Tour De France 2007

[Stumps]

I dont have much time but a great stage and a super win by Pozzato- espescialy passing Spaniard Oscar Freire in the sprint. Cancellara was awesome surprising many with his climbing skills and hence holding his yellow jersey (for the time being). Vino's crash was the talking point of the stage and he ended up losing 1"30 roughly which is bad news for team Astana but could have been worse too. O'grady had a huge stage working his arse off at the front of the peleton trying to help Cancellara hold the jaune- he is a star and a pure team man. Zabels has a super stage too being right in the finish for the second day in a row.

overall standing from stage 5 are
1 Filippo POZZATO 151 LIQ 04:39:01.000 00:00:00.000
2 Oscar FREIRE 056 RAB 04:39:01.000 00:00:00.000
3 Daniele BENNATI 082 LAM 04:39:01.000 00:00:00.000
4 Kim KIRCHEN 027 TMO 04:39:01.000 00:00:00.000
5 Erik ZABEL 181 MRM 04:39:01.000 00:00:00.000
6 George HINCAPIE 114 DSC 04:39:01.000 00:00:00.000
7 Cristian MORENI 144 COF 04:39:01.000 00:00:00.000
8 Stefan SCHUMACHER 091 GST 04:39:01.000 00:00:00.000
9 Bram TANKINK 177 QSI 04:39:01.000 00:00:00.000
10 Jérôme PINEAU 126 BTL 04:39:01.000 00:00:00.000
11 Cadel EVANS 041 PRL 04:39:01.000 00:00:00.000
12 Fabian CANCELLARA 033 CSC 04:39:01.000 00:00:00.000
13 Alejandro VALVERDE 018 GCE 04:39:01.000 00:00:00.000
14 Christopher HORNER 044 PRL 04:39:01.000 00:00:00.000
15 Frank SCHLECK 036 CSC 04:39:01.000 00:00:00.000
16 Martin ELMIGER 065 A2R 04:39:01.000 00:00:00.000
17 Linus GERDEMANN 025 TMO 04:39:01.000 00:00:00.000
18 Inigo LANDALUZE 076 EUS 04:39:01.000 00:00:00.000
19 Michael ROGERS 021 TMO 04:39:01.000 00:00:00.000

YELLOWFabian CANCELLARA (SUI) - CSC
GREEN-Erik ZABEL (GER) - MRM
POLKA-Sylvain CHAVANEL (FRA) - COF
WHITE-Vladimir GUSEV (RUS) - DSC

Overall Aussies- The first two are primed for their assault
15 Cadel EVANS 24:29:52.000
17 Michael ROGERS 24:29:53.000
117 Simon GERRANS 24:35:19.000
155 Robbie MC EWEN 24:41:20.000

A pretty flat stage 6 (199kmh) will be a good chance for Cancellara to hold his yellow yet again and hopefully Robbie was staying fresh in stage 5 for another win- fingers crossed. Doesnt look to be a super interesting stage and teams may chill out reserving some energy for the hills in coming days. This Tour has been full of twists and turns however so who knows

STUMPS

[Stumps]

Anyone watch the whole stage- Any excitement??stumps hit the wall when Millar was out by 10"00 and getting pulled back at a rate of knots... interesting the commentators were mentioning he will get a big cash bonus from his team sponsor (Cofidis) for the exposure he gave the name over the breakaway- nice work.

I gather Boonen (dont like him much) won from Freire who is doing superbly and 3rd was evergreen (boom choo) Erik Zabels who has had an awesome tour so far. Boonen leading the green (McEwen 6th),
and Cancellara would want to enjoy his last day in yellow. Tonights stage from Bourg-en-Bresse > Le Grand Bornand (197.5 km) will be one of the best of the tour i think with some tough climbs leading to a category 1 climb (the col dela colombiere) a 1600m climb that is situated with 13km left- it will sort the men out from the boys and im hoping rogers and evans' legs hold up- STUMPS

[devilsadvocate]

Missed the stage live today. Went for a 4 hours trundle myself over here through London (and about 8 pints!!!- the only way to enjoy a ride!!). Bloody hell it is cyclist UNFRIENDLY!!! Plus my ass hurts like hell! I'm hoping for a tdf replay tonight. If I can catch one, I'll whack up a post, otherwise it'll be the tour website garb.

[devilsadvocate]

As it happens gents....

A sad, sad day on the Tour today for Australia. After a brilliant move to break away from the main group and establishing a commanding 5 minute+ gap, Michael Rogers crashed on descnt after the first main climb. He was leading the tour with that advantage. After getting up gallantly and riding on with a suspected broken wrist and/or boken collar bone, Rogers has been forced to withdraw from the Tour. It's an absolute tragedy as he was a genuine chance to win the overall tour and todays effort set him up beautifully for next weeks Pyranees stages.

Rogers rode for about 45mins with his injuries, but was forced to withdraw in tears (understandably) 5 km's from the top of todays second climb while still ahead of the main peleton (amazingly).

Further..... Stuart O'Grady also suffered a serious crash which was no broadcast, but has been taken to hospital via ambulance. Will update with details shortly.

Finally....Robbie Mc Ewen has really felt the pinch in the Alps and has fallen right off the pace. On current classifications, Robbie will be eliminated from the Tour.

Our one shining light is Mr Arrogant Cadel Evans. Gerrans and Lancaster are nowhere to be seen. We'll support you Cadel, but enough with the arrogant bullshit at after race interviews!!!

[Grahaml]

Rogers with a dislocated shoulder apparently. Explains why his left arm was so weak. Hope he recovers. At least it will help him recover from his knee injuries! Would have just about lept into favourtism if he could have stuck with Rasmussen. Surely with 2 working together (as Rogers would have done with a 5 minute advantage over his rivals and a strong climber for company) and his time trial ability a 5 minute + lead would have been magical. Truly sad to see a guy go from a chance to win one of the biggest events in the world to having to pull out in an instant. McEwen must have been carrying an injury from his own crash earlier on in the tour. Glad to hear O'Grady not seriously hurt (well, at least nothing that can't heal eventually). Will he ride again in the tour?

As for Evans being arrogant, you have to be if you want to win the thing! The men who aren't arrogant work for their team mates. Men who are arrogant are winners. Evans is looking very good as a serious threat in the race now, and how nice for Moreau to work so hard to get Evans a nice break on several other cantidates. Loved the way Evans didn't bother doing any work. If the Frenchman wants to attack up a mountain into a headwind he can take the punishment himself!

[cennals05]

Well done Stumps!

Unfortunately my train home was late yesterday meaning I only got to see the final 5 mins of the highlight show! (Frigging First Great Western rail!!) I was hoping for a good write-up so thanks for that mate!

The men will start to be sorted from the boys from here on. Hopefully Cadel can improve in last years performance!

I have to agree with your comment about First Great Western rail. At least once a week my train is either delayed or cancelled!

[devilsadvocate]

I have to agree with your comment about First Great Western rail. At least once a week my train is either delayed or cancelled!

Mate FGW gives me the SHITS! Which line are you catching? I'm going from Ealing Broadway to Slough (which is a tough gig!)every day and I HATE the bloody trains!

The London tube is brilliant, but First Great Western are absolute poo!!!

[Stumps]

Yeah Evansis placed very nicely at the moment, but does he have the legs, Moreau's ride Sunday night was excellent but seriously how good is this guy rasmussen? He thrives on the steep stuff to give him the edge over his combatants, a bit like the pirate used to...


Valverde is looking good, im not sure gerdemann is up to it this year but is one to watch in the future for sure, and i wouldnt be writing off vino quite yet, hes a fave of mine, but after a day off his body may be feeling a bit better.

Such a tough break for Rogers, almost definately would have been in canary yellow for todays stage, i really felt for him.

Todays stage (9) is another 160 odd climbing stage with the main challenge between the 80-120 km mark with a monster Cat 1 climb which will be very tough. Expect some breakaways early to get some time before the climb. The final 40km is a reasonably steep decent where not much time can be caught up, could be a bit dangerous with riders cutting some corners.

Should be a good one- tough one to tip but il go valaverde, looked good in the late stages yesterday

STUMPS

[cennals05]

I have to agree with your comment about First Great Western rail. At least once a week my train is either delayed or cancelled!

Mate FGW gives me the SHITS! Which line are you catching? I'm going from Ealing Broadway to Slough (which is a tough gig!)every day and I HATE the bloody trains!

The London tube is brilliant, but First Great Western are absolute poo!!!

I go from Paddington to Hayes, so my train stops at Ealing Broadway each day. Somebody told me when I arrived that FGW were the worst train operators and they are!

[devilsadvocate]

I go from Paddington to Hayes, so my train stops at Ealing Broadway each day. Somebody told me when I arrived that FGW were the worst train operators and they are!

They've got my vote!

[devilsadvocate]

Poor old Stu O'Grady:

According to hospital officials, O'Grady fractured eight ribs, punctured a lung and fractured a shoulder. But X-rays and an MRI scan ruled out any spinal damage.

What a shocker his crash must have been. Lets hope he can gt back on his bike and face the tour again next year.

Mc Ewen and Lancaster have been eliminated for taking too long to complete a stage.

A very disappointing tour so far. Hopefully Cadel can redeem us!

[Stumps]

That must be such a painful injury, poor bloke he hasnt had the best run over the years, according to SBS he's looking at competing in the tour of spain in 7 weeks ..good on him.

Well, i definatley didnt pick Mauricio Soler, although Valverde had a solid day and is still very much in the hunt finishing just ahead of Evans and looked strong over the tough mountains. A sad day for Vino who consistently lost time up the steep incline of Galibier and is now 8 minutes behind yellow and in some trouble. Kloden will assume leadership responsibilties now one would think.

Evans hoewever had a great day and is now fourth 2"40 odd behind Rasmussen.

I think Leipheimer is in some trouble and may relinquish leader status to contador who is having an excellent tour and looks strong. Rasmussen may hold yellow for a bit yet but dont see him as the winner, lost 15odd minutes over the two time trials remaining last year so he'd want to have a pretty big lead. Mayo has the talent and is having a good tour but in the past has usually had a bad stage or two which has forced him out of contention..Tonights stage is a monster from Tallard to Marseilelles and features scattered cat 4 and 5 climbs.

Standings are: Yellow

Position Name Number Team Code Time Gap
1 Michael RASMUSSEN 058 RAB 43:52:48.000 00:00:00.000
2 Alejandro VALVERDE 018 GCE 43:55:23.000 00:02:35.000
3 Iban MAYO 207 SDV 43:55:27.000 00:02:39.000
4 Cadel EVANS 041 PRL 43:55:29.000 00:02:41.000
5 Alberto CONTADOR 112 DSC 43:55:56.000 00:03:08.000
6 Christophe MOREAU 061 A2R 43:56:06.000 00:03:18.000
7 Carlos SASTRE 031 CSC 43:56:27.000 00:03:39.000
8 Andréas KLÖDEN 196 AST 43:56:38.000 00:03:50.000
9 Levi LEIPHEIMER 111 DSC 43:56:41.000 00:03:53.000
10 Kim KIRCHEN 027 TMO 43:57:54.000 00:05:06.000
11 Mikel ASTARLOZA 073 EUS 43:58:08.000 00:05:20.000
12 Andrey KASHECHKIN 195 AST 43:58:22.000 00:05:34.000
13 Frank SCHLECK 036 CSC 43:58:44.000 00:05:56.000
14 Oscar PEREIRO SIO 011 GCE 43:59:24.000 00:06:36.000
15 Haimar ZUBELDIA 071 EUS 43:59:30.000 00:06:42.000
16 Linus GERDEMANN 025 TMO 43:59:33.000 00:06:45.000
17 Juan Mauricio SOLER HERNANDEZ 219 BAR 43:59:37.000 00:06:49.000
18 Denis MENCHOV 051 RAB 43:59:58.000 00:07:10.000
19 David ARROYO 012 GCE 44:00:21.000 00:07:33.000
20 Tadej VALJAVEC 088 LAM 44:00:33.000 00:07:45.000
21 Alexandre VINOKOUROV 191 AST 44:00:53.000 00:08:05.000
22 Yaroslav POPOVYCH 118 DSC 44:01:04.000 00:08:16.000
23 Vladimir KARPETS 015 GCE 44:01:39.000 00:08:51.000
24 Kanstantsin SIUTSOU 218 BAR 44:01:48.000 00:09:00.000
25 Christopher HORNER 044 PRL 44:01:59.000 00:09:11.000

Green

Position Name Number Team Code Points
1 Tom BOONEN 171 QSI 147
2 Erik ZABEL 181 MRM 134
3 Robert HUNTER 216 BAR 103
4 Thor HUSHOVD 101 C.A 101
5 Sébastien CHAVANEL 162 FDJ 94


Polka

1 Michael RASMUSSEN 058 RAB 98
2 Juan Mauricio SOLER HERNANDEZ 219 BAR 79
3 Yaroslav POPOVYCH 118 DSC 69
4 Mikel ASTARLOZA 073 EUS 51
5 Laurent LEFEVRE 125 BTL 50
6 Cadel EVANS 041 PRL 46

STUMPS

[PLETTONIC]

Great ride by Soler to attack the way he did
I am disappointed that Popovych has to work for the team though he was strong last night yet had to ride for Contador and Leipheimer when he could have easily rode himself into the top couple and challenge for the overall.
Evans effort was good but I am baffled at why he let the group of 5 get in front of him with about 10k to go
but lets bring on the time trial and the Pyranees to sort out the real finishing order

[Grahaml]

Evans looked excellent last night, looked stronger than all the other major contenders. Hope he didn't show his cards too early but good on him for announcing himself. With his time trial ability he is effectively leading the tour. Rasmussen will look to attack on the big stages coming up for not only KOTM points to sew that up but to try to get some time before the TT. You also need to remember that the last time trial is only taken seriously by the guys looking to win, get on the podium or win the stage. The rest don't give 100%. Rasmussen will NOT be that bad this year if he thinks he might retain yellow after the trial.

[Stumps]

Vino is tearing up the time trial currently, he is a tough fella vino- supposedly 60 odd stitches in his knees and elbow from his crash last week!!
The poms wiggins and millar are 1st and 3rd currently but now the big boys are out!! very dangerous in the slippery conditions and have been some nasty crashes.
Leiphiemer is losing heaps of time early on there saying

[heater31]

super effort by Evans tonight and this really sets up to hold ground during the next few days to pounce in the second TT

[Grahaml]

Tonight's stage hurt. Touch and go whether he can make up that much time on the last time trial and there are other stages in the mountains first. MUST NOT get dropped by Rasmussen again before the last TT. If he does that will be it barring something extraordinary happening. Ideal situation is he actually pulls something pack. Winning a stage, no matter the margin will result in time bonus and would be massive, especially if he can get a break. Seriously needs a better team. CSC or Caisse D'epargne would be good fits next season. Both need a better contender. Predictor-Lotto just seem to have McEwen, one bloke to lead him out, Evens and a few hacks to make the numbers. McEwen doesn't even use much of a team of riders in sprint stages and they couldn't get Evans 1 decent climber!

[Ecky]

See my comments on the tour in the gambling room.

http://www.safooty.net/forum/viewtopic.php?f=12&t=9156

I think Soler is good value to win tonight's stage at $7.

[Grahaml]

Actually, I think Evans is a good chance to go clear. If he's with them at the top of the last climb he might just be able to pull away on the downhill and basically time trial the last couple of miles on the flatter run into the end.

[Ecky]

Well, if there are a number of riders within 20secs or so of each other at the top of the last climb, then they will almost certainly regroup going downhill and go into the last km of the race together, leaving whoever has the best sprint on them to win the stage. I haven't seen enough of the leading contenders sprinting abilities to be sure who would be the favourite then, but yes, I presume Evans would be one of the better sprinters of that lot.