Why Dont Pros get Tired?

[Frosty]

How hard does the last guy have to work to beat the time limit on a tdf mountain stage?

There is a formula somewhere. Its normally about 40 minutes but it depends on the average speed of the winner and time of the winner.

As an aside, i think this year had the highest proportion of finishers since WW2 at least. 156 finished this year. 1990 beat this with 158 finishers but then there were 198 starters that year.

This year had a number of things going for it though. Not racing that hard over obstacles such as the Tourmalet must make things easier. As must the number of uphill finishes after relatively flat stages (Andorra, Verbier, Mont Ventoux). There were some lumps and bumps on the way but if you are a weak rider then you just have to try and stay with the peloton to benefit from drafting. Then, come the last climb you can sit up knowing that you only have to finish within about 30 minutes of the winner's time. Much easier than, for instance, when the leaders race away on the Tourmalet and you reach the bottom of the Hautacam 15-20 minutes behind.

 

[elapid]

Now that they have blood passports I don't believe most of the riders are doped. It's now at the margins.

Mmmm ... that's why the biological passport did not identify doping in Kohl, Rebellin and Schumacher, just to name a few prominent recent busts. EPO microdosing and autologous blood transfusions will probably counter the effects on reticulocytes and the off score and result in a negative result.

The poorer riders will get caught, but the more affluent riders will continue to beat the system because they can afford the doctors and the programs. I just don't share your confidence in the biological passport or the level of doping in the peloton at the moment.

 

[elapid]

This is borrowed from Stubble in the Favourite Quotes thread in the Racing Forum:

After stage 13 of the 2005 Giro, Rory Sutherland responded to the question "How was it":
"Can I really say? F***ing hard. Unbelievable. I think they found every climb in Italy today. Tomorrow we've got to do it again."

You look OK...

"I'm not OK, I'm screwed. I think it's pretty normal when you race for seven and a half hours. I looked at my computer and we had climbed for 5500 metres of climbing. I'm not trying to whinge about it but it gets a bit ridiculous. You could do half the climbs and have the same result. Now you just make people pull out of the race and that's a shame."

So yes, they get tired!

 

[BigBoat]

How hard does the last guy have to work to beat the time limit on a tdf mountain stage?

In 1990 Greg Lemond won the Tour with Fingon 2nd. In 1992 Lemond finished outside the time cut to Sestriere on stage 13 and DNF'd. Dominating the stage solo for 200km + was Chiapucci.

 

[biker77]

I guess what I am asking is, is the last guy just cruising along sipping on cow blood and injecting extra juice everytime he takes a musette, or really working extremely hard?

If it is the latter I have faith that pros can be clean as some people are just physically more gifted. If the guy who finished last after just making the time cut on most stages is out in Paris partying like it is 1998 then I have no faith.

If Lemond can miss the time cut, and wasn`t sick, injured or totally screwed his training up, then what does that say about the guy who won?

 

[Frosty]

In 1990 Greg Lemond won the Tour with Fingon 2nd. In 1992 Lemond finished outside the time cut to Sestriere on stage 13 and DNF'd. Dominating the stage solo for 200km + was Chiapucci.

But then Charly Mottet was apparently a non-doper. He finished 4th in 1987 and 1991 and finished 40th in 1993 and 26th in 1994. If true, this suggests that there are other factors in the example you quote.

From what i can see he dropped out rather than finished outside the time limit and was suffering with knee pain

http://www.nytimes.com/1992/07/20/sports/cycling-hampsten-climbs-up-but-lemond-goes-down.html

 

[sherer]

In 1990 Greg Lemond won the Tour with Fingon 2nd. In 1992 Lemond finished outside the time cut to Sestriere on stage 13 and DNF'd. Dominating the stage solo for 200km + was Chiapucci.

that was an epic stage though and got me hooked on cycling after watching that. I was only a kid at the time and just used to follow it on TV, really wished I had got parents to buy me a bike at the time, might actually be able to get up a hill by now.

My legs still hurt after a 100m ride a few weeks ago

 

[beroepsrenner]

But then Charly Mottet was apparently a non-doper. He finished 4th in 1987 and 1991 and finished 40th in 1993 and 26th in 1994. If true, this suggests that there are other factors in the example you quote.

From what i can see he dropped out rather than finished outside the time limit and was suffering with knee pain

http://www.nytimes.com/1992/07/20/sports/cycling-hampsten-climbs-up-but-lemond-goes-down.html

And what would make you think that Mottet was a non doper???

 

[Frosty]

And what would make you think that Mottet was a non doper???

Just seems that a lot of people thought that and he was one of only a very few that Voet named.

http://autobus.cyclingnews.com/results/1999/may99/may20.shtml

http://www.randomhouse.co.uk/catalog/extract.htm?command=search&db=main.txt&eqisbndata=0224061178

Obviously i cant know one way or the other Just seems that his relative performance declined at the time EPO came in too

 

[usedtobefast]

And what would make you think that Mottet was a non doper???

i liked his style either way. speaking of
drug use, one of the greatest musicians that ever lived, Louis Armstrong,
smoked pot every day.l

 

[BigBoat]

But then Charly Mottet was apparently a non-doper. He finished 4th in 1987 and 1991 and finished 40th in 1993 and 26th in 1994. If true, this suggests that there are other factors in the example you quote.

From what i can see he dropped out rather than finished outside the time limit and was suffering with knee pain

http://www.nytimes.com/1992/07/20/sports/cycling-hampsten-climbs-up-but-lemond-goes-down.html

Lemond was in 40th before dropping out. Lemond here on that stage was dropped by the pack early on and when your dropped by the field you can loose 20 seconds a kilometer.

 

[beroepsrenner]

Just seems that a lot of people thought that and he was one of only a very few that Voet named.

http://autobus.cyclingnews.com/results/1999/may99/may20.shtml

http://www.randomhouse.co.uk/catalog/extract.htm?command=search&db=main.txt&eqisbndata=0224061178

Obviously i cant know one way or the other Just seems that his relative performance declined at the time EPO came in too

Charly Mottet is a really nice guy even if he did almost deck me one day while making a sudden change of direction approaching a traffic island.
Its risky to make those kind of assumptions even if you read them in a relatively credible source. I myself have raced and trained with guys who I thought would not be dopers and later find out different and the opposite applies as well.