# why no lemond bikes in TDF?



## jrb985 (Feb 6, 2005)

is there any team out there in the TdF racing lemonds or am i just missing them on the broadcasts??


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## vanjr (Sep 15, 2005)

no. just like there are no teams on cannondales, litespeed, landshark, raleigh, etc. etc.

wish there was!


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## asterisk (Oct 21, 2003)

I think the last team to use Lemonds was Saturn and they ended their sponsorship in the end of 2003.


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## iamandy (Jun 20, 2003)

i think tiaa cref rode lemonds two years ago (or was it last year?). could be wrong


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## Evan Evans (Sep 14, 2004)

Look closely at the Disco teams bikes. I saw them on Lemond bikes on stage 2. Once they reach the Alps they will switch to Kleins & back to Trek for Paris. Actually they only ride the Trek bikes when the camera man is close. It's all just marketing with a clever use of decals. Lemond himself started this tradition in 1986 when he rode Hinault , Look & Huffy bikes on the last day of the tour.


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## uzziefly (Jul 15, 2006)

What???????????
You're saying Discovery Team uses other bikes????????????
That would take a HECK of a lot of decals to cover their bikes up man. They ride the Madone SSL 5.9 and some of them use the SSL 6.9 for the hills, a new release from Trek. You SAW them on Lemond??? Are you joking dude? They switch to Kleins on the Alps? How'd u know? they told you?? They only ride Trek when the camera is close? So what, they constantly switch bikes DURING a race? This is one wacko theory you've got here dude. Hincapie was DEFINITELY on a Madone SSL at stage 2, unless they use super decals. and so were the other DSC members. I have no idea where you got your cosmo theory from Evans..


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## uzziefly (Jul 15, 2006)

http://www.thepaceline.com/members/graham_item.aspx?cid=2462
Tell me these are Lemond bikes? How'd u know they are? Any proof?


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## uzziefly (Jul 15, 2006)

I dont mean to be rude here evans but its just not pssible. Look at the frames closely and u can see it's a madone frame. it's too manone-ish to be lemond. and, why would they ride lemonds or kleins for that matter?


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## vanjr (Sep 15, 2005)

this was a joke.


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## Damon64 (Sep 24, 2005)

Easy there, uzzie...I noticed last year when Hincapie won that stage his "Discovery" decal was slightly peeling revealing "Magna" under it.


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## uzziefly (Jul 15, 2006)

Really? That's weird... But Lance sure used Trek alright...


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## Mark McM (Jun 18, 2005)

uzziefly said:


> Really? That's weird... But Lance sure used Trek alright...


... At least whenever he wasn't using a Litespeed repainted as a Trek.


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## CHAOTICMESS (Nov 9, 2004)

*The Truth*

Damon 64 figured it out!! All tdf bikes are Magnas. They are then sold to trek, bianchi, scott, ect. Its the bike industrys darkest secret.


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## zero85ZEN (Oct 11, 2002)

*Team Lampre*



vanjr said:


> no. just like there are no teams on cannondales, litespeed, landshark, raleigh, etc. etc.
> 
> wish there was!


...on Cannondale Six13's.


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## dagger (Jul 22, 2004)

Sorry they highjacked your thread but Lemond Bikes is not big enough to be able to afford to sponsor a Pro Team


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## WhiskeyNovember (May 31, 2003)

dagger said:


> Sorry they highjacked your thread but Lemond Bikes is not big enough to be able to afford to sponsor a Pro Team


In what way is Lemond not "big enough" to be able to afford to sponsor a pro team? Please be specific.


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## IcemanYVR (Jul 27, 2006)

vanjr said:


> no. just like there are no teams on cannondales, litespeed, landshark, raleigh, etc. etc.
> 
> wish there was!


Litespeed has been ridden in the tour many times. Lance won all three time trials in 1999 on a Litespeed Blade. Richard Virenque won four of his Polka Dot jersey's on a rebadged Litespeed Vortex.

Robbie McEwen won the green jersey on Litespeed, in fact the entire Lotto Addecco team raced on Litespeed until the sponsorship changed.

I don't think there are any current teams using Litespeed, but they have an excellent racing pedigree. Comparing Raleigh with Litespeed is like comparing a Chevy Cavalier to a Porsche 911.



WhiskeyNovember said:


> In what way is Lemond not "big enough" to be able to afford to sponsor a pro team? Please be specific.


I don't think they have enough money. A bike manufacturer needs to provide a pro team of 20-21 riders, at least four bikes each (two race, training, and at least one time trial frame. Generally, each custom sized for every individual rider. They then need to be able to support the team for an entire year or more depending on the length of the contract. That's a lot of R&D, time, and effort. Nothing against Lemond bikes, it's probably just a fiscal reality. Besides, Lemond is owned by Trek, and I don't think I need to say anything more in that regard.


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## Allez Rouge (Jan 1, 1970)

WhiskeyNovember said:


> In what way is Lemond not "big enough" to be able to afford to sponsor a pro team? Please be specific.


It's possible he doesn't realize LeMond is owned by Trek.

I think the potential conflict of interest, so to speak, is the key. Trek has no interest in seeing a team riding one of its "sideline" brands beat Disco aboard the flagship brand.


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## pedalsquares (Aug 2, 2006)

jrb985 said:


> is there any team out there in the TdF racing lemonds or am i just missing them on the broadcasts??


I was looking for them also. I know I clearly saw a LeMond or two in the pack a couple of times, but it's true they were few and far between.


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## IcemanYVR (Jul 27, 2006)

pedalsquares said:


> I was looking for them also. I know I clearly saw a LeMond or two in the pack a couple of times, but it's true they were few and far between.


I'm sorry, but there were no teams racing on Lemond bikes in the 2006 tour. The riders must ride what the team rides. If (and it's a really big if) a rider want's to ride another companies bike, they must buy it themselves, and it has to painted in team colours, and done up just like the other team bikes, including the name. This was the case with all the Litespeeds in the tour with the exception of Lotto in 2003. Lotto was sponsored by Litespeed.


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## chang100 (Aug 29, 2003)

*Cofidis will be on Lemonds in '07*

Heard it from a reliable source---former Trek employee who worked on the new frame designs.


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## stevecaz (Feb 25, 2005)

*Cofidis not on Lemonds for 2007*

This was just reported on Cyclingnews.com, which usually has much better intel. I guess time will tell which bike was chosen when the Confidis team issues the 2007 team photo in the coming months. 

"Time will reportedly move to sponsor Cofidis as Wilier Triestina has renewed for two years with Lampre-Fondital, while Pinarello has renewed their deal with Caisse d'Epargne. Other bike sponsorship rumors have Specialized possibly joining up with Liquigas through their Mario Cipollini connection or maybe even bouncing BMC from their impending deal with Astana."


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## jomico (Sep 16, 2006)

The reason you don't see Lemond in the Pro Tour is because it generally costs 1MM to get a Pro Tour team to ride your bikes unless a manufacturer has long lasting relationships with teams. e.g. pinarello with Caisse d' Epagne, Colnago with Rabobank etc. There is no way that anybody on Discovery was riding Lemonds. If for not other reason than Lance owns the team. Lance and Lemond don't exactly get along. Lance would never allow it. As for pro's riding bikes with decals that use to be true but these days most bikes are fairly similar in terms of performance and materials but they tend to have noticeable design differences as opposed to when all bikes were made of steal tubing. If you took an Orbea Orca (Euskaltel), a Pinarello Paris (Caisse d' Epagne) a Williers Triestina (Cofidis and Lampre) Colnago (Rabobank) and a Giant (T-Mobile) and had them next to eachother unpainted most cyclists who are familiar with bikes in the pro tour could tell you the brands. They are all totally different design wise.


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