Six stages in, and I think the GC has reached something approaching stable. Yes, there are still hills coming, and yes, disaster could strike any moment CVV-style, but for the most part, I think the party won’t get going again until after Sunday’s SuperCrit in Milan. Running back through the results, I see ample fodder…
Huh.
Tom Boonen: “Cocaine is everwhere” BBC News: “World cocaine market in retreat”
The Cancellara Philosophy
(video after the jump) Today’s mountaintop finish featured 16 riders on the same time as the winner, and 27 within 10 seconds. Either the course wasn’t hard enough—which I doubt, since Lance called it a “big climb”—or people were riding with all the panache of a frightened eight-year-old. More riders need to be like Cance….
That's Bike Racing For Ya!
The Giro saw its first major contender—depending on who you ask, I suppose—crash out yesterday: Christian VandeVelde. It’s a bummer to see a a nice guy like that go, but he’s staying upbeat—as Bob Roll says with alarming frequency, that’s bike racing for ya! Garmin-Slipstream’s day wasn’t a total loss, though. Tyler Farrar managed a…
So Maybe I Owe The UCI An Apology?
I think it’s only fair to admit that maybe I should replace the word “UCI” with the word “testers” in that last rant I wrote. Thanks to Cyclingnews’ plainly insufficient reporting—which did no more than simply translate the term “Vlaamse Gemeenschap”—it was, and still is, unclear exactly what the “Flemmish Community” means. Frankly, it still…
Don Petacchi Says Hello
It’s not that I don’t think Mark Cavendish is the fastest sprinter in the world. Milan-Sanremo speaks for itself. But he had an easy time of it at last year’s Tour, thanks to one of the most misguided cases in the history of arbitration and, well, that problem that Tom Boonen has. Petacchi is getting…
Boonen Coke Positive is the UCI's Ethical Failure
(The UCI may not be specifically to blame as I’ve indicated here. The arguments that follow remain valid, and apply to all testing bodies.) I’m furious that the first day of the Giro was ruined by another positive cocaine test from Tom Boonen. But my ire is not directed at the Belgian classics rider. Instead,…
There's Egg On Cav's Face. It Must Taste Delicious.
Oh, Cav. You dashing young blade, you. Getting all self-righteous that Garmin Slipstream was practicing (OMG!) for the TTT in Stage 1 of this year’s Giro . As we all learned from Chariots of Fire, that’s simply not what persons of quality do. And Lance Armstrong, Mr. Millimeter himself, inexplicably agrees. Never mind that Columbia…
Cyclocosm Is Not Convinced
From today’s Velonews: From Johan Bruyneel’s Twitter: And, of course, we know it’s Lance because of the Shep Fairey skid lid.
Evans' and Gilbert's Epic Romandie Descent
From Stage 2 of last week’s Tour of Romandie. Even if you’ve got the watts to jump away from a ProTour-level field on a Category 2 climb, to be a serious contender, you still need the skill, coordination and nerve to come screaming down swtichbacking, off-camber descents while negotiating the occasional pothole or motorbike. And…