Today's stage 14 was a good one but no change at the very front. I was again yelling at Dumolin to gap G and F...but he just didn't have it. Thankfully they didn't have it either, as F would totally like a bit more cushion. I can't help but wonder how the dinner table is at Sky...sure the team is happy to have 1 and 2...but you can't tell me F isn't ticked...this is HIS team and HIS tour...I guarantee he wants (VERY BADLY) to join the TINY list of 5 Tour winners. He may be calm on the surface but you really have to wonder what's going on inside...a quote from Gene Hackman (from the movie The Replacements) comes to mind..."Like a duck on the pond. On the surface everything looks calm, but beneath the water those little feet are churning a mile a minute." I have to think that's F right now. Will he and G attack each other at some point? I think F has to if he wants to win....he certainly can't hope to take that much back in the Stage 20 TT....at least I don't think he can. And w/ Dumolin...the WORLD CHAMPION TT'er 10 seconds or so behind him, THAT has to put fear in his heart!
And then there's Sagan. Can you BELIEVE he held on for FOURTH today? He was off the back, as that was a really nasty little climb...and then suddenly there he is coming around the corner, and if the run-out to the finish had been another 500m he might have pulled them back! Only 12 seconds behind the winner! He is an enigma, a paradox, a conundrum...a rubix cube with 10 x 10 rows on each side....he's SO very hard to figure out. And just when you count him out, there he is. He can win against the PURE sprinters, win in the punchy intermediate stages, and today held on in a very difficult finish.
OK...what else...OH! The scenery early today....up on that limestone bluff w/ the river down below...MAN did that look amazing! And the stone arch the river flowed under...WHEN I follow le Tour one day I'm swinging by there one way or another and canoeing/kayaking on that river! It just looked FABULOUS! Just some beautiful scenery today for sure! I wonder if the French tourism dept (if there is such a thing) contributes to the ASO....cuz I swear there is no better advertisements to visit France than to watch the country flow by during the TDF! And every year we see almost the entire country...yet when you think you've seen it all, next year we see something totally new! And hey....did you see me during the broadcast? I was everywhere (in my mind)! One day....one day.
Alright...enough on that...one week. Man...it's almost time to start getting sad. Every year it happens...living the Tour dream one minute, and suddenly like a fine vacation coming to an end, you realize it's almost over. At least I HOPE to get back on my annual post-Tour riding comeback...where I HOPE to go from 2 rides a week to 4 or 5....and by late August I'll be posting PR's (Personal Records) in Strava again. Haven't seen many of those in a while now...still trying to turn my all-day-endurance into 2 to 3 hour speed and power. Todays group road ride was crushing (to me)...I was off the back as the group was flying on flats and rollers. And yes...even the GIRLS were killing me. Hey... I'm not too proud to draft on girls...it was Elizabeth who pulled a small line of us (all guys) back to the group after a gap had formed. I couldn't close it, and she had me "on the rivet" holding her wheel for what seemed like FOREVER! And just as she faltered our resident LONG DISTANCE and VERY STRONG man John St John rolled up, pulled in front of her and finished the job. I thanked her profusely...I would have been left for dead if not for her. However I think I deserved that...as her husband left me out in the wind for miles...he was right in front of me as we were flying towards the small town of Guadalupe in a 2-wide paceline...and every time I'd get on his wheel to get a tiny shred of draft he'd pull out into the road on the left (echelon) as there was some cross wind. I'd be left totally exposed and start to drop back (I had 2 guys behind me holding MY wheel)...and then he'd pull back where he SHOULD be....and I'd bury myself to get his wheel only to have him pull out again....over and over. So by the time we got to Guadalupe I was shelled...toast....road-kill. So I actually feel like he owed it to me to have his wife pull me back to the group. Yep...that's how I see it.
OK....happy Saturday, and Viva le Tour! Stage 15 is tomorrow....and guess what? MORE MOUNTAINS!! YAY!!!
(Photo copied from Velo News, credit to Tim de Waele/Getty Images)
Still watching Stage 15 (taking a food break...dropped my Musette and I had to actually go INTO the kitchen! Damn the bad luck! At least nobody crashed from my bag on the road!) Just a note...during the stage they always have that little ticker at the bottom of the screen showing things riders are saying on social media...yesterday Dan Martin said (referring to Adam Yates) "thanks for pulling me up that final climb...he didn't have to do it, and I won't forget that mate." (this was after Dan flatted w/ 5k to go). Yep...he's my new Jensie. HUGE integrity, and an unstoppable force on the road. Nice Dan!
ReplyDeleteStage 15 is in the books...kind of a snoozer to me. One thing of note, how about that crazy bridge they went under right at the beginning of the stage! WOW! That must have been one insane construction project...a lot of workers must have been immune to fear of heights (I would NOT be one of those). How they actually made it must have been some incredible engineering! Getting those cables properly tensioned...everything balanced and holding the right amount of weight...just WOW! (I'm not an engineer but I do appreciate that kind of stuff!) I know the Pat Tillman bridge that spans the canyon at the output of Hoover Dam blows my mind...crossed that on foot a few years back (it has a pedestrian path on the Hoover Dam side of the bridge...goes all the way across to Arizona). That's an Arch bridge...just one enormous arch holding up the entire roadway (make THAT work on paper!)
ReplyDeleteAnyway...no change really today...Dan the MAN attacked but didn't work out...he is such a madman! tomorrow is a rest-day...(good..I need to get my car into the shop for it's bi-annual smog cert).
OK...back to laundry and stuff (going thru my 'bike stuff'...tools and parts...really need to get it organized).
Interesting analysis of tomorrow's stage: http://www.cyclingnews.com/features/philippa-york-analysis-bubbling-under-a-look-at-what-may-happen-next-at-the-tour-de-france/
ReplyDeleteThe beauty of the stages still amazes me. I really had better get working on the bike so that I could at least once join an organized riding tour in France. The Carcasonne region really looked nice. Yes, I am sure the tourism dept. has a hand in the route design, and the towns/regions probably bid to be included in order to promote their areas. I always snicker at the people on live threads who criticize the commentators (particularly P&P) for highlighting castles, chateau, and other tourism tidbits -- not understanding that they are asked to do that, it helps pay for the race itself! And, for me, I love seeing the scenery and hearing about the regions.
I am so hopelessly far behind, and never near winning a stage either in the fantasy competition! I've lost 3 riders, and virtually lost 1 more (in Tejay). Matt, you had astutely tipped Roglic, did you put him on your team?
Seems there has to be some kind of incident or protest every year now, usually with little to no harm to the race, but this certainly went awry this year! The only other similar incident I can remember, which really wasn't a protest, just vandalism, was the tacks in the road a few years ago.
Hey Rae....I think I love watching the countryside roll by almost as much as the race itsself! Maybe that's why I enjoy watching le Tour more than the Giro or Vuelta (when I'm able to partake in the other Grand Tours, which is rare). And hey....only 3 riders out on your fantasy team? That's GREAT! I'm down FIVE for about the last week now! (makes it much easier to pick my bench tho when it consists of only ONE guy!) My fantasy team only made 25 points today...pretty pathetic. I KNEW I should have picked Alaphilippe back before the first stage! And no, didn't even heed my own advice and pick Roglic...my team picking sucks in general. I'd likely actually do better if I could put every riders jersey number on a bingo ball (tho need a lot more bingo balls) and take the first 15 that come out. Seriously...I should try that next year...likely it couldn't be much worse. So...today was a snoozer in the GC peleton, but WHAT A BATTLE for the stage win! When Gilbert went over the wall on that 2nd descent, DAMN!! He was SO LUCKY! Later in the broadcast they put a camera over the wall showing the drop, and about 5' uphill of where he landed was a giant concrete block! It looked to me like he was cutting the corner tight and right at the last moment as he's already leaned over he saw some kind of steel plate right in his line (a drain or something likely...if you see the crash again look at the road in the turn) and he did the quickest little juke to miss it, which sadly stood his bike mostly upright and he then had no chance to make that corner. I was afraid for his right lower leg, which is where he hit the wall and then flipped over..he could have easily snapped the lower leg bones on the rock wall top edge in the impact. VERY SCARY!!! So glad he's ok!
ReplyDeleteAnd so...tomorrows stage should be a REAL DOOZY right from the flag drop! THREE big climbs, starting with the Peyresourde (I WANT TO CLIMB THAT!), don't know much about the 2nd climb, but the final is an HC summit finish...so the GC battle should look very different tomorrow night! There will be no pretending tomorrow...if you don't have the legs it will be apparent right away and your rivals will destroy you if they can. Sadly I won't be watching most of it (including the finish) until Thursday morning sometime...(Jeannie flys back home tomorrow night from her East coast girls vacation, and I'm picking her up down at LAX around 10pm, then taking Thursday off of work). So...enjoy the stage tomorrow...should be one of the most exciting ones in recent memory!
So it turns out that Gilbert was NOT all right...he finished the stage but has a broken patella (knee cap, right?) WOW! He finished the race with a broken knee cap! DAMN!! I saw on the news this morning that he withdrew from the race. That fall was further than I thought...the pics showing a fan and race officials helping him back up over the wall was intense...it wasn't a soft landing by any means...but at least he didn't land on the giant concrete block just a few feet away. He will be back racing in no time...glad he's ok in the big scheme of things. Terrifying crash!
ReplyDeleteJust posted a pic from Velo News of Gilbert being helped up over the wall...CRAZY!!
ReplyDeleteI would like this fantasy competition much better if we got points for having riders in the top or 15 in the overall on every stage, I am doing well there!
ReplyDeleteDid you see the pics of his (Gilbert's)leg from yesterday? How on earth these guy do it, I will never know.
And did you see that a fan actually grabbed Thomas near the finish? I heard that Thomas said he did the same to Quintana, but no video or reports otherwise of that. Now not even the barriers are enough to protect the riders! They may have to start erecting a double line of barriers to keep fans from being able to reach over -- can you imagine the expense?
The stage yesterday was raced so hard, so fast, so amazing! I was sort of (but sort of not, because he hadn't really shown attacking legs so far) surprised that Froome was distanced -- but I wonder if tomorrow he will pull off a stage as he did in the Giro -- I am going to try to watch that stage live for sure!
I do want to search out the podcasts by he-who-must-not-be-named to hear his analysis of the racing. I've intended to since the start but always get distracted before I do. I came across (believe it or not) DaveZ and Landis doing the same -- video of them commenting on the race live feed -- but somehow just not so interested in what they have to say -- not because of the you-know-what, but because it was a bit too juvenile humor for my taste.
SusieB, where are you?
Stage 17 did not disappoint! WAY TO GO QUINTANA!! FINALLY!!! And Sagan CRASHES?? That's pretty rare...no footage but he said he crashed in a turn and went off into the woods. Glad he was able to start today. The fight for the yellow was very interesting...Dumolin was good, G was great, Froome faltered. That pretty much decides that. Tomorrow will be very interesting...will Froome do another Giro style attack? Hard to say...but keeping G in yellow is paramount for the team...so he won't do it if there is any risk..he is working first for G, then to hold his podium spot. I have to give him credit...he has been very kind and gracious all along with his teammate looking like the overall winner in Paris...so kudos to him for being professional (and a friend). Today is a snoozer stage...maybe I can sneak out for a ride...didn't get home from LAX until 4am...yikes! I'm up and about a third of the way thru the stage...but don't want to dwell too much on it...tomorrow is the day to watch it all. Gotta scoot...happy Thursday, and viva le Tour!
ReplyDeleteWell....stage 18 was kind of a snoozer. At least Sagan was able to start and even sort-of participated in the sprints. Now he has to survive the mountains and the TT on Saturday to arrive in Paris. What a disaster if he missed the time cut today due to his crash on the short mountain stage on Weds. Looked like Quintana got beat up in his crash yesterday...hope that doesn't affect his chances today...was hoping he would attack again. And Roglic, Dumolin, Valverde, and of course, Dan the MAN Martin! It would be sweet if they all attacked off and on today, keeping Sky under some kid of pressure. Sadly I don't think it will be a great day for the attacks...too much distance after the final climb. And I think everybody is tired and just wanting to be in Paris. We shall see...the stage is happening right now. Happy Friday!
ReplyDeleteHowdy, howdy! Sorry I wasn't able to comment earlier this week! I was out sick Monday (apparently only 3-4 hrs sleep/night plus a cold/sore throat does NOT help one function!), worked feverishly Tuesday to catch up, took Wed off as a vacation day so I could watch that stage LIVE, tried to catch up at work yesterday & now, here I finally am! :)
ReplyDeleteWell, as mentioned LAST Friday, I was more than just a bit bummed with the race, BUT I started coming around last weekend even though both stages were kinda on the "snoozer" side, except for the OMG crash of PhilGil. Thank goodness he did not hit his head into those rocks OR that wall! And I wasn't sure what to think about a stage only 65K (!) but Stage 17 really delivered! Froom CRACKED LIKE AN EGG! And right then, part of my anger started to lift. I will always find Brailsford arrogant & a liar, will always think that team is dirty, but Froome is just a classy guy, at least publicly. He was SO gracious afterwards about GT even though you just know he was upset & depressed about his elusive 5th Tour win slipping away, possibly never to be attained as the years tick-tick-tick by, how do you hold a grudge against a guy like that? Still, I'm glad he will NOT win this Tour & think it's better for cycling too.
Anyhoo, glad that Quintana was finally BACK to being the rider we 1st saw those years ago. Glad that Dan Martin ONCE AGAIN was in "attack mode" & glad that Roglic will be giving Froome a fight for the podium!
BTW, what do you all know of Dumoulin? His personality, character, etc. I know nothing about him except he's Dutch & a fantastic Time Trialer. I'd rather he win this TDF than anyone of Sky, but for some reason I just can't quite warm up to him. BTW, isn't it ODD that someone who grew up at SEALEVEL would be good at riding in the mts? Also, he's not nearly as emaciated or tiny as most TDF podium guys.
And poor Sagan! I bet he's injured much worse than he's let on. And on stage where he just had to get home safe! Argh!
I don't want to spoil anything about today's stage but UNLIKE MOST of the TDF final mt stages the past 4-7 years or so, this one was actually EVENTFUL! I can't wait to get home to watch it all on TV tonight. Yes, THIS Friday's stage will actually be ON the TV at night! AND tomorrow will now be must-see TV too!
Gotta run. Have a great time watching the final 3 stages, everyone! :)
My favorite quote from this Tour- from Sagan: "I hit really hard my ass." He is one tough cookie!
ReplyDeleteSorry I've been so absent, I'm very busy at work (I liked it better last summer when I was "funemployed"... except for that paycheck thing.) and it's all I can do to keep up, but I have managed to see most of each stage. Scenery has been gorgeous. It always is, but wow, the Ardeche! I have been going on cyclingtips.com and printing out 2 photos to post at my desk every day. People walk past my desk to get to the coffee machine, so they see one pic on the way and one on the way back. I get a lot of comments. One fellow cyclist in my office to chat with each day.
Loved seeing Quintana win, but gotta say my favorite stage winner was Degenkolb.
Barbara
One more thing... about P&P talking about the chateaux, etc. on the side of the road - I love it, and if anyone is paying attention, you can see that the heli circles them to give time for them to talk about it. What I love, though, is the way Paul talks about this stuff so casually and conversationally that it doesn't sound at all like he's reading a script.
ReplyDeleteI was reading backwards to catch up - MATT, I saw your comment about Sagan's commercial about winning P-R. LOVED IT! I had a friend over that night to watch with me and we watched it a few times (YAY DVR!).
What a great stage! Everyone rode beautifully, fought hard -- Froome clearly suffering but hung tough, Martin looking like he would detach umpteen times, but still finished 4th, Roglic with a beautiful descent to win, and Sagan and Quintana fighting to finish with their injuries.
ReplyDeleteTaylor Phinney crashed and looks like he broke his nose, hopefully that is all (won't help his riding though). I was impressed with his finish yesterday, hoping that is an indication that he is really coming fully back from that horrid crash.
I would swear that I set my fantasy team for the stage today, but it doesn't seem to have saved, so on a day when I had 4 of the top 5, and 6 of the top 10 -- or so I thought -- instead the sprinters and withdrawn riders were up and the contenders were on the bench! ARgghh! I don't know why I do this every year!
Tomorrow is the final stage :(
ReplyDeleteWhat I like about Dumoulin is that he says what he is feeling/thinking at the moment. Unfiltered -- which can be good, or bad sometimes! No, I don't think his climbing ability is odd at all -- nor is that of anyone from the low countries (including Great Britain). They all train in mountains, many live in or near higher elevations (Laurens Ten Dam lives in Colorado I believe, for example) for that reason. I hate to say it, but if I wanted to be suspicious of any rider (and I DO NOT want to be) it would be Sagan. I keep waiting for the innuendo about him to start (but am hoping that it does not).
HEY! GANGS ALL HERE!YAY!!! Welcome back, and JUST IN TIME! OMG it's been a fabulous race! Barbara, glad you like that Sagan commercial...the looks on his face were HILARIOUS! And then they had another commercial (again Specialized) where he races his Grandma Joan in an uphill sprint..he on a road bike, she on the Specialized e bike...not nearly as funny but again, NO SPEAKING! They've caught on! He really seems to be quite the character! (And Rae, totally agree...if Sagan ends up being a doper I will be done w/ cycling forever I'm afraid). Loved the short stage (17? Gosh, seems so long ago all of a sudden). 18 was the snoozer, except that it was when Froome cracked ("like an egg"...you go Susie!) All along I've been saying I want "anybody but Froome"...well, careful what you wish for...cuz Froome will not win. And also agree Susie w/ how gracious and supporting Froome is being...actually he's making me feel bad I was rooting against him. Every interview he's supporting G, being the consummate teammate...a real pro. He's moved up in my book...and yesterday (in the TT) he was THAT CLOSE! But it doesn't bother me that Dudmolin won it...by ONE SECOND over Froome! I would have liked to see G win it (leftover from the Lance days, the strongest man/winner of the Tour should win the final TT)...but I understand why he backed off some...he had EVERYTHING to lose, and nothing to gain by going all out. After Stage 19 (when Roglic took off and won the stage) I was taken aback by Dumolins comments about Roglic using the camera motos draft (he was VERY UPSET)...I watched the video and didn't really see much (and believe me, I know about the draft...I'm a skinny guy and descending is when I NEED a draft to keep up). I lose a wheel by 3' and I'm COMPLETELY OUT of the draft and in the wind getting killed. I'm a pretty good climber but one of the slowest descenders. And another thing: Tom SHOULD have been expecting an attack and gone with Roglic...he KNEW how close they were and Roglic wasn't on the podium...why WOULDN'T he attack? It was up to Dumolin to be ready and cover any attack! IF there was any draft from the moto, then he should have gone w/ Roglic and then that would have been negated. He had nobody but himself to blame that Roglic got away! (later he apologized for his rant, as it was immediately after the stage and the heat of battle and all, so I appreciated his candor and admitting he was wrong). Which was good...cuz after I saw/heard his rant I was wondering if I've been backing the wrong horse this tour (been rooting for Dumolin to win). ANYHOO...the TT is in the books, really enjoyed the coverage this year, AND that there was a true fight at the end! And now we ride into Paris (the coverage starts in about 5 minutes). I'm going to be my usual happy/sad PTDS (Post Tour Depression Syndrome)...happy that I can get my LIFE back (including SLEEP) but sad cuz I LOVE Tour Time! Also I can get started on my annual Post Tour Cycling Comeback! (I end up only riding about twice a week most of July...which is NOT enough...I need to up my game and ride 4 to 5 times a week for a month or so to get back where I WAS back in May). Viva le Tour!
ReplyDelete