Tour De France at I Say Hello

For Whom Will Tour De France Champion Alberto Contador Ride Next Year?

I don't know if people here follow the sport of professional cycling, but perhaps the #1 story right now is the big shakeup with Astana, the team of Tour de France champion Alberto Contador (and other big names in the sport, not the least of which is Lance Armstrong). We already know that Armstrong and many riders from the Armstrong/Bruyneel/US Postal days will ride for Armstrong's new 2010 team, RadioShack. Contador isn't going to follow them - he and Armstrong don't exactly get along, and Contador's motivations would lead him to a different team anyway. But which one? Chances are he won't stay with Astana. They've said that they want him, but he's said he's uncomfortable with the way Bruyneel was effectively shown the door by the Kazakh sponsors and is unsure if the team will be strong enough to be competitive next season with many of its principal riders leaving to follow Armstrong. He also seems to want to ride for a Spanish team. Here are the options as I see them: Caisse d'Epargne - Arguably the sport's most prominent Spanish team. They have a solid list of Grand Tour cyclists to ride in support (which should only get stronger, with the signings of Marzio Bruseghin and Christophe Moreau for 2010). Caisse d'Epargne's current team leader is Alejandro Valverde, who has said he'd welcome Contador and ride in support for him. That might not even matter, though, with Valverde potentially facing a ban from the sport for doping. Team Katusha - The well-funded Russian team would certainly be able to take on Contador's salary, and Contador has a prominent former teammate in Antonio Colom riding on this team currently. Garmin-Slipstream - There's widespread rumors that the American argyle team almost signed Contador this season, when Astana appeared to be on the verge of collapse. Garmin team manager Jonathan Vaughters has never had anything but good words for Contador, even when he was destroying Vaughters' riders in the Tour. Formula 1 - No, he's not going to ''drive'' Formula 1, but Formula 1 driver Fernando Alonso has said that he'd like to form and back his own UCI ProTeam, with Contador as the team's centerpiece. A different new Spanish team - Contador met with the prime minister of Spain shortly after winning the Tour de France to discuss the potential formation of a new Spanish team sponsored by the Spanish government in some form, which would include him. Quick Step and Rabobank - These are the only other UCI ProTeams that can likely afford Contador's salary; at €1.5 million, if he's not the highest-paid cyclist in the world, he's awfully close. However, these two teams have their own leaders that probably wouldn't just stand aside for ''El Pistolero.'' He is probably prohibitively expensive for the French and Italian ProTeams. Astana - It's not impossible that he stays with them. He is actually signed with them through the 2010 season, but so too is, for example, Levi Leipheimer, and he is confirmed to ride for Team RadioShack next year. Who do you think he'll end up with, and how soon will we know?

Answer:from a team perspective, i think any team would have want contador now if they can afford him. but for contador, he personally expressed that he wanted to ride for a spanish team and the next best spanish team would be the basque team of euskatel euskadi which neighbours spain. we all know that Alonso's team would most probably not make it in time for 2010 as the sponsors are no ready and there is no confirmed team roster for the team. his next best bet i think will be Riis's Saxobank if the 2 shleck brothers don't leave for the rumored team Radioshack offer. they have a bunch of good riders and of course the shlecks who can help contador massively in the mountains like they did for Sastre in 2008. The other would be the Cervelo Test Team if Sastre don't mind working for Contador as the team has quite reputable riders as well. Contador would most probably not stay with Astana as the Khazakh Vinokourov is coming back from a 2 year ban and he definitely wants to avoid the same scenario he did with Armstrong this year in case the team wants to back a Khazakh to win the tour. My best bet if he is leaving Astana is Saxobank or CTT from a perspective that the team has riders that can support Contador and not salary wise. Anyways, we should know by the end of the Vuelta.

How Do Tour De France Cameramen Balance On The Motorbikes?

Not Just tour de france but anything getting filmed on a motorbike, They Sit or stand on the back of the bike and they sometimes go at such speeds or inclines . There must be a safety system or balancing system they have because there is never any reported falls and they always get perfectly clear pictures. Anyone know how this is done?

Answer:They are sometimes tied with straps to the front rider. They also have used back supports like sissy bars to support them..

Tour De France: What's The Difference Between The Mountains?

The commentators for the Tour de France keep mentioning that some riders prefer the Alps to the Pyrenees and vice versa. Does anyone know what makes the two mountain ranges so different to ride?

Answer:the pyrenean climbs are steeper, generally somewhat shorter, and the roads are narrower and in worse shape. the alps are, by contrast, longer and gentler, with better pavement. the climbing syles of the individual riders are suited to one or the other (or neither), but not usually both types.

Why Is The Team So Important In The Tour De France?

I've always wondered why the team is so important in Tour de France. For example, in today's stage, Contador was in the leading group with the two Schleck Brothers. The commentators said that Contador would have been better off if he had his teammate riding in the same group. Why would this make any difference?

Answer:If Contador had 2 or 3 team mates he could have broken away from the Schleck brothers and put more time between his team and the brothers. The guy leading the pack is doing most of the work and it helps to be able to switch off and rest behind the leader. He played it smart and stayed with them and never took the lead. He just let them do all the work and was hoping the team would catch up with him. He did not want to help them put more distance between him and the team. The guys ridding behind the leader can use 30% less energy to go the same speed. It's like drafting in NASCAR the guy in back uses a lot less gas.

How Does A Team Compete In The Tour De France?

Lance Armstrong told A. Contador that he couldn't have won the Tour de France without help from his team. I know next to nothing about the sport of cycling, so can someone tell me how a team supports its main cyclist? What role does the rest of the team play, when there is clearly only one winner?

Answer:The team supports its main rider in a number of ways: The most straight forward are the jobs that the domestique does for his team leader so that he does not waste energy. This includes fetching drinks and food from the team car; riding alongside him in the bunch so that if there is a problem he can hand over a spare wheel, or even his entire bike to the team leader immediately rather than waiting for the team car; pacing him back to the bunch after any sort of incident. Then there are the strategic/tactical jobs that the team does; keeping the pace of the bunch high so that riders who are a threat to the team leader cannot escape out of the front of the peleton; attacking the peleton and forcing the other teams to chase down a dangerous escape. The team's job becomes even more important in the mountain stages, when the bunch thins down to far fewer riders. In a weak team the leader might be left with no team mates with him towards the end of a stage. This means he has to fetch his own drink and food and chase down dangerous breaks himself (wasting energy) and is vulnerable if any sort of problem occurs. It is worth mentioning that the rider at the front uses a lot more energy than riders back in the bunch. At high speed on the flat, the rider at the front of a small group is using 20-25% more enegy. In a large group the advantage is between 30 and 40%. The advantages are less when the riders are moving more slowly on a climb, but are still significant.

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