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2018 Tour de France Thread

4K views 25 replies 4 participants last post by  1 
#1 ·
Since we don't have one yet - Sagan's stint in yellow was predictably short, but still cool to see. Likewise, that the guy who led a solo break for much of stage 2, Sylvain Chavanel, is a 39-year-old Frenchman riding in his record 18th TDF. Gives hope to older guys like me that my best riding days aren't behind me. :)
 
#3 ·
I'm rooting for Nibali as well. Shame how badly his team let him down today.

I'd LOVE to see Craddock win a stage with his injuries. I don't think he's going to survive the cobbles but it'd be killer to see him take a stage before then.
 
#4 ·
I just can't believe Craddock is still riding.

I mostly just want to see Sagan take the green. After that, as long as it's a well-fought tour, I'm good. :yesway:
 
#5 ·
I just can't believe Craddock is still riding.

I mostly just want to see Sagan take the green. After that, as long as it's a well-fought tour, I'm good. :yesway:
Yeah I'd love to see Craddock get something out of this tour after riding through that!

I'd imagine barring any crashes, Sagan is usually guaranteed for green :lol:

I'd also take Bardet for the win, the french would go insane if that happened. Or Valverde, or Tom Dumoulin but I'd imagine he'll be a bit fucked from the Giro still.

Should be interesting to see what Movistar do with Landa, Valverde and Quintana in the mountains. I hope they race aggresively.

Also how about that 65km Pyreneean stage? That looks mental, should be good on TV!
 
#6 ·
I want to think that Sagan (who I have a man crush on, like everyone else) was just doing his GC rider a favor today and telling his team to go. The alternative is that he really IS as tired as he looked after the end of the stage yesterday. :\
 
#7 ·
Gaviria inched out Sagan in the finish today, but both overtook Greipel after he made the first move, so it looks like Sagan has at least sprung back somewhat.
 
#9 ·
Bit more exciting today to see the classics guys out in the final, thought Phil Gilbert had it there! Sagan just rode on GVA's wheel and had the power in the end though, great stage.
Ace to see Chavanel in the break again too earlier on.

Tomorrow should be good with the steep uphill finish on the Mur de Bretagne, could see the GC boys out. I reckon Valverde could be a good shout for the stage too. Or Alaphilippe.
 
#11 ·
:lol::lol: I get it, he does come across as a monumental bellend. But there are worse, like Nacer Bouhanni who has basically been left at home by his french team Cofidis, because he throws hissy fits and disobeys team orders. One year he couldn't ride the tour as he got into a fight in the team hotel and fractured his wrist the night before the national championships. Or Gianni Moscon who was suspended because he was racist towards Kevin Reza a couple of seasons ago, and allegedly deliberately crashed out another rider who reported him for the previous. He's on the Sky squad.

And there's always Froome who looks like a stick insect having a seizure on the bike, purely on that he should be ousted from the Tour. It's so horrible to watch :lol:
 
#13 ·
Haha yes Bouhanni is a joke. Pretty sure he won't get a contract at Cofidis next year though, and there's nowhere else for him to go except to a smaller team. Apparently he is universally disliked in the Peloton too.

Yeah I think a lot of people could get on Thomas' side. He's never really proven himself in anything longer than a week though, so I guess it depends if Froome fades/crashes out. He comes across as a really genuine bloke in interviews though, so I'd support him on that alone :lol: But he's kinda lumped in with the other almost-contenders, like Richie Porte, Dan Martin, Bauke Mollema etc that never seem to last the whole three weeks. You never know though I guess!

I'm so glad Landa left Sky though, you could really sense his frustration last year, having to sit and tow Froome up everything when he had the legs to pretty much go on his own.
 
#16 ·
Cav did it on purpose. You did it because you really don't pay attention on the road at all man. Riding with you is always a little more interesting because I never know when you'll slash in front of someone. :lol:
:lol: that's just sneaky tactics, he's trying to get you to pull on the front ;)

A couple of flat sprint stage snoozefests, friday was particularly boring. Don't really see the point of these stages in a modern Tour, but it's France and they're stuck with their traditions I guess. At least today's finish was a bit more exciting with some good headbutting action at 65km/h :eek:

Tomorrow will be ace though, almost anything could happen. And hopefully Froome will fall off or something :lol:
Last time there was a cobbled stage in the tour it was mental. That was in the rain though so there might not be as much carnage. GC riders generally can't deal with cobbles very well though so it should shake it up a lot.

My stage win pick: Greg Van Avermaet.
Would be ace to see him win in Roubaix with the leaders jersey.
 
#18 ·
:lol: I know a couple of people who use that tactic! I actually quite like sitting on the front though but maybe I'm weird.

If any of you are still watching the Tour, it's getting pretty good now! Sunday was pretty epic and I wasn't far off in my prediction for once :cool:

Good to see Thomas winning the stage today, though a bit annoyed that Froome is doing well again :lol:

Tomorrow is a serious test though, and hopefully more fireworks to come! I've also ridden all of the climbs on the route so I will enjoy seeing them go up them twice the speed that I did :lol:
 
#21 ·
:lol: yep along with all the other sprinters pretty much :eek:

Totally gutted about Nibali, apparently he got taken out by a police moto and might have a fractured vertebra :noway:
Which makes his ride even more heroic, closing the gap back to only a few seconds after being more than a minute down after he got knocked off. It makes you wonder what he could have done in the final!

Holy fuck, what an awesome stage finish today. :lol:
Yep exciting finish today, great to see more attacking racing. Even if Team Sky are still leading, Thomas seems like a more deserving leader and Bardet and Dumoulin are clearly not planning to just sit in the wheels all the way to Paris.

Bring on the Pyrenees!
 
#24 ·
Amazing stage! And excellent outcome IMO :lol: (not Sagan, though he was up there in the final today so doesn't seem too hindered)

Gonna be a close one with Thomas Vs Dumoulin on the TT I think, the Dutchman is definitely the favourite for that stage, though froome could still throw a spanner in the works!

Tomorrow's Queen stage should be good too, that last descent is quite technical from what I remember riding it a couple of years ago, so could benefit Bardet or someone brave.
 
#25 ·
Well, congrats are in order to Thomas. Great ride, and in his speech he came across as genuinely liking Froome, who meanwhile was right by his side to give him a congratulatory pat on the back as he rolled across the line. Awesome Tour. :yesway:
 
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