Or as I like to call it, doing less work than normal season.
Every morning, I open up Tiz Cycling, close out a few pop-up ads, and watch some of the world's skinniest humans battle it out on a bicycle. For the most part, I imagine myself on one of the motorcycles, trying to balance going uphill at 8-12mph with a camera person moving all over the rear of the bike. It’s cool seeing the bike I purchased being used as a tour support vehicle. I’m curious why the Yamaha Niken didn’t take off as the premier motorcycle of choice for these events, but I live an ocean away and will reserve my judgment.
Edit: I will judge, because as I was typing this and watching the tour, a two-wheeled motorcycle just tipped over in a corner. This caused a pile-up and held up Vingegaard for a few seconds, then some dumbass fans pushed him into his teammate, almost causing a crash. If the moto had been a three-wheeled Niken, that accident never would have happened. For the athletes, it’s gotta suck inhaling nothing but motorcycle fumes for three weeks… Those bikes use 91+ ethanol gas, so the stuff coming out the tailpipe is strong.
At this point, the tour is pretty much over. Vingegaard has extended his GC lead, Pogacar is firmly in white, and the polka dots and green jersey are accounted for. It will make for exciting racing, as the leash for getting stage wins has lengthened, and more teams will try to make a break, but the last 6 stages won’t be nearly as dramatic as the first dozen. There’s a chance that Adam Yates finishes ahead of Pogacar, but he’d have to have an insane mountain stage. I expect Pogacar to recover tomorrow and have a good fight left in him, but the yellow is too far gone to make a play. I enjoy following the tour via highlight packages (thanks, Laterne Rouge) and catching the last 30K in the morning, but I’ve never sat down for a full stage.
Anyways, I’m not one of those cyclists who ever saw themselves in the tour. I would love to ride some of those roads while closed to traffic, but with my weight hovering around 160 and my FTP (Power in watts) closer to 300, I think the only battles I’ll be winning are against myself. I have no strong opinions about the tour, I enjoy it, I love the battles, and I don’t think these athletes are all clean, but I’m gonna keep watching anyways. I’d love to take a month off of work and visit France in July someday, which is a good reminder that I need to round out this blog and get back to work.
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