Eddy Merckx saying people aren’t attacking – every single rider in the history of cycling attacked less than him so it’s not a fair comment!! 😉

I like Froomes style of riding. Why? It’s different. I can’t stand Contador but at least you can spot him – he’s got a style. Same with Froome, it’s not pretty but it’s his style. Everyone else has had their style beaten out of them with a million bike fits! Froomes body shape is just weird as well, his arms are sooooooo long.

I think the non Sky teams really missed their chances this year. Sky haven’t really dominated as such, they’ve run a measured race but when they’ve been slightly weaker the other teams just haven’t used the opportunity and played it safe instead. Such as when froome had the puncture, when he joined the group again they should have attacked, again and again as surely Froome would have cracked?? But no one tried anything. Weird.

Certainly will miss Voekler.

Dan Martin IS the Terminator. Looks like him and no matter what you do to him he’ll come back and attack you!! Top bloke and made of nails it appears.

I am so glad someone hasn’t been permanently injured. So many sickening crashes it’s amazing someone hasn’t been.

THE SCENERY. I don’t know what they’ve done this year (Prudhomme said someone about helicopters in an interview) but every time I watch I just want to jump in the car and pedal round France. So many gorgeous areas to visit it’s been ridiculous. Must go next year!!

Do you really think a pro bike rider can’t gauge his output accurately and ride a hard but sustainable tempo uphill without a power meter? Banning power meters would make no difference to the racing.

I’d argue that banning blood doping has killed mountain stages as most remember them from the Pantani and Armstrong era 😉

There have been some exciting bits, but often for the wrong reasons. Disappointing to see so many people crash out, especially those with such high hopes and potential. And Sagan being disqualified was a crime.

Super pleased to see EBH eventually get a stage. Cav must be gutted – what a lead out man he would’ve had.

Dan Martin has to have been my favourite rider. Fighting all the way.

Where has Greipel been?? Only Grand Tour without a stage win? One stage left… I’ll be rooting for him, he seems a nice guy.

AG2R lit it up. It probably would’ve been boring without them.

The Yates brothers are really proving themselves. I thought maybe Adam getting 4th was a bit lucky. The Simon getting a similar position in the Vuelta. And now smashing it again, riding Contador off his wheel.

OK, Contador isn’t at his best. But I’m in the camp of, I never really used to like him, yet he’s grown on me a lot. He doesn’t give up. Probably where Dan Martin has been getting lessons from.

Uran has played it defensively, but still well within a chance of winning. And it’s good to see him up there. In fact, whilst the GC battle could’ve been more exciting in place, it was good that there were so many different styles. Froome just smashes it with his strength. Bardet really dug deep and took every opportunity to take time. Dan Martin constantly going **** it, I’m winning this today…

Kittel. Meh.

Oh, and G in yellow. Awesome.

Frome – great guy, ugly riding style, champion
Bardet – great guy, beautiful riding style, future champion

Certainly one of the highlights of this year’s race. I quite liked the Unicorn on the Izoard too.

Without pushing this too off topic, I didn’t mean slaters surfing is robotic, meant the way he seems to constantly analyse, and it was a compliment not an insult! It’s what you need to be so dominant!

My apologies ferrals- misread and misunderstood your comment

My observation is that team road cycling is boring as hell….

hours of nothing interspersed with some guy “attacking”, or as I see it, riding a bit faster than the pack for maybe ten minutes before the pack gain up on him.

Froome being praised in the media despite it mostly being down to his team mates as to whether he gets the yellow jersey.

Some weird sado masochistic riding positions.

Not saying that the feat of endurance is phenomenal, but as a spectator sport I find it rather bizarre.

You shouldn’t judge it all by the TDF, but I agree, it’s pretty much a write-off with Team Sky/Froome involved. Even more so as Sagan/Valverde/Cavendish weren’t racing.

Froome may have had a team helping him but he still has to pedal his own bike!!

I must admit, in previous years, watching the Tour on hazy afternoons has more been a kind of pre-doze meditation for me.
Seeing how far ahead the French farmers Maize crops are and if they’ve cut much wheat yet etc etc.

But this year, the realisation that my fastest sprint at peak power is around 35mph has made the sight of guys drilling it for 10 or 15 minute efforts at 40mph slightly more amazing!

It’s three weeks- it’s not going to be hectic every second but it’s quite a spectacle!

Not an epic tour IMO. I miss the mountain top finishes, Froome looks awkward on a bike, no style, not that it matters I guess. Sad that Cavendish and Satan went out so early on.

Miss the team time trial.

Still a great spectacle and I watch it in admiration of all who take part.

It comes from the media fuelled “riding by numbers” originally applied by Sky. Froomes riding above it IMO, being gentlemanly and not complaining. His response in the TT today was perfect – whether you like it or not he beat the GC riding by himself. Hes also shown hes a bit vunerable, and has had to make changes to win again – in this case his training peak.

Anyway, the overiding conclusion for me is that in the current “dope free” age you just simply cannot have a dominant rider; plenty have been sick, ill, ground to a halt, hence for me its the sheer ability of these guys to ride like they do every day for three weeks.

I think a salary cap could work, possibly in the same way that MLB do it. Namely you can spend, say, 15M on rider without penalty but above there you pay 20% of that value in “tax” that is given to other teams with the poorest teams getting most.

TBH though, it’s ALWAYS been the case that the best teams can attract the best talent. If you ride for Fortuneo-Oscaro you MIGHT get into a breakaway or do well on a single mountain stage or sprint well, but you’re never going to get a chance to win a grand tour or even be part of a grand tour winning team.

I’m looking forward to how both Yates bothers will develop. They don’t seem to race together at all, but could they work together to mount a future GC challenge?

I’ve enjoyed the race. Froome has been consistent without being spectacular, wonder if we will see a more attacking rider at La Vuelta?

I’m happy to keep radios, they give the teams more options to do things, like the other day when they let Landa go off the front, knowing that if things started getting a bit spicy for Froome they could call him back to help, which is exactly what happened.

Sans radios, he’d have stuck with Froome all the way, which would have been less interesting.

it might be now, what was the differential when they started? And for the French they’re comparing with French teams (not, say BMC) who have a much smaller budget and suffer disproportionately from their taxation regime.

So in 2015, Sky 29m Euros, Tinkoff 23m Euros, AG2R 14m Euros

The Finances of Ag2r La Mondiale

The Finances of Team Sky

Would be interesting to see if Froome could do it for another team… bit like Mick Doohan never did in MotoGP in the 90s

😯 Too many gels?

TM has a bit of history here – I suspect long tours do a lot of damage to his arse and that the late TTs just apply the final straw