Anyone else on here following this?
Contador to win.
Armstrong has been incredible.
Astana has such a strong team & that's the difference for Bradley Wiggins.
Though Vandevelde's effort to help him yesterday was immense he needed more support to keep him in contention for a podium finish.
Today's time trial should be fascinating.
A top ten finish for him though would be outstanding.
Cavendish cannot now get the green jersey but he's only young & I still fancy him to get the stage win on the Champs Elysee.
All in all much better than last year.
Allez Lance, allez Bradley.

Just returned from my own "Le Tour".

I have a begrudging admiration for anyone who can climb hills on a bike faster than I dare go down them, especially after doing Hartside coming out of the Lakes on Saturday - one hour of solid uphill and lots of Lucazade.


Stand by for details of a ride I am organising for next year that RLFannies are invited to...

I kind of loosely keep track of Le Tour via the internet. I'm no big cycling fan and I can't say I entirely understand the finer points of it, but you have to respect the super-human effort involved in that kind of event. The top guys must be some of the greatest endurance athletes on the planet, and as an amateur marathon runner I can certainly admire that.

i think the main reason why Armstrong is struggling is because he doesn't have the full support of the team. When he was at the discovery team he had the full backing of the team who would lead him out and dictate the pace of the peleton when needed. Now Armstrong is on his own he is struggling to cope with the added difficulty of taking more turns at the front and tracking other riders on his own

I rather do enjoy it.

Big day today with the time trial. A lot can change. Brad Wiggins put a good effort in your never know.

Far from it. At 37 I think he's been superb and he has actually said he'll help Contador win the tour. Contador has pulled away on a couple of the mountain stages, but he's 12 years younger and hasn't had a 3 year break from cycling. To be 4th in the tour is an outstanding achievement.

Agreed, it would have been easy for Armstrong to come back only on the basis that he would be team leader and everyone else should sacrifice themselves for his benefit.

That he's prepared to put his own personal glory on the line to help Contador says a lot about him as a person IMO.

While I'd love to see Wiggins do well in the time trial and Contador has been making worried noises about him in the press, I can't see him making up enough time to win it.

Perhaps more satisfying would be to see Cavendish first across the line in Paris and then giving an extremely large two fingers to a certain Norwegian...

The way Contadour put the hammer down into Verbier showed he should be Astana's top man - Wiggins was awesome on that stage - in the correct team he is a potential winner - especially as he appears to have conquered the mental side of the climbs.

The performance of Wiggins has been nothing short of outstanding. To go from being a gold medal winning track cyclist to these performances in the mountains in less than 12 months has been a joy to watch.

Its a well overrated sporting event.

I think that your user name indicates exactly how much credence we sould give to your opinion.
It's the single event that attracts the largest live audience of any sporting event in the world.
It obviously doesn't float your boat though.
So just ignore it.

Do you mean live as in stood on the side of the road?

Yes, or are they all CGI?
You never know with crowd scenes these days.
Brilliant ride by Contador today & Andy Schleck rode better than anyone thought he could.
Wiggo will need his team to support him better on Saturday if he is to have any chance of a podium finish.
Top 10 will still be awesome, top 5 even better.

No, I though you might have been referring to tv coverage.

Ah, Alberto is still in yellow then.

in what way?

as a spectacle its probably as boring as crown green bowling if you're not into it, but it doesn't claim to be visually entertaining.

As a test of physical endurance it's clearly just about the most demanding in the world of sport. Anyone who thinks otherwise is deluded.

I just admire you.

*Ahhh*

This is the scariest thread ever !!

Jealousy gets you nowhere!

Me too. You're alright as well, hate everyone else. Love me though. Ace aren't I?

It is generally held to be the world's biggest annual sporting event. The only two events that are considered to be bigger are the Olympics and the Football World Cup. I think I read somewhere that the Tour is actually shown on TV in more countries than the World Cup, but does not quite attract as many overall viewers, but it is still a huge amount.

Having followed the Tour in the flesh on quite a few occasions and stood in the crowds on Alp'd Heuz on three of those I can tell you it is awesome and it really makes you understand just how big this thing is! There are something like 6000 people who move with the tour everyday in around 3000 vehicles. They erect their own start village every morning which is around the size of a football pitch, so the riders, teams and others can chill before the race start.

Oh, and Alberto was always going to finish in yellow for me. He is the best climber since Pantani (RIP) and can now time trial just as well Indurian and Armstrong ever could.

Chapeau to both Armstrong and of course Wiggins who has just been brilliant. Wiggins does look like he has it him in to win the Tour but I suspect it might have to be at Alberto's expense from a fall or not starting. However, I expect Alberto to match his fellow Spaniard Indurian and take at least 5 Tour wins (although not consecutive now), not sure he has it him in to win 8 though!

My brother-in-law & his US pals who are all good standard club cyclists rode up Alpe d'Huez, it took them nearly 2 hours compared to the 40 or so minuts it takes the tour riders. It is literally like riding up the side of a house.
Re Wiggins he needs to surround himself with a team as capable as the Astana team to stand any chance of winning the tour.
Tuesday's stage showed that to perfection.
Saturday's stage ending on Mont Ventoux will I believe show the same again to prevent him from getting a podium finish.
Nevertheless he's had a brilliant tour, together with Cavendish & the news that Sky is sponsoring a GB team managed by Brelsford(sic?) has ignited terrific interest in the sport following on from the fantastic Olympic performances.
Trouble is it will lead to more cycle lanes!!

I am not sure if the two hours is correct, the fastest I rode up the Alp was 49mins and it has always taken me less than an hour. Granted, I only ever did it after a 10k warm-up and when I did it in 49mins I was a 2nd Cat rider at the time. I am wondering if they have done after a long full day ride, then I think it would take me 2 hours, so when you see the top guys do the Alp in 40+ mins after 6 hours in the saddle, that is amazing!

Ventoux is just an awfull climb, it is like riding to the moon, that is what makes it such a great spectacle. You can't escape the sun and the heat like you can on the Alp. Of course, I have no idea how long it took me to get to the top of Mt Ventoux because everyone always stops to pay their repects at 'Major Tom's' memorial quite rightly, but of course it is also a bit of an excuse to get a little rest and your breath back before heading for the top!

If you have got into it and like to read their are two books you should read - put me back on my bike, in search of Tom Simpson by William Fotheringham and the brilliant In Search of Robert Millar by Richard Moore.

Thanks for the recommendation. I did see Robert Millar when the tour of Britain visited Leeds a few years ago.
I first got into Le Tour thanks to Eurosport in the early 80s in the days of Stephen Roche (good to see his lad doing some good things in this year's tour) followed by Lemond, then the mighty Indurain but Lance is still the man. Which other sportsman could come back after 4 years out of his sport & do what he's done, simply incredible.

Roche Jr has huge potential and the next couple of years will show if he can follow his Dad and win the Tour.

Armstrong is amazing but even with his comeback feat, Indurain is still the man as far as I am concerned. First man to win 5 consecutive Tours and of course IIRC 2 Giro wins, World hour record, beating Obree's, World and Olympic TT champion plus a host of other major wins.

Anyone ever go to the Leeds Classic that was held in the middle 90s?


I had my photo taken with Mr Armstrong (god knows where it is now

) and Bjarne Riis wouldnt sign my programme grrrr Dope head