mr-mstng

I speak a little French. My friend went and followed the giro d'Italia this year. some wicked pix. I'll have to dig some up.

The food? Oh I can't go because of that. I'm at a race ready 4.8% body fat. I'd gain 20 lbs in a week, the food is sooooo tempting.

EDIT: I forget the grade, but my friend is a strong Cat 2 rider, and he said this was pretty tough. Something like 50-some switchbacks.

scottie1113

I think pretty tough is an understatement. I'd love to see the pics of the Giro d'Ialia. Post them if you can find them.

hayburner

That is a killer pic!!
There is a hill in Central Park ,NYC they call "The Great Hill"....they have no idea.
As for Italian food ,it makes the trip even more worth it. Just ride more miles.

P.S....is there such thing as weak Cat 2 rider?

cyoda44

Yes! The FOOD!!!!I miss that the most. We went to Rome, Florence, Isle of Capri, and Serento. It was the best vacation ever. I recommend going to everyone. You should see the Italian tile in my kitchen! It really make me wish I could cook some good Italian food.

Back to racing...

Awsome picture

That crash today at the railroad crossing made me cringe, but I love to watch the races. Road crashes are very bad and you can't predict what's going to happen. :bang:

That's why I do not ride road bikes. It's not "you might" get hit by a car but when will it happen? I had one good friend DIE while out on a morning ride and another that was in a pack of 10 riders that a car ran right through. Go Mtn biking!!

My last bike was an Ocoee made by Litespeed . Me and my kids use to race in the Texas Mtn bike series when we lived in Waco TX.

mr-mstng

LOL, I don't think so.

I have more pics and a few vids he put on CD for me. I'll post the highlights after I come back from own ride. Gotta take it easy though.

I have 56 miler tomorrow with 4400 ft of vertical, and then have to do a Triatlon course (scope it out) before the Tri next Sun. Then its a week in VA, and I'm doing a 250 miler home to PA. :headbang: Hopefully I can do it in 2 days.

Gonna be an awesome ride!

I'll post more pix tonight or tomorrow.

scottie1113

Sounds great, both the ride tomorrow and the return from VA. You should be able to the 250 miles easily in two days.

Today's stage really opened a few eyes. I wonder what happened to Lance's team. Maybe tomorrow's rest day will help. Let's hope so.

hayburner

Scott....I'm thinking it was a little drama to stir interest. T-Mobile was trying to shut up the German newspapers and put on a good show on their own soil. The Disco boys might have been caught a little flat-footed, but they are certainly better than this.

I talked to 2 guys who rode the tour 4 years ago(AG2R) and they said it's a bit more scripted than the public is told. For example ,Tyler Hamilton winning a stage with a broken collar bone. Anyway,the fun is just beginning.

scottie1113

Jack, you may be right. We've seen some of Lance's poker face strategy in the past and this may very well part of the act.

I didn't know that about the scripting, but still you can't take away Hamilton's gumption by riding in the tour with his injury. He did pretty well in spite ot it.

So we get a day off tomorrow and then the fun begins!

scottie1113

Oops. I don't know where I came up with the idea that Sunday (today) was a rest day. Sorry. And it looks like after today's performance that Jack was right about the Discovery team.

cyoda44

Hasmussen is having an awsome ride today! Maybe the new tour leader?

scottie1113

We now know that it's Jens Voigt. I'm a little surprised. Hmmm.

hayburner

Not to worry...the stage is now set for some epic battles in stages 10-11-12.
The antagonists and protaganist characters (good vs. evil ,depending on who you are rooting for) are established. There will be some great stuff for Phil to talk about.

If it's still close when they get to the Pyranees , Armstrong will pull it off....like always. I hope.

mr-mstng

Wow, Lance just destroyed his competitors today! The pace was just too much for most of them. Too bad he didn't win the stage, because he clearly controlled the pace.

Tomorrow is going to be another exciting day.

hayburner

Amazing stage to watch.
The T-mobiles sure got the big reality 2 by 4 across the forehead. Armstrong will probably pull this off,barring bad luck...he makes very few mistakes.

Valverde looks like the next big thing for next year,but Cunego will be healthy then too. What do you guys think? Will the new kids take over? Valverde could be the next Indurain.

mr-mstng

Valverde looks to be very strong. Anyone that can hang with Lance will prove to be extremely formidable in future tours.

Ullrich, Vino, Kloden, and Basso got their heads handed to them today. Vino was 5:18 behind.

I won't see tomorrow's race in the morning, but I will watch the recap at night. In fact I want to see Lance do that climb again tonight.

scottie1113

Valverde is only 38 seconds behind in his first tour. Armstrong effectively put everyone else away but him. It'll be interesting to watch the two over the next few days. Who knows what his future will be like, but he's sure starting strong.

jgsmuzzy

Boonen fell after 7km of todays stage. at present, he is well behind the peleton...

hayburner

Scott...Don't want to parse your words here ,but Rasmussen is 38 sec.s behind. he's not much of a TT guy . If Valverde was 38 sec.s behind, Armstrong would have a litter of kittens right about now trying to put some time on him.

Disco sure looked tight on the Galibier...lots of guys there with the boss.

scottie1113

Of course you're right. I just had a little brain fade, and I wasn't even drinking. . That happens when you reach my age! On the way home today I was thinking about my faux pas and was hoping I could edit my post before it was uncovered, but no such luck. Rasmussen is having a great tour nonetheless. That man can sure climb, and that he's only still 38 seconds behind after today gives the Discovery boys something to watch very cloely.

So far this has been a great Tour to follow.

hayburner

What age is that exactly so we can be warned?

That Rasmussen is a pure climber,guys like that amaze me. I wish I was a little better at that ,but I'm trapped inside this 210 lb body. I would have to make 600 watts to get up a hill at a decent clip. Gravity really loves me tho . I can go downhill as fast as what little courage I have will allow me to go.