With today's stage starting later and so many talking points still lingering from yesterday, I thought I'd put down some thoughts on them.
Friday, July 14, 2017
Thursday, July 13, 2017
Change in yellow...Tour blown wide open!
A change in the race lead shouldn't come as a major surprise. I mean, Fabio Aru did only trail Chris Froome by 18 seconds coming into the stage. And yet, I'm still shocked that it has happened, and I don't quite know why? Aru has looked excellent thus far in this race, winning a stage, while Froome has failed to isolate the Italian when given the chance. With the stage win going to Romain Bardet ahead of Rigoberto Uran with Aru two seconds behind in third and Froome 7th at 22 seconds, Aru is into yellow. He leads Froome now by 6 seconds. Bardet is still in third, but only 25 seconds behind, with Uran a further 30 seconds back.
Wednesday, July 12, 2017
I still like to watch the predictable long and flat stages
There has been a lot of long, flat stages in this years Tour. The kind in which the break goes up the road, gets reeled back in and from which a bunch sprint ensues. It's not as bad as the 90's when the entire first week was dedicated to such racing, but in an age in which so much of the Tour is on TV, it stands out more.
Three kinds of Tour stages
There are three kinds of stages in the Tour de France: Time trials, mountain stages, and Kittel stages. Yes, what was once sprint stages on the flat days, now belongs to a 29 year old German. Unbeatable on such days, or so it seems.
Marcel Kittel has won both stages since the rest day, and both with relative ease. Each stage was much like those that came in the first week of the Tour. A small break would go up the road early and get chased down late before the fast men finished behind Kittel. The only difference between yesterday and today was the margin of victory by Kittel. Today was a little closer, though never in doubt. Yesterday he won by several lengths. In truth there ought to have been a time gap to the rest.
Marcel Kittel has won both stages since the rest day, and both with relative ease. Each stage was much like those that came in the first week of the Tour. A small break would go up the road early and get chased down late before the fast men finished behind Kittel. The only difference between yesterday and today was the margin of victory by Kittel. Today was a little closer, though never in doubt. Yesterday he won by several lengths. In truth there ought to have been a time gap to the rest.
Another cyclist killed; A plea to all motorists
Another cyclist killed on the road yesterday. It was in Northern Ireland, but the location doesn't matter, except that it struck close to home for me. The following is a Facebook post from my dad who was at the scene, with some thoughts of my own below. Please give it a read:
Monday, July 10, 2017
Rest day musings
For all the flat stages in which an early break gets brought back in time for the bunch gallop, this Tour has sure been full of drama. That is often the case at the Tour, but I don't remember one in which there were so many points of debate within the first nine stages. From the Sagan-Cavendish incident, to the photo finish on stage 7 to many moments on Sunday's stage 9. It feels like we're two weeks in rather than one.
And with each debate so the last debate drifts out of mind. I have said it a few times already, but the Tour moves fast and not only on the road. Something else will happen next week that will move the narrative on once more. And how refreshing too that the controversy is about what is happening on the bikes, if you know what I mean? Rest days ain't what they used to be. All we're doing now is looking back at what has been and considering how it all adds up to what we will see in the days ahead.
And with each debate so the last debate drifts out of mind. I have said it a few times already, but the Tour moves fast and not only on the road. Something else will happen next week that will move the narrative on once more. And how refreshing too that the controversy is about what is happening on the bikes, if you know what I mean? Rest days ain't what they used to be. All we're doing now is looking back at what has been and considering how it all adds up to what we will see in the days ahead.
Sunday, July 9, 2017
Crashes, attacks, and controversy: Two wild days in the mountains at the Tour
Coming into stage 8 on Saturday morning there were eight men within a minute of Chris Froome's yellow jersey. By the time they went to bed on Sunday night, ready for a rest day, that number was down to three. And while some fell away in the standings, Geraint Thomas and Richie Porte, well placed coming into the weekend, fell away on the road and had to abandon.
The yellow jersey came through unscathed with two crucial days ticked off in his bid to defend his title. His lead is only 18 seconds but in hindsight, with all we seen, he'll take it. Likewise might his now closest rivals, Fabio Aru at 18 seconds, Romain Bardet at 51 seconds, and the surprising Rigoberto Uran at 55 seconds. Of them, Aru courted controversy, Bardet animated Sunday and Uran took a stage win. It was a weekend that threw up so many talking points as the race hit the high mountains. Eight categorised climbs over the two stages, of which four were category one or higher.
The yellow jersey came through unscathed with two crucial days ticked off in his bid to defend his title. His lead is only 18 seconds but in hindsight, with all we seen, he'll take it. Likewise might his now closest rivals, Fabio Aru at 18 seconds, Romain Bardet at 51 seconds, and the surprising Rigoberto Uran at 55 seconds. Of them, Aru courted controversy, Bardet animated Sunday and Uran took a stage win. It was a weekend that threw up so many talking points as the race hit the high mountains. Eight categorised climbs over the two stages, of which four were category one or higher.
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