Tour de France Stage 2 Brussels - Spa, 192 km Monday, July 5 2010

[Barrus]

Gesink said it himself in an interview

Yes, I know, but ACF must not take someone's tweet and put another persons name in front of it.

 

[Publicus]

Anyone hungry?

OOOOOUUUUUUUCCCCCCCHHHHHHHH!!!!!!!

 

[kjetilraknerud]

Mick Rogers didn't crash, according to himself on Twitter. One of very few GC riders.

 

[ratatata]

Contador:

9riders and 7crash!Vino,De la Fuente,Iglinski,Paolo, jesus hernandez (2times) & me

http://twitter.com/albertocontador/status/17803869869

 

[Beech Mtn]

<snipped>

HLN is making a list of injuries:http://www.hln.be/hln/nl/1295/Tour-De-France/article/detail/1129149/2010/07/05/De-ellenlange-lijst-van-slachtoffers-valpartijen-2e-rit.dhtml

Google translate it if you want to know, they'll prolly update.

Thanks for that link. Interesting Google translation in some places:

Kevin Seeldraeyers: complained about everything and anything. Further participation is not compromised.

Christian Vande Velde: hapless leader Garmin. Also to hospital

 

[Cobblestones]

Anyone hungry?

Yup, I'd like mine rare.

 

[Scirea]

Mick Rogers didn't crash, according to himself on Twitter. One of very few GC riders.

Yeah he was in the first roup the whole way with Tony Martin. I think they shouldn't stop...

 

[bobs nob]

Anyone hungry?

Waiter: I said medium rare! This thing is still mooing.

 

[Scirea]

Yeah he was in the first roup the whole way with Tony Martin. I think they shouldn't stop...

And i say that as a Contador fan.

 

[bobs nob]

Yup, I'd like mine rare.

ya beat me to it.

 

[Francois the Postman]

Hunter:

In the northern classic most of the bunch are used to riding on these roads most of the Tour peleton never ever do the classics #dangerous

I've said it before (during the Giro when the same complaint was made): then it's about time that those that ride Tours that include these stages stop whining about them and start acquiring the skills that are needed to participate in pro cycling.

We would never accept a rider entering the Alps without an ability to ride them safely (ascend and descend), or an incompetent sprinter who is a danger for all involved. Why accept riders that aren't able to ride on the (all but) flats above Paris when the Tour decides to go there?

You don't have the skills for 1 in 7 TdF stages? Have the grace to admit you are too incompetent to participate in a pro-event, and sit this TdF out then, rather than lump all of us with a show of incompetence and rider neutralisation. There is nothing "magic" or "unsurprising" about today's stage that you can only find out of you join the inner circle and know the secret handshake, it has been in the manual for ages, and getting round it is a skill you acquire by participating in races that go there.

Sounds like Mr Hunter's lack of basic cycling skills, and his assumption that what he does have ought to cover it, are dangerously close to become the new gold standard for GT participants. Shocking.

I can follow to some extent that if a motor caused today's big crash, that there is a gentleman's agreement to wait. Until the lot is back (meaning the main GT contenders).

That the race was neutralised to the finish is a disgrace.

Hope that everyone who whines on twitter tonight about the road taken (the irrelevant skill that they have acquired instead it seems) gets caught out big time tomorrow. That some teams that never got the same "courtesy" when their riders were involved decide to race regardless and win big, and that those that quite rightly are furious at the attitude of their fellow riders organize one huge breakaway that sneaks across the railway line just before the gates close to the delicate fruitflies in the peloton.

Hope that Karma comes back to bite hard.

 

[thehog]

If the kept racing you'd have a Giro situation and the Tour be most exciting. Canc and Kloden well up along with Thor. Armstrong and Contador 2-3 minutes back from them with the Shlecks a further two back. Now that would make for some exciting racing to come! But alas not.

 

[bobs nob]

If the kept racing you'd have a Giro situation and the Tour be most exciting. Canc and Kloden well up along with Thor. Armstrong and Contador 2-3 minutes back from them with the Shlecks a further two back. Now that would make for some exciting racing to come! But alas not.

Could you imagine if Kloden put 3 mins into LA? Hilarious. I might have to DVR Pill and Phaul.

 

[santacruz]

is it possible someone had a super soaker squirt gun filled with motor oil?

is it possible someone had a super soaker squirt gun filled with motor oil, they just waited till the break away and motos drove past so the peloton could get no warning?? that would be deadly dangerous on a steep descent.. but I guess riders would have blogged about it by now if they slipped on oil.

 

[Barrus]

is it possible someone had a super soaker squirt gun filled with motor oil, they just waited till the break away and motos drove past so the peloton could get no warning?? that would be deadly dangerous on a steep descent.. but I guess riders would have blogged about it by now if they slipped on oil.

 

[ulrikmm]

Fuglsang didn't crash. On Danish TV2 he said that he saw others slide after feathering the brakes, and he drove into the wood and escaped crashing. He is an old mountain biker, after all
He then waited for Andy Schleck to get up, but when Matti Breschel arrived at the scene, he told Fuglsang to ride fast to the front, as he would be the Saxo GC hope, if the Schlecks did not make it back.

 

[richwagmn]

Might it not be better to have these stages mid race? First, why risk having GC riders go out so early? Second, maybe wait until everyone settles down a bit.

Finally, ASO seems to be unconcerned with rider safety at all. I'm not even talking about today's stage. How many dangerous sprint finishes have we seen in the last few years? I can't understand an organization that doesn't give a **** about the welfare of it's participants. ASO could learn a great deal from nascar and F1.

 

[MrContador]

is it possible someone had a super soaker squirt gun filled with motor oil, they just waited till the break away and motos drove past so the peloton could get no warning?? that would be deadly dangerous on a steep descent.. but I guess riders would have blogged about it by now if they slipped on oil.

Nah, it was only Cancellara's motor that was leaking.

 

[thehog]

I'm with you. Let's just rip up all the roads in Europe and make them straight.

You can't change the fact that the roads in laid into towns for cars. There will always be twists and turns in the road. Next you'll be saying no cycling in the rain!

Might it not be better to have these stages mid race? First, why risk having GC riders go out so early? Second, maybe wait until everyone settles down a bit.


Finally, ASO seems to be unconcerned with rider safety at all. I'm not even talking about today's stage. How many dangerous sprint finishes have we seen in the last few years? I can't understand an organization that doesn't give a **** about the welfare of it's participants. ASO could learn a great deal from nascar and F1.

 

[ratatata]

Bruyneel's reaction

http://www.livestrong.com/teamradio...stage-2/920293de-1793-48f2-adb9-e135f564b4b2/

 

[hfer07]

According to Sastre, he didn't fall and was in the front group with cancellara, and having Thor as well, they sent Hunt to push the pace, but Cancellara kept whining & somehow got Thor to agree on neutralizing the stage... this is really some seroius fvcked up business going on

 

[Publicus]

According to Sastre, he didn't fall and was in the front group with cancellara, and having Thor as well, they sent Hunt to push the pace, but Cancellara kept whining & somehow got Thor to agree on neutralizing the stage... this is really some seroius fvcked up business going on

I don't think it's farked up at all. They'd already waited once for the entire peoloton to come back together after the Delange crash. They waited here again. What I don't understand is why they didn't continue racing after everyone was back together. And when I say everyone, I mean most.

 

[richwagmn]

I'm with you. Let's just rip up all the roads in Europe and make them straight.

You can't change the fact that the roads in laid into towns for cars. There will always be twists and turns in the road. Next you'll be saying no cycling in the rain!

Way to completely miss my point. Maybe we don't need to squeeze down finishing straights in the last few hundred meters. Maybe we don't need to send GC riders over cobbled roads.

You can easily see situations that are simply dangerous.

Also, easy to sit on your *** thousands of miles away and not give a **** about the safety of the riders.

 

[Rocksteady]

According to Sastre, he didn't fall and was in the front group with cancellara, and having Thor as well, they sent Hunt to push the pace, but Cancellara kept whining & somehow got Thor to agree on neutralizing the stage... this is really some seroius fvcked up business going on

Cancellara gifts Hushovd the stage tomorrow for not pushing the pace today?

Hope not.

If anyone hears about VDV and Farrar's injuries, can you post it here? VDV was bleeding pretty good from his head when he came in.

 

[bobs nob]

According to Sastre, he didn't fall and was in the front group with cancellara, and having Thor as well, they sent Hunt to push the pace, but Cancellara kept whining & somehow got Thor to agree on neutralizing the stage... this is really some seroius fvcked up business going on

If Astana had any guys in that group, they should have pushed the pace and then relented if they could get a deal for the same treatment tomorrow from Saxo and Shack.