A family-friendly two fingered-salute Visibly sitting up yesterday, it wasn’t a day to remember for Cavendish. Whilst many waiting journalists had been prepping headlines about Champagne for the British sprinter, it wasn’t to be. Now clearly Cavendish isn’t on the same form as last year. But for me, it was a collective loss for the … Read more
There’s a tale of a US law professor who begins his university course with a lecture on witness statements. Midway through the lecture a man bursts in, jostles the lecturer and grabs the professor’s briefcase, wallet and jacket and escapes. Shocked, the professor says “right, can you guys tell me what happened, take notes and … Read more
Man down. TV ratings up. The cobbles proved controversial, especially with Frank Schleck going out of the race. But for me at least, their inclusion in the race is fine. It’s all about the quantity of pavé. Past visits have included a lot of more stretches of cobbles, for me under 14km is fine, especially … Read more
This isn’t so much a new review, more a heads up that you can get a daily dose of audio analysis via podcasts. There are three to consider: The VelocastThe two Scots are giving a daily post race analysis. It’s a good chat but they are limited by their presence in Scotland, this is not … Read more
Like many I saw Contador struggling in the final straight whilst his team mate Vinokourov powered a small group to the finish line. “What’s Russian for traitor” I wondered. But I was wrong. It turns out Contador punctured towards the end of the race but he won’t lose any time. Indeed Vinokourov driving to the … Read more
There’s some confusion over the UCI rules regarding bike changes. There’s nothing really new today for the cobbled stage. In short, wheel changes are allowed from support staff but for the whole bike, it has to come from the team car. Here’s the rule in full detail from the UCI rule book: 2.3.029 Technical supportRiders … Read more
Whilst the Stockeu crashes, the medical bulletin and tensions in the bunch over Saxo’s shutdown rages, let’s not forget Sylvain Chavanel. He factured his skull in Liege-Bastogne-Liege but on the same roads yesterday he was the first to attack. He initially rode alone, building up a lead as a wild chase finally allowed a few … Read more
I’ve written before about the fine line between finding exciting roads and turning a race from a sporting contest into a real life version of Wacky Races. Clearly there’s a gap between the fans, who want to see gruelling tests every day and the riders who can’t risk a season and their health on a … Read more
Spare a thought for Thor Hushovd. Voted by his peers as the best descender in the pro peloton, the Norwegian champion demonstrated the famous bike-handling skills by staying upright today. And more, since the bulky classics contender was at the front of the race whilst the rivals for the Green Jersey went out of the … Read more
Something strange happened in the Tour stage today. During the descent of the Stockeu many riders went down. It wasn’t a handling error or just bad luck, for surely too many riders hit the deck for this to be just bad luck. Race director Jean-Francois Pescheux said he thought 60-70 riders crashed. There could have … Read more