London Fixed-gear and Single-speed

Has Froome had media training since the Tour? He's coming across as amazingly gracious and considered compared to a few months ago.

Looking at the Cound's twatter feed, she's clearly not - claiming Wiggins never thanked Froome or the Sky staff for their work at TdF, stoking claims that the team's imploding, generally being a dick.

Obviously the main news from today is the Greenedge Call Me Maybe video. Which is awesome.

wow

Mega lolz

Seems appropriate for an Australian team to make the second best call me maybe spoof video.

Podium shot is clearly faked, I can see the pixels.

No, an Australian actually won a bike race. Trufax

Once

GreenEDGE slang for a GT is a "grandy" and I approve of this.

On the other hand, there are 3 riders actually racing with attacks and counterattacks on over 20% gradients that every single other rider is grovelling on. Really?

after vockler's slow stage win in the tour this year last nights finish was also a very slow one
the stage winners face on the last 500m was a sight to behold and the pace at which he did it was amazeballs
seeing contador only just manage to keep his pedals turning on the steep corners showed just what a challenge that stage was yesterday
rest day today and one more big mountain stage to come on thurs / fri ?

i really hope contador doesn't win

contador was attacking and only increasing his speed to 9.5kph. mental

loved thwe comments at the then end of ther highlights package

every time contador attacks he loses time !

^^ i wish i could manage 9.5kmph on the flat !

The finish was a bit stupid in my opinion. It just becomes painful to watch when they are zig zagging along at 6 km/h.

This. 23% for 4k at the end of the 20k climb, at the end of the queen stage after two other stages in the high mountains seems almost cruel. Froome said at one point he thought we was going to have to get off and walk over the line. The only riders that looked ok were Contador and Rodriguez

It's safe and suitable for road bikes (even if that means a 34x28t). Whether the racers like it is another matter.

They're lucky it got paved!

Riders today don't know they're born etc

You have to be joking right, that was one of the best stages ive seen for a long time.

Its amazing to see how quickly the riders seem to recover from something like that. It looks like they sit down for a few minutes, have a drink, catch their breath then its back on the bike to ride to the bus for a warm down.

would walking have been quicker ?
it would have been ace to see contador dismount and 'slain it the last 1km

I hear the Giro is considering this for next year!

http://www.climbbybike.com/climb.asp...ountainID=3597

12th most difficult climb in the whole world
where does swains come on that list ?

inner ring as ever nails it with this piece on steep climbs:

http://inrng.com/2012/05/mountain-climbing-gradient/

"yet these steep ramps can strip away variable factors meaning a more predictable race. The climb is reduced to a test of power-to-weight ratios."

Just like a lab. Right down to the white coats and clipboards.

It's the article that's sterile though...

What it adds to the GC racing is debatable but you cannot deny that running a strip of tarmac up a ski run made for a hell of a spectacle.

Scannupia. They will be walking.

Some pretty decent pics of insane stage 16 including Terpstra walking his bike over the line..

http://www.teamsky.com/gallery/0,274....html#photo=23

I saw Froome go to that red tent after he got to the top and was curious about it, obviously a temporary rest area. What I liked was the look of concern and shared suffering as other riders helped him off his bike and inside.

trying to unclip he looked very shaky

Shaky? He looked proper fucked.. Could hardly get off the bike.

It was a great stage to watch. I did feel guilty though, as I genuinely enjoyed watching them suffer while I drank beer on the couch.

Where do we go from here?

Maybe we can kill them and eat them at the top. That seems to be the logical conclusion to the addition of these outrageous climbs.

It does make for entertaining viewing.. I can only imagine the pain they went through and really felt for them.. When you see pro's crawling up climbs like that it hurts to watch.

I find it faintly ridiculous though.

Indeed. I'm quite sure that treating them like circus performers and expecting them to behave like ethical athletes are incompatible.

stage 14 tight rope between two peaks : to be ridden

I think you have to work hard to find the right balance in a GT. The Tour was a bit flat and safe with very few MTFs and so lacking drama, the Vuelta is the opposite. While I like a good climber's battle I also love the bunch sprint and a hilly, classic-style stage. To my taste there's a few too many MTFs in Vuelta this year, another one tomorrow already. The parcours means that practically the entire top tier of sprinters are missing.

But that is just an opinion. I know everyone loves the climbing duels, I just think there's been a bit too much of it.

I cycle up 24% gradients. They're fun even without drugs.

HTFU

Apparently Daniel Teklehaimanot was vomiting as he crossed the line. Can't find video though :(

So the question is, is the Cuitu Negru tougher than this bad boy:



Monte Zoncolan

agreed

tour de holland ftw

I cycle up 24% as well.. They are quite fun.. But racing up them is no fun whatsoever. Actually racing up them is almost impossible.

This.

24%...? I don't even walk up that shit, I find a way around.

Catford Hill climb 25%..

or take a bus / ski lift

Really? Another reason for me to avoid deepest SE London ;)

Does anyone know the % of Swains? That's my only reference for a steep hill in London.

Whitedown is 18% on one section I believe, and I've done that quite a few times, though only twice from the steep side.

I am truly in awe of anyone that can do a long, sustained climb like that. The short sharp ones are bad enough.

Catford is up yorks hill. It's not that bad. Lovely enclosed snaking road.

http://www.goinggoingbike.com/blog/t...n-swains-lane/

pffft 18% max

Whitedown is pretty short though.

Barhatch lane still the most unpleasant hill in the southlands.

Short sharp are easy (that's a figure of speech). The long consistent climbs are utter bliss to ride.

I don't want to leave any spoiler here for those who'll be catching up tonight but... if you can get a stream running (steephill/the usuals) it's well worth it today. It's lively.

The Saxo Tinkoff car is currently sending bottles to an Astana rider.

:0

#pelotonpolitics