Rate TdFF (aZ) '26: what did you like, what would you fix?

[Pross]

The time gaps would become ridiculous if it went to a 3 weeks (or even 2 week) race and I suspect the DNF rate would be very high. Agree with the above comment that the priority should be in getting a full season of high quality races although that is something that has also improved massively in the last few years.

One thing that really annoyed me was the constant references / comparisons to the 'men's race' even by those who were instrumental in bring about this incarnation of the TDFF. I don't think it helps anyone to compare the two, they are still worlds apart and the focus should be in developing the TDFF in its own right rather than looking to emulate a race that has over 100 years of history.

 

[Dogtrousers]

The disparity between the best and the rest is pretty big (as it is in the men's peloton) but it's decreasing. Not so long ago the Giro Rosa went up Monte Zoncolan (I think it was) and van Vleuten disappeared effortlessly up the road, no one else was remotely near, and the mass of the peloton struggled simply because it was such a huge jump from the rest of their racing. I feared that similar would happen on the Angliru this year but it didn't - it was a competitive and entertaining race.

I think what women's racing needs now is not a longer TdFF but more in the way of the medium stage races. The equivalents of the mens week long tours are either non-existent (Paris-Nice, Tirreno) or just 3 days (Itzulia, TDU). Pushing the peloton to longer GTs without the background of those medium races would make longer GTs too much of a stretch. It would be fine for the superstars but the racing would be conservative and the rest of the peloton would struggle. Of course that's wishful thinking considering the financial pressures these races are under - see the incredible shrinking Tour de Suisse.

Thanks, autocorrect. Changing Zoncolan to Lincoln was really useful.

 

[Pross]

The disparity between the best and the rest is pretty big (as it is in the men's peloton) but it's decreasing. Not so long ago the Giro Rosa went up Monte Zoncolan (I think it was) and van Vleuten disappeared effortlessly up the road, no one else was remotely near, and the mass of the peloton struggled simply because it was such a huge jump from the rest of their racing. I feared that similar would happen on the Angliru this year but it didn't - it was a competitive and entertaining race.

I think what women's racing needs now is not a longer TdFF but more in the way of the medium stage races. The equivalents of the mens week long tours are either non-existent (Paris-Nice, Tirreno) or just 3 days (Itzulia, TDU). Pushing the peloton to longer GTs without the background of those medium races would make longer GTs too much of a stretch. It would be fine for the superstars but the racing would be conservative and the rest of the peloton would struggle. Of course that's wishful thinking considering the financial pressures these races are under - see the incredible shrinking Tour de Suisse.

Thanks, autocorrect. Changing Zoncolan to Lincoln was really useful.

To be fair, 10 years ago Michaelgate would probably have been enough to be decisive.

 

[mjr]

* Sadly, the world of social media being what it is, Celia Gery ended up getting death threats. Now, we all know that they came from overweight men who still live with their mothers, sitting posting in their pants, so not to be taken seriously but it must be pretty hard for a 20 year old in her first tour.

Team orders stitched her up. It soured a good race for me and I don't think Demi needed that sort of help from the team directors. Is it a problem that's more likely when you've a "chaingate"-era male ex-pro in the team car?