This was one of the best Tour de France's in a very long time. There was no telling who was going to win it until the final few days. Floyd Landis had very little name recognition going into the race but his exploits will not be forgotten for a long time.
The only disappointment were the Spainards, namely PEREIRO SIO. He simply gave the Tour to Landis right before the last time trial. Too happy with second place so you concede defeat? The tour is ruined by the last stage, it is symbolic at best. Maybe it it is time that the last stage gets some significant time bonuses to liven things up a bit.
Photo from http://floydlandis.com/blog/
7 comments:
I agree, I'd like to see them racing for the yellow to the very end.
-Mitch
i dont agree. i think a lot of non-racers dont realize how taxing 3 weeks of racing is. That kind of attitude to expect all the riders to take chances on the slippery cobbles of the champs elysee after surviving a 3 week spectacle (which is really what the TdF originally was concieved as)is inhumane. it is precisely this kind of unrealistic expectations which creates pressure for riders to use doping products. I am not excusing ullirch, mancebo and others who may be found guilty, but i believe the attitudes of fans and society play a role as well. The champs elysee is largely a ceremonial thank you to racers for their 3 weeks of hard labor and inspired riding and I for one am very grateful to them for an exciting tour
Paris-Roubaix comes to mind with your crack about the slippery cobbles and its probably one of several that has them. Nothing stopping them from having time bonuses before the final eight laps and let us not forget there is a bunch sprint for the stage anyways. cobbles or not. After Lemond's defeat of the Professor in the time trial they put an end to having any significant rides on the last day. This is less about ceremony and more about one of negative aspects of the "Gentleman's agreement" that has existed in the Tour for far too long.
I think OP rode his heart out, and your criticism of him is unfair.
Vive le Tour!
it's not just about the cobbles. i mean the cobbles are just a short part of the entire parcours. I think it is unrealistic to expect the GC racers to fight over seconds on every flat stage like you are proposing. The tour is a microosm of "real life", where negotiation, compromises, friendship play as much a role as power output. As such, the prizes are available to all riders/specialists and not just the GC big dogs. The general public ought to know the tour is much more than just the GC.
Maybe, maybe not. On one hand I agree with you and on the other I think this is a race pure and simple. It was offputting to hear OS give up the Tour just before the TT. I guess it would be find to an appropriate ending to the Tour.
I agree with Robb. Your criticism of Pereiro is unfair. If Landis is an unknown then who the hell was Pereiro coming into the Tour? A lot of parallels between OP and Landis in this Tour, aside from the fact that they are great friends. They both had terrible days on the climbs that almost killed the tour for them and then they both showed lots of guts taking their chances when given to them. Neither of the two should have recovered from their time losses but the other teams – with name racers and favourites among them -- where much too conservative to do anything brave. And OP and Landis took their chances when everyone thought they were washed up. That’s what made a great Tour.
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