[cite]Posted By: sussex_pete[/cite]Great to see a few cyclists among you lot ! Thought I was the only one,As a North stand season ticket holder and owner of probably the best bike shop in the south east.Will give 10% discount to any fans instore or online mentioning CAFC.Check outhttp://www.in-gearonline.co.uk/
Fantastic shop Pete! I shall be contacting you soon about a new helmet and no doubt many other bits!!
I ride a Trek Madone 5.2, non pimped as I am now broke...have got a Boardman on a CycleOps trainer for winter...used to ride BMXs for a team in the 80s and always loved bikes, but got back into it 'properly' a year and a half ago when I bought my Boardman thru cycle to work and then 3 weeks later cycled to Bordeaux in 4 days...
As some may know I cycled from Perpignan to Biarritz at the beginning of May, took in several of the Cols used on the Tour...how they go up them at speed is totally beyond me... I was struggling up the Tourmalet at anything between 7 and 14 mph dependent on the gradient, the Tour goes up much, much faster...
I rarely cycle further than sixty miles and if I do something like the Ditchling Beacon it decidely get's harder for me anything more than that distance. Got a lot of respect for you Charlie on my local tiny hill that's 25% I think I manage about 2mph at times! Still I'm hoping to ride to ride Great Dunn Fell next month, it doesn't look like it'll be very taxing and that's the way I like it! Then early autumn I wan to go and do the Madone, hoepfully Nice should provide a nice cheap air ticket.
Everyone says the Pyrennes is much harder than the Alps. In answer to your question they never used to go up these mountains at such a speed look at LeMond's time up the Huez. As soon as the Italians started competing in the mountains in the late 80' early 90's times just got quicker with people making attack after attack.
I've the utmost respect for the fitness and athleticism of cyclists, they're not all on drugs.
However I have to agree with those who say it is one of the few sports that is better on TV than live.
I watched a Tour de France Stage live in the UK a few years back when Chris Boardman was there or thereabouts and they arrived and disappeared in the space of about 30 seconds if that.
We arrived half an hour to an hour before and waited and then all we saw was a flash of lycra and they'd gone!
[cite]Posted By: LenGlover[/cite]I've the utmost respect for the fitness and athleticism of cyclists, they're not all on drugs.
However I have to agree with those who say it is one of the few sports that is better on TV than live.
I watched a Tour de France Stage live in the UK a few years back when Chris Boardman was there or thereabouts and they arrived and disappeared in the space of about 30 seconds if that.
We arrived half an hour to an hour before and waited and then all we saw was a flash of lycra and they'd gone!
It was exactly the same when |I went to the womens athletics ;(
What has always amazed me is that in the non mountain stages you would watch it for a couple of hours and you would hear the commentators go through all the different names of the riders near the front and then about 100 yards from the finish you would hear, every single time, the commentator say ' ...Robie McEwen is getting into position and Robie McWen wins...' and yet his name would not have been mentioned once in the previous two hours! Mark Cavendish does the same thing now.
Overall leader : YELLOW Maillot jauneThe maillot jaune is worn by the general classification leader.
Points classification: GREEN The maillot vert (green jersey) is awarded for sprint points. At the end of each stage, points are earned by the riders who finish first, second, etc. Points are higher for flat stages, as sprints are more likely.
King of the Mountains. POLKA DOT JERSEY The competition gives points to the first to top designated hills and mountains.
Each team consists of nine riders - generally the team has a leader, a sprinter who's job it is to ride hell for leather over the last 100 metres or so in an attempt to win the Stage and bring some glory to the team (and give the sponsors some exposure), plus a mountian climber or two - a rider who can suffer the agony of trying to ride competitively at the front of the peloton in the Alpine and Pyrennee stages and do so in baking hot sun with no shelter (see the death of Tommy Simpson for what can happen to you when this goes wrong). The other riders are known as "Domestiques", their job is to pace the leaders back to the main race if they stop for any reason (puncture, pee-break etc), to hand over drinks/food to the other team members, to give the sprinters a lead off in the run in and to protect the leader in bunch sprints or from cross-winds etc. If you watch the TdeF then the amount of team work, strategy and tactics which first seems baffling will become evident. Very often you'll see a breakaway, usually by two/three lesser riders who are allowed to escape by the Peloton, invariably they get caught by the pack a few KM out but in the process they give their sponsors acres of publicity. The Domestiques have their own competition the "lantern rouge" for the rider who completes the Tour in last place. A backhanded compliment for riding over the course for three weeks and 2000 odd KM for his team and getting no reward for his troubles other than saddle sores.
Today's stage was from Monpellier to Montpellier, a 39KM Team-time trial won by Lance Armstrong's Team Astana, Armstrong is second overall and places 2-5 are all taken by his team. Mark Cavendish is still in Green.
I first got into the tour de france back in the 90s when there was a rider with an unpronouncable name, Djamolidine Abdoujaparov (i just looked it up on google), who had an amazing crash on the champs elysees and then had to get up and literally ride home at a snails pace so he could finish and win the green jersey for the whole tour. Ever since then i've loved it.
Weasel said 'Great to see a few cycling fans on the site. I used to race with a guy called john clarey and he rode the tour, got a fourth place on one stage and was a charlton fan to. mind you i am going back forty years.'
I think John Clarey used to coach at Herne Hill back then as well. Forest Hill School used it for part of the school sports.
Comments
Fantastic shop Pete! I shall be contacting you soon about a new helmet and no doubt many other bits!!
As some may know I cycled from Perpignan to Biarritz at the beginning of May, took in several of the Cols used on the Tour...how they go up them at speed is totally beyond me... I was struggling up the Tourmalet at anything between 7 and 14 mph dependent on the gradient, the Tour goes up much, much faster...
Everyone says the Pyrennes is much harder than the Alps. In answer to your question they never used to go up these mountains at such a speed look at LeMond's time up the Huez. As soon as the Italians started competing in the mountains in the late 80' early 90's times just got quicker with people making attack after attack.
6 hour journey, with a change in Paris (an hour to get a cold drink or 2....)
Get to Avignon Friday 2pm
Driving to Mont Ventoux, having dinner at a restaurant/bar.
Kipping in the motor overnight near the Tom Simpson memorial on the mountain.
Then the race, driving back and staying overnight in Avignon.
Then train at 4pm which gets back into Ebbsfleet at 9.20pm Sunday night.
Cannot f@@@@@g wait . . . .a trip without worrying about the missus and the 2 kids in tow creating!
However I have to agree with those who say it is one of the few sports that is better on TV than live.
I watched a Tour de France Stage live in the UK a few years back when Chris Boardman was there or thereabouts and they arrived and disappeared in the space of about 30 seconds if that.
We arrived half an hour to an hour before and waited and then all we saw was a flash of lycra and they'd gone!
It was exactly the same when |I went to the womens athletics ;(
Standing Rider Rider number bib Team Time Gaps
1. CANCELLARA Fabian 33 TEAM SAXO BANK 19' 32"
2. CONTADOR Alberto 21 ASTANA 19' 50" + 00' 18"
3. WIGGINS Bradley 58 GARMIN - SLIPSTREAM 19' 51" + 00' 19"
4. KLÖDEN Andréas 23 ASTANA 19' 54" + 00' 22"
5. EVANS Cadel 11 SILENCE - LOTTO 19' 55" + 00' 23"
6. LEIPHEIMER Levi 24 ASTANA 20' 02" + 00' 30"
7. KREUZIGER Roman 93 LIQUIGAS 20' 04" + 00' 32"
8. MARTIN Tony 76 TEAM COLUMBIA - HTC 20' 05" + 00' 33"
9. NIBALI Vincenzo 95 LIQUIGAS 20' 09" + 00' 37"
10. ARMSTRONG Lance 22 ASTANA 20' 12" + 00' 40"
We're not gonna get this for the next week or so are we?
Thank fook I'm away for a few days....Yawn yawn yawn!
Then stick to your Fans Forum debate Soundas. Sure that will get your pulse racing.
How right you are there Stoney!!
He did it again!
One did today...
Cavendish wins the 3rd Stage.
Very talented young British talent.
Contador for yellow - EVENS
Cavendish for Green - EVENS.
I kept my money.
He's red hot at the moment.
Maillot jauneThe maillot jaune is worn by the general classification leader.
Points classification: GREEN
The maillot vert (green jersey) is awarded for sprint points. At the end of each stage, points are earned by the riders who finish first, second, etc. Points are higher for flat stages, as sprints are more likely.
King of the Mountains. POLKA DOT JERSEY
The competition gives points to the first to top designated hills and mountains.
I can tell you're getting into this now Algarve.
Soundasa£ will be asking questions next.....
Today's stage is a team time trial.
Today's stage was from Monpellier to Montpellier, a 39KM Team-time trial won by Lance Armstrong's Team Astana, Armstrong is second overall and places 2-5 are all taken by his team. Mark Cavendish is still in Green.
Get outta the 50s!
I think John Clarey used to coach at Herne Hill back then as well. Forest Hill School used it for part of the school sports.