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Wilcockson (r) trying to look busy; Guinness (l) thinking of the buffet

Lotto gives chase

Sharp eyes may have spotted Lance and the boys sporting new Giro helmets during these first few days of the Tour. We contacted Giro regarding the new lids and got this response from spokesman Eric Richter: “Lance has been testing this helmet in his lead-up to the Tour, and he has already given us important, positive feedback,” Richter said. “The testing will continue at the Tour, and we'll now look forward to getting feedback from all of our teams as they grind out the miles on the way to Paris," he noted. "It should be interesting! And we'll be happy to keep you posted on the progress.”

Jegou and Finot

I guess the anti-American sentiment of French roads finally came to a head, erasing the top-10-finish dreams of Tyler Hamilton and Levi Leipheimer in the Tour’s infamous and dangerous first week. I, of all people, can feel for Tyler and Levi, although I was never a top-10 contender like they were. Tyler has had some good wins, and should be proud of his season no matter what he does the rest of the year. Levi, however, risked everything to bring his form to a head for the Tour, and had it all taken away in an instant. It's funny, because they probably haven't been in a crash all year; I

Finot goes on his own

It is pretty difficult to look like a tough guy wearing skin-tight Lycra and clicking around in carbon fiber shoes, but Stage 2 of the 2003 Tour de France should prove to anyone that professional cyclists are some of the toughest competitors in the world. And, right now, the winner of cycling’s Tough Guy Contest has to be Tyler Hamilton, for riding a 204.5-kilometer Tour de France stage with a cracked collarbone. Collarbone injuries don’t necessarily inhibit your ability to pedal a bicycle, and many cyclists continue to ride on indoor trainers during their recoveries. Your ability to ride a

A little early morning cafe for fans

Cooke and Nazon react to the sprint finish

The calm before the storm

French road hog

David Millar has blamed his Cofidis team and its manager, Alain Bondue, for the mechanical incident that cost him victory in the Tour de France prologue. Millar, who won the Tour prologue in 2000, looked set to win the Tour's 6.5km opener in Paris on Saturday when his chain came off before the last curve. He reached down and replaced the chain, but the delay cost him - he finished second, just 0.8 second behind Australian Bradley McGee. Team sources said Cofidis riders were using new aerodynamic chain rings that had caused problems in the Tour of Catalunya. Other Cofidis riders, like Luis

Hamilton and concerned Riis leave for hospital

Not the way Hamilton wanted to finish the Tour

Marc Lotz crosses the finish line after the crash

George and Lance out on the road

Riis and Hamilton on their way to the hospital

Lance Armstrong of the USA arrives

Petacchi wins, but was not happy about the finish

Lance and Ekimov

Commemorating the 1903 Tour with a bike that was old even back then.

Cafe 'Le Reveil Matin' in Montgeron

The first break of this Tour.

Editor's Note: Because the major crash at the end of this stage took place within the final kilometer, all 198 riders in the peloton were awarded the same finishing time. No riders had been dropped by the field prior to reaching site of the crash, about 600 meters from the line.1. Alessandro Petacchi (I), Fassa Bortolo, 3:44:332. Robbie Mc Ewen (Aus), Lotto-Domo, at 00:003. Erik Zabel (G), Telekom, at 00:004. Paolo Bettini (I), Quick Step-Davitamon, at 00:005. Baden Cooke (Aus), FDJeux.com, at 00:006. Thor Hushovd (Nor), Credit Agricole, at 00:007. Oscar Freire (Sp), Rabobank, at 00:008. Luca

Passing the Paris's Place de la Republique

Rabobank's Mark Lotz

This was not a good day at the Tour de France. In fact, it was a downright dark day for Americans competing in the centenary Tour and one that even angered eventual stage winner Alessandro Petacchi, who said a massive pile-up in the closing meters of the 168-kilometer stage from Saint Denis to Meaux was the fault of unthinking organizers. No matter who is at fault, the bottom line is that both Tyler Hamilton and Levi Leipheimer are probably out of the 2003 Tour de France, while four-time defending champion Lance Armstrong and teammate George Hincapie also went down in the field-splitting

Olaf Pollack of Germany carries his bike as he crosses the finish line after the crash

McGee still in yellow

Fassa Bortolo's Alessandro Petacchi resumed his winning ways by taking the first stage of the Tour de France Sunday, a 168km ride from the outskirts of Paris to Meaux.Australian Bradley McGee will spend his second night in the Tour de France leader's yellow jersey after the crash-marred first stage Sunday in which compatriot Robbie McEwen came second to take the green points jersey. A crash just inside the final kilometer of the 168km ride from the outskirts of Paris to here looked to have snagged 27-year-old fdjeux.com rider McGee but moments later he crossed the finish line with

Armstrong and Hincapie avoided the worst

The Tour de France can change dramatically in a matter of seconds. Crashes can lead to field splits that cause contenders to lost valuable time to their rivals, or much worse, injuries that send riders home early. Lance Armstrong was very fortunate today in that he avoided being injured in the massive pileup just 600 meters from the Stage 1 finish line. Unfortunately, several other riders were not so lucky. Today’s crash occurred within the final kilometer, and all of the main contenders were either caught up in the tangle or just behind it. Tyler Hamilton came down hard on his left shoulder

On the road to Meaux

Tech talk: Manufacturers love Tour time

A special tile for every TDF winner around the monument in front of the Le Reveil Martin

Tech talk: Manufacturers love Tour time

Some 20 cyclists, including members of the St. Pete Mad Dog Triathlon Club and the St. Petersburg Bicycle Club, were injured Sunday morning when a car plowed into a regular weekly group ride in St. Petersburg, Florida. Witnesses said a man driving a Lincoln Continental westbound on 30th Avenue suddenly crossed the double-yellow line and struck a pack of about 40 eastbound cyclists, according to the St. Petersburg Times. Nine riders were taken to Bayfront Medical Center, four with serious injuries. Four others were taken to Northside Hospital and St. Anthony's Hospital with lesser injuries.

Tech talk: Manufacturers love Tour time

I've got one big hope for tomorrow as the centenary Tour de France (and my first) continues with stage two: That the peloton relaxes a bit. Then again, maybe I'm dreaming. The ground is pretty hard, as the massive crash in today's finish at Meaux showed. If riders keep racing like they did today, I think everyone is going to go down at some point this Tour. Me? I was right in the middle of the spill, at about 30th wheel. I don't know what happened, except one important fact: I didn’t go down.I was just lucky I didn't. I’m still not sure why, but I managed to avoid the worst of it, while

Tech talk: Manufacturers love Tour time

They may speak of the phenomenon that is the Tour de France organization; of how well-oiled an engine the operation is; of how smoothly and coordinated every action is. What they don’t usually talk about are the times on the Tour when one person - given his or her authority for a day (if that) - can throw the whole thing into total disarray. Fortunately, it is usually further down the 3400km road that the frustration of these hiccups test the patience of a Tour suiveur (follower). Unfortunately, that was not the case today, on stage No. 1 to Meaux. The 168km stage had not even officially

Millar looked really good until his chain popped off ...

While the racing action at the Tour has deservedly taken the headlines, we’ve been keeping one eye peeled for glimpses of the latest in team equipment and what manufacturers hope you'll be riding in the not-too-distant future. Campy confidentialWhile it's certainly not the official unveiling, make sure to keep your eye on Campagnolo-sponsored riders at the Tour this year. Look closely enough, and you might catch a glimpse of Campagnolo's secretive 2004 product line. First off is Campagnolo's new-and-improved carbon Record crankset (a Chorus version will also be available in 2004).

Hamilton emerges from medical

... was it the chainring, or the lack of a front derailleur?

Although this opening stage of 168km around the Paris suburbs will likely be run at lightning speed, it will be a long day. Things begin at 11:40 a.m. outside the Stade de France (where France won soccer’s World Cup in 1998). There follows a formal 20km procession across the city center to Montgeron, where the actual stage will start at 1:15 p.m. outside the Auberge au Réveil- Matin, a small inn from which the original Tour began in 1903. The actual race loops south through the Forest of Fontainebleau, then north and east to the finish in Meaux. Three Cat. 4 climbs punctuate the middle part

The Orbea team edition ...

Hubba, hubba, hubba: Gold and carbon... bike jewelry at its best

This 204.5km route across rolling terrain northeast of Paris ends on similar roads as those raced every March on the opening stage of the Critérium International — which usually ends in a field sprint. After a flat opening alongside the Marne River, most of the action will take place at the time-bonus sprints in Jaulgonne (43km), Avançon (128km) and Amagne (149km), and the Cat. 4 hills at La Charmel (46km) and Longwé (169.5km). 7/7/2003 Start Time: 12:15:00PM7/7/2003 Estimated Finish Time: 5:24:00PM HISTORYThis is the first time a Tour stage has ended in Sedan, but neighboring Charleville

... and the one you can buy.

Postal's cockpit

At 167.5km, this is the shortest stage of the opening week. The rolling terrain may encourage attacks, but with a fast, straight run in to St. Dizier, it will almost certainly end in a mass sprint— and perhaps in a Tour road stage record speed to top the 50.355 kph (31.289 mph) set by Mario Cipollini at Blois in 1999. 7/8/2003 Start Time: 1:17:00pm7/8/2003 Estimated Finish Time: 5:22:00pm HISTORYThis is the first time that St. Dizier, a town of 35,000, has been included on the Tour route. Besides the novelty of seeing the world’s biggest bike race, the crowds will be rooting for one of the

2004 Dura-Ace

The course for this 69km team time trial is similar to last year’s between Épernay and Château-Thierry, with an early climb followed by undulating roads and a fast, flat finish. 7/9/2003 Start Time: 2:00:00pm7/9/2003 Estimated Finish Time: 5:08:00pm HISTORYTeam time trials were first seen at the Tour 76 years ago, but they were far different from today’s specialized affairs. In fact, all of the flat stages at the 1927 Tour were team time trials, some as long as 360km. The reason was that race organizer Henri Desgrange was unhappy with the slow pace and predictable finishes of the flatter

There are 10

The race is only 48 hours away from the Alps, and this stage and the following one to Lyon see increasingly hilly terrain. Only a couple of the climbs on this 196km stage have categories, but this is by no means a simple “flat” stage. 7/10/2003 Start Time: 12:35:00pm7/10/2003 Estimated Finish Time: 5:30:00pm HISTORYWhile the Tour men of 2003 will have raced 811.5km (the prologue and five stages) to reach Nevers, the 60 pioneers of the first Tour came through Nevers only halfway through their opening stage of 467km from Paris to Lyon. In 1903, Nevers was one of the race control points where

Still the favorite

Speed is of the essence

At 230km, this is the longest stage yet, and with the first Cat. 3 climb of the race (71km from the finish) it is also the hilliest of the opening week. Students of the Tour will note that halfway through the stage, the riders will pass through the village of Le Guidon (the French word for handlebar), the birthplace of two-time Tour winner Bernard Thévenet. 7/11/2003 Start Time: 11:45:00am7/11/2003 Estimated Finish Time: 5:30:00pm HISTORYIn memorializing the Tour of a century ago, the race organizers based the course around the original six stage towns, but only this stage into Lyon bears

Millar: So close and yet....

The VeloNews staff carries out its own quiet protest at the Tour de France (L-R - Andrew Hood, John Wilcockson and Rupert Guinness)

At 230.5km, this is the longest stage of the 2003 Tour, and includes four climbs that have never been used. The toughest is the Col de la Ramaz, which tops out at 1619 meters (5311 feet), 22km from the finish in Morzine. More than 14km long and averaging almost 7 percent, the Ramaz is a significant obstacle. By coming so late in the long day, and being followed by a steep descent, a 4km climb to Les Gets and another downhill, it will give a first indication of who will be challenging for the yellow jersey. 7/12/2003 Start Time: 11:10:00am7/12/2003 Estimated Finish Time:

Hincapie really is feeling better.