BenH said:
It was certainly horrible PR to potentially lose the Tour over a chain drop. I wouldn't think though that SRAM would blame it on Andy's shifting style. Hopefully you'd have to go to a lot of trouble to make this happen on a proper install.
Really?
You've never dropped a chain? You've never dropped a chain when it "mattered"?
I watched a friend do the same thing on his 105 bike. The results were different, but the cause was very similar: shifting while standing up to hammer up a hill.
Schleck had a bunch of weird crap happen, and it added up to dropping a chain.
My friend had a bunch of weird crap happen, and it added up to him pulling his rear wheel out of the dropouts.
**** happens. Losing the tour at least partially because of a mechanical sucks, but **** still happens. It's not the drive train's fault. That being said, i'm rooting for him next year whatever drivetrain he decides on.