7.12.2007
Le Tour 2007!
I don't know how much you are into Le Tour de France (TDF) but it's really interesting to follow. There are so many things going on it's unbelievable. You've got races going on for:
- The General Category (GC, Yellow Jersey - aka - maillot jaune ) best aggregate time overall (this is the most prestigious), and you can get time bonuses by finishing in the top of a stage.
- The Points Classification (Sprinters, Green Jersey - aka - maillot vert) - points are awarded at predetermined places on various stages with varying values. For example, the race directors could say the first five riders to mile 70 in stage 5 get points, say 5pts for 1st there, 3pts for second there, and so on. But this makes other little races within the race and makes for a lot of variations in strategy.
- The King of the Mountains (KoM, Polka Dot Jersey - aka - maillot à pois rouges)
- Best Young Rider (White Jersey - aka - maillot blanc) rider under 25 (as of Jan 1 of the tour year) in the highest place
- Overall Team (normally, there are 9 riders on a team) the overall team is determined by adding the best 3 riders times on each stage and the team with the lowest combined time wins.
- Most Aggressive Rider (prix de combativité) - Rider that attacks or does the most to animate the day's racing.
One of the websites I check when looking at cycling stuff is Velo News. They usu have some pretty interesting commentary and you can follow a live race coverage web update with some of their staff covering the race. It's pretty exciting to do it that way and they'll help by explaining a lot of what's going on. If I can't watch it (which I usu can't live because most of the races finish at ~8:30a), I try to wait until the race is almost over and then read the commentary and try to time it with the finish of the stage. Then I can get all the action at once and know when the days stage ends, who's come out on top. =) Plus I like reading the rider diaries which usu has one of the riders in the tour giving their impressions on a given day.
And you've got riders going just for stages wins for various reasons on specific days. Maybe they're good at climbing and it's a hilly stage, maybe they're good on the flats and a good sprinter and think they can out position anyone else. Or maybe they finish in their home town, or heck, I'd like to say I won the stage on Champs-Élysées in Paris, or maybe they're feeling good that day, maybe they don't want another team to get a time bonus, maybe their sponsor just wants a stage win or two, lots of things to vie for. Plus what if there is a crash or what if someone you think could win the race looks really weak one day? Make him pay and lose some time. So many different reasons, and so many different riders with different roles. Makes for a lot of options. Plus now with communications and then on TV they'll show some of the riders cadence (rpms) and heart rates (bpm), which is cool too if you check yours at all as well.
And something else I've missed in the last couple of tours is that the US Postal team is not there anymore, well the USPS just doesn't sponsor a team. I always thought that was so cool, having a team sponsored by the US govt, plus they were so dominant...oh well... there are still a ton of other cool teams.
Other informative links:
Team Page
Course Details
Race Results
I don't know how much you are into Le Tour de France (TDF) but it's really interesting to follow. There are so many things going on it's unbelievable. You've got races going on for:
- The General Category (GC, Yellow Jersey - aka - maillot jaune ) best aggregate time overall (this is the most prestigious), and you can get time bonuses by finishing in the top of a stage.
- The Points Classification (Sprinters, Green Jersey - aka - maillot vert) - points are awarded at predetermined places on various stages with varying values. For example, the race directors could say the first five riders to mile 70 in stage 5 get points, say 5pts for 1st there, 3pts for second there, and so on. But this makes other little races within the race and makes for a lot of variations in strategy.
- The King of the Mountains (KoM, Polka Dot Jersey - aka - maillot à pois rouges)
- Best Young Rider (White Jersey - aka - maillot blanc) rider under 25 (as of Jan 1 of the tour year) in the highest place
- Overall Team (normally, there are 9 riders on a team) the overall team is determined by adding the best 3 riders times on each stage and the team with the lowest combined time wins.
- Most Aggressive Rider (prix de combativité) - Rider that attacks or does the most to animate the day's racing.
One of the websites I check when looking at cycling stuff is Velo News. They usu have some pretty interesting commentary and you can follow a live race coverage web update with some of their staff covering the race. It's pretty exciting to do it that way and they'll help by explaining a lot of what's going on. If I can't watch it (which I usu can't live because most of the races finish at ~8:30a), I try to wait until the race is almost over and then read the commentary and try to time it with the finish of the stage. Then I can get all the action at once and know when the days stage ends, who's come out on top. =) Plus I like reading the rider diaries which usu has one of the riders in the tour giving their impressions on a given day.
And you've got riders going just for stages wins for various reasons on specific days. Maybe they're good at climbing and it's a hilly stage, maybe they're good on the flats and a good sprinter and think they can out position anyone else. Or maybe they finish in their home town, or heck, I'd like to say I won the stage on Champs-Élysées in Paris, or maybe they're feeling good that day, maybe they don't want another team to get a time bonus, maybe their sponsor just wants a stage win or two, lots of things to vie for. Plus what if there is a crash or what if someone you think could win the race looks really weak one day? Make him pay and lose some time. So many different reasons, and so many different riders with different roles. Makes for a lot of options. Plus now with communications and then on TV they'll show some of the riders cadence (rpms) and heart rates (bpm), which is cool too if you check yours at all as well.
And something else I've missed in the last couple of tours is that the US Postal team is not there anymore, well the USPS just doesn't sponsor a team. I always thought that was so cool, having a team sponsored by the US govt, plus they were so dominant...oh well... there are still a ton of other cool teams.
Other informative links:
Team Page
Course Details
Race Results
Labels: cycling
¶ 8:53 AM
