Hey, it's another rest day -- the second and final of the 2010 TDF. I'll if I can come up with some good and bad things. It's hard, considering how weird this Tour has been. But, let's give it a go.
The Good:
1. Mountains!
Seriously. They are so awesome. I know that I didn't get everything I wanted out of them (compared to what happened before the first rest day). I didn't even get that much crazy attacking (though we have that giant ass stage still to come, so here's hoping). But it doesn't matter, because even when nothing happens, something happens. And it's so awesome watching the guys climbing up the mountains. It makes me tired, especially when I think about the fact that I can't do any of this shit at all. I admire them (doping and all) because it's really, really fucking hard.
2. French cyclists
Sandy Casar won stage nine, Christophe Riblon won stage fourteen, Thomas Voeckler stage fifteen and Pierrick Fedrigo won stage sixteen. Four French cyclists in one week. Four. I have a soft spot for French cyclists, only partly because of my favorite being French. But, seriously. How amazingly awesome. Maybe we'll get another French win or two before the Tour's over. It's hard not to love these guys. The only sad thing is that a French rider didn't win on Bastille Day. Oh well, there's always next year.
3. Quick Step
Just a mention for the team that's somehow wormed it's way into my heart. They're doing pretty well -- with stage wins, the polka dot jersey, the yellow jersey and lots of publicity in breaks. It's pretty great to see a team that lost the person it'd normally work for (Tom Boonen) still managing to be, well, awesome. And that's exactly what they're doing. Thanks, guys. I love it.
4. Green Jersey
My green jersey boy isn't going to win it, he's not even close. I'll just pray that he crosses the line in one piece. But it's not who has the jersey that's important, it's the fact that it just keeps going back and forth. Is this the first time Petacchi will finish the Tour? Will those doping allegations get in the way of him doing anything about the jersey? Will Cav win the sprints on the last two days? Will that put him in Green? Will Thor manage to hold on? How awesome, really. More of this, please (only with dudes I like next time).
5. Drama
Oh. My. God. And y'all thought last week was bad. Apparently the 2010 wants to be the most drama filled Tour ever. And, I gotta be honest, I love it. There have been moments when I've been a bit angry (everyone flipping out about Contador taking the yellow jersey), but mostly it's been painfully fun. The Mark Renshaw incident for one -- I mean, seriously. If you can't take the heat, don't headbutt people! And, of course, the Contador and Schleck thing. They've apologized and made up. They've MADE UP. I don't even. It's so hilarious that I don't have words for it. I hope next year has just as much drama (without the headaches).
The Bad:
6. Commentators
This goes for both Eurosport and Versus, though I haven't heard too much Versus drama this year because I've been mostly listening to Eurosport. Don't get me wrong, I'd rather listen to them every day. But I get tired of hearing the same crap both on Versus and Eurosport. I get that everyone loves Armstrong, but maybe could you be a little bit less biased? I mean, it's okay to root for the Brits, you're British. But you guys don't go insane that often about them like you do about Armstrong. I just don't get it. Just as an upside, the Eurosport dudes are GREAT about answering questions (so it's not all bad).
7. Armstrong
Everywhere I turn, it's like an Armstrong love-in. Except for those awesome news articles that are slowly tearing him apart, those I love. But, seriously. It's like everyone involved in cycling loves him and wants him to do well. The word swansong was uttered far, far too many times on Tuesday. It made me a little sick after awhile and I was super glad he didn't win the stage. He's a distraction and takes away from the cycling. I can't wait until he's gone.
8. Twitter
A lot of times, this is good. But holy shit, y'all. When things go wrong or people disagree with someone, twitter fucking explodes. It's almost hilarious if it wasn't so aggravating. I'm totally guilty of this -- don't get me wrong (and that's why it's down in the bad area). Ideally, I'd like to hang out on twitter during the stage and then disappear as soon as it's over -- because even though I have my own cycling twitter, I find that I disagree with almost everyone. It's depressing, especially when I end up being pissy all day because of people on twitter being stupid. Ugh.
9. Vinokourov
I have a lot to say about him, but mostly I'm disappointed that he's back and winning. But at the same time, I've had some pretty interesting conversations with a dude who remains a Vino fan. And while I've really had a lot to think about, I still don't like Vino. I will, however, admit that even though he's gone back to doing exactly what he did before he tested positive, he's still quite an impressive rider. I just wish he wasn't such a jackass about the whole doping thing. Just man up, dude (and not just you, Vino, I mean all of the peloton -- but that's an issue for another blog on another day).
10. Cadel Evans
This is only bad because I feel so sorry for him. I'm not really a fan, but I was kind of secretly hoping he'd win, if only because everyone else is even more annoying. But it's not going to happen, because he just couldn't hack it. Kudos to him for not giving up, but ugh. It's really painful to watch him these. Go home, Cadel. You deserve a break.
No comments:
Post a Comment