Stage Predictor Game: Uphill battle to downhill terror(stage 15)

by Phil H. on Jul 18, 2010 11:18 AM EDT

The second of four Pyrenees stages features a 187 km jaunt across the mountains with the key player being the Port de Balès which summits 20km from the finish. Good chance the break survives today.

Profile:

Map:

Climb Details:

Km 30.0 - Côte de Carla-Bayle - 3.1 km climb to 4.1 % - Category 4
Km 105.0 - Col de Portet-d'Aspet - 5.8 km climb to 6.8 % - Category 2
Km 126.5 - Col des Ares - 6.1 km climb to 4.7 % - Category 2
Km 166.0 - Port de Balès - 19.3 km climb to 6.1 % - Category H

What Christian Prudhomme says:

It is a sure thing that some riders will lose Le Tour because they are not sufficiently skilled at descending. From the Port de Balès to Bagnères-de-Luchon, the bends are extremely delicate. What’s more, the foot of the Peyresourde slopes are only three kilometres from the finishing line, meaning there is no way of clawing back any ground lost. To date, the Port de Balès has only been climbed once by Le Tour, in 2007. Beforehand, there was not even any tarmac. It was specially laid for cycling races. This pass is magnificent, hard and not very wide. Once the riders reach the top, a good downhill rider can open up the gaps, for example Samuel Sánchez, because it really is a very technical descent. More importantly, there may well be a lot of riders left by the wayside.

GC and Riders list

all info from letour.fr

Time to make prediction:

Until 12:20 CEST; 6:20am ET; 3:20am PT

Yesterday's summary: Rawls wins the stage by way of picking Menchov in 2nd, 11 of you had Samu in 3rd and will share 2nd. The leaders of the overall all marked each other today and finished with the same total(2 points).

Stage Scores:

rawls-3

11 tied with 2

Overall Scores:

JustJoshinYa-49

Ozzie5365-45

dees ees en drama-43

full scores here

Tweet Comment 42 comments | 0 recs |

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Comments

Ozzie5365 stage 15 picks

Fedrigo
Szmyd
Gesink

Vamos Alberto!
Quitter's People United member # 42

by Phil H. on Jul 18, 2010 11:47 AM EDT reply actions 2 recs

S Sanchez
LL Sanchez
Cunego

by rawls on Jul 18, 2010 11:57 AM EDT reply actions 2 recs

Cunego's knocking...

1.Cunego
2.Moreau
3.Monier

by Triki on Jul 18, 2010 11:58 AM EDT reply actions 2 recs

1 samu
2 lulu
3 menchov

"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 Jul 18, 2010 12:43 PM EDT reply actions 2 recs

I may as well go out on a limb

Brajkovic
Szmyd
Lloyd

Vamos Alberto!
Quitter's People United member # 42

by Phil H. on Jul 18, 2010 2:14 PM EDT reply actions 2 recs

hmm..

Menchov
Samu
Gesink

Tommeke!, Tommeke!, Tommeke!, Tommeke!

by Vlaanderen90 on Jul 18, 2010 2:27 PM EDT reply actions 2 recs

Sticking to my theory, and i hope i'm right

1. Sanchez
2. Menchov
3. Schlecklet

"You know if there's any contact at all Cristiano Ronaldo's gonna go down...maybe even just a puff of wind"

by agl on Jul 18, 2010 2:52 PM EDT reply actions 2 recs

which sanchez?

"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 Jul 18, 2010 3:17 PM EDT up reply actions

Samuel

"You know if there's any contact at all Cristiano Ronaldo's gonna go down...maybe even just a puff of wind"

by agl on Jul 18, 2010 3:19 PM EDT up reply actions

Armstrong might give it a shot?

But he will come up short…

1. VanDenBroeck
2. Gadret
3. LuisLeonSanchez

by FrenchKheldar on Jul 18, 2010 3:33 PM EDT reply actions 3 recs

Armstrong
Schleck
Samu

"It's a lovely thing, feeling that momentum. If you're lucky, it's also about grace." Tim Winton

by sminer on Jul 18, 2010 6:00 PM EDT reply actions 2 recs

Two straight asses?

Vamos Alberto!
Quitter's People United member # 42

by Phil H. on Jul 18, 2010 6:04 PM EDT up reply actions

I wouldn't assume they're straight

just one after the other.

"It's a lovely thing, feeling that momentum. If you're lucky, it's also about grace." Tim Winton

by sminer on Jul 18, 2010 7:07 PM EDT up reply actions

Let me answer it this way then

I’m not sure of their sexual preference

"It's a lovely thing, feeling that momentum. If you're lucky, it's also about grace." Tim Winton

by sminer on Jul 18, 2010 10:19 PM EDT up reply actions

e'tape 15..... A.B.C >> 'Bale's out' over 'Luch-on'

Aerts, M……..#102….(OLO)
Brajkovic, J….#22…..(RSH)
Cunego, D….#201….(LAM)

I am sooooooo glad I didn’t have to ante-up $$$ to get this frustrated!!!!!

Soli Deo Gloria

by LooseHorse on Jul 18, 2010 6:01 PM EDT reply actions 2 recs

Samu
Cunego
Lulu

"I was just trying to keep warm" - Ian Stannard on finishing third in KBK

by civetta on Jul 18, 2010 7:03 PM EDT reply actions 2 recs

Going for broke with three lads who've lost enough time to be given a few minutes leash...

1. Damiano, what goes up must come down – I just hope I come down fastest, Cunego
2. Sylvain, if I can get into a break and over the top well before Sammy Sanchez, I might have a chance for #3, Chavanel
3. Nicholas, I’m not my father, but damn he was a bad-ass so maybe it wouldn’t be so bad to be him, Roche

(expectation is to score 0 on this, but I wanted to go different and have some fun)

by JustJoshinYa on Jul 18, 2010 8:50 PM EDT reply actions 2 recs

Thought for a moment our leader would miss the start!

Vamos Alberto!
Quitter's People United member # 42

by Phil H. on Jul 18, 2010 8:51 PM EDT up reply actions

almost did - rough weekend...if any of these guys scores it'll be a miracle...

by JustJoshinYa on Jul 18, 2010 8:55 PM EDT up reply actions

Well you holding steady

Ozzie is a pretty good TTist though so he may just counter attack. I am going for a daring attack 180km out which will lead to nothing!

Vamos Alberto!
Quitter's People United member # 42

by Phil H. on Jul 18, 2010 8:56 PM EDT up reply actions

are holding

Vamos Alberto!
Quitter's People United member # 42

by Phil H. on Jul 18, 2010 8:57 PM EDT up reply actions

I still need another Sanchez

Samsan
LL San
Menchov

"Waar is die Idioot?" R. McEwen to F Dostoyevsky-Post Stage 6 2010

by frans verbiage on Jul 18, 2010 9:14 PM EDT reply actions 2 recs

Okay...

1. Samsan
2. Cunego
3. Armstrong

"How strange it was to see men doing something beautiful. Something pointless and elegant." Tim Winton, 'Breath'

by Seahorse on Jul 18, 2010 9:38 PM EDT reply actions 2 recs

Mad descending...I need a reverse ASS

Sanchez (Samuel)
Sanchez (Luis Leon)
Alexandr (Vino 4Ever)

"If I'd attacked one more time I'd have dropped myself." Schleck Jr

by perezbike on Jul 18, 2010 9:46 PM EDT reply actions 2 recs

I'm a believer...

not really. But I have been generally underestimating him so now I shall overestimate him for once.

1)Armstrong
2) Lulu
3) Conta

I hate mountain lions. -me

by fineco on Jul 18, 2010 10:00 PM EDT reply actions 2 recs

swells

1-Armstrong
2-Moreau
3-SamSan

by swells on Jul 18, 2010 10:09 PM EDT via mobile reply actions 2 recs

Honestly? I'm not seeing a breakaway tomorrow

Saxo Bank will be killing the peloton because they know the clock is ticking. Or Astana may kill the peloton. I’d be surprised if it wasn’t one of the two. Either Shack or CdE will want no part of a breakaway succeeding. SamSan will target the stage as well. Right course for a break, wrong circumstances.

Contador
SamSan s.t.
Schleck s.t.

http://www.bah.net/

by dees ees en drama on Jul 18, 2010 10:15 PM EDT reply actions 2 recs