Can Sky be destroyed be in the Tour?

[nevada]

They could destroy themselves.

 

[Ferminal]

I wouldn't be surprised if a few guys are having as average a spring as possible, saving it all for one super-peak in May or July. Contador, Evans, Basso, Sanchez... they know what they can and can't do over the course of the season. If they can't beat Sky in March and April why waste good form. So whilst I think it's very likely that Sky wins both GTs, it will not be a shock if there are a few who put up a great challenge.

 

[maxmartin]

I wouldn't be surprised if a few guys are having as average a spring as possible, saving it all for one super-peak in May or July. Contador, Evans, Basso, Sanchez... they know what they can and can't do over the course of the season. If they can't beat Sky in March and April why waste good form. So whilst I think it's very likely that Sky wins both GTs, it will not be a shock if there are a few who put up a great challenge.

yep, that is exactly I will wait after Giro to vote about SKY dropping performance thread in clinic sub-forum

 

[Contadoraus Schlecks]

We have all seen the Sky train in utterly dominate the peleton. I'm now waiting on them kicking it up another level...If they can ride at the front of the peleton like they have been doing then what's stopping them all just riding off the front then doing a TTT to the finish line.

 

[Frosty]

I hope Sky's performance over the last month has put the other teams on notice, they have to up their collective game ACROSS THE BOARD. It's not enough for Contador to be at peak level, but his entire team must effectively be at his level (at least for portions of the race).

Also, here's what I want to know: why hasn't one enterprising reporter asked Michael Rogers about what is different between Sky and Saxo? He's reverted to his pre-Sky form, so there is something different and he should be able to speak to it (assuming, of course, that it is a non-clinical explanation).

Dunno, in 2010 he finished

6th in tirreno-adriatico,
2nd in criterium international,
3rd tour of romandie,
1st tour of california,
5th world TT champs,

Also finished 11th up to morzine on the first big mountain stage of the tour. He couldnt hold on in the mountains after that though, probably didnt help having to work for Cavendish at times.

Id say that is better than his current form. Only difference from 2012 was his ability in the mountain stage of the tour, and even then it was at least partly because he didnt have to take it to the end. For instance, on Le the big stage to Le Toussuire, he ended up 48th after soft-pedalling the last climb.

 

[Frosty]

People saw Sky's plan last year and it worked. Given their current roster and performances it would seem very likely that basically the same plan will be used again. Ok, so they wont have to work for Cav but then they didnt really do that last year.

Therefore, other teams have to
a) try and stop the Sky train forming/taking control or
b) use it for their own purposes.

To do a) they could try and tire out the domestiques before they get to the mountains. The best way to do this would be to make work Sky work on the non-mountain stages as much as possible. On true flat stages i dont think this would work because there would be teams who would be there for the sprints, ie OPQS, Lotto, Argos, Cannondale. On intermediate stages then the sprinters might not fancy their chances and so there might be no team with a big incentive to chase. Stages 2 and 3 look unlikely to be in this category as there will be some teams realising that this is their best chance to get a yellow jersey and so Sky will get help.

Also to do a) they could also try and set up a faster train, similar to what TJVG and Evans tried last year on the Croix de Fer. I'm thinking Rogers and Contador this year? If Rogers could maintain a pace which would see him get time on the Sky train then there may be some kind of panic/indecision.

For b) the tactic would be for Contador to say that ok, the Sky train is going to go at x watts, therefore i will base my training on going at x watts, putting in an effort and then going at a higher number of watts than x. Easier said than done, but if you can't disrupt the Sky train then maybe you can adapt to use it.

 

[ebandit]

ha ha

ha ha everyone is doom and gloom stating that team sky will be certain
winners of the tour

but it's not a done deal it's up to other teams to derail the skytrain

my money is still on alberto showing his greater class

 

[doperhopper]

How to disrupt/tire skyborg train?

1. put plenty of Oscars Pereiros into the long breaks
(the problem: GC contenders don't want to sacrifice a superdom for this, and obviously also other teams will have interest to chase, not only Sky)

2. arrange coordinated attacks of 5-6 GC climbers and few superdoms from really long, 8-12 km or even penultimate climb, gapping the skytrain early so that Vroom has to choose - either stay with his train and hope the climbers won't go too far, or jump to the climbers' group and be prepared to chase every move
(the problem is coordination - never really happened against Uniballer for example, as a positive coordination is much more difficult to achieve than a negative one, e.g. "everyone against Cancellara/Sagan in the classics")

3. force some classics-style "carnage" meduim stages - splits due to the wind, rain, narrow roads, short climbs, Liqui-style descending, whatever

 

[iZnoGouD]

How do you know Porte is peaking? He and Froom are only building forms for the Tour, just wait and see.

I believe Porte is already at his peak or atleast very very close to it, Froome on the other hand still has a ton of room for improvement, which is a little scary given the level he is at already

 

[Cimber]

Dont know if "destroyed" is the rigth word. They will be one of the dominating teams for sure, buit they can be challenged, and hopefully they wont be allowed to be as dominant as last year.

 

[willbick]

yr all clutching at straws. Skybots will dominate

 

[movingtarget]

I wouldn't be surprised if a few guys are having as average a spring as possible, saving it all for one super-peak in May or July. Contador, Evans, Basso, Sanchez... they know what they can and can't do over the course of the season. If they can't beat Sky in March and April why waste good form. So whilst I think it's very likely that Sky wins both GTs, it will not be a shock if there are a few who put up a great challenge.

Evans made an interesting comment re the Sky domestiques. He said they will have to feel fatigued later in the season and may not be as effective. At the moment Sky are dominant in stage races. Martin was great at Catalunya but the other teams miscalculated with his break not that a Sky rider would have won but the form of Porte, Wiggins, Kyrienka and Froome looks ominous as well as some of their other riders. Evans is playing games I think and maybe Contador is not trying too hard either. Evans says he has no physical problems, he seems to be doing the slow build up, I hope for his sake.

 

[Cimber]

Evans made an interesting comment re the Sky domestiques. He said they will have to feel fatigued later in the season and may not be as effective. At the moment Sky are dominant in stage races. Martin was great at Catalunya but the other teams miscalculated with his break not that a Sky rider would have won but the form of Porte, Wiggins, Kyrienka and Froome looks ominous as well as some of their other riders. Evans is playing games I think and maybe Contador is not trying too hard either. Evans says he has no physical problems, he seems to be doing the slow build up, I hope for his sake.

Well we assumed the same last year. I think Sky will be ready for the Tour. But I agree that SAxo, BMC etc will be ready too and Sky will face more competition this year

 

[trevim]

Evans made an interesting comment re the Sky domestiques. He said they will have to feel fatigued later in the season and may not be as effective.

I think this is just wishful thinking from Evans nothing else. Sky may have a rough time after the Tour but all their goals stand before August.

 

[Fearless Greg Lemond]

Never underestimate the power of combines. Contador won the Vuelta on it.

Treat the peloton with respect or it will bite u in the ..., see what happened on the Olympic Road Race.

 

[movingtarget]

Well we assumed the same last year. I think Sky will be ready for the Tour. But I agree that SAxo, BMC etc will be ready too and Sky will face more competition this year

I'm sure that Contador will call in a few favours even from other teams. Nothing new it's part of the sport.

 

[Pentacycle]

Well we assumed the same last year. I think Sky will be ready for the Tour. But I agree that SAxo, BMC etc will be ready too and Sky will face more competition this year

I agree with you, except for BMC. Evans sucks, and TJVG has never had the climbing level to ever be a threat for Froome and the other contenders. They'll have a horrible Tour unless one of their leaders suddenly improves drastically.

 

[JimPanzen]

Evans made an interesting comment re the Sky domestiques. He said they will have to feel fatigued later in the season and may not be as effective.

It's quit possible, especially for the younger guys like Uran and Henao. Up to now they had quite intense race days. Plus some of they guys will also have to take on both Giro and Tour. Why would something that affects GC contenders not affect domestiques to a certain degree.

Another important factor is, that in this years TdF there will be more than two camps battling for overall victory. I think it'll be similar to the Vuelta 2012, where a quite lot of guys will be in contention for the overall and Sky would not just have to control one major opponent.

 

[Roderick]

I heard Alberto already made room for another yellow jersey in his closet, so close but no cigar for the skyborgs

 

[RHRH19861986]

I think Froomedog is just the next GT dominator.

Everyone had his story, it seems:

Lance the cancer, Contador anyeurisma, Froomedog bilharzia.

Contador was the most stylish of those three. Lance wore black socks, Froomedog looks like he does it "doggystyle" to his domestiques when riding uphill.

 

[willbick]

Cant see Contador TTing well enough to win a tour de france these days

 

[Jelantik]

Evans made an interesting comment re the Sky domestiques. He said they will have to feel fatigued later in the season and may not be as effective. At the moment Sky are dominant in stage races. Martin was great at Catalunya but the other teams miscalculated with his break not that a Sky rider would have won but the form of Porte, Wiggins, Kyrienka and Froome looks ominous as well as some of their other riders. Evans is playing games I think and maybe Contador is not trying too hard either. Evans says he has no physical problems, he seems to be doing the slow build up, I hope for his sake.

Well, we saw how the team was on July last year? They didn't seem fatigue to me. They won lots of prestigious races throughout the year with the same key domestique. I'm no cycling expert, but what I've been witnessing is sky has a strength in number and strength on their domestique across the board. It scary to see how the strength of Sky's team is almost equal. If other teams want to win TDF, they'd better come up with better training for their "whole team" not just the leader. No one can destroy the collective strength of team sky by themselves. Not Alberto, not Andy, not Purito unless they use something that belongs to the clinic. Or unless, they are collaborating together to take time. Since last year, we have seen how they dominates the race, and even up until now, I haven't seen any team that can match them pedal to pedal when it comes to the entire squad. Sky's tactic is pretty obvious, but miraculously, up until now, no one haven't seemed to be able to crack the code to destroy their train. If it continues like this, they might put all their team in the podium. Now, that's is scarier!

 

[jens_attacks]

involving sky train,there is no tactics lol you just have to push more watts than them. end of story
there is no code,you just have to put the chain in the big ring and vai! avanti!!!


is sky probably one of the strongest teams ever right now? yes it is. and they deserve praise and respect from the fans because they take pro cycling to a higher level. they have an advantage now but when the other teams will catch up(might be a year,might be only months) there will be huge battles non stop. that's why the arms race is the best thing you can witness in sports and especially cycling.

to me there is no doubt that if alberto and andy reach their best ever level, sky can be destroyed in le tour.
we'll see what pais vasco has for us...

 

[the sceptic]

When was the last time someone managed to solo away from the sky train? I think only Alberto in 2009 shape can do that.

 

[William H]

If Contador is stronger than Froome then all the Sky Train will do is set up Contador's attack nicely