Tour de France 2024

Rás Cnoic said:
They’ve been running gravel sections in the Giro & Vuelta for a couple of seasons and it’s pretty marmite; riders like Van De Poel & Pidcock (both cyclocross & mtbers) like it) and Road purists don’t. I like it. Makes for a spectacular looking stage. And after all the Tour sometimes uses the cobbles of Northern France for a stage with similar outrage & division. I like seeing how good technically some of the riders are. Like in the muddy & small roads of the Spring classics. It’s all bike riding after all.
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How about an all-gravel stage so the riders can equip themselves just for that surface — especially the heightened puncture risk? Would be really disappointed if a puncture ended up affecting race results in a significant way.
 
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Photo: Szymon Gruchalski Cycling.
 
We had our own version of the tour in the UK since 1945 it was at its most well known when called the Milk Race, simply after its main sponsor, the milk marketing board, also been named the Kellogs Tour and the Quaker oats.

Bit of a pattern there.
 
Jeremy McCreary said:
How about an all-gravel stage so the riders can equip themselves just for that surface — especially the heightened puncture risk? Would be really disappointed if a puncture ended up affecting race results in a significant way.
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Can't see them going for that. Gravel sections, cobble sections all good but ultimately this is road racing. Here's a great round up of yesterday's stage from the Lanterne Rouge boys:

 
Big flap now over whether Vingegaard pulled his fair share when he and Evenepoel joined Pogacar in a short-lived attack late in Stage 9.

Vingegaard says he was just riding smart under the circumstances — which included having no team members nearby to pull him if he got dropped. His only goal was not to lose time.

The other 2 got heated enough to make some pretty nasty comments to the press. Don't know enough about pro racing etiquette to know if Vingegaard really had an obligation there, but Pogacar and Evenepoel clearly thought so.
 
The cycling press likes to dig into whatever drama they can. This interview and the questions asked with Tadej is a prime example:

It's a long race and there will be moments over the next two weeks that will erase the memory of stage 9..........
 
JRA said:
The cycling press likes to dig into whatever drama they can. This interview and the questions asked with Tadej is a prime example:

It's a long race and there will be moments over the next two weeks that will erase the memory of stage 9..........
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True, disputes always get blown out of proportion, and emotions would have to have been high after a stage like that. But there could still be a valid beef underneath. Was there?
 
The entire peloton was doing 50 mph coming up to the 5 km mark — on ground that looked pretty flat to me. Is that speed common in pro racing?
 
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JRA said:
Certainly happens in the pro peloton, average speeds are usually in the upper 40 to 50kmh range for stages. Even pro level gravel races average 20+mph these days.
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Yes, I've seen speeds like those before. But I was asking about 50 MPH ≈ 80 kph. How often does that happen?
 
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It amazes me how most all sports have given up on tradition. The Tour de France that has been around for what, 100 years plus is now not finishing in Paris. I heard it was due to the Olympics. Ok, with all the technology out there, or even modifying the dates a bit, there had to be a way to have the traditional finish at the Arch de Triomphe instead of in Nice or wherever the heck it is wrapping up. Ok, back to your regularly scheduled modified programming!
 
mschwett said:
that must have been a mistake (kph?) unless it was really downhill….
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It was downhill on the 5km approach to the finish. Plus 70km for the powerful sprint trains with 5 or less KM to go is not unusual as they wind up. If you watch the speedo on the Eurosport finish clip on YT you can see the speed fluctuates between 40KM to 70km and back as they navigate road furniture.
 
Taylor57 said:
It amazes me how most all sports have given up on tradition. The Tour de France that has been around for what, 100 years plus is now not finishing in Paris. I heard it was due to the Olympics. Ok, with all the technology out there, or even modifying the dates a bit, there had to be a way to have the traditional finish at the Arch de Triomphe instead of in Nice or wherever the heck it is wrapping up. Ok, back to your regularly scheduled modified programming!
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Bit harsh. Both Olympics and TdF are huge events it makes perfect sense to change the finale for one year. And it'll be a thrill for the people of Nice. Though for Cav's sake it would have been lovely to see him cross the line in Paris. If he makes it to the finish of course.
 
Rás Cnoic said:
It was downhill on the 5km approach to the finish. Plus 70km for the powerful sprint trains with 5 or less KM to go is not unusual as they wind up. If you watch the speedo on the Eurosport finish clip on YT you can see the speed fluctuates between 40KM to 70km and back as they navigate road furniture.
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Agree, downhill on 2nd look (4:14 race time, 4:43 show time on Peacock) but by no means steep.

Phil Leggitt, the long-time TdF announcer, was in disbelief at their speed and double-checked it: 78 kph at that moment. A moment later, the speed display at upper left showed 51.8 MPH!
 
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Jeremy McCreary said:
Agree, downhill on 2nd look (4:14 race time, 4:43 show time on Peacock) but by no means steep.

Phil Legitt, the long-time TdF announcer, was in disbelief at their speed and double-checked it: 78 kph at that moment. A moment later, the speed display at upper left showed 51.8 MPH!
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Not been a fan of Liggitt since the Armstrong years. He was so arrogant & weaselly defending Armstrong, long after it was clear the man was a sociopathic fraud.
 
Rás Cnoic said:
Sorry Jeremy didn't mean to bring a downer to this v fun thread. I see red with anything to do with Armstrong & that period.
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No worries. Glad you're having fun, too!

The widespread doping of the Armstrong era was the reason I stopped following pro cycling. Of course, that was an overreaction. This is the first TdF I've followed since then.
 
Finally, Vingegaard, Pogacar, and Evenepoel actually look tired after a stage! These guys may be human after all!

So glad no one Vingegaard and Pogacar didn't wipe out in that final wet descent.
 
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