Le Tour Nastiness
 

Um...headbutting, cyclists blocking other cyclists into barriers at 70 kph, and an overall lack of sportsmanship between Contador and Schleck when Schleck suffered mechanical failure.

Since when has bike racing turned into NASCAR?

I've never heard a stage winner - and new race leader (Contador), get booed as he stepped on the podium. :eek:

It was pretty classless, in a sport that already has image problems. Maybe Contador is so nervous that he is unwilling to do what past champions have done - wait around for the other guy & still beat him down? It will be interesting to see the peloton's response to this poor sportsmanship - will Contador take an unexpected fall?

Hope so

May the fleas of a thousand camels infest his groin.

F Contadour.

Great, now I am going to have nightmares...thanks!

This is just par for the course type of stuff for Contador, typical. But today's stage was a big conundrum, as Ryder Hesjedal said, "that's bike racing." True, but there's no honor in capitalizing on your biggest competitor's mechanical failure. Historically, riders would wait and insist the competition be played out mano-a-mano, alas, Contador was beginning to fear Schleck.
But here we've come full circle, that's typical Contador behavior.

Schleck should be seen next to the Yellow Jersey for pics tomorrow AM - shaking hands all is forgiven. Then, he will need to show the legs he has been reserving for no reason I can understand. He had Alberto when he was suffering allergies on the first climb of any significance. And but for le mechanical today he did seem to have 5 or 6 lengths on Alberto on that attack.

But I digress - point is for Andy to consider how he wants to be remembered. He must show the classy, forgiving appearance to put Alberto off his guard and give The Race a hug moment. But inside, does Andy have the fire? I mean really? He must know his TT will lose 1.5min to Contador. If he is wearing the yellow then maybe only 1min, but still - why the wait for the Tourmalet?

Did anyone notice how Andy let the pack re-merge just before he jumped his last, fatal, time? See how there was traffic for Contador? If this was intentional it is a teachable moment about tactics.

Another note: Lance has five commercials running during Le Tour: Michelob, Nissan, Trek, Radio Shack and Nike.

The guy's probably made a couple million in just two weeks with all those spots.

And now he's hoping only for a stage win, not an overall.

If this year's Tour is NASCAR, Lance is the sport's Danica Patrick -- lots of commercials, but no wins.

Renshaw's head butting was entertaining but classless. At first I thought "well, that's racing - he's trying to avoid his opponent from closing the door on his leadout line" but watching it again a few times I thought differently - he could have attacked with his bike - the headbutting wasn't necessary or at all classy.

Schleck looks good - wouldn't be surprised to see him win.

Lance's tour was over after he crashed out for like the fifth or sixth time in stage 4 - he even said so. He's doing the right thing supporting his team and trying to win a stage for posterity. Unfortunate for him.

Contador is shaping up to be the Alonzo of cycling. Good, awfully gifted, but an arrogant azz and a sleazeball.

Lack of sportsmanship??
Do you see guys in F1 stopping when one has a mechanical breakdown?? Does a soccerteam take a guy from the field when a guy in the other team has had red?
Contador saw a chance and took it, good for him.


If your stuff breaks down, that's tough cookies, you lose time, so what. How far is he behind? 8 seconds?? Big deal...


Now the head butting, that is another deal, that is lack of sportsmanship.

Notice the registration.

http://img40.imageshack.us/img40/5278/sizedimg43533.jpg

AC is classless. The move around Andy was purely to take over. He knew Andy was having a problem and took advantage of it. Too bad he's going to win another tour. Best of luck to Levi and the rest of the Radio Shack team.

Renshaw deserved what he got, unfortunately it was a little too late for our local boy to prove himself in the Tour, despite the fact that he was riding with a broken wrist, Tyler Farrar.

I have no doubts that in a fair sprintout, Tyler will give his opponents a run for the money, maybe next yr. He did pull out the next stage after Renshaw was booted leaving Canvanish more vulnerable to not succeeding in a sprint.

As far as Contador, didn't he jump Andy a moment or two before he had that breakdown, thus putting him in front and with the noise that is at the front of the pack, I doubt he would have heard or seen Andy have the problem. All is not lost for Andy yet.

Least we not forget the great finish to the race of the last timetrial with Lemond and Fignon in 1989 when he won by 8 seconds, Laurent probably lost it by not going timetrial bars, great drama at the finish.

At this point it wouldn't surprise me to see AC attack on the final stage to Paris. No respect for traditions. Very unfortunate. I hope AS tucks this experience away and draws on it in the next several stages when they're hammering hard up the mountains to hand AC his azz. But that's just me. :)

As tradition goes in the sport, you do not attack the leader during 1) a piss break; 2) a feed zone and 3) a mechanical breakdown. You may ride pass, but you allow the leader to regroup and fight it out fairly as before.

One commentator said Contador's move is establishing a new age in cycling where the old "rules" no longer apply.

BTW: in soccer, opposing team members are always helping each other off the pitch once they've fallen or been tackled.

Whatever the case, Contador being booed while upon the podium on the border town of France and his own country of Spain, sung volumes.

I didn't know about tradition. Thanks for clearing that up for me.
I still think it is not such a big deal, but I can understand the other way of looking at it.

Being a "gentleman" was the old way. Remember Armstrong waiting around for Ullrich when he went off the road in '01? (Then still beat Ullrich down - that's demoralizing if you're the guy on the losing end)

It dates back to the early days of the Tour. Remember this event has been around almost 100 years and back then, when bikes broke down it could take a long time to fix them. Also it shouldn't be a case of who has the best luck with their equipment, it should be the best rider winning. AC is a douche. He knows damn well what he did and I don't buy his claims of "I didn't know what was going on". If that were the case then he'd be incompetent - a GC rider and a team leader is expected to know what's going on.

He sees the opportunity to establish himself as the next "dynasty" after the legend which is Armstrong - and maybe all them sponsorship rights and what-not that go with it. So it's "win at all costs", which is absolutely NOT what cycling is about.

AC says he and AS made up. I call BS. Fireworks Thursday on the Tourmalet, boyz.