Tour de France 2023

[Garden Kitty]

Watching isn't as easy this year since the coverage seems to bounce around from USA to NBC to Peacock, but the Vingo/Pogo match up should make for a good storyline.

Here is the Tour Day Schmalz preview for 2023:

tour day schmalz 2023 - NYVelocity

Before we get down to our annual middle-school-level savaging of the hard-working professionals of the Tour de France peloton, we need to address the biggest development in the world of... Read more »

nyvelocity.com

 

[emason]

I’ve been watching the World Feed reruns on Peacock. (Yes, Peacock has reruns so you don’t have to get up at the crack of dawn if you don’t want to.) Aside from the technical issues they are having with sound, I prefer this feed to the Phil Liggett-Bob Roll coverage; I don’t like the shakeup in the studio announcing team for the pre-show at all. The World Feed has had no commercials so far so we get everything and the graphics supplying info are better than anything the regular feed has.

 

[Theatregirl1122]

I've been watching on peacock as well, although I'm watching the NBC feed. Personally, I think it's been super easy to watch the tour ever since it moved to peacock, and I hope it stays that way. That being said, I don't have cable.

I wish the NBC commentators would chill TF out on Cav, and I say this as a Cav fan. Although it's probably partially a symptom of not having much to talk about on sprint days.

I really enjoyed the end of stage 2!

 

[Belsornia]

I can’t get into Pogacar vs Vingegaard so all I want from this Tour is a Cav stage win. He’s still got the finishing speed but not convinced Astana can get him there, especially with LL Sanchez out. And I’m feeling nervous about Cav vs the time limit on the back of a hard Giro. All the hype makes me feel anxious and I’m sitting on my couch!

(OK, a farewell win for Thibault Pinot would be nice too.)

I’m missing Chris Boardman on the ITV coverage but Cadel Evans is a good addition this year. And we got a great interview with André Darrigade yesterday.

 

[Carolla5501]

Wrong thread

 

[Carolla5501]

I’ve been watching the World Feed reruns on Peacock. (Yes, Peacock has reruns so you don’t have to get up at the crack of dawn if you don’t want to.) Aside from the technical issues they are having with sound, I prefer this feed to the Phil Liggett-Bob Roll coverage; I don’t like the shakeup in the studio announcing team for the pre-show at all. The World Feed has had no commercials so far so we get everything and the graphics supplying info are better than anything the regular feed has.

What you mean you don't want to watch the numerous Mark Cavendish retrospectives on EVERY sprint stage LOL!

 

[Aceon6]

When I can’t watch live, I check out the race blog (racecenter.letour.fr) to get an idea of what parts to focus on in the replay. USA Network’s replay is easiest for me to navigate, so I’ve been saving the replays to my DVR and using “speed play”.

 

[Belsornia]

I can’t get into Pogacar vs Vingegaard so all I want from this Tour is a Cav stage win.

Sometimes sport is tough.

 

[Theatregirl1122]

I'll be honest. I cried a little when watching. This is not how anyone wanted the tour to end for Cav.

 

[Aceon6]

I can’t get into Pogacar vs Vingegaard

Me either. I prefer Roglic and he’s at home.

 

[emason]

Frankly, I just want to stare at Giulio Ciccone and those gorgeous dimples of his.

 

[Aceon6]

Frankly, I just want to stare at Giulio Ciccone and those gorgeous dimples of his.

Or Sepp. I like the riders who look like they’ve been eating.

 

[Garden Kitty]

I actually skipped a day or two just to avoid more coverage about Cav. Not how I wanted it to end. Astana has offered him another year, but he doesn't seem interested. But who knows.

As much as I complain about the constant commercials and the commentators, I do miss daily live coverage on basic cable. The Peacock coverage is better, but the tv coverage was more accessible. This isn't likely to attract a casual fan.

Interesting article in the Wall Street Journal about the voice of Tour radio. it's behind a pay wall, but I think this link should "gift" it.

The Voice of the Tour de France Is Also Its Eyes

Radio Tour’s Seb Piquet rides in a car alongside the race. He is a one-man narrator providing crucial information for teams and broadcasters.

www.wsj.com

 

[Aceon6]

C’est fait. And a good thing too as I have The Open to watch the next 4 mornings. I’m a bit nonplussed at today’s result, but the heat can strike at any moment, even for the best riders.

 

[Belsornia]

And the after effects of injury and trying to contest a grand tour out of race shape.

Yay for the breakaway succeeding today!

 

[emason]

Yay for the breakaway succeeding today!

The last minutes of the stage were truly thrilling. Double Yay for the breakaway.

 

[Garden Kitty]

Nice article in the New Yorker about the joys of watching the TdF

The Transcendent Thrill of Watching the Tour de France

The hours of coverage a day provide a pleasurable distraction from flooding rains, air-quality alerts, and climate dread.

www.newyorker.com

 

[Garden Kitty]

Nice article in the WSJ about Sepp Kuss. Good to see him get some attention. It's behind a paywall, but I think this link is "gifted"

The Tour de France’s Yellow Jersey Had an American Assist

As Jonas Vingegaard won the race for a second time, Colorado’s Sepp Kuss proved himself as an essential lieutenant for the strongest team in cycling.

www.wsj.com

 

[Garden Kitty]

Not the TdF, but I didn't see starting a new thread for the Vuelta at this point. I've been busy and was just sort of following along lightly and thought it was fun to see Sepp get a jersey for a few days. But I've become very interested in the intra-team drama at Team Jumbo Visma the last few days. I wonder if Jumbo was surprised by the social media reaction for the last two days.

I'm getting the impression that the real tension is Jonas and Roglic. Jonas would let Sepp have the win, but not Roglic. Reminds me of the bad old days of Armstong and Contador on the same team.

 

[NinjaTurtles]

Not the TdF, but I didn't see starting a new thread for the Vuelta at this point. I've been busy and was just sort of following along lightly and thought it was fun to see Sepp get a jersey for a few days. But I've become very interested in the intra-team drama at Team Jumbo Visma the last few days. I wonder if Jumbo was surprised by the social media reaction for the last two days.

I'm getting the impression that the real tension is Jonas and Roglic. Jonas would let Sepp have the win, but not Roglic. Reminds me of the bad old days of Armstong and Contador on the same team.

I think there is tension indeed, but also TJV tactics are not as well organized as people may think and these guys come off looking like villains. There's no indication that Primož or Jonas disobeyed orders on Angliru. It is 'easier' for Jonas to do the sympathetic thing in this situation. Supporting Sepp (which he did not do on Angliru, but did today) is to Jonas' benefit practically for TdF '24 and any other GT he may pursue in the immediate future, as well as with the media whom call him bland. Primož didn't do TdF nor Worlds to focus on Giro and Vuelta, he knows that he is second fiddle to Jonas if he does TdF. Winning another Vuelta would tie the record. What other feather in his cap can he work towards without switching teams? A hard pill for Primož to swallow if they're tactically supporting Sepp for the GC win...demoted by Jonas and now a super domestique when he is arguably the 3rd best GT rider in the world?

Having said all of that, I've been team GC Kuss for a longtime and hope he is able to pull out the win!

 

[Aceon6]

I’m planning to watch tomorrow to see how it plays out. They’ll let Evenpol go, but if Ayuso, Landa, and or Mas go too, it might be a nail biter. One bit of bad luck can cost 4-5 minutes on such an up and down stage. I’m team Sepp. If he wants it, I hope the team manager is on his toes. As for Roglic, he’d already have more hardware if he could stop falling. This is his first clean race in ages!

Peacock will have the full stage starting with the pre race show at 5:45 Eastern. CNBC starts at 10 which might be too late for some of the trickier hills.

 

[Aceon6]

Well, it played out as expected with Roglic at least looking like he was happy for Sepp. Vingegaard looked genuinely over the moon with it, though. Tomorrow should be fun. 11:05 eastern on Peacock with CNBC joining at noon.

 

[NinjaTurtles]

It’s a never before seen feat to have the same team win all three GTs with different riders in a single season. There is a rumor going around that TJV might update the bikes to have pink bar tape for Primož, yellow bar tape for Jonas, and red bar tape for Sepp.

Happy for Sepp, he’s easily MVP of TJV and arguably the sport for the past two years.

 

[Aceon6]

Happy for Sepp, he’s easily MVP of TJV and arguably the sport for the past two years.

And Sepp is starting contract negotiations. Ob, Jonas really wants to keep him on the team. I’m guessing Primoz has mixed feelings. With TJV having the bankroll to get almost anyone they want, I’m not sure that Primoz won’t have to out ride another teammate regardless of how the contract goes.

 

[Garden Kitty]

The last stage is over and I'm beginning to think GCKuss is going to happen.

 

[Garden Kitty]

I think this link should be to a "gifted" column by Jason Gay in the Wall St Journal about Sepp's Mom during the Vuelta.

Could I Get the Wi-Fi Password? My Son Might Win the Race of a Lifetime

Behind the success of cyclist Sepp Kuss is an adventurous mother who taught him how to ride –and followed much of her son’s historic victory on her phone while on an epic mountain hike.

www.wsj.com

 

[Garden Kitty]

Cav to continue one more year?

Mark Cavendish to postpone retirement and ride on with Astana Qazaqstan, reports

British sprinter reported to have reached agreement with current team to continue racing in 2024

www.cyclingweekly.com

 

[Garden Kitty]

Cavendish is official for another year and Astana just hired Michael Morkov per their twitter!

 

[Aceon6]

Cavendish is official for another year and Astana just hired Michael Morkov per their twitter!

That’s huge.

 

[Garden Kitty]

Cute article about Sepp Kuss's celebration in Durango

Never forget the feeling (of Sepp Kuss' Durango parade) - Escape Collective

Sepp Kuss came home.

escapecollective.com