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Should Yellow just be a jersey?

The colour yellow seems to have leaked over the years in the pro peloton.

No longer just a Jersey to denote the GC leader/winner, now it's his shorts/socks/bike/tyres/sunglasses/team mates armband(!)

Even Sky seem to be wearing Yellow helmets to denote the leading team.

Is it just me being a bluff old traditionalist or would the Yellow Jersey carry more x-factor if it was just a Jersey?

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Raleigh | 11 years ago
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That's Cipolini right?

Not very Taste

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notfastenough | 11 years ago
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 31

Pics like that make me think they are tempting fate for a body's worth of road rash.

I have wondered how much of the coloured stuff is pre-prepared - it would feel presumptuous to be carrying e.g. a yellow bike and yellow shorts in the trailer.

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Simon E replied to notfastenough | 11 years ago
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notfastenough wrote:

it would feel presumptuous to be carrying e.g. a yellow bike and yellow shorts in the trailer.

My feelings too.

And yes, I remember the Chava-Merckx night shift story  1

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mattbibbings | 11 years ago
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I suppose your right. It's the sponsors taking opportunites to get their product out there.

I think it's probably quite easy to spot the riders who are milking it.

//1.bp.blogspot.com/_6UjiqEgGvk0/S8Tgbtys_eI/AAAAAAAABFU/l8ksGmpLfb0/s1600/cipollini1.jpg)

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Simon_MacMichael | 11 years ago
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Spot the bloke in that pic above who's thinking, 'Get a bloody move on, one of us still has a race to win'  3

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Simon_MacMichael | 11 years ago
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Remember the Merckx factory working round the clock two years ago to knock out a custom yellow and green number for Chavanel?

http://road.cc/content/forum/19699-they-were-busy-merckx-factory-last-night

I think Cancellara's team brings along a yellow frame for him each year. Ends up getting used more often than not.

Cadel started the Champs Elysees stage on a special yellow number last year but swapped it for a regular black one after the photocalls as they headed into Paris proper, I think that may have been down to superstition?

I noticed that Wiggo's yellow helmet has a RAF/mod roundel on it - I'm guessing it wasn't done with just the team classification in mind  3

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daddyELVIS | 11 years ago
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Love the polka dot skin-suit when mountains leader rides a time trial stage.

The yellow helmets are a bit Bob The Builder - especially the ones with the closed vents like Wiggo's.

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Gkam84 | 11 years ago
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One other thing to add, the team mates are not wearing a yellow band on their arm because they have the yellow jersey in their team, Its because Livestrong are still something to do with RSNT, thats why its a Livestong band around the arm  3

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festival | 11 years ago
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I agree, but marketing demands it.

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Raleigh | 11 years ago
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Don't they prepare them in advance, the Domane was built up like last Thursday or something, and I saw some pictures already of Cavendish's green wheeld decals.

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boardmanrider | 11 years ago
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Well the helmet thing is not Sky's doing, it's the Tour organisers who introduced a new rule. As for the yellow frames, glasses etc I am guessing that's down to the team sponsors. Take Cancellera's yellow Trek Domane. It's a new bike, Trek want sell loads, what better advert than the Tour leader, " 'scuse me mate, do you 'ave that yellow bike I saw in yesterday's Tour, looks kinda cool".

This is all about the Team and their sponsors, not the bloke riding the bike. I doubt they turn around and say, "bring me a yellow bike". By all accounts, Voeckler got a yellow Colnago within 12 hours of getting the jersey all the way from Bergamo in Italy.

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Raleigh | 11 years ago
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Err, Sky didn't choose to wear those helmets.

They probably get money from sponsors, along with Oakley, trek bontrager etc.

I think its fun.

Comme suit:

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