2012 Tour de France: Stage 6: Épernay → Metz (207.5km)

[goggalor]

What a **** day, except for Sagan's victory salute. Hesjedal, Gesink, Mollema, Kruijswijk, Valverde, Schleck, Brajkovic, Rolland... perhaps worse than last year even.

 

[Frosty]

He was the first one to abandoned,

No, that was reported but then he started riding again.

 

[One Eyed Aussie]

Did anyone see Vansummer coming in? He looked bad. Incredible spirit shown by the guy just to finish the stage.

+1...guy's shirt was barely on him, blood on his right shoulder??, just incredible performance

 

[Mellow Velo]

Haven't seen the finish, yet, but have seen the crash.

Interesting the Shiite Movistar took for riding after crash, yet today when GreenEdge, FDJ and BMC do the same and it becomes all about placement.

As a result, a shiite small stage, I suspect at this point, ruins the GC battle.
If so, just like last year.

 

[SetonHallPirate]

The official website is listing that Poels did, in fact, abandon.

 

[Havetts]

Well, I'm hoping that Franky, Gesink, Roland, Jani and co. further behind in the GC = more attacks in the mountains. One can only hope, right?

Only if not physically hurt. Which might be problems as well, bad recovery and lack of sleep because of the crashes.

 

[SetonHallPirate]

What happened to Rein Taaramae? He's listed as finishing in 78th place, but was awarded the same time as group 10-61.

 

[Gloin22]

Haven't seen the finish, yet, but have seen the crash.

Interesting the Shiite Movistar took for riding after crash, yet today when GreenEdge, FDJ and BMC do the same and it becomes all about placement.

As a result, a shiite small stage, I suspect at this point, ruins the GC battle.
If so, just like last year.

Well, the big guns before tour remained there at least...

Wiggo, Evans, Nibali, Menchov and Sanchez.

 

[Carstenbf]

What happened to Rein Taaramae? He's listed as finishing in 78th place, but was awarded the same time as group 10-61.

Puncture within 3k.

 

[Maxiton]

is it true that zanatta say that sagan will go for the win tomorrow and the GC?

DAMN! if it's true

If that happens, I'm putting up a shrine in my living room.

 

[goggalor]

What happened to Rein Taaramae? He's listed as finishing in 78th place, but was awarded the same time as group 10-61.

Mechanical or something in the last 3 km. He casually rolled in with a team mate about a minute down.

 

[woodie]

Yes but it looks bad if Cadel openly TTTs like that after a crash. OGRE, with a reason to ride, could easily fill out a dual function. They also openly said in ProCycling that they would ride for Cadel where they could.

Of course it was in Cadels interests to ride like that, Cadel has been riding like that all week so it's nothing new. As someone already pointed out it was Gerry Ryan (the team owner who doesn't have direct influence over tactics) who said he would like it if they helped him should the chance arise, Orica team managment didn't say they would.

 

[Kwibus]

who knowzzee... he's better cyclist at 22 than greipel will ever be.. and he can beat him in a flat out sprint, by a big margin (at 22)

Dear god... After reading the 100th post how amazing it is how Sagan beats Greipel in a flat sprint I'm fed up with it. Greipel crashed hard today. Actually it was a big freaking surprise he did contend. So obviously he wasn't sprinting as fast as normal.

Sagan beating Goss isn't very surprising imo. Besides that the next best contender was van Hummel so it wasn't much of an epic sprint.

 

[therhodeo]

Vuelta anyone?

 

[will10]

What happened to Rein Taaramae? He's listed as finishing in 78th place, but was awarded the same time as group 10-61.

He trundled in very sedately with a teammate at 1.30, suspect he punctured in last 3km

 

[cineteq]

Big changes today

GC (Favorites, Contenders, Dark Horses)
WIGGINS Bradley SKY +7
VAN GARDEREN Tejay BMC +10
MENCHOV Denis KAT +13
EVANS Cadel BMC +17
NIBALI Vincenzo LIQ +18
KLÖDEN Andreas RNT +19
VAN DEN BROECK Jurgen LTB +28
BASSO Ivan LIQ +29
SANCHEZ Samuel EUS + 40
LEIPHEIMER Levi OPQ +45
COPPEL Jérôme SAU +48
HORNER Chris RNT +1.29
FROOME Chris SKY +1.41
VELITS Peter OPQ +2.09
MOLLEMA Bauke RAB +2.26
BRAJKOVIC Janez AST +2.27
PERAUD JC ALM +2.28
VALVERDE Alejandro MOV +2.40
SCARPONI Michele LAM +2.42
SCHLECK Frank RNT +2.43
ROLLAND Pierre EUC +2.50
GESINK Robert RAB +4.13
HESJEDAL Ryder GRS +13.38

 

[Zinoviev Letter]

Only Zabriskie in the top 112 for Garmin. Vandevelde losing time too

They will have to ride like a minor French team and try to put someone in every break.

A weird fate for a Tour team with a GT winner, two other fringe GC men, some top notch time triallists and a sprinter who was somewhere between second and fourth fastest in the world last year. At least Dan Martin definitely won't be stuck with any domestique tasks on climbing stages.

 

[Kwibus]

Vuelta anyone?

My god yes. Actually when in the freaking world will more GC contenders decide to skip the TdF and just ride the Giro and Vuelta instead?
Sure there are also crashes there, but the TdF is just ridiculous. Actually it's beyong the 'it's part of cycling' phase imo.

 

[Fetisoff]

Only if not physically hurt. Which might be problems as well, bad recovery and lack of sleep because of the crashes.

Well, Franky didn't look hurt too bad, which doesn't mean much of course he could abandon with a dislocated finger or something

What happened to Rein Taaramae? He's listed as finishing in 78th place, but was awarded the same time as group 10-61.

Snapped the chain inside 3km

 

[Arnout]

My god yes. Actually when in the freaking world will more GC contenders decide to skip the TdF and just ride the Giro and Vuelta instead?
Sure there are also crashes there, but the TdF is just ridiculous. Actually it's beyong the 'it's part of cycling' phase imo.

Yep. Peloton needs to sort itself out.

 

[Lance Armstrong]

is it true that zanatta say that sagan will go for the win tomorrow and the GC?

DAMN! if it's true

Heard that too. He was probably high. Sagan +7:00 tomorrow.

 

[roundabout]

is it true that zanatta say that sagan will go for the win tomorrow and the GC?

DAMN! if it's true

Sagan not being dropped after 2km of the last climb will be the biggest load of bs, nevermind the stage or gc.

 

[Hugo Koblet]

What happened to Rein Taaramae? He's listed as finishing in 78th place, but was awarded the same time as group 10-61.

He had a puncture within the last 3 km's.

 

[Zinoviev Letter]

Dear god... After reading the 100th post how amazing it is how Sagan beats Greipel in a flat sprint I'm fed up with it. Greipel crashed hard today. Actually it was a big freaking surprise he did contend. So obviously he wasn't sprinting as fast as normal.

Sagan beating Goss isn't very surprising imo. Besides that the next best contender was van Hummel so it wasn't much of an epic sprint.

It really is amazing how quickly massive message board hype can get irritating, isn't it?

Sagan is, in my view, the biggest young talent in the whole peloton. Winning three stages in the first week of your first Tour is just incredible. But in terms of outright field sprints he still hasn't beaten the top guys, in top form. Cavendish wasn't there today and Greipel fell hard earlier. For that matter Kittel wasn't there either. Those are the consensus top 3 sprinters at the moment. There's no shame in that. The guy is 22 and is faster at 22 than any of those guys were, even Cavendish.

 

[Fetisoff]

Vuelta anyone?

Oh yeah. Just can't wait to see more or 180+km of flat riding, than tempo up the mountain and some attacks for the last km. Bring it on!!