ClusterF*** (possible spoiler for those easily spoiled)

[Lewis Moon]

Go watch the last ten K of the Tour today.

[alexstar]

Shaking my head... it took a lot to win that stage, and the victor will have a massive grin on his face tonight!

[avalonracing]

Surprising that those kinds of things can happen. It it were a local event everyone would be talking about how unprofessional everyone was but these guys are at the top of the profession.

[jr59]

Way to eff up the first day of the tour.

Strange, for sure!

[bobswire]

This is one truism in life, s*** happens.

[swPArider]

How many wrecks were there in that last 20km or so? Cavendish, Sagan, and Greipel all got taken out! Hopefully the rest of the tour isn't this eventful.

[tsarpepe]

BBC is already saying "This is why the Tour is so great!" Yeah, right, awful organization does provide for unprecedented excitement.

[mike p]

100% ClusterFxxx!.......Everyone knows the Peleton is very nervous the first couple days of the tour so how hard is it to set up a straight in wide open finish from twenty mi or so out! Just for the first real stage or two.
Then you have the coach stuck under the banner!!! Radioing back and forth to the teams, changes in the finish. Now change back again!!! How bush league can you get? The riders should pack up and go home till the tour organizers can get their s**t together.

Mike

[avalonracing]

Maybe the bus driver and finish line installers are using the all the dope that the riders aren't using anymore.

[ultraman6970]

Why was so hard to take the air off the tires of that bus to lower it just enough to use reverse?

[mike p]

I know organizing a race like the Tour is a "huge" undertaking but for Gods Sake that bus under the banner was just unbelievable. I kept screaming at my TV to just back it up and take apart a barrier and pull it off the road! What a huge letdown for all the sprinters!

Mike

[Lewis Moon]

Why was so hard to take the air off the tires of that bus to lower it just enough to use reverse?

Exactly what I was thinking.
I suspect that they'll neutralize the timing on this one. The winner will wear the yellow, but everything else will be neutral. I can hear the howls of protest if they do it any other way.

[gemship]

not a big deal to me but this thread maybe reaching into spoilerville:help:

[Lewis Moon]

not a big deal to me but this thread maybe reaching into spoilerville:help:

Duly noted.

[petitelilpettit]

Someone's getting fired for overlooking the height requirement of the banner...

[tsarpepe]

Here is a tweet from one of the riders (Greg Henderson, Lotto), just to give you a sense of what the men on the bikes were subjected to:

"So at 6k to go we get told 3k sign is the finish. We use 3 men. 3.5k to go we get told its original final. Ufff. #confusingandfrustrating"

[bobswire]

Kinda reminded me of this pic I took watching the Americas Cup Cats practicing and seeing the Bay Ferry wanting to get into the mix.

http://i41.tinypic.com/est4lz.jpg

[MattTuck]

awesome. They're finding ways to create drama in the first week of the tour! I don't necessarily agree with the tactic, but you can't argue with results. :no:

[Bkat]

Someone's getting fired for overlooking the height requirement of the banner...

"Oh, you wanted the banner height in inches and not centimeters?"

[Uncle Jam's Army]

Someone's getting fired for overlooking the height requirement of the banner...

Are you kidding? This is Europe. The guy will get a promotion out of this. Any disciplinary action against him will be met by a strike stopping the Alpe d'Huez stage.

[Lewis Moon]

a pic illustrative of the day.

http://www.pezcyclingnews.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/06/stage1_martin620.jpg

[MattTuck]

For all the lameness of the prologue, it serves a purpose to get the circus up to speed.

I'm guessing we won't see another first stage road race for a long time.

[slidey]

Rumour has it that the race director for the now infamous crystal classic criterium (http://www.liveleak.com/view?i=0b0_1370924533&comments=1) has reached international fame after today.

So much for cycling being a fringe sport and all :butt:

[carlucci1106]

Why was so hard to take the air off the tires of that bus to lower it just enough to use reverse?

They are really expensive tubulars....:rolleyes:

That was some Q. Tarantino drama.

[regularguy412]

Maybe the bus driver and finish line installers are using the all the dope that the riders aren't using anymore.

I read the other thread before I read this one,, and this was precisely my thinking.

Mike in AR:beer:

[regularguy412]

a pic illustrative of the day.

http://www.pezcyclingnews.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/06/stage1_martin620.jpg

OWWWWWW-ie !!

Man! That does not look like fun. Lots of Hydrogen Peroxide and Witchhazel in use tonite!

I'll definitely be up early for Stage 2, tomorrow.

Mike in AR:beer:

[Lewis Moon]

OWWWWWW-ie !!

Man! That does not look like fun. Lots of Hydrogen Peroxide and Witchhazel in use tonite!

I'll definitely be up early for Stage 2, tomorrow.

Mike in AR:beer:

He, however, may not be there. They took him directly to the hospital. Broken collar bone or sumpin.

[regularguy412]

He, however, may not be there. They took him directly to the hospital. Broken collar bone or sumpin.

Looks like the Organizers tried 'realllllly' hard to get the TTT in with full squads by putting it early in the first week, but now even that looks like it's out.

Mike in AR:beer:

[victoryfactory]

It's bad enough that they think 200 aggressive athletes can fit on a
medieval road, but why can't they come up with barriers that don't have legs sticking out?
sheeesh.

[tv_vt]

Any links to video footage?

Thanks.

[BumbleBeeDave]

. . . they still have all the cool fashion.

BBD

[MattTuck]

Any links to video footage?

Thanks.

French (http://www.rtbf.be/video/detail_le-final-chaotique-de-la-1ere-etape?id=1835714)

bunch of other videos (http://www.cyclingfans.com/tour-de-france/videos)

[Lewis Moon]

. . . they still have all the cool fashion.

BBD

Effin' hipster.

[2wheelwill]

Sweet bus though!:banana:

[jpw]

the kink at the 3km point could have been very dangerous in a bunch sprint. are the race management on absinthe?

[oldpotatoe]

. . . they still have all the cool fashion.

BBD

Back to the 80's