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When the lights dimmed in the Congrés de Palais in Paris for the presentation of the 2010 Tour de France, the unexpected was the plat du jour. Surprises are always part of the Tour presentation, and 2010 certainly didn’t disappoint. Hard days in the Pyrénées and a long, penultimate-day time trial in Bordeaux set the stage for a final week clash that should keep fans on the edge of their seats.

As a physician and not an attorney, I would argue that this physician (see “California road-rage case heads for court”) should be charged with attempted manslaughter.

The scenario was different but the outcome the same for Garmin-Slipstream sprinter Chris Sutton, who took his second consecutive stage win at Australia’s Jayco Herald Sun Tour Wednesday. Unlike his win Tuesday, which came from a group whittled down through attrition in the wind, Sutton took the victory and subsequent race lead Wednesday out a hard-charging lead group established over a cat. 2 climb just 15km from the finish line.

Reigning Tour de France champion Alberto Contador played down the threat of a doping probe that was launched a day before the presentation of next year's race. Paris prosecutors on Tuesday revealed they had launched an investigation after the discovery of suspicious medical equipment including "syringes and drips" during the Tour de France in July.

American Ben Jacques-Maynes is quietly having a strong Jayco Herald Sun Tour. Riding in his second Sun Tour, the Bissell rider finished 10th on stage 2, making the crucial 13-man split with 30km remaining before he lost contact with the leaders and ceded one minute. On stage 3 he finished 14th, two seconds behind the winner, and sits ninth overall. A strong time trialist, BJM could vault himself into the top five, or even on to the podium, following the 10km stage 5 time trial Friday.

Neko Mulally wins DH and dual Slalom crown while Dawn Bourque takes home DH title following Gravity East Finals at Plattekill Mountain in New York.

The organization representing the world’s top professional cycling teams has asked to meet with the UCI to review a recent decision to phase out the use of two-way radios in the sport. Meeting in advance of Wednesday’s 2010 Tour de France presentation, the Association International des Groupes Cyclistes Professionels (AIGCP) requested a meeting with the UCI in order to voice concerns over a ban imposed by the governing body’s management committee last month.

Press Release

Beverly Park Elementary in Burien, Washington, hosted the second stop on the 2009 Seattle cyclocross (SCX) series. The day broke chilly but sunny and with the sun, the temp came up nicely for most races. Still no traditional 'cross weather for SCX. The course was very compact, consisting of an old cintrex running track and associated field on one terrace and then a back section of thicker grass and pavement on an upper section, separated by about 30 vertical feet.

24 Hours of Moab was to be Chris Eatough's last race while Pua Sawicki was aiming at a world record, but both riders were taken out by illness.

Press release

Even though the September trade shows are over, there are still plenty of new products on the horizon. Based on company press releases, we found the following to fuel our post-Interbike gear lust. We'll start with the bling - Campagnolo's new clothing and wheels, and then come back to reality with some new lubes from Motorex and some affordable race-proven clothing from Pactimo.

Campy keeps the pressure on

Prosecutors in Paris said Tuesday that they have launched an investigation into doping at this year's Tour de France after the discovery of suspicious medical equipment, including "syringes and drips," disposed of by teams in July. According to French daily Le Monde, the investigation involves a number of teams including the Astana squad of Tour winner Alberto Contador and his soon-to-be-former teammate Lance Armstrong. Prosecutors, however, noted they are reviewing materials from several teams and have not targeted individual riders or specific teams thus far.

An autopsy on Belgian cyclist Franck Vandenbroucke, found dead in his hotel room at a seaside resort in Senegal on Monday, will take place on either Wednesday or Thursday, police announced Tuesday. "The autopsy will take place (Wednesday) or (Thursday) in Dakar," a police source told reporters on Tuesday, before adding that "we shouldn't lose ourselves in conjecture" over the cause of his death.

Press Release

The Fly V Australia team is a bit of an enigma. It’s an American/Australian team, sponsored by an Australian airline (V Australia, a branch of Virgin Blue Airlines) as a marketing tool to promote a new non-stop flight from LAX to Sydney.

Garmin-Slipstream took control of the Jayco Herald Sun Tour Tuesday during a 141km battle of attrition from Colac to the coastal town of Warrnambool that was marked by strong winds that fractured the peloton into pieces. By the finish only six riders remained at the front of the race, three of whom wore the blue-and-orange argyle of the American squad, including stage winner Chris Sutton.

Behind every great cycling event are its race director and management company. At the Tour de France, it’s Christian Prudhomme and ASO; the Amgen Tour of California has Jim Birrell and Medalist Sports; at the Jayco Herald Sun Tour it’s Michael Hands and TL Sports, a Victoria-based event management company that also runs several running events in Melbourne.

The beautiful Campagnolo “5-star” high-flange hub is reborn as Electra, but not threaded. It features a Shimano freehub body.

It’s been three weeks since Interbike, but I still get questions asking what really caught my eye at this year’s show. There was plenty and, until now, there really hasn’t been space in the articles I’ve done on VeloNews.com and in the print version for all of it. Aside from what I’ve already posted and put in the magazine, there were some real treasures and I’ve decided to devote today’s column to some of the other things that I found to be really cool. So here are some new components that appealed to me.

Modern retro

Josh Tostado and Eszter Horanyi recorded more laps than any other solo riders in the male and female division to earn solo national titles.

Tires are the least expensive component upgrades available for your bike, but one that can make a huge plus in performance.

One man competing at the Jayco Herald Sun Tour after a long spell off the radar is Garmin-Slipstream’s Trent Lowe, who has been absent from the pro peloton for nearly the entire 2009 season.

Belgian cyclist Frank Vandenbroucke has died at the age of 34, a source close to the racer told the French news service Agence France Presse. According to Belgian media, Vandenbroucke was found dead in his hotel room in Senegal, where he was on holiday. A preliminary diagnosis suggests Vandenbroucke suffered from a pulmonary embolism. "Sadly this has only partly come as a surprise, for we knew he was not doing too well," said his uncle, former racer Jean-Luc Vandenbroucke. "He was up and down, both in terms of his health and his morale. He left for Senegal on Sunday."

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