The Peloton & The Podium: That’s Bike Racing

Johnny Hoogerland crowned King of the Mountains despite  flying into
 barbed wire fence  earlier in the day. 

Anticipation for the 2011 Tour de France led many of us make predictions, hold assumptions and build fantasy teams based on conventional wisdom. As the Tour moves into its second week, how’s that working out for ya?

Lesson #1: That’s Bike Racing  

Tyler Farrar (Garmin-Cervelo) blurted out “That’s Bike Racing” after Stage 7 (Friday, July 8) when he crashed with about 25 miles left to the finish. He wasn’t hurt but it did cost him a potential stage win on a day he was regarded as one of the favorites. Granted, That’s Bike Racing is totally clichéd. But it’s become an easy out clause that encompasses all that can and will go wrong in the sport. Sadly it sums up what we’ve seen so far in this year’s Tour de France. Let’s just say the 98^th edition will become another cliché: Tour de Crash.   

Road Rage: I'm Surprised We Don't See More of This

We deal with irate drivers all the time so this doesn't surprise me. A few months ago in Mountain Lakes, NJ a crazy lady pulled up next to me and yelled for the span of about a mile. I ignored her for the most part, but at one point had to respond with "please shut up and keep going." I think we all have at least one road rage story.

The Peloton & The Podium: Cavendish Shines on a Day Marked by Crashes; Stage 5 recap with Stage 6 UPDATE

Mark Cavendish aka “Manx Missile” (HTC-Highroad) landed a big stage 5 win in a dramatic sprint he engineered in  a span of :10 over the final 50 meters. Phillipe Gilbert (Omega-Pharma Lotto) and Joaquin Rojas (Movistar) followed Cavendish over the line in that order. 

The Peloton & The Podium: Big Win for Cadel Evans; Thor Stays in Yellow

Cadel Evans (BMC) claimed victory in stage 4 of the Tour de France, edging out Alberto Contador (Saxo Bank) in a thrilling photo finish. This is the second career Tour de France stage win for Evans who also grabbed the King of the Mountains jersey today. George Hincapie (BMC) once again proved to be the consummate leader, working tirelessly to help shepherd Evans to the finish line including an epic pull into the final steep climb. 


Alexander Vinokourov (Astana) followed Contador to claim 3rd place in the stage.  Thor Hushovd (Garmin-Cervelo) executed a 6^th place finish to retain the yellow jersey and hold as the leader in the GC.  Evans follows Hushovd in the GC and Frank Schleck moves up to 3rd place. 

The Peloton & The Podium: A Win for the US and a Win for Wouter

I didn’t call for Tyler Farrar (Garmin-Cervelo) to win today’s stage but I am thrilled he was the first to cross the finish. How cute was is it that he lost his balance doing the no hands victory dance? (And I mean that in a most affectionate way). This is the American sprinter’s first ever Tour de France stage win and he delivered it to the USA on the 4^th of July! More importantly, he dedicated the win to Wouter Weylandt, his best friend and member of Leopard-Trek who was tragically killed during stage 3 of the 2011 Giro d’Italia. Teammate Thor Hushovd led him in for the win and will also retain the yellow jersey.  Romain Feillu (Vacansoleil-Dcm) and Joaquin Rojas Jose (Movistar) followed Farrar on today’s podium. Andy Schleck moved up to #8 in the General Classification  and Alberto Contador is still far behind at #69, putting him at 1:42 behind the race leader. 

The Peloton & The Podium: Go USA!!

Looking at the standings after yesterday’s Team Time Trial and US based teams are showing dominance in Tour de France.

Boulder, CO based Garmin-Cervelo showed their depth by winning a brilliantly executed Team TT that put world road racing champion Thor Hushovd in the yellow jersey. Though this is a relatively new team which formed last August through a merger, they have amazing talent and strength in all areas. It will be fun to watch them over the next few week. Plus cool new kits.

The Peloton & The Podium: It’s the Most Wonderful Time of the Year

Stage 1 of the 2011 Tour de France (Passage du Gois - Mont des Alouettes) is now in the books.

No big surprise that Phillipe Gilbert (Omega Pharma Lotto) won this stage since it was suited for the talents of a sprinter who possesses the power to finish on a climb. The big surprise of stage 1 was Tour favorite Alberto Contador (Saxo Bank) losing 1:20. This was mainly due to a crash that broke up the peloton with around 10kms left to the finish. But a deficit is a deficit. Doesn’t matter how it happened. Oh well; that’s bike racing – with a little poetic justice in this case. Andy Schleck (Leopard-Trek) leads him by 1:14. Oh well; that’s karma. Look for today’s Team Time Trial to help Andy Schleck even further heading into Stage 3.