I’m knackered after watching that 🙂

I think it’s Evans to beat now. If Andy Stiffneck has it in the tank to go again tomorrow then fairplay, that was a brilliant ride today, but how much has it taken out. Tommy V at the end – what a warrior – even Jens will be hiding from him tonight, and Jens hides from no-one.

How far back is Cav and what’s the time limit? AS giving it big beans and coming in 2 mins ahead won’t have helped there…….

id love to see conta ride to the win tomorow on the alpe…

steak tonight then…?

Eh? Have you been watching today’s stage (or indeed the rest of the TdF)? Where exactly do you get that idea from?

Where do I get that – intelligence! 😀 Are you a bit daft?

Just watch – AS is now blown and will be following wheels tomorrow. FS might go for it tomorrow but either of them will need to be 2min 15 plus ahead at the beginning of the ITT to have a chance of yellow in Paris. Neither of them will have that by the end of tomorrow.

The best bit is that both AS and FS know this and will have to try something & with Contador out of it Evans is going to have a hard time limiting on his own. Slight irony for the wheel sucker!

Will Cav make it in in time, that’s now the pressing q – the cut off time is 33min 17sec and he’s only half way up the Galibier.

Best stage i have watched in years.

A nice way to chill and use 2hrs of my hols

because cadel is by far and away the best tt’er excluding contador…
id love to see conta ride to the win tomorow on the alpe…

Yes, but there is another mountain to go, on which Evans could lose more time to Schleck. Assume they come in together (probably best case for Evans on the Alpe), that still means he has to beat Schleck by a massive 58 seconds in the TT.
I’d say that is far from cut and dried. Evans has given himself a chance today, but it is a long way from sewn up.

Chapeau to Schleck. Turns out he really does know how to attack… what a ride!

Also chapeau to Evans and Voeckler, they were the only ones of the chasing group who really wanted it.

(I’d love to see Evans win it)

is Cav on his own? they will bend the rules and won’t eliminate half the field but if he is solo then the rules will stand.

Chapeau Thomas !!!

Wow.

Is Rojas ahead of Cav? They were in the grupetto together, and with Gilbert, earlier.

Could we have all the green jersey contenders eliminated? that would be mental.

Great stage. I’m ****ed.

Great afternoon of viewing

Superb ride from Schleck…unfortunately reminded me of Landis, which is a real shame.

Chapeau to Voeckler and Evans too, no-one should be allowed to call Evans a wheelsucker again after today!

couldn’t watch as my digibox reception was going to pot 😡 digital is a joke 😡

is Cav on his own? they will bend the rules and won’t eliminate half the field but if he is solo then the rules will stand.

if they bend the rules he forfeits his points IIRC

Just watch – AS is now blown and will be following wheels tomorrow. FS might go for it tomorrow but either of them will need to be 2min 15 plus ahead at the beginning of the ITT to have a chance of yellow in Paris. Neither of them will have that by the end of tomorrow

AS is just about as blown as CE – or did you not notice Cadel trying quite hard to the top of the final climb and not having much left? Meanwhile if Frank does go for it tomorrow, he only needs to take the same as Andy did today and he’ll be in the box seat. Not really sure where you get 2:15 from either – you do realise that in 2009 (last year Evans appears not to have tried in final TT) Cadel only took 30s out of Andy in the final TT?

Meanwhile Tommy is still far from out of it. If he’s in yellow on Saturday afternoon, who knows what he can pull out.

As I said, very, very far from “sewn up” (well about as sewn up as it was for Fignon in 1989, though I suspect you might not have been following the TdF back then).

Apparently Rojas is in now

59. ROJAS Jose Joaquin 88 MOVISTAR TEAM 6h 39′ 13″ + 31′ 17″

Also note that only 1 HTC rider has come in.

Cav outside the time limit 🙁

Only 78 riders inside it

Care to have a small side bet then “racer”?

And why would I have not been follow in the ’89 tour – I was a 2nd cat roadie then so it would have been a bit weird no to no?

edit that – that was my last year as a junior but racing E,1,2

You calculated the time limit? What is it?

huh, Cav out? if 100 riders are outside they’ll waive it

Cav outside the time limit

Only 78 riders inside it
Which will certainly save him – they’re not going to eliminate over half the field. Assuming that is he’s in with a big group and not way back on his own?

You calculated the time limit? What is it?

😆

Care to have a small side bet them by “racer”?

Don’t know who that is, but if you reckon Evans has got it “sewn up” I presume you’re offering pretty generous odds – say I give you £5 if Evans wins, you give me £100 if he doesn’t?

Where can you get the news on what’s happening? can’t find anything…

Twitter

Twitter

Linky?

10-1 on is a bit strong. I’d go with 4-1.

oh, you edited to 20-1 on. Doesn’t sound like you have too many balls Mr “racer”! I think 4-1 on Evans vs entire field is pretty good odds!

HTC will only have one rider left 😀 if this stands

time limit was about 33 minutes

Groupetto had about 80 riders and finished about 2 minutes outside

info was from twitter – had tweetdeck open with some open searches – so when someone would mention groupetto or cavendish (etc) then those tweets would appear. very useful tool for getting information fast

http://twitter.com/#!/search/mark%20cavendish

10-1 on is a bit strong. I’d go with 4-1.

So even you don’t think it’s all that sewn up?

96. CAVENDISH Mark 171 HTC – HIGHROAD 6h 43′ 36″ + 35′ 40″

He’s finished in a group of ~90 riders. Think he’s safe.

You show me a horse that has ever been at odds with the bookies of 4-1 on and I’ll show you a sewn up race!

the inner ring is pretty good too http://twitter.com/inrng

Groupetto safe, Cavendish deducted 20 points. Still in green but with a lead of 15 now

the letour web site is now listing down to 168 @ +35,40 with Cav

Is that him out then?

Cav loses 20pts, but not eliminated.

http://twitter.com/#!/itvcycling