Man, it’s a good thing Lance crashed today. Elsewise there’d be no news (other than boooooring Euro National Championships). The 6 time Tour winner smashed his helmet into two pieces during a low-speed impact before TT training ride, suffering facial abrasions and a black eye. Kind of makes me wonder just how well Giro is testing those TT helmets. I’ll make a note not to crash on one at speeds in excess of 5 mph.
In boring Euro Nats news, people you’ve never heard of won most of the races. Notable winners: Thor Hushovd (TT, Norway), Juan Manuel Garate (RR, Spain), Vino (RR, Kazakhstan; he most likely won because Sports Illustrated used the Hammer and Sickle as Kazakhstan’s official standard. Three weeks of staring at Vino’s jersey during the TdF should set them right) and (drumroll, please) Raimondas Rumsas! (TT, Lithuania). Yes, the 3rd placed finisher in the 2002 TdF, who set off a firestorm of controversy when his wife was caught with a sh!tload of doping products in the final week of the race (don’t worry, they were for his sick mother) but escaped only to be nailed for EPO use in the 2003 Giro, is back (though he won’t be riding for a ProTour team until at least next season). Good to hear Lithuania’s taking a hard line against drug use in sport; now everyone who sees Rumsas race a TT will know it too!