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Cunego played his cards right.

Wilson was the picture of concentration as he readied to defend his jersey

The in-form Steve Morabito (Astana) in the start house, before went on to win his second stage.

Stuart O'Grady (Jayco) did the entire course without a recon - and still finished with the fifth best time of the day.

Cunego easily beats Ricco to the line.

That silver medal has helped Page get back on his feet in many ways.

Dear Readers,
Welcome to this week's edition of The Prologue, VeloNews.com's summary of the latest news from the world of competitive cycling.

Jennings triumphs over Herzig to win the fifth stage.

Van Leijen led the group of favorites home, but never expected to face what would ensue, penalised 20 seconds for drafting and losing the lead.

Bettini has won here for the past two years, with last year's race serving as an emotional homage to his recently deceased brother.

Lake Como serves as one of the world's most beautiful venues.

The hills eventually take a heavy toll on tired legs.

Nys and his '05 rainbow

World Cup trophies to spare

Nys's non-ghost-written autobiogrpahy has sold 15,000 copies

At home with Sven

Hardman trophies

Pete Lopinto is one of several talented riders now looking for work.

O'Bee hopes the Stars-n-Stripes jersey will catch the eye of some directors out there.

Stetina wants to race in Europe, but may opt to ride in the U.S. for '08.

The consumate support rider, Stefano Barberi still managed to claim the KOM jersey at Mt. Hood.

Cooke says his time in Europe was a tough - but valuable - learning experience.

Wilson is happy to be back in the jersey, but not thrilled about how he got there

Dear Bob,I have a question about getting harassed by police here in the NewYork/New Jersey area, and wanted to ask what you would do in that situation.First incident, I am waiting at a light, it turns green, and as I proceedthrough the intersection, I drop my chain. No cars coming from the rightside (which would be right on red anyhow), and I have the green. I stoptwo feet from the curb to put my chain back on, I am there for literallytwo seconds when I hear barked behind me, "are you going to get out ofthe road or am I going to have to give you a ticket," by a police officer. I said,

Life in the big city

Di Luca after assuming the ProTour lead following Fleche Wallonne

Morabito wins the stage.

The day's early break, driven by Scott Zwizanski of Bissell-SRAM.

New race leader, Joost Van Leijen of the Dutch National Team

Aussie cycling hero Stuart O'Grady (Jayco Australian National Team) just keeps getting better every day.

Astana's Aaron Kemps just edges out Stuart Shaw (Drapac Porsche) and Felix Odebrecht (Wiesenhof) to claim the third stage of the Jayco Herald Sun Tour.

Koji Fukushima (Nippo-Meitan La Trobe City) goes for glory en route to Beechworth.

Things are expected to get a little messy on the climb to Falls Creek for race leader Matthew Wilson.

The Mailbag is a regular department on VeloNews.com. If you have a comment, an opinion or observation regarding anything you have read in VeloNews magazine or on VeloNews.com, write to webletters@insideinc.com. Please include your full name, hometown and state or nation. Letters may be edited for length and clarity. Writers are encouraged to limit their submissions to one letter per month. The letters published here contain the opinions of the submitting authors and should not be viewed as reflecting the opinions, policies or positions of VeloNews.com, VeloNews magazine or our parent company,

Athletes aren’t the only ones thinking about picking up and moving on as the season winds down. USA Cycling is reportedly among a number of national governing bodies contemplating a change in venue if the U.S. Olympic Committee decides to demolish the building they share at the Olympic Training Center in Colorado Springs. USA Cycling is house-hunting in Colorado Springs, but also finds itself being courted by Ogden, Utah, according to a local newspaper. "The reality is that the one of the two buildings we currently occupy, along with several other national governing bodies and USOC

The French anti-doping agency (AFLD) on Wednesday said it intends to pursue doping charges against Floyd Landis, purportedly to close a legal loophole which could allow him to compete in the Tour de France while technically banned. Landis was stripped of his 2006 Tour de France title for doping and suspended for two years by the UCI from any competitions the governing body sanctions. But the situation could arise whereby Landis could compete again if the Tour de France took place outside of the auspices of the UCI, a real possibility given that the Tour is currently battling with the

The Feedzone with Monique Ryan: Building better bones

McCartney's Vuelta stage win couldn't have come at a better time.

FSA’s fully carbon aero under-bar bottle drinking system has bendable hoses and two reservoirs for two different drinks. Each reservoir has a big hole to make filling a snap, even in between the handlebars.

A piano hinge rotating on a spoke makes it possible to move the bar strap around easily on the FSA aero under-bar drinking system.

The new $300/pr FSA K-Force brake calipers weigh 137 grams each and feature carbon pad holders, titanium hardware, and thrust bearings. The SL-K brake shares the same design but uses standard materials and weighs 21 grams more per caliper.

Monty’s Travel Blocks are premium wooden travel spacers with skewers to protect your fork and rear dropouts while flying with or shipping your bike.

Former French sports minister Jean-Francois Lamour on Tuesday slammed the World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) as outdated as he announced that he was quitting as vice-president of the body. Lamour, a two-time Olympic fencing champion, also confirmed that he would not be going forward with his bid to succeed Dick Pound as WADA president in next month's election in Madrid. "I've decided to resign from the WADA vice-presidency and to withdraw my candidacy," Lamour, for long the front-runner for the job, told a press conference on Tuesday. "More than ever I am a fighter but being a fighter

Thule’s Load-Off folding chair has an integral tarp and a helmet-storage compartment. It allows you to change in style.

Velocity makes it possible to personalize your rims with outlandish designs. Rather than painting or anodizing the rim in those patterns, those are entire-rim stickers die-cut to fit the rim’s curvature.

3T, the venerable Italian handlebar and stem brand has been re-launched under new ownership, and its new director of product development is Richard McAinsh, who served as head of composite design for the Ferrari Formula One team for eight years.

There are many Velocity rim sticker patterns to choose from.

The Prologo Choice saddle has an interchangeable snap-on cover; the snaps are sunken into recesses in the shell so that you don’t feel them when riding.

How many of you have coat hangers made out of a Reynolds carbon rim section, a piece of spoke, and a valve stem?

You can change the color of your Prologo Choice saddle color to match whatever you happen to be wearing that day. The shells come in three different sizes.

ToPeak’s Jango “Multi-Activity” bike is a completely integrated bike, from the lights to the computer and the rack. For instance, a fender, rack and computer sensor plug into its suspension fork without straps.

Wesley Sulzberger teamed up with his brother Bernard to overpower Ludewig in the final kilometers.

Jango's (Bob-type) single-wheel trailer mounts only on a Jango’s special rear dropouts.

Wilson keeps his lead

ToPeak’s Allay saddle has an inflatable bladder; pump it or let air out to adjust the pressure to your liking.

Di Luca's season is over

Shimano’s WR80 women’s shoe and R220 men’s road shoe are, at $250, each one model down from the top yet still have a heat-molded custom fit. Shimano also offers a do-at-home Custom-Fit insole kit for $35 that can be used in any shoe.

eSoles’ Paraic McGlynn says, “We have the world’s largest database of foot scans.” Therefore eSoles can create custom insoles, modular stock insoles with three different medial arch heights and various metatarsal arch support buttons.

Wilier Triestina’s new CronoCento monocoque time trial bike owes its interesting shape to its design by aero guru John Cobb.

Argon18’s E-114 time trial frame sells for $3750 with brakes, handlebar and seatpost; it is an E-112 frame with a new aero fork system that shields the front of the head tube.

Add parabola-shaped spacers on the front fairing of the fork to change the stem height on the Argon18 E-114 time trial bike.

Nys won Sunday's Ruddervoorde Superprestige, the first Superprestige race of the season.

Wilson gave it everything he had, taking the stage . . .

. . . and the lead

Unibet is now the team to beat

Our latest reader-submitted Photo Gallery is now ready for your viewing pleasure. Of course, a new gallery also means the naming of the winner of our most recent contest. It’s fall and a long season is winding down… a perfect time to let loose and have a little fun on our ‘cross bikes. Renee Callaway’s “Cyclocross Wisconsin Style” captures the mood of this time of year perfectly. Nice work Renee. Please drop us a note at Rosters@InsideInc.comto work out the details and we’ll send you a copy of our new Coors Classic DVD. Meanwhile, go ahead and take a look at our latest gallery, decide

The Mailbag is a regular department on VeloNews.com. If you have a comment, an opinion or observation regarding anything you have read in VeloNews magazine or on VeloNews.com, write to webletters@insideinc.com. Please include your full name, hometown and state or nation. Letters may be edited for length and clarity. Writers are encouraged to limit their submissions to one letter per month. The letters published here contain the opinions of the submitting authors and should not be viewed as reflecting the opinions, policies or positions of VeloNews.com, VeloNews magazine or our parent company,

It's been a long and uncertain wait for Pereiro, but it may not be over.

Cyclocross Wisconsin Style

Despite reports to the contrary, the services of American Chris Horner are still very much on the market for the 2008 season. The Predictor-Lotto rider, who placed an impressive fifth Thursday atItaly’s one-day Coppa Sabatini, was rumored to have signed with risingdomestic program RockRacing. Three-time national road champion Freddie Rodriguez, Horner’steammate at Predictor the last two seasons, has already inked a deal withthe team, as has 2003 Tour de France yellow jersey wearer Victor Hugo Peña,but Horner has not. “I’ve seen it posted that I had been picked up, that I’m riding

Horner says he knows his value to a team and expects to be paid accordingly.

Kemps wears the leader's jersey going into Monday's stage

Petacchi wins

The podium

Pozzato, Gilbert and Kroon make a late break

Bessette burning it up

Anthony scores a home-turf win

It’s been a tough few years, but Tom Danielson says it’s still too early to write-off his chances of soon making a big mark on a major tour. “He’s a big natural talent,” Danielson’s soon-to-be team director at Slipstream-Chipotle, Jonathan Vaughters, told the Denver Post this summer. “He went to Discovery and got caught up in the whole ‘next Lance Armstrong’ thing, which he is not. I don’t know whether he’ll be able to recover from day-to-day like Lance did. In a one-day race, it’s not important. He can win a stage of the Tour de France without a doubt.” Danielson doesn’t dispute the

Danielson says he's looking forward to riding with his new team.

Dear Readers,
Welcome to this week's edition of The Prologue, a regular summary of news from the world of competitive cycling by your friends at VeloNews.com.