# Is anybody just as bored with the tour as i am...



## pr0230 (Jun 4, 2004)

Back in the day, I can remember watching and rewatching, the stages over and over. Now that we have had a rest day, I don't have ANY ANY desire to rewatch any stage... Wait... Lets see kintana follow froome for 150KM... Nope... oh yeah Lets watch Kintana follow froome , can't get excited about that.... Wait froome on a top tube... 

I long for the days when Lance would attack. Ulrich would be in trouble... Pentanni would make a break... 

The only one that is still from the old school is Thomas Vockler (sp?). Gotta Love that guy...


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## Mapei (Feb 3, 2004)

I'm having a good time watching it. It might not be quite as exciting as the battles between Lunce and Pintooni, and I wish Kiintanose would attack already, but for me it's okay to just watch the ponies run around the track. And by the way, Vockler is spelled Vrooklier.


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## bikerjulio (Jan 19, 2010)

I liked seeing the manks missile upping his stage win count. Closing in on Merks.


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## Handbrake (May 29, 2012)

I think you are looking back with rose colored glasses as the tour hasn't been exciting in the way you suggest since the Fignon/LeMond/Hinault days. The GC winners have taken the yellow on whichever mountain stage they chose, put their whole team on the front to set a pace that made attacks almost impossible, and the towed their man to Paris. It has certainly been that way since 1991 with the exception of Sastre's win and I guess Landis'.

Postal/Discovery took their tactics directly from Banesto who perfected its current form. Astana copied it directly. Sky plays it that way as well. Apart from the logos on the jersey the race looks the same to me.

The race is still plenty exciting if you care for more than just GC.


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## den bakker (Nov 13, 2004)

that post is almost mandatory each year around this time in the tour.


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## dgturc83 (Jul 18, 2010)

Maybe we're watching different races. Between Froome's crazy decent attack in stage 8, the GC contenders trying to bury Froome on stage 9 final climb along with the battle for the polka dot jersey it's been pretty exciting. On top of that we've had guys going for broke to get stage wins. Not sure why you think it's boring?


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## MaxKatt (May 30, 2015)

The torrential rain and hail storm added drama, but it's hard to plan those.


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## PJay (May 28, 2004)

den bakker said:


> that post is almost mandatory each year around this time in the tour.


Yes; it is already going in the general discussion room.

On top of that, we have a two page discussion of one water bottle holder versus two.

I am still waiting for "why doesn't one rider just ride away from everyone else" post.


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## PBL450 (Apr 12, 2014)

I don't think it's been boring at all... Well, there was the in-house vacation day... That was boring as hell. The long easy bunch rides on the flat stages are a little boring but we've had some pretty dramatic finishes to make up for it. Froome's 54tooth chain ring for the attack on the descent was pretty exciting to me. He railed the corners and took risks. The fact that he could well win with just those 20 seconds is kind of boring. But not knowing what is going to happen is completely exciting. I guess that's why we race...


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## Up and Atom (Sep 1, 2006)

pr0230 said:


> Back in the day, I can remember watching and rewatching, the stages over and over. Now that we have had a rest day, I don't have ANY ANY desire to rewatch any stage... Wait... Lets see kintana follow froome for 150KM... Nope... oh yeah Lets watch Kintana follow froome , can't get excited about that.... Wait froome on a top tube...
> 
> I long for the days when Lance would attack. Ulrich would be in trouble... Pentanni would make a break...
> 
> The only one that is still from the old school is Thomas Vockler (sp?). Gotta Love that guy...


Back in the day, everyone was doping. Made it much easier to attack and make an attack stick.


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## KoroninK (Aug 9, 2010)

It is rare that I don't find a sprint stage in any race to be anything but boring until the last couple of KMs. The mountain stages have been ok, but then again I prefer the Vuelta and the Giro to the Tour.


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## Marc (Jan 23, 2005)

OP, remember the two egos you name were utterly doped to the gills.....not that anyone is necessarily any cleaner today ofc.




Handbrake said:


> I think you are looking back with rose colored glasses as the tour hasn't been exciting in the way you suggest since the Fignon/LeMond/Hinault days. The GC winners have taken the yellow on whichever mountain stage they chose, put their whole team on the front to set a pace that made attacks almost impossible, and the towed their man to Paris. It has certainly been that way since 1991 with the exception of Sastre's win and I guess Landis'.
> 
> Postal/Discovery took their tactics directly from Banesto who perfected its current form. Astana copied it directly. Sky plays it that way as well. Apart from the logos on the jersey the race looks the same to me.
> 
> _*The race is still plenty exciting if you care for more than just GC.*_



Bingo.

For who knows what reason the press has made the GC the ZOMGWTFBBQ status symbol to care about to the exclusion of all else...including the stage winner practically. Which is funny since the GC isn't "won" so much as it is "lost" and is therefore the most boring contest ever most of the time. Froome's daredevil descending being the exception this year.


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## BCSaltchucker (Jul 20, 2011)

drug fueled cycling is a heavy price to pay for seeing crazy Rasmussen/Armstong/Landis attacks.

no the Tour is pretty much same as always imho. I enjoy the sprints. I enjoy the chess game in the mountains. Much more exciting to me having a bunch of guys close on GC , rather than one guy running away with it.


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## MMsRepBike (Apr 1, 2014)

Boring days for the most part.

But the finishes have been very, very satisfying.


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## dcorn (Sep 1, 2011)

MMsRepBike said:


> Boring days for the most part.
> 
> But the finishes have been very, very satisfying.


This. The worst part is fast forwarding through 3.5 hours of DVR to get to the finish each day.


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## Skewer (Sep 13, 2011)

Tour would be more exciting if they got rid of teams and domestiques, and every man for themselves. To prevent people from just cruising and relaxing the first 70% like the peleton going 17mph avg on a flat area, then they turn it up the last 15 miles of the course. They need aggressive time cutoffs to eliminate that.


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## Oxtox (Aug 16, 2006)

this year's Tour has been very entertaining.

multiple riders have held the yellow jersey including Sagan's first time with it.

crash putting a contender (AC) in jeopardy early, crazy weather, freak accidents (arch falling), spectator abuse, Froome's dramatic attack and descent, and Cav giving the tv crew a tongue-lashing for showing him drafting the neutral service car...

all good stuff and plenty more racing left...


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## n2deep (Mar 23, 2014)

Bored? Seriously? I'm stoked, great fun so far!!! Viva Le Tour!!!!


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## Oxtox (Aug 16, 2006)

Skewer said:


> Tour would be more exciting if they got rid of teams and domestiques, and every man for themselves. To prevent people from just cruising and relaxing the first 70% like the peleton going 17mph avg on a flat area, then they turn it up the last 15 miles of the course. They need aggressive time cutoffs to eliminate that.


you really don't understand the sport...at all.


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## harryman (Nov 14, 2014)

KoroninK said:


> It is rare that I don't find a sprint stage in any race to be anything but boring until the last couple of KMs. The mountain stages have been ok, but then again I prefer the Vuelta and the Giro to the Tour.


Me too. The last few Giros have been far more exciting than the post doping era Tours. Even the sprinters stages have more climbing, so there's always a chance a breakaway will stick.


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## ogre (Dec 16, 2005)

Skewer said:


> Tour would be more exciting if they got rid of teams and domestiques, and every man for themselves. To prevent people from just cruising and relaxing the first 70% like the peleton going 17mph avg on a flat area, then they turn it up the last 15 miles of the course. They need aggressive time cutoffs to eliminate that.


It's called RAAM. And it's boring in its own way.


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## PBL450 (Apr 12, 2014)

The last 2 stages, 9 and 10 have been awesome. Period. IMO. Great bike racing. Between them, great team strategy and great stage strategy... Great tour.


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## Handbrake (May 29, 2012)

I agree. Stage 10 today was a clinic in how a team can neutralize a sprinter in a break.


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## Migen21 (Oct 28, 2014)

Yea, watching the coverage of the breakaway during the last 10km of stage 10 was pretty fun. The strategy being used by Orica-BikeExchange was obvious even to non-cyclists in the room, and it worked to perfection.

Unfortunately, that doesn't change the fact that the previous 180km were mind numbingly boring...


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## MoonHowl (Oct 5, 2008)

Thoroughly enjoying the tour this year. As always, I enjoy the pageantry of the event, the French countryside, architecture, history, crazy fans, it is always a great trip. The added bonuses are having so many riders within seconds of the yellow, yesterday's breakaway, the sprint photo finishes... What's not to love.


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## BacDoc (Aug 1, 2011)

Handbrake said:


> I agree. Stage 10 today was a clinic in how a team can neutralize a sprinter in a break.


Exactly! The way Matthews and his guy worked Sagan for the sprint was brilliant, you gotta be on your game to control Sagan in a sprint finish.


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## BacDoc (Aug 1, 2011)

Oxtox said:


> this year's Tour has been very entertaining.
> 
> multiple riders have held the yellow jersey including Sagan's first time with it.
> 
> ...


Yes! Couldn't have said it better myself.


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## 32and3cross (Feb 28, 2005)

Yeah every stage has been soooooo boring (rollseyes)


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## thumper8888 (Apr 7, 2009)

dcorn said:


> This. The worst part is fast forwarding through 3.5 hours of DVR to get to the finish each day.


ditto. satisfying finishes, and a bit of terrific action today.... it's potentially one of the better tours. Good start, and clearly Froome is worried that due to lack of standard TT opportunities that Quitana can beat him in the mountains. If Quintana is on his game and froome slightly off, as he has been before late, that current 35-second lead could vanish in minutes. It could become very, very dramatic. Quintana is a better pure climber, but not every day. This is all a good setup for serious drama.


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## 50x25 (Aug 25, 2015)

pr0230 said:


> Back in the day, I can remember watching and rewatching, the stages over and over. Now that we have had a rest day, I don't have ANY ANY desire to rewatch any stage... Wait... Lets see kintana follow froome for 150KM... Nope... oh yeah Lets watch Kintana follow froome , can't get excited about that.... Wait froome on a top tube...
> 
> I long for the days when Lance would attack. Ulrich would be in trouble... Pentanni would make a break...
> 
> The only one that is still from the old school is Thomas Vockler (sp?). Gotta Love that guy...


Kintana?

To answer your question, nope, I think the Tour's been great this year, today was awesome with Sagan, Froome, Thomas, and Bodnar.
But to each his own...


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## Migen21 (Oct 28, 2014)

32and3cross said:


> Yeah every stage has been soooooo boring (rollseyes)


I can't speak for others, but for me, this is not what I've been saying.

In every stage so far, the first 85%-90% of it is boring. If you want to watch the french countryside or learn about the history of the castles and such, that's great, but I want to watch bike racing. And yes, the last few kilometers have been fairly interesting in every stage, but the rest of it for me has been kinda 'meh'....


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## BCSaltchucker (Jul 20, 2011)

Migen21 said:


> In every stage so far, the first 85%-90% of it is boring. If you want to watch the french countryside or learn about the history of the castles and such, that's great, but I want to watch bike racing. And yes, the last few kilometers have been fairly interesting in every stage, but the rest of it for me has been kinda 'meh'....


this is just because you have never seen a stage race before then. expectations unrealistic


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## Migen21 (Oct 28, 2014)

BCSaltchucker said:


> this is just because you have never seen a stage race before then. expectations unrealistic


Sorry BC, I normally consider your posts in high regard, but this is an utterly ridiculous thing to say...


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## 32and3cross (Feb 28, 2005)

Migen21 said:


> I can't speak for others, but for me, this is not what I've been saying.
> 
> In every stage so far, the first 85%-90% of it is boring. If you want to watch the french countryside or learn about the history of the castles and such, that's great, but I want to watch bike racing. And yes, the last few kilometers have been fairly interesting in every stage, but the rest of it for me has been kinda 'meh'....


What do you expect? No race has non stop action every K. Almost every stage has had an exciting finish often with breakaways. Unless they had the mailes before hand all the finishes would be massive pack finishes (barring MTN stages and even those would have more people together). 

You have unrealistic expectations.


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## Red90 (Apr 2, 2013)

I have to agree and disagree on the boring part of this discussion. For the most part 90% of the race is not that gripping. However, I have to admit that, watching and feeling the effort these cyclist put into it for that 90% of the race makes the last 10% so much more epic. If that 90% was not important, than I would just watch the highlights. Somehow, just watching the highlights don't give that same satisfaction and epic win as when I watch the entire race.

One thing I do find a bit boring/frustrating at times is the dominance of Team Sky at the tour de france. With the strong crew they have, matched with the precise calculation and execution, it almost feels a bit futile to challenge. To some extent, I lament the days that things were a bit more of a guessing game and not as exact. Riders needed to make decisions more based upon instinct and assessment, not on calculated power, time difference and energy. There would be more of a possibility of making up time.


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## Migen21 (Oct 28, 2014)

32and3cross said:


> What do you expect? No race has non stop action every K. Almost every stage has had an exciting finish often with breakaways. Unless they had the mailes before hand all the finishes would be massive pack finishes (barring MTN stages and even those would have more people together).
> 
> You have unrealistic expectations.


The question that was posed in the thread title is 'do you find the Tour boring?'. I gave my answer. 

I honestly don't have any expectations that they are going to change anything to appease me. I don't know where you got that from.

To answer your question, I honestly don't know what they could do to make a 5 hour event exciting to watch end to end without dramatic format changes.


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## BCSaltchucker (Jul 20, 2011)

Migen21 said:


> Sorry BC, I normally consider your posts in high regard, but this is an utterly ridiculous thing to say...


first 100km-200km of almost all stages is merely a fast club bike ride, trying to tire riders out before the real race begins. Very rare to see any 'action' until the last 20km in most stages, or perhaps the last 2 mountain climbs in a mtn top stage. Unless you are into watching intermediate sprints and polka dot points sprints.

Though I love the Tour and have been to a couple in person - I rarely watch more than the last 10km on the flat, or the last hour in the mountains. Kind of prefer that my favourite sport does not require 3-4hours out of my day to watch, unlike other pro sports.


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## Cinelli 82220 (Dec 2, 2010)

Well how about NFL football? A bunch of steroid freaks jumping on each other for a few seconds between endless commercials for beer and pickup trucks. How could anyone watch that?


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## Oxtox (Aug 16, 2006)

Migen21 said:


> In every stage so far, the first 85%-90% of it is boring. If you want to watch the french countryside or learn about the history of the castles and such, that's great, but I want to watch bike racing. And yes, the last few kilometers have been fairly interesting in every stage, but the rest of it for me has been kinda 'meh'....


just another pointless whine from someone who has no concept of the intricacies of Grand Tour stage racing.


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## Migen21 (Oct 28, 2014)

Oxtox said:


> just another pointless whine from someone who has no concept of the intricacies of Grand Tour stage racing.


How is it that me not enjoying watching a 5 hour stage (part of a 3 weeks race) makes me not understand the intricacies. I understand them better than most, and as well as most of the people on this board. I just find it a little boring and tedious. 

This thread is about who finds the tour boring. I find *most* of it too boring to sit through - I'm not committing 5 hours a day for three straight weeks to watching it! I'm quite content with watching the highlights and reading about the other stuff in the race summaries. I don't feel the need to watch *all* of it live.

It's fine if you have a different opinion (about whether it's boring or not), but please don't insult my intelligence.


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## Oxtox (Aug 16, 2006)

Migen21 said:


> How is it that me not enjoying watching a 5 hour stage (part of a 3 weeks race) makes me not understand the intricacies. I understand them better than most, and as well as most of the people on this board. I just find it a little boring and tedious.
> 
> This thread is about who finds the tour boring. I find *most* of it too boring to sit through - I'm not committing 5 hours a day for three straight weeks to watching it! I'm quite content with watching the highlights and reading about the other stuff in the race summaries. I don't feel the need to watch *all* of it live.
> 
> It's fine if you have a different opinion (about whether it's boring or not), but please don't insult my intelligence.


Cliff Notes type, huh...?


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## bvber (Apr 23, 2011)

Cinelli 82220 said:


> Well how about NFL football? A bunch of steroid freaks jumping on each other for a few seconds between endless commercials for beer and pickup trucks. How could anyone watch that?


It shows that you don't watch NFL because you forgot to mention pizza commercials. :hand:


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## Fireform (Dec 15, 2005)

If you think the tour is boring this year, you just don't like pro racing. This has been one of the best in recent memory so far. 


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk


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## tlg (May 11, 2011)

Stage 11... NOT.... boring. Start to finish.

No finish on Mont Ventoux today though. 77mph winds and temps just above freezing. :cryin:


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## 32and3cross (Feb 28, 2005)

Migen21 said:


> The question that was posed in the thread title is 'do you find the Tour boring?'. I gave my answer.
> 
> I honestly don't have any expectations that they are going to change anything to appease me. I don't know where you got that from.
> 
> To answer your question, I honestly don't know what they could do to make a 5 hour event exciting to watch end to end without dramatic format changes.


Gottcha, it was just general whinging from you then.


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## LostViking (Jul 18, 2008)

I actually thought this Tour started out much better than many in recent memory.

For example yesterday's stage in the wind when break-ups could form at any moment was fairly interesting despite being a flat stage.

What is a bit meh is Froome in Yellow and Sagan in Green half-way through the race - sadly, I think this will also be the case when they ride into Paris, so that element of excitement is gone unless something totally unforeseen happens. The fight for White and the Polka Dots are the only thing left to determine.

Boring? Yes some of the stages, especially the flat ones have some lulls where not much is happening - the breakaway is a couple of minutes ahead and the now Sky-powered peloton is just waiting to reel them in a few miles before the finish or decide strategically to just let them go.

Most exciting element - and I can't believe I'm writing this - is Froomie.
Yup, the way Froome is riding is unusual - he's not following Sky Orthodoxy and is attacking on the flats now - not waiting for the mountains or the time trial - that's been interesting to watch. It's kind of funny really - La Tour organizers set things up to avoid Froome getting into Yellow too early and what has happened? The best laid plans of mice and men....


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## Migen21 (Oct 28, 2014)

32and3cross said:


> Gottcha, it was just general whinging from you then.


If by 'General Whinging' you mean me not having the same opinion as you in regards to the original posed question, then yes, I supposed you can wrap it up like that...

Are people who feel/think differently than you not supposed to post here on this site? Or in this thread?


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## thumper8888 (Apr 7, 2009)

Based on today's stage alone I think you can close down this thread. No longer applicable in any way.


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## troutmd (Sep 7, 2007)

thumper8888 said:


> Based on today's stage alone I think you can close down this thread. No longer applicable in any way.


No doubt, based on the last kilometer today, the race organizers have now spiced things up a tad.

Fantastic crowd management of such adult spectators.


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## Marc (Jan 23, 2005)

troutmd said:


> No doubt, based on the last kilometer today, the race organizers have now spiced things up a tad.
> 
> Fantastic crowd management of such adult spectators.


Given the last minute nature of the elimination of the summit finish...I'm not sure that there is more that ASO could have done.

Getting the few miles of metal barriers moved was probably down on their list...compared to finding a new home for all the broadcast equipment, finish line gear, backline, and so on. Also remember with mountain finishes the road is closed a day or more before....so all those whackos roadside had probably been squatting there already when ASO needed to find room to move everything from the summit to further down.

It ain't like Tour of California with completely empty barren roads to just upend everything to somewhere else without interference.


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## LostViking (Jul 18, 2008)

thumper8888 said:


> Based on today's stage alone I think you can close down this thread. No longer applicable in any way.


Today's stage will be nullified it seems - it's as if it never even happened.


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## 32and3cross (Feb 28, 2005)

Migen21 said:


> If by 'General Whinging' you mean me not having the same opinion as you in regards to the original posed question, then yes, I supposed you can wrap it up like that...
> 
> Are people who feel/think differently than you not supposed to post here on this site? Or in this thread?


Feel however you want but when the facts don't back up your "feelings" and you present no suggestions for change it comes off like whinging.


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## troutmd (Sep 7, 2007)

Marc said:


> Given the last minute nature of the elimination of the summit finish...I'm not sure that there is more that ASO could have done.
> 
> Getting the few miles of metal barriers moved was probably down on their list...compared to finding a new home for all the broadcast equipment, finish line gear, backline, and so on. Also remember with mountain finishes the road is closed a day or more before....so all those whackos roadside had probably been squatting there already when ASO needed to find room to move everything from the summit to further down.
> 
> It ain't like Tour of California with completely empty barren roads to just upend everything to somewhere else without interference.


It wasn't last minute at all but hours and hours:

*** to move barriers a few miles down-course (done for every stage of the tour except they are moved 100 or more miles); and,

*** to get on the phone to call up more police security due to the known compressing of spectators from the 6 KM closed above, to a required distance beyond the new finish line is just too much to ask.

Yep --- that is just an impossible task.


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## Marc (Jan 23, 2005)

troutmd said:


> It wasn't last minute at all but hours and hours:
> 
> *** to move barriers a few miles down-course (done for every stage of the tour except they are moved 100 or more miles); and,
> 
> ...


If you've worked live productions, doing what they did today was a monumental task. Sub-optimal ofc, but still monumental.

You have to find more police, you have to get them on site in time to do any good....you then have to ship them cross-country (the easy part) and then up the mountain (the hard part) past 10s or 100s of thousands of spectators camped out in a 10% grade mountain goat road. You have to clear the spectators so everything can get erected. Oh yea, and you have to clear the 100s or thousands of spectators off the road to make room for the vehicles as well as the new finish line site.

Moving barriers alone is a slow and not-at-all easy task even before worrying about 100kph winds on a mountain, even when you don't have 100,000+ drunk/high/insane lunatics impeding progress. Which BTW, there's a good chance given the winds the barriers wouldn't have stayed upright anyway and would have been more of a safety risk.



All this ignores the financial side of things. Presuming there's even spare manpower to call in and get there in time, just about every agreement has clauses stipulating sweet overtime pay for any changes 4 weeks or less before the show. You almost never hear about a rock band production changing venue 24 hours before a show. It is very hard to do, and very expensive...and troupes would sooner cancel than change venues due to the added cost/trouble.


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## BCSaltchucker (Jul 20, 2011)

Cinelli 82220 said:


> Well how about NFL football? A bunch of steroid freaks jumping on each other for a few seconds between endless commercials for beer and pickup trucks. How could anyone watch that?


yes. it ends up being like cycling - I cut out all the NFL standing-around-doing-nothing time and commercials using PVR


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## JSR (Feb 27, 2006)

Yes, I think we can confidently say this race is now so predictable as to be unwatchable.


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## Rashadabd (Sep 17, 2011)

I haven't been a big TdF fan for at least the last 3-4 years. I watch mostly for the sprint stages and the stages that are similar to the spring classics and I pretty much watch those as if they are one day races without paying much attention to what is going on with the yellow jersey. The Giro is the best grand tour IMO and the Classics are by far my favorite pro races.


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## troutmd (Sep 7, 2007)

Marc said:


> If you've worked live productions, doing what they did today was a monumental task. Sub-optimal ofc, but still monumental.
> 
> You have to find more police, you have to get them on site in time to do any good....you then have to ship them cross-country (the easy part) and then up the mountain (the hard part) past 10s or 100s of thousands of spectators camped out in a 10% grade mountain goat road. You have to clear the spectators so everything can get erected. Oh yea, and you have to clear the 100s or thousands of spectators off the road to make room for the vehicles as well as the new finish line site.
> 
> ...


OK --- for safety to the riders the Tour made a change in plans 15 hours before the riders arrived. The results for rider safety speak for themselves.


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## carbonLORD (Aug 2, 2004)

You must be watching that Tour where Nibali won...

Are you mad!?!

Cav gets his first yellow, followed by Sagan getting his first yellow... Contador crashing and abandoning. Neck to neck sprints and exchanges of the Green Jersey! 70+mph downhill top speeds! Froome and Sagan breaking away at the end and reinforcing their claim on their respective jerseys. CF reinforcing he has what it takes against Quintana in the mountains! A crash that might have surely decided another outcome! And who knows what tomorrows Time Trial will bring, which are usually boring in themselves but given the close call today I expect Froome will drop the hammer.

You can go back and watch the Tour from yesteryear if you like. We still have 9 more days of racing!


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## Marc (Jan 23, 2005)

troutmd said:


> OK --- for safety to the riders the Tour made a change in plans 15 hours before the riders arrived. The results for rider safety speak for themselves.


They really do. I mean no one was hurt. One bike had a broken seat stay, and Froome kept yellow (as should probably have happened and would have anyway).

So why are you still sour grapes? Got a soft spot for Pinarellos?


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## troutmd (Sep 7, 2007)

Marc said:


> They really do. I mean no one was hurt. One bike had a broken seat stay, and Froome kept yellow (as should probably have happened and would have anyway).
> 
> So why are you still sour grapes? Got a soft spot for Pinarellos?


Sour --- nah. Watching spectators making a spectacle is nothing to be sour over.


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## BCSaltchucker (Jul 20, 2011)

Rashadabd said:


> I haven't been a big TdF fan for at least the last 3-4 years. I watch mostly for the sprint stages and the stages that are similar to the spring classics and I pretty much watch those as if they are one day races without paying much attention to what is going on with the yellow jersey. The Giro is the best grand tour IMO and the Classics are by far my favorite pro races.


this is all very understandable. It is all very common that the Tour is pretty much won well before half way - and has often been like that going back decades. The classic are always exciting, never know who is going to go long that day, and the competition is alwasy deep. The smaller Tours are sometimes fun ... but they lack the crucial ingredient of the Tour: high stakes and packed with contenders. In the Giro and Vuelta, there is never more than one or two top Tour contenders peaking for them, if any (eg Hesjedal won in 2012 against no one but back marker Rodgriguez). In the Tour, it is targetted by at least a half dozen of the very top GC stage racers almost every year (except Nibali was handed his Tour win by attrition). 

So I can understand when it becomes a parade (eg the Indurain years, arguably the Armstrong years) with one guy running away with it. ... but then this year we are over half way and Froome is definitely not running away with it yet. Meanwhile he has been all over the TV doing attacks on 3 big stages so far, which has been awesome


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## Marc (Jan 23, 2005)

troutmd said:


> Sour --- nah. Watching spectators making a spectacle is nothing to be sour over.


If it makes you feel better, the motorbike that had to stop (leading to the pile up) allegedly did run over the idiot spectator-seeking-a-spectacle. So if you were hoping for the idiot spectator/instigator to get run over, you did get your wish.


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## AJL (Jul 9, 2009)

Can we just get the hell along! It's a bike race FFS.


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## Marc (Jan 23, 2005)

AJL said:


> Can we just get the hell along! It's a bike race FFS.


troutmd is just grumpy over some PO nonsense, don't mind it a bit


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## PBL450 (Apr 12, 2014)

pr0230 said:


> Back in the day, I can remember watching and rewatching, the stages over and over. Now that we have had a rest day, I don't have ANY ANY desire to rewatch any stage... Wait... Lets see kintana follow froome for 150KM... Nope... oh yeah Lets watch Kintana follow froome , can't get excited about that.... Wait froome on a top tube...
> 
> I long for the days when Lance would attack. Ulrich would be in trouble... Pentanni would make a break...
> 
> The only one that is still from the old school is Thomas Vockler (sp?). Gotta Love that guy...


.....no?


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## BCSaltchucker (Jul 20, 2011)

finally - a boring stage which made the rest of the Tour a lot more boring.

Never been a fan of the TT. I was not a good TT racer, and always find them boring to watch with 2 exceptions (89 Tour and 12 Giro). I like how they ditched the ITT prologue and only have 2 short ITT this year. But I would get rid of them altogether. I realise it is tradition, and a way to bring in multi-disciplines to the Tour GC. bah

And the result is ... essentially an insurmountable lead for the man in yellow with no drama, just a boring ITT.

OK there I said it .. suddenly it is a boring Tour! for one day so far. Hopefully I am wrong and the alps brings new challenges to Froome's dominance (though I still like the man and hope he wins). Really enjoyed how it was not a boring Tour at all for 11 stages in a row though.


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## Neolithic (Mar 24, 2015)

I have a hard time accepting comments about boring. But then, I know I'm often an exception. I was rather into watching NASCAR (go fast, turn left) for a number of years and still appreciate it, and I enjoy watching golf.

So obviously I'm insane and you can stop listening to me.

But even with "boring" stages like today's ITT, there's still excitement to be had in evaluating strategy and its execution. It may be different, there may be less, but it's not absent.

My wife has inspirational quotes around the house and one of them is, "To do carefully and constantly and kindly many little things is not a little thing." It is amazing to me to see individuals and teams that are able to maintain speed, discipline, and composure over so many kilometers and so many days.

But again, I know I'm weird...


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