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The hometown roads of La Covatilla high above his childhood home of Béjar were good to Roberto Heras (Liberty Seguros) in Wednesday’s four-climb 17th stage -- but perhaps not good enough. Heras gained valuable time on archrival Alejandro Valverde (Valenciana-Kelme) – 2 minutes, 10 seconds to be exact – but the verdict is still out on whether it will be enough for Heras to win his third Vuelta a España in five years. Even Heras cautioned that he’d like to have more time going into Sunday’s final time trial. “Today we made a big step toward my team and myself winning the Vuelta, but there

American Olympic time-trial champion Tyler Hamilton has been suspended by the Phonak team and will be thrown out unless he is able to prove he is innocent of blood doping charges, the Swiss team said Wednesday. "If Hamilton is not able to prove his innocence, then the contract will be cancelled effective immediately," Zurich-based Phonak said in a statement on its Internet site. The statement, which was released before the results of a second doping test sample were known, also announced the Phonak team leader's suspension until the proceedings on the charge are completed. The 33-year-old

Cardenas wins the stage...

... but Heras and especially Perez made the day's biggest gains...

... at Valverde's expense.

The break got away early... and shrank all the way to the finish.

Liberty had chase duty for the day

Once into the climb, the peloton continued to shrink.

Perez now sits in second

Valenciana-Kelme might be Spanish cycling’s red-headed step-child, but it’s taking the Vuelta a España by the throat once again. Despite getting recent setbacks that include doping allegations from ex-rider Jesus Manzano, struggles with its budget, the migration of major stars and the likely exclusion from cycling’s new super-league to debut in 2005, Kelme just keeps on truckin’. On a day that saw the news of a possible doping ban for Olympic time trial champion Tyler Hamilton overshadow the stage, little Kelme stepped up one more time. (See "Hamiltonblood tests show

Six-time Tour de France champion Lance Armstrong is already thinking about 2005, but he’s still not sure what races he’ll be starting. In an interview with The Oregonian newspaper during a visit to the Nike headquarters this week in Oregon, Armstrong said he’ll begin training in earnest in November. “At least I'm thinking of going heavier then,” Armstrong told The Oregonian. “That could get pushed back to December 1st. We have a kick-off camp the first week of December, so I know it won’t be any later than that.” Armstrong was in Oregon on Monday to attend a Nike stockholders meeting at the

Prosecutors demanded Tuesday that Italian sports doctor Michele Ferrari should be jailed for 14 months for doping offenses The Italian news agency ANSA said the public prosecutor Lorenzo Gestri asked that Ferrari be given a 14-month sentence, a 900 euro ($1100) fine and a one-year ban from medical activity. The doctor, who has worked with six-time Tour de France winner Lance Armstrong, has denied the charges and said he was being made a "scapegoat" for the drug problems in cycling. Ferrari's other clients include Mario Cipollini, Paolo Savoldelli, Gianni Bugno, Pavel Tonkov, Tony Rominger,

Phonak’s Tyler Hamilton, who won the Olympic time trial gold medal last month, said he was totally innocent of the charge of blood doping after it was revealed on Tuesday he had become the first athlete to test positive for it. The 33-year-old faces a two year ban after testing positive after winning the Tour of Spain's eighth stage time trial on September 11 and he pulled out of the Tour six days later apparently due to stomach problems. Hamilton's Swiss Phonak team confirmed the positive result and news of the second sample is expected within 48 hours. However Hamilton insisted he was

Heras: Still in charge... barely

Cruz joins the day's big move

Hamilton at the Vuelta

Lance Armstrong is suing an insurance company over a $5 million bonus supposed to have been given for winning the Tour de France, the Dallas Morning News reports. The lawsuit - filed in Dallas Count on Tuesday by Armstrong and Tailwind Sports Inc., which owns the U.S. Postal Service Pro Cycling Team - reportedly asked that SCA Promotions Inc. fulfill the contract. The company told the newspaper that it is withholding payment until it has been given some reassurance that Armstrong has not used performance-enhancing drugs as alleged in the book "L.A. Confidential: The Secrets of Lance

Vuelta wide open with week to goWith one week left, the Vuelta a España has what the Tour de France didn’t at this point of the race – suspense. Following Sunday’s action on the steep climbing time trial to Sierra Nevada, the Vuelta sees Roberto Heras (Liberty Seguros) holding a five-second lead over Alejandro Valverde (Valenciana-Kelme) going into the decisive six-day run to Madrid. The surging Santi’ Perez (Phonak), a winner of back-to-back mountain stages, is poised in third at 1:45 back while Spain’s “Mr. Steady,” Francisco Mancebo (Illes Balears), is still in the hunt at 2:02 back.

Coming a week before the 2004 world road championships in nearby Verona, the 62nd annual Milan bike show, September 17-20, marked the beginning of the 2005 selling season for road bikes and products in Italy. In a season that’s packed with international trade shows, Milan 2004 set itself apart with a focus on improving the climate for cycling in Italy and worldwide. Maurizio Fondriest, one of several former world champions from Italy who showed up to speak about the future of cycling in Italy, stressed the need for better bike paths. The 1988 world champion, who hails from Cles in the

USA Cycling has confirmed its team for the 2004 UCI Road World Championships September 27-October 3 in Verona, Italy. Competing in the elite men’s road race will be automatic nominees Fred Rodriguez (Emeryville, California), Jason McCartney (Coralville, Iowa), and Chris Horner (Bend, Oregon) as well as discretionary selections Chris Baldwin (Boulder, Colorado), Kirk O’Bee (Ada, Michigan), Patrick McCarty (Allen, Texas), Michael Creed (Colorado Springs, Colorado), Tom Danielson (Durango, Colorado), Christian Vande Velde (Boulder, Colorado), Antonio Cruz (Long Beach, California), and Guido

Let’s pretend that your mountain-bike racing plans for next season include marathon and cross-country events — and you’re going to take on both the NORBA and World Cup schedules. Well you better buckle up for a long year. Starting March 5 in Boerne, Texas, the 2005 pro schedule includes nine NORBA stops, eight World Cup marathons and eight World Cup cross-country races. The last event of the year isn’t until October 7, when the marathon World Cup series wraps up in France at Roc d’Azur. Throw in the fact that there are races in Cyprus (marathon World Cup No. 1), Brazil (World Cup

Prescott, AZ – Inside Communications, publisher of VeloNews and other sports magazines, has teamed up once again with the Thunderhead Alliance for a celebrity event that will benefit Thunderhead’s 50 States, 50 Cities Project for bicycle advocacy. On Friday October 29th at La Strada – Top of the Plaza in downtown Chicago, Graham Watson, world renowned bicycle race photographer, will entertain guests with stories and the very first viewing of his 2004 race season photographs, 38 floors above Lake Michigan as guests enjoy hors d’oeuvres and a four course Italian dinner. Maxxis International

The Mail Bag is a regular feature on VeloNews.com. If you have a comment, an opinion or observation regarding anything you have seen in cycling, in VeloNews magazine or on VeloNews.com, write to WebLetters@InsideInc.com. Please include your full name and home town. Letters may be edited for length and clarity.Drugs aren’t a black-and-white issueEditor:It is a shame that any professional cyclist feels compelled to use controlled substances to aid their performance. However, the harsh reality is that it is likely rampant in the pro ranks. If you were to take two athletes of equal physical

The Ford Cycling Women’s Mountain Bike Team will be hosting two events for women during the US Nationals at Mammoth Mountain on September 23-26. The first, a Last Minute Race Cram, will be held Friday, September 24, at 7:30 p.m. at McCoy Sports in the Village at Mammoth. This one-hour-long talk will cover topics such as nutrition, visualization, warm-up, tool kits and more. Joining the discussion will be the technical staff from Shimano Service. The second Ford event will be a Sunday morning recovery spin beginning at 8:30 a.m. in the start/finish area on the mountain. This easy 45-minute

The last couple of days have been for the climbers, the pure climbers, with one hard day in the mountains followed by a 29.6km uphill time trial. And on both days, Santi Perez of Phonak dominated the stages winning with ease and boosted himself into the first three overall Two weeks into a three-week race and everyone on the team is getting a bit homesick. We have been together for nearly three weeks straight now, as we arrived at the start in Leon three days before the race began, and we are ready for a change of pace, a change in diet and a change in schedule. The morale is still good, and

The World Cup series came to a close last weekend in Italy, with Swiss cross-country star Christoph Sauser and French downhiller Celine Gros locking up the only two overall titles that were still in doubt. As for the races in the high mountain town of Livigno, Belgian Roel Paulissen took the men’s XC, with Gunn-Rita Dahle of Norway continuing her unbeaten streak with yet another win. The Norwegian’s run is up to 11 straight World Cups dating back to the start of the 2003 season. Dahle is now the reigning World Cup, world and Olympic champion. In the downhill, Gros also got the win in the

Tyler Hamilton is denying media reports of blood tampering that have been detected in two samples taken since he won the Olympic time trial gold medal last month. The Vuelta a España was rocked overnight following reports that the UCI informed Phonak team doctor Iñaki Arratibel that blood samples taken Aug. 19 and Sept. 18 showed traces of mixed blood cells. Follow-up tests were scheduled for later Tuesday. Phonak confirmed those reports, but said Hamilton has denied any wrong-doing. Phonak officials have scheduled a press conference at the team’s headquarters in Zurich on Tuesday

Heras plans to fight to the end

(l-r) Felice Gimondi, Marino Basso, Mario Cipollini, Fiorenzo Magni, Vittorio Adorni, Gianni Bugno, Ercole Baldini, Francesco Moser, and Maurizio Fondriest

One of the streetlights for Milan's auto-free zone

It says Fulcrum, but it's a Campy

Look's new pedal

Yes that's an American on the XC podium.

Ever since the Vuelta a España started, two-time champion Roberto Heras has been playing the cautious hand. The quiet, reticent Spaniard is hardly known for his flamboyant manner, and perhaps his bitter memories of losing the 2002 Vuelta on the final day was another reason for his prudence. Days after snagging the maillot oro at Calar Alto, the Liberty Seguros captain insisted the Vuelta was still wide open and he was wary about playing the confident patrón. It was obvious Heras knew more than the overzealous Spanish press, which had all but crowned him winner of the 59th edition – because

The UCI 1.6 Univest Grand Prix is America’s premier elite amateur event, traditionally taking top domestic and international riders around a 100km loop through the Pennsylvania countryside before taking on 13 laps of a brutal 5km finishing loop through the towns of Souderon and Telford. But when you’re at the top of your class, there’s always someone waiting to take you down a peg. In this case, it was the remains of Hurricane Ivan, which plowed its way northward to douse the Univest course with five inches of rainfall on race day. Washed-out roads, downed trees, and flooding on the long lap

Perez may start thinking in terms of the overall

Perez does it again

Heras escaped with the jersey – but just barely

Vino' had the best time for a good, long while

Valverde rode a stunning TT, nearly swiping the jersey

Phonak came to the Vuelta a España hoping for big things from Tyler Hamilton and Oscar Sevilla. With Hamilton gone and Sevilla struggling, the Swiss team has been more than happy to watch Santiago Perez step into the void. On Thursday’s etapa reina, the three-climb monster that saw Roberto Heras (Liberty Seguros) claw his way into the overall lead, Perez finished an impressive second behind the two-time Vuelta champion. The result was a jolt of positive energy for the 27-year-old Spanish rider, who has had his share of hard knocks the past few years. “I was able to stay with the strongest

Postal angered by Hamilton’s suggestionU.S. Postal Service brass are peeved at former pupil Tyler Hamilton who suggested earlier this week the Posties weren’t working hard enough to protect Floyd Landis and his hold on the Vuelta a España leader’s jersey. Hamilton approached Postal Service assistant sport director Dirk Demol during the race and said he noticed some of the Postal riders appearing not to be doing all they could to help Landis. While Landis eventually lost the jersey to Roberto Heras (Liberty Seguros) on Thursday, Demol said Hamilton’s charges were off the mark. “He came up

Perez took off on the final Cat. 1 climb and held off the chase on the descent

A mountainous menu

Perez saw his chance and took it

Landis lost more ground today

Heras and a resurgent Valverde dueled on the ups and downs

Nozal was doing a job of work for Heras once again

But the day belonged to Perez

Alessandro Petacchi sped into Málaga Friday, outsprinting Erik Zabel, and offering up his traditional victory salute, this time raising four fingers – the number of stages he’s won thus far in this year’s Vuelta a España You’d think some days he’d lose count. The win is the 21st of the year for Fassa Bortolo’s sprint ace, the 13th in a major tour this season, joining the nine he won at this year’s Giro d’Italia. Indeed, Petacchi’s only disappointment this year is that he failed to score a single victory in this year’s Tour de France, after he tore a ligament in his shoulder in a

When you’re engrossed in the cycling world most of the time, a few pop-culture items sometimes slip through the cracks. But, leave it to David Zabriskie to spark some Guns N’ Roses research and discussion in the VN editorial department. Following his epic 160km solo stage win in the Vuelta, one of Zabriskie’s post-race comments was “I had a Guns N’ Roses song in my head. I’m not sure which one, though. It’s the one where he says, ‘They can’t catch me, I’m innocent.’” First came the frantic scramble over the “N”. For the record, it’s not “Guns ‘N Roses” or “Guns N Roses”; it’s Guns N’

Hamilton goes homeOlympic time trial champion Tyler Hamilton did not take the start to Friday’s 13th stage at the Vuelta a España. Hamilton won stage eight to become the first American to win stages in all three grand tours, but faded out of contention on the steep climbing finish to Aitana the following day. Hamilton complained of stomach problems that kept him from properly feeding during the race and said he felt sapped of strength up Aitana. He suffered again Thursday, finishing uncharacteristically in the last group at 31 minutes behind winner Roberto Heras (Liberty Seguros). “He had

The Mail Bag is a regular feature on VeloNews.com. If you have a comment, an opinion or observation regarding anything you have seen in cycling, in VeloNews magazine or on VeloNews.com, write to WebLetters@InsideInc.com. Please include your full name and home town. Letters may be edited for length and clarity.‘Meirhaeghe speaks’ interview stunkEditor:Gotta say, I couldn’t be more disgusted with your magazine – at least, since I decided to stop buying it until it took a more progressive role in helping the sport solve its doping problem. That interview with Filip Meirhaeghe just stunk. How

Petacchi drives to No. 4

Race leader Heras relaxes going into Saturday's mountain stage

The break was doomed from the start – but a guy's gotta try, right?

The peloton kept the break on a short leash on this largely flat stage

And after the usual leadout, Petacchi collected his fourth win of his Vuelta

Roberto Heras insisted that a win on the slopes of Calar Alto wasn’t in his game plan for Thursday. The defending Vuelta a España champion said after winning the 145km 12th stage from Almería to the Observatory complex at Calar Alto that he had simply hoped to “put a little time on some of my main rivals.” Whatever his game plan, the Liberty Seguros team captain found himself putting time on all of his rivals, including Kelme’s Alejandro Valverde and the man who began the day in the leader’s jersey, Floyd Landis of U.S. Postal. Landis finished 3:06 off Heras’s winning time, ending the

Valverde: Hoping to get through itAlejandro Valverde is hopeful he’ll be able to get through Thursday’s brutal climbing stage in the mountains near Almería without too much difficult. The Valenciana-Kelme rider suffered a serious fall early in Tuesday’s stage and showed up for the pre-race sign-in with bandages on his left knee. “I am lucky we had the day off yesterday,” Valverde told VeloNews. “I’m pretty banged up, with the most pain in my knee and my hip. We’ll see how things go but it could be difficult.” Valverde’s crash made national news and some were wondering if he’d be able to

With little fanfare, the Union Cycliste Internationale has ordered a radical change in mountain-bike racing, announcing that in 2005, cross-country racers will no longer be responsible for fixing their own mechanical problems during the World Cup and world championships. The word came down during the recently concluded world championships in Les Gets, France, when UCI mountain-bike coordinator Régis Alexandre told VeloNews associate editor Jason Sumner: “We can't accept that the best rider in the world with a lot of sponsors can lose a race just because of a puncture.” Beg pardon? The

Only two of the five elite American men nominated to the upcoming UCI world road championships in Verona, Italy, have accepted their bids, USA Cycling announced on September 15, leaving speculation on which riders might fill the remaining spots. All five women nominated have confirmed their participation in Verona. USPRO champion Fred Rodriguez (Acqua & Sapone) and 2004 Olympic team member Jason McCartney (Health Net-Maxxis) will compete at the world championships. Tyler Hamilton (Phonak), Bobby Julich (CSC), Levi Leipheimer (Rabobank), and Lance Armstrong and George Hincapie (both of U.S.

San Francisco is one of the most culturally diverse, cosmopolitan cities in North America, and environmentally, it is one of the most beautiful as well. For a cyclist, the beauty of San Francisco is having all the conveniences of a big city, plus great riding to boot. With T-Mobile sponsoring the Grand Prix in San Francisco, I came early to take part in a few media and sponsor events, and managed to squeeze in some enjoyable training each day. We would head towards the Golden Gate Bridge on the Embarcadero, roll across the bridge and then ride up Mount Tamalpais or along the bike path after

Dear Bob,I had my bike stolen yesterday from the enclosed parking garage in my office building. It’s operated by a local company that runs several lots in the San Francisco area. It was locked up to a bike rack bolted to the floor about 30 feet from the lot attendant’s shack. The attendant, by his own admission, watched it happen and didn’t try to stop the guy or call the cops. He said that “customers park at their own risk.” It was a $4000 bike. (I commute in 26 miles one way, so I’m not about to ride a clunker.) Can I sue the building owner or the lot operator?S.M.California Dear S.M.,This

Heras charges off toward a stage win and the overall lead

Valverde

Thursday's Eurofile: Valverde recovering; So is Trenti; Menchov low-key

The gutsy Landis finally slipped back a bit on Thursday

Heras didn't plan to win – but did it anyway

See The Man With No Name out there anywhere?

Liberty went to the front and charged up the final climb

Valverde attacked despite his painful injuries

Heras knows it's a long way to Madrid

Following an out-of-competition test two days before the Mont-Ste-Anne World Cup, the then-reigning world cross-country champion Filip Meirhaeghe found out that he had tested positive for EPO on July 27. Meirhaeghe didn’t fight the result, immediately announcing his retirement from the sport. Since then he’s spent time working on his neighbor’s farm while he tries to figure out what to do with the rest of his life. Meirhaeghe also made a surprise appearance at the world mountain bike championships in Les Gets, France, where he hoped to clear the air with some of his former sponsors and

Two-time Vuelta a España winner Roberto Heras (Liberty (Seguros) appears to be the favorite to join Swiss racer Tony Rominger as the only triple victor after a stage-11 crash left chief rival Alejandro Valverde (Comunidad Valenciana-Kelme) battered and bruised. Wednesday is a rest day in the Vuelta, the first since the tour began September 4 in León, and the teams and race staff will travel from Caravaca to Almería, where Thursday’s decisive mountain stage will start. The 145km route between Almería and Observatorio Astronómico de Calor Alto, with two Category 1 climbs and a beyond-category

Two weeks ago, when we arrived at the start of the Vuelta, we sat down as a team, had a meeting and talked about our goals for the race. The team time trial was our first goal — from there, we would aim for stage victories, first in the field sprints with Max and second as individuals trying to win out of breakaways. Max pointed to the third and 11th stages as ones he was looking to win. The third stage ended up being too hard an uphill sprint for him, and he didn’t make it to the 11th — but Dave did, and he took the stage in his grasp and rode away with the victory. Dave has had a lot of

World champion Igor Astarloa (Lampre) will not be starting the grueling stage 12 of the Vuelta a España on Thursday – instead, he plans to concentrate on defending his title at the world road championships next month. "I need to polish my form with some specific training for (next month's) world championships in Verona." Astarloa told Reuters. "Last year I pulled out two days earlier in the Tour of Spain and won the worlds, so this year I will adopt the same strategy." Hushovd extends contract with Credit AgricoleNorwegian Thor Hushovd has extended his contract with Credit Agricole until

The Shimano “Little 100” is a short-track, 4-team member bicycle relay race for middle school children. It is based on the 50+ year-old “Little 500” event, a premier intramural collegiate cycling event at Indiana University, and is an expansion of the existing “Little 100” junior racing program in Tulsa, Oklahoma. The “Little 100” will be held on a 1/8-mile indoor track at the Denver VeloSwap. Heats for this demonstration event will be held throughout the day. Racers will ride custom single-speed bicycles provided by Indiana University. 2004 Olympic Time Trial Gold Medal winner, Tyler