Since When Do You Like Contador?

[Red Rick]

When he did the Giro at 120%, then quietly went into the Tour, with abuse, organizers out to get him, fatigue and no preparation, a very bad way to go into a gt.

Remember how the UCI said they didnt want him in the race?
Remember how the fans booed him at the start?
Remember how they screwed him in Mont des Allesouts, and how Karpets threw him onto the floor and how he had nothing left from the Giro?

And yet

He kept his head, while all around him,
lost theirs and blamed it on him.
And didnt give way to hating though he was hated
though they lied about him, he didnt deal in lies.
He knew the form might come later, and so he waited
And rode through all their booes and cries.
He stood tall, as they all said that he was bluffing
Living off the hope that the form would come
And held on when there was absolutely nothing
Except the Will which said to him: 'Hold on!'


And then came Gap, 5 glorious minutes
A risk, one turn of pitch-and-toss,
And though he dropped them, the chance had gone to win it
But he never breathes a word about his loss.
He dreamt and made those dreams his master;
To win it the hard way, that was now his aim;
And though he knows truimph, now it was disaster
But he treats those two impostors just the same

He dealt all the lies they had spoken
But could only watch as his body was ripped apart
And under all their efforts his dream was broken,
But they could never take from him his heart.
He talked with crowds and kept his virtue,
He walked with Kings and never lost the common touch,
neither foes nor loving friends can hurt him,
but those two long grand tours proved just too much;

But yet, they could never take his spirit
As he walked into the final mountain stage
And though he knew he could no longer win it.
He could bring the sport back to a distant age
He forced his heart and nerve and sinew
With 100k left of distance to run.
And the wolves, they asked, why did do it
"I attacked" he answered
"just for for fun".


TDF 2011.

In defeat, Contador made himself greater than he ever could in victory

Are you a poet? Why didn't you say that in the job thread? It's better than all the freaking literature i had at school

 

[The Hitch]

Are you a poet? Why didn't you say that in the job thread? It's better than all the freaking literature i had at school

You probably did study it in school at some point
Its not me. Its the worlds most famous poem with a few alterations to apply to Contadors Tour 2011, but mostly it fits on Contador well anyway.

 

[Nick C.]

I put Paris Nice 07, thinking it was the Paris Nice where on the final stage he nearly hit a wall clipped out and was ultimately caught by Vino. That's when I first took notice and then when he (and Valverde) lost Romandy in the final TT to Evans @ 2005 or 2006. Once he got the stink of Bruyneel and LA I liked him less but preferred him to Levi in 2007 and the 2008 GTs. Once comeback boy started sniping at him like a junior high school girl I became a huge fan especially for how he throttled him and ****ed him off.

 

[Red Rick]

Its not me. Its the worlds most famous poem with a few alterations to apply to Contadors Tour 2011, but mostly it fits on Contador well anyway.

Lol, I already thought is would be weird to spend hours to do something like that just for a post on a forum

 

[Ryo Hazuki]

I love the "while watching tour 2012" poll option

 

[virandociclista]

Tour 2007 and Giro 2008.. but the most decisive moment was in the tour 2009 with all the Lance drama.

Now my nickname with my friends is "contador" because I am a big fan.. not a great climber like velasco! hehe

 

[Red Rick]

You probably did study it in school at some point

Can't remember it, what's the original about?

 

[ebandit]

sorry!

sorry! I don't really like Him

however I do Admire Him....................He's Cool on a Bike

and I will be Happy to see Him Win again if He Rides well

of course I Cheered Him during the in Team Spat v Lance/Johan

 

[Kwibus]

I voted Giro 2011, but it was before that time. Starting early 2011 when I noticed how he always wanted to win every race he attended and how much he likes to race that's when I started to like him.

In only started watching every cycling race possible since spring 2010. Before that I actually disliked Contador and preferred Andy Schleck. In the TdF 2010 I still think I cheered for Andy.

Since I was watching every race since spring 2010 I started noticing how anonymous Andy Schleck was in every other race and how much Contador always wanted to try to win the races he participated and always attacked.

That's when I started to like AC more and more. 2011 was an eye opener. The Giro was awesome and the 2011 TdF only made me like him more. He was suffering, but it didn't matter. All he did was attack anywhere he could.

 

[The Hitch]

Can't remember it, what's the original about?

Being a man (which is why it fits well on Contador)

 

[The Hitch]

Tour 2007 and Giro 2008.. but the most decisive moment was in the tour 2009 with all the Lance drama.

Now my nickname with my friends is "contador" because I am a big fan.. not a great climber like velasco! hehe

That is very cool

 

[hiero2]

How interesting! And surprising! The biggest response is ppl do not like him!

I liked him at first, but he quickly began to seem arrogant. I do NOT like that pistol bit as a victory salute.

 

[maltiv]

How interesting! And surprising! The biggest response is ppl do not like him!

I liked him at first, but he quickly began to seem arrogant. I do NOT like that pistol bit as a victory salute.

31 people have voted that they like him, 12 that they don't...

Your logic is completely flawed.

 

[The Hitch]

How interesting! And surprising! The biggest response is ppl do not like him!

Quite natural considering the "like him" contingent is split based on which specific month they began liking him.

 

[Kwibus]

I'm ashamed to admit that I was once a Frandy fan and a Contador despiser. That has certainly flip flopped however, and I think the big change was when I started watching the entire season rather than just the Tour. Then I certainly appreciated Contador much, much more.

Same here

 

[sartoris]

I started to like him a lot earlier. Actually, back in 2005.....

From WIKIPEDIA:

"... During the first stage of the 2004 Vuelta a Asturias he started to feel unwell, and after 40 kilometers he fell and went into convulsions. He had been suffering from headaches for several days beforehand and was diagnosed with a cerebral cavernoma, a congenital vascular disorder, for which he underwent risky surgery and a recovery to get back on his bike.[6] As a result of the surgery, he has a scar that runs from one ear to the other over the top of his head.[22] Contador started to train again at the end of 2004 and eight months after the surgery he won the fifth stage of the 2005 Tour Down Under racing for Liberty Seguros, as the team previously known as ONCE had become..."

I bet many of the haters don't know much about this period of his life

 

[The Hitch]

Same here

I was not a Schleck fan as such but kind of hoped Schleck would win 2010 Tour.

 

[jobiwan]

I remember 07 Tour thinking. Wow! That's awesome.

While I don't root for Contador as much as Andy, I do admire his riding style and his aggressiveness, and I hope he wins the Vuelta.

So I'm a "fan", I guess.

 

[No_Balls]

How interesting! And surprising! The biggest response is ppl do not like him!

I liked him at first, but he quickly began to seem arrogant. I do NOT like that pistol bit as a victory salute.

I can perfectly understand why people dislike him. I mean, if i was a fan of the Schlecks and/or Armstrong i guess i would have done the same. But arrogant?

Arrogance to me is when you sit out an entire season, or when you actually compete, hiding in the bunch just to use the parcour to get your necessary miles before an already marked obstacle. For AC, it seems, it wont matter if the stage is L´Alpe d´Huez in the Tour, or Muur in low-key events such as Eneco Tour, Contador goes for it. That is how to honor a race and wont count as arrogance in my book. It certainly didnt for the dutch who had the opportunity to see it.

As a bike rider he is far from that label.

 

[Ryo Hazuki]

I started to like him a lot earlier. Actually, back in 2005.....

From WIKIPEDIA:

"... During the first stage of the 2004 Vuelta a Asturias he started to feel unwell, and after 40 kilometers he fell and went into convulsions. He had been suffering from headaches for several days beforehand and was diagnosed with a cerebral cavernoma, a congenital vascular disorder, for which he underwent risky surgery and a recovery to get back on his bike.[6] As a result of the surgery, he has a scar that runs from one ear to the other over the top of his head.[22] Contador started to train again at the end of 2004 and eight months after the surgery he won the fifth stage of the 2005 Tour Down Under racing for Liberty Seguros, as the team previously known as ONCE had become..."

I bet many of the haters don't know much about this period of his life

that doesn't matter. I like contador and have respect for him. but if I hate a rider I don;'t even care if his whole family has been killed or whatever. I simply don;t like the rider for other reasons. I think it's the same with contador

 

[airstream]

Now that is the word (in bold) that I feel truly describes the guy in your avatar. Someone that supplies me with endless entertainment and moments of painful, belly-aching laughter. What a treasure.

I prefer a rider who has lots of flaws, but is true to himself than a rider with palmares. All the more so we realize how those titles were taken and with what price.

 

[The Hitch]

that doesn't matter. I like contador and have respect for him. but if I hate a rider I don;'t even care if his whole family has been killed or whatever. I simply don;t like the rider for other reasons. I think it's the same with contador

Charming as always.

 

[hiero2]

Quite natural considering the "like him" contingent is split based on which specific month they began liking him.

Ooops, quite right, my bad. Misreading stats. (FACEPALM)

I can perfectly understand why people dislike him. I mean, if i was a fan of the Schlecks and/or Armstrong i guess i would have done the same. But arrogant?
. . ..

Call 'em as you see 'em. I like the Schlecks even less, and Armstrong not at all. Nah, it wasn't Chaingate I didn't like - it is that he seems to assume he is the heir apparent I guess. I could not exactly tell you why. Initially I thought he was pretty cool. I loved that he first came back and won the Giro w/o preparation that year. That was fun. But the pistol thing in particular started me watching his character, and I think he somehow believes he is better than other riders. Not just able to beat them - not subject to the same rules kind of better.

I know I'm probably lonely in this camp, no matter. It's all IMHO!

 

[ILovecycling]

How interesting! And surprising! The biggest response is ppl do not like him!

I liked him at first, but he quickly began to seem arrogant. I do NOT like that pistol bit as a victory salute.

Arrogant is to withdraw from La Vuelta after getting drunk in bar during the race.

 

[sartoris]

that doesn't matter. I like contador and have respect for him. but if I hate a rider I don;'t even care if his whole family has been killed or whatever. I simply don;t like the rider for other reasons. I think it's the same with contador

That doesn't say much about you, dude.