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Dominique, did you see today's stage in the Tour de France?

Tres bien. Sylvain deserves that after the very bad luck he had Wednesday on the cobbles. Think of the advantage in yellow he would have had it not been for that day.

I still say the time Lance lost on the cobbles will be his Achilles's Heel, otherwise he will go with Contador tomorrow and try and hurt Andy Schleck and Cadel. Maybe Sylvain can hold his yellow tomorrow, but they are not his kind of hills, too long and too steep.

Caz
 
I indeed think that Chavanel will only keep the "maillot jaune" (yellow jersey) for one day. But as the saying goes, tomorrow is another day !

The next stage is going to be interesting : the first two-third are relatively eay and then the last 60 km will have two 1st category passes almost in a row !
 
Don't like Chavanel's chances....good luck to him for the effort. But he really busted a gut to take out the first of the mountain stages, I would think that effort will take to much out of him for the nasty stuff to come.
The big chances are circling like sharks waiting to pounce.
 
A day when the true leaders come forward.

I tried thinking about what tactics the leaders will use today and I came to the conclusion that Cadel Evans will have to show us if he has it or not today. Saxo Bank, Astana and Radio Shack of going to team up to put some distance on him I feel. I also feel that Andy Schleck and Saxo Bank may cut a deal with Radio Shack to try and break Contador later, but not today, today it is men like Cadel Evans and Bradley Wiggins that are the marked men for deposing off the back along with Ryder Hesjedal and Denis Menchov. They popped Geraint Thomas yesterday and will put much more time over him today. Alexandre Venokourov will help Contador to the last drop, but he too, will eventually be dropped. Leipheimer will likely lose a chink of time today also. I hope Lance has it in his legs, but he is already marked by the Spaniard, who know he has 50-seconds over him and all he has to do is follow the Radio Shack train, even if he does not have a good team of climbers. The race will be Contador's by the time they leave the Alps Tuesday.

Caz
 
And all but Armstrong did come forward.

Bravo Andy Schleck and Cadel Evans. Andy proved that Contador can be beaten.

But Armstrong is beaten, were it not for Levi Leipheimer having a good day and staying in contention, I would reckon he would abandon the tour. It has been a hard luck tour for Lance, he has fallen once too often. He is tough, but he may be forced to abandon if he keeps falling.

If he is not badly injured, he will ride out the tour as a super domestique. I still think he wants to have a stage win and will be looking for the Pyrenees, where the climbs are steeper. A stage win would be a good retirement gift for him and his fans.

But I am thinking all along that Cadel is looking good, so is Andy Schleck, but his Time Trialing will need improvement.

So I need a rest tomorrow also, I have missed two mornings of cycling due to the early morning coverage on tour tracker, today's coverage started at 5:30 AM EDT, normal start times are not until 8:30.

Now it is off to watch the Silverstone F-1 race, which is being rebroadcast delayed on FOX here. This is proving to be an interesting tour and I do now believe that Contador can be beaten. After the race, I'll tune in the World Cup, a sort of Sunday delight, as it is so hot and humid outside, so I am staying in and watching! Go Oranje!!!!

Caz
 
The last 10 km were a pure exercise of risk aversion by the big guys if not for Schleck at the very end. Contador was specially disappointing as he benefited from a strong team doing most of the race end or him. Schleck and Evans were a little lonesome in the last 10 and that does no bode well for their future.

Good finish of Van den Broek.

Amstrong had poor luck and maybe is a little old for riding the Tour ahead. Bravo for trying anyway.
 
Our Dutch hope Geesink finished 3rd this stage and Mechov another rider from the single Dutch team in this years race finished in the same time.

It was a nice gesture Chavanel was allowed to finish before the group with Lance.

I don't know whether Lance will be able to win a mountain stage, but I think he has some chances in this years time trial.

Cheers,
Huub
 
huub vink said:
Our Dutch hope Geesink finished 3rd this stage and Mechov another rider from the single Dutch team in this years race finished in the same time.

It was a nice gesture Chavanel was allowed to finish before the group with Lance.

I don't know whether Lance will be able to win a mountain stage, but I think he has some chances in this years time trial.

Cheers,
Huub
Click to expand...

No Huub, Lance will never turn over a large screw like he use to in order to win a time trial. But there are five mountain stages left and Lance has nothing to lose now by taking off on one or two of them and putting Contador in a good deal of bother. I do not care if any of the other contenders win the tour, just as long as it is not Alberto Contador. I do not like the man, he races for himself and not his team.

Caz
 
demorier said:
:wavey:
Click to expand...

I hope Cadel enjoys his Maillot Jaune Tomorrow is going to be a long day for the contenders and it is a tough job to defend the jersey in the mountains where your team must lead and you are a marked man. Lance may be out of it, but this is still a wide-open Tour de France, only two and a half minutes separate the top ten competitors. Thus far only Contador's team has held force on the last climbs.

Caz
 
huub vink said:
The world title has changed him, but I still don't know whether he will really attack in the mountains.

Cheers,
Huub
Click to expand...


Well, I think today answered that and it was not because he did not have the protection of a team.

The heads of state are set, but as far as I am concerned, it is over: game, set, match to Contador. He will decimate Andy Schleck in the steep Pyrenees and further kill him in the time trial. I hope Andy enjoys his next few days in yellow.

A pity about Lance, but I feel even without the bad days, his tour runs would be over, he simply does not have the legs or the ambition any more. Levi's tour has ended also, he is playing for a third place podium at best.

But Andy Schleck looked brilliant again today and he and Alberto Contador definitively answered the question as to who will be the true tour competitors this year. I am pulling for him to hopefully unseat the Spaniard in the Pyrenees and gain enough time to limit his losses in the time trial, but I have my worst fears that the tables will be turned before the time trial is even a question.

Caz
 
That was a stage as I like them :) !

Schleck was impressive, imposing his agenda to Contador who just had to follow. And he did follow.... Both had a lot of energy left after an exhausting stage. Their duel when they left the meager peloton was the Tour as its best.

Last year AS indeed lost almost two minutes in the time trial to Contador. So to keep the maillot jaune up to Paris he'll have to do better than that. We'll see.

Bravo to Sandy Cazar, a beatiful winning in a climbing and twisted finale and hat off to Evans who transcended his pain to finish the stage.
 
What a gruelling hill climb duel that was...the pace has been very fast on those big climbs. Who knows what will happen, the leaders and the team mates would have used up a lot of juice now. I don't want to put a hex on them but the 2 top guys guys are the only main title contenders to NOT have any problems so far with crashes straight in front, dogs running out in the way, stupid reporters running out in front of the riders etc.
Bit of a pity for our man Evans, don't know if he will struggle on or not. :rolleyes:
 
demorier said:
What a gruelling hill climb duel that was...the pace has been very fast on those big climbs. Who knows what will happen, the leaders and the team mates would have used up a lot of juice now. I don't want to put a hex on them but the 2 top guys guys are the only main title contenders to NOT have any problems so far with crashes straight in front, dogs running out in the way, stupid reporters running out in front of the riders etc.
Bit of a pity for our man Evans, don't know if he will struggle on or not. :rolleyes:
Click to expand...

Beg your pardon, Andy Schleck fell the day of the first stage and everyone though he had busted his arm, but he finished and continued on. Only Alberto Contador has gone through this tour without a scratch. All those items are tour incidents that have happened since the tour has become extremely popular years ago. These things happen. Lance caused his own mishap (the first one in the traffic island), when he clipped his pedal on the curbing and rolled his front tire. Cadel has to be hurting too, but lance's time was lost due to time expended due to the accidents, Cadel's performance yesterday was due to him trying so hard two days before and having a rest day and then just giving out of gas. Neither Lance nor Cadel is out due to injuries, but because the field is much younger now and the young men rule the roost. As far as the Tour de France goes, it is time for both to step off the mantle.

I literally despise Alberto Contador, but he is going to win the Tour, perhaps by the largest margin it has been won by in recent years. Like Lance Armstrong ten years ago, he is in a league of his own and can dictate how this race goes by himself, he really doesn't even need a team, he is that good at the discipline it takes to win a long tour.

Caz
 
I'm off tomorrow on a 2 week driving holiday...might get difficult but I'll be watching whenever possible.

See ya's all in a while.
 
Have a good walk about mate. I think the tour has been decided already, if you reverse the current podium positions. The third podium is the only one in question. I am up for the tour this morning, had a quelling 25-mile ride myself in the heat of the haut Virginia Summer.

Caz
 
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