Tour de France 2013

"And another thing. Peleton etiquette. You cause a crash with the race leader. The blokes that are both of your main rivals are out ahead. The race leader has a team mate to help him back to the main rivals. I'm no expert but I would have thought peleton etiquette would say you should do your share of the work on the chase and not freeload?"

If you are referring to the Froome/Contador incident from yesterday, peloton etiquette only comes into the equation in the sense that riders coming from behind tried to take advantage of the situation i.e Froome, or rather the Yellow Jersey being in trouble. In reality, obviously they were trying to gain time on Contador and not Froome, but in terms of peloton etiquette that is more or less irrelevant.

On the other hand, If you're already in a breakaway you're good to go, but cruising along from behind and suddenly having the urge to stage an attack knowing that the race leader is in trouble is generally speaking considered bad style.

Moreover, what you are referring to as freeloading, while it may cause frustration and arguments at the time, is a perfectly acceptable tactic, which may or may not work. Also note that Contador didn't in any shape or form force Froome off the road. While Contador was mainly attacking Mollema on the descent, Froome was aware that potentially he too could lose vital seconds. Contador pushed it to the limit and slipped... That's racing.

If Froome was so damn concerned about Contador's riding style on the descend, why the fuck did he tail him so closely? No different than you daily commute really, if the guy ahead of you is taking (unnecessary) chances, you're not obliged to follow.

Froome immediate comments after the race were immature and uncalled for, and merely reflect his youth and inexperience; after all the responsibility of coming from nowhere to become the greatest clean and dope free rider the world has ever seen, can't be easy.