Macca
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Joined
Everything posted by Macca
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It's tricky getting the times right though JJ . It's at best a semi-intelligent guess ! I just know there's many like me who just love those big climbs . Wednesday and Thursday's stages present some more big climbs (I think) I haven't given up on Cadel , mainly because he isn't going to give up on us . He's a champion . -
The Pyreness . The 1st big climb to the 'Port de Lers' will commence soon after 10.40pm , whilst the 2nd big climb to the 'Mur de Peguere' will happen sometime after 11.40pm . Stage 14 ... THE VIEW OF JEAN-FRANCOIS PESCHEUX An appetiser "We have reached the Pyrenees! But this is more of an appetiser than a mountain stage proper. Things will get going at kilometre 116 with the ascent to the Port de Lers, with 11.4 km at 7%. Then comes the Mur de Péguère, which is making its Tour debut and could deal some serious damage too: some sections are close to an 18% gradient, with 10.8% at the finish! Nevertheless, the distance to Foix will make great climbers hesitate. In my opinion, this is more of a stage for all-rounders such Voeckler and Chavanel. Or maybe a 50 man strong group with the freshest riders in it...
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My favourite memory of Brett Lee was the Boxing day Test at the G in 1999 . It was Lee vs Tendulkar (plus various other duels) . Brett took a 5er and Sachin got a ton in India's 1st innings . Lee was seriously quick in that Test .
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Another picture-postcard stage where 'Le Tour' hits the Mediterranean later in the night . Stage 13 ... THE VIEW OF JEAN-FRANCOIS PESCHEUX Not a piece of cake "Another long stage. This one stretches 217 km from Saint-Paul-Trois-Châteaux to Cap d'Agde, where the bunch will embrace the Mediterranean. A treasure trove of beautiful TV pictures... and the prospect of a sprint finish, at least among those fast men who have managed not to lose contact on the climb up the Mont-Saint-Clair, 23 kilometres from the finish. In other words, the stage is not a piece of cake and the race could go crazy. Moreover, the wind is always a menace near the Mediterranean, and we already saw what it can do when the Tour visited La Grande Motte in 2009..."
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Here's the story ... http://www.telegraph.co.uk/sport/othersports/cycling/bradley-wiggins/9399306/Tour-de-France-2012-Bradley-Wiggins-burnt-by-flare-as-rowdy-spectators-mar-the-closing-stages.html
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Latest hit from Jack White Macca 9.2 [media=]
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Bewdy ! Good pick up . Corrected original post .
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Early start for 'Le Tour' today . In fact , they've started the 1st climb as I'm posting this . SBS coverage starts at 10pm (as usual) but you can watch it live at SBS online . They've gotta be a bit weary after yesterday's stage ! Stage 12 ... THE VIEW OF JEAN-FRANCOIS PESCHEUX Many will get fidgety "Yet another strategic stage, one which could tip the balance in the points classification on its own. Why? Because we have adorned the first part of this long stage (226 km) with the Col de Grand Cucheron and the Col du Granier. The latter will be climbed on its most difficult side. A high pace will knock out the sprinters, favouring riders who are fast and capable of hanging onto the bunch on climbs. We will insist that time limits be applied strictly, so I bet many riders will get fidgety, and some of them will not forget the finish in Annonay any time soon..."
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Ta mate . Yeah that profile looks damn tough tonight ! Who knows what's going to happen ? 'Spose the beauty of it is we don't know what Cadel or Bradley are thinking . Froome is the red herring in all of this . Just how good is he ? Evans could continue to bide his time but you'd reckon that the BMC team will have at least one prolonged attack in them . Hope SBS show the conclusion of the 1st climb . Should be done by 10.20pm (ish) . I like Gabriel's dish of the day but happy to miss one night ! As an aside , I really like Wiggins anti drugs stance . It's great to see a top sportsperson speaking out in such a way .
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The 40 minute 1st climb to the 'Col de la Madelaine' will commence sometime after 9.40pm . The 40 minute 2nd climb to the 'Col de la Croix de Far will commence sometime after 11.10pm and the 30 minute final climb to 'La Toussuire' starts sometime after 12.40am . Must viewing tonight . THE VIEW OF JEAN-FRANCOIS PESCHEUX A tough one "One of the shortest stages in the 99thedition. But riders beware, it is a tough one! The course is simple: after the first thirteen kilometres from Albertville, the peloton will be hard pressed to find a single inch of flat terrain! The cyclists will tackle La Madeleine, La Croix de Fer and Le Mollard one after the other before the final climb up La Toussuire. Let me tell you, the final podium will start to take shape on the finish line here! Those who falter in this stage will get no second chances. The winner will not be known yet, but the losers certainly will."
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The climb to the 'Col du Grand Colombier' should start sometime after 11.30pm tonight . Stage 10 ... THE VIEW OF JEAN-FRANCOIS PESCHEUX Break away and come together "Back to the mountains. On paper, the Grand Colombier is a monster. In my opinion, it is the toughest mountain in France, with sections at 12%. Nevertheless, its location 43 km from the finish changes the story altogether. Rather than a single devastating attack, I see a group of five or six strong riders break away and then come together before the finish. This is a classical but always exciting scenario, especially if one of the big names is missing from the breakaway. Look out just before the riders reach Bellegarde-sur-Valserine: we found a small bump which could very well make things easier for the finish line judge..."
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It's never over till it's over . A lot can happen in the next 2 weeks , a crash , an injury , 'Hitting the wall on a grueling climb' . I wouldn't wish any of the first 2 things on Wiggins - that wouldn't be right . But those big climbs are a different story . Wiggins and his team have laid down the gauntlet and do look very strong but ... Cadel ain't gonna give up . He's largely had to do things on his own before so that bit isn't a problem . The next 2 stages will tell a story - some big climbs .
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Time trial tonight . Wiggins is away at 12.39am . Evans shortly beforehand . Just a heads up - Rest day tomorrow but the stage's on Wednesday and Thursday have some big big climbs . Stage 9... THE VIEW OF JEAN-FRANCOIS PESCHEUX A clearer picture "How shall I put it? A crucial stage riddled with heritage sites and tourist landmarks. I mention heritage and tourism because it starts from the Royal Salt Works, which date from the time of Louis XV. The stunning pictures will be broadcast in 190 different countries. And I say it is a crucial stage because, after ten days of racing, the time trial will give us a much clearer picture of the state of affairs. The beautiful course is similar to the stage around the Lac de Vassivière a few years ago. We chucked in a climb which will no doubt sap cyclists' legs. We chose this terrain to make it easier for strong riders to prevail."
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Ha ha ! Roger just far too good . He's just an absolute class act . Long may his career continue . Be interesting to see where Andy's career goes to now . He needs a slam and I hope he breaks through sometime soon . I like the idea of a 'Big 4' .
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One set all . We could be in for a long night !
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Jean-Francois' view sums up this stage quite well . Stage 8 ... THE VIEW OF JEAN-FRANCOIS PESCHEUX A terrific launch pad "In my opinion, this could very well end up being the key stage of the Tour! The course is just 157 km long, but it has been designed to promote attacks and comebacks. If a favourite loses three minutes on the previous day's final climb, he will get the chance to make amends on this stage. There is a succession of six climbs, including the Col de la Croix a mere 16 km from the finish. This 3.7 km climb with an average gradient of 9.2% is a terrific launch pad! In short, this course is reminiscent of the one in Les Rousses, where Sylvain Chavanel stole the show two years ago. Back then, Andy Schleck regretted not having scouted the stage beforehand. This time he cannot say no-one has warned him."
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Well done to Serena , Agnieszka was brave and won the 2nd set and hopefully she'll be back to fight another day . That's 5 Wimbledon singles titles each to the Williams Sisters . A mighty effort .
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That was an enthralling finish . The winner , Chris Froome , from the Sky team won the stage but the real drama was watching Evans and Wiggins . Sky having 3 riders in the first 5 must be a little bit of a concern for Cadel and his BMC team . 'Spose we're used to seeing Evans battle on his own . Gee he's a little fighter .
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Here we go . The first of the mountain stages . Stage 7 ... THE VIEW OF JEAN-FRANCOIS PESCHEUX Using 'La Planche' as a launch pad "The first mountain stage of the Tour will be a complete contrast to the opening week and is was always going to be a different sort of rider who excels on the road to La Planche des Belles Filles. The peloton has been ravaged by crashes in recent days, especially the carnage that wiped out so many riders on the road to Metz. Still, some of the big pre-race favorites all survived the chaos and Wiggins, Evans, Menchov and Nibali are all still in contention for the podiumin Paris. Still many may have to accept that a win could now be out of reach. That might be the case for Fränk Schleck, Alejandro Valverde, Robert Gesink and Michele Scarponi – who were all casualties of the crash near the end of stage six. They now only have one solution to put themselves back in contention: attack! Fabian Cancellara recognizes that his time in the yellow jersey is due to come to an end but some of the potential winners of stage seven are loathe to inherit the leader's color too soon. Evans timed his race into yellow perfectly last year, taking the lead with only one day to race. And he'll be satisfied if he manages it that way again this year. This is the stage when we're going to see who is able to keep dreaming of the top step of the Parisian podium."
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This is 'Shinedown's latest hit called 'Bully' . This band , from Jacksonville , Florida formed in 2002 Macca 9.1
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Federer wins in 4 after putting on a Master class in the last 2 sets . Roger completely over-powered Novak . No easy task . Wow ! Just Wow !
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This Federer / Djokovic match is a beauty . Hope we go to 5 !
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Last flat stage before we tackle some tough climbs over the weekend . Stage 6 ... THE VIEW OF JEAN-FRANCOIS PESCHEUX Sprint expected but not certain... "There is another day of flat racing and thus the consensus is that this will be another day for the sprinters but there are some lessons to take home from the early stanza of Le Tour 2012: accidents happen, riders can falter, and some lead-out trains are more organized than others. Peter Sagan missed out on adding points to his tally in stage five because of a crash. Matt Goss has been consistent and appears to be getting closer to his first Tour stage win. André Greipel’s crew has proven to be the most formidable this year. And, on top of everything, there is a week of racing with weary legs and damaged bodies to consider." "We've seen three bunch sprints this year but each has been affected by a crash leading to the finish. Surely what we all want to see in Metz is all the specialists going head-to-head before the Tour arrives in the mountains. A true, pure sprint. That's the likely conclusion for stage six but a glimpse at the finish of stage five reminds us that the escapees are getting closer to pulling off a coup. Perhaps today will be the day that the attackers are the big beneficiaries."
