ParkeNd Posted July 7, 2015 Share Posted July 7, 2015 Cavendish without Kittel around might just be on. He will still be smarting from giving Greippel a lead out on Stage 2 so perhaps team strategy will be more finely honed this time. Put me down for another vote for Cavendish - if he can find those old green Oakleys they might even turbocharge him. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
lightengine Posted July 7, 2015 Share Posted July 7, 2015 Yesterdays (tuesday) race went through my wifes home town prior to its arrival in Namur. The race, certainly from Huy to Namur was along a lovely fairly straight and flat road that runs alongside the river Meuse. We saw some footage online but nothing special. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
RMweb Premium Mallard60022 Posted July 8, 2015 RMweb Premium Share Posted July 8, 2015 I just loved the cobble sections with the motor bikes creating a storm of dust that was grit blasting the leading riders. Then there was the speed....wow and the cloud of dust rising from the Pelaton (still on cobbles). I am again in total awe of the strength of almost all these riders and I do so enjoy seeing France from the Air (and Belgium/Holland etc). Hardly saw any railway yesterday but I wasn't really paying full attention and it were only le highlights in the evening (sorry, tennis/Gym/ Wagon construction/Decorating is taking my time at the moment). You guys that do the 'food and drink appropriate to the area' routine have really got it sorted. I shall have to suggest this to SWMBO who is the cyclist here at the moment; I am 'indisposed'! Quackers. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
David Todd Posted July 8, 2015 Share Posted July 8, 2015 With,hindsight,I predict Tony Martins, will win yesterday's stage. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
jonny777 Posted July 8, 2015 Share Posted July 8, 2015 Well, Peter Sagan came third so I am not too disappointed. Although there are a number of sprinters who could win today, I will go for Andre Greipel. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
brightspark Posted July 8, 2015 Share Posted July 8, 2015 Oh dear poor Pinot. What an unfortunate crash. However my award for outrageous misfortune has to go to the motorcycle mounted Gendarme (civil guard) who lost control of his machine and ended up in a ditch. Don’t worry mate, no one noticed. Congratulations go to Andre Greipel. Mark Cavendish, must have made history as having been the only guy led out by two yellow jerseys in his career. Stage 6.Abbeville to Le Havre.Ah Normandy, flat (?) & windy. So another day for the sprinters. Food and drink wise, well Normandy cheese can be found a plenty in your local supermarket. Also have a look out for some cidre from the region. (not that more commercial stuff from Belgium).Apparently the specialities of the start town are; gateau battu picard (brioche-like cake), ficelle picard, Abbeville rhubarb, Ponthieu endiveAnd the finish town, Le Havre pudding. My prediction for the win....Sagan. I think the Missile may have lost his spark. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
RMweb Premium Mallard60022 Posted July 8, 2015 RMweb Premium Share Posted July 8, 2015 I'm just recovering from the treatment I required after sampling too much Normandy Cidre in 1984. Twas bootiful though but now I make do with specials from the Cider Museum on the site of the old Hereford Barton Loco Shed. Excellent brews to be sure. Wish I'd seen that gendarme incident! B Wiggins. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
iak Posted July 8, 2015 Share Posted July 8, 2015 The Missile has a team that is not functioning. Mind, I do think he needs to organise himself as well. The Gorilla is blowing hot but will he keep delivering like today? We will see... Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mike at C&M Posted July 8, 2015 Author Share Posted July 8, 2015 There is a very simply way to stop Andre Greipel winning. I predict that Andre Greipel will win tomorrows' stage. There, job done. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mike at C&M Posted July 8, 2015 Author Share Posted July 8, 2015 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Z2ZJg2bpiuQ Although we see the 'downed' motorcycle in the early stages, he can be seen crashing towards the end of this clip. As noted above, he was only seen by several million people. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Butler Henderson Posted July 8, 2015 Share Posted July 8, 2015 Sorry to see the Kiwi Jack Bauer withdraw, one of the defining images of last years tour being when he lost his victory of one stage in the last 7 secs having spent most of the day well in front of the main peleton. i Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
ParkeNd Posted July 8, 2015 Share Posted July 8, 2015 Well we were wrong about Mark Cavendish - again. It would be all too easy to write him off for the green jersey but I too think he is now past his best. Think he might manage a 27th stage win at some point in the Tour but the crystal ball is giving me no indication. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
jonny777 Posted July 9, 2015 Share Posted July 9, 2015 I will go for Peter Sagan to win today's stage, not just because he is probably most people's favourite but the sudden acceleration behind Greipel yesterday before the winning line shows he is in form and full of power. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
brightspark Posted July 9, 2015 Share Posted July 9, 2015 Currently watching the tour here in Brittainy (on TV). I had a very pleasant crossing to St Malo, helped enormously by a bottle of Normandy's finest. Andy Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
ParkeNd Posted July 9, 2015 Share Posted July 9, 2015 Thanks to the crash inside the last 3kms this was a very confused result. Stybar 1st, and Sagan 2nd was all I managed to glean. Tony Martin broken collarbone. Contador hiding in the top few in the GC and managing to stay out of the limelight. Otherwise the day was a pleasant slow bike ride in the sun for most of the day. Another sprint finish tomorrow - Sagan for me. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
jonny777 Posted July 9, 2015 Share Posted July 9, 2015 This was a very sad day for me, and the culmination of what has ben coming for the last 5-10 years. Ever since they gave the DSs radio connection with the riders the race has changed beyon recognition, from the old days where the riders had to make their own minds up on the road who did what. For a time, it worked and the radios only meant that riders got info that they would have loved to have in previous years; but now it seems to be nothing but paranoid DSs telling the riders to "get to the front, get to the front, don't let the other riders dominate the front, get to the front". Sadly, the road is not wide enough for everyone to be at the front, nor are the riders concentrating on what they are doing with continual DS coming through their earphones. And so crashes of the yellow jerseys, not the usual back placed riders. It is sad but technology has eaten the Tour. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
brightspark Posted July 9, 2015 Share Posted July 9, 2015 Well out of the chaos my boy came second. Of course the reasons for Sagans no win were obvious, as well as his concern for the fallen riders. The winner Stybar was very sneaky using a team mate to block the road so that he could win....well this is what is debated in the local Bar Tabac as we sink another beer (cidre or Calvados). Very bad luck to Tony Martin, according to the TdF live feed it looks like a collar bone, but the team are saying nothing about tomorrow. I guess their decision depends on x-rays and if the shoulder can be strapped up. It must be one of the hardest decisions for Tony to make, I mean abandon in yellow? Congratulations must go to Zdenek Stybar, the commentary reads as much as we speculated here, that Cav was not able to hold the pace. He says that he has mixed feelings about the win as his victory is possibly based on anothers, and his own team mate and leader's, misfortune. Congratulations also to Daniel Teklehaimanot. He is the first Black African* to take part in the Tour de France and has won Africas first jersey. I do hope that he can hold in the mountains. He did win the Polka dot in the Dauphine, along with Chris Froome in yellow, and this race does act as a good guide to the winner of the tour. Now onto tomorrow. Livarot to Fougeres. (A bit too far over for me to get to from where I am at the moment). Local specialities for Livarot are,Livarot cheese & cider. The finish town has galette-saucisse (sausage pancake), ramaougerie de pommé (apple jam), The area is famous for Calvados. So that is food and drink sorted. I have been down to my local Intermarche so I am loaded up for the next two or three days. I present some Bretton Cidre and a local cake (its a bit like a Bakewell tart without the icing.) Of course this all serious research undertaken for my fellow RMwebbers. So my prediction for tomorrow. It is the last day for the sprinters. Everyone is watching Peter Sagan too closely. I kept predicting him for a win last year when the same thing happened. So Cav, he has something to prove but either the oomph has gone or he is just not judging it right. My choice for the win is Greipel. He got it wrong today, so I think he will work out what went wrong and what to do right. Cheers Andy *I hate the B word, but I think in this context that it is important to point out. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
jonny777 Posted July 9, 2015 Share Posted July 9, 2015 Bad luck to Tony Martin? You must have been watching a different video to me. Tony Martin deliberately shoulder barged the rider on his right. Watch repeatedly at 5 seconds - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UoZ4oL8lrT8 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
David Todd Posted July 10, 2015 Share Posted July 10, 2015 Bad luck to Tony Martin? You must have been watching a different video to me. Tony Martin deliberately shoulder barged the rider on his right. Watch repeatedly at 5 seconds - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UoZ4oL8lrT8 A touch of wheels tween riders,is usually,an uncontrollable event,certain forces take over and your on the deck. A quick glance to your left or right,to see where your enemies are,the rider in front of you,slows fractionally, Bang,instant, case of road rash or in the incident with Tony,collar bone fracture. Maybe it is time for riders,to wear motor bike leathers,certainly would have saved the pain endured by the rider, who got pinged into a barbed wire fence,by a Radio car,a couple of years ago,the car was trying to avoid a rather large tree, That they had not seen at the side of the road. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
mozzer models Posted July 10, 2015 Share Posted July 10, 2015 A touch of wheels tween riders,is usually,an uncontrollable event,certain forces take over and your on the deck. A quick glance to your left or right,to see where your enemies are,the rider in front of you,slows fractionally, Bang,instant, case of road rash or in the incident with Tony,collar bone fracture. Maybe it is time for riders,to wear motor bike leathers,certainly would have saved the pain endured by the rider, who got pinged into a barbed wire fence,by a Radio car,a couple of years ago,the car was trying to avoid a rather large tree, That they had not seen at the side of the road. have you tried to move in bike leathers the bikes would be going slower than walking pace Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
David Todd Posted July 10, 2015 Share Posted July 10, 2015 have you tried to move in bike leathers the bikes would be going slower than walking pace I was not being serious in my comment. Cannot get smileys to work on the iPad. I forgot to add to my previous post, Cav seems to have lost his,"second kick", in the final meters of the stages. He also seems to have worked a lot for Martins Watching the highlights on ITV 4. Last night, Robbie Mac. Had some very valid points of view about Cavs pressure To produce the goods. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bernard Lamb Posted July 10, 2015 Share Posted July 10, 2015 Bad luck to Tony Martin? You must have been watching a different video to me. Tony Martin deliberately shoulder barged the rider on his right. You only have to touch a back wheel going at that speed and it will send you flying. There was very little Tony Martin could do about it. He looked very tired on the previous stage and waved the team through as he could not hold the pace on the front. I presume he was in a similar state at the time of the crash and just lost concentration for a split second. Some riders had cyclo cross brakes fitted for the cobbled stage to help prevent a similar accident. Funnily enough one rider on our Wednesday ride this week rode a cross bike as it was rather wet. It might catch on as a new fashion. I usually hate coloured socks but Griepel's matching green versions were quite smart. Bernard Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
jonny777 Posted July 10, 2015 Share Posted July 10, 2015 Johnny Hoogerland was the poor chap who was cut by the barbed wire fencing. He races with a team that is not in the top 20 so does not qualify for the TdF. I don't know what Tony Martin was doing to be honest. None of the riders in front of him seem to be avoiding anything, but he leans on the chap to his right for some reason. Nibali was lucky to emerge unscathed and I believe the Sky rider to the right of Nibali was Chris Froome who managed to swerve and accelerate out of trouble, otherwise the whole affair could have been a disaster. I would love to think that Cav could recreate his burst of exceptional sprinting speed from a few years back, but I fear age is catching up with him a little so I will have to go for one of the in form fast men. As Greipel is likely to be stage favourite again, I will go for John Degenkolb to spoil the green jersey party today. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
iak Posted July 10, 2015 Share Posted July 10, 2015 Very sad to see Der Panzerwaggon crash out like that; mind, that is cycling at this level. As for today? The pressure is off of Cavs team for as stage win so maybe they will get themselves together and get the Missile launched properly. Its happened before.... Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Adrian Posted July 10, 2015 Share Posted July 10, 2015 None of the riders in front of him seem to be avoiding anything, but he leans on the chap to his right for some reason. If you watch the video closely just prior to that he was moving out slightly away from the barrier and he had a slight overlap to the rider in front so his front wheel just caught the back wheel of the rider in front of him. AIUI it was this touch of wheels that caused him to lean to the right and sparked off the accident - he didn't lean on him deliberately. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
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