Tour de France 2010

Originally posted by trev33
so for you the whole quality of the race is depended on a few attacks by the favourites? there's more going on in the race than waiting to see if the favourites attack each other in the mountain stages. btw there was never going to be an attack by schleck or contador yesterday, would you have with 60km on the flat/descent after the final climb? i don't think ...[text shortened]... all the jerseys are up for grabs on the last few days, can't ask for anything more than that.

No, for me the quality of the race is about the best actually riding up to their best instead of just waiting for the last possible time for an attack.

There's a lot more to the race than that, I know. But the way AS and Contador is just pissing away stage wins and not expanding their time advantage towards the lesser riders is insane. I hope Menchov wins it. The guy has been unable to climb the biggest mountains with the best for years and now suddenly he's all the way up there. Seems like a weak tour for me. Cavendish wins the sprints. Hushovd tries to win the green jersey by picking up stray points, and a guy who is weak in the mountains win the polkadot jersey.

BTW AS contemplated an attack yesterday, but the breakaway was too far ahead for him to catchup on Col d'Aubisque, he answered in an interview with Danish TV2. It wasn't 60 km flat, and after 4 big mountains and two weeks of tour 40 km flat isn't the same as 40 km flat in the first week. Barrado, who is a mountain specialist, held 8 guys off more than 20 km, and among those 8 were Cunego, Moreau, Casar, and Armstrong. Of course, AS could have done something. Anyway, I'm not only complaining about that stage. It's been like this every day. That AS lost his chain is bad luck, but if he was able to get away there, he should have been able to get away at other times too. He should have least have tried.

Originally posted by Lundos
Barrado, who is a mountain specialist, held 8 guys off more than 20 km

43 and a halve kilometers, even. Just a few hundred meters short of a win...

Originally posted by Lundos
No, for me the quality of the race is about the best actually riding up to their best instead of just waiting for the last possible time for an attack.

There's a lot more to the race than that, I know. But the way AS and Contador is just pissing away stage wins and not expanding their time advantage towards the lesser riders is insane. I hope Menchov wins ...[text shortened]... he should have been able to get away at other times too. He should have least have tried.

lets say schleck had the legs yesterday and took off on the last climb, none of his team mates are good enough to follow so it would've worked out that schleck would've been alone in the last 40-60km with a group of riders chasing him including condator, menchov and vino who are all much better descenders than schleck not to mention much better time-trailist. how long do you think schleck would've lasted out on his own? it would've been a complete waste of energy, no doubts about it. he might have been able to ride away on the climb but there's no chance he wouldn't have been caught on the descent/flat on the run in. in fact much like the group of 8 riders did to barrado they might let him stay 30 odd second ahead of them for a while just to make him work that little bit harder.

what stage wins have schleck and contador 'pissed away'? plus there's a reason why menchov is doing better this year, on previous years he had competed in the giro (and even won) then when he came around to the tour he just didn't have the legs to compete with the top riders who had been training solely for the tour de france. he skipped the giro this year and publicly said his whole season was based around trying to win the tour.

Lol, no guy who is weak in the mountains ever wins the polkadot jersey, to save his legs he's not always going to be up there come the end of the stages, which is understandable and what the polkadot jersey winner have done since I can remember. as for the green jersey, i think it's been the best contest in a while, how many 'sprinters' and break away on mountain stages and pick up sprinting point? plus yesterday was classed as the biggest mountain stage of the tour (pity there wasn't a mountain top finish) and who was there at the end leading the peleton in picking up the most points he could? the man is probably the best all round rider in the tour but you would still make petacchi slight favourite to pick up the green jersey, it's been that close.

i think it's been an excellent tour, shame you don't feel the same.

eurosport on petacchi's pre-tour hopes of winning the green jersey.

Alessandro Petacchi (ITA/Lampre) *

Now 36, Petacchi has lost some of the speed that saw him destroy his rivals in all three grand tours in his Fassa Bortolo days. The winner of four Tour stages back in 2003, but the green jersey has always eluded him. Petacchi’s Tour days looked to be over following the disbanding of the LPR Brakes team, and though did well to secure a move to Lampre, the Italians’ lead-out is weak compared to the likes of HTC-Columbia and Garmin. A stage win is not out of the question for the Petacchi, but the green jersey most certainly is.

Originally posted by trev33
i think it's been an excellent tour, shame you don't feel the same.

So it ends today. With the predicted winner. Pettachi wins the green, but with the doping accusations hanging over his head that isn't a big surprise. Charteau wins the mountain stage jersey (in front of a 39 year old), a guy I've never heard about until this year even though he's 31 years old. There haven't been a decent winner of that jersey since M. Rasmussen.

All in all, I cannot see how you think this have been an exciting tour.

Originally posted by Lundos
So it ends today. With the predicted winner. Pettachi wins the green, but with the doping accusations hanging over his head that isn't a big surprise. Charteau wins the mountain stage jersey (in front of a 39 year old), a guy I've never heard about until this year even though he's 31 years old. There haven't been a decent winner of that jersey since M. Rasmussen.

All in all, I cannot see how you think this have been an exciting tour.

I agree with trev33...a really exciting tour...the drama of contador and shleck...the green jersey battle...chris horner...radioshack winning team...the stuff with lance and luck running out along with age...the nice camera work showing the battles and the french countryside and mountains etc...bravo for a great tour....

I'm joining this thread late (wish I knew about it earlier), but I have to give a hearty second to Chris Horner, my favorite rider. I told some friends back at stage 14 that after Lance went down, the team should be riding for him, not Levi. I got strong disagreement, but it looks right in hindsight. The guy worked like a dog for everyone else (carrying water bottles, pulling people), and still finished tenth?!

The fact that he's 38 is mitigated by the fact that he started riding a little older than a lot of the other guys. Fewer miles in the body. I hope he sees some serious money and respect for a change next year.

Originally posted by joesheppe
I'm joining this thread late (wish I knew about it earlier), but I have to give a hearty second to Chris Horner, my favorite rider. I told some friends back at stage 14 that after Lance went down, the team should be riding for him, not Levi. I got strong disagreement, but it looks right in hindsight. The guy worked like a dog for everyone else (carrying wa ...[text shortened]... Fewer miles in the body. I hope he sees some serious money and respect for a change next year.

well yes and no. had levi got into the breakaway where horner took back all of his time it wouldn't have done half a well as it did with lance and horner up front. on the whole levi was stronger than horner, horner was just lucky he got into the right breakaway.

Good point, although it should be said that Horner has placed top 15 before; Levi higher, I thnk.

Cavendish a bit arrogant but he backs it up in the sprints!





Manny

Originally posted by menace71
Cavendish a bit arrogant but he backs it up in the sprints!





Manny

How did Armstrong do?

He did not win. There is talk that He's been doping but at this point Cycling at that level is questionable anyway.



Manny

cycling is the most tested sport,therefore, more positives....I don't like the word "doping"...they used blood enhancers and hgh mostly...basically enhancements to performance....like vitamins, water,food etc. A completely level playing field since all of the peleton may have been using similar procedures and training etc. in the 90's and early 2ooo's. However, Lance has had hundreds of tests negative and really didnt need the stuff. Why risk it if not really needed. The american procecutor going after Lance really is unamerican going after a witch hunt trying to bring down american cycling and Lance's cancer programs.

Originally posted by sonhouse
How did Armstrong do?

on a cycling performance perspective, he did badly. on a personal financial stance he did very well, including his charity. i'd say he knew going in a top 5 place was out of his reach so he did what he could to raise the profile of other things instead.