Tour de France 2024

[mr.bluesky]

So the Tour de France starts today although the first stage starts in Florence  Italy. I'm not one of the lycra clad brigade of cyclists  (own a mountain bike not a racer and don't use it as much as I should) but I do love watching the tour de France every year . ITV4 will as usual will be showing the highlights every night and Eurosport will be showing the stages live.
Mark Cavendish has postponed his retirement to have another crack at beating the all time number of stage wins a record 34 he shares with the great Eddie Merckx. At the age of 39 though it could be a task too far for the sprinter.There will be 11 British riders in the tour this year including 2018 winner Geraint Thomas and Adam Yates who will probably be Britain's best bet for honours.
You get to see some fabulous scenery whilst watching the tour.

[timsussex]

Highlights already set to record - might even make some of the live finishes
I also enjoy Gary Imlach and his comments

[timsussex]

And Cav is struggling in the heat on the first climb - there are 7 today !

[Corus Boy]

Ahh yes, cycle racing;



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[timsussex]

If you wonder what all the fuss is about watch the highlights tonight

what an opening stage !

[Corus Boy]

If you wonder what all the fuss is about watch the highlights tonight

what an opening stage !

Amazing stuff.

[radioman33]

It’s enjoyable to watch,the places you see is fantastic,their fitness levels are unreal.

[Spacecowb0y]

Used to be a MAMIL, then i discovered fast cars and faster women.
Really should get the 10 speed 105 gearset bike out and do a few miles. Might help me see my cock without a mirror 😂

[Corus Boy]

If you wonder what all the fuss is about watch the highlights tonight

what an opening stage !

Stage Two almost a good.

This might be a classic year.

[mr.bluesky]

Stage three on monday is a relatively flat stage with a sprint finish.  Hopefully Cavendish will get his record stage win, he looked a spent force after the first days racing so hopefully he will have recovered in time.

[timsussex]

Great finish today !

Won't spoil it in case you have the highlights to look forward to

[mr.bluesky]

Great finish today !

Won't spoil it in case you have the highlights to look forward to

A tough day in the first mountain stage yesterday.  Fabulous scenery 👌

[chrishornx]

A tough day in the first mountain stage yesterday.  Fabulous scenery 👌

the first mountain stage was day one

[chrishornx]

Great finish today !

Won't spoil it in case you have the highlights to look forward to

Cavendish was superb - one of our greatest ever sportsmen

[mills_and_bhuna]

So the Manx missile did it.
I watched the last 2km and finishing sprint on the aerial view.
That was fucking insane.
Definitely balls of steel needed in that bunch up

[timsussex]

an even flatter stage tomorrow Sir Cav will take some beating

[mr.bluesky]

the first mountain stage was day one

Stage 1 was officially classed as hilly, Stage four was the first mountain stage

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Stages 11, 14, 15, 17, 19, 20 are the remaining mountain stages.

[mr.bluesky]

So the Manx missile did it.
I watched the last 2km and finishing sprint on the aerial view.
That was fucking insane.
Definitely balls of steel needed in that bunch up

Apparently his chain came off just as he crossed the line so he only just made it. Another sprint finish today to hopefully add to his total of wins

[mr.bluesky]

The race will actually finish in the city of Nice this year and not Paris due to the Olympics being held there.

[chrishornx]

Stage 1 was officially classed as hilly, Stage four was the first mountain stage

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Stages 11, 14, 15, 17, 19, 20 are the remaining mountain stages.

the key difference between Mountain and hilly is simply wether or not its is a mountain top finish. 

Stage one with 3,600 metres of ascent was, undoubtedly, a mountainous stage as they crossed the Apennines. Several 'hilly stages' can have downhill or flat finishes but include more metres of ascent than a mountain stage does so to say stage one didn't cross mountains is misleading, it just didn't have a mountain top finish

[timsussex]

the key difference between Mountain and hilly is simply wether or not its is a mountain top finish. 

Stage one with 3,600 metres of ascent was, undoubtedly, a mountainous stage as they crossed the Massif central mountains. Several 'hilly stages' can have downhill or flat finishes but include more metres of ascent than a mountain stage so to say stage one didn't cross mountains is misleading

No thats incorrect; mountain stages don't need a mountain top finish - though clearly it cant be a hilly stage with a mountain top finish This year there are 7 mountain stages but only 4 mountain top finishes

I think its the category of the biggest climb that matters As you can see stage 1 - might well kill me but no officially classified mountains ie CAtegory1 or HC climbs

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while stage 4 is a mountain stage becasue of the Col de Galibier

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[mr.bluesky]

Time trial stage in the tour today. I don't find these very exciting  but they can effect the overall standings at the end of the tour.

[timsussex]

Time trial stage in the tour today. I don't find these very exciting  but they can effect the overall standings at the end of the tour.

you won't be keen on the last stage then - no Champs so they have decided on another time trial

[mr.bluesky]

you won't be keen on the last stage then - no Champs so they have decided on another time trial

Yeah, strange that, there is an unwritten rule that the leader of the tour going into the last day doesn't get  "attacked" and so barring any mis haps wins the tour. How is that going to work in a time trial.  I know the tour cannot finish in Paris this year due to the start of the Olympics and will finish in Nice but surely they could have kept it as a normal road stage. Another flat stage today with a sprint finish,  hopefully Cavendish can add another victory to his total.

[Denhamhoop]

Think we may have another classic race this year and will do for many years to come as Pogacar and Vinegaard are very closely matched quite often down to who has the better team around them Enjoy it while it lasts

[Blackpool Rock]

Think we may have another classic race this year and will do for many years to come as Pogacar and Vinegaard are very closely matched quite often down to who has the better team around them Enjoy it while it lasts

Or until someone else finds a better performance enhancing drug 

[Blackpool Rock]

Yeah, strange that, there is an unwritten rule that the leader of the tour going into the last day doesn't get  "attacked" and so barring any mis haps wins the tour. How is that going to work in a time trial.  I know the tour cannot finish in Paris this year due to the start of the Olympics and will finish in Nice but surely they could have kept it as a normal road stage. Another flat stage today with a sprint finish,  hopefully Cavendish can add another victory to his total.

I'm not sure how / why that developed but it may partly be down to that last stage having to go over cobbles once they get into Paris, cobbles FFS what could possibly go wrong racing with those thing wheels 

[diver ted]

A time trial on the final day of the race last happened in 1989
Everyone went for it.
Greg LeMond beat Laurent Fignon, a Frenchman who was leading the Tour, to win by just eight seconds - very dramatic ending but not a happy ending for the French.
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DT

[mr.bluesky]

So Tadej Pogacar wins the 2024 tour de France for the third time and at the age of 25 could dominate the tour for years to come and could even go on to beat Cav's record of 35 stage wins. Pogacar and two times recent winner Vingegaard look likely  to be rivals for years to come.

[timsussex]

We, of course, will never know what effect Vingegaards serious crash had but my suspicion is quite a bit -remember he had broken bones and a punctured lung in April.
Both in terms of fitness and also in the back of his mind when descending
The first can be sorted before the next tour but only time will tell about the second