Recent content by Rackham

Which means Vinge will ship another minute tomorrow if it follows the same logic (Ullrich lost nearly 2 minutes versus Lance on Alpe that year the day before the mountain ITT).

By the way now that the "dream" of third in le Tour is dead can we talk about why it's even a thing these days? I swear no one cared when Richie Porte or Adam Yates podiumed this race. It's why the Giro was and is the major disappointment of this season because unlike the Tour, Rog could...

Well, if third is the big goal then those commentators can feel free to be ecstatic. But third for Rog here in this TdF was never going to erase what happened in previous editions anyway. What's done is done. I've also seen him get dropped a lot in his career, i.e. probably more than any...

It's about the pain face. Seriously, in the Dauphiné on Combloux he looked like he was hurting, then again the day after. I wasn't used to that Vinge face, not during his 'dominance'. And again in the ITT under that helmet and today as well, i.e. he suffered hard out there, rocking on the bike...

Anyone who climbed better than Evenepoel today has a legitimate chance of beating him for third or just beating him in GC full stop, with Lipowitz being the obvious favorite for the podium.

Ironically Lipowitz' huge breakthrough here makes this one easier to stomach, i.e. at least the team is going to get something out of this and the pressure isn't all on Rog to perform. He came, he saw, he got beaten - which eventually happens to all champs especially in such a gruelling sport...

I knew the foreshadowing was bad after that ITT last week. He's worse than he was last year.

Yes. Vinge is terrible considering he had a clean prep for this race. We already saw it in the ITT last week though. As for Rog, chapeau, no complaints. A lot of guys are just stronger. Lipowitz was really good.

Social media predictably wants Rog disqualified from the Tour for nonconform sock length that contravenes the extremely important UCI regulations on the matter. In other news LOL

Nah. The truth is even worse. Tobias Johannessen is actually the first AI bike rider. He's not even real. His neural network was programmed to activate "eliminate Pogi" on yesterday's stage. What do you think Visma's stalker van I mean control room van is even for? It's all part of the plan.

We should just sit back and enjoy this as much as possible. It's the first time in five years he's reached the mountains in the TdF without prior accident or problem. It's going to be a hot sunny day as well, which is technically something he always liked as a rider.

Nice new avatar, Rick. I feel like you're nonchalantly scrolling back down the bunch of posters here, checking to see if everyone is fine before launching it and posting some more at 60% of your typing count.

I checked the weather forecast for Argelès-Gazost tomorrow afternoon: 30°C. Heat will play a role.

With hindsight it makes the peloton's "full gas" attack after the bunch crash in Slovenia on the cobbles in the Giro all the more remarkable - especially from Visma. That one was even more notable because a whole load of riders hit the deck. No one waited.

Not if they mark each other. There's a scenario here where Pog is slightly less than what he would be due to the crash and simply marks Vinge. That sort of tight racing isn't conducive towards breaking records because neither rider will commit fully with the other on the wheel.