Register a SA Forums Account here!
JOINING THE SA FORUMS WILL REMOVE THIS BIG AD, THE ANNOYING UNDERLINED ADS, AND STUPID INTERSTITIAL ADS!!!

You can: log in, read the tech support FAQ, or request your lost password. This dumb message (and those ads) will appear on every screen until you register! Get rid of this crap by registering your own SA Forums Account and joining roughly 150,000 Goons, for the one-time price of $9.95! We charge money because it costs us money per month for bills, and since we don't believe in showing ads to our users, we try to make the money back through forum registrations.
 
  • Post
  • Reply
Mr.Nice
Apr 28, 2006




Running from Saturday July 5th to Sunday July 27th 2014, the 101th Tour de France will be made up of 21 stages and will cover a total distance of 3,664 kilometres. 9 flat stages,5 hill stages, 6 mountain stages with 5 altitude finishes and 1 individual time trial stage.
After taking off from the United Kingdom for a 20th Grand Départ abroad, the Tour de France will go through northern france, the infamous cobbles of Paris-Roubaix, head east toward Alsace in the Vosges mountain in the begining of second week and catch the Alps for two stages a few days later. The third and last week will be in the Pyrénées for another two mountain stages and a 54km time trial.








Rosbeef is the slang term the french use for english men



Stage 1 Saturday, July 5th, Leeds / Harrogate, 190.5km




Major Tom Simpson.

Thierry Gouvenou posted:

A British rider's dream
The Tour de France will kick off with a road stage instead of a prologue, like in 2013, when its Corsican adventure started with Marcel Kittel pulling on the yellow jersey everyone expected to see on Mark Cavendish's back. The British sprinter is already plotting revenge. First of all, because the Grand Start will take place in Great Britain, on his home turf and in front of his home crowds. Second, because the stage finishes a stone's throw away from where his mother used to live. And finally, because pulling on the fabled jersey for the first time would fit in nicely with his numerous accomplishments. I think he is the odds-on favourite to take this stage with gorgeous landscapes and pancake-flat roads in the final 60 kilometres.
Thierry Gouvenou is the new race director of TDF, he designed the 2014 route.

The bookies slightly disagree with Gouvenou as Kittel is the main favourite (2.60) with Cavendish second (3.30), Sagan third (7.0) and Greipel fourth (8.0) for this stage.
It will be a nervous finish, no prologue to create gap between riders, every teams will want to be near the front of the peloton, it's one of those rare chances for a sprinter to be in yellow.

The towns 2014 : visit Yorkshire



Stage 2 : Sunday, July 6th, York / Sheffield, 201km





Thierry Gouvenou posted:

Avoid being caught napping
The course of this awesome stage looks like a carbon copy of Liège-Bastogne-Liège. This is not your run-of-the-mill start to the Tour, but it is set to be thrilling because the overall favourites will have to avoid being caught napping. I think they will all be in the mix, especially Froome, Contador, Nibali and Valverde. On this terrain, I would rather put my money on them than on Sagan, as the climbs may well be a bit too tough for his taste. All this is to stay that we should expect to see one hell of a fight during the Yorkshire chapter, at least if the best riders are willing to light the fireworks...

Considering this stage seem slightly easier than Liège-Bastogne-Liège and how the classic was almost a bunch sprint this year anyway, a sprint with a reduced peloton is more than likely, some big and fast men will be dropped though.



Stage 3 : Monday, July 7th, Cambridge / Londres, 155km





Thierry Gouvenou posted:

Rolling into the capital
A short 155 km stage to the British capital, which gave the Tour de France an unforgettable welcome in 2007. A prestigious stage which will take the peloton alongside the Olympic Park and London's most famous landmarks before finishing opposite Buckingham Palace. Of course, with everything pointing towards a mass sprint, the spotlight will back on Cavendish. Will he be at the top of his game? I think so. But one thing is for sure: the crowds will turn out in force, as large and fiery as seven years ago.

As a tradition in the tour, the first week is mostly dedicated to sprinters, this stage is no exception.

The towns 2014 : visit London









Stage 4 : Tuesday, July 8th, Le Touquet-Paris-Plage / Lille Métropole, 163.5km





Thierry Gouvenou posted:

A place for each car and each car in its place
The English adventure is over. The Tour reaches French soil with a stage which will take the peloton from Le Touquet-Paris-Plage to Lille. Truth be told, I think the sprinters will manage to lock down the race. This is one of the trends in modern cycling, even if we, as the organisers, would rather see more hectic racing. Nevertheless, riders at the top of the general classification will have to pull out all the stops to defend their position, which will determine the place for each team car behind the peloton in the next stage. The importance of this order will become apparent the moment a rider has a mechanical on the 15.4 km of cobblestones.

Some sharp climbs to help a breakaway and long range attack however it's early in the tour and the chance to succeed are low.

The towns 2014 : visit Le Touquet-Paris-Plage



Stage 5 Wednesday, July 9th , Ypres / Arenberg Porte du Hainaut, 155.5km




How the Ch'ti (the local) see themselves versus how rest of France see them.

Thierry Gouvenou posted:

A stage riddled with dangers
The time has come for the famous stage and its nine cobbled sectors, which promise, dare I say it, a "battlefield". It all starts in Ypres, Belgium, a city notorious for the gas attacks launched in it. It would have been unacceptable for the Tour not to commemorate the Centenary of the start of World War I in its own way... However, we will focus on the race, which promises to be a spectacular showdown. I do not expect Froome to thrive on the cobblestones but, who knows, he may want to prove us wrong... For him and many others, this is a stage riddled with dangers. The cobblestones will be a hinge moment in the race.

The pavés of the north have made many GC contenders anxious, being light weight isn't that great on cobblestones. It's likely to create some gap between the main favourite, maybe some decisive gap already if they have a mechanical at the wrong time. A new yellow jersey should appear, Cancellara or Vanmarcke the cobbles specialists should win and take the GC lead. This is the stage you don't want to miss in the first week.

Yprès - World War I



Stage 6 Thursday, July 10th, Arras / Reims, 194km




La cathédrale de reims, a very important place in France history

Thierry Gouvenou posted:

One for the brave
I have already talked of teams built around sprinters... Well then, I would not be surprised to see a breakaway stick on the day after the cobblestones stage, as we continue to commemorate the centenary on the roads of the Battle of the Somme and the Chemin des Dames. Yes, this is a stage for the brave, with lots of twists and turns towards the end, so the wind could also play a role... If attackers happen to come up short, a power sprinter may prevail on the long, leg-breaking false flat on the final straight. Last year's Kittel and Greipel would have had lots of fun here.

A breakaway win is a possibility now that there is some significant gap, on the other hand there are 5 or more teams dedicated almost exclusively to sprinters, some of them won't have a win at this point and not that many opportunities left.

The towns 2014: visit Arras



stage 7 : Friday, July 11th, Épernay / Nancy, 234.5km





Thierry Gouvenou posted:

Two big climbs
It is not just the 234.5 km distance which will make this stage hard to control. There will be two tough climbs in the run-up to the finish. The gradient on one of them, five kilometres from the line, hits 8%. With this course, will the sprinters' team take the reins of the race and risk seeing their leaders blow up on the last slopes? It remains to be seen. With two weeks of racing left, some teams may have started dosing their efforts by the time we reach this point. All in all, I expect to see quite a tactical stage culminating in a thrilling finale. The peloton should reach Nancy in pieces.

It's an interesting finish considering the distance, could be for the like of Nibali, Voeckler, Rodriguez or sprinters like Sagan and maybe Greipel if the pace in the hill isn't too high.

The towns 2014: visit Epernay



Stage 8 : Saturday, July 12th, Tomblaine / Gérardmer La Mauselaine, 161km




In the country of smelly cheeses, Munster is the king of the most smelly.

Thierry Gouvenou posted:

Adapting strategies
We are now in the Vosges and, if I may say so, this is where the chips come down. Three off-the-wall days of racing in this region, three short but different stages which reflect our desire to force riders to adapt their strategies. What can we expect from this stage? A frenzied start in which breakaway specialists will seek to capitalise on the flat 130 kilometres which open the stage before the mountain goats come out to play! The menu features three difficulties: the Croix des Moinats, the Col de Grosse Pierre "revisited" with sections at over 15% and the final climb to La Mauselaine, in Gérardmer (1.8 km at 10.3%). The favourites will have nowhere to hide. However, it is entirely possible for a long breakaway to hang on and take the stage win.

The first real mountain stage of the tour 2014, nothing too crazy, it's medium mountain with no altitude over 1000m, it's short but steep climbs. The favourites are expected to make a first move there. It's also Voeckler native region...

The towns 2014: visit Tomblaine



Stage 9 : Sunday, July 13th, Gérardmer / Mulhouse, 170km




France is world famous for the vineyards and the ghetto, in Alsace you get Vineyards in the ghetto or ghettos in the vineyards.

Thierry Gouvenou posted:

An interesting insight
What will the state of affairs be like in Gérardmer? It takes a smart person to answer this question. We will be past Yorkshire's rolling landscapes, the cobblestones, La Mauselaine and, why not, splits near Verdun... Quite a few riders, including some big names, may have lost ground by now. Will they join forces with the breakaway specialists, who will no doubt be out in force? We have drawn a typical Vosges stage for them, with long rather than steep climbs. With the next day's fierce battle looming on the horizon, this stage should give us an interesting insight into where each man stands.

It's not the kind of stage where you can win the tour but it's the kind where you can lost it.

The towns 2014: visit Gérardmer



Stage 10 : Monday, July 14th - Mulhouse / La Planche des Belles Filles 161.5km




Plank of the pretty girl is the literal translation of La planche des Belles Filles. You can read the legend on wiki.

Thierry Gouvenou posted:

Spectacular fireworks
Another famous stage, this time to La Planche des Belles Filles, where Chris Froome took his maiden stage win at the Tour in 2012. If it ain't broke, don't fix it, so we are going for a short but challenging stage again! Spectacular fireworks await, with a sequence of seven mountains over 130 kilometres, including the Col des Chevrères (with sections hitting up to 15%) and the final climb up La Planche des Belles Filles (with a 20% gradient on the last ramp), which will feature in the Tour for the second time. By the time we cross the finish line, I cannot say whether we will know the name of the winner in Paris, but we should have a list of those who are out of the running for good.

Now that the football/soccer world cup is ove, the tour is THE sporting event on the planet.
Quite a different profile than the last finish in Planche des belles filles in 2012, this one will be harder if not impossible to control, it Could be extremly important for GC. It's the French national day, a breakaway win, a Pierre Rolland long range attack like he often did in the giro, are very likely.

Tour de Francia 2012 Etapa 7 Tomblaine La Planche des Belles Filles
The towns 2014: visit La Planche des Belles Filles



Rest day : Tuesday, July 15th





Stage 11 : Wednesday, July 16th, Besançon / Oyonnax, 187.5km





Thierry Gouvenou posted:

A very tight race
The stage after the first rest day. Does this herald the start of a new race? Perhaps... It depends on how things go. I expect it to be a very tight race, with the big favourites within three minutes of each other. Not enough to think the race is done and dusted, but still a sizeable margin in the general classification. This is why we avoided widening the gaps with a time trial, for example, and we sought instead to create undulating stages to promote attacks. This stage could be one for the likes of Peter Sagan.

The likes of Peter Sagan but also Nibali, it's a great stage for downhiller, Vincenzo need take risk if he want to have a chance to win the GC.

The towns 2014: visit Besançon



Stage 12 : Thursday, July 17th, Bourg-en-Bresse / Saint-Étienne, 185.5km





Thierry Gouvenou posted:

The old capital of cycling
A second transition stage which will come down to a tug-of-war between breakaway specialists and the sprinters. It is worth noting that, although this Tour de France will have lots of short, bumpy stages, it has also got something for the green jersey contenders. They will have at least eight opportunities to duke it out, including this stage from Bourg-en-Bresse to the Beaujolais hills in Saint-Étienne. Who will triumph in the old capital of cycling? Looking back on last year's Tour, Kittel has the edge, but I and others think Cavendish can still go very fast. He raced too much in 2013, but he has been smart enough not to repeat the same mistake this season.

It will be hard for some of the fast guys like Kittel and Cavendish to find the right pace to catch the morning breakaway without spending too much energy on the final climb. An attack 30-40km from the finish should have a good chance to succeed (if the rider(s) aren't a thread at GC).



Stage 13 : Friday, July 18th, Saint-Étienne / Chamrousse, 197.5km





Thierry Gouvenou posted:

The final hour
The course profile may suggest otherwise, but this is a real mountain stage which the favourites would be wrong not to take seriously! We packed all the difficulties into the last fifty kilometres, including a climb up the little-known Col de Palaquit towards the final hour of racing. With 14.1 km of fluctuating gradients, this will be anything but a joy ride. More than enough to spark an important selection ahead of the final climb up Chamrousse, an 18.2 km mountain with an average gradient of 7.3%.

It's one of my favourite stage of this tour, an hard hill at the start to promote a large breakaway, a cat.1 with some double digits gradient for the long range attack or reducing the peloton to a minimum and a long 20km climb to finish. Unfortunatly the next day stage is even harder and many riders are likely to save some energy.

2001 Tour de France Stage 11 Mountain Time Trial Chamrousse
The towns 2014: visit Saint-Étienne



Stage 14 : Saturday, July 19th, Grenoble / Risoul, 177km





Thierry Gouvenou posted:

A coalition of attackers
Two legendary peaks, the Lautaret and the Izoard, will spice things up before the summit finish in Risoul, which has already featured in the Tour de l'Avenir and the Critérium du Dauphiné. The idea we had in mind when designing the stage was putting the 19-kilometre Izoard as a springboard for a last hour of racing which will keep us on the edge of our seats... A coalition of attackers, why not? If the 2014 Froome is as strong as the 2013 Froome, we have to give his rivals the chance to look for chinks in his armour. This stage, the second and last one in the Alps, will provide ample opportunity for them to do just that.

The hardest stage of this tour and the highest point of the race (2360m), needless to say it's another key stage.

Ciclismo Le Grandi Salite del Ciclismo #32 Izoard & Vars
Montée du Col de l'Izoard - étape du Tour 2006 Vélo Magazine
Tour de France 2006 étape 15 Gap -- L'Alpe d'Huez



Stage 15 : Sunday, July 20th, Tallard / Nîmes, 222km





Thierry Gouvenou posted:

What if a mischievous wind...
A long transition stage to round off the second week of the Tour. It appears unlikely that the sprinters will be thwarted in this majestic finish opposite the Nîmes arena. But you never know... Last year, betting on anything but a mass sprint in Saint-Amand-Montrond seemed lunacy. But then, the wind blew the race apart! Thus, a stage which looked like nothing special went down in history as one of the most thrilling in the last decade. It all goes to show that the outcome of a stage is not cast in stone, so watch out if the oft-present mischievous wind starts to blow...
.

With a rest day coming and two hard stages the previous days, some teams will want to take it easy, other will want to give it all. Even without a strong wind to create echelons, it won't be a parade.



Rest day 2, Monday, July 21st





Stage 16 : Tuesday, Carcassonne / Bagnères-de-Luchon, 237.5km




Cows and sheeps have priority on the climb.

Thierry Gouvenou posted:

Six hours on the saddle
The longest stage of the 2014 Tour comes right up the second rest day. With 237.5 km on the menu and the Port de Balès as a dessert, the riders will spend about six hours on the saddle.
The last few years have shown that riders who make it to the top with a margin of 30 to 40 seconds can rest assured of keeping it until the finish and taking the win in Bagnères-de-Luchon. The odds are on the attackers' side, thus. Sure, this does not look like the toughest stage in the Tour, but remember that this is where Andy Schleck lost the yellow jersey due to a mechanical in 2010.

On the paper it's the perfect stage for Nibali and a dangerous one for Contador and Froome.

Tour De France (2010) Stage 15 Highlights And Final Kilometres The chaingate.
The towns 2014 : visit Carcassonne



Stage 17 : Wednesday, July 23rd,Saint-Gaudens / Saint-Lary Pla d'Adet, 124.5km





Thierry Gouvenou posted:

A hectic stage
At 125 km, the shortest stage comes just after the longest. To be honest, it will be a hectic 125 kilometres, since it is all up and down from kilometre 50 all the way until the summit finish on Plat d'Adet. Even the leaders will find this a tricky stage. And the riders in the autobus... For them, it will be a stage of trials and tribulations, with a tight elimination time which will force sprinters to spend the entire stage à bloc. Several green jersey contenders could end up having to pack their suitcases after this stage! The final podium will start to take shape. Without a doubt, the highlight of the race.

Short mountain stage like this are always intense, it's guaranteed to create some actions. Extra motivation for the Spanish riders as the race will pass in their country.

Tour de France 1993 Stage 16 St Lary Soulan Pla d'Adet
2001 Tour de France Stage 13 Pla d'Adet
The towns 2014: visit Saint-Lary Pla d'Adet



Stage 18 : Thursday, July 24th Pau / Hautacam, 145.5km




Came is a slang for drug in french, haut mean high

Thierry Gouvenou posted:

A launch pad
At 145.5 km, this stage is also quite short. Compared with the previous one, riders will probably see it as an opportunity to catch their breath. True, the elimination time will be more generous. Yet they would do well not to underestimate the stage. First of all, they will have to climb the Col du Tourmalet, always a challenge. Next up, the final climb up Hautacam, which has earned a hallowed place in the history of the Tour. We hope the Tourmalet is used as a launch pad for attacks and does not go to waste. If so, pretenders to a podium spot or even the overall win could use it to claw back some time.

The queen stage of this tour, it's the last mountain stage and therefore the final chance for the natural climbers like Contador to take back some time or increase their lead before the final TT.

Tour de France 1994 Stage 11 Pantani Hautacam
Tour de France 1996 Stage 16 EPO Hautacam
Tour de France 2000 Stage 10 Hautacam
Tour De France 2008 Stage 10 Hautacam part1, part2
The towns 2014: visit Pau



Stage 19 : Friday, July 25th, Maubourguet Pays du Val d'Adour / Bergerac, 208.5km




It's a rock! A peak! A cape! – A cape? Forsooth! It's a peninsula! Cyrano de Bergerac.

Thierry Gouvenou posted:

Hitting the bullseye
Time to take a breather! This 208 km stage is completely devoid of any real difficulties and, on paper at least, should smile upon the sprinters. However, I am betting on a lone rider to take it, a brave one who has still got something in the tank and manages to sneak away from a mammoth breakaway. Think of Rui Costa last year. He hit the bullseye twice in the final week. With the time trial and the Champs-Élysées, two specialist affairs where surprises are few and far between, looming on the horizon, this stage is last chance saloon for breakaway specialists.

The last chance before Paris for the sprinters. The peloton will pass through the Monbazillac vineyards, a very good sweet white wine made with noble rot.

The towns 2014: visit Bergerac



Stage 20 : Saturday, July 26th, Bergerac / Périgueux, 54km




Some riders use sandpaper on their saddle to retain a better position during TT.

Thierry Gouvenou posted:

It all boils down to this
What happens in the organisers' dreams? The final winner is decided in this 54 km time trial. But I think the gaps will have opened naturally in the three weeks since the Grand Start in Leeds. I said it once and I will say it again: even without a second time trial, the 2013 Froome would have crushed the opposition on this route... But will the 2014 Froome be as strong as last year's? It all boils down to this. If so, he will certainly be in the mix to win the stage, whose solid course is more tailored to men in great form than to true specialists like Martin, Wiggins and Cancellara.

For stage win, it's not that hilly, Spartacus and Tony Martin have a good chance to win over the GC riders, depending and how much work they have done as a domestique, probably not much for Cancellara as he is the leader but Martin will have to work hard at OPQS.
For GC if they are all at 100%, Froome should gain around 30 sec to 1min over Contador, 45 sec to 1min15 on Talansky, Van Garderen,Valverde and 1min to 2 min to Nibali, Van Den Broeck,...

The towns 2014: visit Périgueux



Stage 21 : Sunday, July 27th, Évry / Paris Champs-Élysées, 137.5km




From the banlieue of Paris to the Champs-Élysées

Thierry Gouvenou posted:

Remembering the apotheosis
The pictures of the 2013 apotheosis, with the pack riding past the Louvre and around the Arc de Triomphe, are still fresh in everyone's minds. These two highlights will be back this year, as well as the traditional climb up the Champs-Élysées, which is much trickier than it seems! It will all lead up to the spectacular pictures of the final sprint, magnified by the France Télévisions footage. I will go out on a limb and say Cavendish will take another win in Paris to go with the four he has got already. But that is just my opinion...

The parade to Paris and the Sprint on les Champs-Élysées.


If you don't have the time to follow it all : The important stages by Inring (Stage 1,2,5,8,9,10,13,14,16,17,18,20.)
If you need to narrow it to 5 stages : Stage 5,14,17,18,20 to 3 stages : 14,17,18.

Adbot
ADBOT LOVES YOU

Mr.Nice
Apr 28, 2006
The Contenders







Le maillot Jaune : The yellow jersey.





Christopher Froome

Team : SKY
U.K.
Nickname : Froomey
1.86 m (6'1) 67 kg (148 lb), age 29.
Winner tdf 2013, 2nd 2012

Froome was the best climber and the best TTer last year (and in 2012). He hasn't been that great this season, winning tour de Romandie in may but lost yellow and finished outside top 10 in the recent criterium du dauphiné.
Sky used to be the best team for GT, "British Postal" but this year they have been coping with injury and illness, it's a big question mark if they will be able to control the race.
Chris isn't well liked oustide of G-B as he had an unexplainable normal transformation, from a mediocre climber and TTer to the best in both categories.





Alberto Contador

Team : Tinkoff-Saxo
Spain
Nickname : El Pistolero
1.76 m (5'9), 62kg (137 lb), age 31
Winner of tdf 2007,2009 2010, finished 4th last year.

Contador had trouble getting back to his old level after his 1 year ban for doping in 2010 biting a cow, he struggled for a while but this year has been one of his best season, he won several races and finished 2nd in the dauphiné where he made Froome crack.
He used to be hated by goons for the chaingate in 2010 but now many cheers for him because he is entertaining to watch + anyone but Froome.





Vincenzo Nibali

Team : Astana
Italy
Nickname : The dolphin Shark of Messina
1.81 m (5 ft 11) 65 kg (143 lb), age 29
3rd in TDF 2012

Vincenzo is one of the best downhiller but he isn't that good at TT and he has trouble with changing pace when climbing. Still one of his best chance to win the tour, only one TT and it's a bit hilly.





Alejandro Valverde

Team Movistar
Spain
Nickname : El Bala (The Bullet)
1.77 m (5'10) 61 kg (134 lb), age 34
5th in tdf 2006, 8th in 2013

Can climb with the best and got the best sprint of the main GC favourites, he always seem to have an off day or two and his TT are irregular, he did win the Spanish championship a few days ago.





Andrew Talansky

Team : Garmin
U.S.
Nickname : Pit Bull
1.75 m (5 ft 9) 63 kg (139 lb), age 25
10th in the tour 2013

Recent winner of the dauphiné against Froome and Contador. This tour should be the confirmation that he has the potential to be a futur tour winner. He will have to cope with the extra pressure and show maturity. Garmin are known for stupid crash so this will be a real challenge.





Rui Costa

Team : Lampre Merida
Portugal
1.83 metres (6 ft 0) 69 kg (152 lb), age 27
Reigning world champion, this mean he is cursed, he won the last World Tour race, the Tour de Suisse.





Jurgen Van Den Broeck

Team : Lotto-Belisol
Belgium
Nickname : JVDB
1.83 m (6 ft 0) 68 kg (150 lb), age 31
Finished 4th in 2010 and 2012 but crashed badly last year.

He was in form in the dauphiné with a podium finish. Jurgen is a good diesel climber, he is relatively weak at TT.





Tejay Van Garderen

Team : BMC
U.S.
Nickname : The American with the Dutch-sounding name!
1.86 m (6 ft 1) 72 kg (159 lb), age 25
Won the young rider classification in the tour 2012.

Like his compatriot Talansky, this should be the confirmation year for Tejay. He is a good TTer and a good climber but he may lack the regularity for a podium finish.





Richie Porte

Australia
Nickname : Tasmanian Devil
1.72 m (5 ft 8) 62 kg (137 lb) age 29

The other sky rider in a super domestique role unless something happen to Froome.





Roman Kreuziger

Czechoslovakia
1.83 m (6 ft 0) 65 kg (143 lb) age 28

The other saxo rider, super domestique role for Contador...


Kreuziger denies blood passport abnormalities, pulled from Tour de France squad





Joaquim Rodriguez

Team : Katusha
Spain
Nickname : Purito
1.69 m (5 ft 7) 57 kg (126 lb) age 35
Rode one week in the giro before crashing, he says he will target stages win in this tour rather than GC.







Le Maillot vert : The green jersey.



Peter Sagan

Team : Cannondale
Slovakia
Nickname : The Terminator The PUA in lycra
1.84 m (6 ft 0) 73 kg (161 lb), age 24.

Sagan has won the last 2 green jersey, he isn't the fatest and doesn't have the strongest team and train (although 100% dedicated to him) but his climbing skills allow him to take points where other sprinters will be in the Grupetto. He is the n°1 favourite for the points classification.



Mark Cavendish

Team : Omega-Pharma Quickstep
Nickname : Manx Missile
1.75 m (5 ft 9) 70 kg (150 lb), age 29.

Mark is the smallest of the main sprinters, he develop less watt than his oppenents yet he is one of the fastest (and the fatest in off season), thanks to his aerodynamical position on the bike, he is quite bad at hill.
OPQS is one of the best sprint train in the peloton, only Giant may be better.
Cavendish is the current record holder for most stage win in tdf for an active rider (25).



Marcel Kittel

Team : Giant-Shimano
Germany
1.88 m (6 ft 2) 82 kg (181 lb), age 26.
Marcel is the new king of sprint and the fastest on flat but he can't pass a bridge. Best team lead out and train as they are more consistant than opqs.



André Greipel

Team : Lotto-Belisol
Germany
Nickname : The Gorilla
1.84 m (6 ft 0) 75 kg (165 lb), age 31

André can push some of the biggest watt in the peloton but he lack the speed of Kittel and Cavendish. He is surprinsgly good at coping with hill finish but not the same league as sagan.
Lotto isn't so good for sprint lead out and will aim for GC with Van den Broeck, Greipel will have less domestiques dedicated to him than the other sprinters.



Alexander Kristoff

Team : Katusha
Norway
1.81 m (5 ft 11) 78 kg (172 lb) age 26
Winner of milan san remo 2014, he may be the surprise sprinter of this tour.



Arnaud Démare

Team FDJ
France
1.81 m (5 ft 11) 78 kg (172 lb), age 22

Inring : Tour de France: Who will win the Green Jersey?


Other riders to watch for Top 15, stage win or just because they are great/funny :



Rolland : He was great to watch in the Giro with very long range attack. Hopefully he still have some energy left for this tour, should aim for stage win or Mountain jersey.



Mollema : The best dutch chance in this tour for GC, the sponsor of the team, belkin will stop at the end of the season, the team and Mollema need to do show themselve in this tour to attrack a sponsor or a transfert to a new team.



Cancellara : Will be leader for Trek, his goal is to take the yellow on the cobbled stage and keep it until the first mountain stage.



Voeckler : The tour will cross his native region, Alsace. He should be even more offensive than usual.



Frank Schleck : Will attack for 50m then stop cause his bro isn't there.



Andy Schleck : See Frank + he will whine about dangerous descent.



Chris Horner : The oldest rider in the peloton, last winner of the vuelta. He is recovering from a bad crash, he isn't expected to do much but then nobody expected him to do much in the vuelta.



Jens voigt : A fan favourite, he is always on the offensive, it will be his and last 17th tdf.



Johnny Hoogerland : A true warrior, crashed into barbwires at 40+km/h and still managed to finish the stage and make it to Paris.



Jack bauer : Keeping the peloton safe from terrorists 24/7


They Will be missed in this tour :



Jesus Nairo Quintana

,
Sir Bradley Wiggins, Philippe Gilbert, Vino, Dan Martin and many more.




Anquetil,Merck,Tom Simpson,Rudi Altig

The records



GC win : 5

Jacques Anquetil : Monsieur Jacques (1957,61,62,63,64)
Eddy Merckx : The cannibal (1969,70,71,72,74)
Bernard Hinault : The badger (1978,79,81,82,85)
Miguel Indurain : Big Mig (1991,92,93,94,95)



Stage win : 36 Merckx (Cavendish 25)



Points classification : 6 Erik Zabel



Mountain classification : 7 Richard Virenque



Le tour 2013 in 5 pic







Les supporters, the Fans


Running naked was the all hype in 2013


Chris Froome, punching people while looking at stems.





La Caravanne du tour


Good job opportunity for students, you can get pay to throw stuff at people or dance.



Tour de France : The video game
Tour de France : Pro Cycling Manager 2014





What's important in France ?



Cock(s)


The french are very proud of their cock, they are everywhere, even on the maillot jaune.



La gastronomie


La gastronomie française is one of the most varied and rich cuisine in the world, sometimes it can be a bit disgusting though. Croissant, oysters, snail, choucoutre, camenbert, Buche carapoire, horse meat.

Les vins (Wines)


One (old) bottle of Mouton Rothschild may worth more than a racing bike



La mode, les parfums, les cosmétiques, le glamour.




Some pics may be nsfw for an international audience, in France, it's in plain view on the street. Aubade leçon n°5,leçon n°59,leçon n°99

History, landscape


The Amaury familly from inquisition to grand tour organiser, same business actually, they are making men suffer.



Comédie

Comedy is a very serious bussiness in France, all the french blockbusters and famous movies are Comédies.
When it come to pro cycling, the guignol the l'info were the major provider, their peak popularity coincided with the dark days of the doping era. They focus more on spanish doping nowdays.

Virenque Not dopped at all The most graphic, not a single word is needed.
The Virenque show Like the Truman show but with Richard.
La caravane du Tour de France par Virenque
Virenque has to learn to ride clean with his new italian team
Guignols vs Contador
EPO Ti Quiero Love song about EPO.
Les inconnus , Stade 2 avec Gérard Fanion Remenber when a France TV car crashed into Johnny hoogerland ? Humorists kind of called it 20 years earlier.


Pédale also mean human being in french, it's a real magazine not a photoshop.

Outside of Cycling, Kaamelott is quite funny.


Do it like the pro and get ready for this tour

Show off that body you got


U mirin brah ?



Sky concerned froome looking too rasmussen.

Get your best tan



Know your classic

“EPO all in my veins/Lately thing just don’t seem the same/Acting funny, but I don’t know why/Excuse me, while I pass this guy.”

Enjoy yourself, be happy



Get your E.P.O.



Be a gentleman



Get your own pussy wagon



Do whatever it take to make it through the long flat stage.



Call Philippe the motorman to get fresh bloodbag(s) delivered faster than a pizza




In summary :



Streams

http://www.cyclingfans.com/tour-de-france/live
http://www.steephill.tv/tour-de-france/
http://www.procyclinglive.com/livestream/

Mr.Nice fucked around with this message at 15:00 on Jul 8, 2014

Mr.Nice
Apr 28, 2006
Merci beaucoup everybody.

Kreuziger won't ride the tour, abnormalities detected in his biological passport in 2011 and 2012, they are only taking action now because : “The U.C.I. and CAFD checked these conclusions and in a notification of 30.05.2014, namely almost eight months after they had been sent and gave me a term only until 09.06.2014 to decide how to proceed.” (then extended to 30.06.2014)

Tinkoff-Saxo sidelines Roman Kreuziger pending doping inquiry
Kreuziger denies blood passport abnormalities, pulled from Tour de France squad

Sky announced their official TDF squad but no surprise (No wiggins) and Nibali won the Italian road national championship yesterday.

About doping in the peloton, as previously mentioned Aicar and GW1516 or GW501516 (invented by Evans while researching weight loss), are some of the most recent we know about. These drugs are suspected to allow an increase in performance while remaining at very low bodyfat. Some pro cyclists are around 3% bodyfat when fully hydrated which is insane (record is 2.7% clinicaly tested I think).
Nuclear Receptors in Physiology and Disease by Ronald Evans (increase running endurance by 80 percent in adult mice)

However it seem the most recent trend is to use a wide range of PED at low dose, sometimes getting them legally with TUE but that's true for many sports, lots of pro athletes got medication for asthma, corticosteroid injections is common in many sports and openly talked about while injections aren't allowed by the UCI and you need a TUE for oral/spray use.

Mr.Nice
Apr 28, 2006
The odds for Yellow and Green :



The lost of Kreuziger didn't change much for Contador's chances, he was at 2.4 last weeks.



Pédale! 2014 is available


CF: Inhalers are not performance enhancing; if any normal person who doesn’t have asthma takes an inhaler, they’re not going to ride any faster. Their lungs are not going to open any larger than they were before. But someone who does have asthma, the airways are going to close up and that inhaler just helps them to close less. It just helps me be more normal and I definitely don’t see that as an unfair advantage.

a few questions later :

CF: And the only ones I mentioned on the form this morning are the ones I’ve mentioned to you: Leratadine, Salbutamol, Ventolin and Fluticasone – the other spray I use.

also

MC: Armstrong is not built like a climber for starters. He was never a climber.

CF: (laughs) Let’s not go there.

Mr.Nice
Apr 28, 2006
The UCI consider salbutamol to be a PED over 1,000 ng/ml, Ulissi was banned recently for this.

Mr.Nice
Apr 28, 2006
The tour starts in 24h.

The startlist

Stage 1: by Thierry Gouvenou (TDF Race director and former rider) + Chris Froome

Mountain passes & hills

Km 68.0 - Côte de Cray 1.6 km at 7.1% - category 4
Km 103.5 - Côte de Buttertubs 4.5 km at 6.8% - category 3
Km 129.5 - Côte de Griton Moor 3km at 6.6% - category 3

The finish :



The odds for stage win :



Time schedule :
Start : 11h10
Finish : 44km/h : 16h19, 42km/h : 16h31, 40km/h : 16h45 (BST)

Weather :
Saturday : Starting cloudy with further rain or showers, possibly heavy at times. Brighter, drier and at times sunny weather developing during the afternoon.

The streams :
Live video from 11:00am BST
http://www.cyclingfans.com/tour-de-france/live
http://www.steephill.tv/tour-de-france/
http://www.procyclinglive.com/livestream/

Mr.Nice
Apr 28, 2006
Cav :(

Mr.Nice
Apr 28, 2006


It was a great finish until the crash. Too bad for Spartacus too, that almost worked.

Mr.Nice
Apr 28, 2006
Tour de France 2014 - Stage 1 Finish

Mark Cavendish suffers a saparated shoulder after his crash today
Mark Cavendish: Tour de France stage two start doubtful after crash

http://www.omegapharma-quickstep.com/en/social for latest info on cav.



Stage 2 York / Sheffield 201km

Stage 2 Analysis by Chris Froome

Les Côtes of Mountain passes & hills

Km 47.0 - Côte de Blubberhouses 1.8 km at 6.1% - category 4
Km 85.0 - Côte d'Oxenhope Moor 3.1 kmb at 6.4% - category 3
Km 112.5 - VC - Côte de Ripponden 1.3 km at 8.6% - category 3
Km 119.5 - Côte de Greetland 1.6 km at 6.7% - category 3
Km 143.5 - Côte de Holme Moss 4.7 km at 7% - category 2
Km 167.0 - Côte de Midhopestones 2.5 km at 6.1% - category 3
Km 175.0 - Côte de Bradfield 1 km at 7.4% - category 4
Km 182.0 - Côte d'Oughtibridge 1.5 km at 9.1% - category 3
Km 196.0 - VC - Côte de Jenkin Road 0.8 km at 10.8% - category 4


Jenkin Road



The Finish



Stage 2 Winner odds



Weather

A bright day with sunny spells. Scattered showers will develop, these heavy later with possible thunder.

Time schedule

Start : 11h00 am
Finish : 16h14 (41km/h) 16h29 (29km/h) 16h46 (37km/h) BST

Mr.Nice
Apr 28, 2006
Talansky actually finished behind Cavendish yesterday, he was the last rider with the same time as winner, come very close to loose hope for podium/win, Majka lost 1'30.



Gibbo posted:

Didn't Merckx do that?

Yes, he won all the jerseys in 1969, there wasn't a white (young) jersey but he won yellow, green, mountain, team and most combative.

Tour de France 1969 - Le 1éme Tour d'Eddy Merckx

1. Eddy Merckx 116h 16'
2. Roger Pingeon + 17'54
3. Raymond Poulidor + 22'13

Edit Cavendish tour is over, he won't start today.

Mr.Nice fucked around with this message at 10:31 on Jul 6, 2014

Mr.Nice
Apr 28, 2006
Only 2 Saxo riders left in the peloton for Contador.

Mr.Nice
Apr 28, 2006
That was a great stage, so many attacks from the GC riders at the end, kinda unexpected, well done Nibali, great timing.



Mr.Nice
Apr 28, 2006


On-board camera - Stage 1 (Leeds > Harrogate)



Tour de France 2014 - Stage 2 - (York > Sheffield) - Last 5 Km
Official - The Flamme rouge - The last kilometre - Stage 2 (York > Sheffield)
Official: EN - Summary - Stage 2 (York > Sheffield)

Full stage Result



Stage 3 Cambridge / Londres 155KM

Stage Analysis by Jean-michel Monin (Designer of stage3)

Mountain passes & hills

None

Intermediate Sprint



Finish



Stage 3 Winner odds



Weather

Starting dry with long sunny spells. Cloud developing to give scattered showers by the afternoon across northwestern areas, and these could become heavy for a time. Winds staying light.

Time schedule

Start : 12h15

Finish : 15h42 (47km/h) 15h51 (45km/h) 16h01 (43km/h) BST

For France TV, the website is https://www.france2.fr ( http://www.francetvsport.fr/tour-de-france/direct ) but the live feed may be geo restricted.
There are some pirate streams of France TV, http://www.stream-foot.info/channel4.html (or /channel2.html), be careful though, adwares and it doesn't work with adblock on. ( http://www.procyclinglive.com/livestream/ for a list of all tdf streams)

Mr.Nice
Apr 28, 2006
I found Valverde was more disapointing than Contador yesterday, he was one of the favourite of the stage and didn't really try to win it.
GC favourites are probably a bit confused about how to deal with this tour route (because of no prologue etc), they are already at the top of the classification, which is extremely rare in a GT after only 2 stages and it's way too soon for their liking.
I don't think Sky want the jersey now even if they are at home and Contador doesn't really need a team around him as long as he isn't in yellow.
Also most teams programmed their peak of form for the second and third week.

The cobbles stage will be even more interesting, I can't see Nibali keeping yellow, he will probably be happy to give it as long as it's not to another GC rider.

For the strong cobbles riders we got :

Sagan 2 sec behind nibble
Van Avermaet s.t..
Kwiatkowski s.t.

Cancellara 35 sec

Lars Boom 15'08, Vanmarcke 15'39 and Terpstra 20'55

Sagan/Cannondale will be happy with the yellow, they already need to control most stages suited for Sagan anyway, it won't be that much extra work to have the yellow for a few days.
GVA/BMC they have Van Garderen for GC, not sure if they want yellow with Greg but it's unlikely TJVG will wear it at some point so it's their chance.
Kwiatkowski : Now that Cav is out, Kwiatkowski is OPQS plan B, they will be happy with yellow however he isn't as good as Sagan,GVA,Cancellara,... at cobbles (but he got Terpstra to help).
Cancellara : It was his goal to take yellow on stage 5, it's why he hold out and only lost 35sec yesterday but he will have to finish alone with 33sec over Sagan,...

Boom,Vanmarcke,Terpstra are good favourite for the stage win but too far to get a chance at yellow, their attacks may be the starting point of the battle.

Mr.Nice
Apr 28, 2006
Only Cav could get a chance against Kittel with those kind of finish, still a great sprint and lead out.

Mr.Nice
Apr 28, 2006
Stage 2

On-board camera: Team ORICA – GREEN EDGE / Team LAMPRE MERIDA - Stage 2 (York > Sheffield)

stage 3



EN - The Flamme rouge - The last kilometre - Stage 3 (Cambridge > Londres)
EN - Summary - Stage 3 (Cambridge > Londres)

Chris Froome, Team Sky and Jaguar: 'Cycling Under The Sea'
Rui Costa convidou, José Mourinho foi ao Tour de France

F&A Schleck, Rolland, Navarro, Slagter, Scarponi lost 1'01 today.




Stage 4 Le Touquet-Paris-Plage / Lille Métropole 163.5KM

Stage 4: by Cedric Vasseur (former rider) + Gilles Maignan (Designer of stage 4 and former pro rider)

Mountain passes & hills

Km 34.0 - Côte de Campagnette 1 km at 6.5% - category 4
Km 117.5 - Mont Noir 1.3 km at 5.7% - category 4


The Chairlift of Mont Noir, the reward at the top is beer.

Intermediate Sprint



Finish



Weather


Météo France (Wind 18km/h)

Stage 4 Winner odds



Time schedule

Start : 13h35
Finish : 17h19 (48km/h) 17h28 (46km/h) 17h38 (44km/h) CET

Mr.Nice
Apr 28, 2006
Froome just crashed.

Mr.Nice
Apr 28, 2006


Froome felt on the same side (left) he felt in the dauphiné a month ago

Mollema also caught in the crash it seem.

Mr.Nice
Apr 28, 2006
The cobbles stage is tomorrow, there is a little bit of cobble in the climb they will reach in a few km but nothing serious like tomorrow.

The finish line today, not as large as yesterday, maybe Kittel can loose.



http://gfycat.com/InnocentBewitchedKiwi (Froome crash)

For streams : http://www.cyclingfans.com/tour-de-france/live and http://www.steephill.tv/ for non dodgy streams.

Mr.Nice fucked around with this message at 13:46 on Jul 8, 2014

Mr.Nice
Apr 28, 2006
They already give up on the green jersey and intermediate sprints.

krushgroove posted:

Awesome! These work for me (UK, behind work firewall) - any chance you can put these and your previously posted stream links in the (already amazingly helpful) OP so they're easier to find?

Done :)

I will try to post them from time to time in the summary.

Edit they are trying to create echelons,this could be interesting.

Mr.Nice fucked around with this message at 15:15 on Jul 8, 2014

Mr.Nice
Apr 28, 2006
Sagan down.

Mr.Nice
Apr 28, 2006
It was closer than the previous sprints.



Bolivar posted:

So is it the 1-9 numbers or what?

Yes, the cobbles sectors have a difficulty rating I will post them later.

Mr.Nice
Apr 28, 2006
Froome should be ok to race :

Mr.Nice
Apr 28, 2006
Stage 3

Inner Ring: economical analysis of the tour for the 3 days in England

Stage 4 Le Touquet-Paris-Plage / Lille



Chris Froome injured after Tour de France crash
http://giant.gfycat.com/InnocentBewitchedKiwi.gif (Froome crash)

EN - Summary - Stage 4 (Le Touquet-Paris-Plage > Lille Métropole)
Tour de France 2014 - Stage 4 RAI last km (it)
Tour de France 2014 Etape 4 17min highligh (fr)
Learn french with Marc Madiot (DS of Demarre during today finish)

Stage 4 Full result


Andy Schleck abandons with knee injury, casting Tour future in doubt




Stage 5 Ypres / Arenberg Porte du Hainaut 155.5KM


Malteni, the beer of champion

Doctor Michele Ferrari about Paris Roubaix posted:

A total of 51,000 meters of pavé, with five or six stones every meter, is about 250,000-300,000 hammer blows on the legs of each rider.
At 40 km/h, that's an average of 10-12 blows per second, a constant vibration that leaves its mark on the entire body: neck, hands, arms, back and even the blood circulation get extremely stressed from the outside.

Look at the arms of the rider at 79sec for a visual description of those hammer blows. (thanks Pocket for the video)

Cancellara: The cobbles are going to be carnage

Cancellara (The king of Cobbles) posted:

"The cobbles are going to be carnage. I hope not, but we've got to be ready for it...It won’t be like a Classics race in April, it'll be completely different,
...It might actually be even faster on the pavé because as we've seen in this Tour, the teams of the overall contenders have really controlled the racing. I'm sure it'll be the same before the cobbles.

Tour de France 2014: the cobblestones that can make or break riders


Intermediate sprint&Finish




No hill but 9 Cobblestones sectors (15.4km)

9 Gruson - carrefour de l'Arbre : * (Difficulty : * = easiest, ***** = hardest) , 1100m, 68,5 km from the finish line.

8 Ennevelin - Pont-Thibaut : ** , 1400m, 52 km from the finish line.

7 Mons-en-Pévèle : ***, 1000m , 45 km from the finish line.



6 Bersée ** : 1400m , 41 km

5 Orchies - Beuvry-la-Forêt : *** , 1400m, 30km



4 Sars-et-Rosières - Tilloy-les-Marchiennes : ***, 2400m , 24.5km



3 Brillon - Warlaing : ***, 1400, 20.5km



2 Wandignies-Hamage - Hornaing : **** , 3700m, 15.5km



1 Hélesmes - Wallers (Pont-Gibus) : ***** 1600m 6,5 km



The cobbles sectors explained by a local rider


The weather


Wind = 25km/h


if it rain, it will make everything even harder


One of the cobbled sector today at 6pm



Stage 5 Winner odds


You can bet on wiggins !

Time schedule

Start : 13h45
Finish : 17h18 (47km/h) 17h27 (45km/h) 17h38 (43km/h) CET

Streams

http://www.cyclingfans.com/tour-de-france/live
http://www.steephill.tv/tour-de-france/
http://www.procyclinglive.com/livestream/

Mr.Nice
Apr 28, 2006
Indeed, Geraint Thomas is quite good on cobbles, he did better than Wiggins in Paris-Roubaix, he finished 7, 8 in Tour of Flanders and 3 E3 Harelbeke this year.

Of all the GC favourites, Talansky and to a lesser extend Valverde are the strongest on cobbles, if they want to have a real chance at yellow in Paris, they will have to make a move today.



Mr.Nice
Apr 28, 2006
Sector 5 & 7 are cancelled : https://twitter.com/hashtag/TDF, both have 3 stars rating difficulty, if that's all they cancel today, it shouldn't make a huge difference.

Mr.Nice
Apr 28, 2006
Now, they are cleaning the cobbles.


https://twitter.com/fbleunord/status/486798691232391168/photo/1

Sad they are doing this but it's still better than a dry race on cobbles, where the riders would have avoided most of it by riding on the side.

Mr.Nice
Apr 28, 2006
Dangerous break with Gallopin, Acevedo, Clarke, Dumoulin, T Martin, Burghardt, Westra, Hayman & Taaramae.

Teams car order for the race (important for mechanical)

Mr.Nice
Apr 28, 2006
It's the general classification that matter for team car in the tour, for classics it's UCI ranking.

Mr.Nice
Apr 28, 2006
On his right side this team. His confidence must be terrible.

Garmin use Cervelo, UCI world tour : http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2014_UCI_World_Tour

Mr.Nice
Apr 28, 2006
45 min until the fist cobbles.

If there is a bunch sprint the finish could be dangerous, 50m from the line :

Mr.Nice
Apr 28, 2006
Van Garderen, Valverde, previously Kittel and Greipel and they haven't reach the cobbles yet.

Mr.Nice
Apr 28, 2006
Froome again !

Mr.Nice
Apr 28, 2006
It's over for Froome.

Mr.Nice
Apr 28, 2006
Froome is in the car ,100% sure it's over.

Mr.Nice
Apr 28, 2006
Vanmarcke destroying the peloton. Contador take no risk.

Mr.Nice
Apr 28, 2006
Incredible stage, amazing Nibali and Astana, Contador is outside the Top10 for GC.



Mr.Nice
Apr 28, 2006
Stage 5 (Ypres > Arenberg Porte du Hainaut)









EN - Summary - Stage 5 (Ypres > Arenberg Porte du Hainaut)
EN - Hot news of the day - Stage 5
EN - The Flamme rouge - The last kilometre - Stage 5



Nibali is the new favourite.

Full Result


Older Stages

EN - On-board camera - Stage 3 (Cambridge > Londres)
EN - Zapping Stage 1 to Stage 4


Stage 6 Arras / Reims 195km

EN - Stage 6: by Thierry Gouvenou (TDF Race director and former rider)

Mountain passes & hills

Km 107.5 - Côte de Coucy-le-Château-Auffrique 0.9 km at 6.2% - category 4
Km 157.0 - Côte de Roucy 1.5 km at 6.2% - category 4



Intermediate Sprint & Finish



Weather



Stage 6 Winner odds



Time schedule

Start : 12h50
Finish : 17h13 (46km/h) 17h24 (44km/h) 17h37 (42km/h) CET

Mr.Nice
Apr 28, 2006


Quite strong wind for this stage with 35km/h, a chance to create echelons maybe.



Lots of roundabouts in the last 5km today.

Adbot
ADBOT LOVES YOU

Mr.Nice
Apr 28, 2006


4 riders in front: Leezer, Maté, Pineau and Gérard. They have a 4' lead after 40 km

Most TV should be live now.

http://www.cyclingfans.com/tour-de-france/live
http://www.steephill.tv/tour-de-france/
http://www.procyclinglive.com/livestream/

  • 1
  • 2
  • 3
  • 4
  • 5
  • Post
  • Reply