2016 Tour de France

[WhuYu]

Try putting the full sequence of events together rather than part to justify.

 

Spectator got in the way

Motorbike stopped suddenly

Porte crashed in to motorbike

Froome crashed into Porte

Moleman OTB and over the both of them

Motorbike from behind crashed into Froome's bike on the floor and broke the rear chainstay making it unrideable!!!

 

Not quite your everyday racing crash!!

Don't feed Rouxwoteva..............it is stirring!........  

[Winstonian1984]

Motopacing has its downfalls

[Tubehunter]

Don't feed Rouxwoteva..............it is stirring!

 

If you're gonna take the mickey, then do it in comic sans or add a smiley of sorts. Otherwise all you're doing is ironically stirring....

[Rocket-Boy]

I'm surprised that there is no video footage of that person yet, so that social media can slay them for being the final nail in messing up an opportunity for BM, RP and CF to put even more time into the other GC riders!!!!

That is my problem with the result, yes they had to measure on something so Mollemer was the point they measured on, but if the crash didnt happen it would have been more time put into the others.

You dont crash like that then get up and carry on at the same pace and time as you would have without the crash.

 

Bit of a dogshow the whole thing was but also one of the most entertaining last 5k's of a race I have seen. Froome looks like a pretty decent runner

[tombeej]

I was hoping to find a pic of De Gendt and Pauwels when they were basically stopped in their tracks at one point on Ventoux by a solid wall of people who weren't moving. The two were looking around, weaving left and right a couple of times to see if a gap would open somewhere, and then eventually found a way to get going again.

 

I'm sure we all agree that having the crowds on these mountain passes really adds to the magic of the TDF (and the other big races). Over the years it's been awesome to watch, and really takes the excitement of a mountain top finish to a new level. It's flipping awesome, and so unique. No other sport can really compare to it.

 

BUT

 

Surely we can also all agree that spectators should only there to 'spectate'. When they're shouting support and encouragement from the sidelines, they're adding to the spectacle.

 

But when they're running into the road, hitting and pushing riders, causing accidents, spitting and throwing piss on people, they are now ruining the spectacle by literally affecting the outcome of the race by their actions. Surely we can all agree that when this happens, a line has been crossed and it becomes a problem that needs to be addressed immediately?

 

We might think we know the answers, sitting here in front of the telly thousands of kilometres away. But how about we actually stop and listen to the riders who are going through this shite? They are all saying the same thing: that things are really bad for them, that things are getting worse, the whole 'selfie craze' and the hitting and slapping of riders is worse than ever before, too many accidents with motorbikes, and that please could something be done about it. Is that not a reasonable request from them? Where I stand it's a helluva insensitive, dismissive and arrogant thing to say, "It's just racing, stop being a cry baby, suck it up and get over it. Get hit and slapped, have blind drunk louts run into you so that they can get a selfie with you, I couldn't care, that's all a part of racing."

 

Every single rider who has been interviewed has said the same thing. Over the last few years the situation has deteriorated. I've been watching this race for over 20 years, and I agree, it has become worse. And I for one, as an ardent fan of this sport, would prefer to let the riders decide who wins the race than a bunch of out-of-control 'fans'.

[Tubehunter]

Gen, you're on duty for finding the source of this chaos! We want a pic! 

 

With every single person pointing a camera or phone at what was happening, it's insane that nothing has surfaced yet!

[Gen]

Gen, you're on duty for finding the source of this chaos! We want a pic!

 

With every single person pointing a camera or phone at what was happening, it's insane that nothing has surfaced yet!

Lol

[koukie]

.

 

[shaper]

I was hoping to find a pic of De Gendt and Pauwels when they were basically stopped in their tracks at one point on Ventoux by a solid wall of people who weren't moving. The two were looking around, weaving left and right a couple of times to see if a gap would open somewhere, and then eventually found a way to get going again.

 

I'm sure we all agree that having the crowds on these mountain passes really adds to the magic of the TDF (and the other big races). Over the years it's been awesome to watch, and really takes the excitement of a mountain top finish to a new level. It's flipping awesome, and so unique. No other sport can really compare to it.

 

BUT

 

Surely we can also all agree that spectators should only there to 'spectate'. When they're shouting support and encouragement from the sidelines, they're adding to the spectacle.

 

But when they're running into the road, hitting and pushing riders, causing accidents, spitting and throwing piss on people, they are now ruining the spectacle by literally affecting the outcome of the race by their actions. Surely we can all agree that when this happens, a line has been crossed and it becomes a problem that needs to be addressed immediately?

 

We might think we know the answers, sitting here in front of the telly thousands of kilometres away. But how about we actually stop and listen to the riders who are going through this shite? They are all saying the same thing: that things are really bad for them, that things are getting worse, the whole 'selfie craze' and the hitting and slapping of riders is worse than ever before, too many accidents with motorbikes, and that please could something be done about it. Is that not a reasonable request from them? Where I stand it's a helluva insensitive, dismissive and arrogant thing to say, "It's just racing, stop being a cry baby, suck it up and get over it. Get hit and slapped, have blind drunk louts run into you so that they can get a selfie with you, I couldn't care, that's all a part of racing."

 

Every single rider who has been interviewed has said the same thing. Over the last few years the situation has deteriorated. I've been watching this race for over 20 years, and I agree, it has become worse. And I for one, as an ardent fan of this sport, would prefer to let the riders decide who wins the race than a bunch of out-of-control 'fans'.

Organisers have to look at themselves

 

Bastille day, French holiday and people drinking all day, Queen stage, mountain finish!!

 

Would have been better to have yesterday as a sprinter finish with lots of barriers from 3kms out

[tombeej]

When I watch the *** that we saw yesterday, I can't help but compare those scenes to what we see in the Spring Classics. Chalk and cheese. 

 

The Belgians 'lite beer' is around 9%. Their regular beer is stronger than wine. And they drink the stuff by the bucket load. And they pack those tight little cobbled lanes that are often far narrower than the tarred roads of the TDF. 

 

Yet, when have you ever seen an incident in a Spring Classic where fans have run into the road, crowded out the Kemmelberg or the Koppenberg so that the riders can't get through, etc.? Never. Ever. It just will not happen.

 

The Belgian fans are real fans of cycling. It's a culture thing - they will just not accept that type of behaviour amongst their own.

 

But the French have allowed this to go on too long. Every year these French 'fans' push the boundaries out even further. And when there's no push-back, this behaviour is allowed to escalate. It's up to the organisers and the authorities to bring this shite back into line.

 

Belgian fans in the Spring Classics. This is how it's done:

[Lexx]

Broken custom Pina, as moto crashed into it from behind or something

 

Hope they aren't insured with Outsurance.

[Gen]

When I watch the *** that we saw yesterday, I can't help but compare those scenes to what we see in the Spring Classics. Chalk and cheese.

 

The Belgians 'lite beer' is around 9%. Their regular beer is stronger than wine. And they drink the stuff by the bucket load. And they pack those tight little cobbled lanes that are often far narrower than the tarred roads of the TDF.

 

Yet, when have you ever seen an incident in a Spring Classic where fans have run into the road, crowded out the Kemmelberg or the Koppenberg so that the riders can't get through, etc.? Never. Ever. It just will not happen.

 

The Belgian fans are real fans of cycling. It's a culture thing - they will just not accept that type of behaviour amongst their own.

 

But the French have allowed this to go on too long. Every year these French 'fans' push the boundaries out even further. And when there's no push-back, this behaviour is allowed to escalate. It's up to the organisers and the authorities to bring this shite back into line.

 

Belgian fans in the Spring Classics. This is how it's done:

Spot on..

 

The crowds at Flanders are awesome..

 

 

And the riders come past a few times, they respect the race and the riders.

 

True cycling fans

[jcza]

Blame it on the weather, 6km of extra people crammed onto the lower slopes.

Drinking all day doesn't help.

Even if they allowed the result to stand with Froome 1 min down he would still be in yellow once we arrive in Paris.

 

PS: How much time was added to Hoogerland when he flew over the fence?

[jcza]

And don't forget GVA at San Sebastian

[Vetplant]

I remember a couple of years back they had to cancel a stage of the TDF due to the crowds on the climb being too big and uncontrollable. Can anyone else remember that?

 

After the scenes we saw yesterday I think most would understand if they cancelled an entire stage again in future. Obviously some teams would protest, like Movistar, who thought that Mont Ventoux would be their decisive stage.

 

I think Froome benefited the most from yesterday, psychologically anyway. It is clear that Quintana is not as dangerous as everyone thought.

[Gen]

 

Drinking all day doesn't help.

 

 

drinking for days

 

Those guys camp out for days before the tour comes past... then the drunken morons have to move down the mountain because of the change, so you have the fans that camped in the forest part and the fans that were on the top and the organisers don't bother putting more barriers.

 

 

The friend we have that lives in France absolutely refuses to go roadside on any  of the mountain stages (after learning the hard way), he says the crowds are always out of control and it's just frustrating for him to stand and want to watch the race come past with a bunch of drunken morons.. Yet he goes to Belgium every year to watch Flanders because the fans are awesome.

 

He also says the best stages to go road side during Le Tour is the the TT... fans behave themselves because it is generally true Cycling fans that go, you see the riders all day