People seemed bummed by my less than serious take on the TdF yesterday. "But Rouleur... what do you really think?" Here, in Tweet-able (and re-Tweet-able) format, are my true thoughts on the TdF.
Everybody came together post-mortifying-crash except Sky. You stay classy, Sky!
It's good the TdF is trying to shake things up. Probably ought to take the rocks out of the blender first though, right?
But really, it's good for the race that they've picked up the gauntlet thrown in Italy. The racers must adapt to the rain and road conditions; maybe that's something they've forgotten post-1989.
Lance has a chance. Looks like his luck and race sense is with him, and his legs aren't bad.
Going to miss Van de Velde. Couldn't he have hitched a ride in on Friedman's or Cozza's trucker moustache?
There's doping and weird stuff that sometimes goes on in racing. Among the members, the peloton is basically an honorable place, however.
I've been in multiple-ambulance-carnage races. You lose your stomach for racing for 24 hours at the first sight of a bone sticking out of the ankle skin.
Chavanel deserved the win. He was leading by a good deal when the crash occurred, and was off the final hill. He's a good rider and well liked, and nobody will object to his carrying the Maillot Jaune into France for a few days, least of all ASO, the French, and Wilf Peters.
Monfort was honorable; he was definitely going to be caught when the crash occurred, and could have stayed away for the podium, but he soft pedaled and let the pack absorb him a few hundred yards from the line, leaving on the table that which was not his to take.
Monfort could have moved up from 22nd to 3d quite easily by going hard in the last 2 miles. He didn't. Chapeaux, Maxime.
Is anything worse than seeing crashed roadies in shock on the side of the road, holding an arm against the gut at a 90 degree angle?
Jens Vogt performed like a beast dragging the peloton up the last two climbs, and then dragging Saxo riders back up to the pack post-crash. It may have been one of his finest days of service in a long career.
Armstrong says something untoward was on the road surface but didn't name it. I believe him. Could have been the usual tar sweat, or maybe some fertilizer compounds. A few pros are bad bike handlers but not 80 of them in this crowd.
Bleu d'Auvergne is the perfect cheese for TdF watching, if you like sharp, creamy blues. Cantal is the weapon of choice for those who like cheddary hard cheeses.
Can't wait to see Stage 3 on the cobbles. At least there, the riders will see it coming.
7 comments:
Head-on collision on the CCT:
http://www.wtop.com/?nid=25&sid=1996050
Clydesdale for W@W? I do hear grumbling about the heat, though. Will the peleton neutralize the race if it hits 103?
Chazu - shocking, isn't it? Whoda thunk it could happen?
RTW - probably beginner again. Rocking the single since the fork on the Big Momma is ailing. Will do clyde if I'm running late from work.
Keep your eyes on the PVC site tomorrow. I see a lot of discussion about postponing the race because of heat on FB.
Three laps on a single in this heat would be a manly feat, for sure. Stomping up the switchback climb at 103 degrees could make a fella's head a'splode.
Womble, I rode home from work yesterday (~23 miles). Had two explosive, sidewall-tearing flats on melt-y, debris-strewn tarmac. Ran 1.5 miles with the bike shouldered to the point where Seiboldus Maximus picked me up, post-call-of-shame. Not concerned about the possibility of it being hot at W@W. Concerned about the traffic trying to get there though...
Lots of talk about Cancellara being a class act and gentleman after Stage 2. Now, I like Cancellara and all, but do different rules apply on the pave’? The Yellow Jersey is dropped due to punctures but Cancellara is not criticized for failing to show the usual respect for the jersey? Indeed, Cancellara himself regained the jersey by riding away from Chavanel. So, had Andy Schleck been in the lead group in Stage 2 after the Stockeau with other GC contenders on the ground behind him, would Cancellara would have buried himself to put time in on them and keep the jersey? I would say the answer is categorically “yes.” So much for it being a gentleman’s sport.
http://sports.espn.go.com/oly/tdf2005/news/story?id=2101411
I don't think it's different rules on the pave. Tuesday's race on pave was normal, with a lot of little crashes and many untimely flats. That's the deal with pave. Monday's stage, in contrast, had an uncharacteristic and dangerous course defect that caused around 60% of the field to go down on an oil-slicked fast descent. Comparing apples and brocolli here.
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