Stage 8: Station des Rousses - Morzine-Avoriaz 189km

[The Hitch]

who was the last world champ to wear the Yellow?

tom boonen

 

[BroDeal]

Wiggins: "happy to admit I wasn't good enough today"

He should have lost another ten kilos or whatever weight loss he is selling these days.

 

[ak-zaaf]

Nobody rating cadel.

I did in the Giro, which had a weaker field.

 

[Thee_chisa]

wiggo 2.45 down overall still sits at 14th. i hope it was a hunger knock he got and not just outridded. and he is still within a minute of the top 5. i shall be praying tomorrow for a good recovery and that he can stick there with the big boys over the madeleine. i think he can still do a top 3 as i reckon that was his bad day and some of the other contenders have yet to have theirs.

i hope

 

[Potomac]

Nobody rating cadel. That is very good. AC still biggest threat as he can tt.

Correct, we have televisions and saw what cadel had today and he will lose minutes in the pyrenees.

 

[DamonAlbarn]

I really admire you Cadel lovefest

Nobody rating cadel. That is very good. AC still biggest threat as he can tt.

but really? Do you really think he can win the big one?

 

[Wallace]

I agree. Ride for Levi until Levi has no shot at the podium. Then go win a stage. Don't quit.

I disagree. Lance should quit.

 

[BroDeal]

Matti Breschel just told Danish TV Armstrongs comment after the Euskaltel-crash, where he himself appologised for "rearing" Lance :

"I'm just waiting to get home to get some beer and pizza. I'm too old for this ****!" - That statement says it all! Enjoy your beers and pizza

Armstrong has just been going through the motions all year. He was playing at being a bike racer.

 

[Jamsque]

Keep in mind the had an avg of 38.5kmph which is pretty fast a stage like this. Since there was fast but steady pace up most can follow. It was hard tho, you could see it on all the faces.

Oh it was definitely a hard day, just not a super-hard climb. The Madeleine on Tuesday will be much harder, but it is a long way from the finish.

 

[Cerberus]

that he has so he needs to change tact - he is smarter than the forum gives him credit for

I give him credit for being smart enough to not throw away time.

Why waste a lot of energy to close a 10 sec gap on a guy you can blow in the TT? I think he went after all the other attacks except Andy's. Maybe he couldn't maybe he didn't need to. As I see it, it was more important to keep Evans behind you than Andy on this stage.

1) It's rest day tommorow, there's little need to conserve energy

2) No way he goes after VDB, but not Andy Schleck, He tried to follow and he failed. I'm not saying that Andy will win the Tour or drop Contador in the bigger mountains, but Contador legitimately got dropped, he didn't let Andy go.

 

[Parrot23]

Nobody rating cadel. That is very good. AC still biggest threat as he can tt.

The difficulty for Evans, ACF, is that he usually develops some sort of health problem. Seems a little more fragile healthwise than some others.

The big thing is how do he and Bertie stay near enough to Andy before final TT, IF current form holds from today.

But great ride, nonetheless.

 

[Climbing]

Nice win for Andy (Sanchez said he got a cramp in the last 20 meters - i'm sorry for him, but nice race as expected).
Congraturation for Evans in YELLOW, he deserved it in this first week!
A very open TdF and a nice stage I say.
Now beware of the mountains after the rest day!

 

[Anonymous]

Pretty clear it is down to just Andy and Alberto now.

Cuddles can TT pretty well at times. Andy needs real distance from riders like Conti and Cuddles. I also saw Basso there, and don't forget his performance over the course of the Giro.

I know that this is a Clinic topic, but things could be different with little to no "recovery." Look at Basso's blood profile in the Giro. It was what you would expect, and as it went along, people got tired. This Tour could very well let us see what clean racing looks like (for the most part)

 

[turtlesoup]

looks like LA intentionally rode in the euskatel rider. could have gone around like Horner did

 

[bobs nob]

Nobody rating cadel. That is very good. AC still biggest threat as he can tt.

I think Cadel is a threat. Nobody is rating him high to discourage you from making a mess on your keyboard at the thought of it.

 

[Anonymous]

Now that the fanboys have all left to drown their sorrows, he is a helluva bike rider and it will be much respect to him if he helps fellow RS teammates stage hunt.

Yea, I agree. He looked on the verge of tears crossing the line. He needs to stay in.

 

[editedbymod]

Armstrong has just been going through the motions all year. He was playing at being a bike racer.

Not playing. Getting paid. Lots. Not stupid.

 

[DamonAlbarn]

Let's agree to disagree

There's nothing to get over.
There's a fact that remains, indelible.
On the day he was in trouble and seriously at risk of losing the tour, the peleton stopped racing. That won't go away no matter how much you want to ignore it.

But my points stands...

 

[turtlesoup]

Cuddles can TT pretty well at times. Andy needs real distance from riders like Conti and Cuddles. I also saw Basso there, and don't forget his performance over the course of the Giro.

I know that this is a Clinic topic, but things could be different with little to no "recovery." Look at Basso's blood profile in the Giro. It was what you would expect, and as it went along, people got tired. This Tour could very well let us see what clean racing looks like (for the most part)

alot of trash will be burned tonight hopefully no1 forgot their needles.

 

[BroDeal]

looks like LA intentionally rode in the euskatel rider. could have gone around like Horner did

That is what I said earlier. He saw the crash as a way to lose more time and take himself out of the race. He walked around slowly after dismounting.

 

[turtlesoup]

Not playing. Getting paid. Lots. Not stupid.

he only gets is appearance bonus if he finishes right?

 

[Sydney Sider]

I was really impressed with Rogers ride today , he looked like he was going to crack a couple of times but fought like hell , very pleased for him

 

[auscyclefan94]

I did in the Giro, which had a weaker field.

Illnesss

but really? Do you really think he can win the big one?

Maybe...

Correct, we have televisions and saw what cadel had today and he will lose minutes in the pyrenees.

Yes he had quite a bad crash today. Impressive after his cuts on his legs.

 

[Thee_chisa]

I was really impressed with Rogers ride today , he looked like he was going to crack a couple of times but fought like hell , very pleased for him

yeah, mick showed grit today, shame he hasn't got a team.

 

[bobs nob]

I disagree. Lance should quit.

That would be a horrible way to go. Even for him.