Honchar is no slouch, having been the World TT champ some 6 years ago! Kinda cool, too, that he's now the first EVER from Ukraine to wear the maillot jaune.
I do know what you mean about missing LA on the TT course, it was so fun watching him in his element! But that was then, and this is now... methinks we'll all end up w/ a better appreciation for a large number of riders who were overshadowed during the Lance days. Again - I really am disappointed that few if any of the Americans (according to all reports I've seen) didn't bother to check out the course prior to today. That was probably the 1 thing that Lance did better than anyone else - preparation.
Exactly. He busted his butt pre-race to get the job done,knew every bump in the road by heart, and it was just such a joy to watch somebody with so much drive and obsessive dedication reap the benefits of that intensive preparation. I just don't see any passion in any of these other guys. Yet. I have to keep reminding myself it's still so early. I don't know. I guess I'm also really bummed out having read via the TdFBlog that the spanish doctor says that "The List" that knocked out Ivan & Jan & half the procycling world is totally out of whack. He says that he's never treated some of the people who were named by Operation Puerto and that some of his patients are still riding in the race. The whole tour this year seems almost irredeemably tainted and I'm wondering if the final results, no matter who wins, will be haunted by so many what-ifs. Sigh.