2014 Tour de France, Stage 5: Ypres – Arenberg Porte du Hainaut: 156km

[ILovecycling]

Lol,that grass will be hell,and because of puddles Im afraid there will be just 1 racing line instead of 3

poor guys that will have a year of work ruined today ...

this

and this

Ahhh...Stage 5, the stage of broken hearts, broken bones and shattered tour dreams.

 

[Liquigas]

in any case froome is f'd. his helpers today are thomas and stannard who both can't position for ****

Didn't know Stannard was starting today. Whose place is he taking??

 

[ILovecycling]

in any case froome is f'd. his helpers today are thomas and stannard who both can't position for ****

Ian is not riding Ryo,Bernard is there
But yeah he is probably f'd.

 

[Ryo Hazuki]

Spatacus would have been so happy when he woke up this morning

This is gonna be a battle of attrition

cancellara doesn't like the rain at all

 

[ILovecycling]

This sucks as Stybar is not here,he would crush them all
Sagan is the main favourite imo,in these conditions,if he is not injured
any updates on him?

 

[JimPanzen]

Today is going to be carnage. Will be interesting to see, if Mr. "Lets neutralize the stage, because is slippery" Cancellara will say the same today. Doubt it.

 

[Frosty]

in any case froome is f'd. his helpers today are thomas and stannard who both can't position for ****

As others have said, Stannard isnt in the team for the Tour. In any cases wet and (relatively) cold conditions should suit him. Eisel is in the squad though and does well on cobbles.

Thomas does have a reputation for falling off but came second the last time the tour hit the cobbles in 2010.

 

[Carstenbf]

sh*t gonna get neutralized imho... at least partly

No way. It ain't snowing, and it ain't sub zero temps.

 

[Jagartrott]

Van Marcke quite likes the rain, the wind and the cold.
My number 1 favourite today.

 

[veji11]

who are the best "cyclo cross" guys out today, because this looks and feels a lot more like Cyclo cross (muddy and wet, short intense effort rather than 250ks of attrition) than usual cobble races.

 

[Cimber]

"I love the smell of rain and cobbles in the morning"

 

[JimPanzen]

this is a f***ing joke.

 

[Pricey_sky]

in any case froome is f'd. his helpers today are thomas and stannard who both can't position for ****

oh dear, Stannard not in the team he's been out for months now. Eisel is more than capable on the cobbles and Thomas is a top 10 PR rider who was regularly near the front in this years edition. Also guys like Kiri should be ok on the cobbles with his strong engine.

 

[Cimber]

Brian Holm ‏@brianholm1962 · 6m
Welcome to the jungle...

Btw: finally my avatar comes to its right (0:

 

[Carstenbf]

No way. It ain't snowing, and it ain't sub zero temps.

Ok, submerged roads could be an issue.

 

[Cimber]

Neutralizing this stage is just ganna make it more dangerous. Going slowly over cobbles is just plain suicide

 

[mortand]

who are the best "cyclo cross" guys out today, because this looks and feels a lot more like Cyclo cross (muddy and wet, short intense effort rather than 250ks of attrition) than usual cobble races.

John Gadret and Arnold Jeannesson ftw! He, just the tought of tiny Gadret blowing the race to pieces, is hilarious
Although not that hilarious with this stage in mind.

 

[Cimber]

Jesus Hernandez
‏@jesushernandez3 De camino a la salida sin parar de llover.Aun no se como lo voy a hacer con mis 56kg sobre las piedras mojadas!Suerte a todos!!
Translated from Spanish by Bing
On the way to output non-stop rain.Not be as I do with my 56kg on wet rocks! Luck to all!

Jens Voigt ‏@thejensie · 3m
Not too sure what to think about todays stage??!! Glorius? Stupid? Insane? Cool? Spectacular? Unnecessary? Wanted? Needed? Hated? Loved?

 

[glassmoon]

Neutralizing this stage is just ganna make it more dangerous. Going slowly over cobbles is just plain suicide

well... they still can just "walk them", chat with fans who will be mad that there is no carnage they've came for

 

[Lance Armstrong]

Sagan is the main favourite imo,in these conditions,if he is not injured
any updates on him?

He should be fine, few bruises. And he loves mud

 

[indianfanboy]

cancellara doesn't like the rain at all

It might not be raining when they are racing and the muddy cobbles will make the race way more difficult
Greater the difficulty greater chance for a Fabian win

 

[Armchaircyclist]

Kristoff is hungry after second place yesterday, and he has a lot of experience with bad weather, as he is from Norway. Oh yes, Kristoff for the win !
Froome to lose a couple of minutes in GC and the day will be perfect.

 

[sir fly]

A "Giro specialty" in the making, if you know what I mean.

 

[Dazed and Confused]

A "Giro specialty" in the making, if you know what I mean.

yep, a memorably and spectacular stage. One of the best in recent years.

 

[Jagartrott]

Riders really scaring themselves and the other with all the pictures on twitter. Smart thing would not to check their smartphone.