Tour of Britain 2014 - 07/09 - 14/09 (2.HC)

[Dazed and Confused]

I hope the peloton shows some balls and rides the first half of tomorrow's stage aggressively. There's the potential to isolate Kwiatkowski given how small the teams are here. Sky need to send Lopez up the road for instance.

Exactly, the teams who only wants to race the final 5km of the stage will lose out to Kwia, no doubt.

The Parcours gotta be raced from km zero with an aggressive plan.

Movistar had the right idea with Dowsett today

Stage 5:

Looking forward to it, game on.

 

[barmaher]

I was banking on Kwiatko being over the top for this. Roche is going for it, but he just can't cope with Kwiatko, who seems slightly stronger and infinitely smarter.

 

[argyllflyer]

Another really good stage ending, makes a change after the monotonous dullness of some recent smaller races.

 

[manafana]

stage yesterday was brilliant broke up the race just enough, surely the smaller teams has meant we see more small gaps than we would see in 9 man teams, im starting to come round more and more to smaller teams in races and if anything a grand tour with 8 man teams would open up a gap for another team to race and still have a smaller peloton.

Kwia just looks brillant and so efficient always seems to go when he should and did bmc help him narrow gap yesterday before he launched?

 

[LittleJo]

I queried the other day whether being paced by the team car was allowed after a puncture (as Cav got paced up after he stopped in stage 1). Alex Dowsett has complained on Twitter that after his puncture(s) yesterday he wasn't allowed to be paced back to the break:

‏@alexdowsett Team car was stopped from helping me because the tv cameras were on me, is this a sport or a show? If theres rules,enforce them consistently

This seems utterly ridiculous - the cameras were on Cav for ages when he was being towed back to the bunch, as they were on a Team GB rider the other day. I'm still unsure on what the actual rules are, but would agree with Dowsett that they need to be enforced consistently.

 

[Armchair Cyclist]

I queried the other day whether being paced by the team car was allowed after a puncture (as Cav got paced up after he stopped in stage 1). Alex Dowsett has complained on Twitter that after his puncture(s) yesterday he wasn't allowed to be paced back to the break:

‏@alexdowsett Team car was stopped from helping me because the tv cameras were on me, is this a sport or a show? If theres rules,enforce them consistently

This seems utterly ridiculous - the cameras were on Cav for ages when he was being towed back to the bunch, as they were on a Team GB rider the other day. I'm still unsure on what the actual rules are, but would agree with Dowsett that they need to be enforced consistently.

The principle is well enough established: drafting can be used to help you catch up to the peloton, but not to stay away from it. Dowsett should know that.

 

[LittleJo]

The principle is well enough established: drafting can be used to help you catch up to the peloton, but not to stay away from it. Dowsett should know that.

except that the Team GB rider who was drafting the other day was in the break, and was paced by his car back up to the break

 

[Ryongsyong]

The rules are very clear that it's not allowed. The reality is the usual punishment, if there is one, will be a very small fine to pay to the UCI. The UCI rulebook is and has always been more of a price list of the cost to your team if you wish to break the rules than anything actually prohibitive.

Beyond that, every rider is at the mercy of the particular race's commissaires and what sort of mood they're in. They know the rules but who the rider is and to some extent their nationality or importance will depend on whether they "see" the infraction or whether they just turn their gaze away and drive off. It's pretty weird but when you look at other sports with highly structured and oppressive rules systems, such as Formula 1, you very quickly are happy that cycling's attitude is so chaotic. Believe me that the alternative is not a road you want to go down.

 

[Pricey_sky]

Garmin now helping OPQS out on the front. Break have 1'53 with 56km left.

 

[barmaher]

The breakaway are very close to Phil and Paul's "magic minute per 10km" rule.

2'25" difference with 25.6km left.

Garmin Sharp and Omega Pharma Quick Step are at the front, with the American team doing the lion's share of the work, according to the race ticker.

 

[Pricey_sky]

Bardiani on the front now, break looks like it will make it. 1'40 with just over 10km to go.

 

[barmaher]

Surely they will lose a bit of time on the climb? It is a minute with 5km to go.

Saxo drilling it for my man Roche.

 

[Pricey_sky]

Surely they will lose a bit of time on the climb? It is a minute with 5km to go.

Saxo drilling it for my man Roche.

Yes they've lost a lot of time leading up to this final climb.

 

[LosBrolin]

Matthias Brändle takes the stage. Brave racing!

General :

 

[Pharazon]

Hugh Porter really is terrible

 

[Geraint Too Fast]

Hugh Porter really is terrible

A nice win for Brandley.

 

[Dazed and Confused]

Final 6km in HD:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ytSt1lteysw

Uneventful day in what seemed like great terrain, but congrats to Brandle.

 

[fauniera]

Of course Brändle was not good enough (rather not swiss enough) to ride the Tour.

 

[Dazed and Confused]

Stage 6.

Looks like good terrain, but perhaps Kwia's competitors have given up already.

 

[Dazed and Confused]

Both Sir Wiggo and Kwia are sprinting for bonus secs.

Peloton has been split in two groups.

I think we have a race on today.

From ticker: http://www.tourofbritain.co.uk/live/stage6.php#.VBLKvPl_tS0

 

[Roude Leiw]

bauer seems to be caught up in 2nd groupe, there go his ambitions (see interview from yesterday)

 

[Ferminal]

3 men BOTD so there will be a regrouping.

 

[Pricey_sky]

Break now has over 7 minutes. Have the two main groups reformed?

 

[Tournesol]

Congrats to Alex Dowsett for winning the TOB.

 

[grizzlee]

WTF is goin on in TOB today?

Break have over 9 mins and Dowsett is in it. Only 1,20 odd down on gc? The guy can time trial big time too, dont see this comming back.