Tour de France 2007!

[twistedAM]

Barloworld team full stop were a ray of light

Yes indeed and add to that four Brit finishers.

After the turgid years of Indurain and Armstrong this tour was fantastic.

 

[g force]

Team Borat sack Vinko after B sample was "non-negative"...whatever happened to the word "positive"

 

[twistedAM]

That'll be the end of Astana's sponsorship then...it was just a Kazach vanity project after all...look at their team tactics compared to Disco.

 

[g force]

Might mean Kloden going elsewhere, which is a good thing. He'd fit in a Predictor Lotto I reckon.

 

[HackneyE9]

Talking of the omerta-like vow of silence that descended on Phil Sherwen and Phil Liggett in the commentary box (after two weeks of nothing but Vinokourov and Rasumussen after they left they were simply never mentioned again, Orwell/Stalin style) did anyone else here Liggett on the live Sunday commentary?

"This is still a great tour, a grand event [etc etc]...but too many journalists who know nothing about cycling come and just try to dig up dirt."

 

[Sigmund Fraud]

Might mean Kloden going elsewhere, which is a good thing. He'd fit in a Predictor Lotto I reckon.

I'd be perfectly happy if he never rides again - and that goes for the rest of team Borat. 3 major drug scandals in 1 team in a season? The team is bent mate.

Why would predictor lotto want him anyway? They're widely considered to be clean these days and they already have a GC man, Cadel Evans.

Maybe Kloeden should sign with that other renowned team of ex dopers Tinkoff...?

 

[g force]

I know, I'm hoping he isn't but smoke/fire etc. cos I always liked him as person in interviews. Will the team even survive?

I think Predictor might be my fav team now...them and Barloworld

 

[Sigmund Fraud]

. Will the team even survive?

They'll never ride the tour again and the only way I can see em getting a Vuelta or Giro place is by bribery. Certainly the Vuelta has enough problems without Astana added to the mix. Hopefully the team will be dissolved asap.

 

[g force]

At least Rabobank have said they're staying....if they'd gone, who knows because I'm sure T Mobile will have had enough.

 

[stavros]

"This is still a great tour, a grand event [etc etc]...but too many journalists who know nothing about cycling come and just try to dig up dirt."

I think it was Boardman who said that. He's right. Last Monday, after the Vino triumph-collapse before his exclusion, the Torygraph had 9 pages of fecking golf and half a page on the TdF. That all changed when drugs come into it.

 

[twistedAM]

I think it was Boardman who said that. He's right. Last Monday, after the Vino triumph-collapse before his exclusion, the Torygraph had 9 pages of fecking golf and half a page on the TdF. That all changed when drugs come into it.

Yeah and fucking Sky Sports "News" didn't touch it - even to cover the London start - until the Vino-Ras thing blew up.

Those cunts never dig up any news. For example when the takeover of Man City occurred did they do a piece on Shinawatra's dodgy reputation? Did they fuck. Instead they sent a fat reporter up to Wilmslow to interview an estate agent about which houses Sven might like to buy. Oh and they talked to some chef in a Thai restuarant in Manchester.

 

[HackneyE9]

Yeah and fucking Sky Sports "News" didn't touch it - even to cover the London start - until the Vino-Ras thing blew up.

Those cunts never dig up any news. For example when the takeover of Man City occurred did they do a piece on Shinawatra's dodgy reputation? Did they fuck. Instead they sent a fat reporter up to Wilmslow to interview an estate agent about which houses Sven might like to buy. Oh and they talked to some chef in a Thai restuarant in Manchester.

Very funny. Two separate points though - Ligget wasn't complaining about the lack of ordinairy TdF coverage in yer mainstream British media (which would be legit complaint) 'cos I doubt if he's been back to Britain for 20 years, judging by his "commentary" on London's sights on the prologue, but about how Rasmussen and Vinokourov had been brought low by mere hacks.

The fact is he'd been unconditionally raving about them for two weeks straight - then pretended they'd never existed.

 

[Sigmund Fraud]

The list gets bigger

Iban Mayo tests positive for EPO

yes I know

/strikes diminutive Basque climbing specialist from xmas card list

Oh the irony - cleaned up David Millar spent half the mountain stages towing a pure climber on the dope up them cols.

so thats an Alpe d'Huez stage win and 2003 and the Mont Ventoux absolute climbing record most likely a load of bullshit.

At this rate I'm liable to get a pro contract next year

 

[twistedAM]

Question for you Sig (as I can't be arsed going into google overdrive)

Why were the names athletes from other sports identified in Puerto not made public?

 

[Sigmund Fraud]

I don't know. I think the figures a roughly 200 bags of blood and 52 belong to cyclists (or Dr Fuentes had them sectioned off as such). There are loads of rumours about the remaining 150 names but so far the investigation seems to be centred on cycling.

 

[g force]

That's twice he's come under suspicion and this time he's been found out. The Mayo tee is going in the bin tonight

 

[twistedAM]

I don't know. I think the figures a roughly 200 bags of blood and 52 belong to cyclists (or Dr Fuentes had them sectioned off as such). There are loads of rumours about the remaining 150 names but so far the investigation seems to be centred on cycling.

I'd love to find out why that's the case.
Mmmmm -some rather muscular Spanish tennis stars aound, eh?

I'm just so fed up with people pointing a finger at cycling and cycling alone. All pro sports are corrupt and cos cycling seems to be testing more people more people get found.
It galls me when someone can post that this was the worst tour ever....no reply from editor yet on as to why.

 

[g force]

If who you're saying was using EPO he'd have been found out by now. Every tournament finalist is tested, plus randoms...it would be hard to get around it given that person's profile and success.

I also doubt it could be football given the testing regime there, but I guess you never know how clever these people have been.

 

[Sigmund Fraud]

If who you're saying was using EPO he'd have been found out by now. Every tournament finalist is tested, plus randoms...it would be hard to get around it given that person's profile and success.
.

EPO is extremely hard to trace. After 4 days there is no evidence in the bloodstream bar a high hematocrit level. Three weeks after the dose the user gets peak benefit from it. Add to this the newer trend of 'microdosing', raising hematocrit levels very slowly over time, almost impossible to test for.

Blood swapouts are one thing but EPO? Much easier to get away with if you have a doctor who knows the score.

 

[stavros]

The fella in the Indie last Saturday, I forget his name, wrote about how many sports are corrupted by general rule breaking this year; cycling, football (the Tevez affair), baseball (Barry Bonds), F1, American Football, basketball. He didn't say anything about jelly beans mind....

 

[twistedAM]

ah well...not long to the Tour of Britain

should we have a meet-up in Crystal Palace Park for the prologue (for those based in London obviously)???

 

[Sigmund Fraud]

ah well...not long to the Tour of Britain

should we have a meet-up in Crystal Palace Park for the prologue (for those based in London obviously)???

sounds good - its literally across the road from me . I may be roped into marshalling tho...

 

[twistedAM]

sounds good - its literally across the road from me . I may be roped into marshalling tho...

I'm in CP too. Used to do some marshalling when I was in a club in south Manchester but alas don;t even ride at the moment.

 

[Sigmund Fraud]

Was it Manchester Wheelers?

 

[twistedAM]

Was it Manchester Wheelers?

Naw Ii wish, not even Stretford Wheelers...Withington Wheelers

 

[mtbskalover]

so it sounds like i missed a hell of a lot,
i have not been able to keep up, bar flicking through a french newspaper the day after astana busts. but i cant read much french so the pictures had to do.

im gona read through this thred when i get time,
any links of summarys would be greatly appreciated,

hope all you cyclists are well, enjoying the sun now, and that you all had a good le tour