Stage 19, Preview of Ventoux

The final transition stage turned out to be quite the thriller but not as most expected. Everything looked to be growing to script as an early break swelled to 20 riders, sprinkled with great stage riders like Cadel Evans, Luis Leon Sanchez, Kim Kirchen, Nicolas Rouche, Syslvian Chavanel, and Daniele Bannati. As the Astana and the Saxo Bank squad sat back to gear-up for the ascent up Mont Ventoux tomorrow a Rabobank took to making the pace on the front of the peloton. The well known Dutch team, that has been surprisingly quiet in this years tour pulled back the most of the strong break by the base of the late cat 2 and then reeled the late attackers in by the summit. The pace by Rabobank thinned the peloton over the climb, but the big sprinters of Hushovd, Farrar, and even Cavendish helped by his teammates were still in contact. Two other riders attacked at the end of the climb, but knowing there man Cavendish was there, columbia got on the front and brought these two men back with 2k to go from the finish. George Hincapie was now on the front now trying to setup the unlikely field sprint on the uphill finish for Cavendish. Columbia did not have their big lead out train ready and only had Hincapie and strongman Tony Martin to leadout Cavendish, with the Manxman's favorite leadout man Mark Renshaw as casualty of the climb. Hincapie relinquished his duties to martin with just under a k to go and Martin drove Cav to within 400 meters, but with the likes of Hushovd, Milram's Benard Ciolek, and Farrar in his slipstream the Manx Missile would have to do something very special to pull out the W from this far out. But that exactly what he did, with the worlds best breathing down his neck and on a slight incline showed that lighting strike faster than thunder, never letting his Norwegian rival get around him and flying to his 5th stage win. An incredible win for Cavendish on a day many believed he would have little chance. This win just shows that if Cav is sitting in the peloton with as little as 2 teammates with a K to go he is going to win, no sprinter has ridden with that kind of dominance in this decade. With the win Cavendish gobbled up 35 more points but only gained 5 on Hushovd who held on to 2nd and still leads the race for green comfortably. Even if Cav wins in Paris Hushovd only need to finish in the top 10 to hold of the Manxman, something he should have no problem with. Despite the surprising prevail of the peloton today there was a minor shake up in the GC as the disorganized field sprint cut a split in the peloton coming up to the line. Lance Armstrong was able to hold onto to sprinters and stay at the front, gaining a likely unsubstantial but welcomed 4 seconds on his rivals, all coming in with the rest of the peloton right behind.

If you have not been watching and only reading this blog to keep up with the tour please take note, DO NOT miss tomorrow's coverage of Mont Ventoux on Versus. I will guarantee the stage will be absolutely nuts on the years final ascent, this climb is so hard someone died on it once, yeah its gonna be off the hook.  And you know that the excitement will be amplified 200x by Phil Liggett and Paul Sherwin's commentery. The brit in the booth will be dropping one liners like riders off the peloton, similes that capture the pain and beauty that is the tour de france.  

Now to look at the stage. Its 144k of rolling hills featuring 3 cat 3s and a cat 4 before the riders hit the base of the Mont. Here that peloton should be mainly intact. Likely some brave riders in an early breakaway will meet their fate on Ventoux a few minutes early. The climb will be over 20k long and have a gradient of 7% with some pitches much steeper. I look for Saxo Bank to be on the front early to launch attacks from Frank and Andy Schleck in an attempt to isolate Alberto Contador, to if not make up the unlikely 4 four minutes on the spaniard to at least try and show that he is mortal. Despite their efforts Contador will probably hang around and throw in some attacks of his own in the final 3k to try to take home one more stage victory to go along with his yellow jersey. The day will be a real test for lance armstrong, who despite that fact that he has shown solid climbing legs has not been able to successfully attack against the best in this year's tour. I look for him to ride with pride tomorrow, no longer babysitting on the wheels of Contador's rivals but riding for the win, to try to add some hardware to his podium finish. Though im cheering for Wiggo to move up from 4th, it will be tough for Bradley Wiggans to make up time on Armstrong and hold off older schleck and kloden to try and grab a podium spot, but assuredly Vande Velde and Zebriskie will do their best to take care of him. Either way it should be a great day, so sit back and enjoy the tour's final fireworks.

Stage 18 ITT, 19 preview

Well the final individual time trial was a bit different this year. Coming before the final mountain stage there are still some questions on how the GC competition will shape up. After being pushed around by the schlecks yesterday, the old school TTers of Armstrong Kloden and Wiggans had the opportunity to get some major revenge on the luxembourgers over the 40k today and ride themselves back into spots on the podium. The early best time on the day was set by none other than world time trial champion and week one race leader, Fabian Cancellara. Though Cancellara had a chance at the stage win, the real focus came on the final 6 riders and how the day would shuffle up the top contenders. Wiggans was first to go off, and had the best time through the first and third checks on the road, but would fade a bit over the last half to finish 6th on the stage, with an overall solid performance. Kloden just down the road also rode solidly to finish in 9th, but conceded 11 seconds to the brit, sliding Wiggans into 5th overall by a mere 2 seconds. Then it was Armstrong's turn to stop the clock, though he did give 47 seconds to Wiggans Armstrong hung tough to maintain his 4th position and finish in 16th, not bad for an old man but he certainly didnt put on the show he used to in the final TTs in his great day of yore. But these 3 men would all be given a gift of GC spot by the next man on the road, Frank Schleck. Frank is not known for his TT skills and showed why, finishing a sorry 35th and giving up 2:34, transplanting him from 3rd back to 6th overall. Little brother Andy kept the family respectable by giving up only 1:45 in 21st place, maintaining his 2nd position. The day leaves some big questions left to be answered about the podium on Mt. Ventoux, as Andy is 1:14 armstrong's better and there is only a 34 second spread between the texan and Frank Schleck now sitting sixth, with wiggans and Kloden respectively 4th and 5th. Though the final podium spots will be decided on the penultimate ascent, the question of who would win this years tour was emphatically answered today. Though his superiority was hardly questioned coming into the day, Alberto Contador added and exclamation point, setting best times by 15-20 seconds on each of the courses time checks and then hanging on over the last 12k to dethrone Cancellara's time at the finish by 3 seconds to claim his 2nd stage victory. Contador lengthened his lead to an insurmountable 4:11 over Schleck in 2nd. Contador has shown he is far and away the world's best cyclist, he can climb better than anyone and can TT as good or better than the best, barring the largest collapse in the history of sport this man will adorn yellow on the Champs Elysees.

Top ten GC with 3 stages to go:

• 1. Alberto Contador Astana in 73:15:39
• 2. Andy Schleck Team Saxo Bank in 73:19:50 at 4:11
• 3. Lance Armstrong Astana in 73:21:04 at 05:25
• 4. Bradley Wiggins Garmin - Slipstream in 73:21:15 at 05:36
• 5. Andréas KlÖden Astana in 73:21:17 at 05:38
• 6. Frank Schleck Team Saxo Bank in 73:21:38 at 05:59
• 7. Vincenzo Nibali Liquigas in 73:22:54 at 07:15
• 8. Christian Vande Velde Garmin - Slipstream in 73:25:47 at 10:08
• 9. Mikel Astarloza Euskaltel - Euskadi in 73:28:17 at 12:38
• 10. Christophe Le Mevel Francaise Des Jeux in 73:28:20 at 12:41

Tomorrow is the tour's last transition stage, but it is not one that the sprinters will look forward to. The stage is pretty flat until a late cat 2 will offer refuge to a breakaway likely full of riders trying to make a last brave effort for a stage victory. As for the 6 that have distanced themselves in the GC, expect them to try and recharge for saturday's challenge up Ventoux. Also look for the Green Jersey to be solidified by Thor Hushovd tomorrow. The Norwegian already has the competition wrapped up with a 30 point cushion, but with the late climb Thor is likely to get more points in the peloton's sprint while Cavendish will be left behind. Should be fun tomorrow because a lot of domestiques will be going for stage wins after hard efforts for their teams throughout the tour.

Final Week, Stage 17 Recap, 18 preview

Readers, 

sorry for the lack of material lately, i was out of town and very busy this weekend and during the week i update this blog at work, and believe it or not sometimes my job actually requires me to do things outside of writing my extensive thoughts about the tour de france. So lets recap what i missed. Saturday - George misses out on yellow by 5 seconds and throws a fit, Ivanov FTW. Sunday - Alps start, Contador goes no one can match, taking names and yellow. Monday - rest day. Tuesday - nothing really happens all big moves are covered, Astarloza of Eskadel-Eskadi has an emotional stage win and jens voigt crashes out. 

Today was the huge and final alpine stage, barring mt. ventoux coming on saturday. The day featured two cat 1s to start a cat 2 for kicks and then 2 more greuling cat 1s before a 15k downhill run in. The day started in exciting fashion when none other than points leader and sprinter thor hushovd went on a solo break and held it over 2 category 1 climbs. This move allowed him to pick up the 2 intermidiate sprints on the road and giving him a 30 point cushion over cavendish and pretty much solidifying his green jersey through Paris. I should also point out that Franco Pellizoti pretty much locked up a rather lulled king of the mountains classification this year, stanging points in the top of the first 3 climbs. Anyway, the first serious attacks of the day after hushovd's display of valor was washed away, came from 2 men hoping to vault themselves way up the GC, after all they did finish 1-2 last year. Cadel Evans and Carlos Sastre attacked and tried to make up time with some other small names that came for the ride. But today wasnt their day and its proving not to be their tour either as both seem out of contention for yellow now (especially evans who died on the last 2 climbs to lose 29 minutes on the day). These men were reeled in by the peloton, which had been thinned out by a strong group of Saxo Bank riders who pushed the pace all day. The Saxo domestiques of Cancellara and the Sorensens set up a launch pad for their GC hopefuls, the Schleck brother on the final 2 climbs. On the second cat 1 from the finish the schlecks would wait no longer, as the elder frank attacked to thin out the group to only the big names of Armstrong, Contador, Kloden, Wiggans, Nibali, his brother Andy and a surprisingly resiliant Christian Vande Velde who got back to the group with help from dave zebriske after falling off schleck's acceleration. But after frank had thinned things out it was Andy's turn, unleashing a violent acceleration up the mountain still 30k from the finish and cutting the group to only race leader Contador and his trusty sidekick kloden. Left behind for only moments, older brother frank quickly unlached from the armstrong, wiggans, nibali, VDV group to catch the 3 leaders up the mountain. After a short descent these groups remained the same up the final cat 1 of the day the Col de la Columbiere. Half way up the final climb after having brilliantly served wiggans as a teammate, christian cracked, leaving the brit from slipstream with the newfound climbing legs to fend for himself. Meanwhile a minute and a half up the road, after having made the schleck brothers who were significantly behind in the GC standings do the work for over half the climb, Contador attacked looking to get away and steal his second stage victory. Though his dominance is still unquestioned, his attack proved a mistake and showed once again he rides on his own accord, for while the schlecks quickly got back on his wheel, contador had dropped his final teammate, kloden. This gave the schlecks an oppurtunity to put big time in their opponents for a podium position, putting the pedal to the metal (no pun intended) and driving to the finish with a much too strong contador in tow. Frank took the victory, with the tours young faces, the Schlecks and Contador, sweeping the top 3 positions. But the fireworks in the final kilometers came from an old texan who, flew away from wiggans on the final kilometer of the climb. though the brave young italian climber, nibali, hung tough, armstrong's move allowed the tandom to catch a cashed-out kloden on the descent. At the end of the day the brothers from Luxembourg had catapulted themselves into podium spots (andy-2nd, frank-3rd) but despite their aggressive moves could not shake the man who is surely the strongest in the race for the maillot juane, Alberto Contador. The schlecks remain 2:26 and 3:25 back on contador, who ended up lengthening his lead on everyone else. Lance fell to 4th at 3:55, Kloden 5th at 4:44, Wiggans 6th 4:53 and Nibali the last man who has a legit chance at he podium clings to 7th 5:09 off the leader. Finally the stage I had been waiting for, sick day, hats off to hushovd for being a man and the schlecks for not letting Astana slowly sufficate the GC.

Looking ahead, tomorrow is another desicive day, the final individaul time trial. Dont look for the schlecks to be staying in their positions for a podium party as they, especially frank, are weak by any means in the TT. Look for the strong GC guys like Contador, Kloden, Armstrong, VDV and wiggans especially to be up there, as even TT specialists like Cancellara and zebriskie will likely be tired from their domestique work the last 3 stages. While it will be hard for him to nail back the minute and a half to andy, look for lance to get back into 3rd tomorrow passing frank schleck, only 30 seconds ahead of him. Kloden and Wiggans who are both excellent in the TT and will need to show their skills tomorrow as they need a duanting minute and a half to even be in contention come ventoux. Im picking Cadel evans to try and salvage his tour with a stage win tomorrow, but really anything could happen. With Contador still solid as a rock i look for the GC to look like this going into mt. ventoux

1. Contador

2. A. Schleck, 3:20

3. Armstrong, 3:50

4. Kloden, 4:30

5. Wiggans, 4:31

6. F. Schleck, 5:00

7. Nibali, 6:10

8. Vande Velde, 8:00

 

Rainy Stage 13 Recap, 14 Preview

Well there was a shake-up in the GC competition today but unfortunately it all started before the race had even begun. Astana and American Star Levi Leiphiemer, who was 4th in the race for yellow and seemed in line for his second podium finish, was forced to abandon the race as he suffered a broken wrist from the a crash 2k from the finish in yesterday's stage 12. Levi seemed okay, as he rode in fine after the crash but reportedly felt pain in his wrist leading him to get an x-ray and unfortunately the results were positive for a fracture. This loss did not seem to effect the Astana team much today, as they rode tempo at the front of the peloton on the climbs making sure no GC contenders could make big moves. But Levi will be surely missed by his team as a force in the alps and the TT, and his loss will certainly change the team's tactic. At 35 Levi doesnt seem like he will have too many tours left and this year he looked like he was in top form, so it is too bad to see him go down this year when he was riding so well and had such good position in the race. He had a great shot at the podium is the deepest field the tour has seen in years. But there was still a stage to be won, and though surprisingly and disappointingly the race favorites continued to play the waiting game, leaving Rinaldo Nocentini as the race figurehead, two big name classics riders who were well down in the GC standing were able to form a healthy breakaway on the category 1 climb just over half way into the 200 kilometer stage. Heinrich Haussler of the Cervelo Test Team and Quickstep's Sylvain Chavanel were able to brake off  on this rainy day in eastern france to form a quick 6 minute gap on the climb. But a strong Haussler showed he would need no one else's help the rest of the day when he gapped a surprisingly weak Chavanel on the decent and rode solidly over the remaining 2 smaller climbs to finish over 7 minutes ahead of the peloton (that is a lot but he was 55 minutes down going into the day)and get the stage win for germany. 3 others on failed breaks including Chavanel trickled in before the peloton. But there was some significance to the peloton's finish today, because while Mark Cavendish mailed it in on the climbs, not surprisingly, his rival for the green jersey Thor Hushovd hung tough on the back of the peloton on the climbs and slid in for a 6th place finish in the sprint. Those valuable points reclaimed the points lead for the big norwegian but only but a mere 5 points. This race has really heated up in this last week, as Cavendish is untouchable in a field sprint but Thor has been able to mop up solid points behind him on the flats and then make up for it by picking up points on hilly stages and uphill finishes. The Green Jersey likely won't be decided until the Champs Elysees.

Look for more green jersey excitement tomorrow with a relatively flat stage that will feature 2 category 3 climbs in the middle. Though the cat 3s give at least give the breakaway a chance, but with only 2 more sprint opportunities after this, I look for team Columbia to take this stage seriously. They will again likely do the work out front to try and put the Manx Missile in position for another stage win and to take back green. But look for Hushovd to at least minimize the damage and Farrar to be up there. Mountain top finish in the Swiss Alps on Sunday cant come soon enough. 

Stage 12 Recap, 13 Preview

Stage 12 featured rolling hills as the last transitional stage across France before the riders hit the alps tomorrow. Despite 3 early "climbs" the peloton did not easily let a break get away setting a blistering pace of 48kph over the hills, actually causing a few riders to be dropped out the back of the peloton, forcing them the to abandon the tour. But finally after several failed attempts, a seven rider group was able to form a successful attack. The riders worked together to form a 6 and a half minute lead over the peloton, who knowing that none of the those in the break would be GC threats (closest was already 10 minutes back), seemed content to cruise in after the fast early pace, not taking up any serious chase and conserving energy for the climbs tomorrow. By now certain the breakaway was safe two riders, Nicki Sorensen of Saxo and Agritubel's Sylvain Calzati, attacked 20k out from the finish, but only formed  a little over 10 seconds of a gap on the chasing 5. They held this lead for near 10k but seemed doomed to be caught by the chase pack, who was reorganized and motivated by Liquigas's Franco Pellizzoti. Pellizzoti, who after coming in 2nd on the break in stage 9, desperately wanted another chance at a stage victory. With the two man break seemingly falling apart Nicki Sorenson showed he still had legs yet, attacking hard with just 5k to go and flying away from Calazati as if he was standing still. Calazati was quickly swept up by the chasers but Sorensen's acceleration proved too strong and the Dane didnt look back from there. He crossed the line an astounding 37 seconds ahead of his chasers. Great stage victory for Sorensen, who will act as a domestique for the Schleck brothers the rest of the tour. The peloton rolled in 6 minutes later, with Cav' flexing his muscles once more to pick up the 16 points that come with an 8th place finish, with Hushovd in throw to steal minimal points in 9th. GC stayed the same again, but Cadel Evans and Levi Liephiemer experienced a scare by both being part of a crash coming into the finish, luckily neither suffered serious injury and both received the same time as the peloton with the crash occurring in the last 3k. Also there was a correction on the times awarded on stage 10, as there was ruled no gap in the peloton so riders further back were not set back 15 seconds, this thankfully returns levi and Wiggans to their original GC positions of 4th and 5th respectively.

Hats off to Sorensen, and Cav for providing some transitional entertainment these last three days, but enough with the side shows, tomorrow the real face-off for the Maillot Jaune begins. Unfortunately tomorrow will be a mere taste test, as the route will return to the flats on Saturday before kicking up into the high mountains for the 3 following stages. Just to lay out the what's to come in the rest of the tour: light mountains tomorrow, sprinters stage Saturday, Big climbs as we hit the alps in stages 15-17, but they are split up with  the second rest day coming Monday, then stage 18 is the crucial final time trial, followed by a transitional stage 19 which will lead the riders to the ultimate test of manhood that is stage 20, Mt. Ventoux, a week from saturday. And finally the tour will conclude with the ceremonial parade and sprint down the Champs Elysees in Paris. Looking at tomorrow there are 5 categorized climbs, with a gauntlet of 2-1-3-2 coming in the last half. This will allow for some serious attacks on the cat 1, or at least some stringing out, and give GC hopefuls who get away the opportunity to stay away with the up and down run into the finish. Look for Cadel Evans to be on the attack tomorrow once again. Other riders behind, such as the Schlecks, Sastre and the the Slipstreams boys Wiggans and VDV may be looking to make up time as well, but expect them to pick there spots very carefully in the remaining week and a half. I look for Astana to be on the defensive until the high mountains of the Alps, but if contador is feeling good you never know for sure.

Stage 11 Recap

Well as expected the breakaway just wasn't to be today, as the 2 rider break was easily caught 5k out. As we have seen all tour, team Columbia brought the fast pace on the front early and often looking to get there man Mark Cavendish another stage win. They were challenged by Liquigas then Lampre then finally in the last k a surprisingly strong group from Milram but the experienced men from Columbia held tough to the front never relinquishing position on what proved to be a difficult inclined finish. Just like yesterday Hincapie was on the front for Columbia-HTC with around 700 to go and Mark Renshaw, the lead-out man of lead-out men, took up the pace after him with the Manx Missile, Mark Cavendish, waiting in the wings and Hushovd and Farrar hanging tough in 3rd and 4th. This would be no standard win for the Islander of Man, as Hushovd was no longer content to wait for 2nd in Cav's slipstream. The Big Norwegian drove to alongside Cavendish with 150 to go, but "the god of thunder" had gone too early this time and faded fast, leaving the job of dethroning the Tour's new king of sprints to young American Tyler Farrar. Farrar timed his attack well, coming hard to the line on the outside a performance deserving of a stage victory. But Farrar will have to once again put off a trip to the winners podium, as Cav' went to the well one more time, pulling a gear out of god-knows-where and slipping ahead of Farrar for his 4th stage win this year and his british-record tying 8th in his career. He equals Barry Hoban's British record of 8 stages wins, but while hogan won his over a period of 9 tours, Cavendish has won his 8 in only the last 2. This guy can sprint and will be dominant for a long time to come, expect him to make that record all his with a 9th stage win in the next week and a half. Also with the win Cav' picked up 35 more valuable sprint points, reassuming the responsibility of the green jersey, as Hushovd faded to a disappointing 5th. But with the fireworks of Cavendish and the consistency of Hushovd, its likely these 2 will fight for the points classification all the way to Paris. Oh and the GC remained unchanged, Nocentini has about a two-more-day lease on yellow.

Tomorrow after sprint finishes the last two days, look for a breakaway to to vying for the stage win. The will be a bit hilly, featuring 6 small categorized climbs with 3 coming close to a the finish. The terrain should allow for a well timed break to stay away. But with serious mountains coming on friday, the sprinters might want one last go for glory, before they suffer through the alps.

Current GC Standings

Just wanted everyone to know exactly how is stands for the overall classification through 10 ten stages. We are just about half way done but there is still about 75% of the terrain that actually matters for the yellow jersey still to be ridden, so here was it looks like going into stage 11

• 1. Rinaldo Nocentini Ag2r-La Mondiale in 39:11:04
• 2. Alberto Contador Astana in 39:11:10 at 00:06
• 3. Lance Armstrong Astana in 39:11:12 at 00:08
• 4. Andréas KlÖden Astana in 39:11:58 at 00:54
• 5. Levi Leipheimer Astana in 39:11:58 at 00:54
• 6. Tony Martin Team Columbia - Htc in 39:12:04 at 01:00
• 7. Bradley Wiggins Garmin - Slipstream in 39:12:05 at 01:01
• 8. Christian Vande Velde Garmin - Slipstream in 39:12:28 at 01:24
• 9. Andy Schleck Team Saxo Bank in 39:12:53 at 01:49
• 10. Vincenzo Nibali Liquigas in 39:12:58 at 01:54
• 11. Luis-leon Sanchez Caisse D’epargne in 39:13:20 at 02:16
• 12. Frank Schleck Team Saxo Bank in 39:13:29 at 02:25
• 13. Maxime Monfort Team Columbia - Htc in 39:13:40 at 02:36
• 14. Roman Kreuziger Liquigas in 39:13:44 at 02:40
• 15. Carlos Sastre Cervelo Test Team in 39:13:56 at 02:52
• 16. Vladimir Efimkin Ag2r-La Mondiale in 39:14:04 at 03:00
• 17. Cadel Evans Silence - Lotto in 39:14:11 at 03:07
• 18. Mikel Astarloza Euskaltel - Euskadi in 39:14:21 at 03:17
• 19. Kim Kirchen Team Columbia - Htc in 39:14:35 at 03:31
• 20. Vladimir Karpets Team Katusha in 39:15:08 at 04:04

Wiggans and Levi actually lost 15 seconds today putting them now in 8th and 5th respectively. This isn't that much time but it was basically given away as they were unwisely positioned in the back of the peloton, i hope it doesn't cost them a podium spot, but it looks like those spots will come down to seconds. Remember GC really wont heat up until this weekend when they hit the alps.

Bastille Day, Stage 10 Recap and 11 Preview

Stage 10: Well Bastille day came again and the french, as always, couldn't come up with the goods, but that was to be expected with a extremely flat stage. Despite aggressive attacks by french riders on their independence holiday no serious breakaway ever materialized, with riders never more than two and a half minutes ahead of the peloton. Even with the radios on silent for a day, as the tour organizers had an "experiment" to see what it would be like to go back before the days before technology, the peloton maintained good organization, catching the last feisty frenchman just over a k out. At that time Quickstep controlled the front and it looked like we might see Tom Boonen for the first time this tour, but unfortunately he remained in hybernation, as Columbia soon took the leading duties inside of 900 meters. Though they only had a 3 man leadout, different than the long trains we saw last week, George Hincapie was able to engage the homing missile that is mark cavendish, and Mark Renshaw launched him locked-in on the finish line, toasting Hushov and Farrar clinging to his wake. Cav' picked up a convincing third stage win, but Hushovd's 2nd place finish gave him enough points to comfortably maintain green. The isle of man native has owned the flat finishes this year and I look for at least 2 more stage wins for him this tour, with one on the Champs Elysee. GC standings did not change much today with Nocentini still in yellow. Don't look for the Maillot Jaune to change hands anytime soon with more flats roads over the next few days. But im sure Astana will be more than happy to escort it the rest of the way to Paris come the weekend.

Tomorrow in stage 11 look for more of the same, with another flat very flat day and finish. There will be breakaways on the 2 cat 4 climbs, but they can only pray to hold off the peloton full of hungry sprinters. I would be crazy not to go with Mark Cavendish for the win again tomorrow cause thus far he has been untouchable on the flats and as his tours in his young career have shown, his wins usually come in pairs. But all the other sprinters will not want to miss out on big points for the green jersey at the finish, so look again for Hushovd, Freire, Farrar, and maybe even bannati to be vying for the win, or at least high position at the finish.

Stage 10 preview

The racing resumes tomorrow on very flat roads featuring only 3 cat 4 climbs early in the day. Look for the French riders to be very aggressive, looking for a stage win on Bastille Day. But I expect the efforts of the frenchmen to be in vain despite their recent breakaway success. The sprinters will have no more of that after having to play 2nd fiddle over the weekend in the mountains. Look for Mark Cavendish to awaken from his slumber through the Pyrenees and grab a stage win tomorrow and maybe reclaim, Green. The big Columbia Leadout train will try to put Cavendish in position but Hushovd, Frierie, and Farrar will be looking to come off his wheel for the W. Im picking The man from the Isle of Man (cavendish) but am still waiting for Farrar to bring home a surprise sprint Win for the states, and what better day to do it than on Bastille Day.

New GC Rankings

So as we come upon the first rest day nine stages in i would again like to evaluate the riders vying for the glory of the Maillot Jaune (yellow jersey). This is extremely hard, because apart from the Astana Powerhouses up front it is very difficult to fill out the next spots with many young riders coming out of nowhere and showing promise and many reliable vets struggling, I know looking back on this next week a lot will be shuffled up and there will be a top 10 maybe even top 5 rider that will go unmentioned, but that is just how wild the tour has been this year, So here is my best prediction

1. Alberto Contador - we got merely a taste test of his climbing legs on stage 7 and now that he can TT this guy will tear this race open come the Alps

2. Lance Armstrong - showed he can climb like he used to and TT like he used to, thats good when you used to win Tour de France titles year in and year out 

3. Levi Liephiemer - has rode really steady thus far, don't look for many attacks, but he will nail down moves and be solid in the TT, hopefully enough so to hold on to the podium

4. Andy Schleck - Showed he can attack well on a climb but it didn't materialize in the Pyrenees, expect him to make up time in the alps, but not on the Astana boys

5. Carlos Sastre - last years winner has been waiting in the reeds thus far, everyone knows he will strike and strike hard in the Alps but i dont think he can do enough damage to make up the nearly 3 minutes he is down

Gets really tough here the rest of the guys i could really see coming in any order

6. Christian Vande Velde, definitely has cards left to play, seems like the Chicagoan has conserved energy thus far to go after the final TT and cover the big moves to come in the alps.

7. Luis-Leon Sanchez, lost some time early with the TTs but made up a lot by getting in a breakaway stage victory look for him to be there in the big climbs (only man that has beaten contador in a stage race which contador has led in 2 years)

8. Bradley Wiggans, usually known for his TTing and track abilities, wiggans has shown this year that he can climb, allowing him to hold on to his 5th overall in the Pyrenees and making him a GC threat.

9. Andreas Kloden, experienced rider who has finished on the podium twice, is great in the time trial and is a valuable part of the Astana well-oiled machine, but he showed some vulnerability on what seemed like pretty relaxed climbs this weekend

10. Cadel Evans - Poor, poor Cadel, he will almost certainly make up time in the big attacks of the alps and the final TT, but his competition has him down and will make sure not to let him back up

Honorable Mention:

Tony Martin, young rider who much like Wiggans is a TT guy who proved he can climb, clinging on to his 7th place overall and white jersey through 9 stages  

Rinaldo Nocentini - current yellow jersey wearer, i dont think he will be able to hang when the big attacks come in the Alps and certainly can't TT like the top dogs, but i got to give this guy credit for hanging in yellow for quite sometime

Roman Kreusiger - great young TT guy who stumbled a bit in the mountains, should climb better in the Alps though

Frank Schleck - will definitely attack on the upcoming climbs, but his lack of TT ability and his desire to aid his brother to a podium spot make cost him some positions in the GC

For Reference here is how the top 20 GC look after 9 stages:

• 1. Rinaldo Nocentini Ag2r-La Mondiale in 34:24:21
• 2. Alberto Contador Astana in 34:24:27
• 3. Lance Armstrong Astana in 34:24:29 at 00:08
• 4. Levi Leipheimer Astana in 34:25:00 at 00:39
• 5. Bradley Wiggins Garmin - Slipstream in 34:25:07 at 00:46
• 6. Andréas KlÖden Astana in 34:25:15 at 00:54
• 7. Tony Martin Team Columbia - Htc in 34:25:21 at 01:00
• 8. Christian Vande Velde Garmin - Slipstream in 34:25:45 at 01:24
• 9. Andy Schleck Team Saxo Bank in 34:26:10 at 01:49
• 10. Vincenzo Nibali Liquigas in 34:26:15 at 01:54
• 11. Luis-leon Sanchez Caisse D’epargne in 34:26:37 at 02:16
• 12. Maxime Monfort Team Columbia - Htc in 34:26:42 at 02:21
• 13. Frank Schleck Team Saxo Bank in 34:26:46 at 02:25
• 14. Roman Kreuziger Liquigas in 34:27:01 at 02:40
• 15. Vladimir Efimkin Ag2r-La Mondiale in 34:27:06 at 02:45
• 16. Carlos Sastre Cervelo Test Team in 34:27:13 at 02:52
• 17. Mikel Astarloza Euskaltel - Euskadi in 34:27:23 at 03:02
• 18. Cadel Evans Silence - Lotto in 34:27:28 at 03:07
• 19. Kim Kirchen Team Columbia - Htc in 34:27:37 at 03:16
• 20. Vladimir Karpets Team Katusha in 34:28:10 at 03:49

Stages 8 and 9

Sorry I didn't have time yesterday to make a post on stage 8 so I will group the final to Pyreneian Passes together.

Stage 8: Featured three categorized climbs 1,2,1 in that order out on the road. But these came early and in the middle of the day, leaving a long flat run into the finish allowing a peloton which stayed mostly intact up the mountain a long time to bring back any breakaways. But the 4 rider break featuring the veteran rider Sandy Casar and Vlad Effingkim, and the upstart star Luis-Leon Sanchez was able to build up a 2 minute lead to seemingly hold off a charging peloton with 10k to go. With the break confident they would stay away, the attacks starting coming, the most convincing from Effingkim who gapped the others 4k out. But a chase lead by Sanchez calmy clawed there way back, catching Vlad with only 500 meters to go. Casar took this oppurtunity to go for the long sprint, but Sanchez had none of this, catching the old Frenchman's slipstream and powering around him in the last 20m meters for the W. Just a minute and a half later the peloton, containing all the contenders even the surpising yellow jersey bearer Rinaldo Nocentini rode in meaning the GC standing would go unchanged another day. But there was a major change in the points, Green jersey classification asThor Hushov, who hung with the climbers was able to snag some points at the finish. Just enough to pass Mark Cavendish, the anti-climber, proving again that the green jersey is about more than stage wins but consistent high finishes.

Stage 9: Another stage that features to huge climbs midday but offers a large flat run in for the peloton to reel in any attackers. Obviously there were many breakaways but surprisingly none of them feature GC contenders who seemed satisfitied to wait til the Alps to make decisive attacks and put the Astana team under pressure. With 70k to go after the last climb it seemed impossible to any GC riders to put any serious time on their competition, this left the duty of the breakaway to the climbers daring enough to go for the stage victory. And with 10k to go this left only Franco Pellizatini of Liquigas and Pierrick Fredrigo of Bbox trying valiantly to hold off the peloton with only a minute and 20 second advantage. But the techincal city finish allowed Fredigo just the time to strike a violent attack in the final 200 meters gritting past Pellizatini, giving France yet another stage victory and team Bbox their 2nd win.

As we hit the rest day tomorrow and move to 4 flat stages through central france after that, we see how undeciesive the Pyrenees really were. There are many questions that still need answers, Where is Carlos Sastre and what kind of shape is he in? Will Schleck and Evans ever be able to make moves that can make up time? Can Christian VDV rep it for Chi-town? Who is the team leader for Astana? Is Nocentini Legit? Who will win the Tour de France? We will just have to wait for the Alps to find out.

Old College Essay

So I was looking through my old papers and writing from highschool and such the otherday and stumbled upon this. My College Essay about the DFDC, I thought some of you guys might want to read it. So here it is, hopefully this is a good change of pace for you guys that dont like the tour de france.

“DFDC on three,” my voice yells. Crowded around the campfire in my backyard on a late August night, we have come together. The mass of skinny teenage bodies drowns out the flicker of the small hearth, arms raised in unison.

Tonight the DFDC has congregated to bond through intense games of badminton and bocce ball, and animated campfire skits. The barbeque is a well-earned celebration after surviving the stifling August heat, and the grueling two-a-day workout cycles of the first week of cross-country practice. A week where thirty-one individuals became one running fellowship, united by the four letters printed on the chests of our practice jerseys –DFDC. This unit was formed and strengthened through the constant accelerations with which we challenged each other, and the way we circled back to pick up our partners who had fallen off pace. And tonight, the tight pack of sweaty bodies that had pushed each other through repeat miles, 4-mile tempo runs, and 800 meter SIs, surrounds a flame sharing hamburgers and corny stand-up routines.

Darkness by now swallowed the backyard with the fire providing just enough light to illuminate all thirty-one faces. I strode to the middle. My eyes met with the familiar faces of my brethren. The past three years I had sat on the outside, taking in what the DFDC was about. But this year it was my turn to partake in that tradition, and pass on the expectations to this team.

I cleared my throat and spoke. “As you have experienced, the Deerfield Distance Crew is a hard working team, but this attitude does not stop at the end of your last quarter-mile.” All eyes fixed upon me as I articulated. “The DFDC is a way of life, and the focus and passion we demonstrate on the course carries into the classroom and into your life. The motivation that you show everyday not only brings enthusiasm to the way you live, it also brings fire to the lives of your teammates. To be DFDC you must be a complete runner, and to be a complete runner you must be a complete person.”

After I had said my peace, the pack swarmed the fire. Arms raised in unison, the crew looked to their captain. My voice shouts. “One, Two, Three!”

“DFDC!”

Tour- Stage 7 Recap - First Climbs

So the mountains finally came and they didnt dissappoint, sorry sprinters and Time Trialers but this weekend belongs to the climbers. And it began in style today on the slopes of Andorra's Arcalis the first HC (beyond Category) Climb of the tour. There were some mixed in hills and decent climbs on the ride to the base of the mountain which allowed about a nine rider breakaway to form with about a 12 minute gap over the peloton when they began the ascent. But those nine quickly thinned to a group of 5 then 4 then 1 as the young frenchman Brice Feillu from a wild card team riding in his first tour put in a surge that quickly gapped the others by 30 seconds. But just down the mountain the hurricane that is team Astana was brewing and took up the pace on the climb slowely thinning out the peloton of any men clinging on with the true climbers holding fast. This included the race leader (well not any more) Fabian Cancellara, whose fall off the pace finished his marvelous week in yellow. Astana was pushing the pace with full force, including levi leiphiemer who rode back up to the group after suffering an early crash, this dashed any hopes for american Dave Zebriskie of GC glory as he couldnt handle Astana's heat. With Feillu to far up the road for any of the GC contender to vie for a stage victory they began to focus on trying to pull time out of each other. This started with Cadel Evans, the Aussie who lost big time due to his weak team in the TTT. Evans attacked around 4k left, thinning things out and getting rid of any stragglers, but couldnt shake loose of Astana's big hitters and the other big names. Evans tried to attack again but to no avail with none other than Armstrong holding his wheel. With 2k go and in faces of all his competition Alberto Contador took the opportunity to flex his climbing muscles, literally flying away from his competition, too quick for any response from even the worlds best and putting some more valuable time on them.

Other than Feillu taking the stage for France, the days other surprise came from Bradley Wiggans the slipstream TT specialist who showed today that he could climb with the big boys, allowing him to maintain his high GC position, when most believed he would fall off as Cancellara did. in another minor surprise the yellow jersey did not go to an Astana rider today, but Rinaldo Nocentini. The Ag2r rider who was a bit over 3:00m minutes back going into the stage but was able to get in the early break and survive the climb and claim yellow just before the charging Contador by a mere 6 advantage second. He will not be a major challenger and will probably lose the race lead tomorrow but good for Nocentini to spend some time as the leader of tour and enjoy the glory that comes with it. All the other GC contenders came in 21 seconds behind contador, except for kloden and kreuziger who fell off, this puts lance in third 2 seconds back of contador, and Levi in 4th by 39 seconds, with wiggans holding fast to 5th.

Tour- Preview for Stage 7

If I am a betting man i completely agree with you matt, every tour team that johan bruyneel has assembled i the last 9 years has come out sporting the yellow jersey. Astana has Contador, the odds on favorite, Lance the and spotlight that comes with it, and levi and kloden two other podium finishers and well as a crew of domestiques that will go to the end of the earth to protect them. You cant bet against that because no one else has it in their arsenal or anything close. This is why the TTT was unfair, it essentially spotted 4 of the top 9 riders in the world 2 minutes because they were allowed to work together. Astana has an all-star team that maybe i would like if they were from america. But no the 2 best american riders the best spaniard and the best german say lets go out a represent kazakstan, i mean i like borat and all but come on. Though it probably will happen i dont want to see domination by those ugly torcoise jerseys, its like cheering for the USSR on the miracle on ice. Like i said if levi, or lance wins, great i would love to see an american in yellow. Or even if contador wins fine i wouldnt mind he is a great cyclist. But by no means am i cheering for these guys. Going into the pyrenees i am rooting for the schlecks, sastre, evans, sanchez, kreuziger, and especially vande velde, any and all of these the strong climbers that can make this thing a race. All these guys have legs going into the mountains and i hope to see them bring back some serious time. hopefully the distraction of who will be the team leader will preoccupy Astana just enough to give one of these guys an opening, so when we hit the flats again next tuesday we will have an even playing field. I can only hope, all i want is a race, and the first 6 days havent disappointed. I just dont want it to turn into an Astana fest.

As for the stage tomorrow the road slowly climbs upwards with some mid categorized climbs before the big beyond category (HC) climb to the mountain top finish in the principality of Andorra. There will be some climbers that break away early, look for the spaniards both from eskadel-eskadi the basque team in the orange jerseys and the black jerseys of Caisse D'parnge to be on the attack looking for a stage victory in front of a home town crowd. It is very hard to predict winners of mountain stages but what i can guarantee is that there will be a major group of GC contenders riding together. Look for names like Armstrong, Contador, Sastre, Evans, Kloden, Schleck, liephiemer, and vande velde (and the other guys on my GC list) to be riding together, sorry not you Cancellara. Whether they will catch the early leaders and have a chance at the stage win or be just behind the breaks is yet to be seen. But there should be some attacks by GC guys and the others will be forced to counter to stay in race. Valuable minutes that win tours can and will be lost on the slopes of the pyrenees and i cant wait to see it happen. Remember Lance is like a hundredth of a second back right now and Cancellara isnt much of a climber, so tomorrow night look for the Texan to be back in yellow.

Regarding Lance Armstrong

yeah lance came back and is obviously a factor in this tour, we will see tomorrow if he can hang in with the attacks on the climbs and takes the yellow jersey. Depending on what kind of climbing form he is in i think he has a shot at winning the whole thing. With the way he can time trial and Astana's TTT domination as well as him catching the break on stage 3 (word on the street is hincapie tipped him off) lance is in perfect position 6 stages in. Of course their are 15 stages left but he doesnt have to worry about attacking now, he only has to cover attacks and is in the drivers seat going into pyrenees.

as for how long he will ride this time around, he said he came back to keep raising "cancer awareness". Because i think most people in the world are aware of cancer (its existence), what he wants to do through his return is gain publicity for himself and his livestrong campaign so as to sell more gear and wristbands and donate more money to cancer research. With the way he is riding now i could see him going for 2 more years. He probably could go on even longer but i dont see him riding after he stops being a GC contender, which could be after this year or in 4 years who knows with lance nothing has stopped him yet.

Tour - Stage 6 - The Hills and Barcelona

Awesome stage today, David Millar of slipstream was out on a solo break as the peloton flooded the streets of barcelona for the an exciting uphill finish. But millars time trialing skills just werent enough as he was caught with just over kilometer to go and the tough sprint for the stage victory revved up, Columbia put guys at the front but could never get there man mark cavendish in position for a sprint, this gave spaniard oscar friere of rabobank the perfect opportunity to go for the W in front of his countries fans, his leadout man put him in perfect position but frierie just didnt have the legs to close on the incline and the Big Norwegian Thor Hushov who was waiting on his wheel charged around him and up the last 50 meters claiming the stage victory. This W puts "The God of Thunder" up high in the points classification for the green jersey only a few behind Mark Cavendish.

As for GC nothing really changed as all the top contenders finished with the same time in the peloton, except for Australian Mick Rogers would lost some valuable time when he crashed and was unable to catch back up to the peloton

Preview for Stage 6

Tomorrow will be another very interesting stage, it is a transition stage that will featuring 5 major hills with two cat 3 climbs. This will give any breakaway a good very good chance of surviving and there may well be few attacks throughout the day. But should all attempts be thwarted by the peloton dont necessarily look for an organized sprint, the run in to the finish in Barcelona tomorrow is uphill giving opportunities for attacks all the way to the line. If the peloton makes the catch, look for Fabian Cancellara to make a move from as far as a kilometer out, making a last ditch effort for glory in yellow before the jersey will inevitably be lifted off his shoulders on Friday's climb to Andorra. But if Columbia gets control of the front in the final k look for more of the same from Mark Cavendish.

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Tour- Stage 5 Recap - Back to the Flats

Anyway there was still a sick stage today, a six rider breakaway broke off in the first kilometer on the flat roads of southern France and at a point extended their lead out to 10 minutes over the main field. But it seemed like the sprinters were ready to have their day when the closed the gap to a mere 38 seconds with 40 k to go, it even looked as if the peloton would make the catch too soon. But a lapse in judgement by the sprinter's teams and a concerted effort by the breakaway to keep working together saw that gap reextend out to a minute and 20 seconds with only 10k to go. A lead which gave enough time for a Frenchman Thomas Veokler to make a move off the front of the breakaway and hold off the charging peloton for the stage victory, spoiling what before the stage looked like would be and inevitable sprint finish and taking away Mark Cavendish's chance at a 3rd stage victory.

Seeing the breakaway get a stage victory on a stage as flat as today was awesome, its kinda like a huge upset in the NCAA tournament, the peloton has no excuse for letting it happen and the riders in the breakaway are all smaller name guys form smaller name teams and a stage victory makes the Tour for them, and sometimes for their whole team. Also to see a Frenchman win a stage is cool because this is France's event yet in recent years it has been dominated by Foreigners, so this will be a much celebrate win for him and his upstart Bbox team.

Just for people who dont completely understand how the timing and such works, todays stage really did not have any effect on the leaders in the Overall Classification ( aka GC = lance, contador, sastre etc), those guys just chilled in the Peloton and conserved as much energy as they could for the mountains looming 2 days away. It would be stupid for a GC contender to try to gain time in a flat stage because it would require a lot of energy and it would be hard for them to gain any significant amount of time, therefore on flat stages they try to conserve while sprinters and domestiques go for the glory of a stage victory. The rule in cycling is that a group of riders in contact with each other at the finish line all receive the same time, so the Peloton all received the same finishing time and therefore Lance remains still less than a second behind Cancellara for the overall lead.

Tour- Who im cheering for

The contenders for the GC from the US are Lance, Levi Leiphiemer, and Christian Vande Velde. Christian is actually from the Chicago area. Right now because all three of them are on good Time Trialing teams and are good TT guys themselves they are in good position in the GC early on Lance-2nd, Levi-5th, Christian-12th. The race really wont take off though until we get into the mountains though where all the guys that arent good climbers will fall out of the top 10, all these guys are solid climbers but it is yet to be seen if they can hang with the best of the best. I think Lance will finish 2nd (this may change once i see what kind of climbing form he is in) Levi 5th, and Christian 9th. The US doesnt have too many guys in the Tour, i think only 8, but they are all very competitive and have rode well so far.

The rider i want to win most is Christian but he doesnt have a shot really (i would love him to prove me wrong) top 5 for him would be unreal. I like lance and levi but i dont like Astana because they just made and All-star team and dominated the TTT which is unfair to GC contenders not on great teams. So im hoping that Sastre, evans and the Schleck brothers throw down to make it more of a race in the mountains, plus i dont like contador that much even though he will probably win. Other than wanting a good race i really like Andy Schleck from Luxembourg so i hope he is on the podium at least. My favorite team is garmin slipstream because they are American and have cool riders and jerseys, but i also like eskadel-eskadi a lot because they are made up of all riders from the basque country, a really small part of Spain and usually are really good climbers, look for their bright orange jerseys in the Pyrenees.

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New Tour Predictions

My New GC Rankings after the TTT likely wont change until we hit the Pyrenees in Stage 7

1. Contador
2. Armstrong
3. Sastre (veteran climber, can make up the time)
4. Leiphiemer
5. A. Schleck
6. Kloden
7. Evans (screwed by his team, not a good enough climber to make up for it)
8. Van de Velde
9. Kreuziger
10. Rogers
Honorable Mention: F. Schleck, Kirchen, Pellizotti, Sanchez (only cause i think he will have a huge climb in the Pyrenees)

Tour- Stage 4 Recap - TTT

My picks were close, with the actual results going
1. Astana
2. Garmin Slipstream
3. Saxo Bank
4. Liqiugas
5. Columbia

Columbia had an off day, they must have been tired after forcing the breakaway yesterday, Slipstream rode real well with only 5 riders after losing their first 4 early, but the story of the day was Astana winning by 18 seconds, 40 over Saxo Bank, leaving Armstrong out of the yellow jersey by hundredths of a second, just behind Fabian Cancellara who carried the Saxo Bank team on his shoulders. The big losers on the Day were Evans and Menchov whose weak team cost them each over 2 minutes in the overall.

Back to the flat roads tomorrow, as usual Mark Cavendish will be the big favorite but he put in a lot of work for his team today, look for Tyler Farrar and lead out man Julian Dean who fell of the TTT early today and conserved energy to be up there in the sprint and who knows Tom Boonen might show up for once.

Tour- Stage 3 - More Flats

Flat but Windy stage today and team columbia used that to their advantage spearheading a 29 rider breakaway around 25k from the finish which opened up a just over 30 second advantage and left some of the major GC contenders behind. The Schlecks, Contador, Sastre, Evans, Levi, among others were set back a "gimme" 30 seconds on Columbia's Kircken, Rogers, and Martin as well as Lance Armstrong who was saavy enough to get in the break. Cancellera was lucky enough to be in it was well to hold on to yellow. With the main field left behind Cavendish out sprinted Thor Hushov for his 2nd stage win and took a straggle hold on the green jersey. But the big news is that with the break Armstrong was catapulted into 3rd place in GC 40 seconds off of cancellera. And with Astana's arsenal in full gear tomorrow the Texan could well be in yellow heading into the Pyrenees.

Huge stage for GC riders tomorrow with the return of the team time trial, look for astana to bring home the W and get there top GC riders up in the top of the classification, Saxo Bank, Columbia, and Garmin Slipstream look like the other big hitters. look for some GC contenders especially evans and leon sanchez to fall back because off their team's lack of time trial strength.

My Picks:
1. Astana
2. Columbia
3. Garmin Slipstream
4. Saxo Bank
5. Liqiugas?

Tour- Stage 2 Recap - Flat Roads

Cavendish dominates today, his columbia leadout team was too much, but it was a good ride by american Tyler Farrar and leadout man julian dean to get in Cavendish's slipstream for 2nd, picking up a good chunk of points for the green jersey competition.

Look for more of the same tomorrow with a very flat stage, Cavendish has to be the favorite again but look for Housler, Hushov, Boonen and Frierie to challenge. Im pulling for Farrar he could be up there for the W, hes the only man who has beat Cavendish's full leadout this year.

Barring disaster Cancellara should stay in yellow, but wont hold it through the Pyrinnes of course

My New GC Rankings
1. Contador
2. Evans
3. Sastre
4. Armstrong
5. A. Schleck
6. Leiphimer
7. Kloden
8. Krosienger
9. F. Schleck
10. Van de Velde
Honorable Mention: Leon Sanchez, Menchov, Rogers, Chavanel

Tour- In repsonce to doping

Response to Shayman (Does cycling have the highest amount of cheating athletes?):

While i have never seen any statistics on that statement, i can explain it by citing that cycling has the strictest testing for performance enhancers of any sport. In cycling unlike other sports experiencing problems with performance enhancing drugs there are legitimate and thorough desires in cycling to completely clean up the sport.

Looking at baseball, in the last 15 years it would be hard for anyone to deny that the games most prolific sluggers did not use steroids, yet no one really has been caught, and records still stand. Even today when players have been caught or admitted to use they have had little penalty. Take Manny Ramirez who was actually caught by the lax MLB system of using a banned substance and only had to miss a third of the season and was welcomed back to the Dodgers with open arms, his contract nor his stats and championships are at all in jeopardy, he got off with little more than a slap on the wrist. Or take Sean Meriman who was found 2 years ago by the NFL of using steroids, he was suspended four games and then welcomed back by the chargers to lead their defense on a playoff push. Though both the MLB and NFL obviously do not want cheaters in their sport their testing is not very aggressive at all, and I believe prefer the “no news is good news approach” to keep trust and popularity in the sport.

Cycling on the other hand, I believe, shows the most legitimate desire to make the sport completely clean. There are much stricter drug tests which occur after every stage of competition, multiple tests on high finishers as well as monthly and random tests on all professionals throughout the year, which is extremely aggressive and catches a lot of cheaters, and punishes them. The penalty for a positive test for a performance enhancer in cycling results in a minimum 2 year suspension from any competition (it can be 3-4 depending on the drug and circumstance) and a second positive test results in an essentially career ending 8 year ban. But getting caught sets riders even further back, positive tests terminate a riders team contract and dopers often have trouble getting resigned after their ban. Former American stars but caught dopers Tyler Hamilton and Floyd Landis were basically forced into retirement after being caught. Also these riders when caught were of course immediately stripped of their achievements in the event which they were caught.

I like cycling because I find it to be an exciting sport of endurance and masochism. Though am embarrassed by the dopers and believe they greatly tarnish the cycling (I support lifetime bans on any caught doper even riders that I had cheered for), I am happy every time a cyclist gets caught because that’s means one less cheater gaining acknowledgement for fake accomplishment and one more opportunity for a clean cyclist. The sport of Cycling does not mind strictly punishing anyone in the sport for doping, even the most popular riders. Though Manny and A-Rod (both admitted users) have somewhat tarnished their careers, their position in baseball, support from fans and paycheck have only slightly wavered. I am glad to say that in cycling these cheaters would no longer be accepted in the sport.

Sorry for the novel

Cliff notes – Cycling has the most strict antidoping policies of any sport and therefore catches more cheaters than any sport experiencing problems with performance enhancing drugs

Tour- Stage 1 Recap -ITT

Cancellara won by a lot, not a surpise. That didnt do much to decide the overall except for the fact that Contador showed he could ride a hell of a TT. American GC contenders Leiphimer, Armstrong, and Van de Velde (from chicago) all rode well to be in 6th, 10th, and 17th respectively.

They will all move up when we get to the mountains, but tomorrow is just a hilly stage (likely wont affect the GC) so look for the breakaway having a chance at staying away. But most likely they will get caught so look for big leadout trains for Columbia and Quickstep to try to get the sprint win for Cavendish and Boonen, also watch for Heinrich Housler and Oscar Frierie to be up there. But my pick is the big man from Norway - Thor Hushov.

Tour- Preview

Anyone who wants info on the tour check out versus.com and velonews.com, btw the tour airs almost continuously on versus

The Tour Starts today with a short individual time trial in Monaco.

My Picks for stage 1:
1. Fabian Cancellara
2. Dave Zebriskie
3. Cadel Evans

For GC my prerace top 10 are (subject to change)
1. Lance Armstrong
2. Alberto Contador
3. Carlos Sastre
4. Cadel Evans
5. Andy Schleck
6. Luis Leon Sanchez
7. Frank Schleck
8. Levi Leiphiemer
9. Michael Rogers
10. Denny Menchov
Honorable Mention: Christian Van de Velde, Sylvan Chavanel, Kim Kirken, Roman Kroysinger

Although the guys i will be cheering for most in GC are Andy Schleck, Christian, Levi and Lance

My Team Pick is Saxo Bank followed closely by Columbia

Discuss

Names You Should Know

Well this will probably be my last post in a while cause I am going back to school and won't nearly have as much free time, but since I have this blog I figured I better take advantage of people listening to me while I can.

These days glory sports such as football, basketball, and baseball get much greater publicity than running, and rightfully so. They are more exciting to watch (for the common person) and a much more established and celebrated part of American culture. But through this ESPN hoopla over the NFL, NBA etc tons of athletes many of whom are merely mediocre are publicized and celebrated while greats in our sport are forgotten. And while I know so much emphasis is placed on these glory sports it pains to think many of you would know at least 10 members ever a part of the Dallas Cowboys organization than know the American Olympic Champion in the 1972 800 meters. That is why I am using this blog to educate you DFDC members to the legends of your sport, men you should know about and celebrate.

While many of you probably have heard of Steve Prefontiane there were 2 other distance runners at the 1972 games in Munich that you should hold in higher esteem than that guy who is idolized more so for his image than his accomplishments on the track.

#1 is Dave Wottle, remember the name. Wottle was a huge underdog going into the olympic 800 that year but stuck to the racing style he patented and shocked the world. Check out the video:http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5LHid-nC45k. Wottle wore a hat to keep his long hair out of his eyes but then kept it as a superstition. That race is probably one of the coolest I have ever seen.

#2 Frank Shorter, Shorter won the Marathon at the '72 Munich Games and was the runner-up in the same event 4 years later in Montreal (to a runner from East Germany suggested to have used banned substances). Shorter was also known for his incredible range running 12:52 for three-miles and 27:40 for 10k and 2:10 for the Marathon. Shorter is credited for helping start the running boom in America in the late 70s and early 80s (along with Forest Gump).

There are two more runners who both ran from Kansas who had great success

The first is Jim Ryun,

Some other American runners you should be familiar with but with less international success than these two are Bob Kennedy (Olympian and sub 13:00 for 5k), Jim Spivey (Olympic 1500 guy from Illinois)