Is anyone watching the Tour via Versus Tour Tracker online? Is it worth the $30? Can you watch anytime or do you have to watch right when the replay is being broadcast?
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Is anyone watching the Tour via Versus Tour Tracker online? Is it worth the $30? Can you watch anytime or do you have to watch right when the replay is being broadcast?
I am not watching it on Tour Tracker because I'm watching European feeds, but I might sign up for it because my mornings are shot when I watch the whole thing live. My understanding is that you can watch the recap, but you might want to verify that on their website.Quote:
Originally Posted by withm
$30 is alot less than paying for cable or satellite. I think it's worth it if you can't watch it any other way.
I love those Schleck Brothers.Quote:
Originally Posted by malkin
Next year, next year...
tour tracker..
yup you can watch later. it's nice bene. i can watch in the am.. or tune it in at work for the replay or later in the evening. allowed me to catch up on prologue and stage 1 over the weekend :). pretty nice to watch on the lcd tv in HD at your leisure.
they had this autobahn plugin for hd but it was't working too well and they pulled the plug on it. now the picture looks to be standard but it's a bit less fussy. the autobahn thing kept stopping and i had ahrd time advancing forward and back with it. now with just a normal feed it's less fussy it seems. was replaying it at work this afternoon and allowed me to skip forward but it did keep stopping but i duno if that's due the work network wonkiness or something.
i think it's worth the 30 because otherwise i wouldn't be able to see the tour at all! oh... and no commercials!!
there's also an iphone/itouch app too. got that one since i'll be traveling next week. i think there's a fre version but not sure if it only shows the feed realtime.
We signed up for the Versus online tracker.
The first two days it was not working or almost not, but now it's great. I think they have fixed the plug in and increased bandwidth. If you're interested in watching many stages, I think it's worth it.
Andy was very popular, so not so easy to get a good picture of.
Agreed!Quote:
Originally Posted by Zen
OK I signed up for it - $30 was way cheaper than changing my cable to digital service, new box, and new fees.... I have NEVER seen the tour before so this was a revelation.
But .... what a time suck! 4 hours last night watching - I think I need to explore this better to see if I can watch highlights for 2 hours or start fast forwarding more.
One problem - after some period of time the feed goes blank and I have to restart the viewing (not restart the computer) and then fast forward to where I think I was while watching. Not sure how to fix that?
In any case I learned a lot about the Tour that I did not know, saw beautiful countryside, and even if I only watch 1/2 of it overall, I think I'll have my money's worth out of the investment.
I have been catching it live online via links on steephill.tv. Sometimes the Eurosport links freeze and I have to go back to the home page and click another link, but hey I am not complaining. :)
I have been listening online while at work (there's a Yahoo Eurosport live audio feed that is very very very good). The commentators are great and make it very exciting - especially for just an audio portion. Yesterday's stage was great to listen to and today's was fantastic... perhaps because I'm a huge fan of Mark Cavendish and to hear how the train pulled him thru... wow... that was exciting!!!
BTW, I like Chris Horner's blogs about the tour (and all his races).
http://blog.oregonlive.com/horner/index.html
He gives some interesting insights. And you gotta love a guy who eats Snickers bars and Little Debbie brownies while he's racing.
I like Chris and he writes very well. I think I will skip the parts about his eating habits.
Awwww, Cav. I almost cried, too.
I wanted to like him. Big George likes him, so there must be something likeable there. But I just don't see it. He needs to grow up.Quote:
Originally Posted by redrhodie
And Phil and Paul keep saying that if he doesn't think he can win, he doesn't bother to try. This is too anti-Jens for my tastes. And it is not the way to win a green jersey.
I'm rooting for Thor in this race. Also Robbie McEwan -- he's been working hard to come back from injuries and I'd like to see him get some success. He cut his elbow pretty badly in that uber-crash the other day, and I hope that starts to heal better so he can be more competitive. And speaking of healing, I'm really hoping Tyler can improve enough to contest some sprints as the tour progresses.
I saw the stuff about his preferred race food in a video they shot during the Tour of the Gila last year. It was pretty funny. Lance and Levi had boxes of gels and power bars, Chris had boxes of junk. But it seems to work for him, and he is always smiling...Quote:
Originally Posted by arielmoon
He also loves burgers. I can do without the brownies and candy, but I'd love to go out for a burger with him someday. I want to take Phil and Paul out for beers, and Chris out for burgers. This is my dream.
Yeah, I know he's easy to hate, but I love him. He won my heart when he said of himself "I am the most beautiful thing in France." I appreciate his sense of humor. He is immature, but I don't think he's a bad guy. He's got an incredible amount of pressure on him, and doesn't always handle it with the dignity and grace, but other times, he does. I don't think he'll get the Green this year, but no matter. I'm happy watching him win stages and cry getting his trophies. It warms my cockles. I'm such a girlie-girl. :pQuote:
Originally Posted by ny biker
One thing I realize about George this year is just how instrumental he was/is in the many victories his teammates have had. I always knew he was good, but I think he's more important than I ever knew. Because of him, I'm giving Cadel top pick. I never would have thought Cadel stood a chance.
This is my first year since, goodness, a decade? that I haven't watched the Tour (as a result of saying goodbye to cable to save $), and the only thing I don't miss is the loss of 4 hours of my day! It totally sucks you in, and it becomes ritualistic, despite the lance worship/ storyline.Quote:
But .... what a time suck! 4 hours last night watching - I think I need to explore this better to see if I can watch highlights for 2 hours or start fast forwarding more.
Coffee, a fresh morning breeze, birds chirping, and up the Alps we go! ...So, careful there.:) I feel like I am in withdrawal, big time, but maybe I will just give in and get that Versus online service.
+1. I miss seeing him come out of complete nowhere in the last 100 meters and spin his little body past the best sprinters in the world like they were standing still.Quote:
Also Robbie McEwan -- he's been working hard to come back from injuries and I'd like to see him get some success. He cut his elbow pretty badly in that uber-crash the other day, and I hope that starts to heal better so he can be more competitive.
That makes two of us. Robbie would just appear out of thin air and win the sprint. Even on the replays, it's hard to find him until the very end.Quote:
Originally Posted by lunacycles
I got a giant dose of Cav's immaturity last year at the Tour of Missouri. I watched him walk out of the team trailer before the start of the race, check his bike and start screaming at the mechanics because his tires weren't just right. He really showed his rear and I haven't liked him since. I'm cheering for Thor.
I can't wait until the mountains. :)
Quote:
Originally Posted by ny biker
I said the same thing to my husband! He won a lot of stages last year but green jersey is "most consistent". So you can't pout and not try for a high placing or intermediate points and win. He will learn, I guess. :rolleyes:
Farrar may be back in the race for real in the next week. Can you imagine riding sprints with his injuries?
Cavendish is mighty talented, but emotional--snarling one moment, crying the next. Must be hard on his team, who really showed their depth yesterday. His lead out train is the best. As much as Cavendish is a tool, his team has such heart that I find yself cheering for him.
Plus I shallowly like their HTC-Columbia helmets.
How about those naked guys-? The unfortunately-kitted Footon-Servetto. They keep showing up in the breakaways, probably for advertising their sponsor, but if I were their sponsor, I'd fire the designer.
Guess evaluating the kits is how I've handled the time-suckage.
Possegal, are you still in France? I am dying to know what color underwear these women are wearing under their polka-dot umbrellas, er um I mean skirts.
http://velonews.competitor.com/2010/...r-de-france-10
It's pretty clear that anyone standing on the ground near the podium already knows the answer to this question. My money is on red.
OMG and I just noticed the shoes. Not sure how I feel about the hearts.
So, I feel really bad for Robbie McEwen. First he gets a bad cut on his elbow in a crash. Then he finds he's allergic to the medicine they gave him to prevent tetanus (he posted that on twitter a day or so ago). Then today this happens.
http://velonews.competitor.com/2010/...-mishap_127622
He was doing pretty well in the sprints, and now they're not sure he can start tomorrow. Really too bad.
There is no fighting in cycling! If you want to fight, play hockey.
Too bad for McEwen. That sucks.
I am, but we never got that close to the podium. My big regret - I got chatty with our bartender in Rotterdam and he gave me wrist bans for the start and finish lines of the Prologue. But I was meeting a friend from the US who was in Holland visiting her in-laws and so we didn't use them. I will never have that close access again, I am sure of it. :(Quote:
Originally Posted by ny biker
Just makes me determined to come over again soon and follow along for many more stages.
Quote:
Originally Posted by ny biker
Matching pois rouge undies maybe?
They are in France, after all!
My DVR cut out right as that broke out. What the heck happened?Quote:
Originally Posted by redrhodie
apparently costa elbowed barredo about 20k back. so barredo went after him. they got fined 400 swiss francs. barredo later apologized to costa.
as to cav, he was very nice when he signed my bicycle at the tour of california. yes he's young and brash and cocky -- how soon we forget -- robbie mcewen was young and brash and very cocky once.
i love the tour. every minute, every day.
I just saw on Velonews that he will start today (Saturday.)Quote:
Originally Posted by ny biker
Oh, what a great stage! I really like Chavanel and his genuine happiness at the whole thing. He's been at this for 10 years; he's finally in yellow--twice! Terrific attack and he really stayed out there. It was a good day for the French, and I hope there will be more! It might kinda make up for the soccer debacle, ya' know.
I watch on Eurosport and there's nary a mention of Armstrong. He's just one of many in the peleton. I find it refreshing, but I also wonder what the story is. Seems like Radio Shack isn't doing much of anything so far. Perhaps tomorrow they will show their colors, but with Kloden falling off the back today, I kinda doubt it.
I agree! 2 great rides by Quickstep! Chavanel was really amazing today.Quote:
Originally Posted by tulip
I like it when the French do well at the Tour.
'Root, root, root for the home team...'
This is cool--pics of the making of the yellow and polka dot bikes that Chavanel and Pineau are riding:
http://picasaweb.google.be/113435145...lvainChavanel#
I just watched the whole slideshow. That's it...I'm moving to Belgium. Beautiful men, with frites for lunch. :D
No respirators in the paint booth. :(
I'm going with you! Chavanel and Pinault are French, but I can only assume the rest are Belgian. Don't forget the very good Belgian beer, to go with the frites.Quote:
Originally Posted by redrhodie
I love the photo of Pinault smiling at his polka dot bike. He looks like a little kid.
Did they have to paint the bikes over night, or did they paint them prior to the race, hedging their bets that Chavanel and Pinault would earn their jerseys?
DITTO! I go into serious withdrawal when it's over...it really makes the dog days of summer very enjoyable!Quote:
Originally Posted by PinkBike
I'm pretty much resigned to the couch tomorrow--tour in the morning, soccer in the afternoon! V. happy for Chavenel today--he was so proud. Good for him!! Anxious to see what happens in the mountains tomorrow.
What a great day for the Schleck fans!