Professional Cycling For the Fans - Contador is................

.....going to get scewed by Bruyneel. Or at least Bruyneel's gonna try. Hopefully Alberto's a student of cycling history and won't make the same mistakes LeMond did. Let's face it - Contador is th strongest best rider in the TdF this year. Lance wasn't held back by Bruyneel on Friday - Lance just didn't have any gas in the tank. Do you think if a GC contendor in 2004 some 19 seconds behind Lance on a mountain stage made a break towards the end that Lance would have let him go? No - no matter what instructions Bruyneel would have given Lance, Lance would have tracked him down, pounced on him, and blew him away.

It's obvious to me Lance is not the same Lance as in years past and the years have taken their toll. He's still an idol and someone to look up to for what he's accomplished, but he's not the best rider on Astana. I suspect that Bruyneel will find some way to advance Lance to the detriment of Contador. Or at least he'll try. But if Contador's smart he'll have some personal allies on the team that will support him and Astana will be in yellow on the last day - but it will be Alberto not Lance. I trus Bruyneel about as far as I can throw him - which ain't far. He's as oily and slick as they come.

Beware Alberto - Bruyneel is out to screw you.

Sunday is gonna be cool. The Tourmalet. Lance. Alberto. Bruyneel. And a cast of 178 other riders !

.....going to get scewed by Bruyneel. Or at least Bruyneel's gonna try. Hopefully Alberto's a student of cycling history and won't make the same mistakes LeMond did. Let's face it - Contador is th strongest best rider in the TdF this year. Lance wasn't held back by Bruyneel on Friday - Lance just didn't have any gas in the tank. Do you think if a GC contendor in 2004 some 19 seconds behind Lance on a mountain stage made a break towards the end that Lance would have let him go? No - no matter what instructions Bruyneel would have given Lance, Lance would have tracked him down, pounced on him, and blew him away.

It's obvious to me Lance is not the same Lance as in years past and the years have taken their toll. He's still an idol and someone to look up to for what he's accomplished, but he's not the best rider on Astana. I suspect that Bruyneel will find some way to advance Lance to the detriment of Contador. Or at least he'll try. But if Contador's smart he'll have some personal allies on the team that will support him and Astana will be in yellow on the last day - but it will be Alberto not Lance. I trus Bruyneel about as far as I can throw him - which ain't far. He's as oily and slick as they come.

Beware Alberto - Bruyneel is out to screw you.

Sunday is gonna be cool. The Tourmalet. Lance. Alberto. Bruyneel. And a cast of 178 other riders !

Where do you get these silly notions?

Back to your WWF and Nascar.

But thanks for warning Contador, now he can watch out. Whew.

World Wildlife Federation?

World Wildlife Federation?

don't play dumb

don't play dumb

This no act. This is BF. We are dumb.

I guess we will just have to see who comes out victorious at the end. Who really knows if lance had no gas left in his tank to make an attempt to catch up. They all have some sorta plan, and us Bf'ers dont have any idea what that is. All we can do is give our guesses on what we think is going on.

Actually, PC, WWF wrestling was sued by the Wildlife Fed a few years ago and the wrestling org had to relinquish using WWF. The wildlife org won. I think they changed wrestling to WWE or something.

Your info is dated.

But you should remember what happened to LeMond before he won his first TdF, which is what could happen to Contador this year.

At the end of the day, the best guy will win. Lance and Johan should not interfere with that. Nor do I think Lance would want AC to lay down for him. However, letting Lance have Yellow for a few days would have been a nice gesture.

But Lance is 8 seconds out of the lead 8 days into the TDF after 4 years of retirement. The guy is a beast whether you like him or hate him.

I love Lance. I just think in 2009 Contador's a better cyclist, but he's (Contador) gonna take a knife in the back planted by Bruyneel.

No gas in the tank? Did you even watch the stage? He looked cool and comfortable the entire time. He didn't attack because he was trying to keep the united public front. Attacking your teammate is considered bad juju.

My prediction: They'll stay cordial the entire time until stage 20, Mount Ventoux, when they get to the bottom of the climb, they'll look at each other, shake hands and then it will be every man for himself.

No gas in the tank? Did you even watch the stage? He looked cool and comfortable the entire time. He didn't attack because he was trying to keep the united public front. Attacking your teammate is considered bad juju.

My prediction: They'll stay cordial the entire time until stage 20, Mount Ventoux, when they get to the bottom of the climb, they'll look at each other, shake hands and then it will be every man for himself.



Something like that...

No gas in the tank? Did you even watch the stage? He looked cool and comfortable the entire time. He didn't attack because he was trying to keep the united public front. Attacking your teammate is considered bad juju.

My prediction: They'll stay cordial the entire time until stage 20, Mount Ventoux, when they get to the bottom of the climb, they'll look at each other, shake hands and then it will be every man for himself.

I hope so that would be so awesome to watch them battle it out.

I love Lance. I just think in 2009 Contador's a better cyclist, but he's (Contador) gonna take a knife in the back planted by Bruyneel.

In response to this, while I don't agree with you (hypothetically let's say I do), Lance has one thing Alberto doesn't, experience. Stage two proved that while Lance may not have the strength he once had, he certainly is still one of the smartest riders in the pro tour.

Hammonjii - now that would be way cool at end of the Ventoux day. But Contador and Lance don't make their moves at the bottom of mountains - they do it going up. Just like The Pirate used to do. Contador, the way he accelerated away on Friday, reminded me of the speed Marco used to have in the mountains.

It's gonna be good. IMHO the best grand tour in years !!!

But if Contador's smart he'll have some personal allies on the team that will support him and Astana will be in yellow on the last day - but it will be Alberto not Lance.

I would say that he doesn't have many, if any, allies on the team from the interviews and reports I've read. Horner was kept off the Astana roster so AC could have at least one of his boys, or so LA had one less? I wouldn't think he has many more than that, not that would cross LA anyway. It appears that AC has already proven he's not following whatever "team" tactics they have planned. It also appeared that no one was surprised by his attack, that wasn't part of the days plan. It should be interesting if nothing else...

In less than 7 hours they start the Sunday stage and the Tourmalet. I gotta go to bed now - this is gonna be good :) The race, er, not bed.

Contador may be stronger of the two, but you cant deny the fact that Armstrong has the experience and tactics to win the TDF, again. Just look at previous years there were riders stronger than Armstrong but his experience and tactics got him the yellow jersey.

You are right about not having help from Astana. That is why he was paying his dues in the Dauphine to Caisse d'Epargne. This is what Evans had to say about Friday's help, too. And with Sanchez winning today and moving up on GC. AC has does not need JB to win. AC saw the handwriiting on the wall with the team JB gave him in P-N. So his moves are not reactions to stages in the TDF but overall race strategies that having been thought out.

Sunday is gonna be cool. The Tourmalet. Lance. Alberto. Bruyneel. And a cast of 178 other riders !
8 riders have dropped out. Please pay attention.

contador should have left astana the minute lance joined. he's almost alone now. But he is still going to win.

I'm just praying that Wiggins hangs in there, then buries them both in the TT. I'm so sick of hearing how great Astana is (it's fair praise, I'm just sick of it), I would love to see someone spoil the coronation. Not to mention there's very little of me that believes AC or LA are/were clean, but at least with Wiggins there's a shred of hope...

Contador may be stronger of the two, but you cant deny the fact that Armstrong has the experience and tactics to win the TDF, again. Just look at previous years there were riders stronger than Armstrong but his experience and tactics got him the yellow jersey.

Uh, were you watching the same 7 Tours as the rest of the world? Incorrect, with the arguable exception of 2003.

I just think the Cadillac chic is hot.

I just think the Cadillac chic is hot.

Yet very annoying...

Your info is dated.



Yeah, well so am I.

I just think the Cadillac chic is hot.

Correct.

A lot of pundent say the race on Friday sorted things out.. Lance played the perfect teammate following the moves but did not do anything to chase AC down.. You could tell Lances body language was saying to Vandevelde and Evans, come on boys pick up the pace.. He followed the few attackes with ease and did not look like he was struggling..

I find it funny that only 2 seconds separates them but everyone is saying well this proves AC should be team leader, over 2 seconds you have to be kidding..

I do not envy Johan but I hope that Lance and Alberto get some separation from the field and they let them duke it out in the Alps... I want to really know who is the strongest and not by some team tactics that a race winner is chosen..

Even Merckx commented yesterday that AC tactics were a little below the belt considering all the work the team did all day..

Eddy Merckx said he should not have attacked. What Eddy says is law.

I agree, the redhead is hot. AC is under the yoke of oppression at present but will find his way to victory

Even Merckx commented yesterday that AC tactics were a little below the belt considering all the work the team did all day..

If AC were the clear team leader, maybe not. Under the current circumstances, bad move. For Contador to really establish himself as the true leader, he has to bury Lance, put at least a minute into him on a longer mountain stage or TT. Stealing 20 seconds at the end of the day on that stage wasn't so savvy. Oh well. He's a great bicycle racer, but it's quite arguable that @ 26 years old he's still learning, and the reaction he got from people like Merckx yesterday is a part of that.

Everybody should settle down and relax. It's only the Tour de France. It's not like it's something important like the NASCAR Redneck 400 or a WWF Deathmatch.

Eddy is king

A lot of pundent say the race on Friday sorted things out.. Lance played the perfect teammate following the moves but did not do anything to chase AC down.. You could tell Lances body language was saying to Vandevelde and Evans, come on boys pick up the pace.. He followed the few attackes with ease and did not look like he was struggling..

I find it funny that only 2 seconds separates them but everyone is saying well this proves AC should be team leader, over 2 seconds you have to be kidding..

I do not envy Johan but I hope that Lance and Alberto get some separation from the field and they let them duke it out in the Alps... I want to really know who is the strongest and not by some team tactics that a race winner is chosen..

Even Merckx commented yesterday that AC tactics were a little below the belt considering all the work the team did all day..

Not to suggest I know as much about bike racing as Merckx big toe (I don't), BUT, to suggest it was uncool to go for broke because Lance was pulling for Contador all day is laughable. Lance IS NOT pulling for Contador. Remember the stage when Lance got into the breakaway and Contador did not? No one said, "Ohhh, that bad Lance, he dropped Contador". We all said, "Wow what a brilliant move by Lance and Contador got caught sleeping".

Well, I say, "Wow, what a brilliant move by Contador. He learned that Lance is the better strategist and made a move doing what he does best, climbing". He dropped all of them like they were standing still. He almost ran into a motorcycle and other riders he was moving so fast.

I too would love to see them duke it out in the Alps. May the best rider win.

Alberto learned a hard lesson in the prior stage he got left behind and lost time to lance. That is why he will spend the rest of the race on lances back tire and make moves when he knows it is safe and advantageous to him. It is not like Alberto isnt experienced either...he made that move on the climb knowing two things...) lance will not make a move on his action as that wouldnt be considered good team work...2) and if he did, it would discredit lance and make him look like a ego oriented, none teamplayer taking some of the postive fan fair of lance and possibly providing Alberto with some...well some that isnt french. I would like to see lance win...be great for the sport...but alberto is smart enough to stick with lance the rest of the race, as lance is his major competition, and not get out-foxed like he did in the earlier stage. Alberto is stronger than lance at this point in both there careers and if everything stays the same will beat him. However, that is why they have the race rather than just award the winner....going to be very interesting. Also, i do agree to some extent with the OP...Bruyneel will be a professional and appropriately manage the team....however, if he gets the chance to give lance some extra love he will most definitely do it...it just wont be in a matter that the whole cycling world will easily pick up. Going to be a great tour.

I am not worried about Alberto being shunned by his Astana teammates. His future team will be helping him in the coming days.

JB created this mess , and it may bite him in the "end".

Contador is ............... who he is.

He appears to be stronger up until now, but how will all this internal tension play out? What affect, if any, will this have on his performance? That's why we watch.

LA, his talents are often debated, but his mental strength is undeniable. He seems to thrive on conflict and appears to be getting stronger every day. What affect will this have on his performance? That's why we watch.


I personally don't care about what was promised or implied to any involved parties. . . . . as any opinion is based on hearsay.

The bottom line is it gives this TDF some potential for great viewing. The last 3 have not been too great . . though I must say the Landis comeback stage and win was an incredible day. That was epic!

The problem with Contador's attack in stage 7 is not that he got a few seconds on Armstrong, it's that he narrowed the gap to the yellow jersey and thus will cause Astana more work. We saw that yesterday when Saxo Bank tried to drop the yellow jersey so that Astana would get it and have to try to hold it for the last two weeks of the Tour. Funny, that's what I thought and today that's what Sherwin is saying. :rolleyes:

Mark is right. Contador is going to get screwed. In 1985 Hinault finished 1st, Lemond 2nd. Lemond was clearly the stronger rider than Hinault. Lemond was blasting up the mountains and putting huge time gaps on everybody. Hinault was higher on GC, but struggling and couldn't keep pace with even the lead group. During one of the stages in the Pyrenees, the team car pulled up and told Lemond to slow down and wait for Hinault. It was broadcast on CBS sports. La Vie Calire was a french team with mostly french riders. Lemond did slow down that day. Hinault minimized his losses and Lemond's chance to win that year was gone. Hinault later promised Greg that he would work for him the next year. Hinault clearly broke his promise. In 1986, when Lemond was in the yellow jersey, Hinault attacked on the final stage. Still, Hinault couldn't maintain the pace he had set and was later caught. Lemond let Hinault win the stage in a show of thanks, even though Hinault totally backstabbed him.

Contador knows the Tour history. He knows he is the younger and better cyclist than Armstrong. The only way Contador loses this Tour is if he is handcuffed and not allowed to attack in the mountains because Contador's true strength is as a climber. He can put time into anybody, but if the race comes down to the final time trial, Armstrong will have a chance and he's going to surprise some people.

Has anyone won anything on the VS contest site?

Oh well. He's a great bicycle racer

Not yet he's not. Right now, he's a very strong rider, possibly the strongest climber in the peleton, and quite possibly the strongest GT rider. However, he won't be a great racer until he learns strategy and tactics. He obviously hasn't yet.

Has anyone won anything on the VS contest site?

I won a Trek but it was the wrong size for me so I gave it to the salvation army and lo and behold I won a trip to the 2010 TDF! I am thinking of giving it to a buddy cause I have a trip planned to Mississippi at the same time.

. Let's face it - Contador is th strongest best rider in the TdF this year.

Well thats it then. markwebb has ruined the tour for everyone. Contador wins, close shop and go home.

Your insight is amazing. You should bet at the horse tracks.




Lance will whip this boy, wait and see. :eek:

Eddy is king

Damn right on that one. Nobody will ever rival Eddy.

Not yet he's not. Right now, he's a very strong rider, possibly the strongest climber in the peleton, and quite possibly the strongest GT rider. However, he won't be a great racer until he learns strategy and tactics. He obviously hasn't yet.

Good point, I mean, after all, he hasn't won any significant races (oh yeah, except for the Tour, Giro, and Vuelta back to back to back) :roflmao2:

And he rides Trek, not GT. He is however the strongest GC rider.

.....going to get scewed by Bruyneel. Or at least Bruyneel's gonna try. Hopefully Alberto's a student of cycling history and won't make the same mistakes LeMond did. Let's face it - Contador is th strongest best rider in the TdF this year. Lance wasn't held back by Bruyneel on Friday - Lance just didn't have any gas in the tank. Do you think if a GC contendor in 2004 some 19 seconds behind Lance on a mountain stage made a break towards the end that Lance would have let him go? No - no matter what instructions Bruyneel would have given Lance, Lance would have tracked him down, pounced on him, and blew him away.

It's obvious to me Lance is not the same Lance as in years past and the years have taken their toll. He's still an idol and someone to look up to for what he's accomplished, but he's not the best rider on Astana. I suspect that Bruyneel will find some way to advance Lance to the detriment of Contador. Or at least he'll try. But if Contador's smart he'll have some personal allies on the team that will support him and Astana will be in yellow on the last day - but it will be Alberto not Lance. I trus Bruyneel about as far as I can throw him - which ain't far. He's as oily and slick as they come.

Beware Alberto - Bruyneel is out to screw you.

Sunday is gonna be cool. The Tourmalet. Lance. Alberto. Bruyneel. And a cast of 178 other riders !

Did Lance tell you all this when you guys spoke on the phone after the stage?

AC screwed himself. If he can't be a team player then he shouldn't be on one. I agree, he's a strong rider he's just not as smart as he needs to be to win TDF. Hmm, LA and JB won seven times. He'd do his career a huge benefit by showing some respect for the sport and his team.

The difference between how LA wins mountain stages and what AC did is simple. LA would have one maybe two teammates pulling him up, along with his rivals by the way, then slowly they would peel off and it would just be LA and whoever would try to challenge. Then he'd just power away. Big difference from what AC did.

I wonder who on Astana will pull AC up a mountain now? My guess is they'd give him a half-a** pull then grab his wheel. I'll be ROFL listening to Levi at the end of the stage with a smirk saying, "I tried to pull but um, I was let's say, sick and tired."

Cheers

In response to this, while I don't agree with you (hypothetically let's say I do), Lance has one thing Alberto doesn't, experience. Stage two proved that while Lance may not have the strength he once had, he certainly is still one of the smartest riders in the pro tour.

contador has won all three grand tours. give the guy a little credit. the one mistake contador made was he should have been marking lance on stage 3. i'll bet he doesn't make that mistake again.

ed rader

AC screwed himself. If he can't be a team player then he shouldn't be on one.
Lance is a team player? Do you think the strongest guy should win? News flash, It ain't Lance. He's not even 2nd strongest on his own team.

I agree, he's a strong rider he's just not as smart as he needs to be to win TDF.
Hasn't he won one already in addition to the Giro and Vuelta? I guess that theory is out the window. At any rate, you're overestimating the role "smart" plays. I'm not a Landis fan, but one of his charms was that he kept things simple. Like when he said whoever can go the hardest for the longest wins the Tour. The strongest guy always wins. Real simple. Unless some political bs enters the equation. Funny how Landis posted all his power numbers but it's all a big secret with LA. Magic number 6.7w/kg. You think he's there?:roflmao2:


Hmm, LA and JB won seven times.
Actually, JB won 8 times and he won the Giro a couple and the Vuelta a couple as well. LA needs the Hog but it's clear the Hog has the upper hand in that relationship. What's he gonna get with Pharmstrong, maybe 1 or 2 more TdF wins. With Contador, IF,he never tests positive, which is a big if, he'll possibly get many, many more big victories.

He'd do his career a huge benefit by showing some respect for the sport and his team.
Really? What is Levi gonna throw a handpump in his spokes?

The difference between how LA wins mountain stages and what AC did is simple. LA would have one maybe two teammates pulling him up, along with his rivals by the way, then slowly they would peel off and it would just be LA and whoever would try to challenge. Then he'd just power away. Big difference from what AC did.
You forgot the special kool aid he was drinking.

I wonder who on Astana will pull AC up a mountain now? My guess is they'd give him a half-a** pull then grab his wheel. I'll be ROFL listening to Levi at the end of the stage with a smirk saying, "I tried to pull but um, I was let's say, sick and tired."
Cheers
Nice scenario. You act like there is a ski tow rope pulling these guys up the mountains. You realize team tactics break down at 20km/hr? Anyway, AC is the team leader and Pharmstrongs gigantic ego prevents him from realizing what's obvious to anyone who's not drinking his kool aid.

AC screwed himself. If he can't be a team player then he shouldn't be on one. I agree, he's a strong rider he's just not as smart as he needs to be to win TDF. Hmm, LA and JB won seven times. He'd do his career a huge benefit by showing some respect for the sport and his team.

The difference between how LA wins mountain stages and what AC did is simple. LA would have one maybe two teammates pulling him up, along with his rivals by the way, then slowly they would peel off and it would just be LA and whoever would try to challenge. Then he'd just power away. Big difference from what AC did.

I wonder who on Astana will pull AC up a mountain now? My guess is they'd give him a half-a** pull then grab his wheel. I'll be ROFL listening to Levi at the end of the stage with a smirk saying, "I tried to pull but um, I was let's say, sick and tired."

Cheers

That strategy would work for AC too...except that LA and Bruyneel have the team pulling LA up, not AC. If they followed the exact same strategy for AC, then he would be much further ahead than he already is. And while we're at it, AC did not break that team in two, hiring Armstrong did. Do you really think they would have any of these problems if they didn't have a manager who will do anything to see LA win, including let the best rider in the world leave the team?

Good luck in the future team Livestrong/Nike, I'm sure you will win many grand tours with a 38 year old team captain. If you had focused on Contador, you would have at least 6 more years of winning ahead of you.

I love Lance. I just think in 2009 Contador's a better cyclist, but he's (Contador) gonna take a knife in the back planted by Bruyneel.

The Hog is obviously an LA puppet, but he also knows which side his bread is buttered on. If you have info that he's going to retire as DS after LA goes, AC will get stabbed in the back. If he wants to do the Phil Jackson and get a bunch more big wins, LA will not win.

Plus sabatoging your own guy who is obviously the strongest guy looks ridiculous to most everyone except Lance worshippers. Maybe they'll put something in his food. Sounds crazy but then again, they dumped Floyd's refill down the toilet when they found out he was going to Phonak, so who knows how nuts these people are?