Rate the 2013 Tour

[Pharazon]

for me.. it had everything apart from a tight battle for GC and green, it had everything else

 

[finchna]

what does 1 mean?

what does 10 mean?

 

[SetonHallPirate]

A downhill TT

I'm actually thinking of designing a Tour with a downhill from a Grand Depart off Mont Ventoux (as a TT).

 

[Netserk]

I'm actually thinking of designing a Tour with a downhill from a Grand Depart off Mont Ventoux (as a TT).

Like the Red Bull event?

 

[SetonHallPirate]

Like the Red Bull event?

HA!

No, I apparently forgot to toggle the off-road setting portion off on that one...this will be a full road race.

 

[Netserk]

HA!

No, I apparently forgot to toggle the off-road setting portion off on that one...this will be a full road race.

I thought that it was on road

This was the first article I could find about the event.

 

[SetonHallPirate]

I thought that it was on road

This was the first article I could find about the event.

Ah, OK...I was thinking of a classic I had designed that, by mistake, had gone off-road (in very significant sections).

Yes, that would be Stage 1 of the Tour. Only difference is, it would have done the entire descent.

 

[Angliru]

I'd give it a 7.

-Froome sort of sucked the life out of the final outcome with his early dominance. IMO he only faltered twice, losing time in the echelons and not fueling enough causing him to almost crack, still not losing enough time to threaten his inevitable place on the top step in yellow.

-As mentioned by many earlier the battle for the podium was exciting to watch with the Belkin riders showing early promise only to show that, in true Rabobank form, they would falter as the Tour progressed. The Dutch fans likely saw this coming before many of us. Anyone familar with the NFL will see that they are like the Detroit Lions of professional cycling.

-Quintana surpassed all the hype that many of us, including myself, had piled upon him. I must say that after watching his performance in last year's Vuelta I knew that he was mature and seasoned beyond his years but I expected a finish in or around the top ten. Valverde's misfortune opened the door for him to shine obviously and he took it and ran with it without faltering.
The second step on the Tour podium at age 23: Is he still being "overly hyped" as many have said?

-Valverde is a little snakebit at the Tour and grand tours in general. He's dnf'd at the Tour twice (both from injuries-broken clavicle and knee issues), and this year a sketchy wheel change took him out of contention for a podium spot. Nevertheless he put in a strong performance as did the entire Movistar team.

-Contador was the one hope to put a wrench in the works of Sky's plans of world domination but it was not to be. Never capable of actually challenging Froome in the mountains, Contador and Saxo-Tinkoff had to resort to other means. It added excitement to the event but it was only a hiccup in the eventual successful road to Paris for Froome and Sky.

-The sprints were entertaining thanks to Kittel showing that he's joined the sport's elite sprinters, giving Cavendish and Greipel more than they could handle on his way to taking the green jersey.

 

[Netserk]

-The sprints were entertaining thanks to Kittel showing that he's joined the sport's elite sprinters, giving Cavendish and Greipel more than they could handle on his way to taking the green jersey.

Sagan took the green

 

[Escarabajo]

I'd give it a 7.

...

From your evaluation it sounds like higher than 7.

 

[Angliru]

From your evaluation it sounds like higher than 7.

Yeah I should have put it at the end. I kept adding to my post the more I thought about it. I'd only give it a 7.5 or 8 though since the gc, which of course is the most important category, was decided quite early in the Tour, taking all the suspense and mystery out of the battle for yellow.

 

[Angliru]

Sagan took the green

My bad. IMO though Kittel was the premiere sprinter in the end.

 

[Amsterhammer]

As much as I enjoyed Nairo, and as much as I enjoyed Kittel's four wins for our smallest team, which made up for the epic fail of Vacance, and the usual shortcomings of the Rabo/Belkin boys in the third week, Froome's early and complete dominance pretty much destroyed the spectacle element of the Tour for me. If there had been an actual contest for the maillot jaune, I might have gone to an 8.

I also object most strenuously to the absence of the Vino option, without which no CN poll can be considered valid.

 

[Netserk]

My bad. IMO though Kittel was the premiere sprinter in the end.

Sagan had 9 top-4 finishes.

Kittel had 4 wins and a third place.

 

[barmaher]

I enjoyed it a lot. Battle for yellow being so 1 sided ruined it for me a touch. Glad not too many GC hopes crashed in first week. Poor VDB. Loved seeing early GC attacks. An eight.

 

[Afrank]

what does 1 mean?

what does 10 mean?

Seriously? 1=worst 10=best

 

[Carols]

I had to turn it off at some points...shouting Fraud!!!!

 

[LaFlorecita]

I had to turn it off at some points...shouting Fraud!!!!

Me too!!

 

[richard_91]

Me too!!

Because of how Alberto made people think he would destroy the final week but actually did nothin?

 

[Dazed and Confused]

Ended with a 7.
On the plus side were the Corsica stages, Chaos, Crosswind and Riblon's Alpe ride. Bunch sprints were competitive as well.

Downside:
Too much dominance on the GC side, still not enough risk taking by teams. Parcours still needs 1 or 2 more Ardennes style stages.

 

[airstream]

A real maillot jaune candidate attacks in the feed area if he feels like it. Wait.. this is so 80's most posters here weren't even born to watch.

Exactly, but when a guy tries to do something on flat insted of attacking on the climbs and in tts is desperate. I think the fact that Contador did zero attacks on the climbs in the Tour is the biggest sensation.

 

[murali]

Ended with a 7.
On the plus side were the Corsica stages, Chaos, Crosswind and Riblon's Alpe ride. Bunch sprints were competitive as well.

Downside:
Too much dominance on the GC side, still not enough risk taking by teams. Parcours still needs 1 or 2 more Ardennes style stages.

I agree.

Just to add to whatever was said:

Upside: Marcel Kittel!!

Downside: Lack of/defensive tactics by GC teams. Except for the penultimate stages(as expected in any GT) the rest of course was either less challenging or more accident prone. A total disregard for roulers. Lack of real competition for any jersey (all the jerseys were decided by one or two stages).

 

[murali]

Exactly, but when a guy tries to do something on flat insted of attacking on the climbs and in tts is desperate. I think the fact that Contador did zero attacks on the climbs in the Tour is the biggest sensation.

Have to correct that over there: the fact that Contador was not able to keep up with Sky armada is the biggest sensation.

 

[airstream]

LOL, actually Contador betrayed his 'only 1st spot' ideology and did 000000000000 attacks in the mountains but despite on it people anyway continue to blame Froome for that. High time to bonfire Сontador a little bit,no?

 

[Aapjes]

LOL, actually Contador betrayed his 'only 1st spot' ideology and did 000000000000 attacks in the mountains but despite on it people anyway continue to blame Froome for that. High time to bonfire Сontador a little bit,no?

He did do a very hopeless attack downhill with Kreuzinger at one point. So he actually did cero punto cero cero cero cero cero cero cero cero cero cero cinco attacks.