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Spot the difference 
They are completely without shame when they say that will be harder now.
They are completely without shame when they say that will be harder now.
Why should we spot the difference? The above conditions has never been and will never be ridden.
The above condition show how it was before they put the mortar to fill the spaces between the stones, don't be confused by the fact that is clean because they washed the surface to work on it but is how was ridden until last year, in the past there was only grass between the stones. Now they've smoothed all the surface.
Hopefully they do a better job than the 2012 Giro of organising the finishes, because the Giro's sprints there were a disaster, roads that were fine for 120 riders in the Post Danmark Rundt but not for 200 riders including a bunch of ProConti Italian climbers, and we got three days of crashes. Following on from the Belgian start using the Muur as a first-half-of-the-stage nothing obstacle in a stage designed to be as uninteresting as possible otherwise, starting a stage in the only municipality in Denmark that could produce a selective hilly race (I am going to be 100% certain they are not going to use any of the dirt roads à la the GP Herning) is part of Le Tour's current targeted goal of producing the worst possible routes for their overseas starts (the exception being 2012 in the UK, where the first stage could have been so much more, the 3rd stage was through entirely flat areas, but the 2nd stage was really, really good).
Re:
His love and passion for cycling can't be denied, and he actually knows how to fit a bike helmet, unlike another (former) Prime Minister...
But I don't think he should get all the credit. There's this - technically half-French - guy, who might also have had quite an influence.
Robert5091 said:
His love and passion for cycling can't be denied, and he actually knows how to fit a bike helmet, unlike another (former) Prime Minister...
But I don't think he should get all the credit. There's this - technically half-French - guy, who might also have had quite an influence.
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Yeah, it really is a shame, that they wouldn't place a stage finish in Vejle, all because of Prudhomme's non-negotiable demand of finishing next to an airport, so the riders wouldn't sit more than 45 minutes on a plane to France. The worst part of this, is that this could be achieved by flying from the airport in Billund, approx. 30 km from a hypothetical stage finish in Vejle.
Libertine Seguros said:
Yeah, it really is a shame, that they wouldn't place a stage finish in Vejle, all because of Prudhomme's non-negotiable demand of finishing next to an airport, so the riders wouldn't sit more than 45 minutes on a plane to France. The worst part of this, is that this could be achieved by flying from the airport in Billund, approx. 30 km from a hypothetical stage finish in Vejle.
The ITT and flat, windy stage to Fyn are both good. But they could have improved stage 3 by making Vejle the final destination.
Placing it in Billund, an airport town and the home of Lego, would have been fine too. With the climbs being in the last part of the stage. And Odense could get their wish of hosting Tour De France by making it the place where the stage starts.
Placing it in Billund, an airport town and the home of Lego, would have been fine too. With the climbs being in the last part of the stage. And Odense could get their wish of hosting Tour De France by making it the place where the stage starts.
Re: Re:
It was a great finish, for a race at that level.
However, in the Tour, on day 3, nobody is peeling off the front of the peloton in the last 5 Ks, just because of a bump in the road and a couple of narrow passages..... the sprinters trains are simply too good for that, at that level.
You are absolutely right the stage would have been so much better, if they had reversed the direction of it..... Vejle has fantastic terrain for cycling, with a bunch of short and sharp climbs and winding roads in and out of forests - but the way the stage is planned out, that terrain becomes completely irrelevant, being placed at the start of the stage.... all it will be used for, is establishing the "TV break of the day", before the sprinters teams reel them in with 10-15 K to go.
We could have gotten 3 important stages (provided the wind blows on stage 2), with the 3rd one being a showdown for the best puncheurs in the world, mixed in with everyone riding GC.
Now we get just 2 (and only 1 if the weather is great day two).
It would even had made more sense to reverse stage 3 logistically as well, as Vejle is only 20 K from an International airport, while Soenderborg only has a local airport for small aircraft.
I am guessing ASO wanted stage 3 to be a sprinters stage, because otherwise it is terrible planning on their part.
Danskebjerge said:
It was a great finish, for a race at that level.
However, in the Tour, on day 3, nobody is peeling off the front of the peloton in the last 5 Ks, just because of a bump in the road and a couple of narrow passages..... the sprinters trains are simply too good for that, at that level.
You are absolutely right the stage would have been so much better, if they had reversed the direction of it..... Vejle has fantastic terrain for cycling, with a bunch of short and sharp climbs and winding roads in and out of forests - but the way the stage is planned out, that terrain becomes completely irrelevant, being placed at the start of the stage.... all it will be used for, is establishing the "TV break of the day", before the sprinters teams reel them in with 10-15 K to go.
We could have gotten 3 important stages (provided the wind blows on stage 2), with the 3rd one being a showdown for the best puncheurs in the world, mixed in with everyone riding GC.
Now we get just 2 (and only 1 if the weather is great day two).
It would even had made more sense to reverse stage 3 logistically as well, as Vejle is only 20 K from an International airport, while Soenderborg only has a local airport for small aircraft.
I am guessing ASO wanted stage 3 to be a sprinters stage, because otherwise it is terrible planning on their part.
Apparently they actually had to do a test at Sønderborg to see if they could get 600 people through in 50 minutes.
Sønderborg airport. And I think she said 600 people, "she" being my sister, it was someone she knows who'd talked about it.
I guess if there aren't any normal people using the airport, they can load as much as humanly possible into the plane(s) while the stage is on. TT Bikes, the riders' suitcases, stuff like that. Then just throw the riders into the buses after the finish, and straight for the airport.
I guess if there aren't any normal people using the airport, they can load as much as humanly possible into the plane(s) while the stage is on. TT Bikes, the riders' suitcases, stuff like that. Then just throw the riders into the buses after the finish, and straight for the airport.
From what I've heard, one of the arguments against placing it in Vejle was that the traditional Post Danmark finish with Kiddesvej was too narrow and the area around the finish line was not made for big races. Simply not enough space.
The only place with enough space to host a finish was Vejle Stadium and it's surroundings. But you could still make a pretty epic stage by placing the finish line there.
The only place with enough space to host a finish was Vejle Stadium and it's surroundings. But you could still make a pretty epic stage by placing the finish line there.
Re:
This makes sense, and is also why I haven't been too angry about the final not being there. All the steep climbs in Vejle, except Munkebjerg which is located outside the city, are just way too narrow for a Tour peloton. And even Munkebjerg has a 2m narrow tunnel at the beginning that is just not compatible with the Tour.
Velolover2 said:
This makes sense, and is also why I haven't been too angry about the final not being there. All the steep climbs in Vejle, except Munkebjerg which is located outside the city, are just way too narrow for a Tour peloton. And even Munkebjerg has a 2m narrow tunnel at the beginning that is just not compatible with the Tour.
Re: Re:
Not to speak about all the obstacles (safety first, kids). Imagine something like this in the last km. :lol:tobydawq said:
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But, you don't need to finish on a climb, for it to be an exiting stage.
The stadium is only like 1,5 K from the Kiddesvej climb (there are several others that could be incorporated in an exiting finish).
Velolover2 said:
But, you don't need to finish on a climb, for it to be an exiting stage.
The stadium is only like 1,5 K from the Kiddesvej climb (there are several others that could be incorporated in an exiting finish).
Re: Re:
Stuff like that is easily removed and reestablised after - especially in light of the income a tour finish brings your town, for a once in a lifetime event
Velolover2 said:Not to speak about all the obstacles (safety first, kids). Imagine something like this in the last km. :lol:tobydawq said:
Stuff like that is easily removed and reestablised after - especially in light of the income a tour finish brings your town, for a once in a lifetime event
Re: Re:
In recent years, stage 3 of the Tour have often been a puncheur stage.. so why not?
You are right. A combination of Gl. Kongevej (which is harder than Kiddesvej) + the Rom's Hule uphill drag within the last 4 km is possible.Broccolidwarf said:
In recent years, stage 3 of the Tour have often been a puncheur stage.. so why not?
TdS 2019, not perfect, but also surprisingly non-terrible
https://pbs.twimg.com/media/D0UofFbWkAEUhnC.jpg
https://pbs.twimg.com/media/D0UofFbWkAEUhnC.jpg
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If people are waiting for me to *** and moan about this route, then I have some bad news for them.
It's pretty decent.
roundabout said:
If people are waiting for me to *** and moan about this route, then I have some bad news for them.
It's pretty decent.
European Championships will be in Alkmaar this year.
That means it's flat but with possible echelons. They can design a route close to the North Sea which would mean very windy.. but they could also organize a city loop in which case it's going to be a 100% sprint
That means it's flat but with possible echelons. They can design a route close to the North Sea which would mean very windy.. but they could also organize a city loop in which case it's going to be a 100% sprint
According to the Belgian Cycling Federation, all 144 Belgian pro cyclists combined earn 12,4 million euro, which is about 50% less of what Eden Hazard earns
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