TdF Stage 20 – The Alpe d'Huez

Watched all of it, some excellent adverts with the odd bit of road cycling in between.

Someone spat on Froome again???

Yeah I saw that, def looked like a spit, dirty bastard. Nothing said about it (but my recording of the live show stopped early before they spoke to froome)

Good/tense to watch. In the last few km I kept waiting for froome to leave his entourage behind and put the hammer down to close a bit on Quintana but I guess he knew he was on for a win so didn’t go mental I case he imploded.

Watched all of it, some excellent adverts with the odd bit of road cycling in between.

I went out for a short ride while the telly box recorded the first hour or so, so I could skip the ads. Added bonus of actually getting to ride my (road) bike too 🙂

There were some shitty t-shirt slogans and quite a few people with stiff middle fingers on display too.

Someone spat on Froome again???

Here. Probably one of many not caught on camera. Pretty moronic behaviour. I doubt Froome will give a shit now.

What a great stage. I’m exhausted now after screaming at Thibaut Pinot all the way up
Alpe D’Huez to win the stage! 😀

On one of Quintana breaks, did anybody else spot that spectator pushing Quintana up the hill and Wout Poels pushing the spectator out of the way?

and the Dutch zone looked mental 😯

Vortexracing – Member
On one of Quintana breaks, did anybody else spot that spectator pushing Quintana up the hill and Wout Poels pushing the spectator out of the way?

Yup. Reckon he was within his rights to do it too.

and the Dutch zone looked mental

Really did. Noticeable when the Sky group came through they were quieter until Valverde rode past behind them.

Top ride from Pinot. Was willing him to stay away for that last 3km.

Just watched the 12 minute highlights from Froome’s 40 minute press conference. Actually comes across as quite personable and ‘real’.

Warming to him as a ‘personality’.

Also found interesting Brailsford’s immediate post-stage comments that once on the bike Froome is just about the most competitive cyclist he’s worked with.

Watched it live earlier, now watching the highlights, wonder if Quintana will be able to get a bigger gap this time.

Just noticed someone smacked Quintana with their camera.

Froome was definately a worthy winner as he was in 2013 , pretty shameful scenes over the last week . It seems very unfair that the big stage win in the Pyrenees last week should fuel such speculation in the french press and ultimately lead to the spitting and piss throwing. 🙁 Froome has conducted himself well and deserves the yellow jersey but you cant help but think had Nairo not lost so much time in week 1 he would be in yellow.
Sagan , Bardet ,Thomas, Cummings , Martin and finally Pinault’s win were the highlights for me.
Hopefully Quintana concentrates on the Tdf next year as he would be a massively popular winner.

Yep , just watched the highlights and what a great stage .

Tour became boring when LA was just riding behing a whole team and nobody attacking him .

Congrats to Froome .

And as a frenchman , happy with 2 in the top 10 and 3 stage wins .

Hard to know what to do about the crowds, saw the police outriders getting a bit more physical than usual at times (although there is a picture from back in the 50s of one booting a spectator out of the way).

Clearly the massive majority are just there cheering everyone on, but as well as the few direct attacks there are far too many **** trying to get themselves on TV.

The booing was clearer in the highlights as well hadn’t picked up on that watching it live, too engrossed in the race.

But I do think too much emphasis has been put on it in general, it has been a great race and especially the past few days have just exploded with attacks and excitement.

Amazing race, just goes to show that having a team that’s completely on the ball at all (or nearly all anyway) of the crucial moments is the difference between 1st and everyone else. Froome won in the end because of time gains he made because him and his entire team were in the right place at the right time almost 3 weeks ago!

Pinault’s

Like that 🙂

Great win today, though Bardet’s win probably by fave of the Alps.

Froome won in the end because of time gains he made because him and his entire team were in the right place at the right time almost 3 weeks ago!

Caught everyone by surprise using exactly the same tactics employed in 2013! Blast the first big mountain stage when everyone else is finding their climbing legs, then limit losses. (Though made trickier this year by lack of big ITT.)

I wasn’t convinced there was much booing so much as people shouting “Froome”. See also Joe Root and Kevin Youkilis for examples.

Highlights said that the time quintana lost in the Zealand stage was bigger than the overall margin. And i think he lost a bit in the tt too. So he rode all the rest of the hills faster than Sky. Must be cheating, heading to Paris with my cup of piss as we speak.

pint or a half??

So he rode all the rest of the hills faster than Sky.

They actually said as much in the highlights programme. If the polka dot jersey was done on time, Quintana would have it easily but it’s done on a points score based on position over the top so Froome, who was simply higher placed more often wins.

That was more or less how Virenque used to win it – target all the 3rd & 4th cat hills then limit losses on all the real mountains.

Hats off to Froome though, that’s one hell of an achievement. Yes, the mountainous course favoured the double yellow/kom this year but to make it stick took some doing!

Brilliant stage today, nailbiting finish!

I would think a half pint would be appropriate for Quintana.

Here. [/quote]

No, that was yesterday’s.

Caught everyone by surprise using exactly the same tactics employed in 2013! Blast the first big mountain stage when everyone else is finding their climbing legs, then limit losses.[/quote]

Nope. in 2013 he took 1:45 on Quintana on the first mountain stage, this year he took 1:04 (less than Quintana took back today). However he took 1:28 in the crosswinds on stage 2, more than the final winning margin.

That was more or less how Virenque used to win it – target all the 3rd & 4th cat hills then limit losses on all the real mountains.

Being doped up to the eyeballs.

(Yes, I know that belongs in the doping thread, but I couldn’t resist!)

Tonight’s highlights showed a knob in a KOM jersey/t shirt spitting at Froome. He pedalled on but looked back at culprit as he realised what happened.

er, I didn’t see Froome targetting 3rd and 4th cat climbs, I did see him at or near the front on the big climbs. It was just the way it was set up this year with lots of summit finishes which made the double possible – I make it that Froome got 91 of his 119 MPR points on summit finishes (enough on their own to beat all but Quintana). Clearly he had seen the possibility early on (knowing Sky I can’t believe it didn’t occur to them before the race) as he did go chasing points, but it was the summit finishes what did it.

To be fair, Virenque did go on big exploits when he was on another planet, and did deservedly win the jersey from the POV of what he did on the bike, more so than some of the more recent winners.

Particularly given who it is speculating – maybe they just think that because they did it…

Am I alone in thinking that was all just a bit dull? Great to see Pinot noir get a stage win, but with Froome riding like a damp firework, Quintana not-really-ever-quite making it, some unpleasant oiks in the crowd, and the tour pretty much being decided 3 weeks ago.. It all seems to have lacked je ne sais que somewhat..

Still, at least we can all look forward to Cavendish securing a thrilling win in Paris tomorrow.. Oh, hang on..

yes, you are alone.

Still, at least we can all look forward to Cavendish securing a thrilling win in Paris tomorrow.. Oh, hang on..

If he does win it’ll be against all the odds, so thrilling indeed 😉

Tomorrow should be a fun ending, can’t decide whose most likely to win. My money is on a German, but not sure which one and I reckon Cav and Kristoff won’t be too far behind and even in with a decent chance of winning.

What Nipper said.

So you never thought Q might do it today? One of the tightest races for years, so many occasions when Froome could have lost it, whatever the talk was that he’d already won it before the first proper mountain stage.

theotherjonv – Member
……heading to Paris with my cup of piss as we speak.

They’ll never let you on the plane.

Why not buy a cup in Paris (or take your own with you) and piss in it when you get there?

Or were you planning on taking someone else’s piss?
Hmmm?

Massive dark cloud over this TDF and nothing to do with Froome’s performance, way too many dickheads in the crowd. The booing at Froome was ridiculous, not least as he was riding alongside a convicted doper.

Now waiting for the dedicated threads about Quintana’s doping. It seems everyone has forgot that it was Movistar that destroyed the peloton in that first stage in the Pirenees, shame for Quintana he overestimated how well he was going after he rest day and can’t ride in cross winds.

Yep movistar played their hand on that stage just 50km too early. Wonder if they had just quintana and not valverde how different it would have been.

Been great watching from day 1.
My highlights
Rohan Dennis taking the tt just for the look on his face – his Facebook page still has his yellow jersey pic as his profile.
Tony Martin coming off the cobbles to win and go yellow in style
Mur d hoy finish
The attacks and finish on pyrenees day 1
Grumpy Cav tweets

So you never thought Q might do it today?

Having checked the Guardian webpage, before watching the highlights in the evening, no.

Unfortunately being at work yesterday meant I couldn’t dedicate my life to live-viewing and – spoiler alert – the highlights become somewhat less exciting knowing the result anyway.

The booing and negative shite is really f’ing sad. Put off the whole spectacle for me.

*remembers first rule of STW fight club: never start a post ‘Am I alone in this?’*

Massive dark cloud over the TDF – looks like rain in Paris today.

Ah, so it was a bit dull when you were watching the highlights already knowing the result?

Awesome stage but the win never really looked in doubt for Froome, sadly.

If only there were another mountain stage or two still to come, then we’d have a fight on our hands.

Hopefully Bertie will show up in form next year too.

So it’ll be his last season, go for the double again or just the Tour to stand a better chance of winning?

Can’t see him making the same mistake twice.

Porte might be heading up BMC for next year’s TdF too I guess.