Tour of Utah 2019, August 12 - August 18

[Pricey_sky]

It is still close, there is still a lot of climbing left. For example this is the last stage:

Plus tonights stage has a 2.7k climb at 8.9% that tops out with 1k to go.

 

[F_Cance]

Interesting GC situation for Trek. Stetina might be a bit too far back, but this looks like a good situation to put pressure on the 1st and 2nd placed rider.

 

[RedheadDane]

So... reading this article about the reactions to Piccoli's penalty (note that I didn't actually watch the stage), and now I'm confused!

After puncturing, Piccoli motorpaced behind the Elevate-KHS vehicle to the back of the caravan, where team manager Paul Abram dropped him off to work his way back to the field

"Think about it, Sauer said. "The yellow jersey went through the finish line about a centimeter off the bumper of a team car. Think of the optics of that."

So... he was dropped off at the back of the caravan, but crossed the line about a centimeter off the bumper of a (presumably his) team car? That would be really stupid, because then he'd be behind the peloton...

 

[search]

So... he was dropped off at the back of the caravan, but crossed the line about a centimeter off the bumper of a (presumably his) team car? That would be really stupid, because then he'd be behind the peloton...

can't remember exactly when it happened, but as it was a 12k finishing circuit, I think they are talking about the penultimate time he crossed the line

 

[RedheadDane]

can't remember exactly when it happened, but as it was a 12k finishing circuit, I think they are talking about the penultimate time he crossed the line

Suspected it was something like that...
Guess I just differentiate between the finish line, when it's essentially just a white line on the road, and The Finish Line, when it's the finish of the race. As far as I see it, Sauer might as well have said; "The yellow jersey was sitting about a centimeter off the bumper of a team car with 12 Ks to go."

 

[PeterB]

Suspected it was something like that...
Guess I just differentiate between the finish line, when it's essentially just a white line on the road, and The Finish Line, when it's the finish of the race. As far as I see it, Sauer might as well have said; "The yellow jersey was sitting about a centimeter off the bumper of a team car with 12 Ks to go."

I think the implication was that it does not look too well particularly at the finish line where you can expect a lot of people around wondering if this is really cycling.

 

[Logic-is-your-friend]

Suspected it was something like that...
Guess I just differentiate between the finish line, when it's essentially just a white line on the road, and The Finish Line, when it's the finish of the race. As far as I see it, Sauer might as well have said; "The yellow jersey was sitting about a centimeter off the bumper of a team car with 12 Ks to go."

Like PeterB already mentioned, he was talking about leaving a bad impression. He passes by the finish, where there are a lot of cameras and a large crowd (especially this close to the actual finish). Completely different from any other spot 12k from a finish.

 

[Bolder]

I think a bit of discretion is warranted if you're getting paced. Weave in and out, make it appear you're trying to avoid breaking the rules. Even if you're a couple of meters off the bumper you can still get a bit of a draft. In this case, it seems Piccoli and his DS didn't do that. Hence the deserved penalty.

But Piccoli in general...another North American late bloomer, hope he at least gets a cup of coffee with a WT squad. That was a nasty, nasty climb yesterday.

 

[PeterB]

But Piccoli in general...another North American late bloomer, hope he at least gets a cup of coffee with a WT squad.

Yeah, he has quite a season this year, doesn't he. I must admit I was completely ignorant of him but looking at PCS, he seems to be an established North American rider. Is his current time in the spotlight thanks to relatively low level of competition in Utah, or could he do something also on international pro level?

 

[This Charming Man]

Beautiful stylish climbing by the front runners..epic climbing.

 

[Lequack]

Today's stage, live coverage starts @ 22:00 CET / 2PM local time.
Each of those climbs at the end is 3km @ 9% average.

 

[Lequack]

Tour tracker commentators getting ready

The finish of yesterday's mountain top stage after the caravan has gone:

 

[Lequack]

Some huge mansions along the route

 

[del1962]

Lot of shorts lost there

 

[red_flanders]

The finish of yesterday's mountain top stage after the caravan has gone:

So overall I enjoyed the stage, that climb is nuts. That said, I thought the dirt at the end was lame. if you're gonna have dirt or gravel, make it part of the climb, not some 300 meter perfectly-graded bit at the end which does nothing.

They could have ended it where they used to and the stage would have been better. IMO.

Enjoying the race.

 

[Sestriere]

Great racing now. Hermans on the defensive after a nice attack by EF and Rally.

 

[Lequack]

Piccoli climbing reminds me of Contador.

 

[sir fly]

Hermans like a rocket...

Good racing on a demanding circuit.

 

[Lequack]

 

[Lequack]

EF and Treak as the only WT teams really need to take something from this race, but so far it's not been happening.

 

[This Charming Man]

Great racing. Camera work, kind of amateurish, but grateful for coverage.

 

[Nacho]

This is a nice, but weird race. For some reason, I can't wrap my head around these pros cycling through residential areas. Most races that goes through towns, they go through the downtown area and you don't see too many personal residences. On this particular race, it is not uncommon to see some fans that are able to walk out the front door of their house, down to the sidewalk, and cheer the cyclists going by.

Good race. It's nice, but kind of funny to me.

 

[tobydawq]

Fun fact: Only five WorldTour teams have won more pro races than Israel Cycling Academy (the most winning pro conti team) this year. That number is usually around nine or ten at the end of the season.

 

[Lequack]

Today's stage:

 

[Lequack]

Unfortunately today's stage will start later so won't be any live coverage on Eurosport, just highlight on Saturday. If you have the Eurosport Player the live coverage without commentary will be shown @ 02:00h CET.

Live coverage will still be shown on Tour tracker (US georestricted). Also possible coverage on below channels: