The trouble with cycling suddenly being popular in the UK is...

Uncle Dave a écrit profondement:

| Have you slept through the last twenty years of Ts de F?! Brailsford
| has simply carried on a tradition that goes back to Indurain. The GC
| became boring with Indurain and the coming of the Tour specialists and
| their trained monkeys. With a handful of exceptions, the Tour has
| been boring ever since. I'm surprised you can't see it, hence the
| media hype comment. Still, good for you if you can find enjoyment in
| predictability, enjoy!

| I mostly watch for the chateaux nowadays...

Talking to old friends, some of 50 years standing or more, all find the
TdF "Boring" although there's been a glimmer of hope the last couple of
years.

Perhaps unpredictability adds interest to an otherwise lackluster event.

--
Davey Crockett
Flying the Flag of the English
The Flag of Hengest and Horsa

atriage a écrit profondement:

| Do you actually like any kind of current cycle racing?...time to take
| up golf perhaps.

Well that's one way of telling a guy to "Go Scrub his Balls"

--
Davey Crockett
Flying the Flag of the English
The Flag of Hengest and Horsa

On 05/08/2012 07:15, Davey Crockett wrote:
Uncle Dave a écrit profondement:

| Dull!

+1

So that's at least two sad old gits in the group then.

--

On 04/08/2012 23:17, atriage wrote:

Do you actually like any kind of current cycle racing?...time to take up
golf perhaps.

True races yes. Ritual processions going through the motions the way
the Tour does nowadays, not so much. Nice scenery though and pleasant
enough as background to reading the paper that kind of thing.

Paris-Roubaix is my favourite. I've been to Tour stages and there's no
doubt it's a great spectacle but IMHO the increase in popularity,
coupled with mondialisation and the resulting specialisation in the
peloton has been at the expense of the racing. Yes, individual stages
can be exciting but it's supposed to be a Tour. There was no,
aboslutely NO, excitement in watching the GC this year. Be honest now,
unless Wiggins fell off it never looked like becoming competive. Not
even for third place FFS.

UD

On 05/08/2012 19:24, atriage wrote:
On 05/08/2012 07:15, Davey Crockett wrote:
Uncle Dave a écrit profondement:

| Dull!

+1

So that's at least two sad old gits in the group then.

I don't think it's necessarily sad to wish a race could recapture some
of its old glory. Trouble is, I doubt it ever will unless they find a
way of making the specialist teams compete elsewhere. Remind me again
how many classics Sky won this year? Major tours? Hmmmm...

UD

On 05/08/2012 22:33, Uncle Dave wrote:
On 04/08/2012 23:17, atriage wrote:

Do you actually like any kind of current cycle racing?...time to take up
golf perhaps.

True races yes. Ritual processions going through the motions the way the Tour
does nowadays, not so much. Nice scenery though and pleasant enough as
background to reading the paper that kind of thing.

Paris-Roubaix is my favourite. I've been to Tour stages and there's no doubt
it's a great spectacle but IMHO the increase in popularity, coupled with
mondialisation and the resulting specialisation in the peloton has been at the
expense of the racing. Yes, individual stages can be exciting but it's supposed
to be a Tour. There was no, aboslutely NO, excitement in watching the GC this
year. Be honest now, unless Wiggins fell off it never looked like becoming
competive. Not even for third place FFS.


I though it was very exciting watching Froome decide whether he was gonna hold
the party line or not. Anyway cheer up, the Vuelta starts soon, El Rey is back
and he's angry about his unjust suspension for eating steak, he's been training
*really* hard and he's got a lot to prove. I'm predicting fireworks in the big
Saxo - Sky showdown.


--

atriage a écrit profondement:


| I though it was very exciting watching Froome decide whether he was
| gonna hold the party line or not. Anyway cheer up, the Vuelta starts
| soon, El Rey is back and he's angry about his unjust suspension for
| eating steak, he's been training *really* hard and he's got a lot to
| prove. I'm predicting fireworks in the big Saxo - Sky showdown.

Let's not forget the 74th running of the Volta a Portugal em Bicicleta.

Admittedly not of the standing (sic), of certain other "Tours", but
boasting a few worthy winners in recent years and probably used by some
as preparation for the Vuelta.

--
Davey Crockett
Flying the Flag of the English
The Flag of Hengest and Horsa

In article ,
Davey Crockett wrote:

Uncle Dave a écrit profondement:

| Have you slept through the last twenty years of Ts de F?! Brailsford
| has simply carried on a tradition that goes back to Indurain. The GC
| became boring with Indurain and the coming of the Tour specialists and
| their trained monkeys. With a handful of exceptions, the Tour has
| been boring ever since. I'm surprised you can't see it, hence the
| media hype comment. Still, good for you if you can find enjoyment in
| predictability, enjoy!

| I mostly watch for the chateaux nowadays...

Talking to old friends, some of 50 years standing or more, all find the
TdF "Boring" although there's been a glimmer of hope the last couple of
years.

That is because you lot are boring old farts.
Get the lead out of your brain and learn to love life;
or take up golf where you can bore others to tears
with that tricky shot on number seven at St. Scriveners'.

--
Old Fritz