Tour de France *Spoilers*

[Deleted member 26715]

It looked like a (bloody good) one to me!

Sorry should have put not a road bike race, more like cyclo cross, I didn't enjoy it at all & wasn't even riding it.

Alan...

 

[w00hoo_kent]

Re your point of Thomas, he said that the "final" crash that knocked Froome out happened right behind him and he heard the crash so he was probably protecting him at the time and had dropped back a bit to do that. IT does seem odd that they were so split up but I don't think anything too odd as they were obviously very much in touch at the second crash.

That seems to be a Team Sky thing of late though, it seems they are fractured through the race a lot more than they are together (agreed this is from watching a bit of racing on telly and not serious race examination).

 

[MisterStan]

I respect Merckx absolutely, but I'd be happy with no information at all from LA.

“Two words,” tweeted disgraced former champion Lance Armstrong. “I doped.”

 

[laurence]

Re your point of Thomas, he said that the "final" crash that knocked Froome out happened right behind him and he heard the crash so he was probably protecting him at the time and had dropped back a bit to do that. IT does seem odd that they were so split up but I don't think anything too odd as they were obviously very much in touch at the second crash.

ah, ok. i think there were mixed messages yesterday, depending on where you read the news. i saw that G heard the first crash behind him, but was up the road for the decisive one and heard the news on the radio, which suggested he hadn't waited the first time (been asked to).

one of the pundits on tv the night before did suggest that a good tactic would be for teams to split up on the pave. i wondered if Sky has doing that with the harder boys ahead to try and keep an eye on things and stay in the mix.

 

[Booyaa]

ah, ok. i think there were mixed messages yesterday, depending on where you read the news. i saw that G heard the first crash behind him, but was up the road for the decisive one and heard the news on the radio, which suggested he hadn't waited the first time (been asked to).

one of the pundits on tv the night before did suggest that a good tactic would be for teams to split up on the pave. i wondered if Sky has doing that with the harder boys ahead to try and keep an eye on things and stay in the mix.

This is the quote I read, from the link further up the page.

”To hear Froomey crashed early on, it was ‘not again’ sort of thing. I think he was just behind me when he crashed again and when I heard it I thought ‘that sounds nasty’ and then I heard on the radio it was Froome so it wasn’t good. But we knew going into today we had Richie as well and it was a kind of a two-pronged attack. They were both on an equal footing in the team so it changed then for Richie and so I think it was a pretty successful day really when you look at that.”

 

[RhythMick]

Another Team Sky faller ...

 

[RhythMick]

... and Sagan down ...

 

[Beebo]

Another Team Sky faller ...

Yep, Zandio is out.

 

[Dayvo]

Draw lots?

They are far too busy or tired to want to do lots of drawing!

 

[Crackle]

Well with Zandio out, I relly hope to see some better form from Lopez and Danny Pate's going to need to stop hanging on the back.

 

[smutchin]

one of the pundits on tv the night before did suggest that a good tactic would be for teams to split up on the pave. i wondered if Sky has doing that with the harder boys ahead to try and keep an eye on things and stay in the mix.

I wonder if they had 2011 in mind - Thomas waited for Wiggo when he crashed and by the time they realised Wiggo wasn't getting back on his bike, they'd lost about five minutes to the peloton so any chance of there being a Plan B was out of the window.

A couple of Sky riders did wait for Froome yesterday but it was important that Porte and Thomas got on with the job in hand, which has proved to be absolutely the correct decision because it means whether or not Porte goes on to win, at least he is still in contention for the time being.

 

[MisterStan]

Just a musing, but I do wonder what G could have done yesterday if he wasn't playing Domestique. He seemed to be on fire!

 

[Dogtrousers]

Hinault: "This stage is a message to the young cyclists: 'come and do Paris-Roubaix, you'll know what it is about and it'll help you when you'll ride on the pavés at the Tour'. Because the Tour will come back to the pavés again!"

I read in one book that Hinault referred to PR as "a race for dickheads" - but only after he'd won it.

 

[smutchin]

Tony Martin. Man or ruthless Teutonic killing machine?

 

[Stonechat]

Tony Martin. Man or ruthless Teutonic killing machine?

Well chapeau to Martin for last year's solo stage that did not quite come off
Have to admire that effort