The official debate: Should Contador have waited for Schleck?

[ilillillli]

whatever the problem, bjarne riis has the same solution: ride tempo.

why does he want his riders to lose so badly? if sastre wouldn't have disobeyed in 2008, he wouldn't have won either. schleck's going to lose the tour because he actually listened to his DS. that's the issue. what a shame.

 

[Ryo Hazuki]

You don't ride, do you?

it's hard for me to explain but his inner chain(??) was way too small so the chain was strung too loose so any small jam will put the chain off. I hope you understand but it was schlecks fault completely.

 

[forty four]

No - AC definitley did not look right at AS.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=p1E45QiV60o

He would have known that AS chain had slipped but probably did not expect AS to panick and delay putting it on by first waiting for his team car.

Still think AC that there was no-need for AC to wait - but he didn't need to attack, just follow others lead.

did not watch why could he not get the chain on? the only thing i can figure is it got binded between the crank and frame which can be difficult to remove even with much force and andy has no upper body power so that may have been the problem. it has happened to me im getting the k-edge chain catcher for my s-works so this cannot happen.

 

[saganftw]

lol @ the schleck defenders. not even riis agrees with you.

from a former doper any moral lesson would be like punch in the face

 

[hfer07]

while all the blame is on AC, SSanchez told RTVE that Andy's mechanical problems is simply part of racing- and nobody remembers that he(SSachez) had a mechanical problem, a puncture & a crash on stage 3 and "nobody waited for him"......
and Menchov is happily quiet too....

 

[Mellow Velo]

http://www.bikeradar.com/racing/racestage/report/97th-tour-de-france-stage-15-749

"Saxo Bank team manager Bjarne Riis, meanwhile, appeared to side with Contador.

"I didn't see it but it's all part of racing circumstances," said the Dane. "I think he (Contador) waited at the start, and then he went. That's just part of racing.""

Hard to argue with Andy's boss................but I'm sure folks will be queueing to try.

The pros tend to remain more objective and more level headed than agenda hampered forum fans.

Nobody bats an eyelid if someone has a mechanical during the ITT and that is just as crucial.

 

[Biological Entity]

This is a sh1tty write up by Cycling News.



I don't care your opinion on what happened as result of these events, but this is not what happened. Cycling News this is just crappy journalism.

No cycling news is right. Contador passed and attacked Schleck. We now know from AC himself that he was on the limit and was not waiting. All the more amazing then that AS managed to get the gap down to ten seconds by the top. Your guy might have lost another minute today if not for this chain problem.

 

[nia O'Malley]

And yes, it is part of racing.


If Andy can't deal with it, he's not mentally ready to be a true champion and that's that.

If by tomorrow he is still whingeing, I'll have to revise my opinion of him. It's allowed in the heat of the moment, but to show you can win a Tour, you need to be grown up.

 

[Anonymous]

lol @ the schleck defenders. not even riis agrees with you.

Not defending Schleck but attacking Contador. Do you not see the difference?

 

[Biological Entity]

Hard to argue with Andy's boss................but I'm sure folks will be queueing to try.

The pros tend to remain more objective and more level headed than agenda hampered forum fans.

But Riis said he did not see it. If he had heard from Contador he will know that he did not wait. When he finds this out he will be as disgusted as the rest of us.

 

[gazmercer]

Schleck just tweeted this

I lost yellow today!**** happens but the race is not over yet!!!I be back!

 

[forty four]

it amazes me that frame makers or team mechanics do not put chain catchers on frames where the clearance is too narrow for the chain to clear the bottom bracket if it slips major flaw in my eyes.

 

[Marva32]

Clearly Menchov and SS followed Contador up.
If he sat up and paced they would've followed.
If Alberto sat up and paced, and Menchov or SS attacked, he could've followed them doing no extra work and we'd be blasting them now...

As it stands, it was Contador who took advantage and attacked.

without reading through all 24+ pages, I think this sums it up. It shows a lack of experience and class on Contador's part that we've seen in the Tour the past 2 years. Last year attacking against team orders that took Armstrong out of the running and putting Kloden off the podium, and this year attacking and bringing others up and taking away Vino's first chance at a stage victory. I was never anti-Contador, but now I see him as a childish brat. My $0.02.

 

[cyclestationgiuseppe]

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zcN2HrkrnF4

watch the vid
Andy attacks, Vino chases
AS hits a bumps and drops his chain
Contador veers to left and flys by and continues to "attack"
even vino waits

The new definition of poor sportsmanship = Contador
Menchov and SS do the same.....

sad, he deserves the boooos!

 

[Burnette]

About time

I think bfore this stage Alberto and Andy were riding "not to lose" and playing it conservative. That may have been a good strategy though but it sucks for the spectators. As far as Alberto going ahead after the mechanical, well I have no problem with that. Looks like Andy made a mistake and paid for it. It's different than when Lance was taken down mistakenly by a fan, waiting would be right in that incident.
If someone who has access to video could look for me and see what kind of jesture Vino made to Alberto after Andy stopped. He said something and made a hand jesture, but what was it?
I think it's great that it is now a fight, they both have to attack. Alberto has a better team and better TT times so Andyhad better give it his all. And after seeing Andy pass all those riders after the mechanical he just may put some hurt on Alberto. I have no dog in the fight so I can sit back and enjoy it from all sides.
For all those people who whined about trash talking please move to the right. Conflict and drama makes the cake more tasty. "I've got anger in my belly". 'Bout time.

 

[p1gnone]

... Andy Schleck didn't even have bad luck, but didn't know how to shift. You see it nearly every climb in the beginning, some guys having problems because they shifted to abruptly. Exactly the same happened to Schleck.

By the way, Contador said he didn't know what caused Andy's problems and decided to give it a go.

did AC think AS was tired or waiting for him? No, when he abruptly stopped 60ft ahead it was clear that it was a mechanical. I have not disliked a rider so much in years. In fact one that I disliked redeemed himself today, by pausing and was ever onward a respectable rider. Thanks VINO

 

[MKirilenko]

To sum up, I dont really understand why so many ppl are aiming for Contador with their frustration. Why no1 hates Menchov? With less than 2 mins to Schleck, he can easily get past him on ITT, if he stays with AS on the next 2 stages.

 

[nia O'Malley]

did not watch why could he not get the chain on? the only thing i can figure is it got binded between the crank and frame which can be difficult to remove even with much force and andy has no upper body power so that may have been the problem. it has happened to me im getting the k-edge chain catcher for my s-works so this cannot happen.

Quite sure that's what happened yes; it just would not slot back in, then Andy started panicking a bit

 

[Anonymous]

Oh, ok. Then he bonked or had no answer for Schleck, but a second later, by some miracle, he felt so strong to attack leaving Menchov and others behind, even Vino who followed Schleck. I agree, it was AC's mistake to sleep like that, but you cant really be implying that, if Schleck havent stopped, AC wouldnt have tried to catch him?

No. He certainly would have tried.

AC went AU BLOC after passing Schleck with a mechanical. That's the problem.

 

[Publicus]

This video should make it clear what happened (even better than what I saw on Versus):

http://www.steephill.tv/players/eurosport/v1/?title=Andy%20Schleck%20drops%20his%20chain%20at%20a%20key%20moment%20-%20Tour%20de%20France%202010&id=20948447

 

[Superbagneres]

Hey Contador, today was the day to be practising track stands on the big climb of the day

 

[hrotha]

Hard to argue with Andy's boss................but I'm sure folks will be queueing to try.

The pros tend to remain more objective and more level headed than agenda hampered forum fans.

Nobody bats an eyelid if someone has a mechanical during the ITT and that is just as crucial.

Riis said he didn't watch it. He also says he thinks Contador waited at first, which is not true. I bet he will change his mind once he reviews the footage, even if he doesn't say anything else on the matter publicly.

In an ITT it can't be helped, it's a completely different situation.

And I don't have any agenda, thankyouverymuch.

 

[Biological Entity]

Won't the AC fanboys at least admit that it's sad to see a tour decided by a chain problem?

 

[Ripper]

And yes, it is part of racing.


If Andy can't deal with it, he's not mentally ready to be a true champion and that's that.

If by tomorrow he is still whingeing, I'll have to revise my opinion of him. It's allowed in the heat of the moment, but to show you can win a Tour, you need to be grown up.

Not that I am really defening Andy Mantis, but I think he can "deal with it". Some fans can't, but I am pretty sure he can. BTW - people tend to be emotional right at the end of an intense situation like the last 20 km of this race ... good grief.

 

[Publicus]

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zcN2HrkrnF4

watch the vid
Andy attacks, Vino chases
AS hits a bumps and drops his chain
Contador veers to left and flys by and continues to "attack"
even vino waits

The new definition of poor sportsmanship = Contador
Menchov and SS do the same.....

sad, he deserves the boooos!

Nobody waited. Not one single person.