2012 Tour de France: Stage 7: Tomblaine → La Planche des Belles Filles (199km)

[Waterloo Sunrise]

You sound insane. You should put into a straight-jacket, thrown into a caged van and driven away as you scream foam with rage!

Like the white working class man, emasculated by female emancipation, the Aussie sports fan is only left with futile rage right now.

 

[LaFlorecita]

Kiryienka. Airstream's using a native abbreviation/diminutive for Vasil.

Okay

 

[Libertine Seguros]

Did you like the stage? I think it was absolute maximum of spectacle that could be extracted from such a type of parcours.

I didn't like Froome's other win either, but at least that was a great finale (even if I didn't quite realise how he'd done it until later, as I was there but before the final turn, so I didn't see Cobo overhaul him before he took Juanjo by surprise). This wasn't.

 

[Armanius]

Pretty bad tactics by Garmin in my opinion. They probably thought they could win the stage, but all there guys that could win it have all crashed recently. So I don't know what, if any, logic Vaughters was using there.

Yeah. Agreed. JV is pretty desperate to get some result for Garmin. At least we know that Sky will have to do more work from now on, which may wear out the Sky train a little bit more.

Meanwhile, Cav just needs to go to another team next year to be the protected rider.

 

[JA.Tri]

Rather than declaring the war over and handing over the title....I prefer to regard this as:

Opening salvo in an early skirmish.

Sammy, Frank et al will bring climbing legs to the party, much to the chagrin of the current favs. VDB is impressive (although his handling skills are questionable) and will likely show plenty.

I was amazed at the time gaps and impressed by the riding/parcours. Such stages promise plenty. As with others I cannot imagine that the quality climbers will not show more over the coming days.

Shame if Wiggins' oblique reference to Froome is as he intended...seems arrogant.

Froome impressed, Cadel, VN, Wiggins very good.

Can Sky hold their form, can Cadel Nibbles come on strong thru week 3? Can a surprise outsider break through?

This race over...not by a long shot (or many more salvos ).
over

 

[jens_attacks]

wiggo just at 41 odds
and froome at 101.
if rolland is really injured,this can be easy money

we shall see

i hope you guys listened my delusional advise
unfortunately,i don't bet

great ascent.froomy was a god,wiggo didn't go full.cadel was just like i expected
nibali was stronger than i expected,
taaramae was like wtf?never expected him there
zubeldia?oh boy i will open a thread,that much i enjoyed his performance
rolland....to me he seemed injured,he can go faster.
jani...well done finally.super ascent
menchov,he cracked big time,bad surprise
richie and mick....astonishing just like i expected them to be
cancellara....ok that's the biggest surprise of the day...he even humiliate some of the sprinters...tomorrow it might be for him...never expected something like that from him
vino...almost as big as cancellara....vino never dies....he beat klodi,valverde,mollema,horner and gesink....he will own the pyrenees big time

overall great stage and a super winner


now i search for a replay of the climb


the ascent time was better than i predicted by the way,they were flying uphill...around 16:10 for froomy...that's close to 22 km/h!!!


tomorrow cancellara and vinoooooooooooooo!!!!!!!!

 

[webvan]

16:16 for Froomey so that's 21.76 km/h, and yes it's amazing, he was helped by the hard work of Rodgers and Porte until 2k from the top though, it's nothing like what LA used to do with 10+ km alone taking time on everyone.

 

[FabulousCandelabra]

This tour is hilarious-ly bad...

 

[Logic-is-your-friend]

so was Jelle waiting for VDB2? why such a bad performance?

Yes. But he was just being dropped from the front as well. He said he wouldn't have had the legs to win, but could have finished a lot closer if he could have followed his own pace and didn't have to wait for JVdB.

 

[Fight.The.Power]

This tour is hilarious-ly bad...

Don't watch it then - duh

 

[taiwan]

27. ESPVALVERDE Alejandro 161 MOVISTAR TEAM 05h 00' 54'' + 02' 19''
28. ESPVALLS FERRI Rafael 128 VACANSOLEIL-DCM 05h 00' 54'' + 02' 19''
29. NEDMOLLEMA Bauke 153 RABOBANK CYCLING TEAM 05h 00' 54'' + 02' 19''
30. USAHORNER Christopher 14 RADIOSHACK-NISSAN 05h 00' 54'' + 02' 19''
31. NEDWEENING Pieter 209 ORICA GREENEDGE 05h 00' 54'' + 02' 19''
32. GERKLÖDEN Andréas 15 RADIOSHACK-NISSAN 05h 00' 54'' + 02' 19''

Respectable group.

 

[LaFleur]

Respectable group.

Off to the clinic!

 

[MonteZoncolan]

Nice finish today! Very disappointed with BMC though. So much for looking like a "super team" with all the signings of big names last year, not that I ever thought Gilbert or Thor would be an asset for Cadel at the TDF. BMC still can't touch Sky. Cadel will have to win the TDF on his own, if he can.

Absolutely. And The Shack too with their mountain firepower. Cadel impressed though, as did Rein and Nibs. I think the higher slopes will play out differently as we should hopefully see earlier attacks from the mountain goats who have lost time through crashes/caught ups. Can't see Sky pacing for so long. Cuddles will be stronger in the 3rd week I think.

 

[woodburn]

Video of full climb available anywhere?

Nice result for Gallopin.

 

[Magnus]

This tour is hilarious-ly bad...

Yeah. The favourites actually battling it out on the first mtf totally sucks. Or something.

 

[UlleGigo]

You sound insane. You should be put into a straight-jacket, thrown into a caged van and driven away as you scream and foam with rage!

I sound insane because Sky's climbing coach, who is suspect enough in his own right, is using a training technique that was started by Ferrari.

This is pointless.

 

[UlleGigo]

Like the white working class man, emasculated by female emancipation, the Aussie sports fan is only left with futile rage right now.

Well look at you go. A bard is amongst us.

Shame Sky will still lose despite the doctor's best efforts.

 

[taiwan]

Off to the clinic!

Lol not what I meant...

Very intriguing stage. It's pity only that stupid Movistar chose wrong tactics initially. Vasya had to be their first GC leader.

+1 that's what I had hoped.

 

[gthx_gthx_]

I hope some climber will have the courage to do some crazy thing. There's so many talented climber who could do something unfortunately half of them are Sky riders.

But I don't expect some crazy attacking a la Andy Schleck , it's the tour.

And only 2 MTF left

 

[ferryman]

Riders punching above their weight when given the teams complete support = obvious doping?

I find some members of Sky suspect, but not enough to call them 'UK Postal'.

Seems that if any team shows any good form, then they must be doping, happens every year, if it's not Contador being accused of doping, it's Voeckler, or any number of riders who have moments of exceptional performance. People can drag out numbers all they want, but it must make cycling the most boring sport for them if they believe that if someone does better than someone else they must be doping.

I'm not saying Sky are not doping, but I'm not saying they are either, just tired of the same thing happening every grand tour, those in front getting accused on these forums as dopers.

When Sky set up a train of 4, consisting mainly of Rogers and Porte for 3/4 of the climb, which shell out big style, the number of proven GC contenders like Schleck and Menchov and Sanchez and Scarponi (yes Porte and Rogers dropped those guys) you can't be blind. I put it to you, who are the supposed best climbers on a Grand Tour of those 5 or 6 and who would you bet on in order of a 'normal' TDF climb?

The only thing that saves SKY's total neck today is that they didn't embarrass Alberto and Andy. But keep believing if you want. Freeeeking joke.

 

[airstream]

i hope you guys listened my delusional advise
unfortunately,i don't bet

great ascent.froomy was a god,wiggo didn't go full.cadel was just like i expected
nibali was stronger than i expected,
taaramae was like wtf?never expected him there
zubeldia?oh boy i will open a thread,that much i enjoyed his performance
tomorrow cancellara and vinoooooooooooooo!!!!!!!!

Grande Haimar?

I am really delighted with Zubeldia and il Killer this week. They are ones of riders from the era I started following this sport. It would be great to see both Haimar and Maxime in top 10 in Paris. Monfort is probably capable of more. This tireless worker deserves to have his own chance.

I feel sorry for Rabo and dutch part of the forum. Terrible collapse. Maybe Robert should focus on the Giro. There's not so much psychosis and intensity on the flat so it would be a better chance to show himself at his best.

 

[deValtos]

Hasn't Zubeldia been riding on the front for the yellow jersey these past few days too ?

 

[maxmartin]

Wiggins is bragging that they did not even go full gas

http://www.cyclingnews.com/news/wiggins-and-sky-surprised-at-stage-7-damage

 

[Gloin22]

Wiggins is bragging that they did not even go full gas

http://www.cyclingnews.com/news/wiggins-and-sky-surprised-at-stage-7-damage

Well Wiggins didn't hit the front once so he has a point

 

[jens_attacks]

Wiggins is bragging that they did not even go full gas

http://www.cyclingnews.com/news/wiggins-and-sky-surprised-at-stage-7-damage

but that was obvious for everybody i think

froomy even said that he was surprised to drop cadel because he didn't go full-gas,he just rode a little bit hard
now imagine toussuire!damn what a show that will be