Le Tour 2018
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@mikethesnow said in Le Tour 2018:
2 mins 5 secs for Thomas going into tomorrow's time trial.
Wales' first Tour Champion is getting ever closer.
As one former-pupil of Whitchurch High School retires from the top flight (Warburton), another hopefully takes his seat at the table.
I will give him credit as a worthy champ if it happens. Unlike the horrid Wiggins days he hasn’t spent the tour in the middle of the peloton with his team blocking the front. He has taken on everything thrown at him.
Pity he rides for the asswipe Sky team though. -
Classic impartial reporting from the BBC
Thomas and Poulter
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@mikethesnow In future I think the ABs should play "Western Province" when we tour the NH, since we never get to play them in Jaapieland anymore.
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@mikethesnow To be fair Mike, that might be something to do with the particular sport. it was always GB's Bradley Wiggins not England's. Nor Kenya's Chris Froome come to that. However in golf Woosnam for instance is nearly always referred to as Wales' Ian Woosnam.
But yeah it still grates seeing the contrast like that.
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@catogrande said in Le Tour 2018:
@mikethesnow To be fair Mike, that might be something to do with the particular sport. it was always GB's Bradley Wiggins not England's. Nor Kenya's Chris Froome come to that. However in golf Woosnam for instance is nearly always referred to as Wales' Ian Woosnam.
But yeah it still grates seeing the contrast like that.
😁
Try telling Murray that 😉
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Thomas looking to do this in style
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And there it is
Chwarae teg Geraint Thomas
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@catogrande Bradley Wiggins wasn't born in Britain and is the son of an Australian.
He's British, but any "Englishness" would be based on moving to London as a kid. I can see why people refer to him as British but not as English. (I have a British passport and two English parents, but would never describe myself as "English", even though I am technically British.)
Geraint Thomas is the first TdF winner born in the British Isles, I was informed today by a TV commentator. I wonder how Stephen Roche feels about that!
(My wife and I always refer to Colin Montgemerie was "Scott Colin Montgomerie", so often did they call him that. It seems random really, who gets to be British and who doesn't.)
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@chester-draws said in Le Tour 2018:
@catogrande Bradley Wiggins wasn't born in Britain and is the son of an Australian.
Only the Father counts? Sexist. I am triggered.
He's British, but any "Englishness" would be based on moving to London as a kid. I can see why people refer to him as British but not as English. (I have a British passport and two English parents, but would never describe myself as "English", even though I am technically British.)
Britishness is a funny one to try and rationalise - as @MiketheSnow alluded, take Andy Murray. Scottish whiner when he loses. British hero when he wins. Wiggins though is pretty much a nailed on Englishman, notwithstanding his bread stealing Father. Froome on the other hand...
You have English parents and a British passport but do not identify as English? So do you identify as British or are you now assimilated into another country? (NZ I presume).
Geraint Thomas is the first TdF winner born in the British Isles, I was informed today by a TV commentator. I wonder how Stephen Roche feels about that!
Classic
(My wife and I always refer to Colin Montgemerie was "Scott Colin Montgomerie", so often did they call him that. It seems random really, who gets to be British and who doesn't.)
He would have been British if he'd won a major.
What is really random is how people change from being British to English/Welsh/Scots depending on mostly sport related stuff, though to be fair to our Celtic cousins that is more common in England, though not exclusive.
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Wales isn't even a real country
Well done Thomas, a great tour.
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Thomas answered all the questions!
Froome does very well to give lots of fucks about finishing on the podium and push Roglic off.
Thought this was some interesting commentary in the Guardian...
"That battle is likely to be even more intense given that Thomas, Dumoulin, Chris Froome and Roglic are all strong time triallists, and all capable of winning this final decisive stage.
This race has been the Tour of the rouleur-climber – riders with all-round abilities – capable of riding strongly and at high rhythmic speeds in the mountains, holding their own in the crosswinds and on the cobbles, and of winning time trials.
All four of this quartet are of the new breed of Grand Tour contender, tall, skeletal and powerful. The days when diminutive climbers dominated stage races, creating big time gaps in the mountain stages and then battling to hang on in the time trials – the best recent example of this being the late Marco Pantani – are gone.
In many ways Team Sky’s high tempo style of catenaccio climbing suits riders like Thomas, Dumoulin and Roglic with their highly refined power-to-weight ratios, while it dissuades the more explosive climbers, such as Nairo Quintana and Romain Bardet.
The reality is that Quintana, Mikel Landa, Bardet et al can huff and puff all they like in the mountains, snatching seconds here and there. It is dramatic and exciting, but even in a mere 31km against the clock their time trialling capabilities are so limited, that Thomas, Dumoulin, Roglic and Froome will always have the upper hand."
That is a challenge for George. One thing Lotto Jumbo will have learned from this tour is that their team needs to have better team time trialling capability if there's a team time trial. that cost Roglic about a minute.
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@chris-b said in Le Tour 2018:
Thomas answered all the questions!
Froome does very well to give lots of fucks about finishing on the podium and push Roglic off.
Thought this was some interesting commentary in the Guardian...
"That battle is likely to be even more intense given that Thomas, Dumoulin, Chris Froome and Roglic are all strong time triallists, and all capable of winning this final decisive stage.
This race has been the Tour of the rouleur-climber – riders with all-round abilities – capable of riding strongly and at high rhythmic speeds in the mountains, holding their own in the crosswinds and on the cobbles, and of winning time trials.
All four of this quartet are of the new breed of Grand Tour contender, tall, skeletal and powerful. The days when diminutive climbers dominated stage races, creating big time gaps in the mountain stages and then battling to hang on in the time trials – the best recent example of this being the late Marco Pantani – are gone.
In many ways Team Sky’s high tempo style of catenaccio climbing suits riders like Thomas, Dumoulin and Roglic with their highly refined power-to-weight ratios, while it dissuades the more explosive climbers, such as Nairo Quintana and Romain Bardet.
The reality is that Quintana, Mikel Landa, Bardet et al can huff and puff all they like in the mountains, snatching seconds here and there. It is dramatic and exciting, but even in a mere 31km against the clock their time trialling capabilities are so limited, that Thomas, Dumoulin, Roglic and Froome will always have the upper hand."
That is a challenge for George. One thing Lotto Jumbo will have learned from this tour is that their team needs to have better team time trialling capability if there's a team time trial. that cost Roglic about a minute.
Great analysis 👏
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@mariner4life said in Le Tour 2018:
Wales isn't even a real country
Well done Thomas, a great tour.
We've got plenty of country 😉
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I was born soon after my English parents landed in NZ. They are much more Kiwi than English now -- they abandoned their GB passports a while back.
I'm not assimilated, because I'm completely Kiwi to the bones. However I have a British passport. I used it recently to get a job, because there were far fewer hoops to jump through. It also helps slightly in some situations travelling.
When people asked what nationality I was, I always said British, despite having lived briefly in England and with English parents. I'm definitely not Welsh, Scottish, Irish, Manx etc. But I just can't bring myself to say English.
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My nationality is British (there is no Welsh, English, Scottish or N Irish passort) and my ethnicity is Welsh based on this definition
ethnicity
ɛθˈnɪsɪti/
noun
noun: ethnicity; plural noun: ethnicitiesthe fact or state of belonging to a social group that has a common national or cultural tradition.
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@Chester-Draws That all makes perfect sense, though I think your nationality should be determined on how you say "Give us a kiss"
@MiketheSnow I always used to consider myself British first and English second but I find this less so these days. I reckon this is down to the degree of divisiveness we are seeing all around, most notably with all that SNP bollocks north of the wall. Dunno if you saw the recent news about people serving in the armed forces based in Scotland now having to be paid more than their English/Welsh/NI/Overseas based brothers due to the SNP raising higher levels of tax in Scotland? Seems as though that whole "power to set our own taxes" thing is working out well.
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@chris-b said in Le Tour 2018:
Thomas answered all the questions!
Froome does very well to give lots of fucks about finishing on the podium and push Roglic off.
Thought this was some interesting commentary in the Guardian...
"That battle is likely to be even more intense given that Thomas, Dumoulin, Chris Froome and Roglic are all strong time triallists, and all capable of winning this final decisive stage.
This race has been the Tour of the rouleur-climber – riders with all-round abilities – capable of riding strongly and at high rhythmic speeds in the mountains, holding their own in the crosswinds and on the cobbles, and of winning time trials.
All four of this quartet are of the new breed of Grand Tour contender, tall, skeletal and powerful. The days when diminutive climbers dominated stage races, creating big time gaps in the mountain stages and then battling to hang on in the time trials – the best recent example of this being the late Marco Pantani – are gone.
In many ways Team Sky’s high tempo style of catenaccio climbing suits riders like Thomas, Dumoulin and Roglic with their highly refined power-to-weight ratios, while it dissuades the more explosive climbers, such as Nairo Quintana and Romain Bardet.
The reality is that Quintana, Mikel Landa, Bardet et al can huff and puff all they like in the mountains, snatching seconds here and there. It is dramatic and exciting, but even in a mere 31km against the clock their time trialling capabilities are so limited, that Thomas, Dumoulin, Roglic and Froome will always have the upper hand."
That is a challenge for George. One thing Lotto Jumbo will have learned from this tour is that their team needs to have better team time trialling capability if there's a team time trial. that cost Roglic about a minute.
Nice analysis.
If there's no team time trial, then there's two individual ones. So Roglic would have been even further behind.
There is a very short team time trial at the start of next year's race. No-one should lose too much on 29 km.
I suspect a cobble stage will be repeated. They're staging it in honour of Eddy Merckx, and I presume he rode cobbles. Maybe one in the dirt like they ride in Brittany?
I can't see it being as mountainous. I assumed they did that to disadvantage Froome compared to two tts. Shouldn't be an issue for 2019.
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Fucking Frogs as bad as the BBC.
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'Vive Le Tour' mic drop.
Leg End 👏🍻