Tour de France '25: rank and be franc

[mididoctors]

6 for me. GC was pretty clear cut early doors but there was plenty of sub plots to enjoy. Yates' stage win, Healys exploits, Arensmans double, MvDP hooning about and WVA/Final stage all were lots of fun. I was 'at' stages 7 and 8 which add some emotional attachment. Nice to see the rise of Onley which bookends the end of G from a GB perspective nicely. And, fairs to Ben O'Connor too. The host nation snuck in a top ten rider eventually too, so they must be chuffed

2 Frenchman. Kev and Jegat ... Jegat massively over achieved in a era where there no "soft gill Martin 12 min breaks" his stage 20 ride was a master class in choosing the best wheel in a very fluid stage

 

[mididoctors]

Everyone in the top ten had to earn it

 

[cycling_mike]

5 for me, didn't find a rider to get behind. Usually the PTP helps but found it all a bit missable.

 

[Pross]

6 for me, probably an 8 after week 1 but it petered out a bit in the end. Everyone was knackered by the big alps stages. I guess it’s the downside of GC riders racing hard in week 1.

 

[Dogtrousers]

6 for me, probably an 8 after week 1 but it petered out a bit in the end. Everyone was knackered by the big alps stages. I guess it’s the downside of GC riders racing hard in week 1.

I've got a great idea to fix that problem. Some long flat sprint stages with the peloton sailing serenely through endless sunflower fields and a sacrificial break of wildcard team riders glumly awaiting their fate ahead.

 

[N0bodyOfTheGoat]

I've got a great idea to fix that problem. Some long flat sprint stages with the peloton sailing serenely through endless sunflower fields and a sacrificial break of wildcard team riders glumly awaiting their fate ahead.

Stages like that with say five intermediates, with position and segment times available, would make them more watchable.

Maybe a giant wind machine with a cross tailwind too?

 

[CarbonClem]

2 Frenchman. Kev and Jegat ... Jegat massively over achieved in a era where there no "soft gill Martin 12 min breaks" his stage 20 ride was a master class in choosing the best wheel in a very fluid stage

Yep, my bad.

 

[Pross]

I've got a great idea to fix that problem. Some long flat sprint stages with the peloton sailing serenely through endless sunflower fields and a sacrificial break of wildcard team riders glumly awaiting their fate ahead.

I think you have to accept one or the other. If week 1 is designed to get the GC riders racing there is probably going to be some slightly dull racing later on as even Pog and Jonas are human and these copious amounts of unknown wonder drugs the social media warriors like to tell us they are taking don’t seem good enough to allow for 3 weeks of flat out racing.

 

[ddraver]

4

Always say that a 3 or below and I stop watching and I didnt so...

No real competition for any jersey (White excepted) and a few mildly interesting stages like the last 2 don't save that.

 

[Evil_Breakfast]

...and these copious amounts of unknown wonder drugs the social media warriors like to tell us they are taking don’t seem good enough to allow for 3 weeks of flat out racing.

😅
One take-away from this years tour, is the vogue for tart cherry juice.
So, the anti-inflammatory benefits that anthocyanins (through tart cherry juice) provide are either :-

1. The smoking gun that proves doping.
2 The eye of the needle that proves doping.
3. An efficient masking agent that proves doping.

I'm assuming that's the gist of the argument over at the clinic?