# TdF Jul 14 Stage 10 Discuss'n Tread (spoilers)



## PJay (May 28, 2004)

TdF Jul 14 Stage 10 Discuss'n Tread (spoilers): place-holder. Anyone is welcome to post their views of what the stage is like, and what might unfold - that is, of course, if any of the riders has one of those folding bike.


----------



## PJay (May 28, 2004)

90 miles. The ride starts out with a pleasant 10 miles, then turns into a sawtooth nightmare of seven climbs, with very little flat between them.
La Planche des Belles Filles, the final peak, is new to le Tour; in its first appearance, Froome gained fear and respect here in 2012, winning the stage while helping Wiggins to sustain his overall position. Great discussion sprung from that ride, with many wondering whether Froome rather than Wiggins should have been the premier rider of Sky.

A worthy discussion. This ride is very challenging. It is disappointing we cannot see Froome ride it this year.

This is a serious mountain stage, and the field will be spread more than it has on any stage thus far. Contador will have to show something. There is no way to hang with the popular kids at the cool lunch table up front, with the permitted breakaway winning the day: the elite echelon will not be in position to respond to a gap of several minutes. If Nibali and his team have had a bit of rest, he could be in a great position to rival Contador for the lead as of today. Of course, someone like Valverde could decide to have the great day they have seemingly been hinting at.

Look for a lot of riders off the back, and a couple dropping out entirely. I will say Valverde.


----------



## PJay (May 28, 2004)

This is Bastille Day. I think the French will have to be happy with their success of Saturday and Sunday - I don't see Rolland or any other French rider grabbing this stage.


----------



## love4himies (Jun 12, 2012)

Contador is down. He will get back on, but may loose some time.


----------



## PJay (May 28, 2004)

thy keep lookin at AC's brakes - he cannot downhill well if he cannot be confident in his rear brake.


----------



## love4himies (Jun 12, 2012)

4 mins down from the peloton.


----------



## love4himies (Jun 12, 2012)

Team car is sticking with Conti. Hopefully the peloton will back off for him to catch up.


----------



## Terex (Jan 3, 2005)

They are saying that his Specialized frame snapped in half, causing the accident. This should be interesting.


----------



## turk0017 (Jul 18, 2007)

love4himies said:


> Contador is down. He will get back on, but may loose some time.


His frame cracked on the climb! Wow - wonder if he will be on here tonight with a "crack or scratch" thread?


----------



## love4himies (Jun 12, 2012)

turk0017 said:


> His frame cracked on the climb! Wow - wonder if he will be on here tonight with a "crack or scratch" thread?


I just heard that.


----------



## love4himies (Jun 12, 2012)

Conti is with the medical van now. He's just not riding like himself.


----------



## PJay (May 28, 2004)

Terex said:


> They are saying that his Specialized frame snapped in half, causing the accident. This should be interesting.


Not the desired brand-name exposure they hoped for.


----------



## Retro Grouch (Apr 30, 2002)

turk0017 said:


> His frame cracked on the climb! Wow - wonder if he will be on here tonight with a "crack or scratch" thread?


My money is on a pointless "race bikes are too flimsy and light" diatribe to dominate the discussion.

Poor Contador. Looks like besides the physical injuries, he got his bell rung good. If he gets through this stage and comes back on Wednesday, I'll give the man credit for his tenacity.


----------



## godot (Feb 3, 2004)

Retro Grouch said:


> My money is on a pointless "race bikes are too flimsy and light" diatribe to dominate the discussion.


Don't forget the also inevitable "should they have waited" thread


----------



## love4himies (Jun 12, 2012)

Conti abandons.


----------



## Retro Grouch (Apr 30, 2002)

Contador gives up. So sad.

Green light for Nibali to ignite the afterburners.


----------



## El Scorcho (Dec 14, 2005)

No love for Conti, but I do love having him in the pelaton. He makes for a much more interesting race.


----------



## PJay (May 28, 2004)

omg 4567


----------



## Skewer (Sep 13, 2011)

Must be a chinese ebay frame.


----------



## bradkay (Nov 5, 2013)

turk0017 said:


> His frame cracked on the climb! Wow - wonder if he will be on here tonight with a "crack or scratch" thread?


I know that Phil was saying that it broke on the climb while Alberto was being attended to by the doctors, but in watching we saw him make the turn onto the start of the climb after getting back on the bike. This means that the crash occurred during the last portion of the descent of the Petit Ballon.


----------



## DonMI6 (Apr 8, 2013)

bradkay said:


> I know that Phil was saying that it broke on the climb while Alberto was being attended to by the doctors, but in watching we saw him make the turn onto the start of the climb after getting back on the bike. This means that the crash occurred during the last portion of the descent of the Petit Ballon.


I'm sure Paul Sherwen said there was a 70 metre skidmark resulting from the crash...surely means it was on the descent rather than the climb as they said at first. Horrible way to crash anyway, I can hardly imagine a worse way to fall off.


----------



## Skewer (Sep 13, 2011)

I wish I can experience a cat 1 climb. What's it like and where can I ride my bike in one in the U.S.?


----------



## bradkay (Nov 5, 2013)

Skewer said:


> I wish I can experience a cat 1 climb. What's it like and where can I ride my bike in one in the U.S.?


Where do you live? There are plenty of Cat 1 and Hors Categorie climbs in the US.


----------



## Retro Grouch (Apr 30, 2002)

Skewer said:


> I wish I can experience a cat 1 climb. What's it like and where can I ride my bike in one in the U.S.?


Maps, index and calendar for Top 100 United States road bike climbs

You're welcome.


----------



## Terex (Jan 3, 2005)

bradkay said:


> I know that Phil was saying that it broke on the climb while Alberto was being attended to by the doctors, but in watching we saw him make the turn onto the start of the climb after getting back on the bike. This means that the crash occurred during the last portion of the descent of the Petit Ballon.


Makes more sense. Again, too bad re Contador. He does help animate the race.


----------



## bradkay (Nov 5, 2013)

Retro Grouch said:


> Maps, index and calendar for Top 100 United States road bike climbs
> 
> You're welcome.


Interesting list, but it leaves out many great climbs - some that have been used in UCI races and thus have received categorization.


----------



## Hiro11 (Dec 18, 2010)

OPQS is out front hammering. Everyone else is forced to chase. Leaders on their own with two huge climbs left. This is some effing racing today. Exciting stuff to say the least.


----------



## dnice (Jul 12, 2012)

Tony Martin is a legend! One of the greatest efforts on conecutive days that i've seen in some time.


----------



## PJay (May 28, 2004)

hats off to tony martin - what a performance yesterday, plus rising to the occasion today.

(of course, do not take off your hat until the ride is over).


----------



## PJay (May 28, 2004)

wow - gallopin well positioned to hold yellow on bastille day.


----------



## PJay (May 28, 2004)

that 18% was killing everyone. the final climb has a lot of unthinkable vert also, and anything could happen. tony martin may not be the only one swapping onto a bike with training wheels.


----------



## PJay (May 28, 2004)

ok, gallopin has slowed to an easy gallop.


----------



## dnice (Jul 12, 2012)

i hope proper credit is given to nibbles, the man is on sublime form. I don't see how bertie was going to take 2:30 out of him just on climbs. That was a brilliant display of boss riding.


----------



## bvber (Apr 23, 2011)

Just by chance, when I turned the TV on, this was on the screen. It's about 2/3 way through stage 10. I thought French citizens behave better...


----------



## love4himies (Jun 12, 2012)

Just stunned how these guys can reach so deep for energy at the end of a hugely painful ride.

Nibali was fantastic. 

Sad for Tony when he lost his steam. What a fighter.


----------



## weltyed (Feb 6, 2004)

i will miss contador in this race

i bet my volagi frame is good.


----------



## Hiro11 (Dec 18, 2010)

Yanks:
Talansky officially finished now. Tejay looking fit and tough. I think Tejay's going to shut a lot of naysayers up in the next couple of weeks.

Edit: Tejay into 6th.


----------



## r1lee (Jul 22, 2012)

unless Nibali crashes and doesn't finish this tour, i don't think there's anyone who can challenge him at this point. Potentially a great tour has now become meh...


----------



## mambo (Jul 29, 2012)

The first news is that the frame broke and caused his fall. I'm assuming that if indeed this was true, the story will change to ensure no loss of face for the frame brand.


----------



## turk0017 (Jul 18, 2007)

Retro Grouch said:


> My money is on a pointless "race bikes are too flimsy and light" diatribe to dominate the discussion.
> 
> Poor Contador. Looks like besides the physical injuries, he got his bell rung good. If he gets through this stage and comes back on Wednesday, I'll give the man credit for his tenacity.


The new thread will be "Specialized sues NBCSports for stating bike broke in half under Contador". Seems like the frame actually broke from the fall itself - great reason for Specialized to sue claiming loss of millions of sales and tarnishing of their brand name.


----------



## dnice (Jul 12, 2012)

turk0017 said:


> The new thread will be "Specialized sues NBCSports for stating bike broke in half under Contador". Seems like the frame actually broke from the fall itself - great reason for Specialized to sue claiming loss of millions of sales and tarnishing of their brand name.


it wouldnt take much for those guys, that's for sure. also, phil and paul clarified that it was the bike on the roof that fell and broke. no, that was not an attempt at damage control. not in the least.


----------



## mpre53 (Oct 25, 2011)

love4himies said:


> Just stunned how these guys can reach so deep for energy at the end of a hugely painful ride.
> 
> Nibali was fantastic.
> 
> Sad for Tony when he lost his steam. What a fighter.


Damn, I was hoping for another look at his hot wife tonight.


----------



## mambo (Jul 29, 2012)

turk0017 said:


> The new thread will be "Specialized sues NBCSports for stating bike broke in half under Contador". Seems like the frame actually broke from the fall itself - great reason for Specialized to sue claiming loss of millions of sales and tarnishing of their brand name.


I think only a few people who were there will know what really happened. If you were being sponsored by Specialized there's now way you would admit that the frame breaking caused the fall anyway.

I have someone who I may be able to ask, but he is in one of the team cars on the Tour at the moment and fairly busy and it may take me a few days to get a reply, that is assuming he knows.


----------



## PJay (May 28, 2004)

i heard that contador slid whilst performing a downhill ride at 50+ mph - there is no tellin what the crash was like - i would not expect a well-recognized bike frame brand to handle every possible way a fall at 50-60mph might go.


----------



## mpre53 (Oct 25, 2011)

turk0017 said:


> The new thread will be "Specialized sues NBCSports for stating bike broke in half under Contador". Seems like the frame actually broke from the fall itself - great reason for Specialized to sue claiming loss of millions of sales and tarnishing of their brand name.


Specialized would have to have some really dumb lawyers for them to sue a media company for reporting what the cameras clearly showed---a bike with an S-Works logo with a snapped downtube. Those pesky details about "actual falsehood or a reckless disregard for the truth" always get in the way when you sue someone who can actually fight back.


----------



## love4himies (Jun 12, 2012)

Spaniard Contador, Tour winner in 2007 and 2009, suffered a broken shinbone and would undergo surgery according to the organizers’ medical statement, adding that he also suffered an elbow problem.

Alberto Contador breaks shinbone in Tour de France crash; Nibali wins 10th stage - The Globe and Mail



> There was no TV footage of the accident, but Nibal witnessed it first hand.
> 
> “It happened in a descent, the asphalt was not in good condition. He was behind me but then passed me and three seconds later he fell off in front of me. It was spectacular, we were around 60 kph,” the Italian champion said.
> 
> “I was just behind and for a moment I thought my Tour could be over too.”


----------



## Winn (Feb 15, 2013)

mpre53 said:


> Specialized would have to have some really dumb lawyers for them to sue a media company for reporting what the cameras clearly showed---a bike with an S-Works logo with a snapped downtube. Those pesky details about "actual falsehood or a reckless disregard for the truth" always get in the way when you sue someone who can actually fight back.


NBC pulled the report already. No video of the crash is available stills of him bleeding next to a McLaren bike are though... I'm sure that won't be enough for the haters. Apparently it was a sandwich at high speed and not the spectacular broken frame.

I'll miss the guy. Altogether it was a heck of a race today


----------



## 55x11 (Apr 24, 2006)

mpre53 said:


> Specialized would have to have some really dumb lawyers for them to sue a media company for reporting what the cameras clearly showed---a bike with an S-Works logo with a snapped downtube. Those pesky details about "actual falsehood or a reckless disregard for the truth" always get in the way when you sue someone who can actually fight back.


A source within the team who was present at the scene of the crash explained that Contador’s mechanic, Faustino Munoz, grabbed his backup bike off the roof, then, seeing the condition of Contador, rushed to his aid, leaving the bike against the team car. The team car drove off and crushed the bike. Photos were taken, and the broken bike story took off.

The alternative potential explanation, of course, is that Contador’s bike broke on impact with a large pothole.


Read more at Details of Alberto Contador's Tour-ending crash - VeloNews.com

Details of Alberto Contador's Tour-ending crash - VeloNews.com


----------



## cycmike (May 12, 2011)

Clears things up a little. Looking at the picture of the broken bike, it does look clean, not like its been ridden 90 miles and then run over. Just run over. 

From Velo News

Read more at Details of Alberto Contador's Tour-ending crash - VeloNews.com



> Specialized later corrected itself again, stating that Contador’s bike that had been run over. A source within the team who was present at the scene of the crash explained that Contador’s mechanic, Faustino Munoz, grabbed his backup bike off the roof, then, seeing the condition of Contador, rushed to his aid, leaving the bike against the team car. The team car drove off and crushed the bike. Photos were taken, and the broken bike story took off.
> Read more at Details of Alberto Contador's Tour-ending crash - VeloNews.com


----------

