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Richie Porte - is he doing as good a job as Froome did last year in the support role or what? He always seems to be the last team sky domestique standing. Porte for yellow next year with Froome grumbling about being in a supporting capacity?
Unlikely, given that he got dropped.
well that's it then (touch wood)
FROOME-DOG FTW!!!
well that's it then (touch wood)
FROOME-DOG FTW!!!
Still got tomorrow to go..
6 mile summit finish at 8.5% tomorrow.
ouch.
they are not getting back 5 minutes baring disaster
froome looking much more comfortable on the podium than the last couple of days
Garmin's Jack Bauer left the race after going face first into a barbed wire fence.
ouchie!
[img] 
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they are not getting back 5 minutes baring disaster
Disaster is a speciality of the tour..
see photo above
Quintana has got to attack Contador tomorrow anyway and I would be surprised if he didn't take 2nd spot from Bertie.
Someone from the breakaway to take the stage again tomorrow. Peloton holds off until the last climb where Quintana will successfully attack Contador taking second place on GC.
Froome will go with Quintana and may even eventually crush him like on the Ventoux but may just hold off and take things relatively easy if the stage win is not an option so no incentive to take extra time I would guess.
Porte for yellow next year with Froome grumbling about being in a supporting capacity?
When he re-signed with them recently he mentioned wanting to have a crack at next years Giro so I assume he's been promised Grand Tour leader status, much as Froome was. More than enough Grand Tours to go around and seems to be succession planning on the part of Sky. Always amazed how fresh Porte looks when interviewed at the end of a stage, even Froome has the decency to look knackered.
Quintana has got to attack Contador tomorrow anyway
CBoardman made the point, bluntly, what are Movistar playing at tactic-wise? In Quintana they have a contender for 2nd overall, and KOM, carrying the white jersey, and they send/let Costa go for another stage win and Valverde do, well what exactly, attack to get into the top 10? Shouldnt they all be working for Quintana?
Froome will go with Quintana and may even eventually crush him like on the Ventoux
Allegedly he offered Quintana the stage win if he worked with Froome on Ventoux, only to end up not being able to hold Froome's wheel.
Never mind all that, I'm up to fourth, and I haven't a ****in clue about road racing!
Always amazed how fresh Porte looks when interviewed at the end of a stage
He MUST be doping. It's the only possible explanation. Burn him!
And why did I drop Costa from my fantasy team after week 1 and leave him out? And leave in Pinot for 2 days after he quit 🙄
He MUST be doping. It's the only possible explanation. Burn him!
Oi, there's a special thread for doping talk ye know.... 😉
Where do you lot read these tit bits of information?
Can't see Porte winning a Tour/Giro/Vuelta, I realise he's setting the pace for Froome and working harder, but if he were a real GC contender he wouldn't be as far back as he is.
Do get the feeling there's a generation change in the air: Froome, Quintana, Sagan, ... Contador, Evans, Valverde (and dare I say it, Wiggins?) look like yesterday's men.
Sky obviously disagree, with next years Giro being explicit in his re-signing. He's ridden a different race to Froome, doing loads of work, managing to recover then come back to work again even in the same stage, and every possibility he deliberately saved his energy in the TTs.
A fiver to your favourite charity if Porte hasnt been team leader and podiumed at a grand tour by end of 2014?
I reckon he'll podium if he goes for the giro. His position in the tour doesn't reflect his actual abilities following the 2nd ITT and the work he's had to do this tour, particularly given the dramas Sky have had.
Podium is a noun, not a verb.
As you're a student of etymology you'll know that language is defined by use.
OED includes 'podium' and 'medal' as verbs as well as nouns.
But you've been a great contestant, thanks for playing.
You mean he's got a bug up his arse? 😉
CBoardman made the point, bluntly, what are Movistar playing at tactic-wise? In Quintana they have a contender for 2nd overall, and KOM, carrying the white jersey, and they send/let Costa go for another stage win and Valverde do, well what exactly, attack to get into the top 10? Shouldnt they all be working for Quintana?
valverde leaving quintana on his own seemed pretty poor form team wise, but scrambled thinking and poor management has been pretty common place for moviestar this tour... sending the whole team back for valverde in the crosswinds and being too late on starting the chase down on alpe de huez come to mind.
Do you think Sky will go all out and try and get Froome the stage victory to win both KOM and yellow jersey?
You mean he's got a bug up his arse?
no, which is why I said etymology not entymology... 🙂
I'm sure everyone will be going all out. Last day innit.
Can't see Porte winning a Tour/Giro/Vuelta, I realise he's setting the pace for Froome and working harder, but if he were a real GC contender he wouldn't be as far back as he is.
Brailsford himself said he told Porte to pull back in the stage that cost him the most time. If he was a GC contender he'd still be pretty close to the top.
Looking forward to tomorrow. I reckon Quintana is gonna be putting some serious stress on Contador.
Froome's gonna want to win it too. He's not one for holding back...but I guess it's gonna come down to whether they can follow the breaks.
I have a feeling it may well be a bit of a damp squib tomorrow and I hope I'm wrong but the gc contenders all look shot to me.
I've just noticed that tomorrow's stage is only 125km long. That suggests to me that several riders will be looking to grab a stage win without having to do a mega breakaway like yesterday's and today's stage.
Providing the breakaway isn't allowed to get too far ahead it could provide Froome with the perfect excuse to really cap a wonderful Tour and win it in style, just the way he would want. He will know that he won't need to keep anything in reserve for any more stages where he could potentially be attacked.
I've just noticed that tomorrow's stage is only 125km long. That suggests to me that several riders will be looking to grab a stage win without having to do a mega breakaway like yesterday's and today's stage.
Yep, nice short stage to encourage attacking, summit finish too.
I reckon it's going to kick off tomorrow big time although I think Froome will be safe. He won't be the target, it'll be Contador and Kreuziger bearing the brunt of it from Quintana and Rodriguez. All Froome has to do is sit in the wheels and not do anything stupid.
A fiver to your favourite charity if Porte hasnt been team leader and podiumed at a grand tour by end of 2014?
Podium doesn't count, GC contender means winning. (Seriously: who really cares about who came second in, say, 2005?)
If Froome is remotely strong tomorrow the other teams wil just attack each other for podium places. If no group goes clear other GC contenders may ignore him leaving him free to win the stage, which means Sky will need to chase down attacks. Them poor lads.
Contador's not interested in finishing second but Quintana is. I'm sure that Bertie will give it everything maybe on the second last climb so that he can use his ability to take greater risks on the descent to get a gap before the final climb.
I don't actually think he has enough fire power to really carry this off otherwise he would have shown it at sometime already. However, if it rains again tomorrow you just never know.
I don't see anyone capable of taking 5 minutes out of Froome so fingers crossed he finishes safe and sound.
froome to lead a ten man breakaway right from the word go
and gives away the KOM points and stage victory to anyone who can keep up.
Where is RealMan this morning? Feel the need to discuss today's stage. Polkadot very much up for grabs.