La Vuelta a Espana - The MN Pro-cycling Peloton rides again!

[MaillotRojoPan]

The third Grand Tour of the year, following the Giro d'Italia in spring and the Tour de France in summer. It's always a tough ride and this year's is a beast.

If you've seen pro-cycling on tv for instance, or witnessed local rides and been a bit curious about the hows and whys we have such a spectacle of endeavour, tactics, sacrifice, strops and often pointless 'break-a-ways' then be curious no more - the committed MN peloton members will ride with you and chat as we go. Some members will be distracted by so many fit young men with bulging thighs, but be kind to them.

Next up, a course outline, timings and general stuff about La Vuelta.

dd not a fan.....out and about with her, so it's h/lights for me later.

Bucket and spade version of the egg and spoon race! It's a bit of a lotto, no?

I have DS3 doing a brake test on his road bike in the middle of the lounge whilst complaining that 'watching this is SO boring' he's more of a dooer than a watcher but tough, I am the other way round .

It depends what kind of computer you have Drama, I'm on a MacBook so I can tell you if you are apple based!

Missed the kitten thing. Genius.

Not on apple, use a laptop with windows 7. Thanks anyway, will have a google...

Well not quite the Paris-Dakar rally we were hoping for then!

Now they've warmed up a bit it's off to the lumpy bits with a short skip up at the top. Could be G.'s opportunity to ride with Froomey to the end and save Porte for the even lumpier bits!

Would have totally been better with the kittens.

Either that, or they have to wear stilettos......AND carry the kitten!

And the burnt scenery of Andulacia! A long summer of crisping the vegetation - visited the region lots of times in autumns and love it.

And no 'escapado' tag in Euro. V sad!

It looks beautiful, couldn't be any greater contrast to the Welsh coast right now!

Do Louboutin do clip ins?

I forget every time do we wait until the highlights are over to talk or not? Although I have to go and cook now so I guess that's a moot point for me, I'll be back after the hordes have had their sunday dinner.

Yes they do clip ins. I've seen them in my darkest fantasies. not really

Silence til later....

Nibali bites the dust!

www.cyclingweekly.co.uk/racing/vuelta-a-espana/video-shows-vincenzo-nibali-holding-onto-team-car-at-vuelta-a-espana-188080

Pan, Pan, PAN look at that link ^^. I was just coming to post it myself mrsrisotto ! HA, cheater.

WTF? This Vuelta is a farce. First the TT on the strand, now Nibbles. And they wonder why people don't trust cycling......

May I use my recently-acquired Franglais?

Qu'est-que le fuck actuelle?

Did he not think he would be seen - a rise where he disappears behind a team car and accelerates magically away from the bunch? .

I love so many things about Italy and Italians, but

Qu'est-que le fuck actuelle indeed

I FB messengered the link to DS1 upstairs and he has never come down two flights of stairs so quickly. Was like hearing an avalanche, he was then laughing too hard to actually talk. What an utter piss take. That was the most desperate thing I have ever seen, how could they think for a minute that no one would notice or is there still some of the old' code of omerta' that no one would have said anything. I thought all that was supposed to be over?

Tsk!

Good grief, what were they thinking!

On the plus side, great to see two Irish riders at 3 & 4 in the GC (for now). Makes me feel very proud of my adopted country

Hello, am catching up on this have been on holiday but watched highlights today.

Nibali went really quickly when holding on to that car, didn't he?

Yes, mustn't let one rider idiot overshadow how well they did. Dan did good!

Evening Endo! Yes he was found to be benefiting from a motor assist - just not the sort the authorities are usually looking for on bikes...

Oh dear Nibbles was very silly there. Still he wasn't the first and I doubt he'll be the last ... www.cyclingweekly.co.uk/racing/giro-ditalia/froome-disqualified-from-giro-ditalia-60517
Apart from that great finish and good to see Dan Martin finish so well.

That was AWFUL, DS1 was at his fathers and I didn't have anyone to discuss the cycling with.

I don't like Peter Sagan. Been needing to tell someone that since the highlights last night.

Bouhanni was lucky. I enjoyed listening to Millar explain the politics of when it seems more acceptable than others to hold on!

Thank goodness we're back. I kept panicking about what I'd do if it never did...

I resorted to Netmums for a bit last night - didn't like it there.

No, Netmums is really weird. They don't use enough real words, also they don't even appear to 'hun' properly, they were saying 'huni' All The Time. Plus I couldn't find any threads about the Vuelta.

Really looking forward to re-starting my programming course for my degree soon. I will work out how and then I will hunt the odious little man down. Then I'm going to set the feminism section on him.

Was it a bit like Apollo13 when they went behind the moon, in order to be slung-shot back earthward and they were incommunicado and no-one knew if they were all about to die, or if they would triumphantly emerge in the bathed light of the morning sun?

Was it a bit like that?

Exactly like that.