Le Tour Silly Questions

[nemo555]

Hi guys, I have just become fascinated with the Tour.

These guys are aliens to have so much strength each day.

But my silly questions are.

How do they know the route, is there a lead motorbike or something ?

Sometimes you see a spectator giving the riders a push up the hill, is this
allowed ?

And at the top of the mountains, what Heart Rate are these guys, for example
Lance pushing, I would think close to 100% , am I right ?

Thanks guys and gals.

Cheers

[Jeff Jones]

"nemo555" <nemo@hotmail.com> wrote in message
news:40fa236f@dnews.tpgi.com.au...
> Hi guys, I have just become fascinated with the Tour.
>
> These guys are aliens to have so much strength each day.
>
> But my silly questions are.
>
> How do they know the route, is there a lead motorbike or something ?
>
Yes. Lots. And signs.

> Sometimes you see a spectator giving the riders a push up the hill, is
this
> allowed ?
>
No. But it happens anyway.

> And at the top of the mountains, what Heart Rate are these guys, for
example
> Lance pushing, I would think close to 100% , am I right ?
>
Correct for the final climb, maybe not for the earlier climbs.

Jeff

[hippy]

"nemo555" <nemo@hotmail.com> wrote in message
news:40fa236f@dnews.tpgi.com.au...
> How do they know the route, is there a lead motorbike or something ?

I don't think alternatives are available, ie. all the side
roads are blocked off.

> Sometimes you see a spectator giving the riders a push up the hill, is
this
> allowed ?

I'm not sure about the actuall rules but it happens all the time and
nothing is ever done about it. It's hardly a major advantage anyway,
especially since it usually happens after someone has crashed.

> And at the top of the mountains, what Heart Rate are these guys, for
example
> Lance pushing, I would think close to 100% , am I right ?

100% max? I don't think so. Not unless he was really going hard to
make up time or sprinting for a win. You can only achieve your real
maxHR if you are well rested and have worked at high intensity for
a while before going as hard as possible. Even then, you can't stay
at max for very long at all - seconds I believe (6 seconds of ATP
"sprint" energy DRS?). He'd be at a high percentage of max on a
sprint at the end of a mountain stage, maybe even max, but not for
long and not every day.

hippy
- all answers are educated guesses, remember your grain o' salt