"Tour de Bore"

[thehog]

One of the worst Tours I can remember! Even in those Armstrong days, he had the entire team around him, but he still made some good attacks on the climbs anyway!

This year, with 100 k (????) of ITT, ASO should have put much more mountain top finishes to make it even, this way the only thing Wiggins had to do was put a lot of time on ITT and then drag allong the team all up the climbs ...

Stephen Roche was great on EuroSport today. Harmon invites him on and sets up with a question which he was supposed to answer with: "No not at all, its been a great Tour".

So Harmon asks: "So Stephen what do you say to those who are saying this Tour is a bit dull?"

Roche: "I'd say they're right, it has been very dull".

Good on him. He didn't waver either when pressed. Said he was impressed with Wigins but that was it.

Good on him. Telling it like it is.

 

[oldcrank]

You want exciting? Go to a velodrome and watch some track cycling
I think the Olympic team pursuit and omnium will be hugely exciting

 

[Marcuccio]

Sure it wasn't the most entertaining of tours, but it was still good to see Wiggins finally win. I was sure he was going to end up as one of cycling's nearly men, and now that's finally been put to rest. Sky's plan to get Wiggo in to the yellow and keep him there was always going to make the stages boring, unless others (BMC & Liq) attacked and forced Sky to respond, but those moments were small, infrequent, and futile, so as a result, Sky were never forced to do any more than put someone up there, and maintain, which they did.

Surely it's not Sky's fault that Cadel tried and failed, Andy wasn't there, AC was banned, and Nibali couldn't do it.

 

[thehog]

Sure it wasn't the most entertaining of tours, but it was still good to see Wiggins finally win. I was sure he was going to end up as one of cycling's nearly men, and now that's finally been put to rest. Sky's plan to get Wiggo in to the yellow and keep him there was always going to make the stages boring, unless others (BMC & Liq) attacked and forced Sky to respond, but those moments were small, infrequent, and futile, so as a result, Sky were never forced to do any more than put someone up there, and maintain, which they did.

Surely it's not Sky's fault that Cadel tried and failed, Andy wasn't there, AC was banned, and Nibali couldn't do it.

I dont think people are blaming Sky they're blaming the pancors for limited opportuies for others to try something.

In saying that Sky did a very good impression of USPS day in day out.

 

[Marcuccio]

Any event is boring when a well executed plan comes off.
The tour was missing a few big names, but hey, that's life.
I think it's good that the last two years have produced first time winners, and with everyone saying it's boring, at least it may hype up the Olympics and the Vuelta..

 

[movingtarget]

Stephen Roche was great on EuroSport today. Harmon invites him on and sets up with a question which he was supposed to answer with: "No not at all, its been a great Tour".

So Harmon asks: "So Stephen what do you say to those who are saying this Tour is a bit dull?"

Roche: "I'd say they're right, it has been very dull".

Good on him. He didn't waver either when pressed. Said he was impressed with Wigins but that was it.

Good on him. Telling it like it is.

Roche always speaks his mind. The experiments with the route last year, paid off in the final week. This year it didn't due to the TT kms. Wiggins got the best route and it showed. I don't mind them experimenting with the amount of TT kms in the race. I would rather they did that than have the dreaded team time trial which will probably reappear next year. The trouble is with all of the intermediate stages and lack of difficult mountain stages, the TT became even more critical. Would the result have been any different, maybe not but it would have been more entertaining. Next year will probably be a TTT plus one shorter TT. Prudhomme, as of the past few years has made it clear that he wants the race decided as close to the end as possible. He got that in 2010 and 2011 but not 2012. Expect mountains and more mountains next year. Should be good.

 

[piemonster]

Aside from the relentless throttling of the GC it's not been too bad.

Greipel, Sagan, Cavendish, and Voeklers have entertained me

 

[FoxxyBrown1111]

The experiments with the route last year, paid off in the final week.

I am stunned how short memory is. Last years experiments didn´t pay off at all. 2 good stages out 21 just isn´t enough. I can´t believe with how little the fans of nowadays are satisfied. Last years tour was the worst TdF ever. No doubt about it...

 

[musorowegudo]

Aside from the relentless throttling of the GC it's not been too bad.

Greipel, Sagan, Cavendish, and Voeklers have entertained me

Yes, Peter Sagan . . . It has also proven that AC + AS make the show exciting . . . Wiggins is good, though, but cold!

 

[the asian]

I am stunned how short memory is. Last years experiments didn´t pay off at all. 2 good stages out 21 just isn´t enough. I can´t believe with how little the fans of nowadays are satisfied. Last years tour was the worst TdF ever. No doubt about it...

How can you forget the atrocious 2009 Tour?

 

[FoxxyBrown1111]

??

I even mentioned it indirectly when i talked about the "looking hard at each other" boredom between AS and AC for 3 straight years. What a nice contrast this year.

 

[musorowegudo]

??

I even mentioned it indirectly when i talked about the "looking hard at each other" boredom between AS and AC for 3 straight years. What a nice contrast this year.

AC + AS battles are better than watching Wiggins' wheel sucking through out the tour, waiting for an ITT!

 

[Ferminal]

[/B]

How can you forget the atrocious 2009 Tour?

At least the strongest climber was allowed to attack his team leader back then.

 

[Timmy-loves-Rabo]

I am stunned how short memory is. Last years experiments didn´t pay off at all. 2 good stages out 21 just isn´t enough. I can´t believe with how little the fans of nowadays are satisfied. Last years tour was the worst TdF ever. No doubt about it...

They both really terrible in my opinion. This has been a really average year of racing, worst in my memory.

Hoping the vuelta changes this.

 

[the asian]

At least the strongest climber was allowed to attack his team leader back then.

He wasn't allowed. He did it disregarding his DSs orders.

 

[FoxxyBrown1111]

AC + AS battles are better than watching Wiggins' wheel sucking through out the tour, waiting for an ITT!

What battles? The only separation happend when the chain mistake happened to AS. And then he cried a river. Again, what a nice contrast this year was.

 

[FoxxyBrown1111]

He wasn't allowed. He did it disregarding his DSs orders.

Thanks god he did. Otherwise USADA would have to strip eight...

BTW, cry me a river finished 2nd.

 

[FoxxyBrown1111]

They both really terrible in my opinion. This has been a really average year of racing, worst in my memory.

Hoping the vuelta changes this.

Don´t expect too much. No tour ever will reach the wanted standards of posters here, unless powermeters are forbidden.

It doesn´t matter how many MTF´s or how little TT. The riders will always stare at their numbers.

 

[Dutchsmurf]

What battles? The only separation happend when the chain mistake happened to AS. And then he cried a river. Again, what a nice contrast this year was.

At least that caused some drama. The only drama we had this year had to be done in the clinic without solid evidence. Last year had stages to remember, if only two of them. I already forgot how most stages went this year.

 

[FoxxyBrown1111]

I think you guys throne the two stages of last year b/c that´s all it had.

The Alpe stage last year was no different than those won by Rolland & Pinot this year. And the AS escape only came out of desparation. If he hadn´t prevailed, it would be the same as Nibali´s useless attacks.... And Evans = Wiggins. So what?

This year had at least some drama/show effects when Froome messed around twice with Wiggins. That´s more drama then the look-at-each-other "battles" between cry baby and AC in 3 years together.

Thanks sports gods again that AS didn´t show up.

 

[jrolaf]

Don´t expect too much. No tour ever will reach the wanted standards of posters here, unless powermeters are forbidden.

It doesn´t matter how many MTF´s or how little TT. The riders will always stare at their numbers.

You don't necessarily have to ban powermeters. If the UCI would just lower the legal bike weight limit a lot of riders would skip the meters due to the considerable weight they add. Now, bikes are so light that powermeters are almost required to reach the 6,7 kg limit. That limit is way past its date anyway.

If they could also lose the radios it would be exiting again.

 

[MartinGT]

It made me chuckle when Dave Harmon said to S Roche yesterday "Its not been a dull Tour has it?"

Roche *silence*.................."yes it has"



So many blinkered people on Tw@tter saying how amazing it is and what an exciting thing it has been.

Yes, I am proud a British Cyclist has won, but it doesnt stop it being a snooze fest for large parts of it.

 

[FoxxyBrown1111]

Yes jrolaf, you´re right... So instead of complaining here, the fans who are not satisfied with this years tour, could complain to the UCI. That makes much more sense. Just a thought for you guys.

 

[MartinGT]

Aside from the relentless throttling of the GC it's not been too bad.

Greipel, Sagan, Cavendish, and Voeklers have entertained me

Cav has been nowehere most of it

 

[the asian]

Cav has been nowehere most of it

Don't you remember him pulling the peloton along on the Tourmalet.