After watching the MORONS who can’t be satisfied with just watching le Tour, but have to run alongside, and then the flaming a-holes who want to give the riders 18" of space to ride between two drunken fans and then pound them on the back, and then the streakers…
Next year’s bikes should have machine guns mounted on the stem…
“Rules? Butch, there are no rules in a knife fight?”
I agree. I think all the team cars should be replaced by F-250’s. This would give those friggen Frenchies something to think about before they run into the road…
ummm…
you notice that a good number off them were carrying the US flag??? So might be safe to assume they were actually Americans. They are still morons and are disregarding the efforts of the riders by putting them in potential dangers of crashing due to the negligence of those said fans. ie:a trailing flag from the running fan flag finds itself into a wheel.
yeah. what is up with the anti-french sentiment here? one of my favorite pictures is of lance being trailed by these two dudes in football jerseys and football helmets on a tdf climb.
and why all this bitching? i mean, do you REALLY want to change the tdf so it’s all fenced in and sterilized? have you even BEEN to the TDF??? sure you get a lot of morons but it’s overstating it to say that every fan who runs enthusiastically alongside a cyclist is a moron. The excitement of being so close to the riders is infectious.
Even Lance, after his musette-induced crash last year, didn’t rant about how the course needs to be railed off.
geez. whiny americans. (just kidding. chill out.)
I agree. I think all the team cars should be replaced by F-250’s. This would give those friggen Frenchies something to think about before they run into the road…
I bet you really like some of those French people, but you just don’t want anyone to know about it. Yes, mobiusnc, I have you figured out.
Doh, busted. Oh well. It was fun while it lasted. Mostly I’m just pissed off because my GF is sitting on the beach in Toulon while I’m stuck here this year.
I asked her to yell “Dope, Dope” at Virenque on the Ventoux TT but papa nixed the idea. Go figure…
Look if you need a lesson in sarcasm it’s going to cost you $250. I don’t do this for free you know… 
Uh, you don’t get out to many sporting events I take it? Cleveland Browns vs. Pittsburgh Steelers? Dallas vs. Washington? Euro or S.A. soccer? (talking major nuts). USAS swim meets, say J.O. meets? Little League World Series? Bwuahahahahahaha!
No, bike racing isn’t golf or Wimbledon, THANKFULLY, but I’ll take what God has given. Given the sheer number of fans, I’d say they are pretty controlled as a group. The Basquoise and Americans are the real nut cases though. (But, good for them.)
-Robert
Those were really french people posing to be americans in an attempt to make americans look bad 
NOTE: In case you couldn’t tell…I’m joking. We don’t need help to look bad 
Cousin E, I can always count on you to come up with moderate, compassionate solutions to today’s problems. You need to run for office! You’ll have my vote.
Machine guns. Sweet - but heavy. What about motorcycles with cattle catchers on them, or snowplows ahead of the leaders? That way you can clear the road without adding unwanted weight to the bikes.
The behavior you are complaining about has been the same in the TdF since before you were born… they shouldn’t change it just because an American is winning.
Do you ever get cramped in that little box you call life CE? You sure don’t seem to get out much.
let everybody but postal take epo. then maybe it wont be as predictable. i was hoping for a replay of last year but all the “contenders” turned out to be pretenders. im sure beloki,mayo and tyler will be talking trash for the next 11 months again. voecklers a stud though.
“Uh, you don’t get out to many sporting events I take it?”
“Cleveland Browns vs. Pittsburgh Steelers? Dallas vs. Washington? Euro or S.A. soccer? (talking major nuts). USAS swim meets, say J.O. meets? Little League World Series? Bwuahahahahahaha!”
Sure, when the Bulls or the Lakers won their championship, a bunch of shitheads set the town on fire. The police should have shot every damned one of them.
“No, bike racing isn’t golf or Wimbledon, THANKFULLY, but I’ll take what God has given.”
“Given the sheer number of fans, I’d say they are pretty controlled as a group. The Basquoise and Americans are the real nut cases though. (But, good for them.)”
“Do you ever get cramped in that little box you call life CE? You sure don’t seem to get out much.”
My life is terriffic, which is why I don’t go to sporting events and act like a complete moron. I guess you think that’s a good thing to do? You must, otherwise why defend the morons and attack the guy who’s suggesting people act like adults?
Nice…
"The behavior you are complaining about has been the same in the TdF since before you were born… "
That’s non sequitor. I’m not saying it’s bad because it just started (which it didn’t) I’m just saying that the people who endanger the athletes (without whom there would be no event) should be dipped in shit and hung for stinking.
Wrong is wrong.
“Machine guns. Sweet - but heavy. What about motorcycles with cattle catchers on them, or snowplows ahead of the leaders?”
Now we’re getting somewhere. replace the motorbikes with Hummers. That’s make a nice hole for the riders to go through! No, the snowplow idea is the best, because that would toss the bodies off to the side where they wouldn’t be under the rider’s wheels.
I’d like to see every man for himself. I don’t see the point of a whole team protecting one rider from wind, from attacks, wearing the other riders out, etc. If each team is only going to have one guy try and win the race, why not just have one rep from each team race.
I’m naive to cycling, and learned from reading Lance’s books that some rider’s job is just protect him from wind, chase down attackers, wear out the other top riders, etc. Then the protected rider gets all the glory.
I think it would be more interesting if EVERY rider was trying to win. Isn’t that what racing is all about?
I don’t dig “team” sports where only one guy gets the glory. Is there any other sport thatdoes that?
I’m inclined to agree. That’s why I do tris, because I don’t want to rely on someone else to get the job done, nor have to answer to someone else because I had a crappy day on the course. If I suck, I suck alone - no excuses and no one to whom I have to apologize.
I’d like to see some major cycling events done TT style, where each rider is on his or her own, and if there’s another stage tomorrow, you stagger start based on your accumulated time. No drafting.
That way, the best athlete wins, not the best tactition. Meanwhile, the TdF is what it is, and those who choose to participate know the rules. Personally, I’d go postal in the middle of 180 riders flying through the countryside, waiting for some genius to lose it and take out 50 riders. The genius would probably be me…
Answer the question CE. Do you ever get cramped? One man’s “moron” is another man’s fan. Act like a stuffy, grumpy, boxed up crank living high on a pedestal above the plebian “morons” you so easily dismiss? Not on your life. I spent most of the last 17 years living that way. Trust me, you’re missing A LOT. But you keep on trusting your cozy little place in the world to be the RIGHT and ONLY way to live and behave.