Tour de France 2015 Stage 17: Digne-les-Bains-Pra Loup 161km

[Kwibus]

Re: Tour de France 2015 Stage 17: Digne-les-Bains-Pra Loup 1

This looks like a fantastic profile. Would be better if it were 60k longer, but its ok.
Its good because the hardest climb is 2nd to last, with a much easier climb to finish.

So, like Mortirolo Aprica 2010 or Finnestre Stelvio 2015/ 2005, you can get the proceedings started 40k before the end.

I hope Sky aren't as strong as they have been so far, and if they are, I hope they diminish the group to about 10 halfway up the climb.

I agree that the penultimate climb should be really hard and then it's no rpoblem if the final climb isn't that hard.
The thing is that the penultimate climb isn't hard. It's no Mortirolo or finestre which are mountains that are extremely selective so it's easy to create havoc there.
Maybe now the descent will create havoc. Let's hope so.

 

[sir fly]

Lots of stage hunters will see their chance on this profile.
Minor gains in the GC as well.

 

[Stelvio]

Current forecast for the villages of Allos and Uvernet-Fours (at either side of Col d'Allos) is thunderstorms and ~1mm rain per hour in the afternoon.

 

[Publicus]

Re:

Nibali to attack at top a la Bardet, then hammer it on the way down with Contador, and put 1:45 into the rest.

Movistar will definitely chase down Contador. As well BMC. We're in the stage of the race where teams have given up on #1 and are focused on podium positions. So Valverde is going to do everything he can to make sure Contador doesn't leapfrog him IMO.

 

[Jagartrott]

Re: Re:

Nibali to attack at top a la Bardet, then hammer it on the way down with Contador, and put 1:45 into the rest.

Movistar will definitely chase down Contador. As well BMC. We're in the stage of the race where teams have given up on #1 and are focused on podium positions. So Valverde is going to do everything he can to make sure Contador doesn't leapfrog him IMO.

If they race hard, there is no more BMC except TJ (perhaps) at the top of Allos and only Valverde and Quintana.

 

[Publicus]

Re: Re:

Nibali to attack at top a la Bardet, then hammer it on the way down with Contador, and put 1:45 into the rest.

Movistar will definitely chase down Contador. As well BMC. We're in the stage of the race where teams have given up on #1 and are focused on podium positions. So Valverde is going to do everything he can to make sure Contador doesn't leapfrog him IMO.

If they race hard, there is no more BMC except TJ (perhaps) at the top of Allos and only Valverde and Quintana.

True, but if Movistar moves, then Sky will follow. So unless Valverde is dropped, it would be in Nibali's interest not to join with Contador if he's trying to pull back time--assuming Nibali has the legs and energy (someone said he has a cold?) to put in an attack.

 

[Miburo]

If only netserk was still a mod, i wonder what went wrong?

 

[Netserk]

Re:

If only netserk was still a mod, i wonder what went wrong?

If only, then what?

 

[Escarabajo]

Re:

Froome and Quintana ought to get a gap before the top of the climb to reduce the pressure on the descent

I predict the same.

 

[Miburo]

Re: Re:

If only netserk was still a mod, i wonder what went wrong?

If only, then what?

You could fix all these issues, educate the members. That's what you liked to do as a mod right? Seems you haven't learned your lesson.

Anyway apperently big chance we'll get rain tomorrow, i'm afraid we're gonna need it in the next days to get some really good stages and an actual fight for yellow

 

[Netserk]

Re: Re:

If only netserk was still a mod, i wonder what went wrong?

If only, then what?

You could fix all these issues, educate the members. That's what you liked to do as a mod right? Seems you haven't learned your lesson.

Anyway apperently big chance we'll get rain tomorrow, i'm afraid we're gonna need it in the next days to get some really good stages and an actual fight for yellow

And what may that be?

 

[barmaher]

Male-dominated internet forums are hardly the place for minor squabbles.

I am looking forward to this stage. It is one of the better designed mountain stages (feint praise indeed). A harder run-in to the penultimate climb would help.

I reckon Rodriguez and Dan Martin will target this.

I hope Froome drops c. 30 seconds to Quintana to give us hope of a good third week.

 

[Happy dude]

Can we rename this thread the thread for thread discussion thread for aspiring opening posters. Thanks

 

[Kwibus]

Re: Tour de France 2015 Stage 17: Digne-les-Bains-Pra Loup 1

http://www.worldweatheronline.com/Pra-Loup-weather/Provence-Alpes-Cote-Dazur/FR.aspx?day=1&tp=1

Rain.

 

[May0maniac]

Re: Tour de France 2015 Stage 17: Digne-les-Bains-Pra Loup 1

http://www.worldweatheronline.com/Pra-Loup-weather/Provence-Alpes-Cote-Dazur/FR.aspx?day=1&tp=1

Rain.

I hope so

 

[Escarabajo]

Any chance ASO neutralizes the descend?

 

[MikeTichondrius]

Re:

Any chance ASO neutralizes the descend?

Considering that the sport seems to have become somewhat more prone to neutralizing races in recent times (either via riders or organizations) it's surely a possibility. Allos in the wet sounds nuts even to me.

 

[jsem94]

If they neutralize the descent I will be pissed. I hope Quintana can repeat his Giro feat then - I hope he attacks and doesn't hear about the neutralization and ends up taking 8 minutes on Froome on the stage.

 

[ice&fire]

Re:

Any chance ASO neutralizes the descend?

If they create the chaos of Stelvio 2014, they're welcome

 

[Walkman]

Re:

Maybe the mods can have a sticky thread with everything Netserk wants in a stage thread so we keep him happy?

If only netserk was still a mod, i wonder what went wrong?

Don't really see were you are coming from actually.

Evidently, there are posters here that likes to post great OP:s, Eshnar during the Giro for example and who can forget the 2011 Tour and all those epic OP's? Tuarts, Hitch and jobiwan lightning up the forum with OP's epic enough only to be rivaled by Andy's long ranged attack.

Just have a look!

viewtopic.php?t=14575

And I am not saying everyone has to put in this amount of work, just pointing out that, when we have people willing to put in the effort, why not let them do it?

 

[Miburo]

Not sure what your point is. Did i ever refuse someone to make a great thread for a stage? It hasn't been done in a long time cause no one seem to care. If someone wants to do it, go ahead make a thread to tell everyone he/she wants do it and problem solved.

 

[Jim2784]

Re:

Not sure what your point is. Did i ever refuse someone to make a great thread for a stage? It hasn't been done in a long time cause no one seem to care. If someone wants to do it, go ahead make a thread to tell everyone he/she wants do it and problem solved.

If I wanted to listen to aggro, I'd talk to the missus!!! Is this not a male dominated forum ??? So can people please stop b****ing.

In relation to Netserk, can you please let it go, this post is about discussing a stage in the Tour De France last time I checked. Most people wanna hear what the other members think.

Getting back to the post topic, I fancy Nibali (unkess he has a cold ?) or if its a break away maybe Dan Martin!!!

 

[Tank Engine]

With 4 mountain stages still to come, the fight for the yellow jersey is still on. The contenders will be hoping to exploit Froome's perceived weakness on the descent. A strong break to go, with Martin, JRod and Majka being likely candidates. Those on the edge of the GC battle (Nibali/Bardet) will be looking to do a Bardet style jump at the top of the penultimate climb. Froome will try to control on this stage. A break might succeed, but it's going to be a lot harder than in the past few days, as especially Movistar know that they need to start pulling back time to have any chance of winning
1. JRod, 2. Martin (it can't be Sagan surely, so who else? ), 3. Bardet.

 

[The Barb]

Re: Re:

As good as Froome looks, I can't forget how he looked just as dominant in 2013 on AX3 and Ventoux, but by the end of the Tour Quintana was clearly the stronger, particularly on Alpe D'Huez where he took more than a minute off him.

At 2013 Alpe d'Huez the Sky Team car suffered a mechanical on the way up the first climb, so Froome was unable to get energy gels until halfway up the final climb with Purito, Quintana and Porte when the car got back into position and Froome and Porte dropped back to get the energy gels and sucked up a 20 second penalty.

Yes, I remember well that piece of overt cheating by Froome.

I tweeted him afterwards asking why, if he has no moral qualms about breaking rules in full view of everyone, why we should believe he wouldn't break rules when no one is watching.

Funnily enough I've been blocked ever since.

 

[The Barb]

Also, does anyone know about Majka's condition after his fall. He looked pretty sore immediately afterwards but I haven't seen any update?