Professional Cycling For the Fans - 2008 Tour de France

Being that it is coming up pretty soon. Do any of you happen to know what channel it will be on in America? It will be my first time to watch now that I have just entered this sport
:thumb:

It's going to be an utter waste of time to watch it this year. Go ride your bike instead.

It's on Versus.

When Lance quit the Tour, it completely unraveled.

It's on Versus.

Thanks.

you can also dl torrents of them online.

It's going to be an utter waste of time to watch it this year. Go ride your bike instead.

I think this will be the most exciting tour in yrs. Cunego, Schlecks, valverde, cancellerra, sastre, soler, menchov,Evans , slipstream, highroad and thank gawd no Astana. Oh and sammy sanchez !!!

It's going to be an utter waste of time to watch it this year. Go ride your bike instead.

Reason being ?

I think this will be the most exciting tour in yrs. Cunego, Schlecks, valverde, cancellerra, sastre, soler, menchov,Evans , slipstream, highroad and thank gawd no Astana. Oh and sammy sanchez !!!

Excellent points.

I am bummed about the green jersey competition however. Earlier this year it was gonna be a good one. But now no Boonen, no Petacchi, rumoured no Cavendish. Looks like it will be Bennati vs Hushovd. With Zabel coming in 2nd when either of them win a stage.

I think this will be the most exciting tour in yrs. Cunego, Schlecks, valverde, cancellerra, sastre, soler, menchov,Evans , slipstream, highroad and thank gawd no Astana. Oh and sammy sanchez !!!

That's what I am saying. I am incredibly new to this sport but would love to see the best cyclists in the world go at it for 20 days and over 3,000 KM in the hope of becoming the Tour de France champion. It will be great.

Sadly it will be a bit of a charade. Defending champion and amazing supporting cast (Leipheimer, Kloden, Salvoldelli) absent. As mentioned, major sprinters absent. And the winner will likely never launch an attack (Evans). My hope is Andy Schleck will take it but I doubt it. Cunego and Evans will fight it out, but Evans will put time into him in the TT's. Valverde will ride brilliantly but either injure himself or have a defaillance on a stage or two and blow huge time.

Still, the Tour is the Tour, and there are always surprises. And I wouldn't miss Phil and Paul for anything. Well, maybe...

Frankly, I don't actually look forward to watching it this year. I still think the race in particular in an awesome race, but the politics and drama that the organizers have put into the sport coupled with the doping scandals over the last couple of years have left a very sour taste in my mind.

The tour is the tour, and it is ASO's race afterall. So, they can do what they want with it, and they are doing it. I just would like to see riders grow some balls and stand UNITED against what they are doing that is dividing the sport.

Get off the soap box..............

Sadly it will be a bit of a charade. Defending champion and amazing supporting cast (Leipheimer, Kloden, Salvoldelli) absent. As mentioned, major sprinters absent. And the winner will likely never launch an attack (Evans). My hope is Andy Schleck will take it but I doubt it. Cunego and Evans will fight it out, but Evans will put time into him in the TT's. Valverde will ride brilliantly but either injure himself or have a defaillance on a stage or two and blow huge time.

Still, the Tour is the Tour, and there are always surprises. And I wouldn't miss Phil and Paul for anything. Well, maybe...

??? Salvoldelli ??? Why Salvoldelli?

Not allowing the defending champion or his team to ride, because last year's team with the same name (but not the same riders!) had some doping issues.

Punishing the sponsor, in effect. Real great way to attract more sponsors. Why would a new sponsor want to sign up? If your sponsored team is caught doping, even if you replace all the riders you the sponsor will not get any coverage. Not a good investment...if I were a sponsor I'd stay away.

But barring the defending champ for this really makes this year's Tour a farce for me.

I thought the Giro was more interesting than the tour will be but that is my mere uninformed opinion.

I think this will be the most exciting tour in yrs. Cunego, Schlecks, valverde, cancellerra, sastre, soler, menchov,Evans , slipstream, highroad and thank gawd no Astana. Oh and sammy sanchez !!!

How dare you. It is crap that they aren't letting Astana into the tour. It is basically a new team and they are being punished for former teammates mistakes. And thanks to that most of the competition in this year tour has vanished. :(

Once the TDF gets rolling I doubt there will be many BF'ers not watching. What else is there? It's still the best and, often, the weirdest cycling event every year.

Not allowing the defending champion or his team to ride, because last year's team with the same name (but not the same riders!) had some doping issues.

Punishing the sponsor, in effect. Real great way to attract more sponsors. Why would a new sponsor want to sign up? If your sponsored team is caught doping, even if you replace all the riders you the sponsor will not get any coverage. Not a good investment...if I were a sponsor I'd stay away.

But barring the defending champ for this really makes this year's Tour a farce for me.

I'm glad someone else brought up the Astana issue, because it makes no sense to me and I just assumed that I was missing something...

So that's what's going on: a sponsor is being punished even though the ridders and the management has almost completely changed. That's how it appeared to me in all its absurdity.

How disgusting!

Or am I still missing something?

The tour is the tour, and it is ASO's race afterall. So, they can do what they want with it, and they are doing it. I just would like to see riders grow some balls and stand UNITED against what they are doing that is dividing the sport.

Riders can choose to race, get paid, gain exposure for themselves either directly or indirectly, thus increasing the chances of continuing to be paid/paid more in the future. Or they can choose not to race, deny exposure to sponsors and increase the chance that said sponsor will decide that it's not worth the investment and cease their investment in the sport, thus jeopardizing their future employment and pay.

No, the LAST thing the riders need to do is "grow some balls." Remember, that this isn't a game or a hobby for them, it's a job. Even for those riders (I'm sure there are many) who race bikes as much for love as for money, the motivation is the same: stay employed!

The responsibility here is for the organizers to get their sh*t together and do what's best for the sport. Riders gotta keep riding. This mess isn't their fault.

The responsibility here is for the organizers to get their sh*t together and do what's best for the sport. Riders gotta keep riding. This mess isn't their fault.

Well, it is obvious they (organizers) proved they can't do that. I guess reading my post I realize I should have said the TEAMS instead of the riders. Any race can have all the hype they want, but if the teams are not there to race and support it, there is not race. Individually, teams have no power whatsoever, but united it is a completely different story.

Again, ultimately TDF and the ASO own that race and they can do whatever they choose with it. Choosing to ban Astana has nothing to do with doping scandals. Astana became Astana (renamed) from Liberty Seguros (big involvement in Operacion Puerto), and that was not a problem then. Rabobank and other teams were in worse standing in regards to doping riders and yet they are there. Again, doping was not a reason but rather an excuse:rolleyes:

Moving this to Tour de France forum

Hardly worth catching with Astana out.

Once the TDF gets rolling I doubt there will be many BF'ers not watching. What else is there? It's still the best and, often, the weirdest cycling event every year.


Yeah exactly. For us, nothing like 3 straight weeks of cycling on TV, Phil and Paul's commentary and um - Bob Roll's wizard hands haha. Somebody will still win even if the big brand marketed names aren't there. Can't wait!

The Astana thing ... I find it really odd to be a US citizen living in Europe and reading about the Astana issue from both "sides" (as in of the Atlantic and from a non-US point of view).

Europeans seem pretty much pleased that the ASO took what many here are calling a draconian measure. Whether the squad has new riders, new mgt, or new owners the point is that they had two successive years of major issues (and many prior years of frightfully dodgy behavior prior to that). Aside from Telekom (the old team) this teams has historically been one of the worst for the sport in the last 15 years.

ASO made it pretty clear that when they took back Vino and the team last year it was a "ride clean or else" position. When everyone got bounced no one over in Europe would have expected anything OTHER than No Astana in 08.

One point no one here seems to argue ... everyone gripes about "new this" and "new that" .... Let Levi Ride, and What tour without the champ ... Astana still has the same sponsors though ... and those sponsors were given a one-shot-don't-screw-it-up chance last year. And they proceeded to REALLY screw it up. Sponsors have a duty to the sport too, right???

Frankly - shame on Johan, Levi and Alberto for going to a team that clearly would NOT be riding ... these guys live here ... the writing was clearly on the wall ... how could this has come as a surprise to them???

Honestly - if ASO let them in (at least without a long and contentious debate) we should then be up in arms ... that a major organizer of the sport would so quickly retreat on its promise and cow-tow to commercial and sponsor pressures is the VERY REASON THIS SPORT HAD SUCH ISSUES.

As for the ASO - more power to them. The UCI went beyond its boundaries as a governing body to begin to assert a new role as the major commercial/economic force in the sport. Come on Americans - wake up! When would we ever allow the "governing" body to usrp the rights of the "business" body!!

The ASO owns the brands - they spend the money and invest in the sport. The are the entreprenuerial driver behind its growth solely because it links their economic performance with that of the sport.

The ASO along with the RSC in Italy should be the drivers behind the sport. The UCI should be governing and overseeing. This should be a PARTNERSHIP.

Lay the blame where it is due - the UCI stepped over its boundaries to attempt to "unify" the sport which is just another way of saying it was going to disintermediate the true "owners" in a land/rights grab.

American history is littered with examples of this all of which celebrate the demise of the aggressor and triumph the patriotism of those who rose up to take back their rights. Just because the ASO is French does that mean we all throw away the script and start pretending that the UCI is the best thing since sliced Italian bread?:roflmao2:

(ASIDE - I get US mags and European mags - read one set and it would seem like the ASO just made this up after they learned Johan and Co were moving to Astana. Read the other set and you'll see day by day coverage of folks asking "why would Alberto go there since that means he won't ride next year ...". Such is the case of living in the US where cycling is a freak sport vs. Europe where it is a top 3 or 5 sport. I'd note that if you read UK, French or Belgian news you get a LOT more insight into the behind the scenes. I'd suggest US based folks bookmark and read www.cyclingnews.com for a taste of what cycling news is like when you live in - and read in - European regions. After a few weeks you'll see that there is a difference in coverage/perspective. You'll also come to find that you ENJOY Velo News more now that you have a strong news-based source of reading to complement it.)

Good post, luxroadie.

The Astana thing ... I find it really odd to be a US citizen living in Europe and reading about the Astana issue from both "sides" (as in of the Atlantic and from a non-US point of view).

Europeans seem pretty much pleased that the ASO took what many here are calling a draconian measure. Whether the squad has new riders, new mgt, or new owners the point is that they had two successive years of major issues (and many prior years of frightfully dodgy behavior prior to that). Aside from Telekom (the old team) this teams has historically been one of the worst for the sport in the last 15 years.

ASO made it pretty clear that when they took back Vino and the team last year it was a "ride clean or else" position. When everyone got bounced no one over in Europe would have expected anything OTHER than No Astana in 08.

One point no one here seems to argue ... everyone gripes about "new this" and "new that" .... Let Levi Ride, and What tour without the champ ... Astana still has the same sponsors though ... and those sponsors were given a one-shot-don't-screw-it-up chance last year. And they proceeded to REALLY screw it up. Sponsors have a duty to the sport too, right???

Frankly - shame on Johan, Levi and Alberto for going to a team that clearly would NOT be riding ... these guys live here ... the writing was clearly on the wall ... how could this has come as a surprise to them???

Honestly - if ASO let them in (at least without a long and contentious debate) we should then be up in arms ... that a major organizer of the sport would so quickly retreat on its promise and cow-tow to commercial and sponsor pressures is the VERY REASON THIS SPORT HAD SUCH ISSUES.

As for the ASO - more power to them. The UCI went beyond its boundaries as a governing body to begin to assert a new role as the major commercial/economic force in the sport. Come on Americans - wake up! When would we ever allow the "governing" body to usrp the rights of the "business" body!!

The ASO owns the brands - they spend the money and invest in the sport. The are the entreprenuerial driver behind its growth solely because it links their economic performance with that of the sport.

The ASO along with the RSC in Italy should be the drivers behind the sport. The UCI should be governing and overseeing. This should be a PARTNERSHIP.

Lay the blame where it is due - the UCI stepped over its boundaries to attempt to "unify" the sport which is just another way of saying it was going to disintermediate the true "owners" in a land/rights grab.

American history is littered with examples of this all of which celebrate the demise of the aggressor and triumph the patriotism of those who rose up to take back their rights. Just because the ASO is French does that mean we all throw away the script and start pretending that the UCI is the best thing since sliced Italian bread?:roflmao2:

(ASIDE - I get US mags and European mags - read one set and it would seem like the ASO just made this up after they learned Johan and Co were moving to Astana. Read the other set and you'll see day by day coverage of folks asking "why would Alberto go there since that means he won't ride next year ...". Such is the case of living in the US where cycling is a freak sport vs. Europe where it is a top 3 or 5 sport. I'd note that if you read UK, French or Belgian news you get a LOT more insight into the behind the scenes. I'd suggest US based folks bookmark and read www.cyclingnews.com for a taste of what cycling news is like when you live in - and read in - European regions. After a few weeks you'll see that there is a difference in coverage/perspective. You'll also come to find that you ENJOY Velo News more now that you have a strong news-based source of reading to complement it.)

You know, I do have to give you credit for you have some very valid points. Also, which side you are hearing the story has a lot to do with it.:thumb:

Danke!

Aside from the interesting political vantage point (cycling and international politics) living in Europe has one HUGE advantage ... getting to see the CLASSICS!

I told my wife before we took this assignment that it was 40% for the job, 20% for the travel and 40% for the CYCLING!

I only need to get to a few stages of the Vuelta and the Italian classics (San Remo and Lombardy but now also Eroica) and I'll have "done them all".

Gotta love professional cycling :love:

Good points Lux !!!!

Great post luxie. Cycling perspective in the US is based on team news releases, and very little true reporting.
Thanks for giving us a different look at this issue.

That was a very nasty spill in Stage 1 at all places but the food line. Looks like a very tough first stage with the late climb.

Does anyone know what Oakley model Hincapie was wearing?