We are not even half way into the race this year and already it is a two-man race for the yellow jersey. Nearly 200 riders started the race, over 180 are still left, and yet everyone knows that, barring injury, crash or extreme mechanical, only Schleck and Contador can win it this year. Yet, the race for third on the podium will still be interesting, and the drama of the race will begin each day anew.
Contador was in fine form today. He looked more like the 2009 winner as he began to dance on the pedals in the mid slopes of the Col de la Madeleine. He was able to answer every challenge thrown at him by Andy with never an apparent chink in his armor. And yet . . . why didn’t he ever counter attack? It is true he would not want the burden of defending Yellow this early in the race, but why not attack once or twice just to let Schleck know? Perhaps this year he simply doesn’t have the extra gear that he had last year. Or perhaps Schleck found the same extra gear. If these two stay so evenly matched we will be in for a great race. Contador should still manage to win due to his time trailing abilities, but what a race through the Pyrenees it will be.
Shleck is a kid who is easy to like. He seems exuberant like a kid in a candy store and still relatively humble. AS Mtn Biker noted in the contest thread, he had the comment of the day, saying that if he had attacked one more time he would have dropped himself. In that same interview he was asked if he was testing Contador; he looked a little incredulous and said he wasn’t testing, he was putting all his cards on the table and, sticking with the gambling theme, noted that he was ‘all in.’ Not long ago it looked like Contador might dominate the grand tours for a few years. I am glad that Andy is fulfilling his promise and giving El Pistolero a challenge. May he do so all the way to Paris.
Schleck, who as we saw today is NOT a good descender, also said in an interview that his mother always paces when he is descending so because his strategy was to not take any risks on the descent, he asked Bjarne Riis to call his mother at home in Luxembourg and tell her he would not take any risks so she would not worry. How can you not like this kid?
And I would disagree mildly with those who think the climb was easy for these guys. This was no ride in the park. If you saw the post race shot of Schleck collapsed by his team bus, head in hands looking like he was ready to pass out, you know that the stage takes a lot out of them. One of the things these guys can do that most of us duffers cant is commit themselves completely. When they say they are all in, they mean it.
Levi rode a great race. The oracle at Delphi offered wisdom in two words: “Know Thyself.” Levi showed us how important that can be for us. He was riding with the Schleck and Contador group today and then, as Schleck began his attacks, he was shot out the back. It looked like he was dropped and that he might be in trouble. Not so. After the race Levi noted he had stayed with Schleck/Contador to long. If he had stayed there longer he WOULD have blown up. In other words Levi knows he can never climb with those two guys. That is not his race. He is a tempo climber. He can set a pace and hold it all the way up the mountain, but he is not an explosive climber. If he tried to match their accelerations, he would fail. Many times in the past we have seen Levi get dropped early on a mountain stage only to pace himself back into it as the climb continues. I expect to se him do this in the Pyrenees. Don’t forget, he has done very well in the vuelta in the past (2d in 2003). He knows those mountains well. Levi could still podium.
Lance showed pretty much what everyone thought; he looks to be about a top ten guy this year, at best. Without the fall that is about where he would be. Nothing wrong with that. My guess is that the French will suddenly adore him. They always like the Poulidor-type almost but not quite winner the most. Speaking of the French and Lance, who would have thought that at stage nine of the race Lance would trail not one, not two, not even three, but FIVE French riders in the GC? Yikes.
A shout out (hola?) to Sammy Sanchez. The Olympic gold medal road race winner acquitted himself well today. He never quit, climbed well and rode his heart out to the line. Not quite enough to podium, but enough to earn my respect.
Tomorrow will be a transition stage. Bonne chance!
P.s. sorry this is so late; work duties called this morning.
Contador was in fine form today. He looked more like the 2009 winner as he began to dance on the pedals in the mid slopes of the Col de la Madeleine. He was able to answer every challenge thrown at him by Andy with never an apparent chink in his armor. And yet . . . why didn’t he ever counter attack? It is true he would not want the burden of defending Yellow this early in the race, but why not attack once or twice just to let Schleck know? Perhaps this year he simply doesn’t have the extra gear that he had last year. Or perhaps Schleck found the same extra gear. If these two stay so evenly matched we will be in for a great race. Contador should still manage to win due to his time trailing abilities, but what a race through the Pyrenees it will be.
Shleck is a kid who is easy to like. He seems exuberant like a kid in a candy store and still relatively humble. AS Mtn Biker noted in the contest thread, he had the comment of the day, saying that if he had attacked one more time he would have dropped himself. In that same interview he was asked if he was testing Contador; he looked a little incredulous and said he wasn’t testing, he was putting all his cards on the table and, sticking with the gambling theme, noted that he was ‘all in.’ Not long ago it looked like Contador might dominate the grand tours for a few years. I am glad that Andy is fulfilling his promise and giving El Pistolero a challenge. May he do so all the way to Paris.
Schleck, who as we saw today is NOT a good descender, also said in an interview that his mother always paces when he is descending so because his strategy was to not take any risks on the descent, he asked Bjarne Riis to call his mother at home in Luxembourg and tell her he would not take any risks so she would not worry. How can you not like this kid?
And I would disagree mildly with those who think the climb was easy for these guys. This was no ride in the park. If you saw the post race shot of Schleck collapsed by his team bus, head in hands looking like he was ready to pass out, you know that the stage takes a lot out of them. One of the things these guys can do that most of us duffers cant is commit themselves completely. When they say they are all in, they mean it.
Levi rode a great race. The oracle at Delphi offered wisdom in two words: “Know Thyself.” Levi showed us how important that can be for us. He was riding with the Schleck and Contador group today and then, as Schleck began his attacks, he was shot out the back. It looked like he was dropped and that he might be in trouble. Not so. After the race Levi noted he had stayed with Schleck/Contador to long. If he had stayed there longer he WOULD have blown up. In other words Levi knows he can never climb with those two guys. That is not his race. He is a tempo climber. He can set a pace and hold it all the way up the mountain, but he is not an explosive climber. If he tried to match their accelerations, he would fail. Many times in the past we have seen Levi get dropped early on a mountain stage only to pace himself back into it as the climb continues. I expect to se him do this in the Pyrenees. Don’t forget, he has done very well in the vuelta in the past (2d in 2003). He knows those mountains well. Levi could still podium.
Lance showed pretty much what everyone thought; he looks to be about a top ten guy this year, at best. Without the fall that is about where he would be. Nothing wrong with that. My guess is that the French will suddenly adore him. They always like the Poulidor-type almost but not quite winner the most. Speaking of the French and Lance, who would have thought that at stage nine of the race Lance would trail not one, not two, not even three, but FIVE French riders in the GC? Yikes.
A shout out (hola?) to Sammy Sanchez. The Olympic gold medal road race winner acquitted himself well today. He never quit, climbed well and rode his heart out to the line. Not quite enough to podium, but enough to earn my respect.
Tomorrow will be a transition stage. Bonne chance!
P.s. sorry this is so late; work duties called this morning.
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