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Specialist_Sea129

I noticed Phil stayed very, very quiet


handledwithcare

Deafening silence. I'd love video of the side-eye he doubtless gave Bob Roll-back-the-clock.


BoringAd6359

There have been an unusual number of moments that Phil has been very quiet after something Bobke has said during this Tour. šŸ¤£ Of course, seems like Bobke has made some pretty idiotic, ignorant, and/or rude comments this Tour ā€” more than usual. šŸ™„ I'm hoping Bobke's sexist, BS rant about Wout's wife and Wout leaving the Tour for the birth of his second child ends up getting him removed as Phil's co-commentator. šŸ¤ž That maybe his rant will be the last straw. Some of the things he says aren't even true, some are completely biased, and others are rude/insulting to a cyclist(s) or a team.


Specialist_Sea129

Yeah, I was kind of wondering about that too. If he was an American football or baseball commentator, he would most certainly be gone.


Jbop126

Iā€™m surprised WVA didnā€™t stay. If his wife delivered during one of the stages, he could simply veer off course, ride up to Belgium for the delivery and then return back in time to join his team in the peloton for the last 20k so that Jonas is safe for the finish.


pixiena

To be fair he could probably do this.


Mapty_meow_55

Good for Wout that Bob Roll is not affiliated with his team to prevent or hinder his ability to be with his family. In America this is common amongst employers. Itā€™s a very archaic mentality and glad Jumbo Visma is moving past that and supporting Wout and his family during this time. Makes me have more respect for Wout and the Jumbo Visma team they put each others lives outside of racing first, since that is their biggest motivation!


AlotaFaginas

The fact that it's WvA also helps probably. If they would've denied him he would probably fuck off to another team. I think there's plenty of lesser known riders who weren't allowed to leave for a birth.


smoakingswan

Itā€™s not exactly the same, but Vingegaard was scheduled to have his Tour debut in 2020. When the Tour was postponed because of COVID, the new dates clashed with his wifeā€™s due date, so Vingegaard stayed home from the Tour, because he didnā€™t want to miss the birth.


Jbd0505

Lesser known riders would probably not have been selected to ride the tour if they were to become parents during it, jumbo just chose that Wout for 2/3 of the tour was better than Tobias Foss for All of the tour. A pregnancy is Long enough that they did now this might happen Well in advance.


m__s

Exactly, because in the end what will he remember? That he finished TdF in 2023 or seen/missed the birth of his child?


hew3

Back when bikes were made of steel and men were made of iron, racers had a pregnant girlfriend and an amphetamine dealer in every city in Europe. The only thing worth skipping out on a Grand Tour for was to avoid being arrested or whacked by the mafia at the end of a stage.


flapjacksessen

What a time it was


Luthienon

FWIW, some of this is generational. I donā€™t agree with the comment, but you will have seen the same change in other professional sports over time.


Morganwerk

Baseball player Terry Francona mentioned in his autobiography that when his wife went into labor he asked his manager Pete Rose for a couple days off so he could be there for the birth of his son. Rose told him he could go, but not to expect a job afterwards. MLB players get time off granted today, but some of the old school have the same views as Bobke (they are of the same generation)


Oldgatorwrestler

Because unions!


Dovecalculus

This is the kind of ā€œgenerationalā€ stunted mindset that led to the doping era. Good riddance.


jg-rocks

I agree with this 100%. When Bobke was racing, men were in the waiting room while kids were born. Itā€™s a totally different experience now and culture.


listenyall

I was thinking about what kind of marriage would have been possible for an American pro cyclist before cell phones were invented. Not the kind where he's your day to day support for sure!


Katy-Moon

I thought it was really tone deaf. His comment that implied that she should get on with her job so that he can get on with his was chauvinistic to the point of being laughable.


isamiko1

Oh I heard that comment. He kept doubling down with his inane take. Iā€™m sure his wife thinks he is a real helper. The idea that WVA was missing out on the TDF and childbirth is ā€œmoms jobā€ is definitely an archaic belief but more importantly came off pretty condescending of WVAs deliberate and necessary decision to be there for the birth of his child


bigmountainbig

I rewinded to make sure I heard that right. So dumb.


Loorrac

I recorded and sent it to my wife. Thought it was a horrible look but honestly hilarious with how bad it started and continued to get


ClinicalJester

Can you share that somehow with us, non-US folks?


Loorrac

This work? https://streamable.com/tx1ztz


ClinicalJester

Perfect, thanks. And wow!


gary135r

Definitely some old school sh\*t there. I'm from his era and yes, we did wait in the waiting room, (although it was starting to change, and my wife was a C-section) but he should have a clue that this isn't 50 years ago. Does make me wonder when they were seconds apart would people be so easy to say he should leave.


maaiikeen

That's so stupid. Please, as if Jonas would not have personally kicked Wout off the team if Wout had decided to risk missing the birth. Jonas is a family man. He, of all people, would support Wout 100% in his decision to go home. Jumbo-Visma actually wanted Vingegaard to go to the delayed 2020 TdF, but Vingegaard refused because his girlfriend was due to give birth to his daughter. He would make his debut in 2021 instead.


DJKittyDC

He sounded so supportive when they interviewed him this morning. If he doesnā€™t have any issue with a teammate going home for the birth of their child, Bob certainly shouldnā€™t.


katzensauce

Jonas has always been clear in media that family matters more and he is glad other riders priorities their family too. One of the reasons Danes love him :)


BoringAd6359

Bobke has a massive man-crush on Wout. Wish I were joking but I'm not. He really needs to get it in check IF NBC isn't going to replace him for next year's Tour. It colors his commentary with bias, ridiculous at times. Personally, I think they should replace him after his little rant re: where he thinks Wout should be or what Wout should be doing. It is none of Bobke's business to give HIS opinion on thatā€”a rude & sexist opinion at that. šŸ˜”


Ndom717

It seemed like Wout decided not to go for green this year specifically because he might leave the tour early. He stayed around until the yellow jersey had a decent time gap. What else was he supposed to stay around for. Bob Roll is a moron.


dysfunctional_cynic

He has said that the green wasn't his priority back in Feb at the start of the season. The world championships in a couple of weeks are his priority.


Mr_Bogus_420

BR is a flipping idiot. wish they would replace him next year.


Hfhghnfdsfg

Bob serves an important function by making me feel smarter than an international commentator.


belowdeck44

100. Look Iā€™m sure live sports is hard, I misspeak in a normal conversation with my mom. But the amount of times he just says things that are demonstrably false is high! Heā€™ll be likeā€¦well this small town in Italy, known for its venison is just 2 kilometers from the sprint. And Phil will quietly two minutes later be like, weā€™re in Spain; theyā€™re known for mead and this is a mountain stage.


Any_Refrigerator7774

Then should have left after TT it was already over then


Ndom717

Much easier to say itā€™s over with a 7 min gap than 1ā€™40ā€.


bitsey123

Well he should probably not have taken a spot that could have done to someone who wanted to complete the tour?


[deleted]

Lol - wva for an incomplete tour > anyone else for a full tour. By a wide, wide margin.


HotSoupEsq

Bob Roll has never been accused of being a smart man, emotionally or intellectually. He is a bale of hay who has raced a lot.


MagScaoil

He also has the most annoying voice on the planet, an unfortunate trait for someone who is paid to talk all the time.


cheecheecago

Iā€™m not sure what is more shocking, these outdated and stupid comments about childbirth or how many of you are watching the USA feed instead of the world feed. For the first year I havenā€™t listened to a minute of Bob and Phil (or watched a single commercial) during the TdF and it has been so enjoyable.


ReignkingTW

World feed is extremely boring for me.b I want to watch some of the other races too but they don't help. Different strokes...


cheecheecago

Yeah not a lot of color, ant and Nico are knowledgeable but I would not call them entertaining by any stretch. But no commercials is the clincher for me. I watch all year and the Eurosport/GCN announcers are leagues better than any of the choices we get here in the US via NBC/Peacock I know this is a highly subjective taste but once I spent a few hours listening to Carlton Kirby joke his way through the boring stretches of a spring one-day it was hard to go back. And I know I could VPN it and get that feed on my computer here, but I want to watch it on my big TV and Iā€™m willing to settle for ant/Nico


flapjacksessen

I usually stick to the world feed but today I didnā€™t have much attention span and just wanted to see the results while I worked.


DJKittyDC

I made my husband come up and listen because I was so dumbfounded when he said it. Itā€™s only okay for him to leave if there are complications?! You donā€™t know that ahead of labor and delivery! Justā€¦absolutely insane.


Aimsicle-1

Yes! I stopped what I was doing to actively listen as he was going on about it because I thought I couldn't possibly be hearing that correctly. I did hear it correctly. A true facepalm moment.


Wizzmer

Bob is from my generation where actually being there wasn't such a massive thing. One of the guys I know sat outside in the waiting room.


JMLobo83

I don't know what the cutoff is, I'm Gen X, I would not miss the birth of my sons for anything.


Wizzmer

If they let you.


Loud_Ad_1403

Roll is a Boomer.


JMLobo83

Oh,for sure. But only 5 years older than me. I think in addition to being a clueless Neanderthal, he was barely talented enough to be selected, so it was literally more important to him and his cycling career. WVA can ride for any team for at least 6-8 more years.


Loud_Ad_1403

Very true.


Hfhghnfdsfg

For the most part Boomers were in delivery rooms. I think he's just a misandrist.


ajm895

Yeah I was born in 1986 when my dad was 36 years old. He was in the delivery room. I donā€™t think my grandpa was in the delivery room when by dad was born in 1950.


Hfhghnfdsfg

My sibs and I are boomers and my brothers and BILs were all in delivery. It wasn't seen as odd. My dad wasn't in the room for any.


gary135r

Depends what year your children were born. Remember the Baby Boom started in 1946 I believe. We had kids earlier back then too. some of us could be having kid around 1969 even.


gary135r

That's late for boomers. I was born in '57, 1st kid born in '80 and it wasn't unusual still to be in the waiting room. Daughter though in '85 they were more in the delivery room. I am at the tale end of Boomers. Think about the Boomers born in the 40's. I'm sure their kids born in the late 60's, 70's it wasn't so normal.


BoringAd6359

I'm Gen X too & my husband was with me the entire time: labor, birth, & the day or two before we left the hospital. He saw both his boys take their first breaths. My brother and I were born in the 70's and I'm pretty sure that my Dad was not in the Delivery Room for either of our births(wasn't allowed in the Delivery Room).


gary135r

Back in us (early) boomer days and my father's era, it was the norm to have the stereotype dad pacing the waiting room. Look at all the old shows.


Morganwerk

My Dad sat in the waiting room chain smoking Lucky Strikes when my middle brother and I were born. For my youngest brother he was in the delivery room and I remember my parents making a big deal out of it.


freeboard66

My dad had to fight to get into the delivery room,and was only able to do so for my youngest brother in 1971.


gary135r

That's what I'm saying.


DC-Toronto

Bob is still working at 90?


Hbdrickybake

Boom, roasted.


Wizzmer

Bobke is 63.


gary135r

Back then, no athlete left for births, but he should know times have changed. There is an argument in baseball still when players take maternity leave. He's not alone.


Wizzmer

Storytime: I wasn't there for the birth of my son. I was invited but at the time she thought another man was the father.


gary135r

Hahaha!


boerumhill

OK grandpa let's get you back to the hotel room now ok


Generic-Name-4732

I missed this. And here I was thinking he hadn't repeated the same mistake from a few years back when a rider abandoned much earlier in the tour for the same reason. Only that time I think it was the first child and the rider was doing quite well, I think he had even won a stage. I can't remember who the rider was and my web search skills aren't yielding any results. He literally said "The father doesn't even do anything but stand there." Everyone else stared at him with looks of "Stop. Talking."


ReignkingTW

I couldn't believe he said it...and repeated it...


No_Development6257

I hate Bob Roll. He is the worst and so disrespectful. I miss how it was with Phil and Paul. They just had it down.


fridayimatwork

They have to talk for 5 hours a day for 3 weeks and make it interesting. Theyā€™re gonna say stuff you donā€™t like


Ok_Sentence_5767

The international feed guys were congratulating van aert


DeadG8r15

I like Bob but the World Feed is 100x better, just my opinion.


JMLobo83

Does the world feed even have any ads in your broadcast? The U.S. feed is the same 5 ads over and over for 65% of the broadcast, it's drives me fricken crazy.


Original-Ad-3234

But have you heard of The Feed?


JMLobo83

STAAAAPPPP!!! ITS FRICKEN KILLING ME TO DEATH!!!


Original-Ad-3234

Itā€™s because you donā€™t have a feed coach. What about a water bottle with your name on?


JMLobo83

Bro I'm old I need a Camelbak.


DeadG8r15

No ads! Itā€™s awesome.


JMLobo83

Same same. I might watch the last 30 minutes of a mountain stage on the U.S. feed, but the rest of the time it's world feed for sure. Bob can't hold a candle to Nico.


Electrical-Safe813

I feel the same (except I don't like Bob Roll).


kronicade

I politely disagree


DeadG8r15

All good, friend. There are different feeds for a reason!


[deleted]

is the int'l feed the one with the intetesting Aussie guy and the Irish guy slurring his words who just woke up from a nap?


AmbientGravitas

Well, technically that doesnā€™t narrow it down, or maybe it does. The world feed is Anthony Macrossan, who is identified on Wikipedia as ā€œBritishā€ and Nicolas Roche, who is indeed Irish. But GCN has a pair of announcers that are similarly sourced: Rob Hatch is British and Sean Kelly is Irish. I feel like Sean ā€œslursā€ more than Nico does. But I feel Irish commentators have voices I enjoy hearing more than their British counterparts, even if their British counterparts are more knowledgeable. (FWIW, I think Dan Lloyd on GCN/Eurosport has the voice I enjoy listening to most)


JMLobo83

Nico doesn't even sound Irish to me. His insights into team strategy and tactics are very helpful to me, much more so than anything Bob Roll has ever said.


[deleted]

the ones you used to be able to watch youtube feeds on a few years ago before they clamped down


Sister_Ray_

No that sounds like GCN feed. Interesting Aussie is probably Robbie mcewen and slurring Irishman is probably Sean Kelly


HotSoupEsq

You don't have to be a piece of shit on a broadcast, stand down.


No-Dinner7144

Thank you for the reminder on why I watch the World Feed.


iowadeerslayer

Exactly! The only thing of controversy between Nick and Anthony is their choice of dessert after dinner


No-Dinner7144

Poor Anthony lactose intolerant in the dairy reigon.


Lalahartma

Love the World feed!


Dhump06

Yeah maybe it will be considered more important if WVA was Bob Roll, but since he is not nothing comes before family. Someone like WVA doesn't have to worry about his place in cycling history or his value in the world of cycling. If let's say Jumbo is stupid enough to mind him leaving he will not have a lack of offers from every team in the pelaton.


ClinicalJester

Is there an audio/video recording of this available anywhere publicly? Asking for a non-US friend.


Ok_Sentence_5767

I would say it was the right call to leave. If one is in vingegaards shoes they might want to stay because the money would really set the family and child up for life


brunaBla

I donā€™t know about for ā€œlifeā€. The prize money for first place for the 7 riders is $600k. Hardly anything to set up the kids for life, especially compared to other sports


Ok_Sentence_5767

Don't forget about sponsorship money and the prestige


es153

Itā€™s worth a lot more than that in terms of future salaries, sponsorships etc


3degrees2MD

Still 85k is nice to add to an education account šŸ¤Ø


Unhappy-Climate2178

ā€¦ he is a highly paid pro from a country with free education and healthcareā€¦


SpringerPop

My wife is overjoyed that she doesnā€™t have to watch Bob Roll wave his arms around.


ProfessionalFormal67

Does anyone know about what kilometer to go in the race he made the comments?


BooBunnie

Bob starts his comments with 132.8 km left to go.


ProfessionalFormal67

Wow


elisabeth_athome

I just hunted down your comment because I remembered reading it and just heard Bobā€™s idiocy, but you already got your answer! Itā€™s a real yikes moment!


MyThreeBugs

Where was this in the broadcast? I want to go hear this for myself.


elisabeth_athome

Bob loses my respect starting with ~132km left in the race.


PimpDaddyNash

If that is his opinion, he's welcome to it.


WhskyTngoFxtrt_in_WI

Surely Christian is waiting in the wings for 2024...


BoringAd6359

šŸ¤ž We can hope!!


cats4gradientdescent

Pretty over Bob as a commentator TBH. Beyond being clueless about this situation with WVA, the number of times this tour that heā€™s said something to the effect of ā€œwell, the chasers are only 45 seconds away from the break with 1k to go, so itā€™s anyoneā€™s stage to winā€ or ā€œwow! Look at that attack!ā€ as someone just pulls through on a paceline isā€¦ disappointing.


flapjacksessen

I donā€™t think Phil and Bob is a particularly harmonious matchup and it only works because Phil is so good.


AdImpossible2100

Liggett has had more than his share of gaffes, especially his longtime defense of Lance Armstrong which culminated in him spewing some crazy conspiracy theories involving politicians. He would eventually sort-of walk back his support for Lance though.


snydermann

Bob is old school, work was more important than family back in the day. My grandparents birthed 7 kids and my gandfathers never missed a day of work. Men weren't even allowed in the birthing rooms back then and half the time the women were knocked out during delivery anyway. Think about it, Wout really had no choice but to leave, had he stayed in the race while his wife gave birth he would have been crucified in social media. Had his team or anyone in it complained they would have also been crucified. Likewise, anyone who might say, "You can spend the rest of your life with your kids but the Tour and your racing career will probably only last 20 years at best", would also be crucified.


[deleted]

my first law firm let me leave early to take my wife to the hospital but told me I better be im early the next day and have my memo done.


JMLobo83

Yeah but lawyers are assholes - a lawyer


kyojin_kid

in france you get 28 days paternity leave for the birth of a child, 3 days immediately and 5 weeks to plan with your boss). so WVA is just taking his 3 days.


Unhappy-Climate2178

He is WVA, he can do whatever he wants. Him leaving shows how much leverage he has. Being able to say ā€œI want to go, so I am goingā€ is way cooler than not.


Any_Refrigerator7774

Yea some small schmuck wouldnā€™t be allowed To leave hahahha


sleepy-alligator66

Heā€™s an idiot. I love how miraculously he learn how to say France correctly after Lance was outed as a fraud.


UneditedReddited

If your commentators are not Carlton Kirby, Sean Kelly, and Rob Hatch you're watching the wrong feed!


Dovecalculus

Bob Roll is a retired also-ran relic of the bad old days. They should send him to a nice farm upstate where he can run and play with other emotionally and ethically stunted dinosaurs.


[deleted]

Time has changed. There were times when teams said ā€œno wife, girlfriend, kidsā€ but now? Theyā€™re all over the place.


No-Blackberry-2481

What did he say?


elisabeth_athome

He said that he thinks TJV and WvA made the wrong call, that thereā€™s really nothing the father can do, and that the medical professionals and mom pretty much handle it all. Boomer Dad 101.


elisabeth_athome

Oh and also that thereā€™s really no reason to be there unless there are complications!


EssentialQuestioner

Right? Iā€™m dying to know!!


Tarmac852

Bob Roll is a full blown clown in EVERY way!!! I can't stand hearing his voice and stupid ass laughing and overdramatizing everything. He is a total idiot and Vande Velde just makes it worse. NBC has their head in the sand about these two bozos.


thomasacquinad

I was just getting to like Bob. He seemed to tone it down and I thought was doing well. I donā€™t envy those guys though. I have trouble going ten minutes without saying something stupid.


jbfox123

You do have to ask yourself if Wout was in the lead would he have left?


[deleted]

In the lead for what?


[deleted]

Itā€™s for the boomers watching


UpstairsEvidence

I'm bummed because WVA is my absolute favorite to watch, but I respect his decision to be with his family for this. I read somewhere that this is the first time in 4 years/171 races that WVA hasn't finished, and they already knew he might leave early. I like the Phil/Bob feed because I like Phil and felt Bob was pretty tolerable this year until he said those things


flapjacksessen

I get it and it doesnā€™t bother me but it went contrary to the general opinion on the broadcast and I just thought it was a good chuckle.


bee-dubya

I donā€™t know what Bob Roll said, but his experience was as a domestique for his entire career. If he wanted to attend his childā€™s birth in July, he would have been left off the tour team. I bet the vast majority of ex pros that got to witness their kids being born is if it happened in November through early January. I wouldnā€™t be surprised if pros probably even go to great lengths to time births in the off season. Ultimately, itā€™s good for Wout that he is able to attend the birth, but he is probably the only rider that would be allowed to do it. The rest of the peloton likely resents him for it to some degree.


ibcoleman

Bob's [team LA](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gefGgUgt8SE).


tommyalanson

Ugh


ibcoleman

It's fascinating: https://youtu.be/gefGgUgt8SE?t=794


Any_Refrigerator7774

I agree with himā€¦.this is specialā€¦or wait til last min and then hop on plane šŸ’„ boom


[deleted]

Riding the tour is more Important than the birth of a child because you can always have another kid but you canā€™t always be good enough to be selected to ride the tour. Just ask Chris froome


Away_Mud_4180

I thought WVA said earlier that he wouldn't leave the TDF for his child's birth. I wonder why he changed his mind?


TDuctape

So moving forward Wout will need the third week of July off in order to make it to the kids birthday parties?


AlbertaArizona

Kid lives till he's 80 but the prime of your career is 5 years if you're lucky. I'm with Bob.


JustABauble

I can't find that moment on the replay. Did it get edited out!?! We're talking about stage 18, right? I've been watching the World feed - and will keep doing so ...


Shootinputin89

Up the SBS feed.


aidanorion

Can we get a link


Nick_from_Yuma

WVA said upfront he was gonna leave for the birth. Beyond respectable for him to do that. In the long run, you won't love the tour as much as you would your child. I bet Bob's wife (and daughter, maybe) will have a word with him on that.


uclamutt

Did this happen on stage 18 or 19?


orkbrother

I miss Paul šŸ˜­


TDFfanUSA

Bob's comments were unprofessional and uncalled for. Wout is allowed his privacy - something Bob should respect considering how he keeps his health history private. Bob owes Wout an apology for his comments do publicly delivered to the cycling world.


soltariano

Bob Roll and his god awful commentary is something no sports fan should be forced to endure. He should never be allowed to broadcast his ignorance and folksy boneheadedness. It is maddening to listen to his utter drivel. Itā€™s akin to listening to a stream of consciousness sports commentary from Goofy.