Velogames - Fantasy Tour de France 2016 - OPEN NOW

[forestfan]

Yeah, the genuinely gripping battle for yellow happens once every few years, if that... it plays out best when it's a genuine attacking climber trying to distance someone who's a much better time triallist, like the year Evans and Schleck fought it out, with Contador lurking in the background before cracking on the big mountain stage. Froome/Quintana potentially follows that pattern but the Colombian just didn't have the legs this time around, unlike last year when he threatened to reel him in right at the end.

Fortunately every stage is a race in itself though, and there's other contests going on - even if Sagan has made green a foregone conclusion these days as well!

[unc.si.]

You can talk about Skybots all you like but they pull everybody up the mountain so if anybody is better than Froome they can just sit where he does, do what he does and get a gap in the last (few) km on a summit finish. If Froome was Aru yesterday (or others on other days) then they wouldn't have saved him.

Well thats true to an extent, but the other GC guys can't tell Poels etc exactly what pace to ride at, when to speed up and when to knock it back a bit, and the Sky Dom's won't drop back to pace them if they have a flat, lend them a bike, chase down moves for them etc.

Froome was clearly the strongest GC guy by a mile, and he's likely to be the strongest or at least one of the strongest 2 or 3 for a good few years yet, but it is a massive advantage to have the strongest support team as well. Nothing new in that but Sky are very very strong, and I don't think I've seen a team as single minded in the pursuit of one goal since US Postal (and no, I'm not trying to draw any comparisons between the two in other respects). Its a team sport won by an individual.

[unc.si.]

Apropros of not very much but quite interesting generally, the winnings of each team in the Tour have been published.

Sky took home EUR600k, 5/6ths of which was down to the 1st place on GC.

Dimension Data, with 6(?) stage wins got about EUR90k, Lotto-Jumbo EUR20k and Cannondale EUR14k.

Sky are the biggest budget team - GBP24m revenue (of which about £4m comes from race fees and prize money, the rest from sponsors.

Payroll costs about £18m (Medical costs only £300k - some teams obviously a bit higher than this, although no use checking annual reports for the details). A top rider like Froome, Sagan, Cav, Spartacus etc gets around £3m p.a. Domestiques anywhere between £30k for a neo pro water carrier to £500k+ for a Renshaw or a G.

A lot bigger salaries than it used to be to be honest.

[SPR]

Twas a boring GC Tour as even Froome didn't put on a show apart from in the TTs (downhill and crosswind attacks were impressive tbf). Fantasy and other interests (eg Cav's revival, etc) compensated. Also back loading meant I was 100% sure it was over till the third week.

[unc.si.]

Just joined the Vuelta Portugal - more in hope than expectation as I haven't heard of most of the riders.

entered a quick team as well.

just looked to see how it was going (not well, although thats not a surprise).

Race ticker is great:

However, a new race situation:
. In front now roll 72 and the ridges 83. In the first intermediate position, a group composed of corridors 7 ridges 5, 6, 56, 94, 133, 143 and 173 to 35s
a second intermediate position the dorsal 61.
Platoon 1:50.

[Moist von Lipwig]

I picked a team for Portugal in 30 seconds before going on holiday - its doing horribly

Was way to busy to be able to do TdF league updates during the race, but will do a final table for the records at some point this week.

VElogames should have the Vuelta up soon - he's awaiting a bit more of a solidified startlist for the main contenders.

[Moist von Lipwig]

A bit later than intended but a final round up from the Tour de France

Code: Select all

   1    6764 points     Laudrup86                            D Edwards                    873rd
   2    6730 points     POM Racing                           The Pom                      962nd
   3    6554 points     Froome Dog & The Dweebs              bagpuss                      1589th
   4    6439 points     Old Trafford Cycling                 Canto
   5    6342 points     ooozzzie on the tour                 Paul Hughes
   6    6304 points     Killercycles                         Rick Spangle
   7    6174 points     Donegal Racers                       Paul McGeoghan
   8    6099 points     Wheels of Titanium                   Mo bot
   9    6087 points     PATHETICO ATHLETICO                  Mark Teague
   10   6042 points     Huffer Puffers                       Noel Symonds
   11   6024 points     Ten Dam, I wish I was your lover     Count Darchi
   12   6008 points     Dingers Revenge                      Patrician
   13   6006 points     A.M. Postal Service                  Moist von Lipwig
   14   5918 points     murf`s mob                           murf
   15   5682 points     Cardiff Ajax CC                      Ian Herbert
   16   5598 points     Pigeons                              Spencer4
   17   5529 points     Dorset Cereal Speedfest              Danny Harris
   18   5436 points     Mobreizh                             Morgan
   19   5384 points     Super Confex                         Patrick Horne
   20   5186 points     NickiS�¶                           Matti
   21   5008 points     Sexual Wheeling                      Terry V. Bullen
   22   4859 points     TDF BEARS                            Douglas Hay
   23   4682 points     SPR Eagle Eye Racing                 SPR
   24   4634 points     Paisley`s Pedalers                   Paul Quirk
   25   4584 points     flahutes                             simon
   26   4535 points     Le Tour De Alchemy                   Andrew Harvey
   27   4240 points     Peloton Brief                        Simon Brown
   28   4196 points     Equipe Mons                          Graham
   29   4168 points     St Malo to Brazil                    Zoophonic
   30   4106 points     Sink to My Pyrenees                  Department_S
   31   4071 points     GreatestShowOnTurf                   james r
   32   3971 points     Dust Trailers                        Ashley Bloodworth
   33   3805 points     Le Peoples Tour de France            Michael Robinson

Congratulations to Laudrup86 on his first Grand Tour.


KING OF THE MOUNTAINS Far more prestigious I've always thought....

Code: Select all

   1    4315 points      A.M. Postal Service             Moist von Lipwig         21st
   2    4052 points      SPR - The Eagle Soars           SPR                      59th
   3    3750 points      Alchemists Mounting Goats       Andy Harvey              129th
   4    3075 points      THE king of the mountains       Laudrup86
   5    3052 points      Old Trafford Cycling team       Canto
   6    2658 points      Donegal Climbers                Paul McGeoghan
   7    2653 points      Equipe Mons                     Graham
   8    2552 points      MOUNTAIN BEARS                  DOUGLAS HAY
   9    2538 points      Etakahuna Riders                Just A Kiwi
   10   2504 points      Peloton Brief                   Sibrown4
   11   2278 points      St Albans CC                    GeoffV
   12   2160 points      Mountain Goats                  Paul Quirk
   13   2085 points      murf`s mob                      murf
   14   1846 points      Sexual Wheeling                 Terry V. Bullen