The Official 99th Tour de France thread, 2012.

[Stat Brother]

Wiggins v Eddie the Eagle. Some thoughts on British victory psyche in the run up to the Olympics. Click if you're interested! Falling With Style: Wiggins v Eddie the Eagle - the changing face of the British Anti hero

Wiggins diversion from the British cultural script is wonderful. 20 years ago he would have made his own bike out of spares, done sponsored rides to pay for the tour and finished after dark every night because he had a carrier bag of bike spanners and a halfords puncture repair kit swinging from his handlebars. 20 years ago us Brits were still suspicious of exotic European men in Lycra. We preferred our endurance athletes in tweed suits and handlebar moustaches. At least Bradley is part way there with the sideburns!

I don't image, for one minute, Robert Millar an all the cyclists that went before him, would revel in that paragraph.

 

[Stat Brother]

Anyway were the blooming heck is [MENTION=12656]Pantani[/MENTION], [MENTION=2551]Stoichkov[/MENTION] & [MENTION=3347]Horton's halftime iceberg[/MENTION].

We can't draw a line under this thread, until they've had their say.

 

[teaboy]

We can't draw a line under this thread, because that means it's over. :-(

 

[wardy wonder land]

can't be arsed to read through the entire thread to see if the answers lies within - so can anybody tell me whats the deal with the helmet colour changes with team Sky ?

I think the team have a light blue helmet as the standard "uniform" ?

and i can understand why BW had a yellow one

but, they seem to chop and change :

- one day all the Sky team had yellow hats
- first T Trial BW had a black one, last T Trial he had a yellow
- cav finished in a black hat on the last day

 

[Stoichkov]

Anyway were the blooming heck is [MENTION=12656]Pantani[/MENTION], [MENTION=2551]Stoichkov[/MENTION] & [MENTION=3347]Horton's halftime iceberg[/MENTION].

We can't draw a line under this thread, until they've had their say.

Great Tour and a great thread to match!

I think Sky have shown what you can do with meticulous planning and the athletes to match - The 2012 Tour suited Wiggins and having the emerging Froome was a great bonus. There are loads of 'ifs' (e.g would he have beaten Contador etc) but you can only beat who is available to beat at the time and Wiggins did just that.

Cycling seems to progress in great, sudden leaps and the progress comes from, largely, the english-speaking countries. The 7-Eleven team shook things up in the late 80's and Greg Lemond also in that period dragged pro cycling forward.

Then Motorola came along with - love him or hate him - Lance Armstrong and the sport changed again.

Now, Sky have raised the bar even higher. Will they be able to push on from here or will the next step-up come from another team / country?

As a footnote - what a clever bit of sponsorship by Sky. ITV have been relentlessly talking about Sky and so have the BBC and at the Beeb's annual sport love-in, the SPOTY, they'll be talking about Sky again! Hours of road cycling shown by Sky - 0. Marvellous

 

[Stat Brother]

can't be arsed to read through the entire thread to see if the answers lies within - so can anybody tell me whats the deal with the helmet colour changes with team Sky ?

I think the team have a light blue helmet as the standard "uniform" ?

and i can understand why BW had a yellow one

but, they seem to chop and change :

- one day all the Sky team had yellow hats
- first T Trial BW had a black one, last T Trial he had a yellow
- cav finished in a black hat on the last day

You don't get lambasted for asking a sensible question, on this thread.

The Yellow helmets signified the leaders of the Team race, mainly the team with the best aggregate time from their top 5 riders.
Radioshack won it, outright.
Cav's black helmet is the teams 'special' aerodynamic one, for his sprints.

 

[Stat Brother]

 

[Brixtaan]

Great Tour and a great thread to match!

As a footnote - what a clever bit of sponsorship by Sky. ITV have been relentlessly talking about Sky and so have the BBC and at the Beeb's annual sport love-in, the SPOTY, they'll be talking about Sky again! Hours of road cycling shown by Sky - 0. Marvellous

Yep thanks Sky for saving first English club football and now British cycling.

As my own footnote, anyone willing to raise their hand and admit they laughed when Brailsford said "5 years".
I know I did, I thought he was living in dreamland, this country will NEVER be able to produce someone who can climb. So even as the Vuelta passed by I thought it was an aberration. Wiggos 4th in 2009 was his honeymoon period on the road. During the Spring Tours I didn't see any big names and even 5 days into the tour I assumed he'd get found out in the proper mountains. Seeing him and Zoome leave Evans that day will live with me in the same way as Roche coming through the mist. I honestly didn't think you could learn to climb.

 

[Stoichkov]

I honestly didn't think you could learn to climb.

Virtually everyone (well, those with some hope of a high GC finish) can learn to climb - its learning to TT which is the hard thing. Climbing is the simple (!) power to weight relationship - get that right and you can climb. The ability to TT is much more 'mysterious'

Sadly, we don't see many classic 'Grimpeurs' any more eg Robert Millar

 

[Stat Brother]

Another hand raised here, certainly at the time DB said it.

I couldn't make the calendar work.
I felt they'd still be doing all the prep, learning the tour, for another couple of years, while Peter Kenaugh slowly stepped up to the plate.

Bloody lucky I know fook all.

Although I did think Brad was going to win this year, as it's now or never. As I'm sure my tips first off will prove.

 

[Stoichkov]

Another hand raised here, certainly at the time DB said it.

I'll half put my hand up - I thought they'd have to buy a winner. I didn't think Wiggins quite had enough in the high mountains.

 

[Indurain's Lungs]

I'll half put my hand up - I thought they'd have to buy a winner. I didn't think Wiggins quite had enough in the high mountains.

Hand up here as well. I thought 5 years was too quick as that meant you needed to already have the rider in mind. At that point it didn't look like there was anyone around.

 

[Stat Brother]

I keep forgeting to ask.
(He says desperately trying to keep the thread 'alive' cos he doesn't want to let go, and it doesn't feel finished yet!)

Seeing Big George Hincapie bring the peloton onto the Champs.

Does TdF cycling have more 'unspoken gentlemanly conduct' laws, than cricket?

To think we 'hate' the French, but have so much in common

 

[Stoichkov]

Does TdF cycling have more 'unspoken gentlemanly conduct' laws, than cricket?

I reckon so. Off the top of my head:

- not pushing on when there's been a crash / puncture etc by one of the other leaders
- letting riders go ahead to see their family if the route goes through their home village / town (these are rare these days)
- sharing a bidon or mussette
- communal p'ss stops

there's loads more. Of course many of these 'sporting gestures' have alterior motives and are often backed up with some £££

 

[Tyrone Biggums]

I'll half put my hand up - I thought they'd have to buy a winner. I didn't think Wiggins quite had enough in the high mountains.

This years Tour was mountain-lite compared to years gone by. As some pointed out the Olympics has a bit too do with that.

 

[Tyrone Biggums]

I really hope that TT doesn't become too big a factor in the event.

Would spoil it imo.

 

[Stat Brother]

I really hope that TT doesn't become too big a factor in the event.

Would spoil it imo.

I can't see that happening, although it's nice to have a variation.
if it was just the best climber wins, that too would eventually become equally boring.

I think in time we can expect more stages like Stage 7 (?) this year, that Froome won.
Short, sharp, intense new climbs but liberally scattered throughout the race.
Cav will struggle to win Green again, but will increase his massive haul of stage victories.

Saying that though next year will be a 'greatest hit's' package, for which there will be minimal TT'ing.
Certainly not Wiggo friendly.

 

[Tyrone Biggums]

I can't see that happening, although it's nice to have a variation.
if it was just the best climber wins, that too would eventually become equally boring.

I think in time we can expect more stages like Stage 7 (?) this year, that Froome won.
Short, sharp, intense new climbs but liberally scattered throughout the race.
Cav will struggle to win Green again, but will increase his massive haul of stage victories.

Saying that though next year will be a 'greatest hit's' package, for which there will be minimal TT'ing.
Certainly not Wiggo friendly.

Perhaps. Though the majority of people still hang out for the mountain stages and view them as the pinnacle of each tour.

They provide the most intrigue when it comes to the race and how it will pan out.

I'm not a big fan of riders who can't attack in the mountains and just sit on the wheel of others. A tactic of Cadel Evans strangely enough over the years preceding his win. A tactic I always found entirely dull and uninspiring.

 

[teaboy]

This years Tour was mountain-lite compared to years gone by. As some pointed out the Olympics has a bit too do with that.

Another hand up over here. If Brad was going to build a TdF route for him to win then it would look pretty much like this year's. Next year will be different. I'm a great fan of TT and I LOVE a Team TT, but they can nullify races somewhat. Next year I'm expecting something old, something new, something borrowed, Sacre Bleu!

 

[Stat Brother]

Perhaps. Though the majority of people still hang out for the mountain stages and view them as the pinnacle of each tour.

They provide the most intrigue when it comes to the race and how it will pan out.

I'm not a big fan of riders who can't attack in the mountains and just sit on the wheel of others. A tactic of Cadel Evans strangely enough over the years preceding his win. A tactic I always found entirely dull and uninspiring.

Each tour will always have a couple of days up the big boys, over the 2 weekends.
I think the trick will be not making them the be all and end all.

4 pan flat, 4 high mountains, Prologue, TT.
I see the other 10 stages being varying degrees of 'rolling'.
With enough incentive and hill up finishes for roulers to think they are in with a chance of winning out right.