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Re: Le Tour 2018: Official Thread

Posted: Mon Jul 16, 2018 2:20 pm
by Spyglass
Xupi wrote:
Gospel wrote:
BlackMac wrote:Absolutely delighted for Degenkolb. What a horrendous, edge of the seat, day of racing.
Aye. There was a bit of dust in the room when he was giving his interview. Absolutely delighted for the guy. The stage was a bit of a crap shoot for the GC contenders. Awful for Porte, again. I couldn't believe how many times Bardet had to fix his bike. He must have chased back on at least four times.
It was Paris-Roubaix in the middle of the Tour, amazing stuff of legends, what a stage.

Bardet's bike was fine but he suffered 3 (!!!) punctures, the last one at the worst moment. Thanks to team mates and amazing legs yesterday (he was feeling so good he even attacked before the last puncture), he lost minimal amount of time.
He seemed to have a lot of flats, I was wondering if they had set his bike up with very low tire pressures (compared to the normal lower pressure for cobbles) and he was getting a lot of pinch flats? Either way he (and his team) did very well to recover each time, if he takes those legs into the third week he will be a real threat.

Re: Le Tour 2018: Official Thread

Posted: Mon Jul 16, 2018 2:40 pm
by Beaver_Shark
Xupi wrote:
Gospel wrote:
BlackMac wrote:Absolutely delighted for Degenkolb. What a horrendous, edge of the seat, day of racing.
Aye. There was a bit of dust in the room when he was giving his interview. Absolutely delighted for the guy. The stage was a bit of a crap shoot for the GC contenders. Awful for Porte, again. I couldn't believe how many times Bardet had to fix his bike. He must have chased back on at least four times.
It was Paris-Roubaix in the middle of the Tour, amazing stuff of legends, what a stage.

Bardet's bike was fine but he suffered 3 (!!!) punctures, the last one at the worst moment. Thanks to team mates and amazing legs yesterday (he was feeling so good he even attacked before the last puncture), he lost minimal amount of time.
Silvan Dillier was just about the perfect teammate you would want in such a crisis. The man almost won Roubaix this year.

Having said that, Bardet himself seems pretty accomplished on the "off-road" stuff for a guy known as a pure climber. I couldn't believe how good he was at Strade Bianche this year.

Re: Le Tour 2018: Official Thread

Posted: Mon Jul 16, 2018 2:46 pm
by DOB
Supposedly a big part of why Bardet got back on after his last flat was that Oliver Naessen, former. Belgian champ, was in the Landa group that caught him. Naessen had been sitting in the wheels for a while and was essentially a pair of very strong fresh legs.

Re: Le Tour 2018: Official Thread

Posted: Mon Jul 16, 2018 2:47 pm
by Xupi
I'd say Thomas to take the yellow, and then it's like with the Yates brothers, can he hold for 3 weeks in a GT and up the highest mountain stages? that's still an unknown for this type of riders.

But it could equally be an outsider, good climber, who takes part in an early getaway.

I don't know how SKY will play this one and how they will find the balance between Thomas and Froome. They may try and preserve Froome from all the negative pressure around him, have Thomas as their main leader for the Alps, and see how Froome's form is in the last week.

I have a feeling this Tour will be epic, a few very special stages.

Re: Le Tour 2018: Official Thread

Posted: Mon Jul 16, 2018 2:48 pm
by DOB
Scrummie wrote:Positions 2 - 10 on GC can all climb.

Who’s in yellow tomorrow evening?

Sky team orders should be straight forward or will they allow GT to consolidate? Doubt it though.
I can see GVA hanging on. There’s 2tough summit finishes to come after tomorrow, so it might not be in anyone’s interest to make it too hard tomorrow.

If he can’t hang, G will probably take yellow.

Re: Le Tour 2018: Official Thread

Posted: Mon Jul 16, 2018 2:50 pm
by blindcider
Scrummie wrote:Positions 2 - 10 on GC can all climb.

Who’s in yellow tomorrow evening?

Sky team orders should be straight forward or will they allow GT to consolidate? Doubt it though.
They are still protecting Thomas and Froome by all accounts so he should be able to consolidate.

They are wary about Froomes recovery from the Giro and with Thomas in Yellow that opens up some interesting tactical options for Froome to take a flier.

Very few genuine GC contenders have had a trouble free first week despite how boring some of the stages have been

Re: Le Tour 2018: Official Thread

Posted: Mon Jul 16, 2018 2:55 pm
by Beaver_Shark
Gee I don't know DOB. GVA can climb a bit, yes, but I cant see him defending 43sec on a stage with a HC and 3x Cat 1 climbs.



Image


GC:
1 VAN AVERMAET, Greg (BMC) 36:07:17
2 THOMAS, Geraint (SKY) + 43
3 GILBERT, Philippe (QST) + 44
4 JUNGELS, Bob (QST) + 50
5 VALVERDE, Alejandro (MOV) + 1:31
6 MAJKA, Rafal (BOH) + 1:32
7 FUGLSANG, Jakob (AST) + 1:33
8 FROOME, Chris (SKY) + 1:42
9 YATES, Adam (MTS)
10 LANDA MEANA, Mikel (MOV)
11 KRAGH ANDERSEN, Søren (SUN) + 1:43
12 NIBALI, Vincenzo (TBM) + 1:48
13 ROGLIČ, Primož (TLJ) + 1:57
14 MOLLEMA, Bauke (TFS) + 1:58
15 DUMOULIN, Tom (SUN) + 2:03
16 KRUIJSWIJK, Steven (TLJ) + 2:06
17 BARDET, Romain (ALM) + 2:32
18 BARGUIL, Warren (FST) + 2:37
19 ZAKARIN, Ilnur (TKA) + 2:42
20 POZZOVIVO, Domenico (TBM) + 2:48
21 QUINTANA, Nairo (MOV) + 2:50
22 URAN, Rigoberto (EFD) + 2:53
23 SAGAN, Peter (BOH) + 3:08
24 MARTIN, Daniel (UAD) + 3:22
25 ROLLAND, Pierre (EFD) + 4:21
26 NIEVE ITURRALDE, Mikel (MTS) + 4:41
27 CHAVANEL, Sylvain (TDE) + 4:42
28 CALMEJANE, Lilian (TDE) + 5:01
29 PAUWELS, Serge (DDD) + 5:12
30 VAN GARDEREN, Tejay (BMC) + 6:05

Re: Le Tour 2018: Official Thread

Posted: Mon Jul 16, 2018 3:02 pm
by Gospel
guy smiley wrote:Image
Great pic... the positioning of the photographer does seem a tad suspicious though. Did he have Moscon shot by a sniper?

Re: Le Tour 2018: Official Thread

Posted: Mon Jul 16, 2018 3:02 pm
by blindcider
Scrummie wrote:How do you post photos and video on PR as I’ve got some good footage especially from cobbles 2
you have to host them somewhere like flickr/imgur and hotlink them

Re: Le Tour 2018: Official Thread

Posted: Mon Jul 16, 2018 3:07 pm
by Beaver_Shark
Scrummie wrote:How do you post photos and video on PR as I’ve got some good footage especially from cobbles 2
You will need to upload the photos onto an image hosting site such as imageshack/flickr, and you will get links for them. Then simply paste the link in between the two square-brackets in the middle ----> [img ] [ /img]

Re: Le Tour 2018: Official Thread

Posted: Mon Jul 16, 2018 3:33 pm
by P in VG
blindcider wrote:
Scrummie wrote:Positions 2 - 10 on GC can all climb.

Who’s in yellow tomorrow evening?

Sky team orders should be straight forward or will they allow GT to consolidate? Doubt it though.
They are still protecting Thomas and Froome by all accounts so he should be able to consolidate.

They are wary about Froomes recovery from the Giro and with Thomas in Yellow that opens up some interesting tactical options for Froome to take a flier.

Very few genuine GC contenders have had a trouble free first week despite how boring some of the stages have been
I agree with this - it will be interesting to see how Sky handle the situation - Thomas has developed into a bloody good climber & the only reason he hasn't been higher up the GC in the last few years is because he's crashed / crashed out - he's almost always left in the elite group towards the end of the big stages these days (granted as one of Froome's Super-domestiques) & if he's been given a protected status within Sky - he may well have enough time in the bank to make a fist of it

Re: Le Tour 2018: Official Thread

Posted: Mon Jul 16, 2018 3:38 pm
by Gospel
P in VG wrote:
blindcider wrote:
Scrummie wrote:Positions 2 - 10 on GC can all climb.

Who’s in yellow tomorrow evening?

Sky team orders should be straight forward or will they allow GT to consolidate? Doubt it though.
They are still protecting Thomas and Froome by all accounts so he should be able to consolidate.

They are wary about Froomes recovery from the Giro and with Thomas in Yellow that opens up some interesting tactical options for Froome to take a flier.

Very few genuine GC contenders have had a trouble free first week despite how boring some of the stages have been
I agree with this - it will be interesting to see how Sky handle the situation - Thomas has developed into a bloody good climber & the only reason he hasn't been higher up the GC in the last few years is because he's crashed / crashed out - he's almost always left in the elite group towards the end of the big stages these days (granted as one of Froome's Super-domestiques) & if he's been given a protected status within Sky - he may well have enough time in the bank to make a fist of it
I would absolutely love to see him podium. I hope he doesn't have to burn matches on behalf of Froome.

Re: Le Tour 2018: Official Thread

Posted: Mon Jul 16, 2018 5:30 pm
by nuffsaid
It will be interesting to see how Moscon and the new Sky generation do in the mountains. I have been impressed with Moscon so far (apart from the cobbles that showed his inexperience).

Re: Le Tour 2018: Official Thread

Posted: Mon Jul 16, 2018 5:41 pm
by DOB
Moscon finished 5th (or thereabouts) in Roubaix last year. Cobbles aren’t his problem, but being a big guy, big mountains are. (3rd in Lombardia too, so the kid can climb a bit).

Last time GvA had yellow, he went in the break on the first mountain stage and actually added to his lead in the end. Lost it the day after, but I can see him prolonging it more than we’d expect. Don’t forget the Olympic course he won on was supposed to be for the pure climbers. He won’t win the Tour, no question, but he could do a Cedric Vasseur/Voeckler and hold on longer than anyone expected.

Re: Le Tour 2018: Official Thread

Posted: Mon Jul 16, 2018 5:54 pm
by nuffsaid
DOB wrote:Moscon finished 5th (or thereabouts) in Roubaix last year. Cobbles aren’t his problem, but being a big guy, big mountains are. (3rd in Lombardia too, so the kid can climb a bit).

Last time GvA had yellow, he went in the break on the first mountain stage and actually added to his lead in the end. Lost it the day after, but I can see him prolonging it more than we’d expect. Don’t forget the Olympic course he won on was supposed to be for the pure climbers. He won’t win the Tour, no question, but he could do a Cedric Vasseur/Voeckler and hold on longer than anyone expected.
GvA sure looks in good nick to me, at present, but a lot seems to depend on what BMC decide to do. It’s hard to think they would throw all the dice on Tijay, but it’s an option, I guess.

Elsewhere in the field, I’m familiar with Bob Jungles but haven’t got a decent fix on his ability in the mountains. My assumption is that he is competent but not at the same level as Nibbles, Dumoulin etc, let alone Quintana or the true specialists. Would that be fair?

Re: Le Tour 2018: Official Thread

Posted: Mon Jul 16, 2018 6:04 pm
by Xupi
nuffsaid wrote: Elsewhere in the field, I’m familiar with Bob Jungles but haven’t got a decent fix on his ability in the mountains. My assumption is that he is competent but not at the same level as Nibbles, Dumoulin etc, let alone Quintana or the true specialists. Would that be fair?
Bob Jungels has 2 top10 in the Giro. He is young and also shines in the classics, he's got tons of class, he could be the surprise package of this Tour. I think he will be a GT contender in the years to come, a bit like Tom Dumoulin.

Let's also watch out for Raja Majka, he's very well positioned and the fact that he lost no time in the first week might be a sign that he's in very good shape. There's also Fuglsang who's capable of following the best up the hills.

Also, am surprised nobody talks about Uran and the time he's lost (he's the worst placed of all favourites). He was second last year and basically almost always followed Froome up the climbs. If Froome cannot sustain the Tour after his Giro, then basically Uran was looking like one of the major favourites to take the crown, while now it's a little more uncertain...

Re: Le Tour 2018: Official Thread

Posted: Mon Jul 16, 2018 6:13 pm
by nuffsaid
Xupi wrote:
nuffsaid wrote: Elsewhere in the field, I’m familiar with Bob Jungles but haven’t got a decent fix on his ability in the mountains. My assumption is that he is competent but not at the same level as Nibbles, Dumoulin etc, let alone Quintana or the true specialists. Would that be fair?
Bob Jungels has 2 top10 in the Giro. He is young and also shines in the classics, he's got tons of class, he could be the surprise package of this Tour. I think he will be a GT contender in the years to come, a bit like Tom Dumoulin.

Let's also watch out for Raja Majka, he's very well positioned and the fact that he lost no time in the first week might be a sign that he's in very good shape. There's also Fuglsang who's capable of following the best up the hills.

Also, am surprised nobody talks about Uran and the time he's lost (he's the worst placed of all favourites). He was second last year and basically almost always followed Froome up the climbs. If Froome cannot sustain the Tour after his Giro, then basically Uran was looking like one of the major favourites to take the crown, while now it's a little more uncertain...
That’s really helpful, thanks. I was always too big to be a cyclist and the sport hadn’t really arrived in the UK when I was a kid. I love it now as a spectator though - mainly TV but I’m planning a trip to the TdF next year, hiring a camper van for the duration.

Re: Le Tour 2018: Official Thread

Posted: Mon Jul 16, 2018 7:16 pm
by DOB
Just had a look at the top GC positions. Other than GvA and Gilbert, there’s nobody in the top 20 who you can’t see being still in the top 20 in Paris. And that’s with Quintana, Uran and Martin in 21, 22 and 24th, all of whom you’d presume will move up. This Tour is wide open still, despite Porte crashing out and all the other carnage there’s been this week.

Edit; the least “likely” top 20 finisher of the lot is Soren Kragh Anderson, who’s in the white jerseys and has been limpet-like attached to his captain, Dumoulin all Tour long. And with Bernal shipping a ton of time yesterday, keeping that white jersey just got a lot easier for him.

Re: Le Tour 2018: Official Thread

Posted: Mon Jul 16, 2018 8:00 pm
by Beaver_Shark
nuffsaid wrote:It will be interesting to see how Moscon and the new Sky generation do in the mountains. I have been impressed with Moscon so far (apart from the cobbles that showed his inexperience).
Also that new Colombian kid Bernal is a serious climber. He could be Froome's natural successor at Sky.

Re: Le Tour 2018: Official Thread

Posted: Mon Jul 16, 2018 8:24 pm
by Gospel
Scrummie wrote:But that’s what he gets the big bucks for. At 32 is it to late for him at Sky?
G is paid the big bucks to be plan B as far as I can see. The team is stacked with high quality domestiques. Thomas will probably be allowed to ride his own race provided he stays in contention.

Re: Le Tour 2018: Official Thread

Posted: Mon Jul 16, 2018 9:23 pm
by frillage
Gospel wrote:
Scrummie wrote:But that’s what he gets the big bucks for. At 32 is it to late for him at Sky?
G is paid the big bucks to be plan B as far as I can see. The team is stacked with high quality domestiques. Thomas will probably be allowed to ride his own race provided he stays in contention.
Yeah Sky are in an interesting place. G ridingbfor himself on pave and not being Froom’s bodyguard said a lot and Froome dropping seconds on first uphill finish puts questions over his legs after the Giro.

Re: Le Tour 2018: Official Thread

Posted: Mon Jul 16, 2018 9:36 pm
by Gospel
frillage wrote:
Gospel wrote:
Scrummie wrote:But that’s what he gets the big bucks for. At 32 is it to late for him at Sky?
G is paid the big bucks to be plan B as far as I can see. The team is stacked with high quality domestiques. Thomas will probably be allowed to ride his own race provided he stays in contention.
Yeah Sky are in an interesting place. G ridingbfor himself on pave and not being Froom’s bodyguard said a lot and Froome dropping seconds on first uphill finish puts questions over his legs after the Giro.
That was a classic punchers finish. Froome did what was expected of him there I felt.

Re: Le Tour 2018: Official Thread

Posted: Mon Jul 16, 2018 9:37 pm
by anagallis_arvensis
Froome dropping seconds on first uphill finish puts questions over his legs after the Giro.
Did you watch the Giro? Froome losing time on short explosive climbs is not a surprise. Thomas staying with the front and Froome on Alpe Duez would be. Thomas is being talked up but Sky want to talk him up as a threat to make other teams look at him but I cant see him staying with Quintana, Bardet, Nibbali or Dumoulin let alone Froome in the final week.

Re: Le Tour 2018: Official Thread

Posted: Mon Jul 16, 2018 10:15 pm
by LandOTurk
DOB wrote:
LandOTurk wrote:As I am only a grand tour watcher of cycling, I don't know enough to have any prediction who are in the top 10 contenders (maybe just top 5), so asking the bored's advice. Has Geraint Thomas any chance of winning this or will Froome et al kill him in the Alps then Pyrenees?
G will not win the Tour. Froome won't kill him, as they're teammates, but he will have to do a lot of work for Froome, at which point Quintana, Landa, Dumoulin et al will kill him.
Separately, two more questions:

Do they always climb the Alps first then Pyrenees in Le Tour?
No. Traditionally the route has alternated from year to year between going clockwise around France or anti-clockwise. With the caveat that it can be tricky to incorporate the Massif Central. And that occasionally the whole clockwise/anti thing gets tossed out completely. Oh, and in 1992 they started in Spain, and then pretty much bypassed the Pyrenees altogether.
When did Contador retire? I missed that. Was he considered a major doper and lucky to get away with limited penalties or just unlucky?
Contador retired at the end of last season. He won the final mountain stage of the Vuelta as his last race. Opinion on him varies; he has devoted fans, and at the same time there are those for whom any positive test is a line in the sand.
Appreciated.

Re: Le Tour 2018: Official Thread

Posted: Mon Jul 16, 2018 10:17 pm
by frillage
anagallis_arvensis wrote:
Froome dropping seconds on first uphill finish puts questions over his legs after the Giro.
Did you watch the Giro? Froome losing time on short explosive climbs is not a surprise. Thomas staying with the front and Froome on Alpe Duez would be. Thomas is being talked up but Sky want to talk him up as a threat to make other teams look at him but I cant see him staying with Quintana, Bardet, Nibbali or Dumoulin let alone Froome in the final week.
Yes, but Thomas not having to look after him in that situation is a break from the way used to be.

Re: Le Tour 2018: Official Thread

Posted: Tue Jul 17, 2018 12:34 am
by Gospel
I'd expect Thomas to stay with Dumoulin on the steep stuff.

Re: Le Tour 2018: Official Thread

Posted: Tue Jul 17, 2018 6:33 am
by anagallis_arvensis
Gospel wrote:I'd expect Thomas to stay with Dumoulin on the steep stuff.

Maybe but he wont TT like Dumoulin. I dont see where the idea that Thomas can win a grand tour comes from.

Re: Le Tour 2018: Official Thread

Posted: Tue Jul 17, 2018 6:39 am
by blindcider
anagallis_arvensis wrote:
Gospel wrote:I'd expect Thomas to stay with Dumoulin on the steep stuff.

Maybe but he wont TT like Dumoulin. I dont see where the idea that Thomas can win a grand tour comes from.
Maybe not but he has developed into an outstanding TTer and won't ship drastic time losses to TD.

Re: Le Tour 2018: Official Thread

Posted: Tue Jul 17, 2018 6:45 am
by DOB
anagallis_arvensis wrote:
Gospel wrote:I'd expect Thomas to stay with Dumoulin on the steep stuff.

Maybe but he wont TT like Dumoulin. I dont see where the idea that Thomas can win a grand tour comes from.
He's been a 1st lieutenant for all of Froome's TdF wins. He's won Paris-Nice and the Dauphiné, has contested well in classics and stage races, can TT better than almost all the current top level GC riders, and can climb better than a lot of them too. It's pretty clear why people think he has the legs to win a GT. He's just never had his head right and the luck on the right race.

Re: Le Tour 2018: Official Thread

Posted: Tue Jul 17, 2018 6:57 am
by Gospel
Thomas is very much on par with Porte when it comes to luck on a Grand Tour. Both very talented riders but probably missing that extra dare I say gear to get it done for the full three weeks. Same can be said for a lot of guys though. I think once you've done it you have proven something to yourself that makes you considerably more resilient.

Re: Le Tour 2018: Official Thread

Posted: Tue Jul 17, 2018 7:18 am
by Uncle Fester
Only a casual watcher but that cobblestone stage was mad. Could they not have used mountain bikes?

Re: Le Tour 2018: Official Thread

Posted: Tue Jul 17, 2018 7:59 am
by anagallis_arvensis
DOB wrote:
anagallis_arvensis wrote:
Gospel wrote:I'd expect Thomas to stay with Dumoulin on the steep stuff.

Maybe but he wont TT like Dumoulin. I dont see where the idea that Thomas can win a grand tour comes from.
He's been a 1st lieutenant for all of Froome's TdF wins. He's won Paris-Nice and the Dauphiné, has contested well in classics and stage races, can TT better than almost all the current top level GC riders, and can climb better than a lot of them too. It's pretty clear why people think he has the legs to win a GT. He's just never had his head right and the luck on the right race.

He has cracked in all the grand tours he's ridden in. Contesting Classics and a week long stage race is not the same as winning a grad tour. I hope I'm wrong but if Thomas was a likely Grand Tour winner he'd have shown it by now. Either he hasnt got it or his time has passed and he "wasted" it riding for Sky. Younger more likely candidates are right behind him like Doumolin or Jungles or Roglic. Also counting against him is his form in the Dauphin, he's come into Le Tour in great form but will struggle to hold it. I reckon a few days in Yellow with Froome taking it "easy" next week, followed by a full on final week is the best he can hope for.

Re: Le Tour 2018: Official Thread

Posted: Tue Jul 17, 2018 8:07 am
by DOB
Well of course he’s always cracked, he’s always had to work for Froome.

Re: Le Tour 2018: Official Thread

Posted: Tue Jul 17, 2018 8:07 am
by blindcider
anagallis_arvensis wrote:
DOB wrote:
anagallis_arvensis wrote:
Gospel wrote:I'd expect Thomas to stay with Dumoulin on the steep stuff.

Maybe but he wont TT like Dumoulin. I dont see where the idea that Thomas can win a grand tour comes from.
He's been a 1st lieutenant for all of Froome's TdF wins. He's won Paris-Nice and the Dauphiné, has contested well in classics and stage races, can TT better than almost all the current top level GC riders, and can climb better than a lot of them too. It's pretty clear why people think he has the legs to win a GT. He's just never had his head right and the luck on the right race.

He has cracked in all the grand tours he's ridden in. Contesting Classics and a week long stage race is not the same as winning a grad tour. I hope I'm wrong but if Thomas was a likely Grand Tour winner he'd have shown it by now. Either he hasnt got it or his time has passed and he "wasted" it riding for Sky. Younger more likely candidates are right behind him like Doumolin or Jungles or Roglic. Also counting against him is his form in the Dauphin, he's come into Le Tour in great form but will struggle to hold it. I reckon a few days in Yellow with Froome taking it "easy" next week, followed by a full on final week is the best he can hope for.
It's been his job to crack in grand tours until now protecting Froome (excepting last years Giro). I'm not for a second suggesting Thomas will win the tour but until they get given status within the team and are allowed to ride to their own ends you cannot necessarily read much into previous Tour performances.

Re: Le Tour 2018: Official Thread

Posted: Tue Jul 17, 2018 8:47 am
by anagallis_arvensis
blindcider wrote:
anagallis_arvensis wrote:
DOB wrote:
anagallis_arvensis wrote:
Gospel wrote:I'd expect Thomas to stay with Dumoulin on the steep stuff.

Maybe but he wont TT like Dumoulin. I dont see where the idea that Thomas can win a grand tour comes from.
He's been a 1st lieutenant for all of Froome's TdF wins. He's won Paris-Nice and the Dauphiné, has contested well in classics and stage races, can TT better than almost all the current top level GC riders, and can climb better than a lot of them too. It's pretty clear why people think he has the legs to win a GT. He's just never had his head right and the luck on the right race.

He has cracked in all the grand tours he's ridden in. Contesting Classics and a week long stage race is not the same as winning a grad tour. I hope I'm wrong but if Thomas was a likely Grand Tour winner he'd have shown it by now. Either he hasnt got it or his time has passed and he "wasted" it riding for Sky. Younger more likely candidates are right behind him like Doumolin or Jungles or Roglic. Also counting against him is his form in the Dauphin, he's come into Le Tour in great form but will struggle to hold it. I reckon a few days in Yellow with Froome taking it "easy" next week, followed by a full on final week is the best he can hope for.
It's been his job to crack in grand tours until now protecting Froome (excepting last years Giro). I'm not for a second suggesting Thomas will win the tour but until they get given status within the team and are allowed to ride to their own ends you cannot necessarily read much into previous Tour performances.

Froome himself showed his Grand Tour pitential riding for Wiggins or Landa who has podiumed (is that a word?) Aat the Giro and was 4th last year in the Tour

Re: Le Tour 2018: Official Thread

Posted: Tue Jul 17, 2018 1:12 pm
by Beaver_Shark
I actually think that Wout Poels has been Froome's best lieutenant since joining sky. He's dished out a lot of hurt in the mountains in the past 3 years.

Re: Le Tour 2018: Official Thread

Posted: Tue Jul 17, 2018 2:05 pm
by LandOTurk
Beaver_Shark wrote:I actually think that Wout Poels has been Froome's best lieutenant since joining sky. He's dished out a lot of hurt in the mountains in the past 3 years.
But waht 3 lieutenants to have - Porte, Thomas and Poels.

Re: Le Tour 2018: Official Thread

Posted: Tue Jul 17, 2018 3:00 pm
by Bullettyme
Reckon there's a sniff here for the breakaway (includes GvA and Alaphilippe). They're about 7 minutes ahead.

Re: Le Tour 2018: Official Thread

Posted: Tue Jul 17, 2018 3:02 pm
by Beaver_Shark
DOB was correct. The big boys probably won't bother today.

GVA will keep yellow.

Re: Le Tour 2018: Official Thread

Posted: Tue Jul 17, 2018 3:22 pm
by anagallis_arvensis
Beaver_Shark wrote:DOB was correct. The big boys probably won't bother today.

GVA will keep yellow.

If any of the big boys have a dig it wont be till the final climb. Both Nibbles and Bardet like a descent and may go near the top of the final climb to put a bit of pressure on the others.