1) sunny and headwind
2) dry and headwind

headwind just makes for better training. rain makes for more dangerous road conditions.

lol@ Michael Angelo
did he do a spectacular guitar solo whilst painting that?

So if he's beaten the people who are finishing this year you would reckon he had a chance

Naturally. If there were no other competitors I could win the thing. But there are other competitors.

So all this stuff about "I'd also noticed that he can't compete with the best in either the mountains or the timetrials any more" was just irrelevant then?

not at all. Totally relevant. If he won this year it would be because the best in the world had either not entered the event or had crashed out.

It can take year of racing for a rider to come back to their former ability level.
Ingoring of course the drop-off in performance related to age…

plus your soul, of course, if you buy it from st*f

I think AndyP would only reckon Lance had a chance of winning next year if he'd won this year
not at all. If he won this year I think he'd have no chance of winning next year either.

WTF has the guy got to do to impress you fella?
? He won the tour 7 times. That's impressive. He's made a good comeback. That's impressive. He won't win it again however. Simple really.

depends if you want to be riding entirely on landfill in a few years time.

reusable rock. And if you use a collection/delivery service, you don't even need to worry about the washing aspect.

ooh you lucky bugger 🙂

Everybody keeps talking about Wiggins as a potential future winner

now that IS crazy talk. More chance than Armstrong however, merely on age, but he needs to find some acceleration for the mountains.

you may not have noticed but he's there or thereabouts overall
surprisingly, I had noticed. I'd also noticed that he can't compete with the best in either the mountains or the timetrials any more. And he'll be a year older next year. No chance.

I presume you've not seen his comments where he strongly implies he thinks he can win the TdF year?

was that before he had his arse royally kicked in both the mountains and the timetrials this year?

Otherwise, I'd love to be his doctor, some major work coming up…

Who cares. The wine from the Ventoux region is just smashing. Highly recommended!
word. Few things in life better than riding that mountain then settling in at a Cave to work your way through their produce. hic.

And for what little I know, coming in 30 minutes behind the best climbers on a 180(?) kilometre stage with a load of big hills in isn't really that bad is it.

it most certainly isn't! Cav is, what, 2.5 hours behind Contador? over nearly 3000km? that's pretty fooking close in the scheme of things.

I don't understand how a good hill-climber (the other Schleck) can't do a time trial?

Surely being to pedal fast up a gert big hill is a similar physical output to pedalling on the flat as fast as you can.

Please explain.

it's a bit different. power/weight matters in mountains, flat out sustainable power matters more on TT, particularly an almost flat one like yesterday. And the Shreks work on accelerations on the hills rather than constant sustained power output (hence being able to drop Wiggo on gert big hill when they do go for it – but not being able to compete with him on the flat)

highly unlikely. Keeping powder dry for the Bastard tomorrow.

may want to build a team for publicity, to win and for the future to mainatain a presence in a sport he clearly loves.

He may want to build a team for hispersonal cycling benefit and his ego.

ooh…let me think. which is it going to be? 😉

no.
Wiggins has done enough to prove that he can be a team leader for grand tours. Armstrong will be forming a new team so that he can be team leader.
It ain't going to work.

And I don't think that the one that started this thread can be bettered, unless you insert between having sex, and dying, the words:

charging an enemy machine gun nest and winning the VC

being involved in a battle and quite possibly killing some people before you die is better than not being involved in a battle and quite possibly killing some people?

mentalist.

what crazy legs said. Cavendish is a great all-round cyclist – just not when compared to the likes of Contador. He'd murder 99% of very good club cyclists on a climb.
I don't know much about Beckinsale (had to look up who he was) so I don't know, but Cav is a far better climber than most people would imagine..

of course he's not a thug. He's an honest figurehead of the game who we should want our children to aspire to be like.

The loss of a human life is always a tragedy. Unless of course you feel that they have no right to life.
agreed entirely. And I didn't at any point feel or say that he had no right to life, did I?

Although I have seen it destroy people – including young people.
you're clearly brighter than I thought. Still waiting for you to point out the 'bollocks which I post' though.

Where you mention "no great loss", arsewipe.
no, still not getting it. Show me where 'no great loss' equates to 'no right to life'?
jesus, you're not too bright either, are you? Are YOU aware that alcohol can be dangerous to you? Maybe not. Not many brain cells left there to wipe out with a few beers by the sound of things.

LOL – you have completely missed the point ! !
It would appear not.

First line of responsibility lies with the parents. How can they not notice their child is drinking himself to death?
Yes, he shouldn't be being sold alcohol. Agreed. But to say the fault lies with the authorities is clearly bonkers.

The right to life is not based on intelligence. Even a fu*kwit like you has basic rights.
…and I questioned his right to life where, exactly, cumgullet?

The parents don't have a choice on whether or not a 13 year old binge drinks. It is against the law.
you don't have children, do you?

He has been drinking for eight or nine years and did not see what was coming to him
Sounds like no great loss, not much of a brain there clearly.

Because there are laws to protect 13 year olds.
yes, it's clearly all the fault of the authorities. Jesus.

Sounds like he's been failed by his parents to me.

of winning? none whatsoever
of 2nd or 3rd? decent. The Schlecks will come back at him hard over the next few days however.
of top 5? pretty much nailed-on barring a catastrophic day on Ventoux.

He's obviously been failed by the authorities at every level of his life
how on earth do you reach that conclusion?

ahem. she looks about 9.

whaaaaat?

1) We'll do them in the next 3 tests anyway.
2) It'd be phenomenal watching
3) OK perhaps I should re-word it. I want them to almost win, rather than I almost want them to win. Then Punter's face will be even funnier. 😉

either way, it's going to be a cracking day. If the Aussies get this, hats off to them. I almost want them to…

Thought he was pretty magnanimous in his post stage interviews
there's a first…

Cav – I don't suppose his disqualification has anything to do with this does it…?!
no, it's to do with the fact that he blocked Hushovd. He moved across before the barrier moved in, then held his line as it moved in. Hushovd had no chance.

decent legs, about 10 years of my life back, and a pro contract.

oh, and those catlike helmets really ming.

my favourite is getting a fag flicked at you. Stop, collect said object, hoy it through open car window onto back seat. Watch the fecker scream to a halt to try to stop his upholstery going up in flames.

Contador to win!!!

no sh1t..;)