Tour De France 2009 Predictor

Compact · *by **Compact** on Sat 13/Jun/09 10:48am*

Exactly

Joel · *by **Joel** on Sat 13/Jun/09 11:13am*

dented wrote:What if Lance had taken 2 years off riding the TdF in between his 7 wins, would we then be saying that Ulrich, Basso et al were no good, they just got lucky enough to win because they had no competition?

you can only race who turns up. if someone choses not to turn up to a race and someone else wins.. thats life, no gaurentees about wins.. thats why it is called sport

Te Rauparaha · *by **Te Rauparaha** on Sat 13/Jun/09 4:20pm*

bicyclegod wrote:Lance Armstrong may have beaten Merckx's five Tour de France wins but in no way could he claim to dominate the sport like "The Cannibal" did in the 1970's. Few riders today race more than 100 days a year, Merckx averaged 140 races per year between 1969 and 1973.

One of only four cyclists to win the tours of France, Italy and Spain during his career, he was 3 times World Champion, held the one-hour distance record and also holds the record for the most Tour de France stage wins.

Eddy Merckx was born in Belgium in 1945 and by an early age had already been nicknamed "Tour de France" by his neighbours. He became amateur World Champion in 1964 and turned professional in 1965.

In 1967, with the real World Champion's rainbow jersey on his back, he won the Giro d'Italia and a handful of other major races. This was the start of his domination of bike racing.
In 1970, he joined the elite group of cyclists to achieve "the double" - winning both the Tour de France and the Giro d'Italia in the same year! By the time Merckx retired in 1978, he had won 445 races out of 1582 starts, including the Tour de France 5 times, the Giro d'Italia 5 times and the Vuelta D'Espana.

Here are the highlights of the career of Eddy Merckx...
1964 amateur World Champion
1966 Milan - San Remo, GP Cerami
1967 World Champion, Milan - San Remo, Ghent - Wevelgem, Fleche Wallone
1968 Giro d'Italia, Paris - Roubaix, Tour of Sardinia, Tour de Romandie, Tour of Catalonia, Tre Valle Varesine
1969 Tour de France, Milan - San Remo, Tour of Flanders, Liege - Bastogne - Liege, Paris - Nice, Paris - Luxembourg, Super Prestige Pernod
1970 Tour de France, Giro d'Italia, Paris - Roubaix, Ghent - Wevelgem, Fleche Wallone, Tour of Belgium, Coppa Agostoni, Belgian National Champion, Super Prestige Pernod
1971 World Champion, Tour de France, Milan - San Remo, Het Volk, Liege - Bastogne - Liege, GP Frankfurt, Tour of Lombardy, Tour of Belgium, Tour of Sardinia, Paris - Nice, Dauphine Libere, Midi Libre, Super Prestige Pernod
1972 Tour de France, Giro d'Italia, Milan - San Remo, Liege - Bastogne - Liege, Fleche Wallone, GP Escaut, Tour of Lombardy, Fleche Brabanconne, Giro dell'Emilia, Super Prestige Pernod
1973 Giro d'Italia, Tour of Spain, Het Volk, Ghent - Wevelgem, Paris - Roubaix, Amstel Gold, Liege - Bastogne - Liege, Paris - Brussels, Tour of Sardinia, GP Fourmes, GP Nations, Super Prestige Pernod
1974 World Champion, Tour de France, Giro d'Italia, Super Prestige Pernod
1975 Milan - San Remo, Amstel Gold, Tour of Flanders, Liege - Bastogne - Liege, Tour of Sardinia, Catalan Week, Super Prestige Pernod
1976 Milan - San Remo, Catalan Week

That's nothing. My kid has just won the Junior Tour de Canterbury and the Junior Tour de Tinwald

Did Merckx ever win these two elite Tours starting out? Didn't think so.

On a more serious note, How many of Merckx's big wins would he have been helped to win by a team the way they do it today? Or did he win alot on his own?

Oli · *by **Oli** on Sat 13/Jun/09 4:23pm*

He definitely built a good team around him and used them hard, but Merckx was famous for his crushing solos too. Sometimes his team wouldn't see him all race because he was smashing the front of the field before escaping to win alone! :crazy:

Te Rauparaha · *by **Te Rauparaha** on Sat 13/Jun/09 4:28pm*

That's what I thought, that he would have blasted his way to many of his wins. He must have been awesome. That is one mighty good record there isn't it?

Oli · *by **Oli** on Sat 13/Jun/09 4:34pm*

The very best. Merckx was rated 2nd in the Sportman of the Century after Ali, which was voted by sports media from all over the world. Amazing for a cyclist to be up there, and a testament to his dominance.

Congratulations on your boy's success! He's obviously got a big future in the sport. And it helps show Fergie can't be all bad, doesn't it?

Fergie · *by **Fergie** on Sat 13/Jun/09 4:38pm*

4 votes, WTF. Do people know something I don't?

Te Rauparaha · *by **Te Rauparaha** on Sat 13/Jun/09 4:45pm*

True Oli. Ferg's not too bad at all.

Te Rauparaha · *by **Te Rauparaha** on Sat 13/Jun/09 4:59pm*

I didn't know that Merckx was second to Ali for best Sportsman ever. I knew that Ali won it but one can see why Merckx was right there. That record of Merckx's could never be equaled, SURELY!!!

happybaboon · *by **happybaboon** on Sat 13/Jun/09 4:59pm*

Fergie wrote:4 votes, WTF. Do people know something I don't?

There's a chance every other cyclist in the world will test positive for cera before the start

Spokes · *by **Spokes** on Sat 13/Jun/09 6:01pm*

happybaboon wrote:
Fergie wrote:4 votes, WTF. Do people know something I don't?

There's a chance every other cyclist in the world will test positive for cera before the start

He will be fine as long as they dont test for Viagra.