TdF official thread: Stage 3 Marseille-Grand Motte (196.0km)

[mambo#5]

You dah man Lance. Keep it up!!

 

[ak-zaaf]

no worries, if sanchez and pereiro lose time in andorra, contador will have a team again.

 

[sportzchick]

I think a lot of you are overthinking this. Take away so-called tactics being called by JB. You must consider the human dynamic. LA has a winner's mentality. All this talk about wanting to raise awareness for cancer is a smokescreen. He wants to win, believes he can win, and today showed his true intent. Whether he can win is a big question, but by directing Popo to ride to the front, having three riders protecting him, it's obvious he feels like he is the leader. Who cares about the time gaps now. It is the psychological aspect that may wear on the other contenders. He wasn't there riding for AC. If he was, he would have warned him like any other good teammate. JB is loyal to LA and vice versa.

Quality Post and 100% spot on

Still even if the livestrong is a smokescreen, its doing its bit to get rid of cancer for good well im all for it!

 

[titan_90]

And I'm actually not worried about Contador one bit (he was caught out with all of the contenders, so he's not disadvantaged there (I don't consider Lance a real contender)).

+1
Armstong taking advantage of Columbia splitting the peloton is one thing ,dropping Contador in the mountains is something entirely different.

 

[Bala Verde]

Probably more drama on the forum here than in the AST bus. They'll open a bottle of champagne to celebrate another victory of the team over the other contenders, in that they did not act/react/read the race. Also gives them more leeway to operate in the mountains, and increases focus on Armstrong...

All good for Contador (who is only 19s behind Armstrong, if that even mattered).

Good ride by SKL again, as well as great result for COL. Good team effort, united, reading the race well, on top of their game.

 

[ak-zaaf]

Another possible scenario is that LA got a huge moral boost from today, while AC got the opposite. Remember, he knows that this was his own fault for hanging too far back!

the perfect thing for alberto to say after this would be: "i didn't care about the gap because all the gc contenders were still in the peloton"

 

[caddisfly]

old man 1, FDQ 0.....

although this makes no more diff to the overall or Astana leadership question than the TT did on Saturday, LA showed again why he won 7 of these things...

on stage 3: Old Man 1, Forum Drama Queens 0

if somehow Astana wins the TTT tomorrow with enough time to put LA in the yellow, I see a lot of headlines world wide and a lot of cyber-wrist-slashing on team FDQ ;-)

 

[Timmy-loves-Rabo]

I think we might get fireworks on stage 7 (actually im expecting fireworks on all the big stages... something different form past years *hoping i haven't got my hopes up for nothing*)

Agree that Conta will put the hammer down, (Just Brain stoerming here But >>) but maybe he will try too hard/panick and crack himself, possibly opening the doors for the other rivals (Sastre, Schleck etc) Wishful thinking maybe

 

[Franklin]

although this makes no more diff to the overall or Astana leadership question than the TT did on Saturday, LA showed again why he won 7 of these things...

on stage 3: Old Man 1, Forum Drama Queens 0

if somehow Astana wins the TTT tomorrow with enough time to put LA in the yellow, I see a lot of headlines world wide and a lot of cyber-wrist-slashing on team FDQ ;-)

Actually, the Lance critics were expecting this ^^

 

[Anonymous]

What a stage... Or should i say, what a performance by columbia...
If they can ride like that tommoro they could have yellow as well as green...

as for the green jersey.. 2 days gone..

1. CAVENDISH M. - THR - 70 Pts
HUSHOVD T. 54
DUMOULIN S. 36
CANCELLARA F. 35
BOUET M. 31
FARRAR T.30
LEMOINE C. 26
FEILLU R. 26

if anyone other that hushovd wants to stop cav they really need to start doing something pretty quickly..

as for astana. no controversey really, and opportunity for LA to put some time into other contenders.. if contador had been in that group they would have pushed, why not lance..

I was a bit confused initially why saxo bank where doing any work.. cancellara was in the break, and it just makes it easier for them to hold onto yellow after the TTT.. i dont think they worked for more than a couple of K though..

 

[Publicus]

although this makes no more diff to the overall or Astana leadership question than the TT did on Saturday, LA showed again why he won 7 of these things...

on stage 3: Old Man 1, Forum Drama Queens 0

if somehow Astana wins the TTT tomorrow with enough time to put LA in the yellow, I see a lot of headlines world wide and a lot of cyber-wrist-slashing on team FDQ ;-)

It's at a minimum tied, since the FDQ's took stage 1.

In all seriousness what the hell would it have looked like if Astana chased down Lance? It would have been beneficial to Sastre, Evans and the Schleck Brothers and wasted the legs of three of your strongest riders (Levi, Kloden and Contador). It was a smart move and frankly I think there is ZERO pressure on Contador. There are 4 live dogs to contend with on Friday's stage. Now the media will continue to pick and prod and that may unnerve him, but my guess is he's absolutely fine. He won't be fetching water bottles and he won't be shielding Lance on Friday.

 

[L29205]

I think a lot of you are overthinking this. Take away so-called tactics being called by JB. You must consider the human dynamic. LA has a winner's mentality. All this talk about wanting to raise awareness for cancer is a smokescreen. He wants to win, believes he can win, and today showed his true intent. Whether he can win is a big question, but by directing Popo to ride to the front, having three riders protecting him, it's obvious he feels like he is the leader. Who cares about the time gaps now. It is the psychological aspect that may wear on the other contenders. He wasn't there riding for AC. If he was, he would have warned him like any other good teammate. JB is loyal to LA and vice versa.

While I do agree with the fact JB and LA should just go and get married.

Popo and the crew were tasked with keeping LA safe. Just doing their job.

I still think this is a lets feel out the field, if we send LA up the road with support who will follow. I this case no one.

There might have been other things peaking up. Was GH riding to get his boy set up for the spint? Did the Columbia team help LA?

The main thing I learned, if you send an Astana rider up the road no cares unless it is AC.
L29205

 

[jaylew]

Probably more drama on the forum here than in the AST bus. They'll open a bottle of champagne to celebrate another victory of the team over the other contenders, in that they did not act/react/read the race. Also gives them more leeway to operate in the mountains, and increases focus on Armstrong...

All good for Contador (who is only 19s behind Armstrong, if that even mattered).

Good ride by SKL again, as well as great result for COL. Good team effort, united, reading the race well, on top of their game.

Good post. I agree, though I do think it will make AC a bit more anxious.

 

[hfer07]

Facts:
-LA took some time on AC and is ahead of him 19 secs
-LA ceased the opportunity, in anticipation of future losses in the mountains
-Tomorrow Astana will attempt to get LA in yellow
-LA in yellow will demand the entire team to bow down to his will
Possibilities:
-AC will play along with the plot, and will keep LA very close
-AC perhaps won't unleash full attack in Andorra, thinking ahead of what's coming, but he'll finish along the stage winner.

just too soon to say LA has made the "winning move" for Christ's sake.
but no doubt is getting really interesting!!!!

 

[Anonymous]

Teams only have room for one leader that is for sure. When you have too many chiefs and not enough indians all these shenanigans happen. AC all alone? That is a travesty. First, the LA should have been attentive enough and alerted AC to what was going to happen. Second, the team should have dropped back and pulled him up if he did get caught out. Astana should not be betting the farm on LA in the third stage.

why.. alberto had 5 riders with him.. Lance only took two...

as for lance should have alerted him, watch the 20k before the split.. Lance was up at the front with popovich the whole time keeping out of trouble, as was cancellara keeping out of trouble.. If contador hasnt got the brains to realise in the last 30-40k of a race you really need to be near the front, then hes in trouble tactically.. Lets not hope there is a crash mid pelaton, he could kiss his chances goodbye..

As for astana betting the farm, lance was in the right place at the right time, so was huchovd, cancellara, cavendish and everyone else.. Contador wasnt, along with a number of other GC contenders.. wonder why none of them was one lances wheel... Oh hang on.. one was.. Tony Martin.. Spot the brains...

I dont normally critisise peoples intelligence on here, but i do need to wonder if you know what youre on about..

 

[Timmy-loves-Rabo]

Good post. I agree, though I do think it will make AC a bit more anxious.

That is all it has done in my opinion (and maybe not, AC will be confident in his abilities im sure)... If the other teams really didn't want LA gaining 40 seconds, im sure they would have got organised and brought it back together.

 

[jaylew]

if contador had been in that group they would have pushed, why not lance..

I think they would have done the same had it been AC, LL, or Klodi. Not that it won't cause Alberto at least a little consternation.

 

[Franklin]

How easily Lance is being counted out. Things I read:

- Saxo shouldn't have pulled
- Lance will be dropped by AC at will

Are we talking about the same guy here? Sure it's possible Lance cracks, but can you REALLY count on that? Isn't he the most experienced rider? The best climber of his generation? The guy who crushed the competition in a way AC hasn't yet achieved?

Sure, losing 40 second on Lance is absolutely nothing. Hundreds of ways to take those back

As someone said, Ulrich definitely thinks Lance is easy to beat.

 

[Anonymous]

The sprints are getting tedious with a one man show, . . . . . but this was otherwise a fantastic flat stage finish.

Wouldn't you love to be a fly in the Astana bus and hotel ?

Cav winning will never get tedious for us brits...

If he can keep going like this his skin is gonna turn green..

 

[klodifan]

While I do agree with the fact JB and LA should just go and get married.

Popo and the crew were tasked with keeping LA safe. Just doing their job.

I still think this is a lets feel out the field, if we send LA up the road with support who will follow. I this case no one.

There might have been other things peaking up. Was GH riding to get his boy set up for the spint? Did the Columbia team help LA?

The main thing I learned, if you send an Astana rider up the road no cares unless it is AC.
L29205

Point well taken. If that's the case, then I think they are underestimating LA. And because he is so tenacious, that could be a mistake. Although, it is just stage 3 and there's so much more racing. No need to panic, if, and only if, they don't continue with the game plan of not taking him seriously.

 

[toronto-rider]

why.. alberto had 5 riders with him.. Lance only took two...

as for lance should have alerted him, watch the 20k before the split.. Lance was up at the front with popovich the whole time keeping out of trouble, as was cancellara keeping out of trouble.. If contador hasnt got the brains to realise in the last 30-40k of a race you really need to be near the front, then hes in trouble tactically.. Lets not hope there is a crash mid pelaton, he could kiss his chances goodbye..

As for astana betting the farm, lance was in the right place at the right time, so was huchovd, cancellara, cavendish and everyone else.. Contador wasnt, along with a number of other GC contenders.. wonder why none of them was one lances wheel... Oh hang on.. one was.. Tony Martin.. Spot the brains...

I dont normally critisise peoples intelligence on here, but i do need to wonder if you know what youre on about..

If you have ever been in a race or group ride with these type of winds, it takes one guy not holding the wheel and the next thing there is a gap. Per the tweets from the pros, LA was well positioned. The gap happened in seconds. You dont win 7 TDF by being stupid. No pressure on AC, Astana team has a lot of cards to play.

 

[benpounder]

First off, Armstrong isn't 40 seconds ahead of Contador. He is ahead of Cadel and Schleck and that matters to them.

19 seconds between LA and AC. 23sec to Kloden and 31 to Leipheimer. With a strong TTT tomorrow, some of the other teams could be shiiting bricks

Having heard some inside gossip from camp Astana, Contador may not be mature enougn to recognize how JB's tactics today help him. The GC teams that really lost are Silence-Lotto, Cervelo, and Rabobank. To a lesser extent Saxo, but they still have super-strongman Cancellera atop the standings. Astana played it perfectly, whereas Columbia may have hurt their GC aims by punishing the other sprinters teams for not helping bring back a break (see Hindcapie's interview).

Think who did the work today. Columbia obviously, but that means two back to back days of team time trialing. The teams that were caught out - Silence-Lotto and Cervelo did try and bring things back. But not Astana or Saxobank.

Tomorrow ought to be as interesting as today!

 

[Publicus]

How easily Lance is being counted out. Things I read:

- Saxo shouldn't have pulled
- Lance will be dropped by AC at will

Are we talking about the same guy here? Sure it's possible Lance cracks, but can you REALLY count on that? Isn't he the most experienced rider? The best climber of his generation? The guy who crushed the competition in a way AC hasn't yet achieved?

Sure, losing 40 second on Lance is absolutely nothing. Hundreds of ways to take those back

As someone said, Ulrich definitely thinks Lance is easy to beat.

Totally agree. One of the greatest climbers in his generation when he was riding at the end of the blue train. The problem of course is that (a) he won't be riding at the back of the train and (b) this isn't his generation (from a cycling standpoint).

I wouldn't read too much into this day. As I posted earlier, I just think it would have been counterproductive for Astana to chase down the break. It's a 3 week race.

 

[Publicus]

19 seconds between LA and AC. 23sec to Kloden and 31 to Leipheimer. With a strong TTT tomorrow, some of the other teams could be shiiting bricks

Having heard some inside gossip from camp Astana, Contador may not be mature enougn to recognize how JB's tactics today help him. The GC teams that really lost are Silence-Lotto, Cervelo, and Rabobank. To a lesser extent Saxo, but they still have super-strongman Cancellera atop the standings. Astana played it perfectly, whereas Columbia may have hurt their GC aims by punishing the other sprinters teams for not helping bring back a break (see Hindcapie's interview).

Think who did the work today. Columbia obviously, but that means two back to back days of team time trialing. The teams that were caught out - Silence-Lotto and Cervelo did try and bring things back. But not Astana or Saxobank.

Tomorrow ought to be as interesting as today!

+1 I think your analysis will ring true. Tough day for Cadel, Carlos and Menchov. They couldn't afford to be down further on GC.

 

[Timmy-loves-Rabo]

+1 I think your analysis will ring true. Tough day for Cadel, Carlos and Menchov. They couldn't afford to be down further on GC.

lol.. they are down further to LA... they basically trail a GC threat a further 19 seconds then prior to the stage. Im not so sure they really fear LA all that much, so a tough day not really. Though I did see S-L pulling infront of the peleton, maybe a little energy wasted. However raobank never had a rider near the front.