TedLavie Posted July 9, 2018 Share Posted July 9, 2018 I just realized that the stage finishing in Roubaix, which may be the best one save for the moutain stages, is the same day than the WC final. Why did you do that ASO? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kempus Posted July 9, 2018 Author Share Posted July 9, 2018 https://www.bbc.com/sport/cycling/44576490 Here is Cavs stage guide. I always love reading the riders perspectives on the stages. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mse326 Posted July 9, 2018 Share Posted July 9, 2018 Sunweb did better than I thought. I thought with Kelderman not there they'd drop more, so that is great for Domoulin. BMC and Sky did what they were supposed to. Movistar should now put it all behind Landa, Quintana is too far back I think. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kempus Posted July 10, 2018 Author Share Posted July 10, 2018 8 hours ago, mse326 said: Sunweb did better than I thought. I thought with Kelderman not there they'd drop more, so that is great for Domoulin. BMC and Sky did what they were supposed to. Movistar should now put it all behind Landa, Quintana is too far back I think. Yeah, it was pretty much how I expected it to go. I imagine Quintana will be used as the surprise attack, going hard on the early mountains. Couple of sprint stages before we hit any more GC stages. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mse326 Posted July 11, 2018 Share Posted July 11, 2018 Losing Matthews is a big blow to Dumoulin and Sunweb. They are now without maybe the two best riders they have to protect him with Kelderman also out. I know Matthews is more a points racer than a domestique but he still would have been important in hilly stages. That could end up the difference between him and Froome given the Team Sky machine. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kempus Posted July 12, 2018 Author Share Posted July 12, 2018 Mur De Bretagne is today. Could definitely see some time gaps open up. Unlikely to be anything too serious though. Almost done with the flat stages and getting the the serious stuff. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kempus Posted July 12, 2018 Author Share Posted July 12, 2018 13 hours ago, mse326 said: Losing Matthews is a big blow to Dumoulin and Sunweb. They are now without maybe the two best riders they have to protect him with Kelderman also out. I know Matthews is more a points racer than a domestique but he still would have been important in hilly stages. That could end up the difference between him and Froome given the Team Sky machine. Ita obviously a disadvantage to lose a rider, especially with the reduced number of riders in the team this edition. However, it shouldn't hurt Dumoulin. Matthews isn't a mountain rider anyway. If anything, it may make the team thrown even more behind Dumoulin. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kyle21121 Posted July 12, 2018 Share Posted July 12, 2018 Been off for a little bit haven’t followed as closely as I would have liked but will be getting right into it tomorrow. Didn’t really expect this much excitement in the first week. Looks very open. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kyle21121 Posted July 12, 2018 Share Posted July 12, 2018 I wonder if someone like Barguil will try something sneaky tomorrow on the final climb. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kempus Posted July 12, 2018 Author Share Posted July 12, 2018 2 hours ago, kyle21121 said: Been off for a little bit haven’t followed as closely as I would have liked but will be getting right into it tomorrow. Didn’t really expect this much excitement in the first week. Looks very open. First week is hard to get into with all of the procession sprint stages. The Mur De Bretagne is a brute. The do a double ascent of it today. I expect all of the GC guys will go hard on it. Definitely potential time gaps. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kempus Posted July 13, 2018 Author Share Posted July 13, 2018 I fell asleep before the end of the stage, but there's two things I would take from it. 1. Thomas looks good. If he has truly been given a wildcard role, as he suggests, then he's a real GC contender. I would love to see a Froome v Thomas battle. 2. Losing over a minute was a very big blow for Dumoulin. It was caused by a late mechanical, but its damaging never the less. I would also read nothing into Froome losing a handfull of seconds. Same thing happened at TDF 17 (can't remember the exact stage) also on the Sestriere at last years Vuelta. He usually doesn't go well on those very steep climbs. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mse326 Posted July 13, 2018 Share Posted July 13, 2018 1 hour ago, kempus said: 2. Losing over a minute was a very big blow for Dumoulin. It was caused by a late mechanical, but its damaging never the less. It's obviously damaging but at the same time it more or less just re-equalled the GC field. Froome, Porte, and Quintana had their issues on day 1. Dumoulin today. While there are obviously other GC riders, I think most would be looking at those 4. So it really just means he doesn't get the benefit of Day 1 issues those other riders had Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kempus Posted July 13, 2018 Author Share Posted July 13, 2018 3 minutes ago, mse326 said: It's obviously damaging but at the same time it more or less just re-equalled the GC field. Froome, Porte, and Quintana had their issues on day 1. Dumoulin today. While there are obviously other GC riders, I think most would be looking at those 4. So it really just means he doesn't get the benefit of Day 1 issues those other riders had This ia true, I feel his team is a lot weaker than the others though. He may struggle in the high mountains, imo. Two more procession sprint stages before it get serious. Roubaix on Sunday, before the rest day and the start of he high mountains. Roubaix could be carnage. I expect at least one GC guy to lose serious time. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kyle21121 Posted July 13, 2018 Share Posted July 13, 2018 It was ideal for Dumoulin but he’s still gonna be in it until the end. I’m rooting for him but I don’t know if I believe in him to win just yet. Bardet is done though. He needed to stay clean and be near the top with a minute or more advantage. Dan Martin made a brilliant move that was sorta the thing I expected or at least wanted to see a minor contender try and make today. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kempus Posted July 13, 2018 Author Share Posted July 13, 2018 Martin always goes well up those super steep climbs. If Thomas does crash then he is a very serious contender. I doubt Sky gives him any assistance, though. Unless Froome crashes out or looses a massive amount of time. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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