teamless tour de france

Roadrash Dunc

I concede a reduction to 7 men from 9 may actually make things more 'exciting' although it good be argued it wont make any great difference.But removing teams per se is completely stupid.

However , you are messing with peoples careers and livlyhoods then.I wouldnt want to be the one who told the 2 who miss out on a major tour - teams already have to tell a dozen people they are missing out.All this will do is cut another 2 or 3 people per team , making pro bike racing even harder to get involved in.
Here in Britain we struggle to get quality riders onto Div 1 European teams , we dont want any more hurdles.Bradley Wiggins , Gold silver and bronze medalist at the Olympics couldnt even get into the Credit Agricole team for a major tour this year.
In fact , i'd rather see more riders given a chance.

Bianco

I agree that a teamless tour won't happen, even if I beg.... but boring? no way.
It used to be an indy sport, was it boring then? You'd have a lot more back-stabbing, a lot more handshake deals gone awry... i'll help you if you help me. Pseudo teams would develop because its understood that we'll ride faster together than apart. But these "teams" would consist of opponents, and could change on a daily basis. The only reason the TdF is exciting is for its drama factor. The olympic road race was an extremely boring course, it seemed the entire pack finished in 4th.

Part of the reason I started musing on this was... I was wondering if Lance would still be champion without his Postal Squad.

Roadrash Dunc

Yes he probably would if thats the question.

He has proved he is strongest in the TTs , Mountain stages and has a fair turn of speed for sprints (although he wouldnt want to contest many)
He gets obvious help on the tough stages from his team , but its all relative.

Honestly , it would be like wathcing triathalons.You dont have all the underhand deals going on in triathalon (apart from a few tugs in the water) just some very fit people racing the same old way week in , week out.

You said the Olympic roadrace was a boring course thats why the pack finished 4th : well thats what will happen on just about every flat stage in the Tour with no teams.In fact , the Olympic course had twists and turns to encourage break-aways which is exciting on flat stages.
Heaven knows how dull a standard TdF flat stage would be with no team orders.You wouldnt have anyone able to put the hammer down to try to split the peloton on a bad day like CSC did in the North this year or like USPS tried when Mayo got stuck on the cobblestones.

Seriously bad idea.If it wasnt , and would make the sport more exciting , you'd have heard the organisers approaching sponsors by now to try to make it happen.But team sports/events are always more exciting than individual events , thats a fact.

derKaiser

But just the opposite would happen. Fewer riders means more teams. If every team (21 of them) in the Tour this year cut two riders, there would be six more team invited (42/7 = 6). Instead of bringing no-talent domestiques to the Tour, this new format would allow for more of the best riders to show up and lead their own teams. Maybe Wiggins could catch a ride to the Tour with another team.

But also keep in mind that Wiggins didn't medal in the road race or time trial...but on the track. The Tour isn't meant as a showcase for track riders, nor is it meant as a gateway to the sport of cycling. It's the premier event, and should be reserved for the premier riders.

Roadrash Dunc

The roadrace in the Olympics is omewhat of a lottery - lets forget avout talking about that.

TTing over that distance is also something only the best have a chance of winning - usually team leaders.

The track is actually a rather good place to find promising young riders and see what they are capable of.Chris Boardman wouldnt have made it anywhere near the TdF without the track , admittedly his discipline was a longer distance that made team directors sit up and take notice.
But when you see the Aussy teams do so well and the amount of Aussies in the major Div1 teams , there has to be a connection.
Cutting the teams to 7 might make room for newer riders in a new team but im not convinced : you'd still have those domestiques ahead of you in the pecking order fo a new team otherwise someone like Wiggins would be the domestique already.

donhix1

That is a good one. Even the mighty Merckxx could win a grand tour without a team.

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donhix1

During the last two Olympics Ulrich and Bettini won. Bettini is one of the best one day racers and Ulrich isn't a slouch. If you followed these races you would know that team work was instrumental in both of these wins. Luck had very little to do with it.

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keydates

I think luck is a significant factor, although not a deciding one for any single-day race. If a rider doesn't have the legs one stage of, say the Tour de France, he can always try to make it up in the other stages, and, if the gap made on that one day isn't too bad, still allows for a possibility to win. However, in a one day race, if you just aren't "on" that day, you have absolutely no chance in redeeming yourself.

Roadrash Dunc

Perhaps if you followed these races and listened to what the riders had to say before the Olympic RR , you would realise it IS somewhat about luck.Luck and judgement.Catching the right break is basically what 1 day stage racing is about : Bettini just happens to be acutely aware of what the right break is.
There aren't an awful lot of team tactics , especially in the Olympic RR.
You miss the lucky break , you lose.Simple as that.

donhix1

Luck had nothing to do with Bettini's win. He went and only one other rider could stay on his wheel. Perhaps if you listened to the interiews after the race you would know this. If you listened to the interviews before the race I would say Bettini was the favorite. Luck is usually connected with an unexpected outcome.
Bettini said from the first of the year that the Olympics was his focus. There may be some luck involved in one day races and lesser riders win world championships and world cups but riders like Bettini, Mueseuw and Rebelin have more than luck going for them.

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