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14 July 2005

15 July News ...

Vino Fires Long Range Missile at Disco

It was an epic performance by Alexandre Vinokourov (T-Mobile) on an epic stage. Stage 11 took the riders over the Col de la Madeleine (HC), Col du Télégraphe (Cat 1) and the Col du Galibier (HC). Vino formed part an early escape that went on the Madeleine, but then continued his efforts solo on the Galibier. Finally, on the downhill run to Briançon, Vino linked up with Santiago Botero (Phonak). Vino out-foxed the Colombian for a superb victory.

Vino's victory came on the heels of a stage 10 humiliation. In stage 10 it was Discovery Channel who handed out a team stomping, but in stage 11 it was Vino's turn to fire. Vino said post-stage, "Yesterday [stage 10], I was very disappointed about my performance, that was a bad day for me. So I made it my goal to attack today, to give it my all. I did just that, and it worked out fine."

Vino was able to reflect on stage 10's disappointment, "The rest day ruined my rhythm. I only trained for two hours. That was too little after the fast stages of the first Tour week. As a consequence, I never really got going on Tuesday [stage 10]." The Kazakhstan lost chunks of time that day but still has hope, "A gap of almost five minutes is hard to close. But who knows what will happen. I proved I am still a force to be reckoned with. ... We will keep on attacking in the Pyrenees. I'm optimistic ..."

92nd Tour de France:
Startlist, Classifications, Tour Challengers, Discovery Channel Profile
Key Stages, Key Stage Descriptions, Stages and Maps, Overall Map
Photos, Dust Devil's Daily Wrap

Ullrich Didn't See the Eiffel Tower in Courchevel

Many thought they could see the Eiffel tower in Courchevel. That was the day Disco, and Armstrong, blew up the entire race. The Disco rhythm caused considerable time gaps for many favorites. Ullrich (T-Mobile) is not fooled and knows that Courchevel was not Paris. "Sure, the cards are stacked against me now. Lance is really strong and is back on a roll again. But I'm a fighter and the Tour isn't over until Paris. That's why I will keep on battling 'til the end." Ulle sometimes takes a few mountain stages to get his powerful legs turning. He continued, "My legs are getting stronger day by day. Although four minutes is a lot of time to make up, Lance isn't home and dry yet."

Two Yellow Jerseys and Two Abandons for Team CSC

David Zabriskie's yellow jersey success, crash and then abandon brought a lot of press to Team CSC. It was a huge win and a sad abandon for the American, but the team battled on. A few stages later it was the likable Jens Voigt in yellow for CSC. Huge successes require huge energies, and on Wednesday evening it was confirmed, Voigt was out of the Tour de France. Check out the BiciRace.com Tour de France startlist for all the updates.

The German finished 39 seconds out of the time limit in stage 11. Voigt, who captured the yellow leader's jersey in stage 9, was reported ill with fever for the past few days. A tired Voigt added, "When I started in today's stage, I knew it was against all odds, but I still wanted to do everything I possibly could to continue. Kim Andersen gave me a lot of motivation during the stage, but in the end it just wasn't enough."

Basso and Riis Search for Summits

Ivan Basso and Bjarne Riis (Team CSC) are waiting until the weekend to party. Days like yesterday's stage 11 are exciting, but do not provide the opportunities like a stage with a summit finish. Riis added, "Bobby [Julich] and Carlos [Sastre] had some problems on the Galibier, but I think they all did very well today. Ivan felt better than yesterday, but we didn't consider attacking with such a long distance from the last summit to the finish."

Ivan Basso added, "An operation like this of Vino you can only make if you are a long way down in the classification. For me it would not be permitted. The two mountain top finishes on Saturday and Sunday, if I have the legs, I will attack." The Italian has his hopes pinned on a weekend party.

Tex Does Not Fuss Over the Vino

Lance Armstrong (Discovery Channel) did not get too worked up about the attack of Alexandre Vinokourov. His Disco Dancers had control on stage 11. The Disco captain added, "He definitely wasn't our concern today. Our main concern today was to keep the team together." The team was super strong. Armstrong gave team tactics, "He was six and a half minutes and we can't chase down everybody that's at five, six, seven minutes. We have to prioritize and he was not on our list of priorities, so we let him go and kept the team together, controlled the tempo, controlled the pace. And if the [T-Mobile] objective was to win the stage, then mission accomplished. If the objective was to blow up the Discovery team, then mission not accomplished."

Now Lance Armstrong worries over the thin-figure of Rasmussen (Rabobank). Rasmussen is in 2nd, just 38 seconds behind Tex. "He's riding strong, climbing very well. Sitting in second overall, I don't need to add anymore. He's now a threat in the race." Armstrong will need to control the Dane in the mountains and then put the hurt on him in the TT. For a more critical view read The Dust Devil's Daily Wrap.

Liberty Explodes In Alps

For the Liberty Seguros - Würth boys it was hard going in the Alps. The notable performances were by Jorg Jaksche and Alberto Contador, not Roberto Heras or Joseba Beloki. Beloki gave his thoughts after a hard stage 11: "There were not any good days for me in the Alps, not even yesterday [stage 10], because my goal had been to be near Ullrich. Today [stage 11] I started to have problems on the Madeleine and thought that it was better to relax and to save energy for Pyrenees, since Roberto [Heras] was not needing my help either." This weekend will provide stages that are closer to home. The Tour de France will do battle on the Pyrenees, near Spain. Beloki continued, "Now that I am not a threat in the GC, I will seek to get in a break."

Quick-Stepping Out: Tom Boonen

Tom Boonen (Quick-Step) has called it quits after several crashes in the 2005 Tour de France. Victim of a fall yesterday, the Belgian decided not to take the start today. The winner of the Tour of Flanders and Paris-Roubaix abandoned as the leader in the points classification. He had taken the green jersey after winning stages 2 and 3. BiciRace.com wished Boonen the best in his recovery.

Tour Jerseys, Green Out

Green Jersey (sprinter's jersey): Tom Boonen (Quick-Step) did not start stage 12. His green kit will be passed over to Thor Hushovd (Crédit Agricole). Now Hushovd will have to do battle with two punchy Aussies: O'Grady and McEwen. Just like in past years this battle should be exciting.

Yellow Jersey: Lance Armstrong (Discovery Channel) is doing his thing, dominating the race in the yellow jersey. The big threat for Armstrong is Rasmussen (Rabobank) and Basso (Team CSC). The battle will continue to remain hot.

White Jersey (young GC rider): Alejandro Valverde (Illes Balears) stays in charge of this competition. He is young and talented. The Spaniard should have his work cut out for him though, behind is Yaroslav Popovych (Discovery Channel).

Polka Dot (climber's jersey): Thin man, Michael Rasmussen, continued his ways in stage 11. Moreau (Crédit Agricole) gave the Dane some grief by challenging for mountain points. Rasmussen knows better and will soon have the French riders under his thumb, if not already.
If you need to know more about the classifications, then read here: Tour de France Classifications

13 July News ...