Tour de France 2015

I know you're only joking but Wiggins set up his own cycle team, basically with the intent to help get him fit (and most importantly selected!) for next summers Olympics.

His team is basically the GB (mens) youth development team - obviously with some sort of deal with the GB set up and Sky - who sponsors them.

Fwiw I hope he does go on to get another gold medal (if he merits a place in the team) but at this point in time the Australians would be the team to beat.

It's also looking fairly certain that Cavendish will not be in the GB team in Rio as he hasn't put in the required team pre-qualifying work that is required.

So he's going to be riding in Rio?

I know it's only next year but he's getting on a bit and I just assumed that the younger lads would be riding for us.

He wants to ride certainly.

The thing is - and as daft as it may sound - cycling on the track and cycling on the roads at the top levels are completely different and as such even requires a change of body shape to compete.

In very simple terms track cycling is over a vastly shorter and much, much more flatter course than say the Tour, which goes on for three weeks and requires you to ride up mountains.

Muscle are required to provide power - but they are heavy in weight.

In the Tour - to be at the top - you need to go up mountains fast - so people like Wiggins (and Lance Armstrong before him - just giving an example that people will have heard of), shed as much muscle they could without effecting their performance to drastically in order to compete on the roads.

The reverse is also true in moving from the roads back to the track - maximum output over a vastly shorter time (counted in just minutes rather than weeks and days) is required and there is no need to go up any mountain - so maximum output is required, which requires building the muscles (and therefore body weight too) back up.

Wiggins should by now be getting back to racing weight on the track - and therefore his performances should be being monitored and compaired with the rest of his team mates.

It's then based on the stats that the team will be picked.

GB cycling will base its selections on these stats.

They will be quite brutal about it too - for instance for the London Olympics, where in one event new rules meant only one rider per country could ride, the then Olympic champion in that event from Beijing, Sir Chris Hoy was dumped and Jason Kenny (the Bolton lad) selected instead.

Kenny won the gold.

Sir Chris did win gold also but in a seperate event.

Wiggins as been a superb rider - and is still within a shout of a place.

I've never had a problem with him as such as some off here thought I had.  I simply tried to point out that he's been very lucky in some of the things he's achieved - most notably his wins of 2012 - the Tour and the Olympic gold - in that much better riders had either been contracted to work for him (Froome in the Tour), or were recovering from injury (Martin, broken wrist, Olympics) which basically give him a free run to those victorys.

What about Burnley born Colner Steven Burke?

Will he be in the team pursuit do you think?

No idea to be honest - all down to the stats they are producing at the time of the Olympics - although he's certainly in with a very good shout, as he was in the team that won silver to the New Zealanders in the World Team Pursuit this year and along with the likes of Owain Doull and Andy Tennant (also in that team) in the newly formed Wiggins team, which as I've said was created with the aim of getting the gold medal in Rio.

So I think as long as he doesn't get injured or sick and keeps his form then yes, he probably will be.

I don't know however what plans Peter Kennaugh and Geriant Thomas may have to make the Olympics however (both on the 2012 gold medal team - and remember Wiggins won the time trial and not the team pusuit), so competition for places on the team may well be tight.

Hopefully you'll be getting another golden post box next year because of him though!

Latest News for those not following the Tour to closely.

Britains Chris Froome is again leading the race - he took over from a German (Tony Martin) who crashed yesterday and was not fit enough to start today.

Todays stage of the race was won by Britains Mark Cavendish.

Tomorrow (Saturdays) stage is quite a flat one but with a bit of a steep up hill finish, which means most riders will finish in a great big bunch together, with a few 'classic' riders to fight out the finish.

One to watch tomorrow I would suggest is Peter Sagan, who is having a fantastic race so far and is currently in second place.

As there are bonus 'time' points for the top three places, a win by Sagan would actually put him in yellow (the yellow jersey is worn by the race leader}.

That would actually suit Froome and his team Sky because Sagan is not an overall threat to Froome to win the whole race because Sagan is not in the same class as him when it comes to riding up mountains - which are to come in later stages - and it would take the burden off Froome and Sky having to 'defend' the yellow jersey, which instead will fall to Sagan's team to do instead, whilst he holds it.

That's the thinking anyway - whether it works out like that is another matter but I think there is a reasonable chance it might.

Still two weeks to go to the finish and plenty time to get interested in the race if you are not already.

Oh and finally the first rider as been caught in the years race for taking drugs!

Not quite as bad as it sounds though - it was cocaine and not performance enhancing - still got him kicked out though!

I got kicked out of school for less. He should at least have to do litter picking duty as well like the time i got caught wagging it

I can't really understand why the rider thought he could get away with not being caught?

He is an Italian riding on a Russian team - the Italians and Spanish were really the 'home' to all the Lance Armstrong type drug taking - and Russia seems to be one of the world leaders for not being hard on drug taking - the whole Russian athletics team as been accused of being on drugs recently with the drug testers being paid off!

Obviously he tought he would not be caught - and to think that way he must have been fairly confident that he could beat the drug testing.

So I guess others are up to no good as well - and not being caught!

Who knows really?

Alberto Contador - Spanish - previously banned for drug taking, is with Froome the favourite to win the Tour.  Is he still doping or not?  As the previous doping built his body stronger anyway?

Again, who knows?

Part of the fun of it all to me - it makes it more interesting and shocking when big names are thrown out or mysteriously lose form.

It's all a game - entertainment, theatre - at the end of the day.

I enjoy it all - but I don't take it seriously either.

Bit like this place really!!!

Imagine they just said "fuck it. .....do what you want take what you want" i think that would make all sport more interesting. Although with murray being Scottish im not sure how the bbc would feel about him scoring in between sets sat next to a high as fuck umpire (and i don't mean high as in sat on his tall seat) ........but it would be fun to watch.

Who's currently on the booze?

You or me?

If you have rules then people will try to get around them some how or other.

That can apply to anything and not just sport.

The thing is you have to have some rules - and somebody to enforce them - otherwise the place would be out of control - from forums without any mods - up to whole country's without any law and order - and everything else inbetween.

Cheating in sport is morally wrong - but I guess the rewards for success mean some people will do whatever it takes.

I like cycling - many don't.

But many just thing cycling = drugs and look no further.

Up to them - but they really are missing out fabulous sport - theres so much more to it than just pedaling as fast as you can for as long as you can.

Athletics is rife with drug taking - but most people will still watch the Olympics.  

Mo Farah - nations hero - or drug cheat??

(Is there only me that couldn't stand Farah long before all this drug talk cropped up recently?  All that slapping his head and chest and falling down to pray everytime he run - you don't see any other athlete making a spectacle of himself doing anything remotely similar - even though they come from the same country and have the same religion as he does).

Anyway back on track - I wish no one took drugs - for recreation or performance - but they do.

I hope everyone of them that do will be caught - which they won't.

So should people just bin cycling off because it isn't perfect - because we all know football isn't perfect too!

Enjoy the moment for what it is - thats what I do anyway.

No i dont think so at all. Like you said for you who has watched it for years is interesting to see what happens

For me, I'm selling my idea to channel 4 or 5.

Get a group of ex athletes and sportsmen, see how good they are normally and then throw drugs into the mix and have a drug Olympics a drug cup (football) all for experimentation purposes of course

Sluff,

Re - Tony Martin's crash.

He's receiving "much love" from the other riders and the cycling community at large, all saying what a shame it is that he suffered such an unfortunate accident when wearing the yellow jersey, but I saw it differently.

Martin said he clipped the back wheel of the guy in front and that's what caused him to go down but I've watched it back a few times and it looks to me like he tried putting an aggressive move in on the rider to his right and developed a wobble which, in turn, caused the crash.

I'd be interested to hear your thoughts.

Cheers.

Impossible for me to know to be honest.

Yes from what was shown on TV he did seem to suddenly lurch right and consequently brought riders down (including Nibali who had thought Froome had caused his crash - and chucked a water bottle at him after the race had finished!) but whether that was because of a clip or an aggresive attempt to pass the rider in front because he had got too close to him and was about to clip his wheel I wouldn't know.

Martin is a several times world champion a vastly experience rider and ridden many, many stage races, so I think it would be strange and out of character if he did whatever he did on purpose. He (or his team) had nothing to gain from crashing and bringing down others such as Nibali and very nearly Froome, and everything to lose - he was in yellow at the time remember.

I'm sure I saw Martin give an interview shortly after finishing in which he said he didn't remember what had happened and had to look at replays himself to see what he had done - so maybe he did cock up - had to suddenly veer away from the bike in front and crash into the rider at his side bringing him down or more likely he did touch the wheel in front which caused him to crash and bring others down - but either way I can't see it being a deliberate act and he's ended up paying a high price for it.

Shit happens I guess.

Part of the randomness and thrill of the Tour for me.

If you're a bikist, like what I am, you may want to pop down to your local Aldi because they're doing a Bike Tool Kit for £14.99 and it's a belter.

It includes:

1 X Free wheel remover
1 X Bottom bracket tool
1 X Chain rivet extractor
2 X Cone wrench
1 X Chain whip
1 X Spoke wrench
1 X 8 mm Hex wrench
1 X Crank arm remover
1 X Crank tool
1 X Open end wrench (8/10 mm)
1 X Cross head screwdriver
3 X Tyre levers
1 X 7 in 1 mulit tool: Slotted screwdriver
1 X Cross-headed screwdriver / hex key:2,3,4,5,6 mm
1 X Patch kit
1 X 6 ml tube of glue
1 X Grinder
2 X Valve insets


And all in a sturdy carry case with instructions on how to use each tool, so you don't knacker your bike and kill yourself.

Well impressed.

Italian rider Ivan Basso out of the Tour due to cancer.
Wish the guy well.

boltonbonce wrote:Italian rider Ivan Basso out of the Tour due to cancer.

Cycling gives you cancer? 

I bet that he's glad he had the crash now as that's the reason they've found it.

Hopefully it's at the early stage because he's got the best chance with the type of cancer he has.

Indeed. Early detection is crucial.