Tour de France 2014

Ned getting hosed by Chris on the ITV4 highlights...

It looks to me that each rider would try and push out nearly 1k which is big or no problem for Martin but going a little later could help too?

You're oversimplifying it. Even when you're out of the wind you are still on the rivet trying to keep up at that pace - it's no picnic and Kittel is a big unit so would probably benefit less from drafting than Cav anyway.

As Andy has already pointed out, they are trying to gather data and also probe for holes in the Giant train. I imagine that they are seeing what going harder, earlier does to the Giant train (especially since OPQS's TTT engine room is second to none), how the GC teams respond to that, what kind of race environment that creates in the closing kilometre and whether it would be better or worse for Cav if he was going head to head with Kittel.

Maybe they're trying to ascertain whether a more chaotic final K/500m would benefit a more mobile Cav, versus a less mobile Kittel.
Kittel's strength is his straight line drag strip speed, he is pretty much unbeatable given enough road - but he doesn't have the same snap as Cav (or the same smarts), so Cav/OPQS needs to either get a jump on him or force him to change his line / interrupt his sprint... Somehow.

If it's not one massive German it's the other

I know I said we should move on from the whole Wiggins/Froome conundrum, but this is a good piece by Joe Lindsey;

http://www.bicycling.com/tour-de-france/expert-analysis/skys-biggest-mistake

We'll never move on from that, never. Well some of us won't.....well I won't

Kwiatkowski!!! So fucking close man. Argh!

Pretty much spot in that article: they are professionals, employees, and it was a major management failing not to harness both talents effectively. I wonder if Brailsford after losing Suttin and Yates, simply couldn't be arsed with Wiggins the diva, and invested everything in Froome, and there was no way back when Wiggins came knocking at the rain-soaked window of the team, like a drunk Dan Akroyd in a Santa suit

The Roubaix stage had only one DNF - Froome. And he crashed on tarmac roads. Today 4 people crashed out. The main effect on the race yesterday was from Nibali's brilliant ride and he has even less experience on the cobbles than Froome. Without the wrist injury there is no reason to think Froome would not have done as well as Porte, Valverde or Contador.

Pretty much spot in that article: they are professionals, employees, and it was a major management failing not to harness both talents effectively. I wonder if Brailsford after losing Suttin and Yates, simply couldn't be arsed with Wiggins the diva, and invested everything in Froome, and there was no way back when Wiggins came knocking at the rain-soaked window of the team, like a drunk Dan Akroyd in a Santa suit

I mostly agree. Brailsford seems uneasy with emotions - his reactions to Froome's exit were very pragmatic. Which is fine in public but Wiggins is very emotional and Froome is not, despite appearances, a robot.

The Roubaix stage had only one DNF - Froome. And he crashed on tarmac roads. Today 4 people crashed out. The main effect on the race yesterday was from Nibali's brilliant ride and he has even less experience on the cobbles than Froome. Without the wrist injury there is no reason to think Froome would not have done as well as Porte, Valverde or Contador.

Except Froome needs fvckin' stabilisers

^ Horner saw Froome crash and said this

"He caught a little crack in the road. There was road furniture on the left and he got caught in the crack and it took his front wheel. It was nothing he could do about it. It wasn't about experience or lack of bike handling skills. It was just very slippery and he got caught in the gap and went down. It could have happened to any rider."

And Froome was riding with a badly damaged wrist.

Except Froome needs fvckin' stabilisers

And you need someone to find out how you can reverse a full frontal lobotomy.

I know I said we should move on from the whole Wiggins/Froome conundrum, but this is a good piece by Joe Lindsey;

http://www.bicycling.com/tour-de-france/expert-analysis/skys-biggest-mistake

Well judging by Wiggins' instagram we can expect a series of threads in current projects.

Froome's crash in stage 3 wasn't his fault either, his front wheel got taken out by another rider. However his bike handling has always been poor, and I think in those conditions even fully fit he would have lost the same sort of time as Contador at least. He's not good in the cold and the wet generally, coming from that African sun.

He (Froome) looked totally devastated in the team car, unable to even pull the door shut due to his injuries.

Poor bugger.

Yeah, friendly team.

He looked a broken man before that, his body language on the bike was wrong. Not his biggest fan but no-one should enjoy seeing any competitor exit in that manner.

Anyway.

Bored of all this sprinty bullshit now, want mountains pls.

(kidding)

((notreally))

I now know how every one else felt 2009 to 2011 when Cav grabbed five stages each time. I love a sprint but they seem such a forgone conclusion, until today. I like Kittel, I like him better when he's rolling off the back with a kilo to go. Then Greipel won, ah well.

Also wondering if FDJ are regretting leaving Bouhanni at home. On form Demare is the quicker rider, but Bouhanni is a seasoned campaigner. I wonder if he would have got detached in the crosswinds today #utterspeculation

Demare crashed, which is why he was behind.

Cue some armchair expert criticising his bike handling skills...

Demare needs training wheels. I hear he has help getting on the bike he's so wobbly.

That work for you?

Ok I didn't know he had crashed but he was in the arse-end of the peloton when it split inside 30k, so he had the potential to be at the sharp end, and FDJ did some half-hearted chasing. And he hasn't really featured yet, Coquard being the most aggressive French sprinter so far.

I like Kittel, I like him better when he's rolling off the back with a kilo to go.

Are you saying that he needs to lose weight?

Demare needs training wheels. I hear he has help getting on the bike he's so wobbly.

That work for you?

No, the grammar in the highlighted sentence is awful. Would not read again.