Who's Watching the Tour?

[MM_QFC!]

full-on agree with ya, aussievic; wasn't today mind-boggling?! It's been an amazing tour to watch so far and today's stage had yet more drama and courage on display. I think that Lance's travails today will join the 'Beloki detour' recently as a clip that is replayed continuously when they show highlights of this years race.
Couldn't believe it when it looked like Lance went down so hard and so quickly bounced up...Mayo going down with him and Ullrich steering masterfully around them both...and yep, he had that "look of Lance on the hunt" when he continued the attack that he started before the spectator literally hooked him.
It's going to continue to be a brawl to the finish, don't you think?
I'm hooked on the updates and replays; it sure hasn't been boring, has it? And to think that Tyler Hamilton is still racing and doing so well each day and has completed 15 stages, when it sure looked like he was on his way out during the first. So, it's a rest day tomorrow, then another day of climbs, right?

[MightyMitre]

Hi AussieVic

So are you a David Duffield/Sean Kelly Eurosport girl or a Phil Ligget & Paul Sherwin ITV fan? Generally I go for Duffers, but ITV do some good interviews.

(By the way the ITV stuff is done by Venner TV and is mostly aimed at the Outdoor Life Network - hence it's sometimes just a touch pro - Lance ) )

I followed yesteday's stage on the internet from cyclingnews live commenty, while stuck in the office, with my boyfriend phoning up from time to time from home to add some extra details and generally get over-excited. The on-line commentry is a life saver, I don't know how I'd manage without it.

I then watched the video when I got back of the last 15km. It's so exiting - I just don't know how I'm going to cope with the TT in the next few days - I think I'll explode with nerves and excitement!!

[Dogmama]

What a race! Ullrich aged ten years going up that last climb. Lance really had to dig deep too. What's with Mayo & company not taking their turns to pull? That sucks. I wish Ullrich could have finished better than 4th - he is really a class guy.

The time trial is going to be a barn burner! Man, I wish work didn't get in the way!! I'd take the morning off to watch...but I have a huge meeting. Grrr....

Does anybody else think they should keep the crowd back from the cyclists? That fall Lance took could have easily been a collar-bone-breaker. And then when he slipped out of his cleat...ouch!!!

[Irulan]

what's up with the crowd all over the road? That obviously is a maopjor hazard.... I wonder how that person who's bag snagged LA's handle bars feels now about trying to get a close look at the race...


Thanks for the OLN on line tip... that's been great!

Irulan

[aussievic]

No tour today! I was going to go out for a ride, but its been absolutely miserable where I'm staying at the moment (Teesside in the North-East of England). So instead I've been catching up on episodes of Qunicy ME and learnt more about antiques than any sane person needs to know (I never realised there were so many programs about this stuff on terrestrial TV in England as I was always working - I need t0 get me a set of Natwest Piggy banks - £100!). But I digress....

Mighty - I'm definitely a Duffers fan (he reminds me a lot of cricket commentators - yabbering away about nothing in particular but then getting overenthusiastic when something happens), but agree with you about ITV and their interviews and the behind the scenes looks at the teams (most heartbreaking was the BTS look in Millar's car when his chain came off when he was up on everyone else).

Nothing was stopping Lance yesterday - he did say he was full of adrenalin after the crash and was so focused.

Come on tomorrow.

Vic

[waterlilli]

I sure hope that this is a rumor. I read the Dave Watson freerider for Kona, tried to road gap the tour, and crashed in the process. I really hope that this is not true. What a sad day for mt. bikers if it is.

[goddess1222]

the pros say that when they get close to a stage ending, about 4 to 5 kilometers away, the crowd gets so close and so loud that they can barely hear themselves think. i say erect dividers to keep the spectators away. but in europe, you know how fanatical they are about their cycling. looks like vinokourov cracked yesterday. not good.

i thought it was way "gentlemenly" that jan waited for lance after he crashed. shows a real competitor. if i do recall, lance did the same for jan a few years ago. i guess what goes around, comes around.

[MightyMitre]

Yeh, the crowds do get pretty mental at the top of the big climbs but as far as i can remember there haven't been too many crashes.

A few years back a Telekom rider called Guerini was stroming out ahead up the mountain when a fan stepped right in to his path trying to get a photo of him. Guerini crashed to the floor but still managed to win the stage.

A few days later the German camera guy met up with Guerini and apologised to him face to face, but the best thing was the picture he actually took. It was a big blur of Guerini's face close up, with loads of sunshine in the back ground! It was useless!

I think Armstong actually admitted in an interview yesterday he was too close to the barriers and normally would ride much nearer the middle. Still, no broken bones, and boy did it add to the excitment of the race.

[MightyMitre]

Aussievic - now you know it's no good for you . Stay away from the perils of UK daytime TV. It'll zap your brain, you'll become attached to the sofa and never ride again....

And as for those NatWest piggy banks... £100? Maybe I'd better just go and check my loft...

[Dogmama]

Originally posted by waterlilli
I sure hope that this is a rumor. I read the Dave Watson freerider for Kona, tried to road gap the tour, and crashed in the process. I really hope that this is not true. What a sad day for mt. bikers if it is.

What does that mean "road gap the tour?"

[Trek420]

"....Does anybody else think they should keep the crowd back from the cyclists?"

It'll never happen, unless someone gets really badly hurt, the baricades that is. So much tradition in cycling. They have baricades some places. How do they determine where?

"That fall Lance took could have easily been a collar-bone-breaker. And then when he slipped out of his cleat...ouch!!! "

Looked like quite a knot on the elbow from the first fall, he went over so fast theres nothing to do anything but smash on the ground. And right after they all turn in their helmets so he's lucky he kept his head off the road. I'd be waving for the sag wagon for sure.

And the fall from the cleat, yikes, how he kept from turning soprano on the top tube I don't know, but then he does have at least one prosthetic ;-)

[Irulan]

VeloNews managed to catch up with Kona freeride pro Dave Watson who was just back from an eventful excursion to France. After being approached by a French cycling magazine a month and a half ago, Watson pulled off a monumental stunt, actually jumping over the back half of the peloton during the Alp d'Huez stage of the Tour de France. Watson estimated that the jump, a road gap, was about 45 feet in distance.

complete article


Not all mountain bikers are free riders, or downhillers... in fact a lot of mountain bikers have real disdain for the "rad, dude, extreme...." attitude that the Mountain Dew marketing people would have you believe is the way to go. It's this kind of stunt, the in your face, tear it up attitude that give all mountain bikers a bad name.

I'd rather say it's a bad day for a brand that encourages their pros to do this kind of thing, than to slam a very general category of rider.

Irulan

[Dogmama]

How about Tyler Hamilton!!! That guy is amazing. I'm so glad he won a stage!

[goddess1222]

right on dogmama!!! considering a compound fracture of the collarbone, tyler epitomizes the trueness of "digging deep."

on to paris!!!!

[MightyMitre]

Tyler Hamilton - what is he on??? The guy's amazing . Good job guts and determination aren't on the UCI banned list

Well said Dogmama - if anyone deserved to win a stage he did,