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Anyone else is looking forward to the start of the Tour? Yesterday was the team presentation (some weird picture galleries -- the presentation took place in a fake Colosseum). The argyle is back on the Garmin Cervelo jersey. I like it -- a lot less black on it, so it will be easier to tell them apart from Team Sky or Leopard:
http://velonews.competitor.com/files...17-660x439.jpg
I'll be rooting for Bradley Wiggins and Team Sky.
WoooHooo it's Tour time. Jeepers! I remember watching Greg Lemond win and then Miguel Indurain's total dominance of the race.
I also remember way back in the day and hearing mention of Eddie Merckx and Laurent Fignon although Le Tour wasn't shown on Brit telly way back then.
I'm new to watching it...but looking forward to it! In the states, is it usually on ESPN? Versus?
It is on Versus. It will run live in the mornings, starting anywhere from 6 to 8 AM eastern. Then rerun in the afternoons. And then a taped version with more commentary in the evenings.Quote:
Originally Posted by jlnc
I've been known to watch it each time through the course of one day. :)
Yeah! Tour starts on my bday. I've already informed friends and coworkers I will be unavailable this month. My heart is with Team Radio Shack, but I'm picking Andy Schleck to win. Is it me or is Team Leopard/Trek the best looking team?
Thanks Possegal! 6am huh? Hmmm, maybe I will wait for the taped edition later in the day...I'm not that hardcore. (Yet!) I have a feeling it will become addictive!
Mostly it starts at 8 on Versus -- the early starts are for the big mountain stages.
I generally record the live morning broadcast with Phil and Paul, then watch that at night instead of the prime time Americanized version.
(Of course Comcast decided to "upgrade" my on-screen guide and DVR software last week, and I've been having so many problems since then that I'm worried my recordings will get messed up. As it is I need to program every day separately to make sure it gets set up right.)
Thor looked really weird in that wig...
And here's a nice little appetizer...
http://www.bicycling.com/tour-de-fra...viewer-s-guide
Yeah, the 6AM ones are only a few and they are the days that they will be pedaling up the mountains for many hours. My family also does what NY biker does and DVRs the live broadcast as there is a lot more Phil and Paul in that one. I've also been known to stream it on one monitor at work, while working on the other monitor. :)Quote:
Originally Posted by jlnc
I'm going to go through withdrawal this year though, since last year I was in Rotterdam and Brussels or the first few stages. I want to be there again this year!
We don't have cable so we are purchasing the online service for El Tour, which we did last year. You can watch live or start anytime after and watch any sections you want.
Our local Carmichael Training Center is having an open house on the next 3 Weds evenings, from 5-6:30 to watch the race, with their own commentary and free energy bars and drinks for refreshments. I think we will stop by at least once.
Wow. TdF. Seems like this past year just flew by. I can't believe it's July again.
I hope Andy finds his form, I'm really rooting for him, but TRS is close to my heart too!
Shannon
BTW, we should make it clear now: are spoilers allowed in this thread?
I can't watch video on my pc at work, so I usually follow major races via the live on-screen commentary on velonews.com. It can be surprisingly exciting, even though it's just words on a screen.
Also I see updates on twitter from the various cycling people I follow. I love it when Graham Watson stops at a cafe mid-race to upload photos via his ipad.
"Meanwhile, Andy Schleck doesn’t seem to have the same capacity for ruthlessness. Consider “Chaingate.” After Contador rode away from him on Stage 15, Schleck said “my stomach is full of anger.” However, he acted more like I do when my stomach is full of dessert, which is to say he got all docile and cuddly, and by the end of Stage 17 they were hugging and kissing on the top of the Tourmalet."
Um, yeah. That's true.
23 days of heaven! I watch online and since I work from home I find something to do that allows me to watch in front of my laptop! Usually it's something like glazing tiles for a convention coming up. I LOVE Tour Time!
Hilarious! That'd be more my riding style, "my stomach is full of dessert." :DQuote:
Originally Posted by TrekTheKaty
I'd vote for allowing spoilers. Should have added that to the title.Quote:
Originally Posted by ny biker
Watching cycling is a bit of an acquired taste. It takes a few days to get hang of how the teams and riders compete. The neat thing is that there are so many competitions rolled into one event: general classification, sprinters, climbers, most aggressive rider, best young rider, team classification, etc. I still find that the sprint stages are a tiny bit dull, except for the last 10 minutes or so, but the mountain stages can have me and the edge of my seat.Quote:
Originally Posted by jlnc
I love the long flat stages through the countryside; complete with the Phil & Paul banter, it is the perfect set up for napping.
This is why I like Phil and Paul. They fill up the less exciting parts of the stage with information about the history of the region, who built that castle over there in the 1300s, what the farmers grow here, stuff like that.Quote:
Originally Posted by pll
And France looks really good in high def.
Meant to say that the mountain stages can have me on the edge of my seat... And, yes, the French country side look great on TV (as does the Italian and Spanish ones). It makes me lust for the opportunity to tour there.Quote:
Originally Posted by pll
I'm hoping we'll get Versus on our cable in Belize -- we're flying down tomorrow for two weeks. If not, we'll have to catch up online.
I pray Contador doesn't win. Would much rather see Andy or Chris (Horner) beat his azz...
I won't spoil it just yet, but the last 20 miles or so of the first stage were very exciting. The race is on and it will be really interesting. Now, on to get my own bike ride.
Ashes, ashes,
Many of them fell down...
Can we make a list of on-line Tour sites for those of us who don't have TV?
(Thor will SMASH!)
Le Tour: http://www.letour.com/us/homepage_courseTDF.html
Snobby: http://www.bicycling.com/tour-de-fra...viewer-s-guide
Schmalz! Thor will SMASH! http://nyvelocity.com/content/featur...z-2011-preview
Cycling News: http://www.cyclingnews.com/tour-de-france
Reddit: http://www.reddit.com/r/tourdefrance/
More! We need more!
There are two sites I follow on Twitter that list free online video feeds (sometimes in English, some in Spanish, French, Italian and Dutch... I watch them all the same!) and that is how I managed to see the spring classics this year:
Steephill: http://www.steephill.tv/ (twitter @steephill)
CyclingFans: http://www.cyclingfans.com/ (twitter @cyclingfans)
Both also post pictures. Steephill, in particular, posts large format pictures that are a pleasure to look at.
I should add that Steephill also collects video clips after the stage, the last km, the last 5km, etc. Pretty nice.
I signed up to get the Versus feed online again like I did last year since my cable company does not offer that channel. Go sign in this morning, and I could not get the website to load for anything. Rebooted my computer, cleared out cookies and temp files, log in / out several times. The best I got was about 10 seconds of footage, then it froze. Even the "help" link would not work. If I can't get this to work, I want my money back!
Thank you! I don't have cable & can't afford the paid online feed.Quote:
Originally Posted by pll
Also, cycling.tv offers a free recap every day. I've had a tough time accessing their free stuff, though (too many clicks, having to install Microsoft junkware...).
Withm,
We could not get Versus to work on Firefox or Chrome either, but finally with Explorer.
You might try that...
Oh, and I can't get it to work on on my mac, either...
I LIVE for the Tour each summer - its really one of the highlights of the season for me (which is a bit sad). I'm rooting for Andy - though secretly will always wish that Christian VandeVeld had a shot at getting on the podium, but sadly I don't think its in the cards for him.
But very excited its back on - I miss Phil Ligget and Bobke when it ends! Watching it now!
Also love that it inspires me to get on my bike whenever I watch!
There's an ap for that. Watching the Tour de France All Access Pass presented by Radio Shack. It'd be better on an iPad, the iPodtouch is a tiny screen but it's great to listen to Phil. This'll be great to download in the morning and listen on the train each day :)Quote:
Originally Posted by KnottedYet
Holy cow, could NBC Sports put anymore guys on their post-race wrap-up?? They've got this new McHugh guy, Robbie Ventura, Craig Hummer, Bob, Phil, Paul, and Todd Gogolsky. All in a short span of time.
I have to say, I prefer a time trial prologue to start the race. Jumping right in with a flat stage just doesn't have the same oomph.
Hee, my Tour talk mostly includes annoying DBF by saying things like "let's see who's got access to the best shady lab" or "it's a HGH-consumption contest!" ;)
I'm not hard-core (or patient) enough to sit and watch it. I just look up at the end and go "Oh. That's nice" and keep knitting.
I jokingly assigned teams that my animals are rooting for:
Tortilla, the manx cat obviously isn't interested in the stage unless the Manx Missile is going for the win.
Jens, the puppy, will be rooting for Leopard Trek because Jens Voigt said he can't use his name without being a fan.
Heidi our little white schnauzer loves Garmin-Cervelo because Thor is blond. But she is also a fan of BMC because I have told her to cheer for Big George Hincapie for years.
Me? Anybody but Contador. I didn't like him the first year he burst on to the scene, not sure why. I like Cadel a lot, seems really genuine and he gets pissed if the reporters encroach on his dog. I would like to see this be his year. We also tape Phil and Paul. You get funny soundbites "that was a cheeky move", a wine guide, a history lesson of the country and their banter with one another.
I'm using IE 8 with XP Pro and SP#3. And made sure I had Silverlight installed, but still can't get anything to come up. Except for all the Radioshack commercials at the top of the screen.Quote:
Originally Posted by azfiddle
Catrin - it's only $29.95 for the month of Versus coverage on your computer. That is IF IT WORKS! Just one month - no contracts - when the tour is over so is your access.
Tonight it looks like my cable company has dropped the NBC affiliate from our coverage - which is almost enough for me to cancel the cable entirely. I live in an area where there is no TV coverage anywhere without cable. If the sun and wind are in alignment you can get one station, and sometimes a PBS station but mostly it's snow. If you want to even watch local news you have to have cable.
I wrote and complained to nbc sports. But I suspect we aren't the only ones!
Please post if you get a response. Without the internet feed, nor NBC coverage I'm feeling like a fish without a bicycle. LOL!Quote:
Originally Posted by azfiddle
We watched the live coverage on VS. Well actually hubby watched the whole thing, I only saw the last about hour and a half or so. We didn't see the NBC coverage.
Sigh... dam*** emergency room bills...Quote:
Originally Posted by withm