Is anybody watching the TDF?
 

I find that for some reason I am not the slightest bit interested in watching it this year. It just seems so irrelevant somehow. Does anybody else feel the same way?

Is anybody watching the TDF?
 

Op vrijdag 11 september 2020 om 19:31:01 UTC+2 schreef William Crowell:
I find that for some reason I am not the slightest bit interested in watching it this year. It just seems so irrelevant somehow. Does anybody else feel the same way?

No. It is no more irrelevant this year than other years. I don't know your personal situation but for me it is a nice distraction from the Covid19 mess, so I'm watching the live coverage every day if time permits. I really missed pro cycling at the star of this season. YMMV.

Lou

Is anybody watching the TDF?
 

On Friday, September 11, 2020 at 1:30:52 PM UTC-5, wrote:
Op vrijdag 11 september 2020 om 19:31:01 UTC+2 schreef William Crowell:
I find that for some reason I am not the slightest bit interested in watching it this year. It just seems so irrelevant somehow. Does anybody else feel the same way?
No. It is no more irrelevant this year than other years. I don't know your personal situation but for me it is a nice distraction from the Covid19 mess, so I'm watching the live coverage every day if time permits. I really missed pro cycling at the star of this season. YMMV.

Lou

I'm watching some of the episodes. And I usually read an internet story on the day's results during the day. Watching usually occurs at Midnight or late evening. NBC Sports Network. I never get up at 6 AM to watch the live broadcast. I'm in the USA. The broadcasts seem identical to prior years with Phil Liggett's voice.

Is anybody watching the TDF?
 

I suppose we should be thanking our lucky stars that at least the riders aren't giving us clenched fists and taking a knee before each stage.

Is anybody watching the TDF?
 

On Friday, September 11, 2020 at 12:48:34 PM UTC-7, William Crowell wrote:
I suppose we should be thanking our lucky stars that at least the riders aren't giving us clenched fists and taking a knee before each stage.

That would be more noble than protesting over drug testing, and personally, I fast forward through the stage starts and the podium appearances. They can sing Kumbaya or Deutschland über Alles for all I care. However, I would tune in for "O Canada." Now that's an anthem.

-- Jay Beattie.

Is anybody watching the TDF?
 

On 9/11/2020 2:03 PM, jbeattie wrote:
On Friday, September 11, 2020 at 12:48:34 PM UTC-7, William Crowell wrote:
I suppose we should be thanking our lucky stars that at least the riders aren't giving us clenched fists and taking a knee before each stage.

That would be more noble than protesting over drug testing, and personally, I fast forward through the stage starts and the podium appearances. They can sing Kumbaya or Deutschland über Alles for all I care. However, I would tune in for "O Canada." Now that's an anthem.

-- Jay Beattie.

More goes on in the 20 minutes after the "real" start (not the "neutral"
start) than goes on in the next 2 hours, it seems to me. Most of it
comes to naught, but then most breaks come to naught also.

I tend to FF through the middle of stages, jumping to the KOM and sprint
points, then focus on the last 20k or so. Lots of stuff went on today
in the last 20-30k. I actually woke up from a doze to watch it.

Mark J.

Is anybody watching the TDF?
 

On 9/11/2020 12:30 PM, William Crowell wrote:
I find that for some reason I am not the slightest bit interested in watching it this year. It just seems so irrelevant somehow. Does anybody else feel the same way?


I look at the highlights from yesterday on the French news
every morning here.
Doesn't seem any different overall than recent Tours to me.

It is much more immediate than in my youth when we anxiously
awaited the British (I.C.S.) and French (Le Miroir)
magazines a week or two after the Tour.

--
Andrew Muzi
www.yellowjersey.org/
Open every day since 1 April, 1971

Is anybody watching the TDF?
 

On Friday, September 11, 2020 at 3:18:22 PM UTC-7, AMuzi wrote:
On 9/11/2020 12:30 PM, William Crowell wrote:
I find that for some reason I am not the slightest bit interested in watching it this year. It just seems so irrelevant somehow. Does anybody else feel the same way?

I look at the highlights from yesterday on the French news
every morning here.
Doesn't seem any different overall than recent Tours to me.

It is much more immediate than in my youth when we anxiously
awaited the British (I.C.S.) and French (Le Miroir)
magazines a week or two after the Tour.

I have been getting up at 4 am for the last couple of starts (and 6 for the early stages) and watching the entire race. Today Team Ineos did the stupidest thing I have ever seen them do - Jumbo-Visma was leading the pack and pulling hard. Ineos went to the front and accelerated. What in the hell was that for? Bernal was behind and it was up to Jumbo to pull. The sum result? In the low altitude climbs, Roglic' pounded Bernal into the ground and pulled out more than a half minute on him in the final 3 miles.

I wonder if the Ineos Team Manager has gone home sick and some team mechanic has taken over.

Now Bernal is going into the alps with at least a minute loss that is likely to grow over the next two days.

What we are seeing is a changing of the guard. All of the familiar names from the Froome era are now in their mid-30's and the 21-25 year olds are peaking and only need the experience to kick their butts.

Is anybody watching the TDF?
 

On Friday, September 11, 2020 at 3:18:22 PM UTC-7, AMuzi wrote:
On 9/11/2020 12:30 PM, William Crowell wrote:
I find that for some reason I am not the slightest bit interested in watching it this year. It just seems so irrelevant somehow. Does anybody else feel the same way?


I look at the highlights from yesterday on the French news
every morning here.
Doesn't seem any different overall than recent Tours to me.

It is much more immediate than in my youth when we anxiously
awaited the British (I.C.S.) and French (Le Miroir)
magazines a week or two after the Tour.

In the mid-70s, during college, I'd go to the local bike shop in SJ where they would put a Telex of the results up in the window. Right the https://tinyurl.com/yyftpsdp Back in the day, exactly one-half that store front was Terry Shaw's shop. I think there was a barbershop or something on the other side. Terry's shop was the size of a telephone booth, but it was awesome -- total Campagnolo shrine. Terry moved, and the shop turned into something else -- and then it became a bigger bike shop again in the '90s.

Before Terry, earlier in the '70s, it was the same tiny cubby-hole with a bike shop operated by a different guy, Steven Blyler, who went bankrupt -- with my PX10 on consignment and my $200 deposit for a Proteus frame, when Proteus was just getting off the ground. That would have been my first custom frame, but alas my $200 disappeared. One rainy night, Steven appeared at my apartment, PX10 in hand, so I got that back. http://www.classicrendezvous.com/USA/Proteus.htm Bunch of hippies! I had to wait until 1975 to get my first custom frame from my friend Dale Saso. https://sasobike.com/ I bought his fourth or fifth frame -- and many after that. He taught Keith Bontrager how to braze. I rode one of Keith's first mountain bikes around a parking lot and thought "what a pig, this will never catch on." The good old days.


-- Jay Beattie.

Is anybody watching the TDF?
 

Today's stage 20 (uphill TT) was actually exciting. Well, the last 40
minutes or so. If you haven't already heard, I won't spoil the news.

Mark J.