Tour de France 2015

It's not if you remember Erik Zabel.

cough
splutter
Blows nose
I've had to go home because I feel lousy.

Shame for alex. Bet he's gutted.

Think he might struggle to get a tour ride again. Would be a shame if he didn't get to finish and do a job.

Anyone else having trouble with the ITV player? It works for 5 seconds then goes blank with the spinny thing. Been alright before today on same browser and same PC. Maybe work have finally cottoned on to how little I've done for the last week and a bit.

General question; now that GC jersey looks like a done deal, will teams start changing tactics to a plan B? If so who, and what?

Sagan is jokes.

http://gfycat.com/EcstaticGreedyGalapagosmockingbird

The Samsung ad on Eurosport makes my toes curl every time I see it.

Movistar aren't exactly blessed jwhen it comes to bunch engines. And they signed him on a four year deal so I think they really rate what he brings to the team.

The hour record certainly didn't hurt his position on the team.

So do I. He is a big valuable engine for the team.

I do think they will think about his selection though, as it's true, if he's injured it is harder to heal. And it's caused him to drop out. I do hope to see him back at the tour. I'm sure he'll fight for it.

So good. Degenkolb gets the joke but andre is so very serious.

'yesh guise we are all very strong but a breakaway would not be advisable, we vould have no chance of succeeding'

So. Kwia?
Yes?
No?
Doomed?

I'd like to see Kwia take it. And I think he can. But that's based on hope combined with a huge fantasy league points deficit.

Top ten in the Tour is valuable (for the rider in salary negotiations and for the team in World Tour points). So a lot of teams will be looking to ensure they get that.

It's not done and dusted yet though, today's stage is hard and there are still 4 stages in the Alps to come.

Lots of good climbers still in the break who'd fancy their chances of catching him on the final climb.

One of the GC teams might up the pace on this climb to thin out the Sky domestiques and leave Froome exposed.

Kirby is Alan Partridge. "If this rain were hail, it would be dangerous."

Did anyone catch Phil on ITV say something like :

"The residents of this village were involved in the Battle of the Maidens, or the Battle of the Demoiselles [long pause] which was a battle that was fought [long pause] in the local area."

Forget your screaming legs, your prolapsed anus, your athlete's foot, this ride isn't about you, you're not going to win.....anyway...... because you're shit. But together, together, TOGETHER, we might. No thanks to you, though, you tosser.

Doomed.

However I look forward to his decent if he makes it to the summit out-front. He flies.

His decent what?

His decent descent ;-0

someone owes carlton kirby an apology
those raindrops are hailstones

pfft. I've seen @Bainbridge laugh at that sort of weather.

https://twitter.com/letour/status/621675039579066368

on yesterdays coverage you could hear the motorbike tyres squealing round the hot dry tarmac corners as they tried to keep up with the peleton
the life of a cyclist hey