On 7/20/07, kyle-chrisbrooks@earthlink.net <kyle-chrisbrooks@earthlink.net>
wrote:
>
> I saw that segment during the Versus TV Tour coverage, and I wondered what
> other people thought of the list of the "top 5 innovations" in the Tour
> (and racing in general, I suppose). The list was as follows:
> 5 - rider/team car race radios
> 4 - clipless pedals
> 3 - team "follow" cars
> 2 - integrated brake/shift levers
> 1 - the derailluer
This thread may be off-topic but I proceed with caution. The standard might be: does the "innovation" make possible something that wasn't possible before--changing the race in kind rather than in degree. (The second question would be whether that thing made possible is a good thing or not.)
5- arguably makes many tactical choices possible by providing info that might not be available. 4- from my point of view there is nothing possible with clipless that you couldn't do with cleats/clips/straps. Some may prefer them for comforts reasons (I don't, and have ridden both ways a lot) but that doesn't mean they've changed the Tour. 3- if you mean the change from self-supported Touring then it changes the race a lot. 2- The only things this makes possible is one minor one: shifting while standing during a climb, and one major one: changing from cog to cog during an all out sprint. 1- I want to say this made possible the inclusion of the high mountain stages and the multiple pass stages, but I know there were mountains in the Tour ridden before multiple gears, so some may feel it is a change in degree rather than in kind.
So here's my order for the items you offered, omitting clipless pedals: 4 - integrated brake/shift levers 5 - rider/team car race radios 3 - team "follow" cars 1 - the derailluer
Mitch Harris
Little Rock Canyon, Ut