**** Official Tour De France ******

[wildspoke 2]

This is my fav video of Lance being an 'animal' 2001 - Ironically enough Lance plays a little poker on this stage.Jan Ulrich told his team to set a blistering pace at the front all day and make everyone suffer so when the field reached Alpe D'Huez, the final climb, he would attack and springboard into the yellow jersey. Lance got wind of this plan and decided to play some poker. He rode towards the back all day and since all the team directors had TVs in their cars he made it look as if he was having a bad day. But when the pack made it to the bottom of the climb Lance opened up a can of whoop ass. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GHJErrp4eOwToday's stage will be interesting. A shake up should occur but tomorrow is the day. Lots of up and down climbs.

[wildspoke 2]

Here's a behind the scenes video:http://www.livestrong.com/lance-armstrong/...0-e6dcac2ba135/It's so telling. Alberto is the LEADER of in the race. But it's Lance show. The end of the video sums it up perfectly.Cadel was in the crapper today. Lost a huge chuck of time. His lotto team has had a horrible tour. Actually, the Belgium and Dutch squads have done very little. The French/American/Saxo Bank teams seem to be the race animators. Jens Voigt crashed. Hope he is ok. That guy is awesome. Always full gas and on the rivet. Chose your sick days wisely. Tomorrow is an excellent day to come down with a soar throat.

[rinswun 6]

Here's a behind the scenes video:http://www.livestrong.com/lance-armstrong/...0-e6dcac2ba135/It's so telling. Alberto is the LEADER of in the race. But it's Lance show. The end of the video sums it up perfectly.Cadel was in the crapper today. Lost a huge chuck of time. His lotto team has had a horrible tour. Actually, the Belgium and Dutch squads have done very little. The French/American/Saxo Bank teams seem to be the race animators. Jens Voigt crashed. Hope he is ok. That guy is awesome. Always full gas and on the rivet. Chose your sick days wisely. Tomorrow is an excellent day to come down with a soar throat.

i was following the text updates, sounds like voigt took a very heavy fall whilst descending - phil leggett said it looked serious, i hope he is ok, i always have respect for those guys who show relentless breakaway aggression. erik dekker and johan museeuw always spring to mind also.wild - do you reckon they'll change it up again next year so we see a few more mountain top finishes and earlier in the tour? seems like this last week is pretty much going to decide everything this year.

[rinswun 6]

big news from the tour - apparenrtly bruneel is resigning as director of astana which will really open things up for next year as lance will obv follow!

[Mercury69 3]

big news from the tour - apparenrtly bruneel is resigning as director of astana which will really open things up for next year as lance will obv follow!

Iwonder who Bruyneel will manage next season?

[wildspoke 2]

wild - do you reckon they'll change it up again next year so we see a few more mountain top finishes and earlier in the tour? seems like this last week is pretty much going to decide everything this year.

Each year the tour changes from year-to-year. One year it goes clockwise around France the next year it goes counter. I think the race is harder when the ALPS are first but it's the riders who always make the race. This year the ASO put everything at the end like you said. The hardest day of the tour is on the second to last day. In year's Armstrong won the tour, the race was over after the first mountain top finish - (not including 2003). So at least this year there's a chance the standings could change but I doubt it. Also the fact that Astana is the strongest team in the race with the 4 strongest riders (now 3) has made this race quite unusual. This can't be underestimated for how much it has impacted the race. The only rider who has attacked at all is Andy Schleck. not Sastre, not Evans, not Nibali, not Wiggins or anyone who is considered a serious threat.If you watched today's stage, the two Saxo Bank riders turned themselves inside out to increase the speed but as soon as they pulled off Team Astana just took the race back over. It's was really quite remarkable. Some would say this year race is more interesting because all the GC riders are so close - but I don't buy it. If Astana wanted to they could make Alberto win the tour by 5 minutes but it won't happen because Armstrong still thinks he can win. Tomorrow is the day the real gaps will begin. If Wiggins doesn't get dropped by the last climb he'll make it on the podium.

[wildspoke 2]

Iwonder who Bruyneel will manage next season?

I think the reason question is: Who are the sponsors going to be? I heard that Trek and Nike might team up. Livestrong-Nike-TrekThe only problem is that Johan will be building a team around a guy who is 37 years old. Currently, there are no really good up and coming American riders. There are a couple in their early 20's but none in their mid 20s who they could build a program around.

[donk4life 34]

Each year the tour changes from year-to-year. One year it goes clockwise around France the next year it goes counter. I think the race is harder when the ALPS are first but it's the riders who always make the race. This year the ASO put everything at the end like you said. The hardest day of the tour is on the second to last day. In year's Armstrong won the tour, the race was over after the first mountain top finish - (not including 2003). So at least this year there's a chance the standings could change but I doubt it. Also the fact that Astana is the strongest team in the race with the 4 strongest riders (now 3) has made this race quite unusual. This can't be underestimated for how much it has impacted the race. The only rider who has attacked at all is Andy Schleck. not Sastre, not Evans, not Nibali, not Wiggins or anyone who is considered a serious threat.If you watched today's stage, the two Saxo Bank riders turned themselves inside out to increase the speed but as soon as they pulled off Team Astana just took the race back over. It's was really quite remarkable. Some would say this year race is more interesting because all the GC riders are so close - but I don't buy it. If Astana wanted to they could make Alberto win the tour by 5 minutes but it won't happen because Armstrong still thinks he can win. Tomorrow is the day the real gaps will begin. If Wiggins doesn't get dropped by the last climb he'll make it on the podium.

Then why doesn't he try and win? He made a pretty decent comeback today with ease. I understand his teammate is in first, but really, would it effect the team standings if Armstrong tried to win the tour himself? I still think Astana is going to win this going away whether Lance is a domestique or tries to win the tour himself. I think it's clear that Armstrong and Alberto are the two best riders, and it's a shame one has to back the other up on the toughest stage tomorrow.Keep in mind, my knowledge of the TDF is limited, so I made not understand the team aspect very well.

[Mercury69 3]

I am very pleased for Astarloza. He's been such a solid, consistent rider and is strong in all aspects, I was surprised to learn it was his first pro stage win. Good for him!Tough fall for Jens Voigt...right on his face. Reports say he's OK, so that's good news, but Saxo Bank will be missing him big time.Another amazing ride by Lance to pick up the "big" group...Quite an acceleration.Fine rides by Wiggins, Vandevelde et al...but Pellizotti really did a great job in polka dots. Overall superb stage...

[wildspoke 2]

Then why doesn't he try and win? He made a pretty decent comeback today with ease. I understand his teammate is in first, but really, would it effect the team standings if Armstrong tried to win the tour himself? I still think Astana is going to win this going away whether Lance is a domestique or tries to win the tour himself. I think it's clear that Armstrong and Alberto are the two best riders, and it's a shame one has to back the other up on the toughest stage tomorrow.Keep in mind, my knowledge of the TDF is limited, so I made not understand the team aspect very well.

It's an unwritten rule you can't attack a team mate. Especially when they are in the lead. Also I think there were a lot of factors that caused confusion in Team Astana. First, when Armstrong decided to make his ‘comeback’ his goal was the Tour of Italy but he broke his collarbone and that made him change his plans. Second, Armstrong never raced with Contador during the season so he didn’t know how strong Contador was/is. Third, Contador was awesome but he also made some mistakes – bonking and thereby losing Paris-Nice.So the team leader wasn’t clearly defined. Today and tomorrow should clear things up. Watch Kloden wins the Tour.

[wildspoke 2]

I am very pleased for Astarloza. He's been such a solid, consistent rider and is strong in all aspects, I was surprised to learn it was his first pro stage win. Good for him!

Astarloza celebration was one of the best I've ever seen. He was so stoked.

[wildspoke 2]

Today's stage was very, very interesting. Cantador screwed the team but won the tour. Attacking when he did was horrible for the team now sweeping the GC is in real doubt but it solidified him as the leader.People are scratching their head but I think it was brilliant.

[Mercury69 3]

I don't see a real problem for Contador having kept up with the Schleck brothers. It HAD to be done and no one else on Astana was able to do it. How in God's name Astana would want Contador to lose time to the guys who are right behind him in the GC is counterproductive. Astana will have at least 3 riders in the top 10 and no way were they going to grab all 3 podium spots, imo. They should be very happy with what Contador did. Things would have been different had Kolden been able to match the pace or if Armstrong had managed to catch up early enough, but AC did what he had to do and I hope he doesn't get any grief for it.

[rinswun 6]

i dont get your post merc.the lead group was AC and Kloden of Astana and the Schleck bros, with about 2k to go to the summit AC launches an attack to try and break the Schlecks but only succeeded in dropping Kloden who was taking a breather. The smart move would have been to wait 500m and let Kloden attack off the front to stretch the brothers then have AC go on the counter attack. As it was, his move only succeed in costing himself a likely stage win and potentially costing Kloden a podium pace. Very strange move.That said, he just dominated in the TT so i think we can let him off!

[Mercury69 3]

i dont get your post merc.the lead group was AC and Kloden of Astana and the Schleck bros, with about 2k to go to the summit AC launches an attack to try and break the Schlecks but only succeeded in dropping Kloden who was taking a breather. The smart move would have been to wait 500m and let Kloden attack off the front to stretch the brothers then have AC go on the counter attack. As it was, his move only succeed in costing himself a likely stage win and potentially costing Kloden a podium pace. Very strange move.That said, he just dominated in the TT so i think we can let him off!

Can't disagree with you, really, I guess I saw the move a little different;y.AC did launch the attack, but I don't think it would have mattered when the attack went. Kloden would have been dropped by the Schlecks anyway within the next kilometer or 2. I'm thinking AC expected Kloden to keep up, which is why he broke off the attack very quickly and kept looking back. I wish I knew what Bruyneel was saying on the race radio at that time. it might have made things clearer for the viewers. As it is, it's easy to misinterpret AC's move as individualistic and selfish, but the fact is Kloden just didn't have the juice to put pressure on the Schlecks.

[wildspoke 2]

RadioShack? Really?From a marketing standpoint, I don't get it. Radioshack IMHO it is a tired brand. Not at all a fan of their business model. I don't see how European cycling fits into their plan.If it's based purely on Armstrong it's a huge mistake. Unless they want to make a real commitment to cycling this partnership is doomed to fail.Ok today's race. Was there ever a doubt?AC slayed all today. Armstrong shit the bed. That’s the worst I’ve ever seen him look. He will lose the podium tomorrow. The king is dead. All hail the king.

[rinswun 6]

no love for ventoux?yesterday's stage was a cracker. andy schleck is gonna be a force if he can improve his timetrialing in the same way contador has. he put in a great ride to try and get frank on the podium but it wasnt to be. contador did a good containing job but looked like he was struggling for the last 5k, which would give me a huge boost for next year if i were schleck. lance rode a great stage, maybe his best of the tour, and never looked in trouble at any stage. i look forward to next years tour, where hopefully he'll have a full preparaion because he clearly still has good legs.special mentions go to bradley wiggins and tony martin. wiggo has ridden an unbelievable tour and now that he is fully focussing on roadracing, he too could become a geniune threat for the overall title. its clear he can climb and tt with the best but he needs to add the explosive attacking threat in the mountains which he hasnt really displayed this year. a couple of seasons of dedicated road training could well see this skill developed. tony martin showed yesterday that he has got huge potential to become a big threat. i remember a stage in '87 i think were indurian went off up the road and destroyed a mountain stage whilst all the main protagonists battled it out down the road - yesterday reminded me of that. i think martin has ridden a really good tour and will have a big part to play in future tours.overall, a very interesting tour with a lot of subplots - shame it took so long to get going!

[Mercury69 3]

All that, plus:

Special mention to: Vincenzo Nibali, who showed a lot of grit and composure Mikel Astarloza, who just got bumped out of the top 10 by...Christian Le Mevel, top FrenchmanChristian Vande Velde, the best American not named LanceAndreas Kloden, for being an Astana stud providing major support for AC and LanceRoman Kreuziger, for coming out of almost nowhere and finishing top 10Franco Pellizotti, for being the mountain goat of the TourThe Thor vs Cavendish fight...might not be quite over :-) All the guys who went out on breakaways...esp good showings by the French nationals!Lots of other terrific efforts, but AC and the Schleck brothers and Lance and Wiggo gave us a great Tour...Well done!Tour Busts:Cadel Evans and Silence-LottoRabobankDenis MenchovToo Bad category:Hincapie getting fckd out of holding the yellow jersey...ONE TIME, COME ON!!!Jens Voigt crashing and landing on his face...get well soon!Levi Leipheimer breaking his wrist...get well soon!

[rinswun 6]

cavs is gonna win 6 stages this year. he is far too strong for everyone else when it comes to the sprint. as much as i love that he is destroying people, it makes for a pretty boring 1st week. cant wait until this thing gets into the mountains!

weeeee.today was probably the easiest sprint win i have ever seen, increible. mark renshaw is a hell of a rider too, given his performance today he looked like he could be the premier sprinter for another team!

[wildspoke 2]

no love for ventoux?yesterday's stage was a cracker. andy schleck is gonna be a force if he can improve his timetrialing in the same way contador has. he put in a great ride to try and get frank on the podium but it wasnt to be. contador did a good containing job but looked like he was struggling for the last 5k, which would give me a huge boost for next year if i were schleck. lance rode a great stage, maybe his best of the tour, and never looked in trouble at any stage. i look forward to next years tour, where hopefully he'll have a full preparaion because he clearly still has good legs.special mentions go to bradley wiggins and tony martin. wiggo has ridden an unbelievable tour and now that he is fully focussing on roadracing, he too could become a geniune threat for the overall title. its clear he can climb and tt with the best but he needs to add the explosive attacking threat in the mountains which he hasnt really displayed this year. a couple of seasons of dedicated road training could well see this skill developed. tony martin showed yesterday that he has got huge potential to become a big threat. i remember a stage in '87 i think were indurian went off up the road and destroyed a mountain stage whilst all the main protagonists battled it out down the road - yesterday reminded me of that. i think martin has ridden a really good tour and will have a big part to play in future tours.overall, a very interesting tour with a lot of subplots - shame it took so long to get going!

No love from me because before and throughout the tour there was a huge build up to the Ventoux. Once again, there was a lot of negative racing. If Contador and Andy Schleck wanted to they could have easily have blown the race apart and caught the leaders and made a great one on one battle. But because Andy knew he couldn't drop Contador - he rode for his brother and tried to get him on the podium. Lance rode well but was never put into difficulty. Wiggins was awesome. Didn't have it at the end but gutted it out for 4th. I think you make a great point with Tony Martin being there at the end of Ventoux bodes well for his future. Wiggins has a future as a GC rider but he had a lot of things going for him this year. First, the other riders didn't think he was a threat so no attention was paid to him. That will change. He also had no pressure as Vande Velde was the team leader. The pressure mounts when everyone rides for you. (Just ask Sastre) Third will he ride for Garmin next year? The British squad Team Sky enters the Peloton next year. They are going to want a British rider leading it. Columbia will not let Cav go - so Wiggens is the natural choice. Plus, next year since Garmin is an American team, he will have to split leadership with Vande Velde and Farrar. I'm not sure what year you are referring to: the '87 tour was between Stephen Roche and Pedro Delgado. The best stage that year was to the ski station on La Plange. Delgado rode hard from the base and had like 40 seconds on Roche but Roche rode strong in the last 1k and brought it all back - really amazing ride - it won him the tour that year. (Roche's son by the way finished in the top 25 this year) Indruain won his first mountain stage in 1990 with LeMond on his wheel. The next year was when he started reeling off his first of five. As an aside, Contador WON the race but Lance go way more TV on the last stage. (It's a French feed)

[wildspoke 2]

Special mention to: Vincenzo Nibali, who showed a lot of grit and composure Mikel Astarloza, who just got bumped out of the top 10 by...Christian Le Mevel, top FrenchmanChristian Vande Velde, the best American not named LanceAndreas Kloden, for being an Astana stud providing major support for AC and LanceRoman Kreuziger, for coming out of almost nowhere and finishing top 10Franco Pellizotti, for being the mountain goat of the TourThe Thor vs Cavendish fight...might not be quite over :-) All the guys who went out on breakaways...esp good showings by the French nationals!Lots of other terrific efforts, but AC and the Schleck brothers and Lance and Wiggo gave us a great Tour...Well done!Tour Busts:Cadel Evans and Silence-LottoRabobankDenis MenchovToo Bad category:Hincapie getting fckd out of holding the yellow jersey...ONE TIME, COME ON!!!Jens Voigt crashing and landing on his face...get well soon!Levi Leipheimer breaking his wrist...get well soon!

Vincenzo Nibali, who showed a lot of grit and composure I think he can podium - but win? Not so sure. Mikel Astarloza, who just got bumped out of the top 10 by...Loved his vicotry salute. Christian Le Mevel, top FrenchmanNow it's up to Marc Madiot not to screw it up. The sad thing with the French riders is that they have it easy and they have it hard. If you're a Frenchman on a French team you know you are riding the tour so you don't have to kill yourself as much as other riders on other team. Also if you win a stage it seems like that's enough - If a Frenchman is ever going to win - first they must not put any pressure on him. second they need a rider to mentor him - someone to follow and learn from - i.e. An Armstrong or Cadel Evans. The French teams will never have a French rider win the tour because their teams are so weak after the first few riders. They'd rather have a French rider in the race than the best riders on their team. Every year Armstrong won the tour he didn't care what country you were from. You were working for him and that's all that mattered. Nationalism never played a part in his pursuit of a win. (although it plays a huge part in the sport) Christian Vande Velde, the best American not named LanceNot sure we can understand how well he rode after getting injured so close to the tour. Huge respect for him. Andreas Kloden, for being an Astana stud providing major support for AC and LanceHe never has and never will have the step on your throat mentality. Talent but not killer instinct. Roman Kreuziger, for coming out of almost nowhere and finishing top 10Nice rider but too many chiefs and not enough Indians on LiquigasFranco Pellizotti, for being the mountain goat of the TourWould have loved a win on Ventoux for this guy. The Thor vs Cavendish fight...might not be quite over :-) I love Thor - best name in the Peloton for sure. Plus he wan the Green Jersey because of the way he attacked on the queen stage. Cavenish Awesome, fast. BustsCadel Evans and Silence-LottoHe had a weak team and then when you're 3 minutes back before the race even starts. Forget about it. Game over. RabobankDenis MenchovI thought he would have ridden better. I wonder if his crash on the last stage of the Giro was more serious. Let's not forget Sastre - he complained that he was last year's winner and all the attention was being paid to Contador and Armstrong. Andy Schleck said this year's race was much harder. Sastre had to apologize because he realized the journalist were right. Tom Boonen. That guy's career maybe over let's just hope he doesn't end up like Marco. Too Bad category[/b]:Hincapie getting fckd out of holding the yellow jersey...ONE TIME, COME ON!!!Garmin and Astana and his own team owe him a HUGE apology. The guy is so freaking selfishless - he had a chance to ride into yellow and the three 'American Teams' Screwed him over. A nice gesture that will never happen is that all the American riders ride for George at the World Championships. - Lance, Levi, Horner, Zabriskie, Vande Velde, Farrar, Pate and McCarthy. that would be one hell of a squad.

[rinswun 6]

you are right wild, it wasnt 1987, it was 1989 - just did a wikipedia check lol!

[Mercury69 3]

Damn, I'm going to miss this event until next year, when it's going to be sporting MAYHEM!!!! Tour de France and World Cup!!! I have a woody already...

[wildspoke 2]

Now the real drama is happening. Contador just ripped Armstrong in the Spanish papers -Tour de France winner Alberto Contador on Monday launched a stinging attack on teammate Lance Armstrong, saying relations between the two were tense throughout the race."My relationship with Lance is non-existent. Even if he is a great champion, on a personal level I have never had admiration for him and I never will," the Spaniard told a news conference in Madrid.Contador won the Tour on Sunday with a comfortable lead over his rivals. His Astana teammate Armstrong, a seven-time Tour de France champion who came out of retirement for the 2009 event, finished third."It was a delicate situation, tense, the two riders who had most weight on the team did not have an easy relationship and that puts the rest of the technical staff and the riders in an uncomfortable position," said the 26-year-old Contador, who also won the Tour in 2007.But he added, "We knew that if kept cool heads, there would be no big problem."The Spaniard also described as an "enormous blunder" the playing of the Danish national anthem when he stepped up to the podium on the Champs-Élysées on Sunday.Contador was to be feted later Monday in his native town of Pinto near Madrid.

[wildspoke 2]

It gets better:Some excerpts translated:"A Tale of solitude. It happened on Thursday, a few hours before the Annecy ITT. Contador came downstairs to the entrance of the Palace of Menthon, the luxurious Astana hotel. The Tour was on. He looked right, then left. Nobody, nothing. No Astana cars or helpers. Cold sweat. Quick time check. Where are they? The hotel is several kilometers from the start. There he was, the leader of the Tour, in flip-flops, bag in hand and alone. He went to the hall looking for an answer: Armstrong had ordered the helpers to go pick up his wife, kids and friends to the airport.Contador left his room last because he was the last one starting the ITT. Armstrong had managed to take away his means of transportation. The straw that broke the camel's back. Hot flashes, he was rabid. He called his brother Fran. He came to pick him up by car and took him to Annecy in a private vehicle. He left last and finished first. His best victory. In the ITT. In solitude. The same way he has won his second tour.Contador's toughest climb was not recorded in images. It was narrated by others. It was fought in the hotel and the bus: during one stage, Armstrong sat his guests at the very back of the bus, right in Contador's usual seat. One more provocation. Armstrong to the luxury suite. Contador to sleep with Paulinho, the only ally. Same deal during the entire tour. Mouth shut, listening to Armstrong's jabs: "It doesn't take a Nobel prize to figure out what happens with side winds". Contador didn't reply in the hotel. He did on the road. He attacked in the first mountain finish in Arcalis. Without permission from Bruyneel, Armstrong's DS. That night the Astana hotel was a funeral. Red eyes from the Texan (anger? crying? not sure). The first cyclist that stood up to him. And he did it in silence."