State of the Peloton 2024

[Salvarani]

Cav time is amazing! Wtf

 

[solo80k]

Cav time is amazing! Wtf

Didn't he changed bikes during the stage? I'm just curious...

 

[Krzysztof_O]

Cav time is amazing! Wtf

This must be a mistake. Cav is still riding up PdB as we speak.

 

[QueenStagiaire]

https://twitter.com/x/status/1812532928099827831

GC Cav

Already super bad math, because they take the time he was down on Carapaz 35 minutes before the climb as the time he was down on Pogačar at the foot. I heard Cav caught up a lot of time through the valley already with the Astana guys drilling it. Probably around four minutes further behind than stated here on PdB.

 

[zlev11]

Cav time is amazing! Wtf

probably holding onto cars like usual

 

[Ripper]

Lots of top level marathon/distance guys are getting done at the moment but it's just for the usual stuff, think Kipruto was rEPO. Loads of Kenyan scapegoats, the Colombia of running.

Ingebrigtsen is who you want to watch out for, I know he's middle distance but he's on some of that Scandinavian good s*it that is doing the rounds at the moment given the times he's posting.

Norwegian method

Triathlon fun

Nothing to see here. All good. Just get analytical about your stool

 

[Penninepeddler]

Jonas on that TT pushed the limits of my belief that guys were maybe cleanish.

But today, after yesterday? With the stage being so similar to the stage that Pantani set the record on? But raced harder?

Yeh... the required watts/kg to do that and the V02 max guys have to have?

I mean, it is just not realistic is it?

Look at guys like Bardet and Bernal... these are two of the guys who were the best climbers in the world 5 years ago. Look at S.Yates, Carapaz and Hindley and Mas.

They have not actually got any worse in terms of the times they are putting up really vs ~2-3 years ago. Some have even improved. But there are a few teams whose entire teams are just all improving at a level that does not seem normal given age curves, the fact V02 max doesn't improve over age, and they are not shedding pound after pound to improve their watts/kg. How are these VAMs possible?

Even as a kid during Armstrong I was one of the kids in high school who would not wear a yellow wristband because, well, speaking to my dad at the time? It was too good to be true given what we knew... and this is making some of the things back then look human.

 

[42x16ss]

Landa is a good yardstick, considering he's been a top climber for a long time, keeping his level comparable to the top climbers the wole time. Somehow he's gained climbing form that would have buried Froome at 34yo and no real change in body shape without gaining ground on the absolute best

 

[Ripper]

Hey guys, I just spent 5 minutes in my garage running the exhaust in my car. Then I went out and set a PR on some local mountains! Seriously though, do not do this

 

[zlev11]

Hey guys, I just spent 5 minutes in my garage running the exhaust in my car. Then I went out and set a PR on some local mountains! Seriously though, do not do this

one day the Idiot Fattie Masters Doper thread will be bumped and there will be a post about some poor guy who killed himself trying to CO dope

 

[zlev11]

Landa is a good yardstick, considering he's been a top climber for a long time, keeping his level comparable to the top climbers the wole time. Somehow he's gained climbing form that would have buried Froome at 34yo and no real change in body shape without gaining ground on the absolute best

yeah this is really interesting to think about. if you go back to when he almost podiumed the Tour, on his best climbs he was probably close to a full 1w/kg lower than he was today, yet he is 4 minutes down the road. and he was 7 years younger. it shows just how potent whatever these guys are taking is. they are putting out absolutely huge watts.

 

[Monoxidator]

yeah this is really interesting to think about. if you go back to when he almost podiumed the Tour, on his best climbs he was probably close a full 1w/kg lower than he was today, yet he is 4 minutes down the road. and he was 7 years younger. it shows just how potent whatever these guys are taking is. they are putting out absolutely huge watts.

Derek Gee is the one that is completely absurd to me

 

[zlev11]

Derek Gee is the one that is completely absurd to me

former track rider, nothing to see here

 

[Nick2413]

If cardiovascular attributes were visible the way muscles are, these guys would be bigger than Ronnie Coleman. The lack of visibility to the naked eye is the biggest factor in making it all believable.

Something new is definitely on the scene, no way this is just blood and EPO.

 

[Monoxidator]

Artificial altitude adaptations forced by slowly poisoning the body, masked by actual high altitude training.

 

[AmRacer]

Already super bad math, because they take the time he was down on Carapaz 35 minutes before the climb as the time he was down on Pogačar at the foot. I heard Cav caught up a lot of time through the valley already with the Astana guys drilling it. Probably around four minutes further behind than stated here on PdB.

Cav group riding faster than the GC group? Nah....

 

[42x16ss]

Derek Gee is the one that is completely absurd to me

and because he's been the ninja of the Tour so far it's going almost unnoticed

 

[Rob5091]

I fear it will take a major incident like Colbrelli having a heart attack before things will change. Either that or a big police bust since people and organizations within cycling are taking omerta to the next level too.

If Visma and UAE are going to totally dominate races, then hopefully the guys getting beat by minutes even though they're riding their pesonal bests, spill the beans. When even the World champ MvdP complains about the crazy watts, then something's amiss. Also guys not going in the break. Why bother huh?

 

[ashhutch1997]

Seriously guys, what do we recon the riders are on these days, surley it's a new undetectable drug? (like EPO in the 90's).
I simply refuse to believe they are motor doping.

 

[meat puppet]

A heart attack probably wouldn't change a thing. Colbrelli's didn't.

As long as viewers buy it, and continue to buy ridiculously priced stuff, all's good I guess.

 

[Salvarani]

Tom D knew and said "I am not doing it", after probably being involved heavily before and in 2020. Then crashing out mentally and physically. Either you in or you out.

 

[46&twoWheels]

I've not commented yesterday because I was still in disbelief about the entire circus. Unbelievable that the Landani joke is not a joke anymore

 

[Rackham]

It's wild how the top two defy every metric, including fan preconceptions about their worth versus the other.

Now it's Vingegaard who is on the backfoot. Next year he needs to not only catch-up but actually surpass Pog's level. Can they do it? UAE managed to dramatically improve their rider year-on-year, but can Visma achieve the same?

The challenge is simple: beat Pantani's Plateau de Beille ascent time by 5 minutes instead of 4, notwithstanding Pog's own potential improvements next year as well.

 

[Rackham]

The 'challenge' is probably also how to achieve all of this without ending up like Colbrelli & Nathan van Hooydonck.

 

[Barnacle Bill]

Still getting my head around yesterday, as with Vinge time trial last year, feel a bit shocked and numb even given the exploits we've got used to from the two who've dominated the Tour this decade. I guess the gloves come off, the teams throw everything they've got at a key stage and their true level is revealed. And as with that TT last year one of them has destroyed the field and the other was still way ahead of them.

It's not just the rest of the peloton looking like amateurs, past tour-winning performances look laughable and limited in comparison, even some of those known to be juiced. Not a lot of scraps for the rest of the peloton right now, that break of good climbers just looked amateurish. I'll be interested to see some of the comments from other teams and riders. I'm not the most dedicated fan of any of the guys right at the top but as with any sport I do appreciate exceptional performances. But sometimes it's just too much.