Tour de France *Spoilers*

[rich p]

That distinctively average dutch bloke as @rich p called him?

I've been bleeting on for a year that he is an outsider (albeit big outsider) for the podium much to the mockery of my cyclechat colleagues - whilst that is still a huge ask, it looks like he will be closer to the podium than most!


TJVG did the lion's share of the work in that chase group, certainly looking good

I beg forgiveness Montaggio - if you'd only said, " He'll be closer to the podium than most", in the first place, you could have saved yourself all that flak

 

[Pedrosanchezo]

I would have "liked" that post until the last sentence. I reserve the right to be suspicious of riders who show form that does not add up in my brain - Nibali falls into that category. I truly hope that he is clean and that what we are seeing from him is not a deception. But something in my mind just can't see that; all around him riders are grimacing, clearly making huge efforts and (sometimes) blowing up, yet he rides off at what appears to be at will with little evidence of suffering...day after day. I admit his choice of team and their manager has a huge influence on my views. But maybe rightly so. I don't know. I'm enjoying the race below him immensely; the villain of ValvPiti and the new knights who want to depose him is great viewing.

Vive le Tour. Whatever. (I even do better quotes than Lance)

No idea why you are thinking that. Nibbles would get spanked by Froome and Contador in the high mountains. By your, questionable, math Froome and Contador must be doping also. Ask yourself who is he really beating? Todays stage he was inferior to the eventual winner by 24-25 seconds. Is Majka doping?

A questionable mind is one thing, a suspicious mind is another.

 

[Pro Tour Punditry]

No idea why you are thinking that. Nibbles would get spanked by Froome and Contador in the high mountains. By your, questionable, math Froome and Contador must be doping also. Ask yourself who is he really beating? Todays stage he was inferior to the eventual winner by 24-25 seconds. Is Majka doping?

A questionable mind is one thing, a suspicious mind is another.

Neither are there. Dirty Bertie is forever dirty in my mind no matter what he does.

And you are questioning Majka when I am not.

 

[Dogtrousers]

No idea why you are thinking that. Nibbles would get spanked by Froome and Contador in the high mountains. By your, questionable, math Froome and Contador must be doping also. Ask yourself who is he really beating? Todays stage he was inferior to the eventual winner by 24-25 seconds. Is Majka doping?

A questionable mind is one thing, a suspicious mind is another.

Perish the thought! Clean as a whistle Bertie and the Bilharzia Boy?
I'm just off to the clinic.

 

[rich p]

@Pedrosanchezo
You don't help your case by refusing to admit that Nibali's transformation from mule to superstar in the last 6 weeks is at least eyebrow raising.
None of us, even the witchfinder sceptics, know if he's juiced, but we reserve the right to harbour suspicions given his lack of form this year.
He has proved to be a good rider previously and he may well be clean; the opposition isn't what we expected, but the untroubled way he rides gives enough doubt for some to air their suspicions given cycling's recent history.
Ulissi, Santambroggio, Ricco and many others from the Italian stable have been nailed been nailed since the 'so-called' clean era.
Unproven - as they say in Scotty land.

 

[tug benson]

Perish the thought! Clean as a whistle Bertie and the Bilharzia Boy?
I'm just off to the clinic.

Really that place is bonkers, i dont know why it hasn't been closed down, as far as i can tell, someone over there says something, and it could be anything and as long as its anti team sky or its says that someone is a big bad cheat then they all start to believe it..thats when it becomes FACT!!!!!


The hatred for Sky, Wiggins, Froome and now Porte over there is unreal..



Still i get some laugh when i lurk on there

 

[Pedrosanchezo]

@Pedrosanchezo
You don't help your case by refusing to admit that Nibali's transformation from mule to superstar in the last 6 weeks is at least eyebrow raising.
None of us, even the witchfinder sceptics, know if he's juiced, but we reserve the right to harbour suspicions given his lack of form this year.
He has proved to be a good rider previously and he may well be clean; the opposition isn't what we expected, but the untroubled way he rides gives enough doubt for some to air their suspicions given cycling's recent history.
Ulissi, Santambroggio, Ricco and many others from the Italian stable have been nailed been nailed since the 'so-called' clean era.
Unproven - as they say in Scotty land.

Erm, mule? Examples? More so than Froome when he started his pro career? As for the last 3 riders you named they aren't even playing the same sport as Nibali let alone the same race.

Who beat Nibali of late? Froome, Contador. Who else? Who else has beat either of them of late? Well neither of them are in the race. Can you honestly look at any of the riders left in the TDF and think they SHOULD be beating Nibali up the climbs? When he won the giro did he beat Froome or Contador? 2012 he finished behind Froome and Wiggins - both not present in 2014.

Also naming others from the same nationality is simply poor taste. All Americans dope because of Armstrong? Italians dope so Nibali might? The simplicity of the idea reveals the simplicity of the thinking behind the accusations.

Some questioned Tony Martin!

If we are going to question every strong performance on the basis of what has happened in the past then why bother watching future TDF's at all? Why not just put in a VHS of the 1986 Tour and sit back and chill...........

 

[Pro Tour Punditry]

Really that place is bonkers

I visited once. Just to have e read after someone on here accused me of being "of clinic mentality". I'm not. Nor to I ascribe to their thinking. Nobbers, the lot of them.

 

[Pro Tour Punditry]

the stuff you typed...

You are not reading properly.
It's just stuff you are making up in your head and it's similar to what people did when Lance was winning.
Nobody is questioning every strong performance, I admitted to being "on the wind-up" with Tony Martin.
But still I doubt Nibali.
As I said earlier I may be wrong.

But that does not mean you are right.

 

[suzeworld]

I wish you guys who want to snipe on about doping, naivety and each others' nobbery-levels would get a room, or at least another thread...

You're making this one very opaque.

 

[Pedrosanchezo]

I wish you guys who want to snipe on about doping, naivety and each others' nobbery-levels would get a room, or at least another thread...

You're making this one very opaque.

True, but i liked this thread before the chants of "doper" started.

 

[Pedrosanchezo]

You are not reading properly.
It's just stuff you are making up in your head and it's similar to what people did when Lance was winning.
Nobody is questioning every strong performance, I admitted to being "on the wind-up" with Tony Martin.
But still I doubt Nibali.
As I said earlier I may be wrong.

But that does not mean you are right.

That's like the 3rd or 4th time you have mentioned Armstrong. Let it go dude. Past be past. 2014 TDF be the present and the future.

Peace be with you chap. Until Nibbles wins another mountain stage or TT.

 

[Pro Tour Punditry]

That's like the 3rd or 4th time you have mentioned Armstrong. Let it go dude. Past be past. 2014 TDF be the present and the future.

Peace be with you chap. Until Nibbles wins another mountain stage or TT.

I'll carry on comparing. You carry on ignoring. There is reason behind my views; and not just Armstrong.
As I said earlier, if you keep getting annoyed by my views then you'll be annoyed over and over.

I'm loving the racing this year; Bardet, Pinot and TVG in the mountains has been great, Kittel is immense, Sagan is so good he is boring And loads of other great breakaways, wins and "almost was" highlights. And Gallopin - what a guy!

 

[raindog]

Majka was impressive today. Imagine what he must be on to beat Nibali?!!

That's right, and what about Péraud? On friday the internet decided that Nibs was doped up to his armpits, so I reckon Péraud must be on something really amazing to be able to stay with him to the top of Risoul.

What a finish to the stage though. How fantastic to see all these up and coming youngsters attacking and battling all the way up the last climb. And it's great the French at last have some riders they can really cheer for after all these years.
Even Simon Yates got a third of the way up the last climb before being swallowed up by the main bunch. I'm loving it, and the future of bike racing looks great to me.

 

[raindog]

Really that place is bonkers, i dont know why it hasn't been closed down,

Absolutely. Everyone in there is barking mad.
But even the comments after the articles on CN are pretty weird too.