Posted on 07/02/2010 11:30:15 AM PDT by Ready4Freddy
You guys don’t have a son who works for Kenny Marchant (R, Texas) do you? There’s a kid staying with me in Vail right now and he told me his mom is a Tour fanatic...
No. My oldest kid is 13 and she’s a girl.
And I’m not a fanatic. ;)
On the other hand, it is clear that Alberto Contador is one of the best riders in the world right now, and has been for a while.
It would be a shame if the questions about how he won this race detracted from the fact that we are talking about seconds difference between being the best in the world or the 2nd best in the world.
What's for breakfast, luv2ski, I'm taking the next flight out to DIA! ;-)
I just looked up Kenny Marchant. I have a member of my immediate family who lives in his district. Does that count? So tell my “son” to make room for me in the guest quarters, I’ll be there soon to bring him his vitamins. ;-)
” Is there anyone here that doesn’t despise Contador 100% without question?”
He may the champ this year for the record, but to me he did it in a very unsportsmanlike manner.
The only classification up for grabs today. Intermediate Sprints at 58 & ~78 km. Pack is ~5km from start now.
1. PETACCHI Alessandro 208 LAMPRE - FARNESE 213 pts
2. HUSHOVD Thor 95 CERVELO TEST TEAM 203 pts
3. CAVENDISH Mark 111 TEAM HTC - COLUMBIA 197 pts
4. ROJAS Jose Joaquin 169 CAISSE D’EPARGNE 167 pts
5. MC EWEN Robbie 75 KATUSHA TEAM 162 pts
14:33 - Black Jerseys For RadioShack
Riders from the squad at the top of the team rankings, RadioShack, are wearing black jerseys for today’s stage. There is a large number “28” - which represents the 28 million people living with cancer.
14:32 - Andy & Alberto Have A Chat...
Andy Schleck and Alberto Contador are on the front row of the peloton as it awaits starters orders in Longjumeau. There is a 5.2km neutral zone fore the race will start. This is expected to be at around 2.42pm. Contador has a full yellow frame, yellow cranks, yellow pedals, yellow bar tape, yellow seat post, yellow saddle... oh, and a yellow jersey.
14:29 - Rain Forecast
The temperature for the start of the 20th stage is around 22 degrees Celsius. There is cloud cover over Paris but it’s dry for the moment. The weather bureau is forecasting rain and temperatures of around 24 degrees.
14:45 - Part Of the UCI Rules
The UCI commissaire has announced that RadioShack MUST change their jerseys and wear the official race number. If they do not swap their black tops for the red ones, they will not be allowed to start the race. It’s a gesture for a charity but now all riders have to wait for the change over because of this publicity stunt.
14:41 - UCI Make Ruling On Jerseys
The special black jerseys that are being worn by RadioShack riders will only be used in the neutral zone. The UCI has insisted that the nine riders who are leading the team classification must swap the black jerseys for the traditional red colors otherwise they won’t be allowed to start.
14:39 - Late Start Because Of Issues With Jerseys
One of the reasons for the peloton leaving the ’depart fictif’ six minutes later than scheduled is because the RadioShack riders have decided to race today’s stage in kit that is different to their official colours.
Jerseygate!!
14:37 - Prize Classifications 01: Yellow Jersey
The 27-year-old Spaniard, Alberto Contador, is about to win the Tour de France for the third time. He has a lead of 39 second over Andy Schleck in the general classification, the fifth closest in Tour history. The Astana rider won the second Tour he contested (2007) and was first again in his next appearance (2009). He joins Greg LeMond (USA), Louison Bobet (FRA) and Philippe Thys (BEL) as a three-time champion of the world’s biggest bike race.
14:46 - Prize Classifications 02: Green Jersey
The green jersey is the only one of the four prize jerseys that is yet to be decided. The battle is essentially between three men: the current leader Alessandro Petacchi (213pts), Thor Hushovd (203pts) and the quadruple stage winner Mark Cavendish (197pts). It would take a strange scenario for the Brit to win the green jersey that he has not worn at all in 2010, but he is within striking distance and the real favorite for the final stage.
14:52 - Prize Classifications 03: Polka-Dot Jersey
Anthony Charteau is going to be the first French winner of the climbing classification since Richard Virenque in 2004. The Bbox Bouygues Telecom rider is ranked 44th overall, 1h24’12” behond Alberto Contador but his advantage over compatriot Christophe Moreau – the oldest rider in the 2010 Tour – in the race for the polka-dot jersey is 143pts to 128. The only others with more than 100 points are Schleck (116pts) and Contador (112pts).
14:56 - Prize Classifications 04: White Jersey
Andy Schleck is destined for the podium in Paris for the third time from three starts in the Tour de France. He won the white jersey when he was 11th overall in 2008, and again in 2009 when he was second to Alberto Contador (by 4’11”). This year he won two stages and led the general classification for six days and is second overall again, this just just 39” behind Contador. The Luxembourger is the second rider to win the youth classification three times.
50k Euro for the Team win?
15:02 - Prize Classifications 05: Team Ranking
The RadioShack team has won the team prize in its first start in the Tour. With Chris Horner in 10th overall, Levi Leipheimer 13th and Andreas Kloden 14th, the squad is the most consistent in the 97th Tour. It will be the second time that Lance Armstrong has stood alongside his team-mates on the Parisian podium, following Astana’s success in the first year of his comeback, 2009. RadioShack leads Caisse d’Epargne by 9’15” in the team rankings while third is held by Rabobank, at 27’49”.
Ridiculous.
He needs to quit using those Spanish chains...
letour.com is highlighting a few riders’ history, starting from la Lanterne Rouge, skipping 8-10 places as they move up.
Worth taking a look at:
http://www.letour.fr/2010/TDF/LIVE/us/2000/journal_etape.html
A young rider to watch, I think. Tony turned in 2 great TT performances on a Team (HTC) that was top-heavy with trialers:
15:42 - 137th – Tony Martin (THR)
The German time trial sensation was second in the prologue and second again yesterday. In Rotterdam he had to wait almost all day to find out if he would win his first stage of the Tour – from two starts – but on both occasions the triple time trial world champion, Fabian Cancellara would relegate him to second place. Martin admits he suffered terribly fatigue in the third week but he’s sure to be on the front of the bunch in Paris working for a fifth stage win for Mark Cavendish.
15:51 - Craig Geater Fixes Lance’s ’Dossard’
After the quick-fix upon replacing his jersey, the numbers of the seven-time - soon-to-be-retired (again) - Tour champion were put on all askew before the start today. Craig Geater of the RadioShack team has just leaned out of the window of the car to remedy the crooked numbers on Lance Armstrong’s jersey.
BTW, the team with undoubtedly the butt-fugliest kit, Footon, is solidly esconced in the middle of the Bottom 5:
18. KATUSHA TEAM 271h 23’ 05” + 3h 28’ 05”
19. CERVELO TEST TEAM 271h 46’ 56” + 3h 51’ 56”
20. FOOTON-SERVETTO 273h 10’ 36” + 5h 15’ 36”
21. LAMPRE - FARNESE 273h 45’ 02” + 5h 50’ 02”
22. TEAM MILRAM 274h 00’ 41” + 6h 05’ 41”
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