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Paris-Tours... LIVE!

Copy_of_pineapple_face_tiny by Chris... on in Live Races

Man, talk about a war of attrition: 250km over some slightly rolling terrain, in mid-October. Obviously Paris-Tours is an important race, and the sprinters haven't had much fun in a while, save Paris-Brussels, so there will be some pretty keyed-up racing. If they can get to Tours intact, this race will come down to a bunch sprint for glory. But the conditions are ripe for a breakaway, and there's a pretty solid history of such tactics working. The result: about 30km or so of a really good chess match, with at least half the teams involved.

Teams desperate to maintain order: Liquigas (Bennati); Quick Step (Boonen, Allan Davis); Rabo (Freire); Silence (McEwen); Milram (force of habit).

Teams looking for a free ride from the teams in the first category: this category consists of teams who can win in a bunch sprint but probably won't feel overly compelled to do the work, if only because they KNOW the names of 4-5 teams who are sure to take over. Reason number 4,238 to love cycling: the way every team's strategy is in part a reaction to the strategies of at least five other teams. Anyway... Columbia is in here: with Eisel stepping in for Ciolek (ill), they can stick someone else on the front for a change. Garmin, I suppose I'd like to see them focus on getting Tyler Farrar in the final sprint, but like Columbia they won't have to chase down breaks for that chance. Euskaltel (Fernandez), AG2R (Usov), Cred Ag (Renshaw) and Gerolsteiner (Haussler) will be looking for an escort to the last km too.

Teams bent on madness: This is the list of teams which can and should be looking for the right escape: Cofidis (Nuyens), FdJeux (Gilbert!), Lampre (Ballan), CSC (pick a name); Tinkoff (Ignatiev?) and well, everyone else.

Should be fun. Video at Eurosport, probably other sources. Check Cyclingfans.com ASAP!

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I kinda love this race.

I just searched YouTube for some video of Dicky V winning in, what was it, 2001? I swear that moment lives for me right alongside the miracle 8 second thing on the Champs in ‘89 and I didn’t even get to see Dicky’s ride—just read about it on CN! Anyway, I didn’t find video of the 2001 race.

But this race proves that riders make races, and hills sometimes make riders afraid to race (unless your name contains an allusion to the color green)… Check the list of winners for Paris-Tours. There are a few chumps, and Eddy never quite got over, but the list is pretty. Riders like Tafi and Dekker, Sorenen, Museeuw, Durrand and Tchmil. The sprinter’s classic? Maybe, but also a race for the very hard.

I’ll be rooting for Senor Flecha.
Vive la Paris-Tours!

Never, ever, work with a sprinter.

by Put 'Em in the Gutter on Oct 12, 2008 4:05 AM EDT   0 recs

Five riders 10’05" up the road after seventy klicks. Lucas Euser and David Zabriskie (Garmin), Sebastien Delfosse (Landwouwkrediet), Cyril Lemoine (Credit Agricole) and Tom Veelers (Skil).

pounding along in three ratios like a sonata
like a Ritter with pommelled scrotum atra cura on the step
Botticelli from the fork down pestling the transmission
tires bleeding voiding zeep the highway

by fmk on Oct 12, 2008 7:22 AM EDT   0 recs

who’s riding

pounding along in three ratios like a sonata
like a Ritter with pommelled scrotum atra cura on the step
Botticelli from the fork down pestling the transmission
tires bleeding voiding zeep the highway

by fmk on Oct 12, 2008 7:24 AM EDT   0 recs

Race Poster - classy

pounding along in three ratios like a sonata
like a Ritter with pommelled scrotum atra cura on the step
Botticelli from the fork down pestling the transmission
tires bleeding voiding zeep the highway

by fmk on Oct 12, 2008 8:07 AM EDT   0 recs

man . ..

I hate it when those UT riders send a break up the road—

I don’t think that K-State rider will be able to counter.

Oh, it’s not collegiate cycling?

Never mind . . .

by R Mc on Oct 12, 2008 9:42 AM EDT to parent up   0 recs

live vid soon

alfa sport has a runner that says PT live after tennis

by Choo Choo on Oct 12, 2008 9:05 AM EDT   0 recs

link?

"Wizard's first rule. People are stupid. They will believe anything they want to be true or fear to be true." -- Terry Goodkind

by umwolverine on Oct 12, 2008 9:09 AM EDT to parent up   0 recs

live feed

anyone noticed that the tennis match on eurosport has just started….that’s not a good sign

by bradBordeaux on Oct 12, 2008 9:12 AM EDT   0 recs

real life pong

i was hoping KUN would win 3-0 or maybe one of them would concede out of boredom

by Choo Choo on Oct 12, 2008 9:18 AM EDT   0 recs

Cycling audio just started here on eurosport

pounding along in three ratios like a sonata
like a Ritter with pommelled scrotum atra cura on the step
Botticelli from the fork down pestling the transmission
tires bleeding voiding zeep the highway

by fmk on Oct 12, 2008 9:22 AM EDT   0 recs

and video here

pounding along in three ratios like a sonata
like a Ritter with pommelled scrotum atra cura on the step
Botticelli from the fork down pestling the transmission
tires bleeding voiding zeep the highway

by fmk on Oct 12, 2008 9:23 AM EDT to parent up   0 recs

Oscarito!!!!!!!!!!!!

"I won! I won! I don't have to go to school anymore." -- Eddy Merckx, after winning his first bike race

by ELVISGOAT on Oct 12, 2008 9:27 AM EDT   0 recs

Hi, good morning, all. Thanks for the early updates.

Backstedt is commentating on ES and says that Dave Z is racing in his TT skinsuit today, laughing at his quirkiness.

by Ruthann on Oct 12, 2008 9:29 AM EDT   0 recs

Skinsuit worked for Nicole Cooke at the Olympics

by William H on Oct 12, 2008 9:40 AM EDT to parent up   0 recs

in '96

this was first classic i ever saw on the old OLN…remains one of my favs

by Choo Choo on Oct 12, 2008 9:30 AM EDT   0 recs

ad for vaca in mexico

must be real value for euros

by Choo Choo on Oct 12, 2008 9:38 AM EDT   0 recs

Mornin all!

So, looks like we have a while to go still…

"If writing too much about the Classics is wrong, I don't want to be right."

by Chris... on Oct 12, 2008 9:40 AM EDT   0 recs

Anyone else think Dave Z will go for it

when they hit the 50k to go marker?

by Ruthann on Oct 12, 2008 9:40 AM EDT   0 recs

Wow, beautiful scenery, sunshine, road furniture...

I want to enjoy this, as it’s going to be hard going cold turkey next weekend :-) I haven’t seen Ballan yet, was that him near the back? Too much pixellating on my link to see…

by Ruthann on Oct 12, 2008 9:48 AM EDT   0 recs

Hm

looks like the sprint teams aren’t taking too many chances today.

"If writing too much about the Classics is wrong, I don't want to be right."

by Chris... on Oct 12, 2008 10:04 AM EDT   0 recs

Also

Justin.tv isn’t the smoothest operation on the planet is it?

"If writing too much about the Classics is wrong, I don't want to be right."

by Chris... on Oct 12, 2008 10:05 AM EDT   0 recs

just - in

i’ve seen better coverage from them, may be their feed

by Choo Choo on Oct 12, 2008 10:06 AM EDT   0 recs

There is a Paris-Tours Espoirs (179 km)

race that just finished – won by a French guy

by cyclingchallenge on Oct 12, 2008 10:13 AM EDT   0 recs

BTW, off-topic, Bruce, but how wonderful to hear of

Martti Ahtisaari’s Nobel Prize! Congrats to him! Big news!

by Ruthann on Oct 12, 2008 10:22 AM EDT to parent up   0 recs

Thank you!

That was huge for him (and us)! :)

by Bruce Suomi on Oct 12, 2008 10:24 AM EDT to parent up   0 recs

minor names

Remember Pronk in Paris-Roubaix? Have not noticed him since.
Bert Roesems… finally healed, after endless injuries?
Makes me look forward to the spring.

by JFS_PGH on Oct 12, 2008 10:27 AM EDT   0 recs

Marc Madiot - manager de la Française des Jeux:

“la course n’a pas encore vraiment commencé.tout le monde est encore frais. La course va se débrider dans les kilomètres à venir.”

The race hasn’t tsrated yet. Everyone is still fresh. The race is going to “take-off”(?) in the next few kms

by cyclingchallenge on Oct 12, 2008 10:31 AM EDT   0 recs

Tjallinghi and Tommy V

trying to bridge up to LeMoine.

by Ruthann on Oct 12, 2008 10:32 AM EDT   0 recs

group of 8-9 ?

whos a danger

by Choo Choo on Oct 12, 2008 10:33 AM EDT   0 recs

Who is the Columbia rider?

Is that Kolobnev in there?

by Ruthann on Oct 12, 2008 10:34 AM EDT   0 recs

who's the L&BOUW rider?

if that is L&bouw?

by JFS_PGH on Oct 12, 2008 10:34 AM EDT   0 recs

qs

shutting it down

by Choo Choo on Oct 12, 2008 10:35 AM EDT   0 recs

boonen

jumps ahead of peleton?

by cyclingchallenge on Oct 12, 2008 10:38 AM EDT   0 recs