[Mac+]

That's Cadel - one word. You know who I'm talking about.

[Brave Ulysses]

Eh. He's a chump. Never willing to do any of the work. Rode like a madmN on the time trial though. :P

[Dorian Gray]

I've accused him of being a wheel-sucker in the past, but I think he proved otherwise this year. He really rode a magnificent Tour, and I think he thoroughly deserves the victory. But damn, he's an emotional fellow! Tears at every opportunity. Is he really an Aussie?

I was going to subject the loyal AppleNova readership to a full account of the Tour, but I really didn't have enough time to do it justice. Had I known it would turn into such a dramatic battle, I would have tried harder to start a thread!

The podium at last: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cccCaKqwWqE

[Brave Ulysses]

Originally Posted by Dorian Gray I was going to subject the loyal AppleNova readership to a full account of the Tour, but I really didn't have enough time to do it justice. Had I known it would turn into such a dramatic battle, I would have tried harder to start a thread!

I knew something was missing from this year's tour!

Now that you mention it, I really did miss your commentary and insight.

It was a great tour this year, but unfortunately I was also very busy during it and not able to enjoy it as much as I would have liked.

Cadel certainly rode a great tour and was well deserving. Andy Schleck just didn't look as strong as I had expected this year. He really seemed to labor more than the others and on the time trial, he just appeared sluggish. Contador had a rough tough, and it was exciting to see him get his legs under him the last couple of days, even though I'm not a fan of his.

[tomoe]

Andy Schleck is a great climber, but doesn't seem to have the all-rounder skills to ever win the TdF. I think he has a better chance shooting for a Giro d'Italia GC win. He had a great Stage 18, watching him thrown down the gauntlet so far out was awesome.

This was stage 18 Andy:


Thor's descent on stage 16 was goddamn awesome. IIRC, he reached a top speed of 112kph!

I was bummed at the number of riders that crashed out early on. e.g. Wiggins, Vinokourov, and Horner.

[murbot]

Holy shit, I need to start watching cycling. The rule changes for this year look insane!!

[kscherer]

Cadel's been around for a while. Good for him!

[gsxrboy]

Cadel won it in the Alps stages when he single handedly dragged back a large portion of the time Andy was trying to put on him (or when the Shlecks tried to get him to attack/hunt down Contador and drag them back up to him... pffft). Mechanicals and the mountains couldn't dent the guts and determination of Cadel. The TT was the icing on the cake, a superlative performance from start to finish and a richly deserved yellow. He earned it.

It certainly was a drama filled 2011 TdF and was a great, bleary eyed (for southern hemispherers) watch!

[Moogs]

Cycling is for blood-doping pussies. It's worse than baseball. Is there an honest team in the entire sport?


*assumes defensive position to ward off ninja-leopards*