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

[Publicus]

The team has announced that Basso is suffering from bronchitis.

Susan

After winning the Giro, you would think at the onset they would have just pulled him from the race. This stage couldn't have helped his bronchitis.

 

[lilyprotector]

i would have liked to see la win a stage in his farewell tour, but it was not to be. he rode well today, but not enough to win. i think a stage win for him was not out of the question, but would have required a real confluence of factors in his favor. when you don't have the firepower, you really need the stars to align for you, and that clearly hasn't happened.

i know there are a lot of anti-la here, but lance introduced me to the sport as well as my son and husband. i have a lot of great memories of the three of us getting up, from when my son was very young, half asleep and snuggling in bed to watch the tour. we had a lot of fun watching him and cheering for him through the years, and in the process, we were introduced to a lot of amazing athletes and to a sport unlike any other. we all have tremendous respect for the riders and are grateful for the tremendous inspiration and entertainment they have provided.

lance clearly has flaws, as do we all, but i will always be grateful to him for his part in all those july's that our family enjoyed so much together. i think i am probably like many others who most likely would never have gotten this introduction without lance and all the attention he garnered.

 

[Francois the Postman]

The team has announced that Basso is suffering from bronchitis.

Susan

OK, that I missed.

 

[alberto.legstrong]

I presume that folks who think it was a breach of Tour etiquette assumed it was intentional or with malice. Hence a malicious attack. That was certainly the sense that prevailed in these forum pages.

It is another unwritten rule in the 'If AC did it, then it must be wrong' non-existent but known by rote to all LA apologists handbook.

 

[smoking roach]

Great to see Cunego's daily determination to win a stage, he's made some great moves this Tour.

 

[Larrybud]

It's good to see the "anti-fanboy, buddy boys" are out in force today. More concerned with LA losing than who wins. Quite comical. But they do have their macho tag lines to define them.
--------------------
My daddy doesn't feed me enough
Shih Tzu Puppies

 

[benpounder]

Do people think Basso just had nothing or he might try something tomorrow (long shot I know)?

Basso is going to ride HUGE tomorrow...
I dont think he will do well in the next stage however.

(I couldnt resist)

 

[hrotha]

I'm disappointed that Lotto didn't try to knock out Samu and Gesink.

 

[Anonymous]

No, not really. Armstrong is a fraud and a cheat who will be exposed shortly. To see him win another stage would be a disgrace to cycling.

Just like watching Basso win the Giro and Vino win the stage was a disgrace to cycling. I guess that also explains why Vino was booed earlier in the year.

 

[alberto.legstrong]

i would have liked to see la win a stage ...

edited for space

i know there are a lot of anti-la here, but lance introduced me to the sport as well as my son and husband...

lance also introduced me and my family to the sport and there was a time where we were very grateful, too. But I don't know how anyone who watched last year's tour could come away seeing him expose himself as a petty, narcissistic, low life who treats anyone who gets in his way despicably and still have an ounce of respect for him.

He is a cancer on cycling. (pun intended)

A truly disgusting fraud of a human being.

 

[Publicus]

lance also introduced me and my family to the sport and there was a time where we were very grateful, too. But I don't know how anyone who watched last year's tour could come away seeing him expose himself as a petty, narcissistic, low life who treats anyone who gets in his way despicably and still have an ounce of respect for him.

He is a cancer on cycling. (pun intended)

A truly disgusting fraud of a human being.

Pretty much sums up my opinion on the matter. He lost me last year with his antics.

 

[Anonymous]

I agree. We're lucky Lance was here to bring cycling to the masses. You know, I remember watching some chap named Boardman doing something at the '92 olympics but I never knew what it was before Lance.

And I'd never heard of people like Anquetil, Coppi, Merckx, Indurain, Lemond (the fat, bitter, cancer lover *hawk-spit*), until Lance.

And praise be to Lance for bringing some little race in France to global popularity.

+1.

I agree. Thanks for saying what we're all thinking.

 

[Deconstruction]

It's good to see the "anti-fanboy, buddy boys" are out in force today. More concerned with LA losing than who wins. Quite comical. But they do have their macho tag lines to define them.
--------------------
My daddy doesn't feed me enough
Shih Tzu Puppies

Funny isn't it. It's been quite a stressful day for them. They had to wait until the last 100 meters before they could finally rest easy. lol.

 

[benpounder]

I presume that folks who think it was a breach of Tour etiquette...

I dont like threads hijacked. And I agree that there was nothing wrong with yesterdays actions, I was just noting that you opened the door to re-litigation.

 

[Deconstruction]

lance also introduced me and my family to the sport and there was a time where we were very grateful, too. But I don't know how anyone who watched last year's tour could come away seeing him expose himself as a petty, narcissistic, low life who treats anyone who gets in his way despicably and still have an ounce of respect for him.

He is a cancer on cycling. (pun intended)

A truly disgusting fraud of a human being.

Yeah, right. You went off Lance because after winning seven tours he felt he should have been the team leader. Come off it.

Armstrong won more fans than he lost last year. And I think we can all now see that Alberto is tougher than he looks.

We can see how nice your character is by the way you watch a race in the hope that someone loses.

 

[alberto.legstrong]

I dont like threads hijacked. And I agree that there was nothing wrong with yesterdays actions, I was just noting that you opened the door to re-litigation.

here's a thought: Stop talking about it and let it die.

 

[Publicus]

I dont like threads hijacked. And I agree that there was nothing wrong with yesterdays actions, I was just noting that you opened the door to re-litigation.

My bad. I was trying to address Lilyprotector's question about whether AC would be booed until Paris. That seemed a critical part of the equation.

 

[lilyprotector]

lance also introduced me and my family to the sport and there was a time where we were very grateful, too. But I don't know how anyone who watched last year's tour could come away seeing him expose himself as a petty, narcissistic, low life who treats anyone who gets in his way despicably and still have an ounce of respect for him.

He is a cancer on cycling. (pun intended)

A truly disgusting fraud of a human being.

well, i saw last year's tour, and i do still respect him for what he has accomplished in cycling. that does not mean that i respect all his actions. don't get me wrong, i don't think lance is the messiah, but i also don't think he's satan (okay, that's a rip-off of a magazine article, but does describe my position well). i think he's a man who has serious, serious flaws and issues, but i also think he has done some great things. i do understand how someone else might be upset with him after last year's tour, esp if they are a contador fan. but there were a lot of accusations flying around. i wasn't on the team, and i don't know what actually happened. you take a different view of last year, which is completely your prerogative. i don't claim to have the answers on what really went down (and i don't mean by that that i think lance was a saint).

i don't know him personally so i really don't feel that i could judge him with complete vitriole or adoration. even if i did know him, i don't think i would. not my place. i do know i respect what he's accomplished in cycling and for cancer advocacy.

cancer is a horrible disease. most people on these boards have probably been touched personally by it in some way. i would never call someone who came back from such a devastating form of the disease a cancer to cycling or anything else.

 

[alberto.legstrong]

Yeah, right. You went off Lance because after winning seven tours he felt he should have been the team leader. Come off it.

Armstrong won more fans than he lost last year. And I think we can all now see that Alberto is tougher than he looks.

Can you read everyone's mind or just mine?

Sorry, he is a creep and the creepier he gets, the more his apostles try to wallpaper over the giant hole in his soul.

 

[smoking roach]

... we were introduced to a lot of amazing athletes and to a sport unlike any other. we all have tremendous respect for the riders and are grateful for the tremendous inspiration and entertainment they have provided.

lance clearly has flaws, as do we all, but i will always be grateful to him for his part in all those july's that our family enjoyed so much together. i think i am probably like many others who most likely would never have gotten this introduction without lance and all the attention he garnered.

Well said. Even if Lance does go down in a ball of flames, I like to think the world's greatest sport is stronger than the flaws of a single rider. Lance has probably got more people riding bikes than any other rider and that alone is a great victory.

 

[Barrus]

I'm amazed McEwen came into the bus and only had about half an hour deficit. Amazing due to the fact that he was dropped on the first kilometre or something like that. Fascinating that everyone got in within the time limit

 

[alberto.legstrong]

cancer is a horrible disease. most people on these boards have probably been touched personally by it in some way. i would never call someone who came back from such a devastating form of the disease a cancer to cycling or anything else.

i don't call a guy who got and beat cancer a cancer lightly. But if you can't see that he is, then you just haven't been paying any attention at all.

 

[lilyprotector]

My bad. I was trying to address Lilyprotector's question about whether AC would be booed until Paris. That seemed a critical part of the equation.

thanks for answering! i'm not trying to reopen it either--too exhausting

 

[Deconstruction]

here's a thought: Stop talking about it and let it die.

No, the morally correct thing to do is to desperately hope Contador loses all races that he ever takes part in for the rest of his career and hate on him at every opportunity.

That will show everybody that we are decent people and that Contador is a low life. That's right, isn't it?

 

[Roland Rat]

Funny isn't it. It's been quite a stressful day for them. They had to wait until the last 100 meters before they could finally rest easy. lol.

*Buzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz* Warning, BPC alert. *Buzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz* Warning, BPC alert. *Buzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz* Warning, BPC alert. *Buzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz* Warning, BPC alert. *Buzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz* Warning, BPC alert. *Buzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz*

Keep 'em peeled.