Tour 2012: Route Rumours / Our wishes

[roundabout]

Huh?

Cavendish won't win the 3 time trials, stages 1, 3, 7, 8, 10, 11, perhaps 13, 14, 16 and 17.

Edit: and 12 as Ferminal wrote

 

[Dekker_Tifosi]

Nope, hilly stages are called accidentée and not en ligne. That means the stages will be totally flat with a possible lame short uphill finish.

Plateau des blablabalbalbal is actually 4.8km at 8% or something

 

[Havetts]

Wiggo to win this horrible horrible parcours..

 

[Bavarianrider]

Tony Martin Tour de France...

2 long ITT's a prologue and ONLY 4 MOUNTAIN STAGES :

Uhh if that's really true this board will go nuts

 

[El Pistolero]

Plateau des blablabalbalbal is actually 4.8km at 8% or something

What a girly mountain. That's never going to cause any gaps. Even Phil can win on there.

 

[Timmy-loves-Rabo]

this is sh!t.

I might boycott this, that will teach them

 

[Ferminal]

There will be some hilly stages in the first week, Porrentruy will be medium mountains. Not too sure about the transitional stages though.

Of course, such stages aren't the issue (if this is indeed the actual route), it's the distinct lack of difficult mountain stages.

 

[roundabout]

So that's Madeleine, Croix-de-Fer and Toussuire on stage 11

Aubisque, Tourmalet, Aspin, Peyresourde on stage 16

Portillon, Mente, Ares(?), Bales, Peyresourde/Peyragudes on stage 17

The **** part is that 2 of them are U23 length

 

[El Pistolero]

After the Worlds and Olympics now weak cyclists will get the chance to win the Tour.

 

[SimonC]

Uhh if that's really true this board will go nuts

If this is true I won't be taking my yearly sabbactical in 2011!

 

[Havetts]

So that's Madeleine, Croix-de-Fer and Toussuire on stage 11

Aubisque, Tourmalet, Aspin, Peyresourde on stage 16

Portillon, Mente, Ares(?), Bales, Peyresourde/Peyragudes on stage 17

The **** part is that 2 of them are U23 length

Wait really?? That is so so so disappointing.

 

[roundabout]

Wait really?? That is so so so disappointing.

I mean 2 mountain stages at 140 and 144 km are something for the Vuelta.

 

[theyoungest]

Clearly Evans is the huge favorite on this one.

Of course not. Contador is a better time trialist and a way better climber than him. Evans does, however, have a very good chance to get second. But this is actually a course where Wiggins (or Froome ) could also contend for second.

 

[Timmy-loves-Rabo]

Yeah a fresh contador will win anyway.

 

[Timmy-loves-Rabo]

Gesink, nor mollema have much business going to this. I bet they both do

 

[AussieGoddess]

shorter mountain stages arent that much of an issue though - not if they are like this year when Alberto attacks with 90m's to go

There were only 4 mountain stages this year as well - so as long as some of those flat stages are hilly, it should be ok.

I like the longer TT, and LOVE the hilly TT and no TTT

 

[theyoungest]

This makes it look slightly better:

4 "étapes accidentées", rather than zero. And the Planche des Belles Filles is a 5 k climb at 8% average, at the end of one of those hilly stages.

 

[sublimit]

I'll have to study this further but it could end up worse than this years Paris-Nice.

Its looks OK for Wiggins, Evans and Contador I suppose. No TTT is good but this looks lame.

 

[Havetts]

Gesink, nor mollema have much business going to this. I bet they both do

Gesink won't make this in good form anyway cause of the injury. Would surprise me if he could..

 

[El Pistolero]

This makes it look slightly better:

4 "étapes accidentées", rather than zero. And the Planche des Belles Filles is a 5 k climb at 8% average, at the end of one of those hilly stages.

And only 2 MTF

Only one hilly stage that finishes uphill.

 

[theyoungest]

Gesink, nor mollema have much business going to this. I bet they both do

Rabobank should try to sign Cavendish, so they have some business going to this Tour

This suits none of their GC riders. Too easy and time trialy for all of them.

 

[Ferminal]

So that's Madeleine, Croix-de-Fer and Toussuire on stage 11

Indeed it must be this, comes out very close to 140km. Quite a good stage if you ask me.

 

[Bavarianrider]

Certainly those mounatin stages will be super intense. As there aren't too many of them, climbers will have to attack early.

 

[Timmy-loves-Rabo]

maybe one for LLS

Certainly those mounatin stages will be super intense. As there aren't too many of them, climbers will have to attack early.

just like this year in the

 

[roundabout]

So 25 HC, 1st and 2 cat.

1 in Vosges so I guess it's just Planche what's it's name on that stage and nothing else.

11 in the Pyrenees - 9 are easy enough to figure out, 2 on the stage to Foix?

6 in the Alpes - 3 are easy to figure out

Colombier + Biche are in Jura so 1 left

4 in Suisse, Croix is 1 so 3 left