After I removed spoilers from a WRUW post I thought it would be a good idea to have a place to leap off the couch and shout YES without upsetting those unfortunates who have have to wait for the ITV 4 highlights or the Pony Express delivering the dead-tree edition of L'Equipe to tell them what happened.

So we have Adam Yates in yellow, yes really, Alaphilippe's team were seen giving him a drinks bottle within the last 20km and he was docked 20 seconds. I'd love to see fellow Brit Yates in yellow on the Champs-Élysées, but can't see it until, until -- what does he need to do?



OTOH I really like Primož Roglič and am backing him for the overall this year. Jumbo-Visma have studied Sky's methods very carefully and they have the riders to do it this year. Ineos do not IMO.

And while I'm here did you notice what team today's winner, Wout van Aert, has on the side of his jersey? My lucky Hema watch is going to be on my wrist for the next 2-1/2 weeks

 

If I were a betting man I’d put money on one of the Slovenians, but I’d like to see Alaphilippe win for France after all these years without a tour victory. He’s an exciting cyclist who likes to take the race to his competitors unlike the creaking Ineos machine who win by power meter.

 

How good was the Aussie sprinter Caleb Ewan the other night.... Anyone that watches the last 800m from the above view would see how amazing that win was.

 

I saw an interesting theory that Alaphilippe’s team ‘gave up’ the maillot jaune as then they wouldn’t need to defend it through the first week/s. Now all the pressure is on Mitchelton Scott, who have a higher ranked GC rider in Yates.

 

Giving up the yellow jersey is different to giving up 20seconds and 16 places. I don’t think it was a deliberate move.

 

Well it’ll certainly make these videos more interesting

 

Sam Bennett in green! Awesome achievement and Ireland have only waited since 1989 when the legend that is Sean Kelly last wore it

 

I've been having it on in the background at the office in the mornings, but I feel like every time I try to pay attention to it it is on a dang commercial break.
This is on NBC Sports.
Like seriously. It is all commercials. I swear they show like 1 min of riding and then it is 10 min of commercials.

 

ITV 4 (British channel) have 4 mins of ads + station ident then 10 to 30 minutes of live coverage. They have a very experienced production team and commentators and punch in the ads when things are quiet to give much longer continuous coverage when things are expected to hot up. They have some relationship with Eurosport's coverage but I don't know what it it is.

ITV 4 is mainly minor (== not footy) sports and repeats of 70/80's Brit cop shows and the ads are for animal rescue charities and funeral pre-payment schemes. Today in an ad break while I was checking the route book I briefly glimpsed a Speedy on the screen. Oh yes, that Watchfinder mob turn up with advertising sometimes. Hmmm, must get my own funeral funding organised.....

Today I had BBC Five Live Extra's coverage of FP1 and FP2 at Monza on the radio (which F1.com also put on their website -- but with about 45 seconds delay. Why? is Jennie Gow going to say naughty words?) and ITV 4 for the TdF. Who said men can't multitask?

Aaaaand van Aert for Hema in first place again! No photos because I couldn't find the camera -- discovered much later balanced on top of the garlic jar in the kitchen. Now why did I do that?

 

I watch/ listen to it on Eurosport, top notch coverage & commentary team including Sean Kelly

Who will win it this year ? Tom Dumoulin aka The Crapper
My logic - Why else would he join Jumbo-Visma ?
He certainly is not a support rider or #2 ( excuse the pun ) if he is ever to win it then this is the year.
Tomorrow's stage may well give us some good clues though, hopefully Ineos wake up and put the hammer down.

+1 on Sam Bennett wearing the green jersey, Sean Kelly did well to hold himself together during commentary

 

Sky/Ineos have always played a long game, see who’s strongest going into the final week when everyone else is spent, then act accordingly. I’d like to see Yates win it, but probably wishful thinking. Anyone but Sagan in green.

 

Greetings from Flushing Meadows - I've been streaming Amazon TV, muting the sound (except when the superb Sam Smith is commentating), synchronising 5Live SX soundtrack, and trying to monitor TdF online. I'm cognitively exhausted, as well as 3 days behind schedule! It may help now the focus in NYC is going to start moving to night sessions.
C'mon Yates, c'mon Bennett! But what a talent van Aert is - good luck to him too.

 

The only way to watch coverage on NBCSN is to DVD it and watch it at your own leisure. There are some periods where it is literally 1 min of coverage and 5 or more minutes of commercials although the commercials decrease as the finish nears. I'll start watching at 10am Central Time and can zip through all the commercial nonsense, I'd go nuts if I had to sit through all the commercials.

 

As a non-American I find it amazing how many ads you have to watch. Don’t the broadcasters realise that there must reach a point where the over-saturation means people just stop watching thus defeating the purpose altogether, or are you conditioned to accept the situation?

 

Wout Van Aert

 

Looking forward to the two Pyrenean stages this weekend. Lucky enough to have live coverage from the gun and highlights the next day - plus there aren’t many ads to worry about (SBS in Australia has been doing a great job with the TDF for many years).

I’ll try and stay up for one or both stages - they start at about 9:30 PM here and normally finish about 1:30 - 2:00 in the morning.

 

Gutsy ride by Yates to stay in yellow today. Roglic looks good...

 

Very entertaining stage -- the second half anyway. Good rides by most of the main contenders, and strong showings from relative newcomers. With a rest day to follow I hope the riders will make same effort tomorrow.

 

Yates will do well to hold Roglic off tomorrow, but I think whoever has the jersey at the end of the day will keep it til Friday at least, bar crashes etc.

 

I just checked the weather forecast for the west coast of France for the week and it's warm with a mild wind from the north to east. Damnit, what we want is a decent wind off the sea to liven things up. Both Roglič and Yates seem to be be thinkers who take it steady and let others wear themselves out in grand gestures. I think it will come down to whoever has the strongest team-mates.

And that van Aert again today, what a man