Then there’s the enigma of Team Ineos and their leader Richard Carapaz. The team has never been on the backfoot like this, Richie Porte seems to be having issues, Geraint Thomas keeps crashing and hurting his already damaged body, and they’ve lost Luke Rowe, their road captain.
Read MoreAfter a pause to allow the stragglers to rejoin, the peloton burst into action anew with Team Ineos mounting an echelon attack.
Read MoreI watched the start of the race and right from the neutral section, where the racers amass around the Race Director’s car, Politt was right in the front. The flag went down and in a stunning sight, the entire peloton began sprinting, a row of flailing racers curb to curb across the road with Politt leading the charge.
Read MoreI’ve been watching Jonas Vinegaard all year, especially after his excellent second place behind Primoz Roglič at the Tour of the Basque Country
Read MoreIt’s said that bicycle road racers are the last of the ‘Chevaliers’ – the knights of old galloping through the countryside in search of battle and plunder, their kings always at the head of the charging horde, leading them into battle
Read MoreHe was most impressive on the stage, run under the most challenging conditions imaginable: Cold, cold rain hammers the racers over the 4500 total meters of climbing that went above 2000 meters for the first time this Tour.
Read MorePogačar’s UAE-Emirates team was back, Rui Costa put in a sterling performance, but it was American Brandon McNulty and Italian David Formolo who provided the crucial work on the penultimate Col de Romme, setting a fierce pace that eliminated many of the favorites and set their leader up for his assault on the race.
Read MoreThe sight of the Yellow Jersey on the attack like this in the Tour is a throwback to – I don’t know..the 1960’s? Gone, and not missed, are the days of suffocating control, of calculated-to- the-millimeter efforts.
Read MoreThe Tour has purposely been making the sprint stages shorter this year to incite more action and true to form, the race exploded out of the blocks with a breakaway getting clear, one that contained Deceunink-Quickstep’s Kasper Asgreen, a danger man for the GC.
Read MoreHow to explain Mathieu van der Poel’s improbable and successful defense of the Yellow Jersey? It’s such a madcap story.
Read MoreApparently, the entire Deceunick-Quickstep organization collapsed into tears after his win, Cav’s first at the Tour in five years, after that long drought of suffering through illness and deep depression. Cavendish felt that he’d “come home” when team boss Patrick Lefevere offered him a minimum contract this year, a contract largely considered as a gesture of mercy to a down-and-out racer, one with a limited future.
Read MoreMadiot shouted out the alarm yesterday and everyone should listen because he speaks from deep knowledge and is expressing a real fear for cycling. He lashed out at everyone - race organizers, manufacturers, riders and the UCI.
Read MoreOk, I cried, cried like a baby and I’m not the only one. You’ve just got to love cycling after yesterday. For those who might not know, Raymond Poulidor (deceased November 13, 2019) was a cycling icon, the most popular racer in France in the 1960’s and beyond, known for his humility and fighting spirit.
Read MoreIt was clear that the second crash was coming. The Tour had this terrible habit of putting tiny roads into the finale of the first stage, the stage where the riders are the freshest, most nervous and aggressive.
Read MoreThere was an important moment on Stage Three when, at the top of a tough, steep climb, Roglič made an attack and McNulty was one of the few able to respond. That, for a young, rising racer, is a mark: a moment in a career when you see and feel that you’ve got the goods to go with the very best.
Read MoreAsgreen’s volume of teamwork at the past two Tours de France has nothing short of astounding. From riding tempo on the front, for what seems to have been hours at a time, to hyper-fast lead-outs for their sprinters, the Danish champion was ever-present at the front of the peloton for the entire three-weeks of the Tours.
Read MoreFor all of the talk of the “new and young” Movistar team, what was clear, after watching the Valter 2000 finishing climb, which in fact finished at 2100 meters, is that Alejandro Valverde remains their franchise player.
Read MoreI love to watch, gauge and internalize efforts that the riders make, counting their kilometers in front, length of their pulls, the respective levels of suffering. It’s just as exciting and interesting to me as a sprint finish.
Read MoreWhat remains with me, of the fleeting impressions one absorbs in watching a race, is the sense that McNulty is at ease in the role of leader.
Read MoreLong lean legs that move in a perfect circle absent any side-to-side movement, the saddle high and somewhat forward in the modern manner yet maintaining the ability to smoothly rev at 120 rpms with ease, the barrel chest and long arms perfectly balanced over his machine in a naturally aerodynamic position. He’s six feet and 158 pounds of pure strength that’s imbued with true racing spirit.
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