[nutmeg]

OLN's US coverage of Stage 3:

8:30am - 11:30am ET

[nutmeg]

Tour de France ping!

Please FReepmail me if you want on or off my Tour de France 2006 list.

[Blue Jays]

Hi All-

CONVERSION:
216 kilometers = 134 miles

~ Blue Jays ~

[Aeronaut]

If it comes down to a front group, look for names like DiLuca, Dutch champ Boogerd, Valverde and Italian champ Bettini to take the honors.

DiLuca has withdrawn already.

[Eurotwit]

Well, todays race is on.

Vogt and a few others away in a breakaway. 5 minutes ahead of the peloton.

[Vision]

Thank you for putting the threads together. If it wouldn't be too much trouble, it would be great to see a leader board each day.

Thanks again.

[freedumb2003]

What is this "Tour de France" thing I see threads popping up on? Is it similar to that soccer thingy we hear about?

[LK44-40]

Here it is the fourth day of the Tour and I am still getting my legs.

Every year it takes me about a week to get beyond my annoyance at Bob Roll's decades long, moronic gag, "Tour DAY France."

Get over it, Bob. It ain't funny anymore. I don't mind insulting the frogs a little but anything gets tired after so much repetition.

I know people love him because he has paid a few dues as a pro cyclist (of no huge distinction) and he throws in some interesting and unconventional insights from time to time.

But "Tour DAY France" twenty times a day is stuck on stupid!

[luv2ski]

There are always lots of crashes in the early stages b/c the riders are nervous, the stages are fast (sprint finishes) and the peloton is the largest but I don't remember a year where so many riders went out with broken bones. Three today alone! In the mountain stages many of the sprinters (and some domestiques, too) drop out because they just can't keep up. You also get the ones that eliminated by their times.
Remember the year that they took the race over a sandy natural bridge that is under water at high tide and there was a gigantic accident wiping out nearly the entire peloton?

[luv2ski]

Did you guys take note of the temperatures at the Tour today? Yikes! They said that the air temp was 99 and the road temp= 122! That's like the day Beloki had his horrible accident b/c the tarmac melted.

[nutmeg]

Stage 3 Report - Tuesday, July 4: Esch-sur-Alzette - Valkenburg (Netherlands), 216 km

Reversal of fortune for Kessler

Hot, Holland, Hot! Boonen takes the daily double

By Anthony Tan & Brecht Decaluwé in Valkenburg, with additional reporting from Tim Maloney

Like yesterday's stage to Esch-sur-Alzette, just one rider separated breakaway from bunch with five kilometres to go. Unfortunately for AG2R's José Luis Arrieta, he was caught at the base of the Cauberg three kilometres from home, but yesterday's sole escapee Matthias Kessler turned around his disappointment on the climb's 8.3 percent slopes, the T-Mobile man leaving the entire field in his wake and coming home a winner in Holland.

"Yesterday, I already had very good feelings, I felt really good. Today was exactly the same, so I thought I'd try again," said Kessler on his motivation to try, try again.

"The race was different [yesterday compared to today] though, for three reasons," added the 27 year-old.

"The heat, the distance and the fatigue of some riders - it all contributed to a hectic stage and loss of concentration in the peloton. Everybody must watch out if they don't want to be involved in a crash.

(Excerpt) Read more at CyclingNews.com

Stage 3 stats (including medical report): VeloNews.com