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Originally Posted by Glengoyne
I guess the thing about calculated winning, is that you still have to get it done on the bike. You still have to answer all comers, and you can't be dropped nor afford to not answer an attack by a legitimate rival.
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Well, I'm not argueing whether it's easier, it's probably smarter, looking at the success Indurain and Armstrong had with it, but it makes for a less exciting race. Indurain's most memorable moment was in 1995 when he attacked his competition in a meaningless stage and at a point of the day they least expected it.
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Originally Posted by Glengoyne
I also find it hard to believe that some of the things that Armstrong pulled off in his string weren't considered heroic. The time trial to Alp d' huez, the resumption of the stage where he had the collision with the fan and other difficulties, his response following the stage in 2000 where he was dropped on the final(?) climb, not to mention the '99 rebound from cancer. I would think he would be somewhat of a heroic figure.
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I probably mixed up heroic for most-memorable. Still, it's widely regard to be more heroic to attack from the start than from the middle of the last climb of the day. I'm not argueing he didn't show his greatness as a rider or say he isn't a hero to a lot of people, but to most cycling fans waiting for the last climb to attack means less than being in the attack all day long. In that regard, looking back, the most memorable Armstrong moment could possibly be the 1995 stage victory. And from a neutral point of view, doing exactly as people expect you to do doesn't add to the excitement.
Again, I don't think you can really blame a self-confident sportsman for knowing what he can and what he can't do. He's a grand champion, whom usually are associated with arrogance over their desire to win as much as they can. In the end, if you're as much as an Armstrong fan as you say you are, I realize it's gonna be very hard to convince you of that.