UKC

Starts tomorrow and if the boy didn't have rugby training in the morning I'd be heading to Drumlanrig.

Plenty to look forward to though, according to the beeb, including Honiston Pass and Mount Snowdon!


http://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/0/cycling/24076709

In reply to coinneach: booked Wednesday afternoon off to watch the stage finish in 'beris. Debating wether to watch the finish in the village or head up to watch them coming down the pass.

In reply to coinneach: Thanks for the reminder. Any idea when this will be on TV (freeview)? Can't find it on the BBC page and would like to record it.

In reply to Martin1978:
BBC don't do cycling much, if at all. ITV4 at 9pm

In reply to steelbru: Brilliant, thanks.

In reply to Martin1978:

Live on ITV4 in the afternoons apart from tomorrow's stage.

In reply to coinneach:
Here!s hoping it goes ahead according to plan, the weather could play havoc tomorrow and Monday.

Also hoping the big names stick it out and don't disappear to Tuscany before next weekend

In reply to Chris the Tall:

Must check Wednesday's route, as I think it goes right past our drive. Maybe I should stop Sir Wiggo and ask him for an autograph

In reply to coinneach: Thanks. Enjoyed watching yesterdays highlights, made the weather at the GNR look good!

In reply to coinneach:

I am still amazed that some of the BBC sport reporters still haven't got cycling.

This morning the Radio 4 reporter was talking about a British win and said, "well Sir Bradley finished in 37th place so it doesn't look like he will be challenging this year".

Also, why is Brad 9th in the GC anyway - http://www.cyclingnews.com/races/tour-of-britain-2013/stage-1/results

How are those time gaps figured out?

Alan

In reply to Alan James - Rockfax:


I think Wiggins got a 1 second time bonus for being 3rd in the intermediate sprint.

In reply to Alun:
and PS yes I heard Rob Bonnet make the gaff about Wiggins being out of it in 37th and thus "out of it". Very surprised as usually he is well-informed. You can always send him a tweet to correct him! https://twitter.com/RobBonnet

In reply to coinneach:

According to the Fantasy website, today's stage is described as FLAT!
I don't know what planet the Fantasy team are on, as a stage with Honister, Chestnut Hill, Dunmail Raise, plus the finish up Beast Bank in Kendal is anything but flat. I don't expect a big bunch sprint unless the peloton decides to treat the main section through the lakes as a 'Club Run'.

If they decide to go hard for the first hour or so as they head towards the coast, the race could blow apart with the strong crosswinds that are blowing today.

In reply to coinneach:
Very disappointed re yesterday
When I realised they were going to a 10 mile lap near Drumlanrig I thought "this should be interesting, there's some cracking trails there and the roots will tricky after all this rain - now we'll see if they can really ride". But no, they stuck to the roads - how boring. Mind you they still managed to crash !

Good to see a bit of intent from Wiggins, I think it will be great for the profile of the race if he wins it.

In reply to coinneach: A shame for Cav that he was boxed in. I thought his team mates didn't do so well at setting him up for the sprint.

In reply to puppythedog:

To be honest, that was never really a Cav style finish - a little bit too uphill

In reply to balmybaldwin: ah, fare enough. I don't know much aobut all this peddalling lark but he seemed too far back and hemned in to have a hope anyway.

In reply to puppythedog:

were the roads a little narrow for the final few km ? for a massed type sprint finish, or is that usual ?

In reply to coinneach: I've yet to see Quick-step give Cav a decent lead out...

In reply to coinneach: wipe your lens cameraman..

In reply to coinneach:

Through the Lakes today, good to see them giving the real hills a go. Honister looked as painful for the pros as I remember it being.

In reply to coinneach:

Also, the ITV4 commentary is as dire as ever.

Pointless excitement when nothing much other than pain was happening on Honister.

Then, the Movistar guy riding in the break has his rear derailleur snap off at the foot of Chestnut hill. The commentators totally ignore it, he drops back, swaps bikes, catches a lift back up to the group with Quintana and Martin who were chasing. Commentator says "oh, he dropped back to help Quintana".

Then one of them mentions the "dangerous descent" off Chestnut Hill. There is no descent off Chestnut Hill, because it's the climb up to the valley that leads to the Thirlmere road.

In reply to stewieatb:

I wonder if they missed it, and just did not know, rather than ignoring it

In reply to dale1968:

Those overhead shots don't work so well on tree covered roads, do they ?

In reply to coinneach:
Great to see the crowds on Honister and in Kendal - proper cycling weather too- reminds me of many of my rides in the Lakes. Just a pity that Honister came so early in the race

In reply to Chris the Tall: Some great times up Honister in tough conditions!

http://www.strava.com/segments/2646387

Has anyone seen a split for Quintana up Honister, I bet he was a minute quicker than the peloton.

In reply to coinneach:

What a finish to today's stage!

Wiggins wins todays time trial and takes Gold jersey!

In reply to coinneach: Stage 4 tomorrow and they finish by cycling over the Llanberis Pass! They had better not park their bikes there!

In reply to Sean Kelly:

Watched the race go past about 12:00pm at Calverhall near Whitchurch. There was a group about 2mni 40sec in front. Good turnout of spectators, many of whom had arrived on a bike.

In reply to wilkesley:

Blimey, Stoke to Llanberis! That's a bit of a hike - sort of puts it in perspective somehow.

jcm

In reply to johncoxmysteriously:

I'm a bit puzzled about one thing - any cycling buffs help? It says here that Pen y Pass is a category 3 climb. That's the highest category before hors categorie, right? But PyP is nothing compared to the Alpine passes, surely - why, I've cycled over it myself.

What am I missing? Is the category system not a measure of difficulty but of the points awarded in the given race, perhaps?

jcm

In reply to johncoxmysteriously:

It goes the other way - 4, 3, 2, 1, HC

In reply to TimB:

Aha - thank you.

jcm

In reply to johncoxmysteriously:
As ever, Inner Ring has all the answers:
http://inrng.com/2012/07/tour-climbs-categories/

The fact that there is no fixed formula is beautifully demonstrated by the fact that the Tour of Britain regards Haytor as a category 1 climb.....

In reply to HughM:

Interesting situation today - what are you supposed to do in Wiggins' situation if your team has failed to get you up to the break? At some point do you have to go for it and do some work chasing the break down yourself, or is that not how it works?

jcm

In reply to johncoxmysteriously: A break like todays wouldn't be allowed to get away if the leader was in it. None of the other teams would let the leader gain more time easily.

In reply to coinneach: Just watched the race go through Capel Curig and got a grand total of 0 decent shots!

In reply to johncoxmysteriously:

There is no one in the break who is a threat to Wiggins so Sky won't care if the break stays away. Alistair Slater is the highest placed GC rider in the break and is 2:15 down on Wiggins so they just need to keep the gap below that for Wiggins to retain the gold jersey.

The more interesting position is for Cav. This was a stage he could potentially have won but because they have a man in the break (Iljo Keisse) they haven't joined in the chase. They better hope Keisse wins from the break (on the basis it looks like it will stay away) otherwise they've blown a chance for Cav. On the otherhand, if Sky do catch the break, Cav might still win and his team won't have had to do any work.

In reply to HughM:

Indeed. So that's how it's done - you just unleash Stannard near the finish and he tows you back near enough that the sprinters get interested, et voila.

jcm

In reply to johncoxmysteriously:

PyP (and Stannard) certainly destroyed the break so maybe it is worth more than a category 3. On the otherhand, Cav did go up it at the front of the peloton, so maybe not.

In reply to TimB:

Loosely equivalent to the gear you need to use in your car to climb the hill (depending on the car obviously)

In reply to coinneach:

Bumbled out of the office to get some video and attempt to acquire some decent shots this afternoon (just north of Ruthin). Failed miserably...

youtube.com/watch?v=8w7wN61EY8c&

In reply to coinneach: This race is driving me nuts! Why not finish on top? Quintana and Martin have no chance of staying away on the decent, the whole race seems designed so Bradley is certain to win. Why bother with the other 7 days, just crown the TT winner...

In reply to shaun l: tomorrow's finish is at the top of Haytor

In reply to shaggypops: which is the first hill top finish in the ToB for a long time

In reply to shaun l:

At least two breakaways have thrown away their leads, with Martin and Quintana lack of race radio had a lot to do with it, but on Wednesday they just didn't work together.

In reply to shaun l:
Correct me if I'm wrong but isn't this the first time it has included either a TT or a summit finish?

I think I asked on here why there weren't more summit finishes, or at least uphill, and the answer was that you need a fair amount of infrastructure at the finish, as well as parking for buses etc. this is why they often use ski resorts in the France and Italy.

But give credit to the organisers, we have seen a variety of finishes. Very select bunch at the finish today, only 20 or so, so it is proving quite selective

In reply to The New NickB: They've no chance of staying away, they're too light. TT's are well and good but I want to see the best climbers ripping each other to shreds, that makes exciting racing! It'd be a miles better race if stage one had finished in Eskdale... Oh well, it's better than last years at least

In reply to shaggypops:

Woohoo bike prepped! Will be doing the climb in about 5 hours time. Reckon it's going to be bonkers up there.

In reply to coinneach:

When will they put Hugh Porter out to pasture?

He doesn't have a clue what's going on.

Not that Brian Smith is the best of broadcasters but full credit to him for covering Porter's cock ups without drawing attention to them. He's got his work cut out.

In reply to Rory Shaw:

Very excited about today's race!

In reply to Chris the Tall: Couldn't they just finish on top then roll down to the nearest town/village? Would be such a more balanced race with a couple of hill finishes, hopefully we'll see a shake up today or at least see Sir Wiggo pull his finger out

In reply to La Shamster: Give us a wave on telly

In reply to shaun l:
I agree it might be better for the race, but don't forget that the start/finish towns pay for the privilege. Mondays stage was designed to show off the beauty of the Lake District, but also promote Kendal itself. Now from one standpoint finishing on Honister pass would have been great (and they could plug the VF...), but might not have been as lucrative.

This is what you have to bear in mind with cycling - the fans don't any provide the income (well not directly at least), so it's all about getting maximum exposure for the various sponsors. So whilst its great that the race has been able to attract the likes of Quintana, Martin and Ciloek, stage wins for Cav and the overall for Brad will increase the attention the race gets.

In reply to Chris the Tall: Ah, that explains it. Cheers.

In reply to coinneach:
Another cracking stage today.

great to see Simon Yates winning it, will be interesting to see who he and his brother sign for, and how they fare

In reply to Chris the Tall:

If they were to sign for Sky they'd be used as fodder. JTL won last years ToB and Sky ground him into the ground this year through over training him - not that Brailsford would want that known!

Interesting to note the young British riders who have left Sky and gone on to a solid career such as Dowset and Steve Cummings. Adam Blyth has done well enough going his own way as well.

In reply to DaveHK:


The BBC did. Then the producers of the ITV coverage - commissioned by Sweetspot the ToB organisers evidently asked him to commentate. Cycling in Britain is a small scene and no doubt Mick Bennet at Sweetspot is an old pal of Huge's...........

In reply to coinneach:

I think next year they should make it a climbers special. A finish at Cairngorm would be a good mountain finish, perhaps heading from Fort Bill. Followed later in the race by a Fred Whitton special, that starts and and finishes in Kendal and takes in Gummers Howe and Scout Scar at the end. Beastly riding on that one!

In reply to brokenbanjo:

Was it just Me or did Yesterday's stage seem a bit short for a grand tour, not much more than 100k really... They were only riding three and a half hours.

In reply to VS4b: It's not a grand tour. With a 2.1 rating it is several notches below grand tour.

It was 137km by the road book, so not much shorter than the shortest GT stages.

There are several other factors to consider in the route. At the level of the event there are a fairly high number of Continental teams (e.g. most UK domestic teams). If you want them to do something other than just make up the numbers (which sponsors and teams wont like) then you need stages short enough that the WT teams wont just shell them out the back before the closing part.

At this time of year any big name riders will be looking toward the imminent worlds, and so if you make a course that can leave them broken as some GTs seem to, they just won't be attracted to the race.

I think for the level of the event the route is reasonably good. If it got bumped up to 2.hc that may change, but that could be to the detriment of domestic teams.

In reply to DaveHK:

. . . of course he has. He just gets caught up in the excitement of it all, and makes the odd mistake. From the helicopter shots its difficult/impossible to pick out individual riders at times. I like his enthusiasm. I also think he might be a little deaf, so shouts a lot. He was a bit of a hero to me back in the day

In reply to HB1: I agree, he injects a bit of exciting enthusiasm to the coverage.

In reply to Andrew Smith: I agree and can't decide between itv and Eurosport commentary. I do like Maggi B....he just gets the nod over Smithy.

In reply to coinneach: An amusing quote from the Independent. The writer is not too keen on road closures:

"The thrice-cursed triathlon, than which there is no sillier sight in sport, not even counting beach volleyball, synchronised swimming and trampolining, from which you can at least shrink away with your head lowered when you have lost, instead of having to leap from the indecorousness of one into the indignity of the next, in a single unbroken sequentiality of shame.

In Australia they call it The Iron Man. I happen to know this only because I was once strolling along a beach in Broome, thinking my thoughts, when 30 orange men in tiny pea-green bikini bottoms and Esther Williams bathing hats came charging out of the water in my direction, shouting “Out of the way, dickhead!”, which prompted me to ask who they thought they were to be calling me a dickhead, the dickheads, whereupon a race official screamed “They’re the Iron Men, you galah! Move.” And the next thing I knew they were riding bikes over me on the sand. But one thing I will say for them: at least they didn’t close the beach."

In reply to VS4b:
Had a lot to do with the fact that they had a 4 hour transfer to Guildford afterwards. Long transfers has apparently been a regular irritant for the teams in the various editions of the race. People complain if the race doesn't visit Scotland, or is too flat, but ther are these logistical difficulties to contend with.

It's not so bad for Sky with their Death Star bus - actually that was part of their marginal gains strategy - but is harder for smaller teams

In reply to coinneach: didn't like the way cav squeezed the other guy into the rough cobbles..

In reply to malk:

In reality I don't think the cobbles were any worse that side. I think it was just Viviani's ragged style and the effort that had his bike popping about. Never-the-less he was unlucky not to win, definately more his loss of momentum than Cav's "second kick" that made the difference.

Having said that Cav did well to survive from so far out....

In reply to JLS: cav admitted it was a deliberate tactic..

In reply to malk:

Been a great Tour of B so far.

I must confess, after standing at the top of Honister for 4 hours, I bought myself a new water proof.

Joss Naylor was there, in his underpants eating gravel mind.

In reply to malk:

Yeah but im not convinced it was the key factor in the victory despite how it may look on slow-mo. I think his bike could have skipped on any other line but without seeing the cobbles up close I guess it's a hard argument to sell.

In reply to Nevis-the-cat:

Hot gravel or cold gravel?

In reply to malk:

Deliberate but fair - it was gradual and still left him plenty of room to get past, which he did, albeit briefly.

Cav isn't the rider he was 2 years ago, less raw speed, but more experience

In reply to Chris the Tall:

In reply to DaveHK: I get irritated with his frequent references to 'theirselves' instead of themselves. And one minute he is talking about a technical finish, the next that it isn't a technical finish.

In reply to HB1:

Oh come on, it's more than just the odd mistake.

Within about 5 mins he spoke about a lone rider bridging to the break that had been caught about 2K back. He then said Pardilla had gone on the attack (not once but several times) when even I could see it was Quintana. And about 5 mins after that he said that a pair would sprint for the finish just as the bunch caught them.

He continually calls the tactics wrong too.

Whatever he was in the past he's an old duffer now.

In reply to DaveHK: We could have to listen to Carlton Kirby

In reply to JamButty:
It's difficult to lead from the front in a sprint, so choice of line is about the only benefit you have

In reply to Squarf:

Stop it. You're frightening me now.

In reply to DaveHK: David Duffield???

In reply to DaveHK:
Have to agree, but he's been getting it wrong for years - completely misread Nicole Cookes win in Beijing.

However a lot may be down to the feed and info he gets from the race radio - why for example were there no split times in the TT ? Is this a UCI rule, like team radios ?

In reply to Chris the Tall: there was a half way split but the whole thing lasted 20 mins not worth it...

In reply to DaveHK:



. . . yeah, and I'm an old duffer too! And you'll be one one day mate, so give the man a break (he's an MBE don't forget)!

In reply to HB1:

All true but I'd like to think I'll know when to call it quits.

In reply to Chris the Tall:

That might be true sometimes but quite often in the ToB Porter has said something only to have Smith gently and tactfully correct it.

In reply to coinneach:
where can one follow the action today? nothing on the bbc website

In reply to Kimono: ITV 4 live from 4pm

In reply to HB1:

The odd mistake??? Every time the guy opens his mouth he cocks it up. He tries to generate a faux excitement based on what appears to be zero knowledge of cycle racing.Makes you realise how good the lads on the T de France are....

In reply to Andrew W:
thanks!

ps is that online as well? (no tv)

In reply to Stone Idol:

I'm going to count them today. Would anyone like to offer odds?

In reply to Kimono: Its online as well http://www.itv.com/itv4/ that should be the right link.

In reply to coinneach: i dont mind carlton kirby,must be hard to talk for 3 hours live

In reply to Andrew W:
gracias amigo!

In reply to Chris the Tall: The Yates brothers are signing for Orica GreenEdge, so the they said on ITV.