Schleck and Contador - Virtually Equal
By spokesman | July 22, 2010
Andy Schleck and Alberto Contador entered the final mountain stage of the 2010 Tour separated by just 8 seconds. This stage was seen as the last chance for Schleck to gain time and get the yellow jersey back. Despite a tremendous effort by Schleck, he could not ride Contador off his wheel. As a result they finished with the same time. Contador in a gracious act didn’t try to sprint for the finish, so Schleck got the stage victory.
The two competitors have finished with the same time on 13 of the 18 days of racing (prologue + 17 stages) so far. The only differences have been:
- Prologue - Contador gains 42 seconds on Schleck
- Stage 3 - Contador loses 73 seconds to Schleck on the cobblestones
- Stage 8 - Contador lose 10 seconds to Schleck
- Stage 12 - Contador gains 10 seconds on Schleck
- Stage 13 - Contador gains 39 seconds on Schleck when Schleck drops his chain
Stages 8, 12 and 13 were mountain stages and the two riders were virtually equal on these stages with the biggest difference occurring when Schleck had a mechanical problem. The prologue was a time trial and stage 3, which crossed the cobblestones, had the largest differences of all the stages. In the 7 victories by Lance Armstrong, we have become used to the winner being the strongest cyclist by a large margin. Armstrong would gain time in the mountains riding off to solo victories and winning time trials.
If it were not for Schleck, Contador would win in the same style as Armstrong. This is a battle that could continue for years to come and may be remembered as one of the greatest cycling rivalries of all time.
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Topics: Professional Racing | 1 Comment »
NYC Police Car Hits Cyclist And Drives Away
By spokesman | July 21, 2010
A New York City police car hit a cyclist after the car ran a red light and then drove away. The cops didn’t take the cyclist to the hospital, call an ambulance or even report the accident. I guess they were in a hurry to get their morning Krispy Cremes. Luckily the entire incident was captured by surveillance video cameras from several different angles. The cop who was driving has been suspended and charged with several crimes. His partner who was sitting in the passenger seat was not charged because he was not driving. That is ridiculous. The second cop also failed to report the incident and should be in trouble too. Check out the above link for a video report from a local New York broadcast.
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Topics: Bike Commuting | No Comments »
An Anniversary For Neil Armstrong Not Lance
By spokesman | July 20, 2010
Forty one years ago today, Neil Armstrong (no relationship to Lance Armstrong) and Edwin “Buzz” Aldrin of the Apollo 11 mission landed on the moon. The above photo shows Buzz Aldrin. Neil Armstrong can be seen in the reflection on the face mask of the helmet. Astronaut Michael Collins, the third member of the crew, was orbiting the moon in the command module.
Each time Lance Armstrong or I hop on our bikes, we are the beneficiaries of technology developed or advanced by the space program including the material used in the composite frame, the software used to design the frame, the Garmin GPS on the handlebars, the wireless heart rate monitors and the tiny cell phone in my back jersey pocket (or the radio used by Lance).
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Topics: Flotsam | No Comments »
Andy Drops His Chain And Alberto Pedals Onward
By spokesman | July 19, 2010
Stage 15 of the 2010 Tour De France had some controversy as Alberto Contador took the yellow jersey from Andy Schleck primarily because of mechanical problem with Andy Schleck’s bike. On the last climb of the day, Andy Schleck attacked and opened a gap. Contador reacted and as he caught Schleck, the chain on Schleck’s bike dropped off of the gears. Schleck had to dismount, fix the chain and begin riding again on the steep slope. Contador and several other cyclists had passed Schleck. Schleck worked hard to close the gap and reached the top of the climb about 15 seconds after the Contador group. On the descent to the finish line, the Contador group worked together and expanded their lead to about 39 seconds over Schleck. Contador took the yellow jersey and currently has an 8 second lead over Schleck.
There are many unwritten rules in cycling and not attacking the yellow jersey wearer when he is having a mechanical problem or has crashed is one of them. Should Contador have slowed and waited for Schleck? Did Contador know that Schleck had a problem? Reactions were mixed as can be seen from the quotes below.
Schleck: “What is fair or unfair is not up to me, but I would not have raced like that”
Contador: “Those are the circumstances of the race. I knew there would be a debate after that, but I attacked before I knew he had a problem with his chain, and I was already ahead when I knew it. I understand he’s disappointed”
Phil Liggett and Paul Sherwen: The two announcers disagreed on Contador’s behavior. Sherwen thought he unfairly took advantage of the situation. Liggett didn’t think Contador acted unfairly and with the other cyclists pedaling away at full speed, Contador had no choice but to continue onward at full speed.
Lance Armstrong: “It is better to wait but this situation is different because this was the last climb of the race, and the race was really on” Armstrong was referring to two situations - one in 2001 when he slowed and waited for Ullrich after a crash and another in 2003 when several cyclists, at the urging of Tyler Hamilton, slowed for Armstrong after he crashed.
John Wilcockson (via twitter) : “Contador made no friends today, and if Schleck loses this TdF by 39 secs or less the Spaniard will go in the books as an unsporting winner”
If an event this controversial happened in a popular American sport such as football, basketball or baseball, there were be no end to the debate. It would be discussed everywhere. Every sports columnist would write about it, sports radio stations would talk about it for days and the video would be analyzed frame by frame like the Zapruder film. Look at all of the press that Lebron James received recently and all he did was sign a new contract and screw Cleveland (the 43rd largest city in the U.S.). For more on the debate about Stage 15, check out the Velonews website.
Cycling is a tough sport. The difference among the top competitors is very small. In many Tours, a few seconds make the difference between winning and losing. Often the competitors show a measure of respect and support for each other that is far greater than competitors in any other sport. However, there is another unwritten rule in cycling - there are no gifts.
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Topics: Professional Racing | 1 Comment »
Why Did Contador Attack In Stage 12
By spokesman | July 16, 2010
In today’s stage of the Tour De France, everything seemed to be unfolding according to a traditional script. A breakaway had formed early in the stage and as is usually the case, the breakaway group lost riders during the stage. At 4 kilometers from the finish, Alexander Vinokourov (a teammate of Contador) was riding alone in the lead. Several other cyclists were riding alone in between Vinokourov and the lead group containing Contador which was about 20 seconds behind. There were still 2 to 3 kilometers of climbing and then a flat stretch to the finish. Vinokourov seemed like he had the strength to maintain his lead over the pack and win the stage. The announcers speculated that Vinokourov would win the stage and the Contador was unlikely to attack because Vinokourov was so well positioned for the win. When another rider in the group attacked, Contador responded and caught onto his back wheel. Andy Schleck could not respond and a small gap opened up. Then, surprisingly, Contador attacked. He eventually passed Vinokourov and worse he brought another rider, Joaquim Rodriguez, with him. Contador and Rodriguez finished 4 seconds ahead of Vinokourov with Rodriguez winning the stage. Contador only gained 10 seconds on Schleck but did gain a psychological victory by demonstrating his superior climbing skills. However, I don’t think that it was worth it. There are many mountain stages left for Contador and Schleck to fight it out for time. Contador is a stronger time trialist, so Schleck needs a much large time margin than the current 31 second lead to win the tour since there is a long time trial remaining.
In the end, Contador’s team did not win the stage and he robbed a teammate of an opportunity that comes along rarely. Biking is a team sport and Contador may need Vinokourov before this tour ends. Vinokourov looked disgusted as he rolled across the finish line. If Contador had been going for a time bonus, it may have been understandable. We have already seen how the Saxo Bank riders have pushed themselves to the limit, sacrificed personal glory and worked together to support Andy Schleck. A prior post described some of the Saxo Bank team tactics on stage 2. Contador may have gained 10 seconds today, but he may have lost Vinokourov. It may not be obvious, but if the situation arises where Contador needs a teammate to push himself beyond the limit, Vinokourov may not be there. I’m sure that he will work hard, but will he push himself to the limit, sacrificing his tour position if necessary? Schleck has both Cancellara and Voigt, extremely strong cyclists who will sacrifice for him. Leipheimer has Kloden and Armstrong who will do the same for him. Contador may find himself alone.
UPDATE: Vinokourov made a solo breakaway and won stage 13. He and Contador celebrated together at the finish line. Vino has satisfied his personal goals for this tour, so now he is more likely to support Contador. On stage 14, Vino had an important role leading team Astana and Contador up some major climbs, but he ran out of power and dropped back. Maybe his efforts on the prior two stages used up too much of his energy.
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Topics: Professional Racing | 1 Comment »