TCR 10, Transcontinental Race

They don't. I work in that industry. It's to do with the way tax works. They often use subcontractors but the subcontractors employ their drivers. It's very different from eg the UK, Spain or Italy. France is the most similar to Germany, there are some self employed drivers working for la poste, but it's all employed at the others, even Amazon.

I can't see it. Would you drive 600km to find some guy in order to get paid? What if you can't find him, you're way out of pocket in eastern Europe with possibly no money to get home. So what if you've got some guy's passport if you can't find him!

What they don't know won't hurt them and that list is bullshit anyway.

That's probably right, within schengen certainly. No customs declarations, etc.

I've got a little bit of sympathy, based on precedent from the old days when they didn't have many women riders.

Back in 2015 Jayne Wadsworth was the only female finisher, and she generally gets recorded as first woman. However she started as a pair, with Katie l'Herpinaire. Katie scratched somewhere round Albania and Jayne carried on as a solo. They are featured in the 'Angry Dogs' video, and they both came back to ride solo in 2016 (when I met them both, riding round the neutralised first lap of Geraadsbergen).

Nowadays, good female riders are, comparatively speaking, ten a penny, and the organisers don't seem to know the history of the race that well, so they don't need her.

Given the comments they're making about the organisers on the socials, how they "need to get their shit together" (???) I think mine is about gone. If you enter a race in a given category and your partner drops out then that's it, you're out of the race (the 'r' in TCR). One dnf is no different to another as far as I'm concerned, this isn't a sportive. And slagging off the people running the event on your socials as per the rules that were laid out very plainly has eroded my patience right the way down.

I've not read any of that. Agree that a bit of humility goes a long way!

Yeah I would too but as @Calumonwheels mentioned she's not going the right way about it. In her last video presumably she's aware that she isn't the third female, the woman who is actually third is.

I'd say posting stuff like this isn't really a good look either.

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Gets on my nerves that they're demanding the poorly paid and overworked organisers and media team give them attention and adulation, all while berating them on instagram for not giving them a special sweetheart deal. Why can't they just accept that they have DNFd like anyone else.

It's an inherent risk of racing as a pair too. If you want everything to be within your control, then enter as a solo.

Ah you're right, the self employed stuff actually stopped like two years ago, including Amazon flex. Thanks, went by me.
As I said, you'd have to be convincing to make someone do it, that's for sure.

This is so lame and disrespectful

It not even a DNF, it's just out of GC

If he was in team sky there'd be a dead easy solution to the problem

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"We plotted a dumb route so even though my Paris partner DNFd I should still be considered in the Solo riders!"

WTAF?

Top 10 have all taken wildly different routes it seems.

Looks like he's got wider tyres than most people had last time :)

Agreed that is a weird stance that simply isn't reasonable nor a good look. The "I predict a riot" choice of song adds to it - there really isn't a case for any fuss and ultimately when and if she makes it, it will still be a huge achievement and something she should cherish having done through overcoming the initial plan failing, rather than be aggrieved that rules weren't bent just because.

In other news, curious to see how Omar Di Felice does in this. Kind of felt like a TCR entry felt overdue for him, but also sad to see an early crash set a bit of an uphill battle for him. 10th now but he's won races before by going on a last leg rampage of little sleep and endless trucking on, so who knows?

Yeah, he's often up the front but not often in #1

He did win TransAm last year, with a decent time, by 4h over Pawel.

35mm and he mentioned in his insta story that his route between CP2 and 3 is about 30% gravel.

He did win by a good margin down under as well, though not sure what the field was like and if there was any of the same riders then. The tragic way things unfolded also made it perhaps not a good gauge.

Just checked his Insta, he seems quite positive on who's heading for the win: "About the race, I consider it a privilege to be able to witness live what Gemperle is doing: first in history to reach a TCR checkpoint before its official opening. For the other places on the podium there are many of us and all close together"

Edit: he's also suffered heatstroke on the Alps 😬

Abdullah, Andre and Christoph's segment time between CP1 and 2.

Yeah go ODF. Sarah is incorrect that she is this dotwatcher's 'favourite pair' as I'm cheering for Sherry who happens to be in front of her 🤣

first in history to reach a TCR checkpoint before its official opening.

I mean, it's hard for the organisers given that there isn't any way of finding out where riders are.

Abdullah has done about 130km more than Robin, with a higher average and seven hours less stopped time.

How you can do 2,400km on 12 hours' rest is just beyond me.

He seems to try to avoid hills, whereas Robin doesn't seem to worry about them.

These people frighten me. And this isn't like laps of a velodrome this is technical alpine cycling in a foreign land hauling goods. Scary.

ICYMI, closing times:
CP1 26/07 23:59
CP2 29/07 23:59
CP3 31/07 18:00
CP4 03/08 23:59
Finish 06/08 23:59