Stage 16 TDF - Wednesday, July 25: Orthez - Gourette - Col d’Aubisque, 218.5km

[existence]

Gutsy effort by Cadel.

 

[Bro Deal]

Soler!!!

Love this guy.

 

[existence]

This biochicken is a complete ****. I cant wait for him to be lost to the sport. Waving his hands around like he owns the tour. ******.

 

[existence]

Soler!!!

Love this guy.

+1 He is a bloody ripper to watch. Just so original its refreshing!!

 

[hgb]

If Ras has the energy to wave off the crowd I don't see him bonking in the last 2km. It's really his TDF to lose now. Contador only gained 38 seconds on him in the last TT, he'll have to do much better than that on Saturday.

 

[Bro Deal]

Well, that's the Tour. Unless Ras is kicked out or melts down during the ITT, the Chicken wins.

 

[Tonto]

Well, that's the Tour. Unless Ras is kicked out or melts down during the ITT, the Chicken wins.

Those two contingencies are not all that far-fetched!!

 

[Bro Deal]

Those two contingencies are not all that far-fetched!!

We can always hope.

 

[thoughtforfood]

Well, that's the Tour. Unless Ras is kicked out or melts down during the ITT, the Chicken wins.

We can only hope

 

[wolfix]

The TDF has to do some double speak today....... I wonder why they are waiting past the time set for announcing the failed drug test? If RAS wins the TDF, the sponsors are really going to think even harder about what they are sponsoring.
Ras win take the jersey into Paris.

 

[Bro Deal]

We can only hope

LOL. I got mine in before ya.

 

[thoughtforfood]

LOL. I got mine in before ya.

Zip up the jersey and wave to the crowd, you took it on the line

 

[existence]

Well, that's the Tour. Unless Ras is kicked out or melts down during the ITT, the Chicken wins.

They cant let him have it. In my opinion not complying with 'doping protocols' (i.e his whereabouts) is as pathetic as failing a test. His team is responsible for knowing his whereabouts 24/7 IMO.

I hope young Walker gets the hell out of Rabobank asap. He is massive talent and needs to head elsewhere pronto.

 

[saluki]

Ras may be a doper, but he won this one the way that you are suppose to win a Tour. Not by hanging on, but by going off the front. This is the first climb or ITT all year where Levi has finished ahead of Contador. Levi saved his peak for a little too late in this Tour.

 

[musette]

Fascinating that Levi took 2nd and related time bonuses, ahead of Alberto. From DC's perspective, I would think that having an (albeit reduced) chance at yellow in Paris is worth Levi potentially not getting third on the podium as a result of such small time difference.

But maybe the thought was that Levi would have had to wait for Alberto a bit, and would have lost 10 seconds on top of the difference in time bonus between #2 and #3 on the stage, had he let Alberto be second on the stage.

The above is not based on my having viewed the stage live.

 

[doggatas]

great work by sbs australia, stay up all night to watch and rewarded by an add break for about 5 minutes just as levi went across the line!

Very poor timing to put in an add break!

 

[Bro Deal]

Evans is 1:57 behind Contador. With the ITT flatter than the last one, he has a decent chance of going into second.

If the Chicken were kicked out then we would have a nail biter of a time trial.

 

[Trajectum]

Ras may be a doper, but he won this one the way that you are suppose to win a Tour. Not by hanging on, but by going off the front.

Exactly.. If they wanted to take the chick out for missing the 2 out of comp tests they should have done it before the tour and not now. He rode like a champ, rabobank rode like a champs team. Unless he gets busted with a positive test he deserves this win (if he can take it to paris).

And what if he gets kicked. Contador gets it? I dont like Contador.. at all.. arrogant little *****. And at least as doped up as Ras is.

 

[kennf]

Fascinating that Levi took 2nd and related time bonuses, ahead of Alberto. From DC's perspective, I would think that having an (albeit reduced) chance at yellow in Paris is worth Levi potentially not getting third on the podium as a result of such small time difference.

But maybe the thought was that Levi would have had to wait for Alberto a bit, and would have lost 10 seconds on top of the difference in time bonus between #2 and #3 on the stage, had he let Alberto be second on the stage.

The above is not based on my having viewed the stage live.

It's only a 4 second difference between 2nd and 3rd place time bonuses. Of course, if Contador loses by 4 seconds, Levi's in trouble (unless Bruyneel told him to go).

 

[Bro Deal]

great work by sbs australia, stay up all night to watch and rewarded by an add break for about 5 minutes just as levi went across the line!

Very poor timing to put in an add break!

The video was lost. We got replays on the Ras crossing the line and the last kilometer.