Stage 16: Oldest Guy First

Bagneres-de-Luchon-->Pau, 199.5km, 124 miles

I like how the oldest guy in the race, Christophe Moreau (FRA, Caisse D'Epargne), topped the mountain first. Though he didn't win the stage, he was in the lead group, and because their wheels all overlapped they all got the same time. Lance Armstrong, probably the second oldest guy in the race at the age of 38, was also in the group.

Amazingly enough, Moreau ended up getting overall second in the King of the Mountains category. That's something else, considering the guy is only 4 years younger than I am.

Stage 15: Andy's Chain

Andy in front...burning through his teammates and leaving himself alone. (He has no one to change bikes with.)




Andy's chain...jumping out at the worst possible moment. I've never seen this happen in a professional bike race.




I disagree...even the commentators are divided. And they're both professional riders. I'm a little conflicted myself.





little tommy...driving like a madman in order to win the stage.

Pamiers-->Bagneres-de-Luchon, 187.5km



Kudos for Thomas Voeckler (FRA, BBOX Bouygues Telecom) for winning this stage. In addition to wringing himself out getting over the Port de Bales first (it's an HC climb, meaning it's beyond categorization) he took serious risks on the descent. I'm always amazed at what guys like him will do just to win a stage. Being over an hour behind Contador, he has no chance of winning the overall. Still, he races like a man possessed. It makes the TdF worth watching.

Keep in mind that it was on this stage in 1995 when a teammate of Lance Armstrong's, Fabio Casartelli, suffered fatal injuries in a crash. It happens. And as there is a monument on the route to Fabio, I'm sure it was in Thomas Voeckler's mind as he raced down the mountain.

As for the debate over Andy's chain, it continues still. Alberto got some boos on the podium after this, but I'm on Alberto's side. No one stopped the race when
Sylvain Chavenal(FRA, Quick-Step), got three flats on the cobblestones in stage three. And like Andy today, he was wearing the yellow jersey. Alberto himself had to finish that stage with a flat tire and a broken spoke, and no one (including Andy) waited. And on stage 8, when Lance Armstrong crashed twice, nobody, including Andy, stopped. (And though Armstrong is getting old, remember that he was on the podium with Andy and Alberto just last year.)

I think Carlos Sastre (ESP, Cervelo TestTeam), overall winner of the TdF in 2008, said it best: "They don't stop in Formula One. They don't stop in [motorcycle racing]. They don't stop in running. Why should we stop in bicycling?"

When Sylvain Chavenal lost his yellow to three flats, he didn't complain. Instead, he went and got it again on stage seven. And when he put it on again he kissed it, as he undoutedly realized how hard it is to get--and how easy it is to lose.

It's something Andy finally learned on this day.

Stage 14: Track Stand

Andy and Alberto's track-stand. Notice how they just about stop for few moments.

Revel-->Ax-3 Domaines, 184.5km/115 miles

Although it was nice that France got another stage win with Christophe Riblon (FRA, AG2R La Mondiale) coming in first after a brutal HC and Cat 1 climb, it's the story behind Andy and Alberto that is getting interesting. Neither can apparently outclimb the other. Today, Alberto attacked and attacked and attacked again, but Andy just kept catching up. Last year, Alberto would have left him in the dust.

However, as Andy is 31 seconds ahead of Alberto in the overall race, he here is refusing to take the lead, even allowing Samuel Sanchez, (ESP, Euskaltel-Euskadi) and Denis Menchov (RUS, Rabobank) to gain ground on them. Sure, both Andy and Alberto are nearly two minutes ahead of those two in the overall race, but two minutes isn't much...

...and Andy Schleck's 31-second advantage over Contador is even less. And, as we'll see in the next stage, sitting behind Contador and being contented will cost Andy, big-time. (Yeah, I'm writing this all well after the fact. I'm so behind in my posting!

Stage 13: A.V. in Red

Alexander Vinokourov, in red.


Rodez-->Revel, 196k/122 miles, same distace as San Jose to Modesto


A.V. is wearing red numbers, as he was given the nod for most-agressive rider in stage 12. In this stage he earned them again, winning the stage. He's had a pretty good couple of days, especially as he recently just got out of suspension for being accused of "blood doping". (That's where you swap your blood out in order to boost the platelet count.) It was never proven that he did anything, but he was suspended for a time anyway.

The terrain was mostly flat, and the riders rode through farmland. I'm still wondering why they grow so many sunflowers over there; I don't even know what one can use them for other than chewing their seeds as a snack.

Stage 12: Minus 10

JR and AC, with AV (or his legs, anyway) following at plus four.



Bourg-de-Peage-->Mende, 210.5k/131 miles, same distance as Des Moines to Cedar Rapids

This stage was important to the overall leader competition, because Alberto Contador finished strong, gaining a full ten seconds on first-place Andy Schleck (LUX, Saxo Bank). And in the end, I saw something interesting about the finish: Contador working with Joaquim Rodriguez (ESP, Team Katusha). Alberto and Joaquim each took turns breaking the wind, with Alberto giving Joaquim the stage win in return for his efforts.

By overlapping wheels at the end, Alberto and Joaquim got the same time, a full ten seconds before Andy could get there. It's not often you see people from different teams working together, at least near the end of a stage. This was a good example.

Alexander Vinokourov (KAZ, Astana) wasn't too happy at coming in at plus four seconds. He had wanted the stage win for himself; however he also knew that his teammate Alberto needed time over Andy, so I don't think he was too pissed about being passed.

Stage 11: Argy-Bargy

Sisteron-->Bourg-Les-Valence, 184.5km/115 miles

Though Mark Cavendish won this stage, he lost his prized lead-out man, Mark Renshaw (AUS). There was some debate over whether kicking him out was justified. Though the head-butting was actually within the rules, it was the moving over on Tyler Farrar that was not. (These guys were going something like 40 miles per hour. Going into the barriers could get someone seriously injured.)

Stage 10: Good Brakes Make For Good Neighbors

Hold onto your butts...

Chambery-->Gap, 179k/111 miles, same distance as Eugene to Portland, Oregon.


This was something of a high-planes adventure. Though the route is officially out of the alps, there was a startling difference between the lowest and highest elevations, ranging up to 2,000 feet at times. I shot the above video of the lead riders as they descended the Col du Noyer. When the numerous riders of the peloton followed, you could hear their brakes being applied from quite far away.

The winner of the stage was Sergio Paulinho (POR, Radio Shack). After all those miles, and all those thousands of feet in elevation, his win was a matter of inches.





Sergio, beating out Vasil Kiryienka (Belarus, Caisse D'Epargne) by such a small amount my tv had trouble freeze-framing it. This was Radio Shack's first win of the tour. With this being Lance's last year, I'm wondering what will happen to the team.





There are no substitutions allowed in the race. If you can't keep going, you're out. Yaroslav Popovych (Ukraine) here got injured at one point, and the race doctor simply dressed his wound as he rode along. They do this sort of thing all the time.





Seems an odd place for windmills. I guess it works though.




The smallness of humanity...


Anyway, it was another hot day on the tour. And interestingly enough, they were following the same path Napoleon took when he returned from exile on Elba and retook the crown.

100 Days