[Closed] TdF Stage 7 - A Bit More Rolling [Spoilers]

Must finally be a day for a small group to get away? Côte de Teillet at 30km out is surely made for an escape? Or that little lump at 193,5?

Too many nervous GC contenders and too many teams with a sprinter but no GC contender makes it very unlikely I think.

Too many nervous GC contenders and too many teams with a sprinter but no GC contender makes it very unlikely I think.

Yeah, but hope springs eternal... I do wonder if modern Tour teams are getting a bit too powerful / controlling?

... but we Schleck's are fighters

(and Oh, cycling news, for that crime against apostrophes)

Yeah, but hope springs eternal...

Have a look at the profile for tomorrow 😉

poor little Bouhanni 🙁 - nearly had him in my team

Cos i'm doing a bit crap, i've gone for a chavanel breakaway and to take the yellow jersey (probably why i'm doing crap) 😆

Interesting day today.....a number of possibilities really. All the sprinters could be there at the end given the distance between the tough climbs and the finish, but if the pace is really put on over the Cat 2 and 3 climbs, will they make it back? If a break has a gap of 90 seconds plus over the final climb then it's hard to see them getting brought back as it's all downhill from there. Can't see any GC damage happening....if Green Edge hadn't got the yellow jersey I'd say that it was a stage for them-Albasini in the breakaway and if it got brought back either Gerrans or Goss would be there for the sprint. As it is, I reckon someone like Jens or TV Tommy from a break (will Voeckler be allowed away in a break nowadays though) or Cannondale to gun it up the climbs to get rid of Cav et al and Sagan to do the business from there.

Have a look at the profile for tomorrow

Nice stage, with lots of GC potential, but I'd like to see some relative unknowns get away, that tense wait as you wonder if the peloton is going to catch them, the final attacks from the group of 4, 5 riders... Can't see that tomorrow, should be a good stage but it won't be unknowns going for the win.

Too many nervous GC contenders and too many teams with a sprinter but no GC contender makes it very unlikely I think.

Nice stage, with lots of GC potential, but I'd like to see some relative unknowns get away, that tense wait as you wonder if the peloton is going to catch them, the final attacks from the group of 4, 5 riders... Can't see that tomorrow, should be a good stage but it won't be unknowns going for the win.

Did you watch stage 5? Pretty much exactly that..

poor little Bouhanni - nearly had him in my team

I've got both Van den Broek and Maxime Bouet in my team. Propping up the bottom by the end i'm sure!

Schleck's are fighters

Sprinters day so hoping for Cav as I think he will be cross after yesterday when the sprint back to the peleton cost him

I'm going for a large breakaway that splits and goes on to win by a narrow margin

in my loser team as he is pants

Still he did make the best attack of recent years, and one of the all time best stages, back in 2011. A repeat of that sort of form would be fun.

Especially on the descents - in my loser team as he is pants

Schleck's in my winner team, mainly cos I reckon no one else will have chosen him, it's an all-or-nothing strategy 🙂

Did you watch stage 5? Pretty much exactly that..

But they got caught...

Interesting thought. Out of all the riders in the TdF, how many of them are actually trying to win the race? Only a handful? Quite a contrast to the early days of the tour probably, when every rider was in it to win it!

Maybe 5 or 6 will be realistically thinking they can win. tbh, even in the early days there was always some sort of team set up. even before 'teams' were officially recognized, money changed hands so the favorites got the help of other riders.

Still he did make the best attack of recent years, and one of the all time best stages, back in 2011

Except it wasn't the brave attack people make it out to be. Frank Schleck was interviewed after the stage and said something along the lines of "well that was Plan B, Plan A was everyone else would chase him down and I'd counter-attack when they were tired", so it was exactly the sort of approach we've come to expect from the Schleck sisters. The fact he stayed away might be impressive, but it wasn't the gutsy, committed, do-or-die move that it would have been if, say, Evans had made it.

I'm hoping that Cav is angry. Angry Cav is 10% quicker than content Cav and 20% quicker than crashy Cav. I loved all the comments about how good his bike handling skills were as he hopped onto a roundabout - the guy just crashed because his wheel washed out!

why did Steegmans pull off so early yesterday? I'm guessing he was spent, but Cav looked a bit confused and then messed up by having to dodge Greipel's leadout man and then going on the outside of the turn which cost him a couple of metres.

Cav did well just getting back on the front after that crash, probably cost him that yard or two at the end.

I think the sprinters could suffer early on opening the door for a late break on the last couple of climbs - but then every sporting prediction I've ever made has been 100% wrong

ots too long a downhill run in for the peleton to not catch anyone

I suppose Sagan could go on the attack on the climb ....that would be interesting

I want Sagan to win and do a backflip over the line.

David Veilleux breakaway win for me please.

Jens on the attack. About time.

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Excellent. I had heard he has friends visiting so put him in my RCUK fantasy team in the hope he can stay away and grab the win.

Very lumpy for the big sprinters, but a long way to the finish, so very hard to call!

Yep, popped Jens in my fantasy team* last night 🙂

http://teamjva.com/jens-voigt-soundboard/

*He's already in my VG team before there are any complaints!

Jens is in my team, purely on sentimental grounds. Not convinced he's going to give me a lot of points, but heart over head.

I've gone off Jens since he started tweeting about Geospaffing and not just reeling out comedy catchphrases like the much vaunted 'shut up legs'.
Shut up Jens.

Vande Velde is out, after another crash. He's had a shitty tour.

HughStew - Member
Jens is in my team, purely on sentimental grounds. Not convinced he's going to give me a lot of points, but heart over head.

He won a stage of the tour of California earlier this year from a break. He's still got it.

Vande Velde is out, after another crash. He's had a shitty tour.

Another shitty tour.

If I were in the peleton I'd give him a wide birth, he's always on the floor at some point in the first week.

Hasn't Jens' hinted it might be his last tour? Maybe they'll let him stay away for a solo victory?

got money on jens to win a stage at 4/1

SHUT UP LEGS!!!

didn't they let Jens have a few parade laps on the Champs last year because it might be his last?

not looking like his day is it

Greipel, Cav, Kittel, Goss, all dropped.

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Ahem.

But I think Sagan will be getting frustrated and will be gagging for a win, so expecting him to go all out, and maybe try something a bit different.

😉

so, the Bull and Snake labels the Cannondale riders have on their bums is the names of the Fizik saddles that they ride.
Does this serve a purpose beyond marketing?

well if you tip him every day you are bound to be right eventually 😉

brakes,

it's about how flexible you are, it seems to be a bit general to be much use, i.e. if you can touch your toes you're a 'snake', so you but the azonic (sp?) saddle.

Liggett is mental "There's griepel, and there's cavendish, who's trying to get back to griepels group"

Err, as he's cycling next to Griepel, as you have just pointed out, doesn't that mean he's already done that, you nutcase.

TBF he is like 70 years old...

TBF he is like 70 years old...

and therefore should be retired....

Err, as he's cycling next to Griepel, as you have just pointed out, doesn't that mean he's already done that, you nutcase.

well according to r4 this morning yesterday's stage was a TT in Nice and there was debate as to if Impey would win _another_ stage ....... @ukcyclingexpert

[mafia voice]and therefore should be retired[/mafia voice]

FTFY

Hmmmm... Maybe Hoy would be interested in doing it now he's retired.. Or Lance? Wiggins (as apparently he's never going to ride a bike again, according to some people...)?

Hugh Porter and Phil Liggett both need retiring. God only knows how Paul Sherwen can sit next to Liggett and *kepp* correcting him. Although even Sherwen is sounding a bit tired now, rolling out the same old same old "in this, the sport of cycle racing".

I mean OK, I know it's not riveting to sit there for 6hrs a day for 3 solid weeks and talk about cycling, I know there's only so much to say but really - what you do say, try and get it right!

But the other option is sleep-inducing Sean Kelly 😕

Where did David Harmon go? The best by far I reckon.

Carlton Kirby is good.

Ned Boulting and Chris Boardman are the best thing about the ITV4 coverage.

On the basis the current lot are a bit clueless and just read off a fact sheet, can we not just give Rob Warner the job? Or at least a 'press the red button for Rob's commentary'?

Rob Warner, 6 hour races, cheep wine, what could possibly go wrong?

Anyone remember last year that Chris Boardman did a "how to descend" video guide? One of those 5 minute fillers they use in the ITV4 hour. Anyone have a link to it anywhere? It was hilarious. 🙂

I've tried all sorts of searches on YouTube to no avail...

I mean OK, I know it's not riveting to sit there for 6hrs a day for 3 solid weeks and talk about cycling, I know there's only so much to say but really

That's where they're going wrong. As Carlton Kirby, and David Duffield before him knew, the secret is to whitter on about everything and anything but the cycling. I reckon they were tutored by the Brian Johnson at test-match special, who was the undoubted master at filling time.

I went off Liggett when he carried on supporting Armstrong, despite overwhelming evidence that he wasn't the messiah, he was a very naughty boy. And don't get me started on Sherwen and his never-ending series of things you never really wanted to know about chateaux.

So many cry,put more cycling on the telly,put more cycling on the telly.........
...& then they do **** all but moan about everything about it..............

🙄

EDIT hmm f(e)ck is in the swear filter....Is nothing sacred...........

http://www.itv.com/tourdefrance/features/chris-boardman-lays-down-the-six-rules-of-descending/

So many cry,put more cycling on the telly,put more cycling on the telly.........
...& then do **** all but moan about everything about it..............

But that's the thing, cycling can be SO exciting. The tactics, the way you can build support for a rider or a team (like in football for example), the sprints, the crashes, the descending.

What's needed is some better commentary and a few extras - F1 style team radio transmissions, on-bike video cameras to give a riders perspective (again, like the on-car cameras in F1), some better graphics to analyse sprint finishes (like Hawkeye in tennis).

It's good but it could be SO much better! I know that Liggett is kind of "the voice" of cycling in the same way that Murray Walker was "the voice" of F1 but they managed to get shot of him!

edric - you legend!

Googled Chris Boardman ,how to ride downhill and found it first time ! Just lucky I suppose .

Well that was lovely.

He came close to not getting it which would have been a bit embarrassing after all that effort by his team.

And once again the break was caught... Wonder if Sagan's going to be a naughty boy on the podium? 🙂

The podium girls have pepper spray.

Where did David Harmon go? The best by far I reckon.

in a bad place by the sounds of it, off trying to deal with depression.

Listening to you lot moan about the commentators, thank god we've got Pedro Delgado and Carlos de Andrés: the Spanish commentators are entertaining in a Testmatch Special kind of way, knowledgeable and never cringeworthy.

Chris Boardman seems aloof,or does my telly need adjusting?

Chris Boardman seems aloof,or does my telly need adjusting?

He's just got a really dry sense of humour, takes a while to get used to him sometimes.

Hate to say it but I think Cav's green jersey dreams are all but over. Sagan is the better all rounder, he can certainly climb far better and that puts him at a massive advantage for intermediate sprints and finishes like that one. I still reckon Cav will get another couple of stage wins and hopefully the Champs Elysees finale but unless Sagan has some kind of epic disaster, I reckon he's got green as near as won.

crazy-legs - Member

He's just got a really dry sense of humour, takes a while to get used to him sometimes.

re. Chris Boardman, Ned Boultings story in his book tells you the type of guy he is. they were talking about kids, Chris has got 6, and he says to Ned " I've only had sex 6 times, I'm just incredibly efficient" 😀