TDF 2015 GC now ruined, what next?

[Campervan man]

Maybe Rigo will surprise in the mountains when he's in top form he's able to battle with the best. I'm hoping he keeps up his form, don't forget his team in the TTT also.

 

[Ramon Koran]

Sincerly believe Froome will gain time over the cobbles if they are dry, it's all a question of how many watts you can put down, Froome of the GC contenders should be the best possibly with Uran. It's game over for the others I sadly think.

 

[Jspear]

Re:

Sincerly believe Froome will gain time over the cobbles if they are dry, it's all a question of how many watts you can put down, Froome of the GC contenders should be the best possibly with Uran. It's game over for the others I sadly think.

It's more than watts on the cobbles. Weight, bike handling skills, technique, confidence. Could Froome gain time on the cobbles? I guess, since anything is possible in cycling, but it isn't what I would expect. I think he is more likely to lose time.

 

[Ramon Koran]

Re: Re:

Sincerly believe Froome will gain time over the cobbles if they are dry, it's all a question of how many watts you can put down, Froome of the GC contenders should be the best possibly with Uran. It's game over for the others I sadly think.

It's more than watts on the cobbles. Weight, bike handling skills, technique, confidence. Could Froome gain time on the cobbles? I guess, since anything is possible in cycling, but it isn't what I would expect. I think he is more likely to lose time.

Not if they are dry and you are on a specialized machine, bad bike handlers ( Wiggins, Schleck ) have done very well over dry cobbles thanks to their big engines. If the cobbles are wet then bike handling skills come in.

 

[Hugo Koblet]

Lol @ the tour is over. Hilarious. But hey, even if it was over then who cares? The best stage of the Tour decided the GC then.

 

[Jspear]

Re: Re:

Sincerly believe Froome will gain time over the cobbles if they are dry, it's all a question of how many watts you can put down, Froome of the GC contenders should be the best possibly with Uran. It's game over for the others I sadly think.

It's more than watts on the cobbles. Weight, bike handling skills, technique, confidence. Could Froome gain time on the cobbles? I guess, since anything is possible in cycling, but it isn't what I would expect. I think he is more likely to lose time.

Not if they are dry and you are on a specialized machine, bad bike handlers ( Wiggins, Schleck ) have done very well over dry cobbles thanks to their big engines. If the cobbles are wet then bike handling skills come in.

Dry cobbles still require more than watts. It still requires good technique regardless of the rain or no rain and Froome isn't at an ideal weight. Stick Froome on an uphill road with a strong team and that is where he thrives. On the cobbled stage he will simply be trying to survive. He won't gain anytime on his gc rivals....imo

 

[Libertine Seguros]

It was a great stage today, precisely because some GC contenders lost some time: this is what makes it exciting.
So, if I understand correctly: some people want exciting stages in the first week, but they also want very tight GC times right up to the final stage? This is never going to happen.
An alternative is to propose boring flat stages right until the 3rd week, and they wait in "excitement" for a 2km hilltop race between contenders... I think we had enough of these Tours in the past.
I am very excited by the show the riders have put in today, it has been a great stage, and I am saying this even if I root for Pinot (he will have plenty of opportunities to make up for the lost time, at least for a top 5 or a podium still).

People seemed to enjoy the 2011 Tour, and that was a race of two weeks of utter crap followed by an excellent one week race. Would have been a great Dauphiné. The last week being really good made people look back on the awful first two weeks (where apart from Evans gaining a few seconds on Mûr-de-Bretagne and the really badly organized time penalties from the Mont-des-Alouettes stage (where Contador and Sánchez got the double penalty because they crashed outside 3k to go, then were held up inside 3k to go by the second pile up including Schleck, who didn't get penalized because of being inside 3k to go but profited by crashing because Contador was baulked), everybody was on their TTT times for two weeks) with rose-tinted glasses.

The race is far from over, but I do sympathize with the OP's doom-and-gloom outlook when you see Froome pick up time advantages in this style, because Sky's suffocating way of racing and the difficulty of taking time back on the alien dawg could adversely affect the quality of the race, but given that I've not been watching and people seemed to enjoy the stage, we'll see how it plays out in the long run. I remember having a similar angry outlook after stage 3 of the 2010 Giro, when a bunch of people like Pozzovivo crashed and lost beaucoup time and it was gained by the likes of Evans and Vino who I didn't want to see win - and also the same after the epic Montalcino stage, a mixture of excitement at the epic race we were witnessing and horror that the GC was being so narrowed down. And that was the 2010 Giro, the best GT of our age, so things can turn around yet. Not that I expect racing as good as the 2010 Giro here, there's no Zoncolan, no Mortirolo, no MTT to come, but we've still got cobbles, hills, and plenty of mountains to come.

 

[ChewbaccaDefense]

And the 2015 Cyclingnews Forum Award for "Biggest, Most Clueless Overreaction Thread" goes to!!!...this thread.

 

[Tonton]

Re:

And the 2015 Cyclingnews Forum Award for "Biggest, Most Clueless Overreaction Thread" goes to!!!...this thread.

+1. The "o gloom, o doom" talks after only two stages are utterly ridiculous.

 

[Gigs_98]

To this thread:

Holy crap in which world am I, that someone says the gc is over because someone is 1:30 in front.

 

[Dazed and Confused]

This has been a perfect start to a GT.
May it continue strongly over the next 2-3 stages.

 

[Strawberry_Jam]

I genuinely think you couldn't make this up, I think nelson might be serious guys...

 

[ILovecycling]

Re:

Sad times for cycling when being 1.5 minutes down on GC with 19 stages to go is considered being out of contention...

ROFLLL

 

[Cance > TheRest]

Well must of us knew the TDF was wide open but after today is it a case of damage limitations? With Contador no chance after winning the Giro, which most on here will protest otherwise, but its true, The TDF is now Froomes to lose after just 2 stages. From a GC point of view Nibali's and Quintana's Tour is all but over, as a 3rd place podium is likely his best shot which will not be good enough, Pinot the same thou that will be good enough, Purito and Valverde likewise + a few more. GC after just 2 stages is pretty much between Contador Froome and Van Gardren. I see Pinot possibly turning attention to KOM along with Purito and Rolland ( losing 5 mins ) However as the sport especially TDF is not predictable there are also another 3 weeks to go where as today has proved sh*t happens. The one great saviour in today is it will of course create an incredible free for all of attack attack attack in the mountains with Purito, Pinot, Rolland, Valverde, Nibali,Quintana, Talansky, Mollema, Peraud and Bardet all losing any personal hopes they had on their own GC standings. 10 great climbers all out in day 2 will make the 2015 mountains crazy

You again?! stop it...

 

[42x16ss]

I think someone needs to go to Google, then type in the following - Pedro Delgado 1989 Tour de France

 

[Irondan]

I'm starting to think this guy was just trolling, so I'm locking this thread.