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the first 'official' Wests was on the 22nd November 2008

it does look that way from the thread, true.

Original meet was Red Lion in Barnes

I very much doubt that.

well, 30 seconds or so, probably. he would have been closer to Martin than to the rest of the peleton.

don't forget he beat Martin in the Olympic TT.

A good point about EBH. He could have really livened up Sky's performance.

you're assuming that the Wiggins on display this year would have been the same in 2012 and I have my doubts there given Wiggin's stated unwillingness to give it all up for the Tour unlike in 2012

No, not assuming anything - any one who has followed Wiggins over the last 5 years knows his form varies perhaps more than any rider.
But, the form he has showed this year suggested he might be at 2012 level. might.

Also : I'm curious as to why Martin isn't developed a little more for GC. I guess he knows himself well, but it's often seemed like he could pull off some Indurain type GC tactics if trained for it.

Thomas : I'd be interested to see what he could do if protected and groomed all season long in the Sky tradition.

Wiggins : I can't help but remember Nibali going backwards in 2012 when Sky put the hurt on him. This year seems different, sure, but Wiggins would have only been seconds behind Martin in the TT, so i think he could have run Nibali pretty close, if on his very best clinging-on-for-grim-death form on the mountains. But we'll never know, and that's a very big 'if'.

Froome : Probably would have won. I've never seen Nibali stand up to Froome's attacks before, but it looks like it could have been a great battle.

Contador : No idea, a real wild card. His sheer competitive spirit would have set this tour alight, though. Frankly I really feel it's been an also-rans tour, and very disappoint for that.

Just like Wiggo in 2011 then? #deludedfuckingpoms

Absolutely, he could never win the Tdf.

The funny thing is, Cadel might have actually stood a chance this year.

Nibali & Evans : Team Bi-Default

World apart from football wow. These guys must really love the sport!

It IS a world apart , yes, but bear in mind those figures are just for stage finishes and sprints etc. The GC also carries a large-ish prize fund - but they aren't racing for prize money, they are getting paid to be there by the teams. A rider that does well in the TdF ( stage win) can expect a hefty increase in salary for the rest of the season, and probably the rest of his career.

Tony Martin's blog post after the win:

It's looking easy because he's not racing against Froome and Contador.

And that.

It's the 'too good to be true' thing i guess : yes, it looked too easy; he's been on shit form all year to the point of being publicly criticised by his team; I don't remember ever seeign him ride anything like this well, in the past he's been completely unable to stand up to Sky's attacks, today it looked as though he could have taken Wiggins AND Froome to bits without sweating.

bit odd.

Oh, and he's Italian.

Can i just say that this is going to be one TDF victory that won't stand the test of time.

I'm betting Nibali doesn't get the jersey back at all.

there, I said it.

Contador's time trialling has been below par since he returned from his ban.

yes, agreed. i guess i wondered if his general return to form would include a boost there.

but, we shall see, that's the fun, right? It's quite wide open which is a nice surprise, and I wouldn't rule out a wild card performance from someone else, too.

Didn't nibs do a great tt albeit uphill one when he won the giro?

yes, but not against anyone great.

Porte is the best time triallist of the three (on paper) so if he can remain in touch he could still be in with a shout on the final time trial. Both Nibali and Contador know this so I'd imagine they'll try and ensure they exploit any signs of weakness from Porte.

is he? fair enough - i'm still recalling some of Contadors best time trials, from back during the clenbutarol days.

Thursday didn't count?

not in terms of climbing no - maybe he should enter Roubaix next year!

Old skool reprazent.

and so on, and so forth.

They call me Nimbali these days.

No, they don't.

I'm pretty good, BDW, yourself?

Would love to know what the dialogue was between nibbles and contador on that last slope.

"Hey, i no thpeak italian"

"okey dokey, me no speaka da spanish"

More or less.

i think Bertie is going to rip Nibalis legs off, if not in the mountains ( although, yes, in the mountains) then certainly in the time trial.

I have never seen Nibali do anything truly convincing against a competitor like Contador, Froome etc.

I kind of want to believe in Porte, but he didn't look so great today.

But, hey, I could be wrong. we shall see.

Sold. Donation made to forum.

Best looking road wheels you can put on a bike..still available

These are still available - can deliver to Waterloo any day this week.

they appear to be provisionally sold, i'm afraid. will update soon.

Heh to battleground though.