Tour Diary - First Impressions

Stage 6: Nancy –Troyes (199km)

Déjà vu; Lance's loyal guard

Yet another day dominated by a long break and the inevitable bunch sprint finish. However the weather had something to say about today's script. Coming into Troyes on rain soaked roads a sharp right hand bend leading to the final finishing straight put paid to many hopes for a stage victory. Christophe Mengin (Cofidis) was the last surviving member of the daylong break. With the bunch just a few meters behind him he launched himself into the final bend hoping to win in his home town. A touch of the brakes and he slid sideways into the straw bales. Seconds later half the bunch joined him on the deck. Lorenzo Bernucci (Fassa Bortolo) managed to avoid the carnage as did Alex Vinokourov who was about 100 meters behind him. They finished in that order.

We have seen such situations before and Armstrong manages to avoid getting caught up. Déjà vu played its role again and he was seen cruising over the line unscathed. Luck? Maybe, but Armstrong consistently manages to avoid trouble. The combination of his alert teammates and his own bike handling skills no doubt keep him out of trouble.

During the long and very fast stage we again saw George Hincapie in his habitual position leading Lance. Last year I was in rain soaked Huy in Belgium. The photograph that I took that day reflects exactly the same image that we saw today as they endured the elements in their rain capes. It would appear that déjà vu is a team strategy.

Additional Stage Notes: Conserving energy is a critical job skill for any rider hoping to survive a three-week Grand Tour. A great example of this skill in action was seen today. Jan Kirsipuu dropped back from his break companions to replenish his food and drink supplies. Now about twelve official and team cars back, the camera followed Kirsipuu as he skillfully ‘car surfed' his way back to the front. Minimum effort, maximum result. Little demonstrations like this appear every day in many different ways. Don't miss them!

Stage 7: Achtung, der Kaiser kommt!

Attention, the Kaiser is coming! The German people are passionate about sport and Jan Ullrich (Der Kaiser) is one of the most popular sporting figures in Germany . Typically when the Tour enters Germany record numbers of people line the roads. The miserable weather today may have dampened the peloton but certainly not the enthusiasm of the race fans. Again they turned out in huge numbers.

Last year as I stood beside the road in the Southern Ardennes waiting for the Tour to crest a mountain points prime I got chatting with a German family standing next to me. They had traveled over two hours to see their heroes. As the mother of the family said to me “We live in an era of constant rush where time is always at a premium. Yet today we dedicate over six hours for a fleeting glimpse of the race.” Such is the magnetic attraction of the Tour.

As the race crossed the River Rhine into Germany the crowds were treated to one of their own leading the race. Lone leader Fabian Wegmann (Gerolsteiner) was still just hanging on to his day long solo break. His valiant exploit was however doomed and for the German people all hopes were on Robert Foerster (Gerolsteiner) to take out the expected bunch sprint. However behind him Tom Boonen had been scooping up Green Jersey points all day and was obviously in fine sprinting form. But it was the wily Robbie McEwen who took the hectic warp speed bunch sprint on the line for his second stage win this year.

So what about Der Kaiser? He finished the day modestly tucked away in the middle of the bunch. Like an English sports car he has been ‘all promise and no performance' since his 1997 Tour win. Yesterday German legend Rudi Altig gave Ullrich a real tongue lashing. “I am sick of the excuses, it's time to deliver.” As harsh as his observations were, the words were tinged with a genuine desire to see his countryman finally conquer Armstrong. As do the millions of other Tour fans in Germany .

Stage 8: Pforzheim – Gerardmer (231.5km)

Big mistake

Sending George Hincapie up the road to cover an early break that included CSC's Jens Voigt was a big tactical error on the part of the Discovery team. Admittedly Voigt is a gifted rider but he will not win the Tour. Having George battle him for the six seconds bonus at an intermediate sprint was a waste of a valuable resource.

This became apparent on the Cat 2 Col de la Schlucht. At 16.8km and 4.4% average it topped out at 1139m (3736ft) and was just 15kms from the finish.

Normally we would have expected to see Hincapie power his way up such a climb with Armstrong on his wheel. Instead he and the rest of the team were nowhere to be seen after about the halfway point. The last man standing was Paolo Savoldelli who managed to reel in Alex Vinokourov after the first two of his series of terrifying accelerations. After that Armstrong was on his own and the weary peloton was in shreds.

Sensing Armstrong's situation it became open season as rider after rider attacked the six time Tour winner. A surprising Andreas Kloden (T-Mobile), who has shown no form so far this year, opened a gap to chase down lone leader Peter Weening (Rabobank). The two crested the climb and held on to the finish with Weening taking the sprint by no more than 2mm.

The next group of 32 riders came in 27 seconds later containing Armstrong, Ullrich and Vinokourov but no other Discovery riders. Advantage T-Mobile – or is it? Unlike Discovery, T-Mobile has no clear leader. Ullrich, Vinokourov and Kloden are each capable of winning the Tour. What's more each of them is hungry for personal victory and in-fighting between them could well be the savior of Discovery.

Schlucht means canyon in the German language and while the Discovery team was not ambushed there, they were certainly decimated by the intense speed and incessant attacks. There will be some serious discussions in the Discovery camp tonight. Tomorrow's tough climbing stage will be critical for if Armstrong again loses his team on the road not only T-Mobile, but everyone else will be gunning for him.

Stage 9: Gerardmer – Mulhouse (171km)

Brilliant

With his long thin legs, Michael Rasmussen's (Rabobank) brilliant exploit today was in the style of Coppi. He claimed all six climbs with the most notable being the Cat 1 Ballon d'Alsace which celebrated its 100 th anniversary of being the very first major climb to be included in the Tour. On that day Rene Pottier climbed at an average of 20km/h and was the only rider in 1905 to finish the climb (which then was no more than a dirt track) without walking any part. Today Pottier would have been totally impressed with Rasmussen who took a very firm hold of the Polka Dot Jersey. Will Rasmussen emulate Pottier who, in 1906, not only outdistanced everyone on the ‘Ballon' but also went on to win the Tour? If Rasmussen continues to climb the way he did today it could be very possible.

Rasmussen was the lone leader for the second half of the stage. Behind him former break colleagues Jens Voight (CSC) and Christophe Moreau (Credit Agricole) could not chase him down and finished 3min 4secs down. The main bunch containing Armstrong was a further 3mins back. Voight thus gained the Yellow Jersey.

Back in the bunch Le Patron (Armstrong) had firmly restored order in the peloton. After yesterdays astounding climb up the Col de la Schlucht which saw Armstrongs team eliminated from the front of the race and most of the favorites attacking him every few moments, we saw the Discovery boys fully back in control. Especially all the way up the 22kms of the Grand Ballon and then all the way up the Ballon d'Alsace, the entire Discovery team was riding line astern. Nobody disturbed their formation. It almost looked as if the bunch had been chastised and dare not attempt any unruly behavior!

Lance had made it clear that he wanted to send the Yellow Jersey elsewhere for a while. Voight was the lucky recipient today and now CSC will be obliged to protect it as they enter the Alps . We wait in great anticipation to see Rasmussen on the big climbs and observe, as we have for six years, Armstrong and his team dictate the overall result.

With his long thin legs, Michael Rasmussen's (Rabobank) brilliant exploit today was in the style of Coppi. He claimed all six climbs and the most notable of these were the Cat 2 Grand Ballon and the Cat 1 Ballon d'Alsace which celebrated its 100 th anniversary of being the very first major climb to be included in the Tour. On that day Rene Pottier climbed at an average of 20km/h and was the only rider in 1905 to finish the climb (which then was no more than a dirt track) without walking any part. Today Pottier would have been totally impressed with Rasmussen who took a very firm hold of the Polka Dot Jersey. Will Rasmussen emulate Pottier who, in 1906, not only outdistanced everyone on the ‘Ballon' but also went on to win the Tour? If Rasmussen continues to climb the way he did today it could be very possible.

Rasmussen was the lone leader for the second half of the stage. Behind him former break colleagues Jens Voight (CSC) and Christophe Moreau (Credit Agricole) could not chase him down and finished 3min 4secs down. However with the main bunch containing Armstrong a further 3mins back Voight gained the Yellow Jersey.

Back in the bunch Le Patron (Armstrong) had firmly restored order in the peloton. After yesterdays astounding climb up the Col de la Schlucht which saw Armstrongs team eliminated from the front of the race and most of the favorites attacking him every few moments, we saw the Discovery boys fully back in control. Especially all the way up the 22kms of the Grand Ballon and then all the way up the Ballon d'Alsace, the entire Discovery team was riding line astern. Nobody disturbed their formation. It almost looked as if the bunch had been chastised and dare not attempt any unruly behavior!

Lance had made it clear that he wanted to send the Yellow Jersey elsewhere for a while. Voight was the lucky recipient today and now CSC will be obliged to protect it as they enter the Alps . We wait in great anticipation to see Rasmussen on the big climbs and observe, as we have for six years, Armstrong and his team dictate the overall result.

Rest day (July 11 th )

Rest day ruminations

Over its long and distinguished history the Tour de France has been witness to many incredible athletes and events. Legends and myths are woven into the tapestry of the greatest race in the world. Without doubt Lance Armstrong has already forged his own legend into the fabric of the race. His story is unique in that it is his return from a near fatal fight with cancer to win six, and now possibly seven, straight TdF's that is astounding and captures the imagination.

It seems that each time a great rider reaches his final finish line we think that we will never see their likes again. But with each passing generation someone steps up.

Yesterday Michael Rasmussen's ride through the Vosges Mountains made one liken him to Coppi. A bold and exciting performance leaving the rest of the TdF wallowing in his wake. That is the type of performance that the Tour expects and deserves.

Whether Armstrong wins or not this year it will be of little consequence to his legend. He will depart his beloved race with dignity and grace. On the Stage 8 climb up the Col de la Schlucht he was uncharacteristically left alone by his team with about 30 of the best riders racing today. Yes they attacked him but in the final analysis their efforts were of little consequence. For the first time in seven Tours Lance was vulnerable but his much vaunted adversaries were incapable of making the bold effort that would potentially make them his successor. In particular Jan Ullrich remained right where he has been in every Tour that he has raced with Lance – glued to his back wheel. This is hardly the stuff of a great Tour winner.

We will enter a phase of transition before the next truly great Tour champion appears on the roads of France . Rather an exciting and risk taking Rasmussen to win the Tour than the feeble souls much touted by the media as Armstrong's successors.

Return to the Table of Contents

Cover Feature
Florennes - Crucible of Champoins