Celticharper

Sorry I wasn't clear, I didn't mean to say Brunyeel drove the stage each morning, but he had someone drive ahead and report to them if there was any questionable section due to weather or other problems

Amitiés

Grassshopper

Well, for all the controversy, today was VERY exciting. This has been an interesting Tour.

kerouac

Be assured that the Tour will survive. It survived the Festina scandal of 1998 which really made interest plummet for a few years, and just when we thought everything was getting back on track, we had Floyd Landis and all of the events this year. Just have to cross our fingers and hope again.

Underhill

kerouac,

Please elaborate on "Contador is heavily suspected as well." By whom? On what evidence?

historytraveler

Contador heavily suspected (of drugs)? Only by a French team which hasn't had a stage win or much of anything else in the last several years!

Anyone in this year's tour with whom there is even a suspicion of drug use would/will be thrown out.

And what a time trial! Incroyable!!

waggis

Historytraveler - It's not only the French, the German press is also talking about further investigations into Contador's past connection with the Spanish doctor Eufemiano Fuentes. Suspicions abound....They're anything but happy about "the designated" tour winner...

BTW, Contador has had his share of physical problems. In 2004, after a serious crash on the "Vuelta a Asturias", it was discovered that he suffered from a life-threatening cerebral cavernoma - a vascular abnormality of the central nervous system. Six months after a risky surgery, he was back on his bike and rode his first Tour de France the following year!

I thought both, Levi Leipheimer and Cadel Evans, were super today. What a narrow miss for Evans, incredibly disappointing for him. Will be watching with mixed feelings....

ComfyShoes

Well, problems or not, congratulations to Contador and the Discovery team.

I noted four spaniards in the top six, and six in the top ten. Cycling must be one popular sport there! And I believe Tour de <i>France</i> doesn't have a single french in the top 25!

farrermog

Most of the talk here is about the Discovery team and justifiably so, but spare a thought also for Cadel Evans the quiet Australian (there aren't too many of us!)who kept plugging away without the support others enjoyed and still came within half a minute of victory and for the riders in some of the other teams who gave everything for more fancied colleagues who then disgraced themselves. That said, I had hoped for greater comment on this thread about some of the localities featured in this year's Tour - from those lucky enough to have been there in the last three weeks or previously.

historytraveler

Contador was cleared of any involvement with the Puerto scandal by the ICU in 2006.

I do find it ironic that the Germans seem to be on a witch hunt. Wonder what their position would've been if Ullrich could've raced? Yes, cycling needs to be highly monitored for drug abuse, but IMO the Germans actions appear a bit self-rightous. The tour this year at least seems to have rid itself of the 'cheaters' although the next few weeks will really tell. But, why dig up the past? Cycling needs and should look to the future.

I've no doubt we have not heard the last of the drug problem, but the harsh penatalities imposed during the tour and what I believe will be the ostracism of those that do fail drug tests, will surely go far in helping to solve the problem.

PalenQ

Q- if Levi had won the time trial by enough to eclipse the other two, including one of his teamates then would protocol be the same - that the Spaniard would not dare to take the Yellow jersey back on the final day.

I find this team mentality confusing - i'd advocate a Tour where individuals are riding against each other and no teams. That would produce the best champ i think and not depend on stacking the best riders to sacrifice for the chosen one.

PalenQ

And interesting they interviewed Lance himself during the last few kms around the Champs area. Phil first then one other guy - later photos of broadcast team showed all four, including Frankie Andreu at the table - i wonder if Lance requested that Frankie 'go to the loo' or something whilst he was being interviewed. The two were old friends of course until Frankie told of Lance's admission to taking banned substances in his hospital room. Lance of course called that rubbish and Frankie and his wife, who had no reason to make it up, blad-faced liars.

And the interview did not bring up the doping issue at all - i suspect lance make that a condition of being interviewed. After all the issue was crucial to the Discover team taking two medals - only because others were given the boot for doping accusations.

historytraveler

The tour is a team sport. Despite who was the designated leader at the beginning of the race, it can change. The reason for this is that during any competitive event,not everyone is at their peak. There is no way to know in advance how you'll feel until the race unfolds. The team supports the best rider.It's really not confusing to those that follow the sport.If Levi had put time on Alberto and Evans then the Discovery team would have supported him in the last days.The team aspect actually makes it more interesting. If it was purely an individual race then you'd still most of the same people at the front. The teams allow for lesser individuals to win stages, get in break aways and secure an important role in the results.

Not sure why you seem to think the performance of the first three places was only because two leaders were ousted for doping charges.Anything could've have happened to either Vino or Rasmussen from the point of their departure. Bonking is not uncommon. And, they cheated. I don't believe cheaters can ever be considered probable winners.

PalenQ

And, they cheated. I don't believe cheaters can ever be considered probable winners.

What about Floyd Landis and Lance?

fnarf999

Pal, you can't have individual riders without teams. You'd ruin the race. Teamwork is essential, and is happening at every mile of the race. You have to understand the importance of things like drafting, and rotation, and supporting, and hauling back. It might be clearer how it works if they had included a team time trial in this year's tour, but they stupidly didn't have one this year.

tod

Hi Celticharper - I also love watching the Tour de France but have not been so lucky as to actually be there when it's in progress! Please tell me how do you go about finding out way ahead of time, where the actual route will be ( towns but more importantly the ROADS!) Do you hire a motorhome? Any help will be appreciated so that I can visit The Tour successfully - maybe in 2008!
Thanks in advance.

waggis

PalenQ - When I started to watch the Tour on TV in recent years, I was surprised to see the team work of the racers. In the &quot;old days&quot; I thought everyone was on his own. Does anyone know if the rules were indeed changed?

&quot;The other guy&quot; is Paul Sherwen who picked most of the stage winners correctly. I think he's very astute and a great contributor to the live transmission. I'm fascinated to read on Wikipedia that he lives with his family on the Ugandan/Kenyan border in a small town called Busia, in which he operates a gold mine...What an interesting guy!

historytraveler - the German press is very critical of the UCI, claiming that they looked the other way for too long while all this doping was going on and also in the recent Rasmussen affair when they kept the missed tests a secret from the ASO. In fact, it wasn't until the sponsors put their foot down that the cheaters were removed. As usual, money talks ;-)

There are many reasons for the recurring suspicions about Contador. According to the German doping expert, Werner Franke, Contador supposedly used HMG Lepori, an insulin product, and, Trigon, an asthma medication while he was with Fuentes. Obviously, Spain is celebrating, but the rest of Europe is lamenting the sorry state of affairs.

BTW, Ullrich will take part in a charitable race to benefit social projects for children and youths of Stuttgart. He hasn't been racing professionally since the Tour de Suisse in June of last year and has been ordered to submit his financial records.

Don't forget the honest athletes caught in this nightmare. The mood in the peleton wasn't a happy one. In protest, some riders contemplated to get off their bikes a meter before the finish line. It's not only the organisers of the Tour de France, also the committee of the Olympics need to be vigilant.

PalenQ

A neighbor just rode a race or ride i should say in Iowa with 10,000 others and Lance was riding most of the week too as he had done in the past - fund-raiser for his cancer cause (applause) - then i told him i just saw him on TV in paris and he said he left the Iowa ride on Wed to jet to Paris because his Discovery team was doing so well.

Apparently had not planned to until, due to drop outs it appeared they would dominate.

Anway if you want to ride with lance check out next year's Tour de Iowa or whatever - and there are a few hills near the end and this year at least strong headwinds as the race headed west, young man.

PalenQ

A NOVEL ANTI DOPE-DETECTING TACTIC:

Riders apparently try many schemes to avoid a would be + doping test&gt;

I quote an AP article by Jerome Pugmire:

'Only once before has the race leader been expelled. In 1978, Belgian rider Michel Pollentier, trying to evade doping controls after winning a stage in the Alps, was caught with an intricate tube-and-container system that contained urine that was not his, Tour historian Paul Brouchon said.&quot;

The expulsion from the Tour supposedly pissed off Pollentier greatly.

Celticharper

&gt;&gt;&gt;&gt;&gt;&gt;The two were old friends of course until Frankie told of Lance's admission to taking banned substances in his hospital room. Lance of course called that rubbish and Frankie and his wife, who had no reason to make it up, blad-faced liars.&gt;&gt;&gt;&gt;&gt;

PalenQ = The Andreu’s claimed that there were several people in the room while the doctor was examining Lance. I don’t know about you but I’ve never had a doctor discuss my medical history with a roomful of people around, that just isn’t done for legal and privacy reasons. Their claims were never corroborated by anyone else who was supposed to have been in the room at the time. It’s generally believed that they had ulterior motives for their accusations.

The doctor also submitted his complete records to the court when Lance sued a sponsoring company that refused to pay a bonus claim. His records didn’t indicate Lance took any drugs. With the danger of malpractice suits and the ramifications of care not taking into account any drugs that a patient took I can’t imagine that any doctor would put his career on the line by lying in court.

I think we have to be carefull about who we believe, and not to accept wild accusations and unsubstantiated rumors. I'm not saying Lance didn't dope, but there has been no reliable proof.

I wouldn't want my career to hang on the rumor or inuendo from jealous rivals, we'd probably all be out of a job if that were the case.

historytraveler

Amen!