TDF Stage 16 - Tuesday, July 20 2010, Bagnères-de-Luchon - Pau, 196 km

[cyclestationgiuseppe]

Well, at least if it happens, it's the last time you'll ever have to see it.

But I really do not like barfing....seriously!
unless it helps me make race weight...then it's ok

 

[sublimit]

Armstrong still doesn't look great.

He was riding all over the place on the early climbs, struggling to stay in a straight line.

 

[Anonymous]

I cant believe the yellow jersey group was down to 15 at one point and now the stupid soft-pedalling has allowed basically everyone to catch back on.

Like 40+ riders went over Col du Tourmalet together.

And now it's even bigger. 60+ riders. Basically everyone. Sheesh. What a bore.

 

[Fourier]

But I really do not like barfing....seriously!
unless it helps me make race weight...then it's ok

in his own words, he already has 25 and doesn't need any gifts.
25, that's a lot of barfing over the last 10 years, give us a break!

 

[Parrot23]

Has this (Cycle)Tour had one good stage, the cobblestones?

 

[Moose McKnuckles]

Vino just brought bottles for the team. One good thing is that we won't have to hear any criticisms of Vino as a teammate.

 

[Fourier]

Has this (Cycle)Tour had one good stage, the cobblestones?

Morzine was OK IMO

 

[Moose McKnuckles]

I can't decide which Tour was worse, last year or this year's snoozefest.

 

[cyclestationgiuseppe]

in his own words, he already has 25 and doesn't need any gifts.
25, that's a lot of barfing over the last 10 years, give us a break!

TBH it only started affecting me the last 2 years.

 

[alberto.legstrong]

Vino just brought bottles for the team. One good thing is that we won't have to hear any criticisms of Vino as a teammate.

It's a little mind boggling that there were still people pushing that line of thinking beyond stage 3. I didn't have any doubt, ever. But really, it was just dumb to pursue it.

 

[Big GMaC]

I can't decide which Tour was worse, last year or this year's snoozefest.

This year is better than last year.

Last year was abysmal

 

[Publicus]

Vino just brought bottles for the team. One good thing is that we won't have to hear any criticisms of Vino as a teammate.

If they had an award for best domestique, I say he has it locked up.

 

[Parrot23]

Vino just brought bottles for the team. One good thing is that we won't have to hear any criticisms of Vino as a teammate.

I was really impressed by how fast he responded to Andy's attack yesterday when Bertie was asleep (or when Bertie was blocked in*).

*Riis must have been watching, like when they/Cance attacked Boonen in Paris Roubaix.

 

[Jamsque]

If they had the award for best domestique, I say he has it locked up.

Surely that goes to Gadret

 

[sportzchick]

I can't decide which Tour was worse, last year or this year's snoozefest.

this year has been 100x better

 

[cyclestationgiuseppe]

Clearly LA has been the best domestique....cmon!

 

[Anonymous]

They should re-name the tour, Tour de Tempo, because that's what everyone rides.

 

[battery89]

TBH this years tour has been quite good. Definitely better than 2009, probably better than 08 also. This stage and yesterday's stage (well, without schleck's mishap) have been average though.

Madeline/Mende/Cobbles/AX3 were all quite good imo

 

[Ten Percent Grade]

Nice to see the guys in the bunch coasting uphill. *Yawn

 

[alberto.legstrong]

Surely that goes to Gadret

It's too bad he couldn't have gotten a gig with the shack. That could have been pure entertainment. 'Course, his body would be found in a ravine somewhere, but still.....

 

[sportzchick]

slightly off topic - you have the world champ gurnesy....should we have one for the olympic champ?

 

[CatsNK]

Does anyone have an English feed? All the ones on cyclingfans.com are not working...

 

[Fourier]

[edited by mod]

 

[Parrot23]

It's too bad he couldn't have gotten a gig with the shack. That could have been pure entertainment. 'Course, his body would be found in a ravine somewhere, but still.....

Imagine refusing Lance a wheel! Ultimate fighting?

audio: http://eurosport.yahoo.com/audioplayer.html

good video: http://sport.rtl.lu/tele/tdf2010/

 

[Francois the Postman]

Today's stage should have been run in reverse, and it's being raced in reverse too! All the attacks and excitement were in the first 50km, and now it's going to be dull as sin until the finish.

Yeah, it's been obvious for a while now that all these different teams with different DSs with different character traits who have a roster of different riders with different abilities who are offered different stages against widely differing opponents, that in the Tour, this somehow keeps adding up to a one single day in which they decide to play their main cards. No one seems to want to waste/risk efforts on days that would leave others with days to retaliate on, so the last "big" day inevitably is "it".

Next time when we discuss great tactical geniuses, I propose the first DS that shows the ability to come up with a plan that isn't "...and if we do it on that day and it works, no-one will be able to respond! How clever is that!".

Guess which day has been pencilled in this year.

And it's only a do-or-die day if we are lucky. Far too often it is more consolidate-or-die day. We are on a tight-rope between both just now.

Maybe Andy wanted to try something yesterday, and some shocking gear changing deprived us of a real attack rather than another skirmish. It came so late that it could only have been the latter, again, if (and that was a big if), if it had been successful.

A 60km run-out to Pau isn't gonna set fatigued legs alight. It probably should, but it won't. One GC stirring day left.

So if we are very lucky, after Thursday, the ITT will still have real race merit, and not simple be the type of day that we are mainly watching to see if any of them has a mechanical or bad day, or not.

Seems that race incidents have created by far the most talking points this year. Bit disappointing. I hope Thursday will be worth all that.

I have now very mixed feelings about this Tour. It has certainly been better than it was last year (no effort needed), it has had flashes of greatness, but despite having (in theory) 3 or 4 folk still in it, week 3 is, again, starting to threaten to append the word "disappointment" beyond the promised "epic".

My one hope: Contador is nervous. Not sure if he should be, but he certainly rides around as someone who feels more vulnerable than he judges comfortable. He is bothered. If anything can get to Contador, it probably is his own mind. 3000km of slight nervousness is probably more draining than having to take the Tourmalet a couple of times. Bad judgement, self-doubt.

If he has one seriously bad, and probably totally unexpected, spell, I am still backing Menchov over Andy. Menchov gets deadly when he senses a real opportunity. I think his ambitions for this year have slowly crept up the podium. He's the sort of guy who can really take it from day to day. I'm sure that the upper bar has already been moved from pre-race third to second. And judging by his demeanour, it looks like he is ready to power up the opportunity radar for #1 too, the moment he sniffs a bit more uncertainty in Contador. Right now it is one leap too far, but you can tell he is keeping an open mind, still.