2013 Tour de France, Stage 15: Givors - Mont Ventoux 242.5 Km

[Miburo]

not good for the last part of Ventoux

Headwind on the last part?

Froome is prob then already unleashed so won't really matter.

I hope Contador doesn't try and go crazy and follow the dude. If Porte is again bad then the damage won't be too severe (i hope).

I hope AC won't lose more than 40 seconds and kreuziger not more than 1 minute. Wishful thinking?

 

[airstream]

High temperatures = good for dawg and full ***, not good for Alberto

Mental preparation for throwing towel?

 

[murali]

So strange that people dont show respect to the great Mt Ventoux.

If any rider solos, then clinic will melt down.

This is a freakish mountain with sharp gradients popping out whenever a rider wants a break. And the damn thing keeps going on and on. By the time the first spike in gradient is hit, i think the field would have reduced to 25-30 riders. within 3 km, men will be separated from boys. This is the first launchpad for team mates to attack and hold positions in the front.

With 6km to go, only the select team and their helpers will remain. If by any chance someone had broken free with teammates, then it is game over. The brutal part is the last crazy stretch that is solely meant as training ground for hell.

The final steep section will sieve weaker riders completely out of GC top 15.

Since this is a long race, ideally sky would want to split the peloton at the midway climb. And they will plan to ride tempo till flattish part of the climb. From there on, they would just want to follow the best rider. Froome can afford to lose up to 2 more mins, not that it is going to happen. so Sky will not do anything till it is actually necessary.

If there is any mountain that can break froome, it is going to be this one.

One thing is certain: this is definitely vino. My take on best time: 59:30-60:30

 

[BYOP88]

Hopefully tomorrow will be a great stage, but sadly I just see the Schindler's List extra riding away and winning but at least 2 minutes.

 

[murali]

The only thing that is certain is that GC will shake up.

 

[LaFlorecita]

Mental preparation for throwing towel?

I don't know

 

[jens_attacks]

As expected, high temperatures (in the shades), north winds.
Froome doing the Ventoux in under an hour, after 220 km, would be quite full *** mode.

he should be 58:31, that's moncoucou's time. no one will panick, good company hehe

 

[jens_attacks]

i'm curious if saxo will try again in the crosswinds. i remember that in 2009 too the peloton split before bedoin. windy and open fields no?anything can happen even before the climb

 

[LaFlorecita]

i'm curious if saxo will try again in the crosswinds. i remember that in 2009 too the peloton split before bedoin. windy and open fields no?anything can happen even before the climb

They won't, they're tired. Besides, Froome won't be surprised again.

 

[airstream]

I don't know

Don't hurry up to surrender so quickly otherwise what's use was to be enthuastic yesterday? We should just watch this..

 

[ILovecycling]

i'm curious if saxo will try again in the crosswinds. i remember that in 2009 too the peloton split before bedoin. windy and open fields no?anything can happen even before the climb

I hope so,but there has to be a perfect wind to do it...if Froome has to chase by himself cos of his super strong team it should help Alberto a bit before the climb.but its almost impossible to happen

 

[LaFlorecita]

Don't hurry up to surrender so quickly otherwise what's use was to be enthuastic yesterday? We should just watch this..

What why would I be "surrendering" anyway

 

[Miburo]

They won't, they're tired. Besides, Froome won't be surprised again.

But they can maybe surprise kennaugh or porte. Froome alone will still destroy but it would be something at least.

 

[Orbit501]

1. All the big KOM points for the break are in the Alps, not tomorrow.

2. Tommy V has not been in a proper break yet and is itching to go.

3. It is Bastille day and the French public demand a gurning show worthy of the day.

1+2+3 = Tommy V to help Rolland by winning the stage tomorrow and letting Rolland save himself for the Alps, thus preventing the GC riders threatening the polka dot jersey.

Simples

 

[mewmewmew13]

Bailsford just said Froome and Sky are really really good and he can't wait for tomorrow.

And Froome said "there will be huge time gaps tomorrow" then said "I think a lot of people have left a lot of energy on the road" then smiled.

Fantasies of Saxo and Belkin working Sky over, will be put to bed tomorrow me thinks.

oh gheez
this means full gas dawg doesn't it...

I guess he feels certain...

 

[Ryo Hazuki]

Ryo again making stuff up and passing it off as fact.

Contador has in fact said the opposite. He felt he suffered in last years vuelta more becuase it was too hot. He said he loves the rain and wants rain for this Tour.

Purito is not a contender for the overall anymore so who cares.

Don't know about Quintana specifically, maybe he is different, but historically Amarindians from the Eastern mountains like the autumnlike Andean climates of 15-20 degrees. They struggle to cope with the 25+ temperatures of the lowlands so will Quintana love the 40 degree heat predicted tomorrow?

He is quite a bit down on the overall anyway and im talking about the gc battle. froome mollema kreuziger contador tendam,

quintana I know persoanlly loves the heat when accustomed to it. there are no colombians in existance who don't love racing in the heat and never has been. quintana is also 51 kg in topform. so he definitely doesn't like the cold.

the gc battle will be quintana vs froome, not any of those riders you named. contador I've always seen shining in heat stages. last years vuelta the stage he won the vuelta was also incredible hot and purito will be a danger man because he is one of the best climbers. better than everyone but quintana and froome perhaps. so when he goes others will try too and the battle begins

 

[Ryo Hazuki]

Last year during the Vuelta Quintana suffered in the first week. He said it was because of the heat. Allthough he did come from a lot cooler Colombia the week before.
Maybe if he's allready used to the heat it's not a problem.

that is exatcly it. he needs transition time, this year he also came back very late and he was afraid to suffer from the heat but he cooped well. but when accustomed as I said he's a great heat rider like every colombian rider that we've ever seen. that doens't mean they can't ride in the rain either though as many colombians are great in there as well as we saw in giro and pais vasco.

 

[Ryo Hazuki]

oh gheez
this means full gas dawg doesn't it...

I guess he feels certain...

you think froome and braislford were going to say they fear tomorrow and that their team sucks and froome is uncertain leader? some people really fall for anything

 

[Linkinito]

1. All the big KOM points for the break are in the Alps, not tomorrow.

2. Tommy V has not been in a proper break yet and is itching to go.

3. It is Bastille day and the French public demand a gurning show worthy of the day.

1+2+3 = Tommy V to help Rolland by winning the stage tomorrow and letting Rolland save himself for the Alps, thus preventing the GC riders threatening the polka dot jersey.

Simples

Still 55 points for the KOM tomorrow assuming someone gets on top first at every climb. But the first 4 climbs (Eyzin-Pinet, Primarette, Lens-Lestang, Bourdeaux) will be for the breakaway. Ventoux is HC (25 points), doubled as it's MTF (so 50 points). If Rolland isn't in the first places in Ventoux, he'll probably lose his jersey. So Rolland will try to follow the leaders.

As a reminder, here's the number of points for each stage in the final week:
Stage 15: 55 points (1+1+1+2+50)
Stage 16: 12 points (2+5+5)
Stage 17: 10 points (5+5)
Stage 18: 92 points (5+2+5+25+5+50)
Stage 19: 75 points (25+25+5+10+10)
Stage 20: 71 points (5+2+2+2+10+50)

The fight for the polka dot jersey will be tough in the final three stages with 5 HC climbs (including 2 MTFs), 3 first category climbs and 5 second category climbs.

If Rolland wants to secure his jersey, he'll just need to be in the breakaway towards le Grand-Bornand, with Glandon and Madeleine. If he gets placed in any MTF (they're all HC) so he'll have it in Paris.

 

[Ryo Hazuki]

Too bad Quintana will do 7.3 w/kg and humiliate Froome

he did similar to that in tour avenir at age 20 in the final mountain itt,. he's a monster

 

[jens_attacks]

i predict movistar not caring about quintana too much unfortunately. valverde and probably 3 more movistars will go in the breakaway. i don't see valverde doing any work for quintana this july. only if he takes the maillot jaune somehow.

what do you think ryo?

also imagine the battle for the breakaway, the french all over the place omg

 

[shalgo]

If he has not completely cracked mentally, I would like to see Pinot go for the stage win. No descent at the end of the climb!

 

[roundabout]

If he has not completely cracked mentally, I would like to see Pinot go for the stage win. No descent at the end of the climb!

He is sick apparently.

 

[Bakhjulet]

I believe Froome will just mark Contador/Mollema and maybe attack within the last kilometers. He has the time advantage and there is no point in attacking early on the climb risking to crack (after 230k you can't be to confident you won't crack when going full gas). He knows there is an ITT on wednesday where he can gain more time on the contenders. Better to ride more passively tomorrow and save energy for the third week where there is a greater chance he might get isolated early on and will be forced to spend energy to close attacks.

 

[Grothi]

The French?

What about the breakaway? Who would you think could make it? I guess that the French will try the best they can.

But how would you predict? I guess Chavanel, Voeckler or even Rolland will try to go crazy. And then a new Virenque is born!