Contador Crash - Tour Disaster ?

[doperhopper]

I don't care, it's a B-race no matter who wins it. Most likely Nibali will win the B-race though. Pointless to watch. If Froome and Contador recover in time (and want to race) then the Vuelta will be the most important race of the year. Froome, Contador and Quintana are the best.

this could be a nice trigger for the best to forget about the tour mafia and do giro/vuelta with all the epic mountains

 

[sir fly]

The sad thing is that this Tour needs one more high profile abandonment to be saved.

 

[DirtyWorks]

I just hope for the tour someone will mount a challenge, for at the moment it seems like you could name all the eventual jersey holders (with the possible exception of the youth) with a great degree of confidence

We've got 2/3 of the race left. That means plenty of time for Nibali to get into some difficulty.

The way the Porte group rode in today, I thought they were letting Porte lose time. Yes, I know other GC contenders in the group lost time. It wouldn't be the first time.

 

[Fight.The.Power]

The sad thing is that this Tour needs one more high profile abandonment to be saved.

I think you just probably said what everyone was probably thinking

 

[maxmartin]

We've got 2/3 of the race left. That means plenty of time for Nibali to get into some difficulty.

The way the Porte group rode in today, I thought they were letting Porte lose time. Yes, I know other GC contenders in the group lost time. It wouldn't be the first time.

they have to, because they will lose time to Porte in the ITT, maybe only TJVG can be on par with Porte. Pinot will lose a big chunk of time in that category.

 

[Futuroscope]

this could be a nice trigger for the best to forget about the tour mafia and do giro/vuelta with all the epic mountains

Froome and Contador making a pact to go head to head at the Giro next year (as I doubt very much Contador can recover for the Vuelta)?

 

[pigoonse]

True, if all are at their very best but things are not always like this. When Nibali podiumed the Giro and won Vuelta in 2010 Froome was hanging to motos and finishing 114 in Eneco Tour. Maybe this years Froome would have cracked as he did in Dauphine going straight to his Barloworld level. Who is to say it is not a possibility? Last years Contador would have been well beaten by last years Nibali. This year it might have been the other way around but we'll never know. As for Quintana I'm waiting for a grand tour to see them race against each other. Especially one with cobbles included and a long flat ITT. So, it is not so simple.

Such a well-reasoned post. Thanks.

 

[sir fly]

I think you just probably said what everyone was probably thinking

Since Contador abandoned, I'm thinking what to post that already hasn't been said or felt.
I'm sure this is one of the rare moments on the board where we have consensus regarding unfulfilled expectations and the disappointment.

 

[DirtyWorks]

I don't care, it's a B-race no matter who wins it.

I don't ever want to see anyone seriously hurt, but staying on the bike to the end is an elemental part of the race. Regardless of the crashes, it's been far better than previous editions.

The Vuelta remains a "last chance" grand tour since the move to late in the year.

 

[Dazed and Confused]

Makes no difference to me. No a fan of Contador.

My expectations of the GC battle is always low at the Tour.

Instead I get enjoyment from individual stages where a rider steps up and delivers drama. Something unpredictable, out of the blue is what makes me come back and watch again.

 

[Miburo]

I saw the same talk the last 2 years too "the tour is still long..."

If nibali doesn't crash or has a really bad day this tour is over. The riders left don't have the capabilties and the balls to do something crazy.

None of them have even podium'd the tour, this is their chance to do that and they'll take that chance.

I feel a bit sad for nibali because we all know that he didn't beat the strongest and although he definitely deserves this win it's still not against the 2 best. And that's how real champions like nibali want to win.

 

[maxmartin]

Makes no difference to me. No a fan of Contador.

My expectations of the GC battle is always low at the Tour.

Instead I get enjoyment from individual stages where a rider steps up and delivers drama. Something unpredictable, out of the blue is what makes me come back and watch again.

true to that, in recent years Tour is always one man show

 

[jens_attacks]

tour disaster? absolutely

still i voted for racing is too unpredictable. you never know what's next. i expect both richie and valverde to get stronger in the 3rd week we'll see. the race is far from over imo

 

[Fight.The.Power]

road.cc ‏@roadcc · 2h
Updated: Alberto Contador out of TdF; rides 18km with broken leg; mystery over bike: http://road.cc/123735 #cycling

 

[Escarabajo]

Last year he lost fair and square. This year would have been a different story, he was in top shape again. In the mountains Nibali isn't good enough to handle a Contador in top shape.

In my opinion if you put Nibali, Froome, Contador and Quintana they all have equal chances of winning. Everyone is entitled to their opinion.

Depending on the routes and parcours it gives advantages and disadvantages to others:

- More technical: Advanatge Nibali
- More Mountain: Advantage Froome, Contador and Quintana.
- More TT: Advantage Froome and Contador.
- Mix of Everything: Contador and Nibali.

Froome is not the best bike handler and was the second one out. The first one was Quintana. Taken out by his love to the Giro, Valverde's last chance and the Pave. Then it was Contador. But I can even say that Nibali was getting stronger and stronger and Contador was already going with the strength somehow decimated. So strong argument could be made that Nibali had a chance to win even without Contador crashing.

 

[Fight.The.Power]

So there was a broken bike then Mmmmmm

Pretty ****ty if you ask me !

 

[maxmartin]

road.cc ‏@roadcc · 2h
Updated: Alberto Contador out of TdF; rides 18km with broken leg; mystery over bike: http://road.cc/123735 #cycling

thanks for the link

Some riders who saw Contador crash gave their own version of what had happened. According to a tweet from Danish journalist Mikkel Condé, Astana’s Jakob Fuglsang said: “Contador took a big risk. On a descent with bad asphalt, he passed us, went 10-15 km/h faster. 1k later he fell on his ***."

Meanwhile, the Dutch journalist and commentator José Been said on Twitter that Lotto-Belisol’s Jurgen Van den Broeck had told Sporza: "It was Contador's own fault. He stepped on the pedals to overtake and rode in a hole."

 

[Fight.The.Power]

That is absolutely a clean break on the stem of the bike with Contadors number on it !!

WTF is going on ? !!

What BS is this ??

Is the NSA involved in bike racing now FFS ?

 

[Fight.The.Power]

thanks for the link

Some riders who saw Contador crash gave their own version of what had happened. According to a tweet from Danish journalist Mikkel Condé, Astana’s Jakob Fuglsang said: “Contador took a big risk. On a descent with bad asphalt, he passed us, went 10-15 km/h faster. 1k later he fell on his ***."

Meanwhile, the Dutch journalist and commentator José Been said on Twitter that Lotto-Belisol’s Jurgen Van den Broeck had told Sporza: "It was Contador's own fault. He stepped on the pedals to overtake and rode in a hole."

I saw that and that is fair enough.

But I saw reports that the DS said a bike breakage was untrue ??

And besides that, even if AC did hit a pothole, who would ever in a million years expect the stem to break?

Isn't that the strongest part of the machine FFS ??

 

[cineteq]

thanks for the link

Some riders who saw Contador crash gave their own version of what had happened. According to a tweet from Danish journalist Mikkel Condé, Astana’s Jakob Fuglsang said: “Contador took a big risk. On a descent with bad asphalt, he passed us, went 10-15 km/h faster. 1k later he fell on his ***."

Meanwhile, the Dutch journalist and commentator José Been said on Twitter that Lotto-Belisol’s Jurgen Van den Broeck had told Sporza: "It was Contador's own fault. He stepped on the pedals to overtake and rode in a hole."

Valverde told Spanish radio: "I saw him [Contador] crash right in front of me. His handlebars slipped when he hit a pothole"

 

[maxmartin]

I saw that and that is fair enough.

But I saw reports that the DS said a bike breakage was untrue ??

And besides that, even if AC did hit a pothole, who would ever in a million years expect the stem to break?

Isn't that the strongest part of the machine FFS ??

there is a bike fell off the SAXO car (when they trying to exchange bike to AC) then that bike was hit by another team car, that is the broken one you saw.

 

[Fight.The.Power]

Valverde told Spanish radio: "I saw him [Contador] crash right in front of me. His handlebars slipped when he hit a pothole"

But you cannot deny that photo.

#31 with a snapped stem ??

 

[arvc40]

Missed out on a very special Contador this year. He was about to show something incredible.

 

[Fight.The.Power]

there is a bike fell off the SAXO car (when they trying to exchange bike to AC) then that bike was hit by another team car, that is the broken one you saw.

Ah I see OK.

That makes more sense.

 

[deValtos]

there is a bike fell off the SAXO car (when they trying to exchange bike to AC) then that bike was hit by another team car, that is the broken one you saw.

Correct me if i'm wrong but the reserve bikes on team cars don't have the vittel number just below the saddle. The one in the crash most certainly does.