2016 TdF, Stage 6: Arpajon-sur-Cère → Montauban (191km)

[TomLPC]

Re: Re:

Did anything happen behind? I saw some Movistar trying to bridge a gap with froome failing around in the background

I dont think there will be gaps.

Bert lost a second, 40 places behind Roman, who finished with nairo and froome.

I blame majka

 

[Lexman]

Contador lost a second more in the sprint, can't he be accompanied by Tossato or so till the finish...

 

[Alexandre B.]

There's apparently a one-second gap between GC contenders and Contador.

 

[spalco]

Re:

At etixx Cav hasn't been that fast, especially in 2014 and 2015. But now he really seems back, back on track on breaking the record for the most stage wins.

Assuming he won't stay in this Tour to the end (which would be uncharacteristic for him, but the Olympics seem to be really important to him personally), he would still need at least two more really good years or one great one, we will see.

 

[El Pistolero]

Re: Re:

Now the real Tour and real cyclists can entertain us, let the little boys ride in the grupetto.

Actually the big boys will ride the in the grupetto.

None of the sprinters are big boys, literally and figuratively. They hardly have the physique of Usain Bolt.

What? Then who's the big boy that was ridding at the back and will ride at the front, now? Who are those real, big boy, cyclists?

The one's who actually ride with their face in the wind for longer than 6 seconds.

 

[Zinoviev Letter]

Re: Re:

At etixx Cav hasn't been that fast, especially in 2014 and 2015. But now he really seems back, back on track on breaking the record for the most stage wins.

Assuming he won't stay in this Tour to the end (which would be uncharacteristic for him, but the Olympics seem to be really important to him personally), he would still need at least two more really good years or one great one, we will see.

I find the Olympic track focus extremely annoying. Cavendish is from a country that's overflowing with cycling nobodies with a track medal or two.

 

[Red Rick]

Re: Re:

At etixx Cav hasn't been that fast, especially in 2014 and 2015. But now he really seems back, back on track on breaking the record for the most stage wins.

Assuming he won't stay in this Tour to the end (which would be uncharacteristic for him, but the Olympics seem to be really important to him personally), he would still need at least two more really good years or one great one, we will see.

Cav already said that he'll finish the Tour.

 

[LaFlorecita]

Re:

There's apparently a one-second gap between GC contenders and Contador.

I highly doubt there was only 1 second between Guarnieri in 19th and Pibernik in 60th.

 

[Pricey_sky]

Re: Re:

There's apparently a one-second gap between GC contenders and Contador.

I highly doubt there was only 1 second between Guarnieri in 19th and Pibernik in 60th.

I thought the same, considering there needed to be a whole second gap between 1 rider and the next that means 40 riders crossed the line at exactly the same time.

 

[PremierAndrew]

Just watched the sprint now... oh my

Kittel in the better position and Cav coming around him to win? Maybe Kittel isn't the best any more after all

 

[yaco]

Stage 1, 3,4 and 6 of this tour have been awful.
I'm used to trasional sprint stages. But it's not like the grand depart was decent either and weve had to transition from there!.

Stages 1 and 2 were far too protected to ever be seriously affected by crosswinds.

Disappointing tour apart from the last few km of each stage so far.

No one is forcing you to watch

This has been the worst 1st week of a GT for years! I love cycling but even i am bored by the dreadful racing we have seen.

We've seen even the teams aren't bothered about getting in the break

Well personally I find the Tour the least interesting of the 3 GT's so it feels about right to me, I do agree with other posters that a good length TT would of been nice in the opening week.

TT's in themselves are boring watching a rider performing against the clock - A TT would not have livened the race up.

 

[yaco]

I've enjoyed the sprint finishes because the sprint trains have disappeared - Hoping this trend continues forever.

 

[WheelofGear]

Extremely stupid that Contador lost a second. It should be neutralized.

 

[LaFlorecita]

Re: Re:

There's apparently a one-second gap between GC contenders and Contador.

I highly doubt there was only 1 second between Guarnieri in 19th and Pibernik in 60th.

I thought the same, considering there needed to be a whole second gap between 1 rider and the next that means 40 riders crossed the line at exactly the same time.

All riders from Guarnieri down to 100-somethingth are now listed as +4s. Not that that second would matter

 

[Jungle Cycle]

ready to see Cavvendish live...

 

[TMP402]

Re: Re:

At etixx Cav hasn't been that fast, especially in 2014 and 2015. But now he really seems back, back on track on breaking the record for the most stage wins.

Assuming he won't stay in this Tour to the end (which would be uncharacteristic for him, but the Olympics seem to be really important to him personally), he would still need at least two more really good years or one great one, we will see.

I think he withdrew the last time he had a shot at a track medal, 08.

 

[Pricey_sky]

Re: Re:

There's apparently a one-second gap between GC contenders and Contador.

I highly doubt there was only 1 second between Guarnieri in 19th and Pibernik in 60th.

I thought the same, considering there needed to be a whole second gap between 1 rider and the next that means 40 riders crossed the line at exactly the same time.

All riders from Guarnieri down to 100-somethingth are now listed as +4s. Not that that second would matter

That makes more sense!

 

[kwikki]

Stage 1, 3,4 and 6 of this tour have been awful.
I'm used to trasional sprint stages. But it's not like the grand depart was decent either and weve had to transition from there!.

Stages 1 and 2 were far too protected to ever be seriously affected by crosswinds.

Disappointing tour apart from the last few km of each stage so far.

No one is forcing you to watch

This has been the worst 1st week of a GT for years! I love cycling but even i am bored by the dreadful racing we have seen.

We've seen even the teams aren't bothered about getting in the break

Well personally I find the Tour the least interesting of the 3 GT's so it feels about right to me, I do agree with other posters that a good length TT would of been nice in the opening week.

TT's in themselves are boring watching a rider performing against the clock - A TT would not have livened the race up.

Eh? The whole point of a TT is to create time differences which force people to start racing, albeit the following day.

 

[TMP402]

Re: Re:

At etixx Cav hasn't been that fast, especially in 2014 and 2015. But now he really seems back, back on track on breaking the record for the most stage wins.

Assuming he won't stay in this Tour to the end (which would be uncharacteristic for him, but the Olympics seem to be really important to him personally), he would still need at least two more really good years or one great one, we will see.

I find the Olympic track focus extremely annoying. Cavendish is from a country that's overflowing with cycling nobodies with a track medal or two.

One could say that is why he wants an Olympic medal, because his lack of one while a lot of other lesser riders have one shames him. You kind of answer your own question. You could also say: he was the best of his own generation, he's now beating the guys who came after, like Kittel, and at the Olympics he has a chance to beat Gaviria.

 

[RattaKuningas]

Stage 1, 3,4 and 6 of this tour have been awful.
I'm used to trasional sprint stages. But it's not like the grand depart was decent either and weve had to transition from there!.

Stages 1 and 2 were far too protected to ever be seriously affected by crosswinds.

Disappointing tour apart from the last few km of each stage so far.

No one is forcing you to watch

This has been the worst 1st week of a GT for years! I love cycling but even i am bored by the dreadful racing we have seen.

We've seen even the teams aren't bothered about getting in the break

Well personally I find the Tour the least interesting of the 3 GT's so it feels about right to me, I do agree with other posters that a good length TT would of been nice in the opening week.

TT's in themselves are boring watching a rider performing against the clock - A TT would not have livened the race up.

I actually like TTs a lot. To me they are interesting.

 

[yaco]

A TT would have achieved little when you consider the profile of the first week - GC teams will not attack on flat stages but wait for hillier terrain. Thank God we've gone away from GT's which had around 180 kms of TTing.

 

[kwikki]

Remember in 2009 when crosswinds split the peloton, and Contador lost time to his team rival, Armstrong?

If the chips are down, they'll race.

 

[burning]

Re:

A TT would have achieved little when you consider the profile of the first week - GC teams will not attack on flat stages but wait for hillier terrain. Thank God we've gone away from GT's which had around 180 kms of TTing.

Best tour in last 10 years (2007) had 120 kms of TTing, on the other hand the worst GT in recent memory (2012 Giro) had pretty much zero TT kms until final stage. More TT kms does not equal to worse racing, in fact you need proper TT kms to make sure that climbers would have more incentive to attack.

 

[Zinoviev Letter]

Re: Re:

At etixx Cav hasn't been that fast, especially in 2014 and 2015. But now he really seems back, back on track on breaking the record for the most stage wins.

Assuming he won't stay in this Tour to the end (which would be uncharacteristic for him, but the Olympics seem to be really important to him personally), he would still need at least two more really good years or one great one, we will see.

I find the Olympic track focus extremely annoying. Cavendish is from a country that's overflowing with cycling nobodies with a track medal or two.

One could say that is why he wants an Olympic medal, because his lack of one while a lot of other lesser riders have one shames him. You kind of answer your own question. You could also say: he was the best of his own generation, he's now beating the guys who came after, like Kittel, and at the Olympics he has a chance to beat Gaviria.

I'd suggest that it's mostly a marketing decision, based on his endorsement potential and post-cycling fame in a country where the general public absurdly overestimate the significance of track medals.

 

[SlickMongoose]

Re: Re:

I'd suggest that it's mostly a marketing decision, based on his endorsement potential and post-cycling fame in a country where the general public absurdly overestimate the significance of track medals.

Arguably, most cycling fans absurdly underestimate the importance of Olympic track medals.

But it'll be difficult to prise him away from the tour on this form.