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Lance Armstrong jumped from 10th to third place at the Tour de France on Monday, positioning himself for a shot at the yellow jersey after evading trouble on a windy ride along the Mediterranean. Britain's Mark Cavendish won his second straight stage. He and Armstrong and overall leader Fabian Cancellara of Switzerland kept up with a breakaway group that bolted from the pack with 18 miles left in the 122-mile third stage. Armstrong, a seven-time champion coming out of retirement, is 40 seconds behind. He was able to make his big jump because riders in front of him at the...

Starke to St. Augustine, Fl.: The end of the tour, a lift across a bridge, a TV interview Monday June 15, 2009, 60 miles (97 km) - Total so far: 3,301 miles (5,313 km) I did it, folks. Citrus Heights, Ca., to St. Augustine, Fl., clear across the cotton-picking United States of America by bicycle at age 82, more than 3,000 miles in less than three months. I was on the road at 7:15am., wanting to beat the heat and get this job done. The ride itself was routine, considering the miles I've ridden. But at mid-morning things changed. A...

FORT WORTH — A 23-year-old bicyclist rode right into trouble this week after making an apparent smart-aleck remark. According to a report, a police officer had detained five people on a curb after a traffic stop in the 3900 block of White Settlement Road when the cyclist rode by them about 11:45 p.m. Tuesday. "Did y’all read them their rights first?" the cyclist said loudly as he pedaled past. The remark drew the attention of the officer, who called for the cyclist to stop. "You don’t have a headlight on that bike," the officer said, according to the report. Riding...

TAMPA - The University of South Florida associate vice president who resigned Tuesday over his role in taking a student's bicycle will receive a $50,000 settlement from the university.- - - Snip - - -In the six-page settlement agreement, signed Tuesday by Rao and College of Medicine Dean Stephen Klasko, Rao agrees to give up his contract and not sue the university. The university agrees not to pursue any disciplinary actions that could result from its investigation of the events involving the bicycle.

How The West Was Won The rapid and unexpected decline of the Sunni insurgency in Iraq was officially recognized this week, when Maj. Gen. John Kelly, commanding the Marine Expeditionary Force, turned operational control of Anbar Province over to the Iraqi army and police. Anbar, a vast expanse of desert the size of North Carolina, had been the stronghold of the Sunni insurgency. For years, foreign fighters loyal to al-Qaida had sneaked across Iraq's northwestern border with Syria, into Anbar and down a "rat line" of safe houses in Haditha, Ramadi and Hit. From Fallujah, the arch terrorist Zarqawi...

HOLLISTON - If you're young and ride a bicycle through town without a helmet, you may end up walking back home. Police here are looking for scofflaws and will snatch the pedals from your feet if you've been warned numerous times but still forgo headgear.Holliston police, frustrated in trying to drive home the point that riding without a helmet is dangerous and illegal, are hoping the tactic will finally get the attention of young riders."We're not looking to take bikes away from the kids who forget their helmets," School Resource Officer David Gatchell said yesterday. "This isn't something where we're...

The final chance (most likely) for the riders to shake up the GC. A 32 mile Individual Time Trial. Nice and flat:

Bwaaa Haaa Haaa Haaa Haaa!!!I love this stage!At least it's not steep.

Another day in the Massif Central with a nice, fast finish.

Tour de France Stage 6

WASHINGTON (AP) — More Washingtonians could be pedaling to meetings on Capitol Hill and other appointments when the city launches the nation's first European-style bike-sharing service next month. The program, called SmartBike D.C., is similar to car-sharing services like Zipcar. Users must sign up for a $40 annual membership to gain access to a network of bikes stored at computerized racks around the city. To unlock the bike, users simply scan their access cards. The bikes can be used for up to three hours at a time and can be returned at any SmartBike station. In the beginning at least,...

Electric bikes are becoming an increasingly intriguing option for commuters who live relatively close to work or for avid outdoor enthusiasts. As battery and motor technology forges ahead, the speed and range of ebikes surges with it, as evidenced by the new Electric Motion Systems E+. Although DOT requirements force a road-going electric bike to twenty miles per hour, tops, the E+ is actually capable of thirty when traveling off the beaten path. With no pedaling at all, the E+ can manage twenty miles on a single charge of its 36 volt nickel metal hydride pack, which is mounted...

DANA POINT, Calif. A San Juan Capistrano woman whose blood-alcohol level was more than twice the legal limit when her BMW veered off a Dana Point road early Monday and fatally struck a man on a bicycle was booked on suspicion of vehicular manslaughter, authorities said. Michelle Stearns, 26, was arrested at the scene of the roughly 1:55 a.m. accident along Del Obispo Street near Quail Run, Jim Amormino of the Orange County Sheriff's Department said. Stearns was driving north on Del Obispo when she lost control of the car, went over the curb, hit a traffic sign and struck...

Critical Mass, the loosely organized bicycle group that ties up rush-hour traffic once a month in Minneapolis, has demonstrated who rules our streets. But Minneapolis isn't the only place where the Mass mob has strong-armed the police and City Hall, and left outraged motorists fuming but impotent. Today, Critical Mass cyclists cow commuters in more than 300 cities, from Denver to Rio de Janeiro, according to the San Francisco Chronicle. The ride got its start in San Francisco (where else?) in 1992 with about 50 cyclists. Authorities there looked the other way as riders ran red lights and snarled traffic....

Chris Aandewiel is a Dutch man with a well-worn mountain bike who slept this past weekend at the YMCA on Huntington Avenue. He has pedaled some 11,000 miles in the last year searching for the truth about Americans. Growing up in Rotterdam, Aandewiel had an impression of this country shared by many in the Netherlands, an image formed by Hollywood movies and the media. "We really think of Americans as how we perceive the United States government, and that's a little arrogant and stubborn," Aandewiel said by telephone. Or at least that was the impression the 29-year-old consumer researcher had...

PORTLAND - Two bicyclists collided Sunday, leaving one with life-threatening injuries. Police say this two-bike crash was not related to the bridge pedal event that was going on at the time. The riders were two white men in their 50s. A 56-year-old was riding his bicycle southbound on the sidewalk in the area of Southeast 11 Avenue and Southeast Stark Street, when he collided with a 52-year-old riding eastbound through a parking lot near the intersection. The 56-year old was transported to a local hospital with what appeared to be life-threatening injuries. The 52-year-old was not injured. Police said both...