Tour de France 2015 - may contain nuts and SPOILERS

[Aperitif]

It sounds like it's wet and very windy. Peloton in echelons.

Long as it's not the peloton in cornichons - they would be in a right pickle. I feel sorry for Bouhanni now...saw the news on 'Le Tour' live feed...accompanied by a bicycle with a red cross struck through it.

13:33 Bouhanni to be evacuated

All the riders involved in the crash at kilometre 12 have made it back on their bikes to the exception of Nacer Bouhanni, who is about to be driven away by ambulance.

 

[smutchin]

Dangerous statement to make (with such a young guy), because personally I do feel he has the climbing skills for it... and in his defense, he seems to have (mostly) worked out his fear for descending in 1 year time, so it shows he has resilience
Anyway... only if a nobber like me remembers this statement of you it won't come back to bite you in the...

I just can't see it. If it had been Nibali having those problems yesterday, he would have just got on with it, accepted that it wasn't his day and done his best to limit his losses with a view to coming back stronger another day.

Pinot is more like Porte, in that he's as good as anyone when things are going in his favour, but he doesn't seem to deal with it so well when things don't go to plan. And I don't think that's something you can learn - you either have it or you don't.

He's had some bad luck, but to some extent you make your own luck - it's funny how the most successful riders always seem to have the best 'luck'.

 

[MisterStan]

It was reported that his teamate was 10cm taller than him, which probably would have made the bike offered unrideable

Just to piss @Marmion off, I'll link to this story about Jensie using a kids bike during Le Tour in 2010 - If he could manage 15km on a kids bike, i'm pretty sure Pinot could have managed on a smaller frame at least to limit his losses....

 

[HF2300]

The thing is, someone has to make sure the breakaway isn't 6 minutes, or 9, or 15. I've often seen Sky in that position near the beginning of the race when watching live but it never gets in to the highlights (or a brief 'and Sky did some work' mention which doesn't really reflect it). Arguably they should be hoping someone else is doing that (Etixx today I'd imagine) but their ethos does seem to be to do it if no-one else is looking tempted and that appears to be reflected in their numbers come later on. I don't know if it's just poor tactics, or if they work on the idea that they are going to have less people come the end, so they need stronger people. It can't hurt that they focus so specifically on GC, so being able to win the stage isn't important. Well, can't hurt until they lose their GC contenders and then aren't really set up to do anything else, which has happened a bit of late.

I see your point, but I wasn't really, or specifically, referring to Sky and I don't think that explains what we were seeing later in the race. As I say, though, difficult to generalise too much given the cobbled sectors.

 

[HF2300]

Just to piss @Marmion off, I'll link to this story about Jensie using a kids bike during Le Tour in 2010 - If he could manage 15km on a kids bike, i'm pretty sure Pinot could have managed on a smaller frame at least to limit his losses....

I think this thread needs more Jensie stories.

 

[tug benson]

Froome and Kennaugh in Arras this morning

 

[tug benson]

Another pile up, no one injured

 

[MisterStan]

Froome and Kennaugh in Arras this morning

Christ is Froome really that frail that he needs a domestique to help him lay a wreath?

 

[w00hoo_kent]

Christ is Froome really that frail that he needs a domestique to help him lay a wreath?

And I was expecting it to be a query as to whether he was remembering the fallen Kenyans.

My first thought was 'are they contracted to wear lycra for the whole of July?' Or were they worried if they had normal clothes on nobody would realise who they were?

 

[MisterStan]

'are they contracted to wear lycra for the whole of July?'

Maybe they just like the way it feels against their skin?

 

[The Couch]

I am actually a bit surprised Perichon was "allowed" to still be in front by the intermediate sprint, Greipel wins the bunch sprint easily

 

[tug benson]

And I was expecting it to be a query as to whether he was remembering the fallen Kenyans.

My first thought was 'are they contracted to wear lycra for the whole of July?' Or were they worried if they had normal clothes on nobody would realise who they were?

it was for commonwealth soldiers in ww1

 

[smutchin]

I see your point, but I wasn't really, or specifically, referring to Sky and I don't think that explains what we saw later in the race.

Trouble is it's difficult to make a meaningful assessment without having watched the whole stage from beginning to end.

EQS and BMC were the only teams there in numbers at the finish but both Nibali and Froome praised teammates in post race interviews, so you have to assume they were happy with the level of support throughout the stage.

Quintana only had Valverde with him, but like Thomas, Valverde as a domestique on his own is probably worth a whole team of lesser riders.

 

[The Couch]

Quintana only had Valverde with him, but like Thomas, Valverde as a domestique on his own is probably worth a whole team of lesser riders.

I guess you didn't really pay attention to "domestique" Valverde
Froome did have some great work as well by Roche very deep in the final of the stage

 

[Stephen C]

Trouble is it's difficult to make a meaningful assessment without having watched the whole stage from beginning to end.

EQS and BMC were the only teams there in numbers at the finish but both Nibali and Froome praised teammates in post race interviews, so you have to assume they were happy with the level of support throughout the stage.

Quintana only had Valverde with him, but like Thomas, Valverde as a domestique on his own is probably worth a whole team of lesser riders.

I also imagine they wanted the bare minimum towards the end, just imagine full teams for the big four racing towards the start of the cobbles, there just isn't room for it and there would've been carnage!