Tour de France 2020 general thread (SPOILERS GALORE)

The coverage and the breakaway has a very 'amateurish' feel to it this year even in the times we live in. I've said it before and I'll say it again ITV4 can get a proper highlights package together by 7pm with proper punditry and Eurosport just show the last hours racing. Best things that have been shown in recent days in terms of extras have been Orla's interviews with various people.

If you were an advertiser on Eurosport would you not be miffed they were telling people to dodge them every 10 minutes?

Another thing I was reminded of during lockdown when they were showing best of Froome and Wiggins was Kirby was very much the 3rd man back then and doing a more Jonathan HB role with Harmon and Kelly and basically inherited Harmon's role but didn't drop the ****e talk.

Daroxtar

[Deleted User] wrote: »

Best things that have been shown in recent days in terms of extras have been Orla's interviews with various people.

Orla is a professional journalist unlike the other lads who are just panellists with a knowledge of cycling. I think she's been very restricted on the show at the moment. If it was an hour long and they give her more of a role it would improve the show IMHO.

Daroxtar

Daroxtar wrote: »

Orla is a professional journalist unlike the other lads who are just panellists with a knowledge of cycling. I think she's been very restricted on the show at the moment. If it was an hour long and they give her more of a role it would improve the show IMHO.

Yeah spot on there I think.

bobbyy gee

Stopped looking for motors on bikes tour de france

https://www.cyclingweekly.com/news/racing/case-closed-after-no-hidden-motors-found-in-peloton-after-two-years-458715

Dr. Bre

I wonder was it ever used and by whom

john9876

4 of the top 10 overall are Colombian.

Tim76

bobbyy gee wrote: »

Stopped looking for motors on bikes tour de france

https://www.cyclingweekly.com/news/racing/case-closed-after-no-hidden-motors-found-in-peloton-after-two-years-458715

Surely they would just need to keep an eye out for the exhaust fumes Stopping off at Carrefour for an auld drop of sans plomb mid-race would have been a dead give away as well.

Macy0161

Daroxtar wrote: »

Orla is a professional journalist unlike the other lads who are just panellists with a knowledge of cycling. I think she's been very restricted on the show at the moment. If it was an hour long and they give her more of a role it would improve the show IMHO.

Very hard to judge this year really though? Last year the Breakaway was at the race, getting the interviews there and then. tbh I was pleasantly surprised they were finding a role for Orla in the circumstances.

I'm a fan of her on The Cycling Podcast, both "general" one and obviously the Podcast Féminin.

ionadnapokot

Anyone have any thoughts on who is going to win this?

As a complete novice i will go for a novice - Pogacar.

Shedite27

ionadnapokot wrote: »

Anyone have any thoughts on who is going to win this?

As a complete novice i will go for a novice - Pogacar.

I still think it'll be a shootout between Bernal and Roglic. A flat time trial would probably have tipped my thinking towards Bernal, but it's a climbing TT this year

MPFGLB

Don't discount Quintana and Landa ...remember the long high mountains have yet to come

The Slovenians are very fast on the medium level stuff so far ...but what is coming in week 3 is different

ionadnapokot

I heard Bruyneel saying that what Pogacar did on Stage 8 to the top of Peyresourde was the fastest time ever recorded.
Beating the previous best time from 2003 when Ivan Mayo and Alexander Vinokourov climbed it together - "A different era & different kind of cycling. We're going to leave it at that.":pac:

Pogacar beat that time by 45 seconds!!
https://cyclingtips.com/2020/09/tdf-power-analysis-pogacars-peyresourde-attacks-and-new-climbing-record/

Macy0161

Hate times as a comparison. So many variables - bikes/ wheels/ race up to that point/ day up to that point/ whats equipment/ wind/ road surface*.

*Kelly commented during one of the stages that normally in the Pyrenees the surface is melting on good days, when it's in July.

dastardly00

Fingers crossed that all the Covid tests that have were carried out yesterday/today will be negative

breezy1985

Macy0161 wrote: »

Hate times as a comparison. So many variables - bikes/ wheels/ race up to that point/ day up to that point/ whats equipment/ wind/ road surface*.

*Kelly commented during one of the stages that normally in the Pyrenees the surface is melting on good days, when it's in July.

Ya race situation has a lot to do with it like as that climb ever used at that exact point in a race with a short build up and a downhill+flat to finish.
Bruyneel has spent years now trying to make himself feel better by pushing the everyone is doing it crap

Junior

ionadnapokot wrote: »

I heard Bruyneel saying that what Pogacar did on Stage 8 to the top of Peyresourde was the fastest time ever recorded.
Beating the previous best time from 2003 when Ivan Mayo and Alexander Vinokourov climbed it together - "A different era & different kind of cycling. We're going to leave it at that.":pac:

Pogacar beat that time by 45 seconds!!
https://cyclingtips.com/2020/09/tdf-power-analysis-pogacars-peyresourde-attacks-and-new-climbing-record/

It's not the same distance in comparison, I thought I read elsewhere.

dastardly00

It turns out that both Pinot and David Gaudu fractured their sacrum during the crash at the 3km banner on Stage 1. I can only imagine what the pain and discomfort would be like when trying to ride a bike :eek:

TheBlaaMan

Covid-19 testing took place today and results will be released to the teams at 10am tomorrow...................hopefully all will be clear, but this is a crunch time. Cases on a serious upward curve in France and the scenario feared in articles like this one hopefully wont transpire

https://medium.com/@peterflax/this-tour-de-france-is-an-entertaining-disaster-ffc62f9d25a8

dahat

Ineos & Astana all clear apparently but plenty of positives from teams ,staff & tour organization.

*Disclamier- I've taken the above from Twitter.

wirelessdude01

dahat wrote: »

Ineos & Astana all clear apparently but plenty of positives from teams ,staff & tour organization.

*Disclamier- I've taken the above from Twitter.

Any names?

dahat

wirelessdude01 wrote: »

Any names?

None unfortunately.

Horrible situation for these guys to be waiting for test results, pressure at the tour is bad enough.

Just watching the week one highlights on Eurosport. Hirschi so close on 2 occasions now I'd love to see the lad take a stage. One of the moments of the tour so far for me was him getting caught yesterday and sits on and tightens his shoes for a go at a sprint, a lot of older more experienced heads would drop there and not even bother.

Richard Hillman

TheBlaaMan wrote: »

Covid-19 testing took place today and results will be released to the teams at 10am tomorrow...................hopefully all will be clear, but this is a crunch time. Cases on a serious upward curve in France and the scenario feared in articles like this one wont transpire

https://medium.com/@peterflax/this-tour-de-france-is-an-entertaining-disaster-ffc62f9d25a8

I have to say I was quite surprised at the amount of people on that mountain. Of course there were some absolute whizzes with masks on but pulled around down around their chins whilst running beside the cyclists. I thought they would have the mountains blocked off from the bottom, to stop people from crowding up there.

I would genuinely be shocked if there isn't at least 1 rider that tests positive for it.

Richard Hillman

Richard Hillman wrote: »

I have to say I was quite surprised at the amount of people on that mountain. Of course there were some absolute whizzes with masks on but pulled around down around their chins whilst running beside the cyclists. I thought they would have the mountains blocked off from the bottom, to stop people from crowding up there.

I would genuinely be shocked if there isn't at least 1 rider that tests positive for it.

They are closed to traffic completely this year or supposed to be, normally they close the roads up to the climbs 4-6 hours before but many camp there for a few days. This year from what I've heard is you have to walk or cycle up.

wirelessdude01

Richard Hillman wrote: »

I would genuinely be shocked if there isn't at least 1 rider that tests positive for it.

And I will be very surprised if we don't lose a big name rider/team before the end.

Personally think rest day two tests will show a lot of positives.

lawrencesummers

I presume with the proven track record at passing tests that a considerable number of cyclists getting their Covid results back will be found to be pregnant.

dastardly00

dahat wrote: »

Ineos & Astana all clear apparently but plenty of positives from teams ,staff & tour organization.

*Disclamier- I've taken the above from Twitter.

https://twitter.com/laflammerouge16/status/1303093642500939778

TheBlaaMan

dastardly00 wrote: »

https://twitter.com/laflammerouge16/status/1303093642500939778

I gather that it was clearly stated that no results would be released before 10am (9am here)........not long now. Hopefully all ok

CramCycle

Macy0161 wrote: »

*Kelly commented during one of the stages that normally in the Pyrenees the surface is melting on good days, when it's in July.

+1 they normally have a water sprayer heading up in front of the cyclists by 20minutes drenching the roads, which are then bone dry by the time they get there, apparently if they didn't do this the tyres would just stick to the road.

Richard Hillman wrote: »

I have to say I was quite surprised at the amount of people on that mountain. Of course there were some absolute whizzes with masks on but pulled around down around their chins whilst running beside the cyclists. I thought they would have the mountains blocked off from the bottom, to stop people from crowding up there.

I would genuinely be shocked if there isn't at least 1 rider that tests positive for it.

The riders might be okay as they are passing through the crowds with very short exposure time but in the crowds themselves, its almost guaranteed to have mini outbreaks at this point. Very surprised the po po weren't up there. I had just been telling my partner how great t was that there were no big crowds and it was well managed, and then a few minutes later the road was blocked.

Tim76

Richard Hillman wrote: »

I have to say I was quite surprised at the amount of people on that mountain. Of course there were some absolute whizzes with masks on but pulled around down around their chins whilst running beside the cyclists. I thought they would have the mountains blocked off from the bottom, to stop people from crowding up there.

I would genuinely be shocked if there isn't at least 1 rider that tests positive for it.

Couldn't believe it myself when I saw it. The roadside was thronged, i wouldn't have been surprised to see a Minister of Agriculture stuck in there.

On a more serious note, that kind of behaviour could jeopardise the whole Tour. Organisers and police need to work together to make sure scenes like that don't happen again.