Tour de France 2019

[gregrowlerson]

Re: Re:

Remember when we all thought that the world was going to end when we got to 2000?

Turns out we were okay

I wonder if there is a mosquito of the alps that only lives above this magic number :lol:

 

[Pantani_lives]

Like every year the Tour seems to be decided before the first high mountain. It can only be saved by three things:

*A bad day for Thomas with the other teams not waiting for him.
*Quintana finding his best legs and his guts back.
*Alaphilippe all of a sudden turning into a high mountain specialist.

 

[JosephK]

Re:

Like every year the Tour seems to be decided before the first high mountain. It can only be saved by three things:

*A bad day for Thomas with the other teams not waiting for him.
*Quintana finding his best legs and his guts back.
*Alaphilippe all of a sudden turning into a high mountain specialist.

By the time we get to the Tourmalet stage on Saturday, G will have at least a minute on Bernal from the ITT and then at least another minute to the next serious GC contender -- maybe close to 3 minutes from G to the #3 GC guy (assuming Bernal is #2). Game over. Ineos will just control things on the Tourmalet -- all attacks will be strangled by the Ineos super doms, and then G will fly up the final half kilometer to add another 30 seconds or so to his already fat lead, and the race organizers will need to go ahead and call up the priest to deliver the last rites to the CG competition.

 

[DanielSong39]

If Thomas has a bad day the other teams will wait for him
Welcome to pro cycling

 

[JosephK]

Re:

If Thomas has a bad day the other teams will wait for him
Welcome to pro cycling

Agreed. Also, it was very moving to see Ineos holding up and waiting for Pinot and company today.

 

[Lequack]

Rest day

 

[Vasilis]

Re:

Rest day

I had a bright idea and decided to work today

 

[rick james]

Re:

If Thomas has a bad day the other teams will wait for him
Welcome to pro cycling

Why are you posting lies?

 

[Gigs_98]

Re:

Like every year the Tour seems to be decided before the first high mountain. It can only be saved by three things:

*A bad day for Thomas with the other teams not waiting for him.
*Quintana finding his best legs and his guts back.
*Alaphilippe all of a sudden turning into a high mountain specialist.

Realistically it's enough if thomas is just only the 4th or 5th best climbers and gets dropped in the tourmalet by, say, Quintana and Pinot. That doesn't seem completely unrealistic but I just once again think that like last year you would need a better climber than that to drop Thomas

 

[Salvarani]

Bernal and Thomas will have to have a bad day or have bad luck with a crash or something. I cant see someone being strong enough that they gain back 3-4 minutes in the mountains. It aint over, until its over though.

 

[Jagartrott]

Re:

*Quintana finding his best legs and his guts back.

Findings his best legs: probability around 25%
Finding his guts back: probability around 0.25%

Combined probability: 0.06%

There is hope!

 

[Pricey_sky]

Re: Re:

If Thomas has a bad day the other teams will wait for him
Welcome to pro cycling

Agreed. Also, it was very moving to see Ineos holding up and waiting for Pinot and company today.

Would Quintana, Mas and Yates have waited as well? :lol:

Funnily enough it wasn’t even Ineos who kicked it off, it was EF then Alaphilippe. Ineos just had the sense to realise what was happening and be right at the front.

 

[Lequack]

Some rest day pics

 

[brownbobby]

Re:

If Thomas has a bad day the other teams will wait for him
Welcome to pro cycling

No they won't...unless its the result of mechanical or some other bad luck out of his control....even then its debatable wether they wait or not these days

 

[Sestriere]

Re: Re:

If Thomas has a bad day the other teams will wait for him
Welcome to pro cycling

No they won't...unless its the result of mechanical or some other bad luck out of his control....even then its debatable wether they wait or not these days

I remember that during the Ventoux stage 2016 two or three of Froome's doms crashed on a descent. At that time there was some crosswind action going on with Purito (and I think some others too) dropped. Froome immediately faked a pee break to force the peloton to stop and wait for hhis doms while the race was already in full swing. Valverde was furious but did not order his team to commit as Sky were allowed to come back. It was hilarious.

 

[brownbobby]

Re: Re:

If Thomas has a bad day the other teams will wait for him
Welcome to pro cycling

No they won't...unless its the result of mechanical or some other bad luck out of his control....even then its debatable wether they wait or not these days

I remember that during the Ventoux stage 2016 two or three of Froome's doms crashed on a descent. At that time there was some crosswind action going on with Purito (and I think some others too) dropped. Froome immediately faked a pee break to force the peloton to stop and wait for hhis doms while the race was already in full swing. Valverde was furious but did not order his team to commit as Sky were allowed to come back. It was hilarious.

Yeah sure, there will be examples of gamesmanship like that, i mean who can prove for sure wether another man genuinely needs to pee or not...but that's entirely different to the whole peloton waiting simply because someone is 'having a bad day'.

 

[spalco]

If you have the power and force of will to stop the race like cancellara, then that's part of the game too.
Peloton politics have always been a part of the sport.

 

[DanielSong39]

And Pedro Delgado won the 1985 Vuelta because Robert Millar's DS failed to bribe the other teams.

There is always a game within the game.

Pro cycling is what it is, let's enjoy it for what it is.

 

[manafana]

Hi Guys, firstly sorry iv been away, i hadnt log in issues and then i was lazy, but im back now.

Tour in full swing now, certainly an element of fear of Ineos going round, and certainly a piece of bad luck is needed give the domiance they impart, Thomas got away very lightly from his crash given how it could have turned out. Its never a joy when best hope is Jumbo and Kruj

 

[Lequack]

Krujswik was 5th last year but I also think he was in a very good shape, he wasn't really getting dropped and actually made some attacks himself, especially the famous one on Alpe D'Huez.

 

[Escarabajo]

Re:

Bernal and Thomas will have to have a bad day or have bad luck with a crash or something. I cant see someone being strong enough that they gain back 3-4 minutes in the mountains. It aint over, until its over though.

TBH, we could be overestimating Thomas a bit. If he is not in his best shape that would be enough to lose everything and much more.

 

[nevele neves]

Pulling for Bernal. Will the team get this right?

 

[Cinemaniak]

I wouldn't fully trust in relying on Bernal for the overall.. He hasn't impressed me this year and certainly not in Tour de Suisse. 'Only' 19 seconds ahead of Rohan Dennis, beating guys in the top 10 like: Benoot, Konrad, Hirt, Spilak, etc... Hasn't proven anything in a GT yet.

 

[klintE]

Re:

Its never a joy when best hope is Jumbo and Kruj

You mean he's rufous or he's vulnerable for various kinds of a voodoo spell?
Could you explain this bit wider?

 

[Dekker_Tifosi]

Re: Re:

Its never a joy when best hope is Jumbo and Kruj

You mean he's rufous or he's vulnerable for various kinds of a voodoo spell?
Could you explain this bit wider?

Don't understand it either. Kruijswijk showed last year he has the balls to attack anywhere