Tour of California TV Schedule - If you care?

trener1

Well-Known Member
I think that Levi has about as much of a chance of winning the TDF as I do.
Ok slightly more as he will actually be in the race, but realistically speaking It's either Lance or Contodar as they have both one multiple grand tours.
Levi is coming to the tour to do one thing and one thing only, and that is to be a super domestique.
I'd love to see him go for it as well, but as long as he is on Astana he has no shot.
 

bozizle

Active Member
?

I think Contador and Levi will lead the team and Lance/ Popo /Kloden and Horner will be awesome help for them in the mountains. Levi probably could have won the Giro last year but had to ride for Alberto...Lance can't time trial fast enough anymore which will pull him out and I'm not sure he can attack on climbs like he once did. I have never seen a stronger team and look forward to seeing how they dominate the tour.
 

stb222

Love Drunk
Jerk Squad
I think Contador and Levi will lead the team and Lance/ Popo /Kloden and Horner will be awesome help for them in the mountains. Levi probably could have won the Giro last year but had to ride for Alberto...Lance can't time trial fast enough anymore which will pull him out and I'm not sure he can attack on climbs like he once did. I have never seen a stronger team and look forward to seeing how they dominate the tour.


Do you think Lance came back to support Contador and Levi? no way! Contador was threatening to leave when they brought on lance and probably would have if he was under contract. Contador isn't riding the Giro to focus on TDF, so it should be interesting. Lance isn't just going to sit back and chill and it is early in the season, so how can one say he can't time trial fast enough?
 

BiknBen

Well-Known Member
What is stated below is my opinion:

The ToC was Levi's A race for the year. He is a proud Californian and wants to succeed at that race. He consults the organizer with stage design, etc. He gave up his winter to train for the ToC how others train for the grand tours.

His prior performances show me that he does not have what it takes to win one of the grand tours. He follows wheels and always finishes second fiddle. He is not able to attack the big guys in the biggest races. He is happy to to remain among them to the end.

Lance played a support role in the ToC to build his own fitness and help Levi. Lance has indicated very little about his true goals. I think he is waiting to see how his fitness returns before making any bold statements. Until then, he is an ambassador for Cancer survivorship.

Contador is banking his entire year on the TdF. He has a sour taste since being excluded last year. Never has a previous winner been denied the opportunity to defend his title. The year before, he was handed the win when they kicked out the chicken. Contador has not been given the respect that a tour champ deserves and he is pissed.

Lance has hinted that a Giro win could be a goal of his (in May). Contador could enter the Giro in support of Lance. He would likely drop out early to rest for the TdF. Then I could see Lance returning the favor to Contador during the TdF.

For those not familiar, this stuff happens all the time. The riders all meet with the team boss. Each one has individual goals and the team boss aligns everyone in support of one another.

Before Lance's retirement he was king. Riders were simply happy to be on his team gaining experience. He did not have to make concessions for others. Now, there are a number of big fish on Astana and he is no longer king.

Lance has done his work for Levi's big goal. Levi will pay him back later in the year. If Levi rides in support of Contador in a grand tour (actually, he has done it in previous years), Contador may return the favor for Levi in the Vuelta this year. Who knows?
 

trener1

Well-Known Member
Ryan,

The giro is usually much more exciting and fun to watch then the tour.
It usually has a much more open less controlled style of racing, with harder climbs and more people in contention until the last day or 2.

Of course that might all change if Astana shows up and blows everyone away, then it will just be like the Tour.
 

BiknBen

Well-Known Member
The giro is usually much more exciting and fun to watch then the tour.

That depends on how much we get to watch. :eek: Since Lance's retirement, the Giro has seen a reduction in coverage on Versus. I believe last year you only got an hour wrap-up type show each weekend. Same for the Vuelta.

The Giro (Italian Tour) and the Vuelta (Spanish tour) are much more national races. Although the Tour de France is the same way, it has become much more international simply because of the hype that international riders put on it.

The organizer of each tour is required to invite the core group of teams (assuming they are free of any scandals). Then, they have 3-4 wild-card invitations. The wild-card invites are done in the months leading up to the event. The organizer will favor the teams of the nation hosting the event.

Basically, the Giro has many more Italians, Tour has more French, and the Vuelta has more Spaniards. If you look at the ToC line-up, you'll see a bunch of American teams that you don't see racing in Europe. The teams of the home country lobby hard to get in to expose their sponsors to the audiences

The Giro is the first Grande Tour of the year. That increases the urgency. The Giro and Vuelta tend to have shorter stages. The riders fatigue less and have more punch the next day. The Vuelta is not until August-Sept. Many riders are burned out and just going through the motions. Others are trying to make up for a poor performance earlier. If you are into Spaniards, it is cool. Otherwise the Vuelta is the least entertaining.

The TdF always draws the biggest stars. The media treats it like the Superbowl. A winner of a single TdF stage will eat and drink for free in France and his home country for the rest of his life. The stages are longer. Many racers and teams actually try for the other awards offered. There are four jerseys but also team competitions, etc. Although the race for Yellow may get boring, the many races within the event can be very entertaining. The more you pay attention, the more entertaining it becomes.
 

BiknBen

Well-Known Member
Idiots running alongside the riders really annoy me :getsome:

pathetic...

...Just plain dangerous.:mad:

If I see anyone running alongside of me when I'm in the woods :getsome:

See...you guys just need to see it from a different perspective.

http://www.vimeo.com/2293226

Carefull now...about a dozen people featured in that video are on this forum. :getsome: :rofl:
 
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743power

Shop: Bicycle Pro
Shop Keep
Ben - VS covered the giro last year pretty well. I remember dvr'ing almost every stage. I may be crazy and that could have been 2007, but I dont think so.
 
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