Author Topic: Tour predictions thread  (Read 10555 times)

Re: Tour predictions thread
« Reply #25 on: 05 July, 2010, 11:23:23 am »
Good question but I think not. Thomas has a fair amount of history with Wiggins on the track and I think he may hold to his team loyalty. This is likely to put him sheltering Wiggins today who I suspect of most likely making a move tomorrow on the cobbles. (Not his typical form but remember, born in Ghent and depsite a big history on the tracks might have a bit of a hidden skill here to capitalise on the predicted carnage).

citoyen

  • Occasionally rides a bike
Re: Tour predictions thread
« Reply #26 on: 05 July, 2010, 02:53:06 pm »
"The future's all yours, you lousy bicycles."

Riggers

  • Mine's a pipe, er… pint!
Re: Tour predictions thread
« Reply #27 on: 05 July, 2010, 04:12:46 pm »
Sounds wet and trecherous!!
Certainly never seen cycling south of Sussex

onb

  • Between jobs at present
Re: Tour predictions thread
« Reply #28 on: 05 July, 2010, 04:22:51 pm »


One of the Schlecks will pick up early KOM points but I suspect won't go straight to the top of the board, this will be someone like Auge or Chavanel.




Thats one hell of a prediction. :thumbsup:
.

citoyen

  • Occasionally rides a bike
Re: Tour predictions thread
« Reply #29 on: 05 July, 2010, 04:29:40 pm »
And so's this one:
Cavendish to keep well to the back

 ;D

d.
"The future's all yours, you lousy bicycles."

Re: Tour predictions thread
« Reply #30 on: 05 July, 2010, 07:03:50 pm »
Frankly Wiggo's remarks about his Garmin team last year lost me as a fan.  I'm sure that he made the right financial decision in going to Sky, but his fairly slim chances of winning the Tour will be slimmer with the relative inexperience of his current team (as a team that is) compared to Garmin, which is full of experienced riders, although few are top rank. 


I though that what Wiggo did was noble. I think that Team Sky are paving the way for Brittish cycling's future in the TDF. It could very well downgrade what Wiggo achieves in this tour but I think it will develop Brittish riders and help Brittish riders of the future to have more success.
Wiggo may get a bigger paycheck from Sky than he did before. But if he continued to race in a stronger team and had greater success, would he be better off financially than he will be after this tour with a lesser result?

Gus

  • Loosing weight stone by stone
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Re: Tour predictions thread
« Reply #31 on: 05 July, 2010, 07:19:56 pm »
Forecast for stage 3 :

There will be crashes, Cav + A.Schleck will be in them.  :facepalm:

The Spanish teams will loose minutes and hate the pave's


Re: Tour predictions thread
« Reply #32 on: 05 July, 2010, 08:34:02 pm »
I forecast a creditable showing in the mountains by Charlie Wegelius, who rode extremely well in the Giro.
The way things are going, one of the GC contenders might end up with the green jersey.
#makewattsnotwar

citoyen

  • Occasionally rides a bike
Re: Tour predictions thread
« Reply #33 on: 06 July, 2010, 01:11:36 pm »


One of the Schlecks will pick up early KOM points but I suspect won't go straight to the top of the board, this will be someone like Auge or Chavanel.




Thats one hell of a prediction. :thumbsup:

(click to show/hide)

d.
"The future's all yours, you lousy bicycles."

Re: Tour predictions thread
« Reply #34 on: 06 July, 2010, 02:29:06 pm »
I wasn't that keen to touch today with a bargepole in terms of predictions. Certainly wouldn't have predicted yesterday's rolling finish and today is just too hard to guess where things will go.

However, I suspect that the finish will fox most well versed pundits predictions.

Tomorrow I have Hushovd trying to open up his scoring in a break and Cav chasing the stage win.

citoyen

  • Occasionally rides a bike
Re: Tour predictions thread
« Reply #35 on: 07 July, 2010, 08:58:03 am »
Stage 4: sprint finish, Garmin or Milram to disrupt the Columbia train enough to spoil it for Cav, Farrar to take the stage.

d.
"The future's all yours, you lousy bicycles."

Re: Tour predictions thread
« Reply #36 on: 07 July, 2010, 09:16:45 am »
Agree with that but not sure about Farrar with his injuries. Husholvd is on fire and Cav looks out of the game. He should have kept his gob shut last year as his boasting has motivated others.

citoyen

  • Occasionally rides a bike
Re: Tour predictions thread
« Reply #37 on: 07 July, 2010, 10:58:34 am »
Take your point about Farrar's injuries. Broken wrist, innit? That has to slow him down a bit.

Who else is there who can give Hushovd a genuine race? Probably no one. Petacchi maybe? I don't think Ciolek is up to it.

Maybe it's Boasson-Hagen's turn to show us what he's made of on the big stage?

d.

"The future's all yours, you lousy bicycles."

Re: Tour predictions thread
« Reply #38 on: 07 July, 2010, 11:00:15 am »
Saturday's stage looks interesting, Moyenne Montagne, somewhere where the likes of Thomas and Evans could expend some energy while other GC contenders keep their powder dry for the big mountains. Wiggins is under the radar to a certain extent. It looks like a good weekend's racing.

mattc

  • n.b. have grown beard since photo taken
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Re: Tour predictions thread
« Reply #39 on: 07 July, 2010, 11:06:08 am »
Take your point about Farrar's injuries. Broken wrist, innit? That has to slow him down a bit.

Especially in a sprint!

Today's stage is so woosy it's designed for sprinters. There will be a lot of shagged/damaged riders in the peloton, so I guess it depends whose lead-out team is in the best shape. Or which sprinter doesn't need one ...
Has never ridden RAAM
---------
No.11  Because of the great host of those who dislike the least appearance of "swank " when they travel the roads and lanes. - From Kuklos' 39 Articles

citoyen

  • Occasionally rides a bike
Re: Tour predictions thread
« Reply #40 on: 07 July, 2010, 11:10:22 am »
Actually, it looks like Farrar has already ruled himself out...

Quote
Farrar said he hopes to get stronger as the week progresses but doubts he can contest for a win in Wednesday’s stage 4, which is expected to favor sprinters like himself. Prior to the race’s start, Farrar had designated stage 4 — a flat 153.5-kilometer journey from Cambrai to Reims — as one of the nine stages he thought he’d have a shot at winning.

“If I feel like I did today, no,” he said. “I can barely pull on the handle bars with my left hand.”

“I don’t know for sure if I can finish,” he added. “I don’t think I’ll challenge much in the next few days. But if I can get through the next few days and take the pain, then maybe it’s going to get better.”

A fractured wrist doesn't deter Farrar

Or which sprinter doesn't need one ...

That'll be Hushovd, then.

Mind you, Farrar aside, Garmin are generally in pretty bad shape so maybe I'm overestimating their ability to disrupt Columbia, who are generally in pretty good shape...

d.
"The future's all yours, you lousy bicycles."

Re: Tour predictions thread
« Reply #41 on: 07 July, 2010, 11:46:41 am »
Agree with that but not sure about Farrar with his injuries. Husholvd is on fire and Cav looks out of the game. He should have kept his gob shut last year as his boasting has motivated others.

I keep being reminded of that extended interview he gave after one of his stage wins last year.  After thanking his teammates, he was saying how much attention to detail he and the team made to the run in, to the extent that they knew whether to go left or right round the roundabouts, because sometimes it could gain or drop you 20 places.  So how come he/they approached that bend near the end of stage 1 as if it went straight on? I was almost squirming with embarrassment when Jill Douglas interviewed him about it.  His conclusion: “That’s bike racing”.

But as we’re on the predictions thread: Cav to win today.

Re: Tour predictions thread
« Reply #42 on: 07 July, 2010, 11:58:31 am »
Cav's got some way to go in the Points comp..... :-\  Looks as if Thor will do it again Farrar's wrist'll stop him completing the tour...
Mckewen today though....

Riggers

  • Mine's a pipe, er… pint!
Re: Tour predictions thread
« Reply #43 on: 08 July, 2010, 04:27:42 pm »
Well, well, who'd have thought it!
Certainly never seen cycling south of Sussex

Re: Tour predictions thread
« Reply #44 on: 09 July, 2010, 05:05:37 pm »
Sky are in an interesting position. The last two Tours have been enlivened by the way the Schlecks have been able to alternate their attacks in the mountains, as both were a danger in the GC. Can Sky do something similar with Wiggins and Thomas?

Tim

Re: Tour predictions thread
« Reply #45 on: 12 July, 2010, 11:10:10 am »
Saw these predictions a bit late for the early stages:

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Rig of Jarkness

  • An Englishman abroad
Re: Tour predictions thread
« Reply #46 on: 13 July, 2010, 07:11:11 am »
What does Paul the octopus think ?  :)
Aero but not dynamic

Re: Tour predictions thread
« Reply #47 on: 13 July, 2010, 07:19:48 am »
He thinks that Armstrong will go on a big break today on the basis that the others won't bother to chase him now.
[Quote/]Adrian, you're living proof that bandwidth is far too cheap.[/Quote]

citoyen

  • Occasionally rides a bike
Re: Tour predictions thread
« Reply #48 on: 13 July, 2010, 11:11:57 am »
Vinokourov to win today's stage by breaking away on the final descent.

d.
"The future's all yours, you lousy bicycles."

Re: Tour predictions thread
« Reply #49 on: 13 July, 2010, 04:39:56 pm »
Hmmm.  Just the dopers left in the GC race then, do we think?