what utter crap!

[Tumbleweed]

that's where i was going with this. contador has had to try win in spite of his own team' date=' and not because of them.  [/quote']

 

Holy - are we watching the same tour - in mine Astana have been pacing Armstrong AND Contador for miles and miles and miles and miles. Poppy/Poulinho and to a lesser extant Zubeldia (hell - even Leipheimer and Kloden did some pacing on the high mountains) have been forcing the pace on most of the climbs and a fair amount of the flats when FDJ refused to pace and the escapees were gaining ground on Armstrong/Contador.

 

You can argue as to who exactly the team was working for but there was exactly the same protected status given to both Contador and Armstrong.

 

I actually think it was completely fair - no clear leader until one of them (Contador) created a sizable lead. In my opinion Armstrongs "wait until Contador has gapped most of his competitors then try and jump across the gap alone" tactic has shown Contador the respect he deserves as leader on GC.

rather unusual tactic. especially considering lance and johan are party to it. go back and look at the tours that lance won. i remember when t-mobile put together the "superteam", both of them said at the time that a team without any clear leader was doomed to failure. they were right. so why adopt that same approach years later? johan's strategy has always been to have the whole team work for one person. my original point is that lance does not deserve credit for working for contador, when it took him two weeks to concede that the youngster was the more likely winner. 

[whitesox]

i've had enough of this. i just read this in a bloomberg report?

 

The record seven-time champion might get more affection from the French public and support for his cancer charity ? Armstrong is losing the "selfish" image he has in France by agreeing to help teammate Alberto Contador' date=' who's leading the race, said Pat McQuaid, president of cycling's ruling body. He's also winning over locals by promoting his charity, McQuaid said.
"Armstrong is more human, less arrogant and just nicer," Joseph Lemoigne, 63, a retired factory worker from Brittany, said at the finish of a stage to Le Grand-Bornand in the Alps. "The years soften you up."

 

lance didn't "agree" to anything?he has so far been soundly beaten by the youngster. his reluctance to work for contador from the start is being ignored. it's a bit late in the game to say he helped alberto. he didn't. he doesn't deserve any kudos for it. he played very little part in the victory. should, barring a disaster, contador finish in yellow, his achievement will be all that more impressive because, unlike lance, who always had an entire squad work for him, he had to work against a squad who have not given the support he clearly deserved and have dissed him in the press.

 

[/quote']

 

I think what he did in Stage 17 by covering Wigins on the final climb and not pulling him back up closer to Contador constitutes him helping, being a team mate. Much less could be said of Contador's attack...

[Eldron]

Ha Ha Ha!!!! it's soooo funny seeing the disciples' feebly grasping at straws

 

Armstrong's greatest power is not winning the 7 tour, making a mostly succesful comeback or raking in millions for cancer - it's his ability to polarise people. The emotions run deep in the pro Lancers (I believe they're called disciples/crotch sniffers) and the Lance haters (They're the jealous losers who can't ride bikes!).

 

Love him or hate him you certainly know who he is and what he's done. You are all his biiiiatches

 

Edit: "WE" are all his biiiiiatches

Eldron2009-07-24 01:30:49

[Gasping]

 

there are no fat ladies in france. they're all thin.

 

 

French Women Do Get Fat

by Elizabeth Bryant   29/07/2007

 

http://www.thiseurope.com/node/71

[Delgado]

Ha Ha Ha!!!! it's soooo funny seeing the disciples' feebly grasping at straws

 

Armstrong's greatest power is not winning the 7 tour' date=' making a mostly succesful comeback or raking in millions for cancer - it's his ability to polarise people. The emotions run deep in the pro Lancers (I believe they're called disciples/crotch sniffers) and the Lance haters (They're the jealous losers who can't ride bikes!).

 

Love him or hate him you certainly know who he is and what he's done. You are all his biiiiatches

[/quote'] De Facto....those who do love him can ride bikes??? Oh and are "winners"! How quaint!

[Dirt*girl™]

Am I the only one that heard Lance say, after the TTT, ....'I don't think I'm going to win it this year, but the winner will come from the Astana team..' Surely he meant contador...(ahh, those eyes)..whom I prefer watching as he bobs about on his bike..but hey, I'm a girl and not really into this roadie thingy...so don't mind me, sitting back and watching you guys bicker about this. hee hee

[Guest Big H]

 

Its amazing how experienced athletes can continually embarrass themselves in public just because they don?t like someone and are so blinded by their obessive hatred.

Hey that sounds like a 150% dead on balls accurate description of a certain 37 pushing 38 year old narcissistic individual called Arse Lancehole

LA has absolutely nothing to prove to you Seawanker

 

Ignore Seawalker..... he is a TROLL.... as Lance would call him. What kind of name is Seawalker anyway.......??????

< id="gwProxy" ="">< ="jsCall;" id="jsProxy" ="">

[Joe Low]

 

there are no fat ladies in france. they're all thin.

 

They import them specially for occasions like this.

[Guest Big H]

 

 

there are no fat ladies in france. they're all thin.

 

 

French Women Do Get Fat

by Elizabeth Bryant   29/07/2007

 

http://www.thiseurope.com/node/71

 

........ but can those ladies in re........ sorry.... magenta sing??????

< id="gwProxy" ="">< ="jsCall;" id="jsProxy" ="">

[Guest Big H]

 

Ha Ha Ha!!!! it's soooo funny seeing the disciples' feebly grasping at straws

 

Armstrong's greatest power is not winning the 7 tour' date=' making a mostly succesful comeback or raking in millions for cancer - it's his ability to polarise people. The emotions run deep in the pro Lancers (I believe they're called disciples/crotch sniffers) and the Lance haters (They're the jealous losers who can't ride bikes!).

 

Love him or hate him you certainly know who he is and what he's done. You are all his biiiiatches

[/quote'] De Facto....those who do love him can ride bikes??? Oh and are "winners"! How quaint!

 

Fortunately I cannot be regarded as a "can ride" but at least I am a Blue Bull (and Bakkies Botha) supporter..... at least that counts!!!!!!!!!

< id="gwProxy" ="">< ="jsCall;" id="jsProxy" ="">

[Jean-Jay]

i think a lot of you have a problem with Lance because he has done so well.

 

I don't know what goes on behind the scenes in that or any team.

I think Lance is great and he is doing very well, i expected him to win, but he does not seem to have the edge to do it.

 

[johannrissik]

That's exactly what sheople are supposed to do, get involved in the "he said, she said" debate. That way the focus is kept off the real issue that so many don't really want to face. DOPE.

Keep your eyes on the ball folks.

 

 

 

[Tumbleweed]

 

there are no fat ladies in france. they're all thin.

 

They import them specially for occasions like this.

 

geez, they think of everything, don't they!

[owen62]

i think a lot of you have a problem with Lance because he has done so well.

I don't know what goes on behind the scenes in that or any team.
I think Lance is great and he is doing very well' date=' i expected him to win, but he does not seem to have the edge to do it.
[/quote']

I think the old adage 'Jealousy makes you nasty' is rather apt here!

[Danger Dassie]

that's where i was going with this. contador has had to try win in spite of his own team' date=' and not because of them.  [/quote']

 

Holy - are we watching the same tour - in mine Astana have been pacing Armstrong AND Contador for miles and miles and miles and miles. Poppy/Poulinho and to a lesser extant Zubeldia (hell - even Leipheimer and Kloden did some pacing on the high mountains) have been forcing the pace on most of the climbs and a fair amount of the flats when FDJ refused to pace and the escapees were gaining ground on Armstrong/Contador.

 

You can argue as to who exactly the team was working for but there was exactly the same protected status given to both Contador and Armstrong.

 

I actually think it was completely fair - no clear leader until one of them (Contador) created a sizable lead. In my opinion Armstrongs "wait until Contador has gapped most of his competitors then try and jump across the gap alone" tactic has shown Contador the respect he deserves as leader on GC.

rather unusual tactic. especially considering lance and johan are party to it. go back and look at the tours that lance won. i remember when t-mobile put together the "superteam", both of them said at the time that a team without any clear leader was doomed to failure. they were right. so why adopt that same approach years later? johan's strategy has always been to have the whole team work for one person. my original point is that lance does not deserve credit for working for contador, when it took him two weeks to concede that the youngster was the more likely winner. 

 

Looking back at previous tours yes, but to be sure they would take into consideration the effects of absence and age would have and change their approach accordingly.

So while the focus was more than likely on LA the tactic may have been to have another capable rider like AC in the team. Both riders are clearly driven and highly competitive, so it should have been clear to them and the team managment of the strong possibility of friction, to my mind it's a risk they accepted.

[White Eagle]

I am no expert in the tactics of cycling. I do however understand sponsorship and who pays the bills.<?: prefix = o ns = "urn:schemas-microsoft-com:office:office" />

What baffles me in all of this is that there is no doubt AC is the strongest by far and will, baring an accident or mechanical in the last three stages, win this Tour. And this has been pretty obvious from stage 15 up to Verbier.

Then surely from a team/ sponsors/ Managers/ team members point of view it only makes sense for the team to look at securing 2nd and 3rd place in the GC, which was certainly on the cards.

I can only conclude that if there is a non team player in Astana, it must be AC who with his attack which left Kloden out of contention for a podium in <?: prefix = st1 ns = "urn:schemas-microsoft-com:office:smarttags" />Paris, showed us he is only interested in his victory and nothing else.

If I had 4 million Euro I would certainly think twice before signing Mr. Contador onto my team.

 

Just my 2c worth.