MH GOLD: Hot Pants and a Hot Chance

DATELINE: LONDON 2012.
DAY 5:



We're into the midst of the fun now, boys and girls. Whilst London 2012 hasn't so far been the cascade of Gold Medals tipped by some prior to the Games, we've seen some spectactular efforts from Aussies that have just dipped out (take a bow Emily Seebohm and Bronte Barratt) and Day 4 even saw Kynan Maley pick up a very creditable 6th in that traditional Aussie event, the white-water canoeing slalom.

The great thing about our modest total so far, is we can take great solace in the fact we are streets ahead on the medal tally than the Poms. Nothing like a little skiting over the fact whilst the chips are down. Though beware, when asked today if he thought Great Britain could exceed Australia's total in the London 2012 medal tally, London part-mayor-part-bear Boris Johnson left us all in no doubt with a very emphatic... "Yes, I think we can." Fighting words indeed...




And to further up the rivalry, we in the wide brown land were all thoroughly relieved to know our CSIRO scientists hadn't fallen asleep at the wheel, with the news that we too have the technology to match the Brits in the Great War of the Hot Pants. Sir Chris Hoy was quoted as saying, "The zips mean you can take them off..." revealing some amazing leaps forward in sporting apparel technology. I mean, ZIPS! WHAT WILL THEY THINK OF NEXT?! Thank fully the CSIRO have assured us that our Aussie trackstars will also be able to remove their hot pants when required.

So it moves us on to tonight's medal prospects. I think we'll be battling it out with the Poms once again tonight as we head down to Dorney Lake for the rowing. Our lanky ladies, Kate Hornsey and Sarah Tait will take it up to the British lassies Heather Stanning and Helen Glover whilst daylight will limp in third. Sure to be a cracking encounter. Also out on the water will be the big boys in the Men's Eights. Yep, this final will be a wide open affair, with our lads standing a pretty good chance against some out-of-form Yanks, the Poms and the Germans and Canadians. A ripper spectacle...

Out on the roads it'll be the "Yellow Wiggle" this time resplendent in blue. Bradley Wiggins looks a safe odds-on favourite for the 44km Road Time Trial. Cadel has decided to have a spell, which just leaves us with Wiggo's Sky team-mate Michael Rogers to have a dip for the wide brown. Expect GB's first gold here tonight...




Back poolside, its time for the MISSILE to fire, or whatever other lamo pun you want to attach to tonight's 100m Freestyle final. James Magnussen actually looks in pretty good form, and it'd be great to see him rip out a stonking time in what is set to be a thumping final, with the smooth Brazilian Cesar Cielo and 2nd-fastest qualifier Nathan Adrian snapping at (hopefully) his heels. Another BIG chance in the pool tonight are our Beijing Golden Girls in the 4 x 200m Freestyle Relay. With Steph Rice sitting this race out this year, it'll be up to compatriots Schlanger (great name), Campbell , Palmer and Barratt to bring home the gold.

WHAT TO DRINK:

On name alone, we're going to crack a NEVER MIND THE ANABOLICS IPA tonight. A newie from those wacky Aberwegians up there at Brewdog, it should be ideal for gazing at those pumped-up swimming bodies.


Cheers!

Johnno and Mitch

Head for the Hills it's Stage 7

The Carnage continues! Wow it's been a horror few days for quite a few riders with a few permanent casualties. Is it a case of too many young riders not respecting the conditions, or is everyone just as keen as curry to hang on? Either way, last night's bingle put a big dent in the hopes of a few campaigns.
If you saw any of the footage from last night's stage from Epernay to Metz, you'll see why all the teams with GC or other jersey contenders in them are working hard to keep their boys at the front and out of trouble.

It was another exciting finish to one of the last sprint stages for a while. Unfortunately one of Matt Goss's leadout men snapped a chain within a 100m or so of the line so he collected just another minor place. It was the 'young gorilla' Sagan who collected another stage win to shoot 31 points clear of Goss for the green sprinters jeursey. André Greipel who was involved in the a crash early in the stage did amazingly well to challenge Sagan for the win.

Tonight it is Stage 7 from Tomblaine to La Planche Des Belles Filles. This is where the GC contenders will come out to make their presence felt. Apart from a couple of Cat 3 climbs throughout the course, there is a nasty Cat 1 , 6 km climb to the finish with an average gradient of 8.5%. After the last few sprint stages, this is where it starts to get interesting, & where the real GC contenders come out to play.

Stage 7 predictions & tipples:

OUR PICK TO WIN: Cadel to show a bit of 'who's the boss' tonight I reckon. The BMC team will be keen to show the rest of the field that they are here to defend & win again!

DRINK: Located between Burgundy, Alsace and the Jura, it's a mixed bag of Vin de Pays here. Since it is a Saturday night, try a zippy Riesling a tight Chardonnay first and a light & spicy pinot later. 

AUSSIE MATCH: A bit of Vic high country Gewurztraminer from Deletite could be fun, or the brilliant Rodda Chard from Beechworth is always good. The Eastern Peak Pinot from the cool hills outside of Ballarat might get a splash tonight too!

A Bouzy Stage 6 Epernay to Metz

It's a cut & paste from last night with the survivors of the carnage getting the goodies, & again it was The Gorilla Greipel who escaped yet another pile-up (can Farrar stay on 2 wheels tonight!!??) inside 3km with our boy Gossy whizzing in for 2nd. We think it's time for Gossy to step up & get the next one!

Tonight it is stage 6. The Peleton set off east of Epernay in the heart of Champagne, a place that is very fond in the hearts of the MH crew. We been very lucky to be on the end of some truly mind blowing hospitality in this unique wine region. It is in this part of the world that they craft the sparkling wines to which the rest of the world (us included!) aspires to emulate.


Tune in early to the SBS coverage where our mate, galloping gourmand, G Gate, will Sabre the top off a bottle of Champagne, a practice we admire so much we named our first sparkling after it. 


From the chardonnay vineyards of Champagne, the Peleton rolls east toward Metz in another stage for the quick men. Lets hope the Orica-Green Edge boys can get Gossy up to the front once more so he can get this one, & that the BMC boys can keep Cadel clear from the spills for another night or two.

So... who to pick for the win?? Similar to last night, but is Cav about to give up thinking more about London??

Look for the class sprinters again to have a crack....Cav...Goss...Cav...Goss...Greipel...Sagan....ummm??!!


We'll wait & see....
*Although not the official broadcast partner, we did like this Tour update form Clarke and Dawe last night on the ABC. Looks like team Brown Edge might need a bit of help!


Stage 6 predictions & tipples:


OUR PICK TO WIN: Gossy! You've got a 3rd & a 2nd, it's time for the win! You know you can do it....! 

DRINK: It's champagne darling all the way! Try Champagne Paul Bara out of Bouzy (yes it is the best name for a wine region), try some big house Laurent Perrier from Tours-sur-Marne or if you have a lazy $5k or so to blow on a bottle of fizz see if you can track down a Krug Clos du Ambonnay

AUSSIE MATCH: If you haven't got a bottle of Sabre by MH near by, get on to a steely Blanc de Blanc from Clover Hill, a nicely aged of Chandon Tassie Cuvee, or track down some of the good booze from Ed Carr's stable. http://mitchellharris.blogspot.com.au/stage 6

The chaos continues... Tour Blog Stage 5

Once again it's the survivors of the carnage who reap the tour rewards... Greipel getting the goodies after another massive pile-up with our boy Gossy whizzing in 4th.

How are YOU travelling with the carnage of 2am finishes each night this week?

Well, no time to stop now as the tour rolls on, this time on a rolling course from Rouen to Saint Quentin to the north of Paris. Expect a roaring breakaway again, which will once again to script be swallowed up toward the finish of the race. Aussie sprint star Robbie McEwen has won this leg 3 times, and once again we should expect a flat-out sprint finish.

So... who to pick for the win?

Look for the class sprinters again to have a crack....Cav...Goss...Cav...Goss...ummm....

OUR PICK: Go Gossy!

DRINK: (Not much wine in these parts of Aisne) -a Val d'Aisne Blonde Ale
AUSSIE MATCH: Grand Ridge Natural Blonde

Carnage and Cider: Tour Blog Stage 4

Carnage! Carnage! Carnage! What a night last night!
How exciting for us and treacherous for the combatants. Glad to hear that there weren't too many serious injuries but many scrapes and bruises on the roller-coaster ride over the Boulonnais Hills. Unfortunately though 2 riders didn't make it across the line. Team Sky lost Sivtsov who was one of Wiggos supports via a fractured tibia and Jose Rojas from team Movistar was the other casualty.
Tema MH was a bit off with their predictions last night but enjoyed every minute of it.

Stage 4 and we wind down the east coast from Abbeville and swing in-land to beautiful historic Rouen. A relatively flat stage with a few Cat 4 climbs and an intermediate sprint in Fécamp as the riders make their way inland. It may not be the battle of the Somme, however it won't be a ride for the faint hearted. Look out for the wind boys! The Teams that know how to ride in the wind will be favoured here and if it's really blowy, who knows who'll get spat out the back of the peloton. There might be a few tired and sore riders who'll find it a battle.

American Tyler Farrar will be after a big win for the 4th of July, but....

OUR PICK:  Go Gossy!- to pick up his first stage win of Le Tour



WHAT TO DRINK: The heart of Normandy-a Cider! 
Try : Le Pere Jules 'Cidre Bouche' Brut


AUSSIE MATCH: A Napoleone & Co Methode Traditionelle Pear Cider


PS... We like this shot of Scotty Sunderland as posted on Twitter last night: Nice Blouse!!

Tour Blog: Stage 3

Whoa!! What a night for the sprint lovers last night & the expert (ahem!) MH TdF commentary panel were pretty much on the money with their Big Cav prediction & Gossy was oh so close but left his charge a little late - he wasn't happy either. He's looking for respect!

Greipel too was visibly disappointed at not being able to take the points after a near perfect lead train by the Lotto boys and was over heard to be loudly ordering a serve of frites & mayo as he crossed the line on the Manx Missile's shoulder.

Stage 3 & we are back in France. Orchies to Boulongne-Sur-Mer is an uphill battle to the finish. There are 6 big hills in the last 65 km with 4  in the final 16km. The sprinters might find the going a little tougher tonight and there could be plenty of splits in the peloton which could really blow the bunch to pieces.

This is definitely one worth staying up for folks. Gilbo & Cadel have previous form early in the hills & Fabu in the maillot jaune will be as fast as lightening on the descent. One for the all-rounders, so look out for Wiggo to make his presence felt.

OUR PICK: Fabian Cancellara


AUSSIE ROUGHIE: Will Cadel try for this or will Sky help Rogers to the line? 

WHAT TO DRINK:  2 Caps Noire de Slack



AUSSIE MATCH: White Rabbit Dark Ale

Tour Blog: Stage 2

One for the sprinters tonight. No major hurdles for the quicks tonight as the tour bangs along from Visé to Tournai. Look for a race of tactics, with enough time after the sprint section for the sprinters to recover prior to the finish.

Sky, with the powerhouse Cavendish alongside Wiggins, Hagen and Michael Rogers will send out the boys right and the end, and it looks likely that this setting could be ideal for Cav to pick up his first win. Orica-GreenEDGE will have Matt Goss as their big dangerman. And look for Sagan to aim for a back-to-back stage victory.

OUR PICK: Cavendish (massive team back-up helping him to pounce for the first time!)
AUSSIE ROUGHIE: Goss

WHAT TO DRINK: Tournay Blonde
AUSSIE MATCH: Red Hill Belgian Blonde

Tour Blog: Stage 1

Fabian Cancellara (as tipped by us yesterday!) gets the Yellow Jersey on tonight for the 198km run from Liege to Seraing. He's a master of the time trial, but tonight's leg is 198km of rolling up and down through Belgium, and should open the race up to a number of the other big names. Weather should be pretty mild and cloudy, top of 19ºC. Don't write Cancellara off for this one though, he'll still be a fairly good chance.

We reckon Wiggins and Evans will play it safe and stick pretty close to each other.

The last few k's should be a great watch, with a fairly steep 5% climb to the finish to sort out the sprinters and climbers...

Local boy Phillippe Gilbert would be an obvious favourite, and we Aussies should look out for a potential win for the Orica-GreenEDGE team with Mansfield lad Simon Gerrans.

So our tip: Gerrans.

And for a drink: Something dark: A Leffe Brune.
Or a closer-to-home: A White Rabbit Dark Ale from Healesville

Enjoy the ride!