Yes, but they were one man trains with names like Merckx and Hinault, who would win 7 or 8 stages, including prologues, mountain stages, and sprint stages, and roll into Paris (where they'd also usually win the final stage) with big leads as much as 17 minutes. No need for trains with 70+ km team time trials and leaders who could solo off the front most of the day.
In 1986 Hinault and Lemond dropped the entire field and soloed up Alpe D'huez with such a large lead that they spent it talking out their differences....
Sky has dominated BMC, who have never put together good mountain support for Evans and Liquigas, who besides Basso, has Canuti, Koren, Nerz, Oss, Vanotti! Maybe not such a monumental domination in the history of the Tour.
Bahahahaha. Classic illusionary use of history. Distort what really happened.
Been reading the pages. Damn, even FoxyBrown is being fooled. Wake up man. Froome is one some serious gear. Serious gear. If AC and Andy Schleck were here, you'd see conclusive evidence of that. He'd be attacking them.
But this quote, well it shows how people are distorting history. I dare anyone to name the times Lemond and Hinault did up Alpe d'Huez. Two men, with VO2max's between 92 and 94 ml/min/kg. I'd also like them to explain what happens to your VO2max over the course of three weeks. What was their maximal power output. What type of stage did it happen on.
It was the ITT. They could barely hit some of the numbers people are throwing around here. Sure this isn't Pantani territory or Lance 1999 or 2001 (he was flying that year) but it's not 1986 nor 1989 territory. Take a look at the record times up Alpe d'Huez. Hinault and Lemond don't even make the top 30. They are minutes SLOWER than last year. Oh and they themselves had NOBODY anywhere near them. That's how doped the peloton still is. That also illustrated that Sky numbers are pure science fiction. No rider on that team, or this peloton, can pull what the front group is doing if riding clean. They can't keep it up. Maybe one day, but not day in and day out. The hard numbers aren't there. The riders today are still light years ahead of the 80s champions and Sky is light years ahead of these doped riders.
That is how bad this year is. It was getting slower. It's not even close to being clean. Froome doesn't even appear to be labouring. Just like the Chicken in 2007. Wigans clean? Not a chance. Can make a case for it in 2006/2007, not today. His climbing then was indicative of his true talent. All that is left today is the response to a strong doping program. So next time someone wants to sully the greats of the 80s with the filth that followed, by all means, drop the times. Drop the power wattages. Lemond and Hinault would be smoked if racing today in their peak form. In a clean peloton, the bell curve at the pointy end is extemely narrow. Most riders will not keep up. Hence the huge times in the 80s. To those who are too dense to put two and two together...nobody has been suggesting Nibali, Evans, van den Broecke and whomever are clean. Far from it. This is the Sky thread where Sky have ignited another doping arms race. Clean cycling thanks them, as do many of the apologists. Cheers and thanks for nothing.
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