Tour de france

[Ricboff]

here's Porte:


[FONT=&quot]'The crowd was all over the road and the motorbike just stopped, we had nowhere to go. [Froome] was on my wheel, he went straight into the back of me. We were 23 seconds ahead, it’s not fair... it can’t stand, surely the jury has to look at it and use a bit of discretion. The crowd are in your face the whole time, pushing riders... at the top, that was just crazy.”[/FONT]

Froome likely would have extended his lead!!!........who will froome punch in the face?..:missingte


we have a new leader.......yellow goes to:

another Brit...only 23 yrs old!!

 

[Ricboff]

I take that back .... Still no yellow jersey presentation

 

[kermit16]

A side note........ The + 160 on Quintana matchup with Froome is awaiting the organizers decision ! If finish is allowed to stand ..... Luckiest win ever ? LOL

 

[Ricboff]

won't stand

Froome just tweeted

Chris Froome
✔@chrisfroome

Still in the #YellowJersey #TDF
11:48 AM - 14 Jul 2016



not confirmed

 

[kermit16]

It's official. Chris Froome in Yellow as he should be !y

 

[kermit16]

Organizers totally screwed up one of the most awesome climbs of the 2016 Tour !

 

[Ricboff]

good call by the jury.

going to need a legit crash to take him out, imho. have a good one, kermit

 

[kermit16]

good call by the jury.

going to need a legit crash to take him out, imho. have a good one, kermit

Taking away the bizarre ending of today's stage, the 2 Man showdown between Quintana and Froome was a total domination by Froome. To answer an earlier question as to when would Quintana make his move. Stage 19 seems to be his best chance IF he has any chance. We must recall that last year Quintana came on strong in the final stages. Too little too late last year but sh-t can still happen as we saw today.

 

[kermit16]

One final thought. Although it would have been unfair, part of me kinda thought this year's Tour might have been more interesting IF they had left original finish stand. Your thoughts ?

 

[Ricboff]

oh gee, for sure!!!!!


Froome has been incredibly impressive. Doesn't get enough credit as a climber. And he's proving to be a master tactician. He's ACTING like a winner out there. No fear. Cmon, the other day takes off with Sagan? There's no way he was going to beat Sagan in the sprint-he didn't care, he took off. His moves, with the Tour nearly half way done, have proved brilliant- over and over

“We really are looking for every opportunity,” Froome said. “It’s our mentality this year to try our luck every time it’s possible, even on the flats.”

Kinda says it all, doesn't it?

On the other side you have Quintana who is content to be passive until the last week!?!?!



TT's, and i'm expecting Froome to possibly extend his lead!!


i think its over barring a crash. I hope i'm wrong. We will see how the big the loss Porte was to Team SKy come the last week. He WAS HUGE last year.......i just thikn Froome is too strong, too driven....his running up the hill? brilliant!!! haha!! gotta love the drive of the human spirit

'....somebody get me a bike!!.........'

 

[kermit16]

oh gee, for sure!!!!!


Froome has been incredibly impressive. Doesn't get enough credit as a climber. And he's proving to be a master tactician. He's ACTING like a winner out there. No fear. Cmon, the other day takes off with Sagan? There's no way he was going to beat Sagan in the sprint-he didn't care, he took off. His moves, with the Tour nearly half way done, have proved brilliant- over and over

“We really are looking for every opportunity,” Froome said. “It’s our mentality this year to try our luck every time it’s possible, even on the flats.”

Kinda says it all, doesn't it?

On the other side you have Quintana who is content to be passive until the last week!?!?!



TT's, and i'm expecting Froome to possibly extend his lead!!


i think its over barring a crash. I hope i'm wrong. We will see how the big the loss Porte was to Team SKy come the last week. He WAS HUGE last year.......i just thikn Froome is too strong, too driven....his running up the hill? brilliant!!! haha!! gotta love the drive of the human spirit

'....somebody get me a bike!!.........'

Yes ! You nailed it. Whole episode in restrospect was hilarious ! What was Chris to do. He's riding away from his GC competitors one second and next second he's on the asphalt. His bike has been run over by a following Motorcycle. Now he's running ! Crazy ! Now it gets funnier as he's given a bike like one of several I have in my garage that's way too small. Riders are cycling by him like he's peddling backwards and just staring back at him like " what the hell ". Finally he tosses it aside and waits for his team car that is slowly working its way through a massive crowd of spectators that have probably had plenty of drinks ! We shall never again see anything more' bizarre in the Tour !

 

[Ricboff]

yeah what a spectacle. As you said earlier , organizers laid an egg. Gee, dangerous out there!! no room for the bikes!!!

[FONT=&quot]'The Tour director, Christian Prudhomme, promised an investigation into the incident and explained the wind prevented organisers from erecting the usual barriers at the end of the stage. “We took an exceptional decision because of this exceptional situation, an incident that might have never happened before in 100 years,” he said. “There will be an investigation to find out why the TV motorbike was blocked and the riders fell.


some quotes:

[/FONT][FONT=&quot]“I’m happy with the decision,” said Yates.”I wouldn’t have wanted to take the yellow jersey like that. I’d rather take it with my legs.”


[/FONT][FONT=&quot]Froome’s directeur sportif, Nicolas Portal, was visibly furious at the finish. “It’s fucking annoying, to be simple,” said the Frenchman. “This was not a normal sporting accident. It was not the weather or a normal crash. There was a wall of people. It wasn’t one spectator but thousands.”


[/FONT][FONT=&quot] De Gendt said he too came close to falling due to the crowds. “I got pushed, [second placed] Serge Pauwels got pushed. We almost crashed because of all the people. This is something they should do something about. There were too many people in the last kilometre, not even space for a single motorbike.”


Froome:
[/FONT]"What a final. In the final kilometre, the moto braked suddenly in front of us, and Richie, Bauke and I crashed into it, and then the moto behind me ran over my bike and broke it.
"I said to myself 'I have no bike'. And I knew the car with my bike was 5 minutes behind on the road, so I need to run.


Rodriquez:
"The wind on the last climb certainly made it tricky, but there were so many people out there. They made a really big problem. I really don't know what's going on with this Tour. Personally, I don't think it is under control at all.
"There were a lot of difficulties in the last couple of kilometers because of the position of people. I was feeling good, but it is disappointing."


Bardet:

We tried to remain as focused as we could today. I had some disappointment because I had to really fight back at the bottom of the Ventoux. But what I saw on Ventoux was it wasn't the best conditions on the bike. There were so many motorbikes in the way, it wasn't safe. You had to brake when you were attacking. We need to have a long conversation about security here. It was unacceptable what happened today. I don't know what will happen with the maillot jaune. I have never seen anything like this on a bike race before.
"There was a really good battle between the GC guys. I stayed just behind. I wanted to ride my own pace, I knew I couldn't be with the very best. I knew Porte and Froome would get away. I could feel my legs were getting better. I am hoping to be at my best in the last week."


Stetina:

"I was just riding up behind the favourites group and I had a gendarme basically stiff-arming people out of the way just to keep me upright. Guys like Froomey get in trouble for pushing someone out of the way, but it’s ridiculous. Just before the climb a Portuguese flag got thrown in Markel Irizar’s handlebars when we were going full gas in the crosswinds, and it’s dangerous. It adds another element to the racing, and that’s unfortunate that the fans are dictating the race more than the legs sometimes.
"Somehow we’ve gotten this scene where everyone wants to get on TV for a party. You have guys dressed up in Borat costumes showing their ass, and it’s more about themselves than supporting the race sometimes. I don’t understand why you have to act like a buffoon.

...................


btw, holy moly this Yates kid has promise!!

 

[Ricboff]

stage 13....sadness in france at Nice...TT..

no drafting allowed .....Nairo is overwhelmed here. Goal is to hang on....

 

[kermit16]

Chris Froome runs a great time trial taking second in the stage and opening up a big lead over his fellow Yellow Jersey competition ! I expected him to do well but today's result puts him solidly in the drivers seat.

 

[kermit16]

Chris Froome increased his lead to 1mi 47 seconds over Bauke Mollema who move past Blake Yates into second place. What makes Chris such a great Champion is that not only is he fantastic In the mountains but a great time trialiat also. This has been a trait of many of the past Tour Champions. Yates ran a good time trial but he will have to work on that part of his cycling if he will be the rider to take over the top spot in future Tours. He is so young !

 

[kermit16]

Today's stage figures to be a day for the sprinters with the GC contenders taking the day off I expect. After yesterday's stage, this race is over unless Quintana or someone can mount a comeback when the tough finishing stages starting in stage 17.

 

[kermit16]

Mark Cavendish won today's stage for his 4th stage win in this year's Tour. As expected the main GC contenders took it easy with no change ! More or less a ho hum day !

 

[kermit16]

Jarlinson Santano won today's stage as he was part of an early break. Chris Froome retained his lead as the main contenders finished together after a tough day in the Mountains. It appears obvious that stage 17 will become showdown day if anyone is going to challenge Chris Froome in this year's Tour. Tomorrow's stage will most likely belong to strong sprinters like Peter Sagan.

 

[kermit16]

Pantano won race. Sorry about misspelling.

 

[Ricboff]

yup kermit.....a Columbian wins, but his first name aint Nairo....


Mr Pantano, post-glory;

"It's an incredible day for me. I came to the Tour de France thinking I'd try to win a stage but to do it is difficult to believe. I'd hoped to do it but this is incredible. I want to thank my IAM teammates, who did a great job for me in the attack. I also want to thank my family, especially my wife, who have always supported me. This is a special day for me."

Froome never threatened today, despite losing Thomas early....just a casual ride....geez


wow, super high praise for his team!! here's Froome;

"That's one of the things I said coming into this race. I really am in such a privileged position to have such a strong team around me, possibly the strongest team that Team Sky has ever put in the Tour de France, with guys who would be leaders in other teams in their own right,


well....let's see how strong they're come the Alps

'....gotta get some shut-eye.....see ya tomorrow all...'