA - SAMSIC 06h 01' 08'' + 00h 43' 25'' - P : 40''
156 SØREN KRAGH ANDERSEN 141 TEAM DSM 06h 05' 19'' + 00h 47' 36'' - -
Better think of your future:
147 ANDRÉ GREIPEL 34 ISRAEL START-UP NATION 46h 08' 17'' + 02h 23' 39'' - -
148 MICHAEL MØRKØV 58 DECEUNINCK - QUICK - STEP 46h 09' 30'' + 02h 24' 52'' - -
149 MARK CAVENDISH 55 DECEUNINCK - QUICK - STEP 46h 10' 37'' + 02h 25' 59'' B : 30'' -
150 TIM DECLERCQ 56 DECEUNINCK - QUICK - STEP 46h 11' 01'' + 02h 26' 23'' - -
151 NACER BOUHANNI 132 TEAM ARKEA - SAMSIC 46h 13' 12'' + 02h 28' 34'' B : 14'' P : 40''
152 MARCO HALLER 164 BAHRAIN VICTORIOUS 46h 14' 12'' + 02h 29' 34'' - -
153 JÉRÉMY CABOT 203 TOTALENERGIES 46h 20' 00'' + 02h 35' 22'' - -
154 MADS PEDERSEN 45 TREK - SEGAFREDO 46h 20' 49'' + 02h 36' 11'' - -
155 AMUND GRØNDAHL JANSEN 175 TEAM BIKEEXCHANGE 46h 24' 14'' + 02h 39' 36'' - -
156 ROGER KLUGE 155 LOTTO SOUDAL 46h 27' 55'' + 02h 43' 17'' - -3 -
Oh I hope this isn’t decided on bonuses. Could lead to mass public urinating, long socks and other abominations.2
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Update: having written all those Selecter puns, I now have Pauline Black living rent free in my head.
And it's bloody marvellous.0 -
Mmm… I love Selecter, but reckon she’d be a nightmare head tennant.
My advice would be to find someone with more space who you don’t like very much.
Or is that too much pressure?1 -
Luke Rowe just raced too hard for the Lanterne. A great effort by him but he was just too good.Correlation is not causation.1
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There was huge controversy on the Tour today when it turned out that organisers had failed to provide the official Lanterne Rouge skinsuit that Roger Kluge had asked for, forcing him to ride in regular team kit that he had worn to the start zone.
Some people claimed there is a controversy to prevent him challenging the record held by the legend of Belgian cycling, Wim Vansevenant, others countered that Kluge surely had enough Lanterne kit by now to provide his own, and still more complained that it was hardly regulation kit and allowing this obsession with aerodynamics to infect the Lanterne Rouge is taking things too far.
Whatever the facts of the case, they hardly affected Kluge, who happily rolled in with the last bunch to take a little more time on HD. It's now obvious that Kluge is determined to defend his title, and chapeau to him for doing so.
Despite brief echelon action nobody was able to force a major split early doors, but a small amount of wind on the run in allowed Kluge to escape with pressure group Carless Verona and erstaz search engine Michael Gogl to maximise his returns. Verona took the honours on the line, Kluge clearly trying to buy favours for later in the race...
Carless Whisper:
146 CHRISTOPHER JUUL JENSEN 176 TEAM BIKEEXCHANGE 03h 38' 38'' + 00h 16' 26'' - -
147 JASPER STUYVEN 47 TREK - SEGAFREDO 03h 38' 38'' + 00h 16' 26'' - -
148 MADS PEDERSEN 45 TREK - SEGAFREDO 03h 38' 38'' + 00h 16' 26'' - -
149 GERAINT THOMAS 21 INEOS GRENADIERS 03h 38' 38'' + 00h 16' 26'' - -
150 MAXIMILIAN RICHARD WALSCHEID 198 TEAM QHUBEKA NEXTHASH 03h 38' 38'' + 00h 16' 26'' - -
151 ELIE GESBERT 134 TEAM ARKEA - SAMSIC 03h 39' 31'' + 00h 17' 19'' - -
152 NAIRO QUINTANA 136 TEAM ARKEA - SAMSIC 03h 39' 31'' + 00h 17' 19'' - -
153 ROGER KLUGE 155 LOTTO SOUDAL 03h 39' 42'' + 00h 17' 30'' - -
154 MICHAEL GOGL 197 TEAM QHUBEKA NEXTHASH 03h 39' 42'' + 00h 17' 30'' - -
155 CARLOS VERONA 68 MOVISTAR TEAM 03h 39' 42'' + 00h 17' 30'' - -
Overcautious Flakes:
146 OMER GOLDSTEIN 33 ISRAEL START-UP NATION 49h 45' 54'' + 02h 23' 11'' - -
147 MICHAEL MØRKØV 58 DECEUNINCK - QUICK - STEP 49h 47' 35'' + 02h 24' 52'' - -
148 MARK CAVENDISH 55 DECEUNINCK - QUICK - STEP 49h 48' 42'' + 02h 25' 59'' B : 30'' -
149 TIM DECLERCQ 56 DECEUNINCK - QUICK - STEP 49h 49' 06'' + 02h 26' 23'' - -
150 NACER BOUHANNI 132 TEAM ARKEA - SAMSIC 49h 51' 17'' + 02h 28' 34'' B : 14'' P : 40''
151 MARCO HALLER 164 BAHRAIN VICTORIOUS 49h 52' 17'' + 02h 29' 34'' - -
152 JÉRÉMY CABOT 203 TOTALENERGIES 49h 58' 05'' + 02h 35' 22'' - -
153 MADS PEDERSEN 45 TREK - SEGAFREDO 49h 59' 27'' + 02h 36' 44'' - -
154 AMUND GRØNDAHL JANSEN 175 TEAM BIKEEXCHANGE 50h 02' 52'' + 02h 40' 09'' - -
155 ROGER KLUGE 155 LOTTO SOUDAL 50h 07' 37'' + 02h 44' 54'' - -1 -
Kluge is definitely going all out for this. Almond Greendahl Son Of Ullrich is the surprise package from the Scandinavian lands though. Presumably trying to salvage some viking honour with Vingegaard's disastrous failure to blow up and lose major time on Ven2.
He's only 4 minutes ahead, Kluge will have to work for this, but I'm crossing my fingers for him.
It looks more like the Vikings might book the ends of the race*
*Not bookend. The first book after the bookend, obviously.Warning No formatter is installed for the format0 -
One of the things that makes Mark Cavendish so popular in the peloton, and that encourages his teammates to bury themselves for him, is the way that he'll sacrifice himself working on behalf of his team when it's time to return the favour.
So it was no surprise to see him and Michael Mørkøv sprinting their backsides off in the service of Tim Declercq earlier.
Declercq has been battling several problems in his challenge for the Lanterne. The obvious one - and the most difficult to overcome - is the fact that I tipped him for glory before the race. Another problem is that Roger Kluge has ridden his luck, if not his bike, beautifully.
The second of these has, regrettably, ceased to be a problem - and amongst some controversy. On an otherwise nondescript stretch of road Declercq spotted a handy roadside bollard. With the split second opportunism that all great cyclists need he promptly rode into it.
Unfortunately several other riders saw their opportunity to take time by joining in, the more ambitious of them hurling themselves off a cliff in the manner of one of the less family-friendly Disney documentaries about lemmings. And amongst those falling over the top of the prostrate Declercq was Kluge who, like Icarus, flew too high.
Declercq remounted and took more than 21 minutes on HD, aided by the hard work of his teammates on the front. And after a long period of scrutiny by the race jury, he was deemed not to have deliberately taken out the current Lanterne and his new position at the tail of the peloton was confirmed. We've seen riders disqualified for this sort of thing before though - notably Peter Sagan in 2017 for pre-emptively taking down Cavendish before he'd even reached the mountains to start shifting some serious time.
Spare a thought for Kluge, who was threatening to become the first Lanterne to defend his title since Vansevenant, and with no little style. Maybe being able to wear the skinsuit he wanted would have cushioned his fall? You don't win races without a little bit of luck - but with the sort of luck you need to win the Lanterne it's possible to be too lucky...
Oops:
142 ANTHONY PEREZ 96 COFIDIS 05h 10' 48'' + 00h 06' 19'' - -
143 DMITRIY GRUZDEV 185 ASTANA - PREMIER TECH 05h 10' 48'' + 00h 06' 19'' - -
144 VICTOR DE LA PARTE 204 TOTALENERGIES 05h 10' 48'' + 00h 06' 19'' - -
145 CARLOS VERONA 68 MOVISTAR TEAM 05h 10' 48'' + 00h 06' 19'' - -
146 RAFAL MAJKA 7 UAE TEAM EMIRATES 05h 10' 50'' + 00h 06' 21'' - -
147 BRUNO ARMIRAIL 82 GROUPAMA - FDJ 05h 10' 50'' + 00h 06' 21'' - -
148 JORIS NIEUWENHUIS 146 TEAM DSM 05h 11' 02'' + 00h 06' 33'' - -
149 JULIAN ALAPHILIPPE 51 DECEUNINCK - QUICK - STEP 05h 11' 02'' + 00h 06' 33'' - -
150 SØREN KRAGH ANDERSEN 141 TEAM DSM 05h 20' 57'' + 00h 16' 28'' - -
151 TIM DECLERCQ 56 DECEUNINCK - QUICK - STEP 05h 26' 07'' + 00h 21' 38'' - -
I did it again:
142 MARC HIRSCHI 5 UAE TEAM EMIRATES 54h 53' 37'' + 02h 26' 25'' - -
143 SEAN BENNETT 193 TEAM QHUBEKA NEXTHASH 54h 54' 21'' + 02h 27' 09'' - -
144 OMER GOLDSTEIN 33 ISRAEL START-UP NATION 54h 54' 26'' + 02h 27' 14'' - -
145 CHRIS FROOME 31 ISRAEL START-UP NATION 54h 55' 07'' + 02h 27' 55'' - -
146 NACER BOUHANNI 132 TEAM ARKEA - SAMSIC 54h 55' 46'' + 02h 28' 34'' B : 14'' P : 40''
147 MARCO HALLER 164 BAHRAIN VICTORIOUS 54h 57' 59'' + 02h 30' 47'' - -
148 JÉRÉMY CABOT 203 TOTALENERGIES 55h 04' 57'' + 02h 37' 45'' - -
149 MADS PEDERSEN 45 TREK - SEGAFREDO 55h 07' 59'' + 02h 40' 47'' - -
150 AMUND GRØNDAHL JANSEN 175 TEAM BIKEEXCHANGE 55h 13' 36'' + 02h 46' 24'' - -
151 TIM DECLERCQ 56 DECEUNINCK - QUICK - STEP 55h 15' 13'' + 02h 48' 01'' - -1 -
That's a big move in one day. Must make froome believe it's still possible.3
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Danish TV2 have started talking up Mads P's chances. They actually asked him if he'd considered going for it, and he laughed it off. I think he might be a serious contender.
They also talked to Kluge pre stage, he said "if he wants it, he can have it". I assumed he was just joking but then he made a mistake so uncharacteristic for a seasoned contender that I think we have to consider he may have deliberately taken himself out of the race.Warning No formatter is installed for the format0 -
Let's also raise a horn of mead to Søren Kragh, who backed up his spectacular Ven Tutu victory with a strong 2nd place today. He's not in the GC running, but his stage hunting instincts are bottom notch. With Declercq in such devastating form today Kragh's finish was as good as anyone could hope for.Warning No formatter is installed for the format1
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Yeah, I spotted that too - he's had a good run of results if only his team would back him. Stopping off for a brief spot of mountaineering today was an excellent move.No_Ta_Doctor said:Let's also raise a horn of mead to Søren Kragh, who backed up his spectacular Ven Tutu victory with a strong 2nd place today. He's not in the GC running, but his stage hunting instincts are bottom notch. With Declercq in such devastating form today Kragh's finish was as good as anyone could hope for.
Blazing has him as one of the picks for tomorrow. Do you want to point out the obvious or shall I?1 -
Surely the French teams need to put more effort in, amazing how few are in the top 10.0
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Yates: "I can't be fussed with all this Tim. I fancy a pedal with Bury Clarion's Sunday club run with a Hot pot half way"
Declerq: "Yeah, it's getting rather tedious all that huffin and puffin for some short bloke who rubs his eyes a lot and waves his arms around whilst mumbling nonsense. Fancy a bit of cyclo cross? I watched that Van Der Poel bloke during lock down and he's quite handy in the sticky stuff, it looks like fun".
Yates: "Nah fun is not for me; it rains 364 and a half days a year where I come from but... do you think you can bunny hop plank barriers, want some practice?
Declerq: "What you thinking?"
Yates: "Oi Nacer, you're good at sticking your head into things, can you put it into my front wheel?"
Relishing this unique opportunity, Nacer rides up to Yates so fast Yates jumps in fright and falls off.
Declerq and many others seize the opportunity to break the monotony, the creative architect Yates presents a perfect obstacle and a clutch of riders head off on a scenic jolly.
Thus, the first Villespassans CX event was inaugurated thanks to a moment of genius, though who won is anyone's guess.
In other news: Delighted with the publicity, the Aube-Occitanie Tourist board have offered Yates the job of team leader for their new team which will be launched ahead of the 2022 season.seanoconn - gruagach craic!0 -
Yates really leaning into being The Flying Black Pudding.Correlation is not causation.1
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Kluge certainly got it wrong in his attempt for glory
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Nothing to do with his injuries, they're just literally wrapping him in cotton wool to ensure he's fit for another challenge next year.
Hope he recovers quickly.0 -
Effff me that looks painful for Kluge.Correlation is not causation.0
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When I switched on today's coverage I was immediately assured by Eurosport's brightest and most authoritative minds that today was a stage for the breakaway, and Carlton Kirby was of a similar opinion - and so it proved.
Immediately after the start Lanterne contenders were falling off the back of the wagon so efficiently that the gendarmes were checking local bars to see if they were being offered for sale by local ne'er-do-wells. Space cadet NASA Bouhanni was one of the first to pop, followed by Dutch delicacy Cheese Bol and Armund Grøning Jansen, and pretty soon followed by Tim Declercq.
Unfortunately halfway through the stage Declercq made the mistake of looking vaguely comfortable on a climb and was ordered forward to work for the team, which left Bouhanni, Bol and AGJ to take a bucketload of time and contest the stage victory.
Despite sending the peloton up a road called "The Cross Of Death" - and has there ever been a better name for a climb? - there were no withdrawals on the road today, though Archie Barguil and Søren Kragh Andersen failed to sign on this morning. I'm sure the latter will be back to fight for the big one, given his excellent performance on some stages this tour.
Even better than the "Cross of Death" was this thing, where the surveyors clearly took a wrong turn and decided to style it out. As connoisseurs of the Lanterne Rouge I'm pretty sure we can all applaud anyone who puts in that kind of effort whilst taking the long way round.
After all that action Grøning Jansen moves up into pole position, Cheese Bol is the big mover, Mark Cavendish is lurking with intent (as the BBC keeps asking, is this the year he achieves greatness?), Retro Hollenstein drops into the top ten, and the big loser is Ireland's Marc O'Haller, who got stuck in totally the wrong group.
Ain't no mountain high enough:
Loads @ + 00h 25' 34'' then...
147 NACER BOUHANNI 132 TEAM ARKEA - SAMSIC 04h 53' 02'' + 00h 36' 46'' - -
148 AMUND GRØNDAHL JANSEN 175 TEAM BIKEEXCHANGE 04h 53' 02'' + 00h 36' 46'' - -
149 CEES BOL 143 TEAM DSM 04h 53' 02'' + 00h 36' 46'' - -
Erm, on second thoughts:
140 MARCO HALLER 164 BAHRAIN VICTORIOUS 59h 31' 57'' + 02h 41' 36'' - -
141 MICHAEL MØRKØV 58 DECEUNINCK - QUICK - STEP 59h 33' 48'' + 02h 43' 27'' B : 6'' -
142 RETO HOLLENSTEIN 35 ISRAEL START-UP NATION 59h 34' 13'' + 02h 43' 52'' - P : 40''
143 MARK CAVENDISH 55 DECEUNINCK - QUICK - STEP 59h 34' 51'' + 02h 44' 30'' B : 40'' -
144 JÉRÉMY CABOT 203 TOTALENERGIES 59h 38' 55'' + 02h 48' 34'' - -
145 CEES BOL 143 TEAM DSM 59h 42' 37'' + 02h 52' 16'' - -
146 NACER BOUHANNI 132 TEAM ARKEA - SAMSIC 59h 48' 48'' + 02h 58' 27'' B : 14'' P : 40''
147 MADS PEDERSEN 45 TREK - SEGAFREDO 59h 49' 49'' + 02h 59' 28'' - -
148 TIM DECLERCQ 56 DECEUNINCK - QUICK - STEP 59h 57' 03'' + 03h 06' 42'' - -
149 AMUND GRØNDAHL JANSEN 175 TEAM BIKEEXCHANGE 60h 06' 38'' + 03h 16' 17'' - -0 -
Should probably have added that tomorrow is a boring mountain stage, so there's every prospect the only action is due to people falling hors delai.
Somebody will however win the Souvenir Henri Desgrange, which I've never seen a photo of. I really hope it's one of those kitsch ornaments made out of shells with a plastic Henri Desgrange glued on. It'd somehow be the most Tour de France object ever created.1 -
Disappointing to see Froome dropping off the leaderboard0
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It's never hard to tell when a Frenchman is threatening success at the Tour de France. Suddenly the TV director is all over it, ordering every moto in a six mile radius to congregate around the latest hope to ensure that everyone gets ultra-high definition close-ups of the precise moment that Pierre Rolland's little heart breaks. Again.
And this it was this afternoon with NASA Bouhanni's stage-long attempt to wrestle control of the Lanterne Rouge. Having launched the retro boosters on the first climb, Bouhanni rocketed to the back and didn't stop.
Unfortunately by the time the intermediate sprint came around it was obvious that Bouhanni had gone too hard, too soon, and was unlikely to make the time cut. In their usual subtle way the Tour organisers had sent out a white van man to follow him obnoxiously closely and make a continuous stream of comments about "bloody cyclists" live on whatever the French equivalent of the Jeremy Vine show is. Bouhanni eventually took the hint and climbed off - or given his performance on the hills perhaps simply dropped off - from fourth in the HD.
It's not a surprise to have lost Bouhanni - his climbing has looked like a weakness for some time, and he was a victim of Declercq's controversial tactical foul on stage 13 - but it's another sad blow for French hopes in a competition they used to dominate.
There was little else to note on today's stage. Edvard Boassen-Hagen went long, dropping off the back is the hope of gaining a souvenir Henri Desgrange, but apparently everyone else had been through the gift shop before him and they'd run out of stock. Consoling himself with a rainbow coloured eraser and a brass cannon with a pencil sharpener in it, EBH struggled into Andorra a mere hour and nine minutes after Sep Kuss, and was thus hors delai.
Meanwhile AGJ spent most of the stage carefully marking the DQS lads. Whilst he handed back a little bit of time due to yet another superb leadout for Mark Cavendish (and has anyone dared ask if he's finished last more times than Eddy Merckx?), AGJ will be pleased to have got through a tricky stage with the minimum offusseffort.
Join us tomorrow for... absolutely nothing, as the Tour takes a day off to raid the duty-free shopping arcades of Andorra.
Nessun dorma:
38 STEFAN BISSEGGER 112 EF EDUCATION - NIPPO 05h 43' 43'' + 00h 31' 37'' - -
139 JELLE WALLAYS 98 COFIDIS 05h 45' 26'' + 00h 33' 20'' - -
140 MAXIMILIAN RICHARD WALSCHEID 198 TEAM QHUBEKA NEXTHASH 05h 45' 26'' + 00h 33' 20'' - -
141 VEGARD STAKE LAENGEN 6 UAE TEAM EMIRATES 05h 45' 26'' + 00h 33' 20'' - -
142 AMUND GRØNDAHL JANSEN 175 TEAM BIKEEXCHANGE 05h 46' 54'' + 00h 34' 48'' - -
143 BENOIT COSNEFROY 121 AG2R CITROEN TEAM 05h 46' 54'' + 00h 34' 48'' - -
144 MICHAEL MØRKØV 58 DECEUNINCK - QUICK - STEP 05h 47' 03'' + 00h 34' 57'' - -
145 TIM DECLERCQ 56 DECEUNINCK - QUICK - STEP 05h 47' 03'' + 00h 34' 57'' - -
146 DRIES DEVENYNS 57 DECEUNINCK - QUICK - STEP 05h 47' 03'' + 00h 34' 57'' - -
147 MARK CAVENDISH 55 DECEUNINCK - QUICK - STEP 05h 47' 03'' + 00h 34' 57'' - -
Nessuno ha fretta:
138 DRIES DEVENYNS 57 DECEUNINCK - QUICK - STEP 65h 08' 35'' + 03h 01' 17'' - -
139 JULIEN SIMON 207 TOTALENERGIES 65h 13' 16'' + 03h 05' 58'' - -
140 JÉRÉMY CABOT 203 TOTALENERGIES 65h 14' 46'' + 03h 07' 28'' - -
141 RETO HOLLENSTEIN 35 ISRAEL START-UP NATION 65h 17' 08'' + 03h 09' 50'' - P : 40''
142 MICHAEL MØRKØV 58 DECEUNINCK - QUICK - STEP 65h 20' 51'' + 03h 13' 33'' B : 6'' -
143 MARK CAVENDISH 55 DECEUNINCK - QUICK - STEP 65h 21' 54'' + 03h 14' 36'' B : 40'' -
144 CEES BOL 143 TEAM DSM 65h 25' 35'' + 03h 18' 17'' - -
145 MADS PEDERSEN 45 TREK - SEGAFREDO 65h 28' 22'' + 03h 21' 04'' - -
146 TIM DECLERCQ 56 DECEUNINCK - QUICK - STEP 65h 44' 06'' + 03h 36' 48'' - -
147 AMUND GRØNDAHL JANSEN 175 TEAM BIKEEXCHANGE 65h 53' 32'' + 03h 46' 14'' - -2 -
I just choked on some of my cheeky school tomorrow wine.Lanterne_Rogue said:In their usual subtle way the Tour organisers had sent out a white van man to follow him obnoxiously closely and make a continuous stream of comments about "bloody cyclists" live on whatever the French equivalent of the Jeremy Vine show is.
Correlation is not causation.1 -
DQS for the team prize?0
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The grizzled road captain lay in his bed, trying to piece together his memories. It seemed like only last week he had found himself burning under the French sun, and now he was here, wrapped in the cool white sheets, ashamed at his good luck in being sent home.
He should be in France now with his squad. Not here.
He couldn't remember much of the attack. He'd been there - he knew that much. But they'd been ambushed in the mountains and he'd given desperate chase that left him away from his division. The rest was confusion until he reached the rendezvous with his regiment. The scab-lifters in the medical tent took one sad look at him and instantly diagnosed a hors delai, which he viewed as a slur on his character. He'd never even been near one, but he was too tired to argue as they bandaged him up and sent him off.
Since then, repatriated to Blighty but not yet recovered, he had suffered alone. And he suffered badly. Eurosport was the worst, due to regular interruptions from Lord Hah-Hah, but even David Millar on the home service seemed to lack the spirit of earlier, happier, days.
The lads had written to him, though little had survived the censor. Porte, the Australian sergeant, had censored the censored Cross of the Dead right up the censored. Thomas - he'd lost count of which - had taken a wound somewhere in Brittany. Diving for cover at the first sign of a counter-attack, he'd somehow censored his censored shoulder, but was continuing manfully. He'd even had reports of Corporal Froome, who'd been transferred to another regiment years ago. Apparently he'd picked up some tricks from his old captain, and was finally putting them to use at the rear of the division, just like he always promised to.
For now though, old battles turned in his mind as he plotted his return to action. He'd heard an old Spanish legend during his time in the Pyrenees, a legend that spoke of an ancient warrior older than time, whose sparkling deeds had earnt him fame across the whole of Europe in the dark ages before full-stage coverage. The people said that he never died, but still lay sleeping under some remote mountain, ready to cycle forth each year at the first sound of ITV's jaunty opening music. The legend of Senor Valverde was clearly peasant nonsense, but it gave him hope...
From The Welsh Patient by Michael OTL3 -
Oh no AGJ not starting today!
DQS dominance in the 3rd week0 -
Gutted.
Apparently it's the highest number of riders leaving the Tour by this stage since the year 2000.0
