The Tour De France

[Grunt]

Well it kicked of last night and what a ride for Aussie Rohan Dennis, to get the yellow jersey, it will only be brief but still a good thing to show on the resume.

55.4km/h average speed for 14km is just awesome.

http://www.sbs.com.au/cyclingcentral/article/2015/07/05/dennis-smashes-tour-record-claim-yellow-jersey

[Captain Nemo]

Looking forward to is as always.
Froome to win $3.50
Quintana KOM $4.50
Tinkoff to take out team prize $7.50

Looking forward to Orica to do a bit better than last year.

[jimandr]

Looking forward to is as always.
Froome to win $3.50
Quintana KOM $4.50
Tinkoff to take out team prize $7.50

Looking forward to Orica to do a bit better than last year.

Quintana for KOM is a bad bet. He'll be trying to win the GC (and he might do it), so he won't attempt to pick up all the intermediate points that KOM contenders go for.

I'm pleased to hear Phil Liggett and Paul Sherwin back on commentary. SBS had their own guys doing the Giro, and I was worried they would be doing so in all their coverages. I haven't looked at the TV guide to see whether SBS are showing the full stage every day, but they started at 8.30 tonight and are showing the full stage.

The Tour is always one of my favourites, as much for the scenery as for the cycling. Although it doesn't appear to be a particularly scenic or exciting Tour this year. 8 flat sprinter stages in a row to start. Which also might be good for Rowan Dennis. Bunch sprints might mean he keeps the jersey for a while.

[3Puttpete]

Is #trolldj still around?

[LarryLong]

Is #trolldj still around?

I saw it on screen last night, but don't know what it is.

[PeteyD]

see here for explanation - https://stackla.com/case-studies/sbs-tour-de-france/

[Lagerlover]

So at what stage does the actual TDF winner start making himself known?

[3Puttpete]

16

[Dotty]

So at what stage does the actual winner TDF winner start making himself known?
Week 1

It'll be a newbie that found the secret to cycling by pedalling an exercise bike in his shed.

[timah!]

Week 1

It'll be a newbie that found the secret to cycling by pedalling an exercise bike in his shed.

POTY!

[3Puttpete]

Week 1

It'll be a newbie that found the secret to cycling by pedalling an exercise bike in his shed.

Will he be in the race or simply claiming the fastest time...from his shed?

[highballin]

Ouch!


http://youtu.be/DMGahKyAlv0

[LarryLong]

I was watching and about to go to bed when the crash happened. Holy crap! I'd give up cycling immediately if that happened in front of me.

[Captain Nemo]

Best crash ever.
Some big names goooone......
This will get very interesting.

[LoveGolf2012]

Best crash ever.
Some big names goooone......
This will get very interesting.

Who is gone mate?

I heard Cancellara went down is he one?

What a gun he is!

[G.K]

Who is gone mate?

I heard Cancellara went down is he one?

What a gun he is!

Yep, Cancellara out. Two fractured vertebrae apparently. Simon Gerrans and Darryl Impey from Orica Green Edge also out along with 3 other riders from different teams. There would be so much skin plastered along that bit of road!

[jimandr]

Finally, something interesting happened in the Tour last night, after 8 days of bunch sprints and no real breakaways. It was like watching the basketball, where only the last two minutes are worth watching for the finish. The Giro was really good this year, partly because they had some hills early that split the field up and meant that the peloton was prepared to let some breakaways get well ahead and then try to chase them down.

Anyway, if Froome continues to dominate like he did last night it might be a pretty dull tour. I don't know why I don't like Froome and I always want someone else to beat him, but he looks to be the best cyclist right now. A repeat of 2013 might be on the cards, with our main interest being whether Porte can get a podium finish behind him.

If Froome doesn't collapse over the next two days of climbing he is home.

[jimandr]

I couldn't be bothered starting a 2017 thread, so I changed the title of the most recent one I could find.

The 2017 version started tonight, on SBS as usual.

I'm both excited and devastated by the announcement made at the start of the coverage.

They are showing every stage from start to finish, which in one way is great. Because it means 6 hours of the most wonderful scenery you will ever see. But frankly, the first five hours of bike stage racing isn't very interesting, apart from the scenery.

The devastating aspect is that Phil Liggett and Paul Sherwin aren't doing the commentary. They are the best commentators in any sport, and no matter who replaces them, it won't be as good.

[PerryGroves]

The devastating aspect is that Phil Liggett and Paul Sherwin aren't doing the commentary. They are the best commentators in any sport, and no matter who replaces them, it won't be as good.

What's happened Jim?

I agree with your statement particularly in relation to Phil Liggett, he is the voice of the Tour, and everything a commentator should be. Like when Murray Walker left F1 and Richie in the cricket, things will be lesser.

[LoveGolf2012]

Valverde crashing out will hurt Quintana big time..

[jimandr]

http://www.sbs.com.au/news/article/2017/06/30/liggett-upset-tour-de-france-tv-change

I can only assume Phil and Paul were too expensive for the telecast rights holders. They still did an SBS preview of the stage wearing their SBS logo shirts, so it clearly wasn't an SBS decision, either. Still, life goes on.