Tour de France 2012 |OT| 99th edition (June 30rd - July 22nd)
- Thread starter bjaelke
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No. The French police is now involved in tracking down the responsible.
Hope they catch them and they get punished to the full extent of the law. Dangerous and disrespectful.
There was one last year... Als 2009, 2005, 2004 and 2003 since the last time ONCE won it in 2002. There is also one next year. They just don't do the team time trial each year.
Their problem is they just pay the most succesfull riders of the year before to come to their team, and by changing they lose their entire backbone support. They have to get used to a new team, new material, ... It is not a winning strategy. You'll see most champions actually stayed with the same team for a long time. Also, too many captains on the same ship causes problems.
Well, not to mention that they're really just down a member because of Hincapie's coast through the tour for his last year.
Yet Jens is still out there, throwing it all down and he is also retiring.
BMC might also be building a team for the future that can wrap around TeJay's style. That guy is ridiculously good. I almost don't want to take my bike out while I'm in Boulder in fear of somehow causing an accident involving him and every other pro.
Yes, I watch F1 all the time and no, that shit you're describing doesn't happen. At least not among the top teams. Look at Webber vs Vettel, Button vs Hamilton. And Alonso vs Hamilton back in the day. There is very rarely any teamwork involved in F1. I have never seen a driver letting a teammate willingly pass him to provide slipstream advantage and then have the teammate willingly give up that position a short while later, like in cycling. I have no idea what you're watching but I'm sure it's not F1.
Like I said, I can understand the concept of the winners of the tour not being able to win without the support of their team. But then, I disagree with the tour placing the emphasis on crowning a single cyclist as winner of the tour if it's so obviously a team effort.
F1 crowns individual champions because it makes sense in that sport. Would Vettel have won WDC last year if Webber was non-existent? Most certainly. Would Cadel Evans have won last year's Tour de France if his teammates were non-existent? Most certainly not. So why is he, and not his entire team, crowned the winner of Tour de France?
But considering Sky is down two people due to Cavendish, it shouldn't be a problem.
They should let him ride this tour already. Evans isn't going to get better.
We call him Massa.
Because 1. Team Garmin-Cervélo was the best team last year, and 2. because if nobody had any helpers; it would still be Evans that had won. Team mates exist to keep the course in check in the more calmer parts of the race. That is why team work is more important in the tour than in single stage races.
Bad puns overload.
A team only puts you in the position to win, an extremely talented individual still has do to the winning on his own. Without teammates, a rogue mediocre cyclist in a lucky breakaway on a flat stage could win the whole thing, while not being one of the 100 best riders.
Oscar Pereiro Sio?
.No. I expect it will go like yesterday: a group that escapes early and can finish with a 10 minute lead.
Why would the sprint teams let that happen? Today's stage seems so easy. If I were Lotto, Liquigas or whatever, I'd just keep the difference at 3 minutes max, then close the gap as you get nearer the finish, catch them 10km from the finish, keep the pace too high for escapes and get the trains going.
I thought the hill at the end was a category 2 instead of a 3. Greipel and Cavendish should indeed be able to cross it.
don't let the facts get in the way obviously the French are just mad at Spain for winning
Bitmap Frogs
Mr. Community
Facts shmfacts.
Btw, is it true the Roland Garros is being cancelled until Nadal retires?
Just teasing ya ;D
davidnic
Member
probably... he is a terrorist for cycling. He must be stopped!
davidnic
Member
Wonder why an cancer charity is spending time lobbying about the funding of an anti doping agency http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052702303612804577531353567249064.html?mod=googlenews_wsj
sorry bout the paywall
sorry bout the paywall
Well shit 
Was shaping up to be such a peaceful, if stupidly boring, tour.
Apparently the diuretic they found is something that can be used to mask doping use.
Was shaping up to be such a peaceful, if stupidly boring, tour.
Apparently the diuretic they found is something that can be used to mask doping use.
Apparently the how is quite surprising. Last night on TV they said that it is an incredibly easily detectable agent that would also reduce performance (because it gets rid of water). Would a team that supposedly dopes so much really make such a rookie mistake?
People make mistakes all the time man. Its human nature to screw something up in a serious moment once in their lifetime.
Kinda miffed that ol' Frank might get caught. Between the Schleck brothers and the usual French, British, Belgian, Dutch, German, and Australian riders, I would have thought that they'd be all safe as houses.
I might cry in my pillow if Cancellara ever gets caught.
Andy is extremely talented, that is why it was already insane at 22. He is like Sagan. Unlike his brother he does have a clean image. For Frank there was already the Fuentes affaire.
He is asking for the B-sample to be tested and will claim he has been poisoned if it still holds up.
https://docs.google.com/a/gamed.nl/...931d33d533f4eb99b460f8779aa21.pdf&chrome=true
Yeah, nasty shit. Gusev apparently has a suspected broken collar bone, Zingle seems okay.
Edit: Yep, Gusev abandons.
Edit2: Wouldn't surprise me to see Hinault and Simon abandon today as well, given how early they were dropped from the peloton on the Aubisque. Can't imagine they'll finish on time.
what happened..?
Only just started watching a stream here from work.. Voeckler is fucking crazy,..
Kung Fu Jedi
Member
It is definitely the least interesting Tour I can remember for quite some time. Other than Wiggins and Team Sky showing up, it seems very few other riders were prepared to truly compete this year. Cadel seems a shadow of his form from last year.
does the route tomorrow end on a climb..?
Kung Fu Jedi
Member
Yes. Final mountain top finish of the 2012 Tour.
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