2011 Tour de France

[Jono]

Today is the tour's first stage, anyone else going to watch some/all of it?

I caught the bug back in 2008 following the increased interest over here when Cadel Evans came second and then got the yellow mid-tour, which is when I jumped on and I have since looked forward to the tour each year.

 

[Roger Wilco]

I would be surprised if this thread is very successful, but we'll see.

Awesome stage today, for a flat stage. I like the new point system for intermediate sprints, certainly seems to generate more action; and the finish was spectacular too. As predictable as the winner was, as confusing was everything going on in behind.

Kind of unfair for Contador to lose time that stupidly, but the rules are the rules, what are you gonna do. It's his own fault for not going more to the front.

 

[JarodRussell]

It's more of a Tour de Farce really.

 

[Roger Wilco]

Oh how original. It's no more a farce than watching tennis, track&field, football or pretty much any Olympic sport if it's the doping that's bothering you.

 

[Jono]

I doubt there would be many who would be shed a tear that Contador lost time due to the issues regarding his ban/unban. However, that mess has been compounded by the cycling body for taking so long to put it to bed. I also thought Andy was caught out, but the time splits at the end showed he wasn't.

You don't want to see things like spectators negatively impacting the race like that. They are a fantastic part of the opera that is the tour. There is nothing quite like those mountain stages where the crowd is so thick on the road that the cyclists can only ride 2 abreast.

I would be surprised if this thread is very successful, but we'll see.

A few years ago there was a thread here about the tour that did okay, though that was probably more due to Armstrong's return.

 

[Roger Wilco]

Andy did in fact arrive in the finish at the same time as Contador, but the difference is that Contador was held up by the first crash at 9km from the finish and Andy was still with the front group when a different crash happeend at 2km from the finish. So Andy was protected by the rule saying that riders involved in crashes within 3km of the finish get the time of the main group in flat stages instead of the time they actually finish in. Which is what made this situation so strange, that people who arrived at the same time officially got different times in the standings. And additionally the Contador group also lost extra time in the second crash but was not protected by the 3km rule because they were not in the front group at the time it happened.

 

[Jono]

I thought that was what must have happened. Watching live I thought the second crash was the chasing group and not the leading group.

 

[Shaytan]

I doubt there would be many who would be shed a tear that Contador lost time due to the issues regarding his ban/unban. However, that mess has been compounded by the cycling body for taking so long to put it to bed. I also thought Andy was caught out, but the time splits at the end showed he wasn't.

*shrug*
The time lost now won't make a difference in 3 weeks, it never do.

I still watch out of habit, I'm not very interested in the Tour since the Armstrong years.
I hate that there is no real prologue.

 

[Roger Wilco]

Well, Contador won by 39 seconds last year and he's now 1:16 behind Andy Schleck, so it's not nothing, especially since Contador already has a very hard Giro in his legs and Schleck doesn't. I still think he'll probably kill everybody in the mountains, but it's an obstacle. Maybe he's angry enough to attack in the massiv central already, or even stage 4 may be a chance for a couple seconds too.

 

[Shaytan]

Bof, like every year, I don't think that the time lost will be important until the mountains. If you have a good team, you can control everyone and win for a few seconds.
Stage 4 ? Not very interesting...

Contador already has a very hard Giro in his legs and Schleck doesn't.

That's what will be interesting, it's unusual now to participate in both the Giro and the Tour as a favorite. It's maybe Contador's mistake (I hope so).

 

[Jono]

Stage 2 has started and it's the team time trial today. Saxobank was the first out of the gate.

 

[Roger Wilco]

And looking quite disarrayed... Contador could get another packet today.

 

[Shaytan]

[cliché][bad TV comment] You can't win a Tour on a team time trial but you can lose one.[/bad TV comment][/cliché]

 

[Roger Wilco]

Winners today: Hushovd, Evans (maybe this is his year finally, who knows, probably disappointed he didn't get the yellow jersey though), Schleckies, Wiggins, Gesink
Losers: Contador, Gilbert, Basso, Sanchez

 

[Jono]

Encouraged by Evans form so far, but I was last year as well and all it takes is one seemingly innocuous fall and your chances for victory can evaporate. Hoping that he'll maintain form and health and challenge for a podium spot in 3 Sundays time.

Still getting use to some of the team changes. I'm still thinking of Contador when I hear Astana and the Schleck and the old boys when I hear Saxo Bank.

 

[Jono]

Stage 3 and its one of the flattest stages of the tour. Save a crash splitting the group the question is who can beat the HTC machine and the final bullet that is Cavendish?

Evan's is wearing the King of the Mountain jersey today...makes more sense than Hushovd!

 

[Roger Wilco]

Fantastic win by Evans. I'm not really a fan, but he's become a very ballsy rider in the last couple years.

 

[Jono]

Evans isn't a cuddly bloke, he's got a bit of mongrel in him. Glad to see that Contador didn't pip him after the problems Evans had in the final 20 km, including have to switch out his bike and then get through a big group, in tight roads and back to the front. It was also probably the best result as he didn't end up having to be burdened with the yellow jersey so early.

But you can't overlook Thor effort to not give up any time as well. It wasn't a huge climb but to stay with the big guns in the end is no mean feat.

EDIT:

Stage 5, a bit of up and down over the day, but nothing major.

 

[Roger Wilco]

Great stage today, deserved win from the breakaway, courageous attack from an aging legend and some testing of favourites. About as good as could have been expected.

 

[Jono]

Van Den Broeck has just abandoned after a major crash, which has also claimed Alexander Vinokourov. Much with the crash that took out Wiggins it happened off camera. Unlike that day the main field have neutralised the race, at least at the moment (which they were criticised for not doing by some back on that day). There seems to be a major crash every other day in this first week and a bit.