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STW Grand Tour cycle racing thread 2025 [CONTAINS SPOILERS]

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Posted by: spekkie

“GT Cycling is horrific compared to 15 years ago”

 

Maybe a lot of those legendary solo efforts were  the result of drug use? Has a “cleaner” sport made it a more boring sport? 

/

Cleaner or better at avoiding being caught?

 


 
Posted : 17/09/2025 11:38 am
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Posted by: weeksy

 

gone are the solo attacks from 30km out

 

 

Apart from Simon Yates winning the Giro?

My normal questions about things like this - if he wasn't British would it be suspicious? In Yates' case I tend to think that he was lucky that the favourites started playing stupid games and ignored him as a threat. 


 
Posted : 17/09/2025 12:12 pm
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30 km? Pah! Tyler Hamilton enters the chat.

For those without long memories… 142 km with a broken collarbone.

Doped tours certainly had a wider variance in performances than today’s chess. Pog is a bit of an exception, but saves those attacks for the classics where there is recovery the day after. 

https://autobus.cyclingnews.com/tour.php?id=road/2003/tour03/features/interviews/hamiltonstage16_03


 
Posted : 17/09/2025 12:26 pm
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30 km? Pah! Tyler Hamilton enters the chat.

For those without long memories… 142 km with a broken collarbone.

Needed dental surgery from grinding his teeth with the pain, iirc?


 
Posted : 17/09/2025 12:37 pm
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Barcelona is due to host the Grand Depart of the TdF next year but isn't happy about the Israel Premier Tech team taking part. Some news sites are reporting that Barcelona will drop out if Israel Premier Tech is still allowed to take part...................


 
Posted : 19/09/2025 7:32 am
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I think that's going to be how this plays out. Eventually enough organisers, host towns/ cities, other teams etc are just going to make IPT's position in these events untenable. 

Spain has its home Grand Tour turned into a national embarrassment, they're not going to put up with that again.

Any which way you look at it, it's a shit show. The protesters have won so that emboldens anyone with half a grudge on anything to come out and disrupt future bike races. The riders and team staff are left without a job. Can also imagine a lot of potential sponsors wondering if it's worth investing in cycle sport because let's face it, most sponsors are either  sportswashing or greenwashing.


 
Posted : 19/09/2025 8:21 am
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Anyone know what the options are to watch the Road World's (free!)?

It doesn't look like SBS will be broadcasting it and I've seen something to suggest the BBC may have it (on iPlayer only?) but I don't know how to find an iPlayer schedule....

(Frankly, I don't fancy sitting thru 6hrs plus of Pogi decimating the field but a 30 - 60 minute highlights package will do nicely. At worst, I guess a very short highlight version will be on the TNT and/or the UCI YouTube channels but often their videos include spoilers in the title or the thumbnail picture. Grrr)


 
Posted : 21/09/2025 12:00 am
 beej
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Took a bit of hunting but searching for "Red button schedule" led me to:

https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/p0d4g3vh/episodes/guide

So women's and men's TTs on today.


 
Posted : 21/09/2025 7:33 am
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Women's ITT on red button atm.

Alex Dowsett, Chris Boardman and Simon Brotherton all commentating. 


 
Posted : 21/09/2025 8:51 am
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Women's ITT on red button atm.

Delighted by the result of that one.


 
Posted : 21/09/2025 7:27 pm
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Remco catching and passing Pog was quite a surprise!


 
Posted : 21/09/2025 7:39 pm
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Posted by: anagallis_arvensis

Remco catching and passing Pog was quite a surprise!

Nice to see the slightest chink in his armour! Fantastic from Reusser and Evenepoel.

Also, what idiot puts a massive cobbled climb in a TT?! 

 

 


 
Posted : 21/09/2025 8:05 pm
 nbt
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https://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/cycling/articles/c5yqx555614o

 

How to watch Road World Championships

Sunday, 21 September

09:00-12:25 BST - Women's Time Trial on iPlayer/BBC Sport website

12:35-17:00 BST - Men's Time Trial on iPlayer/BBC Sport website

14:30-17:00 - BBC Two

Saturday, 27 September

10:55-16:15 BST - Women's Road Race on iPlayer/BBC Sport website

Sunday, 28 September

08:35-1605 BST - Men's Road Race on iPlayer/BBC Sport website

14:30-16:00 - BBC Two

OK, TTs were yesterday, but they're still available  to watch on catchup


 
Posted : 22/09/2025 8:02 am
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Congratulations to Harry Hudson. What an up and coming superstar. 


 
Posted : 27/09/2025 8:55 am
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Women's race just starting on BBC Sport website.

No entries from Team GB though who chose to prioritise the U23 Women's race (plus Pfeiffer Georgi is injured). No Marianne Vos either so I'm going to have to support Pauline Ferrand-Prévot for France. Urška Žigart as a notable name in there too but with no teammates.


 
Posted : 27/09/2025 10:05 am
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I remember this format from working on the Worlds in Harrogate and Glasgow.

The "lower tier" nations just drop straight out the back door. I still can't decide if it's an amazing opportunity for them or just a case of throwing them into the lion pit where they can't possibly compete... It'll be the same in the Men's race tomorrow too.

 


 
Posted : 27/09/2025 10:23 am
 DrJ
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Posted by: crazy-legs

so I'm going to have to support Pauline Ferrand-Prévot

Cecilie isn’t riding so i don’t care who wins  

Anyone but Chloe Dygert. 


 
Posted : 27/09/2025 12:06 pm
nbt reacted
 beej
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I'll support PFP too. I was in Ponferrada when she won previously. Fun weekend.


 
Posted : 27/09/2025 12:09 pm
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Posted by: DrJ

Anyone but Chloe Dygert

+1 !


 
Posted : 27/09/2025 12:49 pm
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 nbt
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Posted by: DrJ

Anyone but Chloe Dygert

+2


 
Posted : 27/09/2025 3:52 pm
 DrJ
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Well, I didn’t have that on my bingo card !!


 
Posted : 27/09/2025 4:36 pm
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Well, I didn’t have that on my bingo card !!

I shouldn't think many did. A great win but I thought Fisher-Black was going to win from that trio. Delighted for Mavi too. 

Great late effort by Reusser. She's a machine. Some disgruntled favourites but serves them right for staring each other into the abyss.


 
Posted : 27/09/2025 9:45 pm
 DrJ
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Hopefully the men’s race will throw up a surprise too. 


 
Posted : 28/09/2025 4:58 am
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Incredible crowds today!


 
Posted : 28/09/2025 11:33 am
 beej
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No real surprises in the men's race yet...


 
Posted : 28/09/2025 12:20 pm
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32 riders left!


 
Posted : 28/09/2025 1:26 pm
 DrJ
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Well what a surprise (yawn)


 
Posted : 28/09/2025 3:28 pm
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Great ride from Remco, won the TT and first human in the road race too!!


 
Posted : 28/09/2025 7:15 pm
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Posted by: anagallis_arvensis

Great ride from Remco, won the TT and first human in the road race too!!

He was SO popular at the Tour of Britain this year too. He'd appear and a massive crowd of people would flock after him. Probably the most popular rider there after G. Everyone loves Remco. He'd appear at the front of the bunch in his trademark gold helmet and the crowd would be yelling his name. 

Crowds around the bus, it'd be Ineos first (for G), then Soudal-QuickStep for Remco, then Tudor Pro Cycling for Julian Alaphilippe!

I was in Wollongong for the 2022 World Road Race Championships which he won with an attack from the breakaway and the crowd went absolutely wild. Was definitely a popular winner!


 
Posted : 28/09/2025 7:52 pm
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If he hadn't had such a strop he might have won the race.


 
Posted : 28/09/2025 7:52 pm
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Posted by: slowoldman

If he hadn't had such a strop he might have won the race.

 

Also Remco's mechanical issues.

I thought Tom did really well. From watching the last few hours it looked as though Pidders wasn't taking on enough food and fluids. Without a DS screaming down your earlug "keep eating and drinking", it's possibly hard to remember.

 

 

 

 


 
Posted : 29/09/2025 8:56 am
 nbt
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It's the track world championships out in Santiado de Chile  at the moment. THere is coverage on BBC (mostly red button)

https://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/cycling/articles/cj97n3n3xw4o

 

 

The route of the TDF 2026 has been announced too.

Team Time Trial on day 1 in Barcelona

Pyrenees in the first week, including the almost obligatory visit to Pau - stage finish and statge start.

From there they head to Bordeaux then work north-east through the massif centrale (flat stages on the second weekend) to the Jura for the second weekend. In week 3 it's south through the Alps  via an ITT and two consecutive days finishing at Alpe d'Huez before the again obligatory hop to Paris for the final day sprint

Might I finally get out to see the race? Might be time to make plans


 
Posted : 23/10/2025 10:40 am
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We’re thinking of finding a random town/village on the route and getting a Euro camp nearby so we can work a bit of tdf into a family holiday. We’ve done starts/finishes and mountain stages back in pre-kids days and can’t face the logistics of that with a young family. Hopefully this way we’ll get a bit of a flavour of seeing the race but with a bit less faff


 
Posted : 23/10/2025 11:36 am
 Haze
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Not been since the double ascent in 2013, planning to get over there next year so we've been looking forward to the announcement.

Early thinking is to travel the Friday before, have a few days riding before catching the race Friday and Saturday.

Anyway, very excited...hope it comes off!


 
Posted : 23/10/2025 12:35 pm
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Route for the Tour de France Femmes avec Zwift as well.

https://img.aso.fr/core_app/img-cycling-trf-jpg/tdffaz26-parcours-seul-avec-legende-400x400/37622/0:0,4724:4724-2400-0-70/84e73


 
Posted : 23/10/2025 12:43 pm
 nbt
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AirBnB in Pau looks promising - easy access by train via Paris (also has an airport but I don't want to fly), it's  a beautiful city in it's own right (used to live there 30 years ago on uni placement but not been back since), it's hosts a finish one day then the depart for the Gavarnie stage the next day - will be looking at that in more detail. Less sure about the idea of riding though, don't think we could get up a Pyrenean climb on a tandem even if we could transport one there (not likely on a train)!

 

Wonder if we could rent an electric tandem - or we might look at any places that do guided riding in that area, maybe the Free Range Chalet. Stage 4 probalby goes reasonably close to @Chipps and Beate, thinking about it...

 


 
Posted : 23/10/2025 1:27 pm
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Yep, stage three(?) on July6th finishes 45km up the hill from us. We'll definitely be riding out to watch that. And the following day's stage (Carcassonne to Foix) is 130km from us, so you could do both... 


 
Posted : 23/10/2025 4:56 pm
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