Tour de France Tour de France 2023, stage 17: Saint-Gervais Mont Blanc - Courchevel, 165.7k

[Red Rick]

Ventoux and Madeleine from any side and Galibier, Izoard, Croix de Fer from the proper side are all way harder, to name a few staples of the race.

Ventoux and Madeleine I can see, but thats it. And Madeleine from the proper side is often just a warmup

 

[Devil's Elbow]

I was just thinking that this stage really shows how badly the ASO f*cked up by not designing a better stage around the Col de la Loze. This would be a guaranteed classic if the Col de la Loze came with something like 40km to go with an easier climb still to come.

This Alpine block is kind of poorly designed in general, and then three of the final four days being flat is worse still. As we all concluded when the route was announced, the first week was the best-designed and the racing has certainly panned out that way.

 

[Eddy Evenepoel]

I like the offensive style of jumbo. I was really pissed of when sky afford the breakaway to get 10 minutes.

Giving Yates and Bilbao 10 minutes today woudlve been pretty cool tho..

 

[Martinstranger]

S. Yates
Pello Bilbao
F. Gall

all in the breakaway - will another team come along to protect their position in top 10 or do they believe it will all be caught on the final climb?

 

[saunaking]

Ventoux

not alps

and Madeleine from any side

ok

and Galibier,

debatable

Izoard,

maybe, hard to say with some of these climbs that start with like 10k at 3%

Croix de Fer from the proper side are all way harder, to name a few staples of the race.

? i dunno, this is like 3 climbs

 

[saunaking]

This Alpine block is kind of poorly designed in general, and then three of the final four days being flat is worse still. As we all concluded when the route was announced, the first week was the best-designed and the racing has certainly panned out that way.

What if the gap was 30" instead of almost 2'
I cant complain too much about this stage/block.
Maybe just have one of Thursday/Friday a little hilly

 

[rallybanana]

Yeah you are hearing that kind of stuff all the time from pro riders, but it's nonsense. They had one ascent where they really struggled and come up with those kind of claims. And I guess you can argue that nasty doesn't mean hard. Whatever it is, the Joux Plane is clearly a HC climb and clearly not the hardest climb in the Alps.

In twenty years time, the legend will be that Tadej Pogacar considers Marie Blanque the nastiest climb in the Pyrenees

 

[gavia88]

In the 80’s it was usually at the end of brutal stages.

yes, in the 80's the Morzine stages were sometimes brutal (long and many cols). Besides, the tour, didn't really was using/searching for the murito type of climbs before 2012. So, Joux Plane automatically was one of the steeper climbs used in the tour. So, therefore it's fame.

 

[rallybanana]

not alps

Geologically, Ventoux is considered part of the Alps

 

[Eddy Evenepoel]

Where is Gaudu today?

 

[RedheadDane]

Where is Gaudu today?

He was in the front group. Now, I'm not sure.

 

[Eddy Evenepoel]

He was in the front group. Now, I'm not sure.

Now i saw him in the front again

 

[QueenStagiaire]

The descent from the Cat 2 climb is probably the most technical in the race.

 

[Volderke]

massive facepalm:

Serge Pauwels just said on Sporza that 'Pogacar probably didn't have much time on the TT bike because of his wrist'.

I honestly don't know what some of the commentators are smoking.

At the same time, Jose De Cauwer can't find enough superlatives for Vingegaard, but keeps saying that 360 --> 380 watts is enormeous and unexplainable.
But he doesn't seem to connect all the dots.

 

[gavia88]

This Alpine block is kind of poorly designed in general, and then three of the final four days being flat is worse still. As we all concluded when the route was announced, the first week was the best-designed and the racing has certainly panned out that way.

The first week was the best designed indeed, and I think the general consensus on the forum was already that the Alps stages were not designed greatly. However, I think there was a fear that the first week was not going to be raced full. Even if the opportunity was there. And I think that in Sky and US postal area, we wouldn't have seen any action on Tourmalet.

 

[JosefK]

No breakaway for Wout, today. He has been harnessed as a super mule. Meanwhile, back at the fish factory, the staff are in a raucous mood as they watch the Danish assassin prepare for another stomp-down.

 

[RobertCrawley]

no, youtube channel,posts daily in the evening eastern time

Checked it out. He needs to borrow Armstrong's format: get good microphones, a desk, a sidekick, and some guests.

Horner by himself is too much Horner.

 

[D. Pecher]

ARD commentators making no bones about how sceptical they are about yesterday

 

[Devil's Elbow]

The first week was the best designed indeed, and I think the general consensus on the forum was already that the Alps stages were not designed greatly. However, I think there was a fear that the first week was not going to be raced full. Even if the opportunity was there. And I think that in Sky and US postal area, we wouldn't have seen any action on Tourmalet.

I definitely shared that fear - you can go back to see what I expected from Tourmalet...

 

[RedheadDane]

Horner by himself is too much Horner.

In fact, it's 100% Horner!

 

[Trofonios]

If the break get 1-2 minutes more I think Gall may win.

 

[Danskebjerge]

ARD commentators making no bones about how sceptical they are about yesterday

What are they saying?

(Cycling would probably never come back to German TV if a new big doping scandal came up.)

 

[Tricycle Rider]

Thanks!

https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCn7YuJaZmdmx_ERZH9r6eTA

I watched his take on yesterday's ITT just for *** and giggles, and if there's one thing I've learned from Horner it's that the team always, always, always needs to stay with their leader!

 

[RobertCrawley]

Christian VdV reports 99F/37C!!!

 

[Trofonios]

Laporte done. Good job today!