Posted on 07/12/2006 9:40:51 PM PDT by nutmeg
Stage 11: Tarbes to Val d'Aran/Pla-de-Beret - 206.5km
Course: Any Pyrenean stage that goes over the mighty mountain passes of Tourmalet, Aspin, Peyresourde and Portillon merits the greatest attention from the race favorites - even though this one then continues into Spain for another 40km to finish on the long, but gently graded climb to the Pla-de-Beret summit. If this Tour is going to be a free-for-all, then climbers who want to shoot for the polkadot jersey or a high GC placing must attack on this challenging day. So look for likely KOM candidates to infiltrate the breaks that are bound to form on the narrow, winding roads that precede the Tourmalet. If GC contenders wait until the final climb (13.5km at 5.4 percent) before making a move, they will end up gaining (or losing) very little time.
History: This is the first time that a Tour stage will finish at Pla-de-Beret, but stage 8 of the 2003 Vuelta a España completed a similar course (except for the Tourmalet). At the Tour, the Tourmalet stage in this more difficult west-to-east direction (18.4km at 7.7 percent) has almost always caused major upsets.
Favorites: A stage finishing in Spain has to motivate the Spanish riders. Should a breakaway succeed, look for the Euskaltel team's Iban Mayo, Gerolsteiner's Georg Totschnig or Rabobank's Rasmussen, whereas a larger group arriving at the foot of the Pla-de-Beret will favor Valverde.
15:13 - Some Riders In Yellow Jersey’s Peloton...
The peloton is led by six riders from the AG2R team. Included in this group are: Dessel, Gerrans, Moreau, Kloden, Rogers, Leipheimer, Boogerd, Rasmussen, Landis, Hincapie, Azevedo...
Recently dropped riders include: Pereiro, Popovych, Rubiera, Simoni, Da Cruz...
I am nearly certain Phil said 75 mph but you know Phil! he may have meant kph. It seems hard to believe that they could possibly descend that fast - even the motor bikes couldn't keep pace!
Sprint coming up, gotta let those KOTM have some sprint points, too! LOL.
Geez, 'only' ~62.5km to go, w/ 2 Cat 1's left!
Reports have mentioned that the road on the descent from Tourmalet are in much better shape than previous years, and that the riders' descent was especially fast this year, but 75 mph? That would be insane!
3:17 PM Azevedo
Has slipped back in the peloton, too. Discovery is having a tough time of this. Hincapie, though, is still up there.
Day-ham!!! A blowout at that speed, or 1 little rock.... Lance crashed in a descent while checking out a stage before the Tour a couple of years ago, after hitting a pebble, and was lucky he wasn't seriously hurt. Helmets are a good thing!
Did you guys see the guy running up the road next to the 2 leaders yesterday with his pants down? it was just before the Sumo wrestler!
The fastest I have ever gone on a road bike was 50 mph. It was a newly paved road, fairly straight descending a mountain pass. It was incredibly fast. I was scared to death! You just know that any mechanical failure and you are a grease spot in the road!
Did you guys see the guy running up the road next to the 2 leaders yesterday with his pants down?
It must have been my twin brother :-P
Sad. Mayo has left the race,
but TMO finally moving up to the top of the peloton. Finally :-)
If no one attacks, that would be a huge opportunity missed IMO...
BaBastooey's prediction is coming to fruition. Flecha has since been caught by the peloton, only 2 escapees left, and they're riding apart. Carne muerdo, they are...
15:37 - Results Of Luchon Sprint...
As Wegmann attacks at the front of the stage and drops De la Fuente, we can report that the points for the sprint in Luchon were won by:
1. De la Fuente (SDV) 6pts
2. Wegmann (GST) 4pts
3. Flecha (RAB) 2pts - at 3’10"
The peloton was 3’45" behind at the 144.5km mark.
The two escapees have been dropped out of the GC contenders' group. Paying the price for yesterday.
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