Le Tour de Pharmaceutical 2018

Didn't they scrap it for a while because US Postal was so dominant. They had done a Moneyball analysis and realised you get more bang for your buck by paying for gun TTT schleps.

Correction... Fourth rider's time. Changed with the drop down to eight riders.

JGK wrote:Didn't they scrap it for a while because US Postal was so dominant.  They had done a Moneyball analysis and realised you get more bang for your buck by paying for gun TTT schleps.

No, seem to recall they had it two years back.

taipan wrote:

JGK wrote:Didn't they scrap it for a while because US Postal was so dominant.  They had done a Moneyball analysis and realised you get more bang for your buck by paying for gun TTT schleps.

No, seem to recall they had it two years back.

Which was still “a while” after the US Postal days

Anyway, can’t believe the Chav is still going... 18 successive Tour starts, and finished all but two to date, one of those two being when his team withdrew en masse. Sure he will be in plenty of breakaways for old times’ sake. Shame his fellow stalwarts Voeckler and Zubeldia have retired... in recent years it always amazed me to still see those three names on the start list each time.

As predicted, the big GC teams dominated the TTT with BMC getting home ahead of Sky,Quickstep & Mitchelton-scott.
The yellow now held by Van Avermaet of BMC. Porte & Froome are still 51s & 55s  adrift but have improved their placings to 14th & 18th.

Another sprinters benefit today.

Another late crash marred an otherwise sedate stage with Gaviria once again holding out Sagan in the mass sprint to the line.Overall positions are unchanged.
Stage 5 will give the climbers a chance to get some time back.

Sagan takes his second stage win to get a firm grasp on the green jersey. GC lead is unchanged.

A hilly stage coming up but nothing that will cause too many concerns.

Could be a Thomas stage.

Good stage win by Dan Martin. Several GC riders improved as well including Thomas (2nd) Porte (11th) Yates (13th) & Froome (14th).

Another flat stage to come for the sprinters to consolidate. I can't wait for the mountains.

Plenty of headbutts in the sprint to the line which saw  Dylan Groenewegen finish over the top of Sagan. Leaders remain unchanged with Porte moving into the top 10. Today features the infamous cobblestone stage.

Porte crashes out after only 10klm of the stage

He can’t keep claiming bad luck, surely... those who keep crashing must take some of the blame themselves. A tough one as it was billed as last chance for him and the team.

They haven’t even made the mountains yet, and already it looks like Froome just needs to stay upright to win. He could breeze past the record of five wins and even the “record” of seven.

Big Dog wrote:Porte crashes out after only 10klm of the stage

Ah , fark it.

Aussie sport not going too well this year, is it? (Commonwealth Games apart...)

beamer wrote:Aussie sport not going too well this year, is it? (Commonwealth Games apart...)

Ashes.

JGK wrote:

beamer wrote:Aussie sport not going too well this year, is it? (Commonwealth Games apart...)

Ashes.

That was last year (and we now know they cheated anyway)

I'm in the anyone but froome camp knowing full well that whoever that is is probably on the juice.

Cycling's status as a sport is akin to wrestling.

As expected, more tumbles than an acrobat with the biggest victim being Porte.....again. Froome also crashed but was able to continue.
John Degenkolb won the stage which was fitting after he & his team were almost wiped out in a head on with a car while training two years ago.
Van Avermaet retains the yellow, possibly for the last stage as they head for the Alps on Tuesday.

Now that's a climb.

horace wrote:Cycling's status as a sport is akin to wrestling.

Greco-Roman?

Not as interesting as franco-croat.

Colombier is stunning. Now that the soccer and tennis has finished I can finally concentrate on the cycling.

Bradman wrote:Not as interesting as franco-croat.

Sage. Romans are boring