Heresy ?.....but Im enjoying Vuelta 2012 more than TDF 2012

Raffles
Raffles Posts: 1,137
edited September 2012 in Pro race
You can tie me to a stake and burn me, but im digging this years Vuelta and hollerring at my tv screen a lot more than I did for this years TDF :shock: The stage a couple of days ago which took the riders up a mountain peaking at 24% was just astonishing to watch. Make no mistake that those guys are the fittest athletes on planet earth....bar none. My admiration for those riders just goes up and up every time I watch the heart, passion, commitment and superhuman fitness which they display. I sat down to watch the TDF on ITV4 with my cup of strong black filter coffee and it was good, but nothing like the standing in front of the screen shouting and annoying my wife and kids that this years Vuelta has brought out in me. Roll on la bola del mundo, another leg sapping beast of a special category climb to come...............and I cant wait !!

Contador played an absolute blinder last night, what a ride !!!!!! Rodriguez finally cracked on that stage and was running on empty and Valverde is showing the world that he is a superhumanly strong cyclist with a performance last night to match Contadors.

Anybody else enjoyying this years Vuelta too ?
2012 Cannondale CAAD 8 105
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Comments

  • Of course you are, it's a far better race!
    Riders make a race interesting or boring... Contador and Rodriguez are exciting riders, while I am sorry to say Wiggins is not
    left the forum March 2023
  • hipshot
    hipshot Posts: 371
    It is a far better race than the TdF year, but I've always slightly preferred the Giro & the Vuelta actually. something to do with less hype and more unpredictability..

    Contador's audacity was breathtaking - a brilliant tactical move. A classic.
  • Couldn't agree more Raffles.I am equally annoying the family by squatting in front of the TV at 7pm every night and loudly marvelling at the speeds that these guys go,in particular up the steep gradients, with frequent comparisons to my own much lesser efforts none of which however seems to interest them in the slightest as non cyclists and they now start whinging/taking the mick even before I start eulogising.Still..they are well looking forward to the start of the Tour of Britain..not
  • snowley
    snowley Posts: 149
    It is immense this year!!

    The riders make the race and with Contador, Valverde and Rodriguez, you know they are going to attack at every opportunity
  • Calpol
    Calpol Posts: 1,039
    Of course you are, it's a far better race!
    Riders make a race interesting or boring... Contador and Rodriguez are exciting riders, while I am sorry to say Wiggins is not
    Yup that about sums it up. Both la Vuelta and the Giro have been better races this year. I think a lot has to do with the parcours.Mountain top finishes make for a great stage but like Ugo said Wiggins and Froome are more mechanical riders placing heavy reliance on the data from their SRM unit. Of course Wiggins is peerless on the TT bike this season but he didnt give us the best moments of the tour.Sagan, Voeckler and Pinaut favoursites from this years race. Hopefull Prudhomme will learn a lot from this years Giro and Vuelta and announce a more exciting route next year.
  • It's also a race in Spain and you would expect the Spanish riders to go for it. By winning they attain eternal fame. This year's race has been ok apart from the flat stages (so far) and Contador's win yesterday was very impressive. OK the TdF didn't excite you that much this year but it is the Tour and the daddy of them all. The other races are only there to fill in the calendar.
    Ecrasez l’infame
  • Yep It's been awesome so far.
    Even Mrs Potatoes is enjoying it :lol:
    Contador's not as good looking as Rodriguez apparently :evil:
    "You really think you can burn off sugar with exercise?" downhill paul
  • dw300
    dw300 Posts: 1,642
    It's excellent .. I miss the French countryside, HD coverage, and big name riders getting shelled out the back of the peleton when the pace is lifted though. A combo of those and the Vuelta's racing would be perfection.
    All the above is just advice .. you can do whatever the f*ck you wana do!
    Bike Radar Strava Club
    The Northern Ireland Thread
  • Raffles
    Raffles Posts: 1,137
    It's also a race in Spain and you would expect the Spanish riders to go for it. By winning they attain eternal fame. This year's race has been ok apart from the flat stages (so far) and Contador's win yesterday was very impressive. OK the TdF didn't excite you that much this year but it is the Tour and the daddy of them all. The other races are only there to fill in the calendar.


    I enjoyed both the giro and vuelta this year more than the tdf. more about out and out racing , struggling up huge uphill finishes compared to the bit of tedium element in this years tdf. spanish passion and flair against the less charasmatic wiggo. out of the 3 , im giving it to the vuelta though, its been a belter this year.
    2012 Cannondale CAAD 8 105
  • Raffles wrote:
    It's also a race in Spain and you would expect the Spanish riders to go for it. By winning they attain eternal fame. This year's race has been ok apart from the flat stages (so far) and Contador's win yesterday was very impressive. OK the TdF didn't excite you that much this year but it is the Tour and the daddy of them all. The other races are only there to fill in the calendar.


    I enjoyed both the giro and vuelta this year more than the tdf. more about out and out racing , struggling up huge uphill finishes compared to the bit of tedium element in this years tdf. spanish passion and flair against the less charasmatic wiggo. out of the 3 , im giving it to the vuelta though, its been a belter this year.

    Agreed, no contest. I'm pleased for the Vuelta, it has taken a bit of a hammering the last few years and been treated like the ginger step-child due to poor parcours and poor calendar placing.
    @JaunePeril

    Winner of the Bike Radar Pro Race Wiggins Hour Prediction Competition
  • I've enjoyed all 3, actually, for differnt reasons.

    TdF stands out for me though as I was out there for 9 stages...
  • Raffles wrote:
    You can tie me to a stake and burn me, but im digging this years Vuelta and hollerring at my tv screen a lot more than I did for this years TDF :shock:


    You're leaning against an open door there fella.
    “New York has the haircuts, London has the trousers, but Belfast has the reason!
  • Turfle
    Turfle Posts: 3,762
    The passing of time is certainly treating the Giro well.
  • ddraver
    ddraver Posts: 26,348
    ^Hah! Great point, well made

    Did nt Iain give it a 3/10 this year to widespread approval?

    God, we re suckers are nt we!!
    We're in danger of confusing passion with incompetence
    - @ddraver
  • Mikey23
    Mikey23 Posts: 5,306
    Yup hugely more enjoyable in a bad old days kind of a way. I stopped watching when it became obvious that cheating is still very much alive and kicking
  • Only a 3 week fan could enjoy this year's Tour more than the Vuelta.
    It's as if somebody bought the polish, six weeks after the turd was laid........
    ..........and the Giro was even worse.
    "Science is a tool for cheaters". An anonymous French PE teacher.
  • Mikey23 wrote:
    Yup hugely more enjoyable in a bad old days kind of a way. I stopped watching when it became obvious that cheating is still very much alive and kicking

    Indeed, lost interest when the 2 lead riders are unrepentant dopers. no faith that they are clean now so where is the fun.

    Actually makes me quite angry...
  • mtbboy101 wrote:
    Mikey23 wrote:
    Yup hugely more enjoyable in a bad old days kind of a way. I stopped watching when it became obvious that cheating is still very much alive and kicking

    Indeed, lost interest when the 2 lead riders are unrepentant dopers. no faith that they are clean now so where is the fun.

    Actually makes me quite angry...

    Do those Garmin unrepentant dopers make you angry, too?

    Lots of foreign folk lost interest in the Tour, when Sky domestiques continually dropped
    all the Tour contenders on what climbs there were in that dud.
    "Science is a tool for cheaters". An anonymous French PE teacher.
  • I did enjoy the Tour immensely with Sky dominating and Wiggo winning..

    .. but the racing in la Vuelta is good.

    am I allowed to have enjoyed both?
  • RichN95.
    RichN95. Posts: 27,137
    edited September 2012
    Only a 3 week fan could enjoy this year's Tour more than the Vuelta.
    It's as if somebody bought the polish, six weeks after the turd was laid........
    ..........and the Giro was even worse.

    It depends how you watch sport. I mostly watch it in a partisan manner. So I enjoy 'my team' winning a turgid 1-0 match than losing a 5-4 thriller.

    So I enjoyed the Tour because my favourite won. The Vuelta I would enjoy more if Rodriguez was winning and less if Valverde was.
    Twitter: @RichN95
  • mtbboy101 wrote:
    Mikey23 wrote:
    Yup hugely more enjoyable in a bad old days kind of a way. I stopped watching when it became obvious that cheating is still very much alive and kicking

    Indeed, lost interest when the 2 lead riders are unrepentant dopers. no faith that they are clean now so where is the fun.

    Actually makes me quite angry...

    Do those Garmin unrepentant dopers make you angry, too?

    Lots of foreign folk lost interest in the Tour, when Sky domestiques continually dropped
    all the Tour contenders on what climbs there were in that dud.


    Basically for various reasons there's no GT that's made everyone equally happy, is there
  • Turfle
    Turfle Posts: 3,762
    Only a 3 week fan could enjoy this year's Tour more than the Vuelta.
    It's as if somebody bought the polish, six weeks after the turd was laid........
    ..........and the Giro was even worse.

    Objectively the racing may be better/more competitive, but subjectively I disagree strongly.

    Personally I'm finding it very hard to find any joy in anything Contador is doing, and that is making it a very hard race to enjoy.

    The Tour was good enough until Evans cracked, and then it lost some of it's intrigue. But the caterwauling of the anti-Sky anti-Wiggins folk made the Tour far more enjoyable for me.

  • Do those Garmin unrepentant dopers make you angry, too?


    yes
  • iainf72
    iainf72 Posts: 15,784
    The Tour is rarely the best GT in terms of racing.

    Both the Giro and the Tour were turds this year. The Giro was more of a turd as there weren't even many good stages, where as if the GC race in the Tour was beyond duff, there were a few good stages.
    Fckin' Quintana … that creep can roll, man.
  • smithy21
    smithy21 Posts: 2,204
    RichN95 wrote:
    Only a 3 week fan could enjoy this year's Tour more than the Vuelta.
    It's as if somebody bought the polish, six weeks after the turd was laid........
    ..........and the Giro was even worse.

    It depends how you watch sport. I mostly watch it in a partisan manner. So I enjoy 'my team' winning a turgid 1-0 match than losing a 5-4 thriller.

    So I enjoyed the Tour because my favourite won. The Vuelta I would enjoy more if Rodriguez was winning and less if Valverde was.

    Are you me? This exactly.

    Also, it's a bit like enjoying a great Europa League final after the Champions League final was a bit dull. You know it's not really the main event.
  • RichN95 wrote:
    Only a 3 week fan could enjoy this year's Tour more than the Vuelta.
    It's as if somebody bought the polish, six weeks after the turd was laid........
    ..........and the Giro was even worse.

    It depends how you watch sport. I mostly watch it in a partisan manner. So I enjoy 'my team' winning a turgid 1-0 match than losing a 5-4 thriller.

    So I enjoyed the Tour because my favourite won. The Vuelta I would enjoy more if Rodriguez was winning and less if Valverde was.


    True It was a great race for we Brits, but objectively it was a lousy race, in terms of everything else.
    Not that we weren't expecting it, given those parcour.

    I agree re Purito-Piti, but again, that's the racers, not the racing.
    "Science is a tool for cheaters". An anonymous French PE teacher.
  • iainf72
    iainf72 Posts: 15,784
    I wonder if everyone would say "that's alright then" if the wattages were normal like in the Tour
    Fckin' Quintana … that creep can roll, man.
  • Raffles
    Raffles Posts: 1,137
    Are some of you saying that this years Vuelta isnt that good ?

    I think its been action all the way and those epic uphill rides have just been fascinating to watch as riders truly suffer on them. To be honest, I found the TDF a yawn by comparison.
    2012 Cannondale CAAD 8 105
  • ms_tree
    ms_tree Posts: 1,405
    Giro was ok but a bit pedestrian at times.
    Tour was boring with Armstrongesque riding.
    Vuelta is really good; pity it isn't on for longer each day especially yesterday's stage.
    'Google can bring back a hundred thousand answers. A librarian can bring you back the right one.'
    Neil Gaiman
  • Only a 3 week fan could enjoy this year's Tour more than the Vuelta.
    It's as if somebody bought the polish, six weeks after the turd was laid........
    ..........and the Giro was even worse.

    You're MUCH better and longer standing fan than me. Obviously.
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