Le Tour de France 2008

[Nigel]

Stage 7 was a real test. Everyone was pushing in an attempt to break people. And that descent was cool; the right guy won the stage as well.

[Gizmo]

I fell asleep on the couch last night with 30km to go, who ended up winning?

[Duke]

Well it was one of the toughest stages of recent Tour times with many of the riders saying they couldn't believe how fast it was raced, the wind also didn't help with lots of cross-winds splitting the field on numerous occasions.
In the end it was Luis-Leon SANCHEZ of Caisse d'Epargne who broke away from the lead group which contained just about all of the main GC contenders, he held on for the last 4-5km's to take the stage win.
What it really showed last night is how strong the Caisse d'Epargne Team is & I think they will give Cadel Evans a real tough time in the Pyrenees in a few days time. It will be a real test to see if any of Cadel's Lotto team mates can help him at all.

• POS No. Name Team Time Gap Moved
  1 039 Luis-Leon SANCHEZ GCE 03:52:53 00:00:00
  2 111 Stefan SCHUMACHER GST 03:52:59 00:00:06
  3 061 Filippo POZZATO LIQ 03:52:59 00:00:06
  4 041 Kim KIRCHEN THR 03:52:59 00:00:06
  5 031 Alejandro VALVERDE GCE 03:52:59 00:00:06
  6 037 Oscar PEREIRO SIO GCE 03:52:59 00:00:06
  7 027 Samuel SANCHEZ EUS 03:52:59 00:00:06
  8 177 Josep JUFRE POU SDV 03:52:59 00:00:06
  9 191 Christian VANDEVELDE TSL 03:52:59 00:00:06
  10 016 Andy SCHLECK CSC 03:52:59 00:00:06
  11 173 Juan Jose COBO ACEBO SDV 03:52:59 00:00:06
  12 001 Cadel EVANS SIL 03:52:59 00:00:06
  13 171 Riccardo RICCO SDV 03:52:59 00:00:06
  14 093 Matteo CARRARA QST 03:52:59 00:00:06
  15 131 Denis MENCHOV RAB 03:52:59 00:00:06
  16 017 Frank SCHLECK CSC 03:52:59 00:00:06
  17 091 Stijn DEVOLDER QST 03:52:59 00:00:06
  18 011 Carlos SASTRE CSC 03:52:59 00:00:06
  19 109 Tadej VALJAVEC ALM 03:52:59 00:00:06
  20 115 Bernhard KOHL GST 03:52:59 00:00:06
  21 065 Roman KREUZIGER LIQ 03:52:59 00:00:06
  22 179 Leonardo PIEPOLI SDV 03:52:59 00:00:06
  23 067 Vincenzo NIBALI LIQ 03:52:59 00:00:06

Damn it is wet on tonight's stage, expecting a bunch sprint which could make for some spills & thrills.

[Gizmo]

Team Columbia had a big day yesterday, they did most of the work all day and Kim Kirchen is on a roll, tonight will be his last time in yellow.

Beltran from Liquidgas was kicked out for a positive test for EPO. Liquidgas immidately placed him on suspension pending the results of an investagation, which was a move that saved them from getting kicked out of the tour.

[Duke]

Yes another drug scandal :sigh:, it will be intersting to see if Liquigas is allowed to stay in the Tour if Baltran's B-sample also comes back as positive, remember each team signed a anti-doping agreement prior to the Tour which states if one of their riders tested positive then the whole team will be removed from the Tour. As only the A-sample has been released they get a stay of execusion for now. It is also interesting that this was made public before the B-sample is tested and also found to be positive.

Now to tonight, if you remember it was the decent of the Col 'd Peyresourde last year that saw Cadel drop 56 sec's to Contador which he himself says was where he lost the Tour, so he will obviously not want to see that happen again.
I think tonight will also show just how strong Caisse d'Epargne is and I also predict that Team CSC will finally come out and play for real with Satre and the Schlek brothers showing their true intentions, oh and lets not forget the pure climbers of the basque team of Euskaltel - Euskadi. I love the Mountains

EDIT: Oh and don't count Kirchen out just yet, if he can keep the gap close he may be able to bridge some time back on the decent to the finish given this is not a Mountain top finish. Although it would take an extra special effort from him to keep the Yellow jersey but the golden fleece does make you ride above your normal capacity.

[Gizmo]

Are you an ex or current cyclist Flinty? Cycling is something I've wanted to do for a long time but it hindered my running. Now i don't do running competivatly any more the tour has given me the bug to start. I've been around to afew bike shops and it seems to get a decent bike that if i want to do any competivate races it will be good enough to do the job i'm looking around $3300. So far i've looked at a Scott Addict and a Giant TCR1 or somthing. Any advice on what brands i should be looking at?

[norbs]

I fell asleep watching it last night. Woke up just in time to see Evan's ripped jersey. FEck!

[Duke]

Yeah Norbs, looks like Cadel just got a way with it, apparently an Euskaltel - Euskadi rider got a piece of debris from the spectators caught in his front wheel and he fell right in front of Cadel. There was no footage of it but it was a pretty big hit by all accounts with his helmet cracked. Not the best time to happen as he will be a lot more stiff & sore today (its the 2nd day that hurts the most) and tonight is a pretty important night for GC but then as Stuart O'Grady has said many times "if you don't have a fall in a 3 week tour then your not trying hard enough".

Last night was amazing, the acceleration and pace shown by "The Cobra" Riccardo Ricco was awe inspiring so reminiscent of his late country man "Il Pirata" Marco Pantani. Felt so much for Sebastian Lang as he shook his head when Ricco blew past him 1km from the summit but what a ride from the new Italian cycling sensation.

Sorry Gizmo I meant to post earlier but have only just found the time now, yes I used to compete after only getting into the sport in my ealry 30's but have cycled all my life except for a small period when I got my car license, I still cycle to work most days a 60km round trip (1 hr ea way). I eventually made it to A-grade club level racing with one of the biggest cycling clubs in Aus (Carnegie Caulfield). I have raced with some of the younger Aussie guys who are now in Europe pro teams (Will Walker, Trent Lowe) and let me tell you they are a whole other level above and beyond us mere mortals. I competed in the Melb to Warrnambool Classic in 2006 and finished 50th overall (9th in C-Grade) out of 174 starters, it is the longest (298 km's officially) and 2nd oldest (to the Paris-Roubaix) single day stage race in the world and sanctioned by the UCI (Pro level event) & boy was it an experience, just like a stage of the Tour with rolling road block, Police escorts, official motorcycles and race commissionaire's.
As for finding a bike to start of with, well what your looking at is about right if you intend to race even maybe a bit better than you need when starting out, I use Shimano Ultegra (2nd top of the range) simply as Dura-Ace is so much more expensive for little gain at my level. Remember most frames are now made in Asia & carbon technology is now really well established so it comes down to the componentry you want to have and how light you want to go that dictates price. The Scott is a great bike while the Giant being the biggest manufacturer of the western world is as comparable and usually a bit better priced.
As for other brands, you could look at something a little more exotic in a Bianchi (but for the same price will be a little lower in spec) same as for Trek & Specialized. Next step up are the likes of Cannondale, Pinarello, Cervelo & Willier. Also I have heard that Shimano is going up by an avg of 9% in '09 so might be best to get a run out '08 model in the next couple of months before the shops stock the new '09 models around Sep/Oct.
Oh and one other thing rotating weight is the biggest issue so a decent (light & stiff) wheel set is better than a lighter frame, bars, stem, seat etc.
Anyway hit me up on MSN or via PM if you want more advice or have questions I am more than happy to help if it gets another person on a bike

[norbs]

Last night was amazing, the acceleration and pace shown by "The Cobra" Riccardo Ricco was awe inspiring so reminiscent of his late country man "Il Pirata" Marco Pantani. Felt so much for Sebastian Lang as he shook his head when Ricco blew past him 1km from the summit but what a ride from the new Italian cycling sensation.

I am fucking hopeless trying to remember all their names, but yes, that burst up the hill was amazing. I am capping all the highlight packages if anyone is interested. I accidentally deleted all the ones up to tonight. But will keep the rest. Every time I watch it, I forget how beautiful the country side is that they ride through. Would love to get over there 1 day to have a look.

[Duke]

Well Cadel takes the Maillot jaune by 1sec with a great ride after his crash yesterday, 1st Aussie to take the Yellow in the 2nd week of the Tour since Phil Anderson. I doubt he will try hang on to it till Paris but he has shown that it is within his reach as he just has to stay close up to the last Time Trial and bring it home. Go Cadel !!!

[Duke]

Gizmo, Forgot to mention that with the price range & the bikes you have looked at they will not come with pedals (usually), so you need to factor in the cost of pedals & shoes which depending on what you go for will cost anywhere between $250-$600 assuming you are going to go with a clipless pedal system. Common brands are Shimano, Look & Time.
Also if you wanted to drop down in price some of the cheaper bike brands are: GT, Avanti, Felt, Schwinn, Fuji & Gitane. Just stick with one that has a good groupset on it, for Shimano stay at 105 or Ultegra level.

[DexterPunk]

Fuji make bikes ??

[Exar Kun]

Fuji make bikes ??

Well, they make cars too...

[Duke]

Fuji make bikes ??

Yep sure do: http://www.fujibikes.com.au/
They provide bikes to the US Pro Team "Toyota/United" who Henk Vogels rides for.

[Gizmo]

Thanks for the pointers Flinty. All the bikes i've been looking at have Ultegra running gear, i also factored in the price of peddals, shoes, helmet, afew jerseys and nicks, bottles etc.... I should be looking around the $4000 mark, i'm sure i can haggle them down alittle though.

[DexterPunk]

being that i love photography... i reeeally want a Fuji mountain bike now

[norbs]

Thanks for the pointers Flinty. All the bikes i've been looking at have Ultegra running gear, i also factored in the price of peddals, shoes, helmet, afew jerseys and nicks, bottles etc.... I should be looking around the $4000 mark, i'm sure i can haggle them down alittle though.

Just get plain ones. The team ones are super expensive, and alot of the time people look like tools in them. I used to ride with a club and there was one guy who had the best of everything, including a Phil Anderson jersey. He copped so much shit about it. About 12 of us bought the cheapest plain white jerseys a drew a crashed cyclist on the back with TEAM WANKER on the front. He left after that ride!

[DexterPunk]

thats just cruel norbs! ya bully

[Duke]

Hey Gizmo, have a look at the following 3 sites as you may find it cheaper to buy some of those items from O/S, but if the shop really wants your business and considering the money you are spending they should do a good deal on them and you may be able to use what you see on these sites as a bargaining tool.
Also don't forget a pump, saddle bag and spare tubes even tyre levers but they are not necessary imho.
http://www.probikekit.com/
http://www.totalcycling.com/index.php
http://www.chainreactioncycles.com/Default.aspx

Thats Classic Norbs.

[norbs]

I should shut the hell up really.


and


Suck it in ya fat fuck.

WANKER!!!!

[Gizmo]

lol, tosser!!!!

Thanks or the help flintz

[Duke]

So the rest day is over, I doubt Cadel will fight to keep the lead unless he has to but I can't wait to see him all decked out in Yellow

[Gizmo]

I don't think Cadel will ride any different, i'm wanting to see how his team handels it.

[norbs]

I don't think Cadel will ride any different, i'm wanting to see how his team handels it.

By riding 5 across the road going up the hill.

Moinard's break was gutsy.

[Rypien]

Was good to see the cop on the motorbike show some restraint when Cadel gave him a bitchslap on the way past. If i was the cop i'd have shot him in the arse.