Posted on 07/23/2005 10:11:51 PM PDT by nutmeg
Stage 21 - Sunday, July 24: Corbeil-Essonnes - Paris Champs-Élysées, 144 km
Mainly a ceremonial dash into the capital, the final stage offers a chance for the sprinters to strut their stuff in front of the massive crowds lining the Champs Elysees - this was the case in 2003 as Baden Cooke and Robbie McEwen went shoulder-to-shoulder to fight out the final allocation of points. Boonen won this stage last year, and he should be back for more of the same this year. It's generally all over bar the shouting, but there'll be plenty of shouting no matter who takes their place on the top step of the podium, and with plenty of sunshine on the Champs Elysees, it'll be happy days in fair Paris.
Really? What are the rules?
The race will end with eight laps on the 'Champs whatever' if it is dry. If wet it ends on the first crossing of the finish line. If dry but it starts to rain it ends on the next crossing of the line.
Champs whatever - I like that. I don't know how to pronounce it, and I sure as heck can't spell it... Champs whatever would probably upset the French too, so it's a winner all around.
umbrellas must be used horizontally, not like sails and they can't be used to jab into the spokes of your fellow racers....
The good life...
14:24 - Champagne For Amstrong
The peloton is now being led by all the riders from the Discovery Channel team. They each have a glass of champagne and are toasting the seventh successive victory for Lance Armstrong.
Oh you gotta love it. They just said it has been twenty years since a frog won the tour. He he he he.
Wonder what the Kenyan board on the Boston Marathon looks like?
This report has identified the physiological factor that improved the most from ages 21 to 28 yr in the bicyclist who has now become the six-time consecutive Grand Champion of the Tour de France as muscular efficiency. As a result, power production when cycling at an absolute O2 of 5.0 l/min increased by 8%. Another factor that allowed this individual to become Grand Champion of the Tour de France was his large reductions in body weight and body fat during the months before the race. Therefore, over the 7-yr period, he displayed a remarkable 18% improvement in steady-state power per kilogram body weight when cycling at a given O2 (e.g., 5 l/min). We hypothesize that the improved muscular efficiency might reflect alterations in muscle myosin type stimulated from years of training intensely for 3–6 h on most days. It is remarkable that at age 25 yr this individual developed advanced cancer, requiring surgeries and chemotherapy, yet these events did not appear to impede his physiological maturation and athletic achievements.
Clearly, this champion embodies a phenomenon of both genetic natural selection and the extreme to which the human can adapt to endurance training performed for a decade or more in a person who is truly inspired.
As good an epitaph of Armstrong's career as any I've read.
ScaniaBoy
Yo nutmeg, wanted to say thank you for posting the Tour de France information and adding me on your ping list.
To all the Freepers that follow the race, I guess we will see each other again next summer for TDF 2006.
Enjoy the finish today.
Ooh! Turned it on just in time to see Levi & Vino go at it with a sprint attack! Who knew today would have some action - & so soon into the course? There may be life after Lance for the TdF yet!
P.S.) Forgot to say good morning, all.
We have, er, had a 1-man breakaway in the form of Ronny Scholz, and after a Domina rider crashed trying to track him down, Team Disco took over and got the chase-down done.
Hincapie now wipes out, takes out another 2 Team Disco. The crash slows down Lance, who just misses wippintg out. They're all back up.
OUCH!!!
OLN reporting the rain rules - if it rains at the Champs Elysees.
Lance caught him just before they got into Paris, and gave him more than just words.
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