Tour de France 2015 - may contain nuts and SPOILERS

[mjr]

Could you be so good as to post a link to that? I am crap at finding things! TA

http://audioboo.fm/channels/1405050.rss is what you subscribe to and I think www.thecyclingpodcast.com is the website but it's currently blank for me.

The best one IMO is http://downloads.itv.com/podcasttdf.xml and the BBC one is http://downloads.bbc.co.uk/podcasts/5live/bespoke/rss.xml - There was a preview show from http://feeds.feedburner.com/bikeshowfeed too, but I doubt Jack's doing dailies.

 

[rich p]

This is what we have the Tour de France thread for...

...and the pundit prediction thread might be another short cut!

 

[deptfordmarmoset]

fantastic docu on FR3 last night about Poulidor
http://pluzz.francetv.fr/videos/poulidor_premier_,124883841.html

and a similar programme on Bernard Thevenet
http://pluzz.francetv.fr/videos/bernard_thevenet_le_tombeur_du_cannibale_,124886148.html

might not work outside France though

I tried the first link and it's ''pas disponible.'' Haven't tried the 2nd link because I suspect it will be the same.

 

[ColinJ]

If you want to be at the front of the ten deep crowds on the Champs Elysee you need to get there before the riders even set off from the Depart. Maybe even the night before? I dunno cos we didn't even entertain the idea!

However, we had a great time, just wandering around looking at the crowds / soaking up the amazing atmosphere and watching it all sat on some grass looking at the big screen near the finish line. We also heard Wiggo's success speech, even tho we could not see him .. my advice .. just do it!
x

That rings true ...

I rode the Tour de Yorkshire sportive and was at the finish line for the final stage at Roundhay Park in Leeds. I was behind 10-deep crowds and despite being 6' 1" tall, I couldn't see the road. I ended up stood with my back to the action and watched it on the big screen instead, while holding my phone above my head to video the finish. What I recorded was mainly the backs of other hands holding phones!

PS Assuming that you like your TV and computer monitor horizontal, record videos with your camera orientated that way too, or you will end up viewing a silly tall, slim recording with big black bars either side.

Getting back to yesterday's crash ... I thought that injuries would be even more severe at that speed, and especially with riders piling into that lamp-post. I wish broadcasters would not repeatedly show such crashes in slow-motion and zoom in on them - I can imagine the pain and suffering, without having it shoved in my face!

Here's hoping for an exciting stage on the cobbles today, without major casualties.

 

[raindog]

I tried the first link and it's ''pas disponible.'' Haven't tried the 2nd link because I suspect it will be the same.

shame - sorry
maybe they'll end up on youtube one day - I'll look out for them

 

[raindog]

yesterday's mayhem
http://www.cyclingnews.com/news/tour-de-france-injuries-galore-from-stage-3-crashes

 

[mjr]

If you want to be at the front of the ten deep crowds on the Champs Elysee you need to get there before the riders even set off from the Depart. Maybe even the night before? I dunno cos we didn't even entertain the idea!

It's not the Champs, but you can probably be at the front on the Place de la Concorde or the Rue de Rivoli even if you arrive after La Course. The biggest challenge is walking around all the road closures and finding positions on the Place where views aren't blocked by vehicles. Even compared to the Tour Series, the places where you can cross between inside and outside the course are few and far between, but you can walk across in front of the Louvre.

 

[The Couch]

Looks like today will be clouded but without rain
So it's going to be dusty, superdry cobblestones, probably comparable to how the sections were when many GC teams did their reconnaissance (maybe a bit more dusty today).

Therefore can't see the cobblestone sections be the factor of people dropping today.
It will be a very high-paced race with - most likely - more than 1 crash, because of the crazy tempo the GC teams (especially Tinkof, Sky and BMC) will uphold.

Pretty sure in these conditions the winner doesn't necessarily will have to be a cobble stone specialist. Don't think that we will need to expect people like e.g. Van Marcke or Stybar for the win today... if they manage to stay in the front and avoid crashes this might even be for the sprinters that you normally don't really see/expect at the end of PR (Cav, Greipel, Kristoff).
Gotta give Van Avermaet, Boom and Sagan some extra chances today, since they belong to the "strong" teams and will therefore more easily stay in the front. You would expect that Degenkolb gets free reign today, however with the - so far - pretty good riding by Barguil (and the abandon by Dumoulin), not completely sure if they aren't going to ask Degenkolb to try to look around for Barguil and keep him at his side. I am also wondering if EQS (Stybar, Trentin, Vermote and Kwiatkowski) will actually try to guide/focus on Tony Martin to get him that extra second he needs towards Froome.

 

[mcshroom]

Sky with Stannard and Thomas must be eying up today's stage as well. I hope there's less carnage than last year. 20% of the peleton needed to see the doctor after the 2014 cobbled stage. It was a couple days after I broke my arm and I had to turn the tv off as I kept wincing when I saw the riders go down.

 

[Crackle]

Pinot lost another trusted lieutenant yesterday in Bonnet after Courteille, was it, not making the start list? Wonder how that will affect him. Morabito is still there though and he was taken on specifically to aid Pinot.

 

[benb]

Hard as nails, cycling 60k with a broken back. Unbelievable.
Was it last year when one of the British riders finished the stage with a fractured pelvis?

PS Assuming that you like your TV and computer monitor horizontal, record videos with your camera orientated that way too, or you will end up viewing a silly tall, slim recording with big black bars either side

Anyone who videos in portrait mode, except very specific circumstances, is dead to me.

 

[mjr]

Was it last year when one of the British riders finished the stage with a fractured pelvis?

Two years ago, Geraint Thomas finished the Tour, not only the stage! http://www.telegraph.co.uk/sport/ot...oken-pelvis-shatter-Tour-De-France-dream.html

 

[Dogtrousers]

I wish broadcasters would not repeatedly show such crashes in slow-motion and zoom in on them - I can imagine the pain and suffering, without having it shoved in my face!

Here's hoping for an exciting stage on the cobbles today, without major casualties.

I think we Brits may be more sensitive/respectful/squeamish/whatever than continentals. I don't know who controls the video feed but it's not the UK brodcasters/commentators. Hence the commentators have to keep apologising for the graphic shots. This was especially the case when Pozzovivo was injured in the Giro. Fortunately he was OK but it looked awful and there were lots of close-ups etc. I think the people who get outraged by things on twitter were outraged and twitting away, causing the commentary team to defend themselves.

Echo your sentiments about no major casualties although I wouldn't complain if name of rider redacted could get held up for a few minutes

 

[deptfordmarmoset]

Two years ago, Geraint Thomas finished the Tour, not only the stage! http://www.telegraph.co.uk/sport/ot...oken-pelvis-shatter-Tour-De-France-dream.html

Talking of GT, I was surprised at how much time he lost on the Mur. With slightly less than 0.9km he was slightly holding back so Froome could get back on his wheel. Froome, however, was in the mood for taking whichever wheel presented itself to him. After that, GT appears to have lost 30 seconds and 4 GC places. He must have really buried himself.

 

[Dogtrousers]

I am also wondering if EQS (Stybar, Trentin, Vermote and Kwiatkowski) will actually try to guide/focus on Tony Martin to get him that extra second he needs towards Froome.

I was wondering that. Also remember that Kwiat was in with a shout of winning the cobbled stage last year but for an inconvenient puncture.