Vuelta starts 26 Aug

[BookWorm45]

For anyone who wants to join on Velogames, the same MN league is present if you've used it before (Mumsnet Marauders). I found I was automatically added to this as soon as I'd picked my Vuelta team.

Was coming on to ask just this question.

Must go and pick my team. One of ds' friends, Sean Flynn (the one he always aspired to beat but who was always in a different class) is getting his first start in a Grand Tour, riding as a domestique for DSM (so presumably Romain Bardet).

His nickname was/is Yoda

omg, both Rogliç & Vingegaard are riding, how will that work?!

What’s the MN team code please? …. I deleted all the old stuff 🥴

@EvlisPersley : The MN league is called Mumsnet Marauders. 113428518 works to get your Velogames team into it.

(Copied and pasted from the TdF thread)

Thank you 🚴🏼‍♂️

Just been watching the GCN preview shows. The Vuelta this year is brutal

Ds' friend Sean Flynn was a good climber: it will be interesting to see how he copes with his first Grand Tour.

I've made some adjustments to my team as a result of the preview shows. I'll probably rue them!

Where are you all watching it? I usually get my cycling from ITV4 and have only just realised they aren't showing it. I see there are hightlight shows on Quest, but are they any good? Or do I need to subscribe to Eurosport? I haven't seen any preview shows so my fantasy team is quite random! Never actually done a fantasy cycling team before either :)

The Quest highlights are fine, but short, about fifty minutes once you take out the breaks.

if Orla is hosting it’s worth watching just for her amazing choice of footwear ( I am not a man or a foot fetishist btw).

Thanks - I'll take a look at them tonight and see how I like them. Otherwise I can see it looks like Discovery+ or Eurosport. Trying and failing to cut down on streaming services at the moment! Hopefully I will like Quest!

I think the subscription to GCN (which gets us the Eurosport cycling) is only £7.99/month and you can cancel any time - there's no minimum contract

@Allthegoodnamesarechosen - I think dh is so keen on the Eurosport coverage because of Orla and not specifically her footwear

Dh says it's just £6.99/month.

And that he thinks Orla is a brilliant role model for women as she is so body confidence at and eclectic in her clothes choices

Hehe now I am intrigued! Don't normally watch cycling for the outfit choices of the presenters😆

You're in for a treat!

I'm hoping that now that the competition has started properly, my team will gradually move up the rankings

Although I don't think Sean Flynn was expecting to be wearing the mountain jersey yesterday on the 2nd day of his first Grand Tour (not that any mountain points were won on Day 1 but the sponsored insisted it get worn ). He didn't earn any points for me today but I hope he'll earn a few more in his domestique role.

Well I was top of the league on I think day 2 or 3, but have now crashed firmly to the bottom where I think I'll stay . I am enjoying the efforts of the young rider contingent, and am sad for Oscar Onley who I think broke his collarbone on day 2. I'm enjoying the studio discussion too!

Have been on holiday this week camping with two grumpy teenagers and a six year old. However back home tonight and wondering if I can get the highlights.

Am delighted to be top of the league. Luck rather than judgement, although prettybird's recommendation to include Sean Flynn was quite good!

On a different note I am really hoping to start a 19 mile round trip cycle commute with a new job on Monday. Does anyone have some cheap waterproof pannier recommendations? I will need to take a laptop, clothes and a packed lunch every day.

I have a rack.

We saw the Bora hansgrohe bus in a service station on the way home! They must have been going to the start of the tour of Britain.

What is your pannier budget?
I have a feeling you'll be fine with Argos basic, but go Altura if you've got budget.

Yes, I had been coming to the same conclusion. Thanks

Today's tour of Britain is worth a watch for the end of the stage!

I will hunt down the ToB highlights from yesterday.

Today's Vuelta. A bit dull (7.3 km to go) but what suddenly struck me was

In 2023,
Roglič won the Giro
Vingegaard won the TdF
Kuss may well win the Vuelta.

That's nutty level of domination by one team, isn't it !? JumboV is still punishing & isolating their rivals very effectively, too.

Amendment: fairly exciting finish after all !

Yes, just watched the highlights for the vuelta on quest+1. exciting at the end.

Yes Jumbo Visma really dominant.

I tried googling why, and all I can really see is that the team owner throws money at it. The team travel with 7 chefs.

I guess most things are possible if you outspend everyone else.

Also they drink ketones, which sounds fairly disgusting.

But that is just my unnuanced take from having a similar thought and doing a bit of googling

Like sky a few years ago I guess

the Netflix documentary about last year 's TdF implied that INEOS was still the highest funded team then.

PP are right: yesterday's ToB highlights was actually pretty good, dare I say it better than yesterday's Vuelta highlights