Road Racing

It wasn't this way for all of us, but for race leader Jeremiah Bishop, the 65km second stage of the Intermontane Challenge in Kamloops, British Columbia, unfolded in much the same formula as stage 1: a neutral rollout through town, followed by roughly an hour of dusty desert riding, an hour in the forest above town, and a third, final hour weaving through sagebrush on the way to the finish line back in town.

None of last year’s top three are expected to be back, but the 2009 Vuelta a España will see a strong field for the season’s final grand tour. Last year’s winner Alberto Contador – still celebrating his Tour de France victory – has confirmed he will not defend his Vuelta title. Runner-up Levi Leipheimer, recovering from his crash at the Tour, and third-place Carlos Sastre, exhausted after racing four consecutive grand tours, are both steering clear of the Spanish tour. That leaves a huge vacuum that several top names will be jostling to fill.

Road bikes are nothing new to Gary Fisher. He began racing on the road as a junior decades ago. His original goals were to make it as a professional road cyclist but those plans were derailed when he began his mountain bike business. Fisher thanks his experience as a roadie for his obsession with the perfectly fitting mountain bike. For a complete new road line, Fisher aimed to build bikes that stiffer and lighter plus a few extras that should improve the ride quality.

New Technology

The International Cycling Classic, the 17-day race series held in and around Milwaukee and Chicago that is better known as Superweek, concluded on Sunday in Whitefish Bay, just north of Milwaukee. Fly V Australia's Bernard Sulzberger was corned as the overall series champion — a position he defended the entire series since winning the opening race July 10. In fitting fashion, the final race was won by Sulzberger's Fly V Australia teammate, fellow Aussie and last year's series winner Jonathan Cantwell.

British rider Bradley Wiggins will focus his attention solely on the Tour de France for the next two years in an effort to win cycling's most daunting race. Wiggins equaled the best Tour finish by a Briton with fourth place at this year's event and wants to surpass that feat by 2011.

The 75km first stage of the Intermontane Challenge in Kamloops, BC was defined by heat, and in some cases, confusion about the course. Temperatures ranged near and above 100 degrees Fahrenheit on a course of roughly 50 miles that included exposed desert sage land plus some higher altitude evergreen forest. A mix of established fire roads and double track, plus some well-worn motorbike trails and barely-there game trails lead to occasional directional miscues by riders, but everyone finished safely.

Hot and ... hot

American Tour de France veteran George Hincapie said Tuesday that the collarbone injury he suffered in the 17th stage of this year’s Tour was indeed a fracture. Hincapie told VeloNews that he opted not to have the injury examined by doctors until after the Tour because “I really wanted to finish.” After a doctor’s visit, Hincapie announced the diagnosis on his Twitter page Tuesday morning. “Got some bad news this am,” Hincapie wrote. ”X ray confirmed my collar bone is broken.”

It seems some people don’t want to believe that the 2009 Tour de France was as pure as spring water. Pierre Bordry, the head of the French Anti-Doping Agency (AFLD), is telling the French daily Le Monde that he thinks as many as two new doping products as well as auto-blood transfusions could have been used during the 96th edition. “There’s a likelihood of blood transfusions and two new products that have been used during the Tour, but are not yet on the market,” Bordry told Le Monde in its Tuesday edition.

With Sunday's Chicago Criterium dishing out $2,800 in primes, Brad Huff (Jelly Belly) said it felt like a field sprint on every lap, but the Midwestern sprinter saved himself for when it counted, successfully launching a flier from more than a kilometer out to take victory and a $5,000 pay day. "Guys are jockeying for position, guys are being aggressive. I was like, 'Good lord, can everyone just calm down? We still have 30 laps!'"

This updated story corrects an earlier mistranslation of a key quote. - Editor Tour de France winner Alberto Contador on Monday launched a stinging attack on teammate Lance Armstrong, saying relations between the two were tense throughout the race. "My relationship with Lance is zero. He is a great champion and has done a great Tour, but on a personal level I have never had a great admiration for him and I never will," the Spaniard told a news conference in Madrid.

Anthony Colby (Colavita-Sutter Home p/b Cooking Light) attacked a nine-man break that had been out since the third of five laps in Sunday’s final stage, and soloed across the line for the biggest NRC win of his career. He was followed seconds later by fellow breakaway partners Taylor Shelden and Alex Howes, both of Felt-Holowesko Partners-Garmin. Oscar Sevilla (Rock Racing) held onto the yellow jersey and also succeeded in helping teammate Francisco Mancebo gain enough time to jump ahead of Jeff Louder (BMC) on GC for second.

Tour de France chief Christian Prudhomme credited Lance Armstrong for adding an interesting element to this year's race after the American came out of retirement to finish a commendable third overall. Armstrong finished more than five minutes behind Astana teammate Alberto Contador, who proved unbeatable over three weeks of tough racing on his way to his second victory since his maiden win in 2007. However, on more than one occasion, the 37-year-old seven-time champion showed that his sense for racing is still up there with the best.

The Spanish press hailed Alberto Contador as a "king" on Monday after the 26-year-old won the Tour de France for the second time after an intense rivalry with his Astana teammate Lance Armstrong. "The new king of the Tour is called Contador," top-selling daily El Pais wrote on its front page below a picture of a smiling Contador receiving his trophy on Sunday as Armstrong looked on beside him on the podium. "This is the second Tour of the fittest," the newspaper added.

Tour de France chief Christian Prudhomme was cautiously optimistic in celebrating a scandal-free 96th edition on Sunday. For the first time in recent history the world's biggest bike race avoided being dragged through the mire by drugs cheats. On this year's race only the sublime performances of Contador in the grueling mountain stages prompted some experts to raise eyebrows. However Contador, who won with a comfortable lead over his rivals, insists he is a clean Tour champion.

Ace shooter Casey B. Gibson finally got to drop that massive camera bag in Paris, but he sent along a few final pix before grabbing some downtime.

The World Cup cross-country course at Mont Saint-Anne is one of the few – if not the only – courses that gets racers truly fired up about racing cross-country. They say it possesses all the elements of a genuine mountain bike race course. But factor in wet weather and things start to get really exciting since the course turns into a rollercoaster with rocky teeth, and roots too, lots of slippery ones.

During the stage-winning celebrations at the Columbia-HTC team bus in Paris Sunday evening, directeur sportif Allan Peiper pointed out that Mark Cavendish scored his record six field-sprint wins at this Tour in very different ways. The 24-year-old Brit not only packs a kick that is fast enough to out-accelerate most of his rivals but he can also improvise in way that few sprinters have ever been able to do.

Britain's Mark Cavendish called his sixth stage win in this year's Tour de France "beautiful" after powering to a stunning victory on the Champs-Élysées on Sunday. A superb lead-out from Columbia-HTC teammate Mark Renshaw gave Cavendish a clear run to the line as he surged away from green jersey Thor Hushovd (Cervélo TestTeam) and Tyler Farrar (Garmin-Slipstream). "The Champs-Élysées is a dream for every sprinter in the world; to cross the finish line in view of the Arc de Triomphe with your arms in the air," Cavendish said.

Not to be outdone by the Trek Project One paint jobs over in the Astana camp, and the custom yellow Specialized Tarmac SL3 for Saxo Bank’s Fabian Cancellara, Scott Bicycles and the Columbia-HTC team produced a special bike for their star sprinter Mark Cavendish.

Lance Armstrong admitted on Sunday that he did not join his teammates in celebrating Alberto Contador's Tour de France triumph on Saturday night, preferring instead to go for drinks with the backers of his future outfit, Team RadioShack. "To be honest, I went out for dinner with the RadioShack guys and I had a few extra glasses of wine than I would have normally done," said Armstrong.

Past winners of the Tour de France

Alberto Contador took Spain's tally to 12 wins in 96 editions of the Tour de France when he wrapped up his second victory of the Tour here on Sunday. Reputed climber Federico Bahamontes, nicknamed the 'Eagle of Toledo,' broke new ground for his countrymen by winning the race in 1959 after years of domination by the French, the Italians and Belgians. Following in Bahamontes' trail, albeit 14 years later, was the great Luis Ocana, who claimed his only win in 1973 in an era dominated by Belgian great Eddy Merckx.

Alberto Contador collected the final yellow jersey of the 2009 Tour de France on Sunday as Mark Cavendish won the 21st and final stage on the Champs-Élysées. "The Tour is the hardest race in the world, but this year it was particularly difficult. That's why I am so happy," said the Astana captain after finishing the 96th Tour with 4:11 over Andy Schleck (Saxo Bank) and 5:24 over teammate Lance Armstrong. The runner-up credited his brother for his success.

Former teammates Sabrina Jonnier (Maxxis/Rocky Mountain) and Sam Hill (Monster/Specialized) slashed seconds off runner-up finishes by Emmeline Ragot (Suspension Center) and Steve Peat (Santa Cruz Syndicate) to seize wins in downhill in the UCI Mountain Bike World Cup races at Mont-Saint-Anne on Saturday.

Check out CyclingTips's author page.

The Tour de France took the unusual step of hitting the Giant of Provence - Mont Ventoux - on the penultimate day of the race. Casey Gibson was there to catch the action.

The Tour de France organizers’ experiment of making the peloton race up Mont Ventoux the day before the finish had mixed results. It was a thrill for the estimated 500,000 fans who lined the 21km length of the infamous climb. It was a burden for most of the 156 men who have survived the rigors of another rugged race out of the 198 starters. And it showcased the still-obvious strength of Lance Armstrong to finish ahead of the riders who threatened his third place on the final podium in Paris.

Alberto Contador is less than a day away from winning his second Tour de France – and fourth grand tour – in three years. During the past three weeks, the Spanish climber has withstood intrigue within the Astana camp, attacks from the Schleck brothers and hints that his victory was something a little bit too extraordinary. Through it all, Contador remained tranquilo. VeloNews listened in on the post-stage press conference with the winner apparent. Here’s what Contador had to say: Question: Was the tension within the team a major factor?

Last year’s top two at the 2008 Tour de France are having a hard time dealing with the fallout of their less-than-expected rides in this year’s edition and are directing their frustration at the media. Defending champion Carlos Sastre, who blasted the media in a rest-day press conference, publicly apologized for his comments while last year’s runner-up Cadel Evans is still broiling at piques from the press. Sastre released a lengthy communiqué Friday “recognizing my own mistakes.”

Spaniard Juan Manuel Garate dedicated his maiden victory on the Tour de France to his Rabobank team. Rabobank came to the race hoping to challenge for the yellow jersey but their team leader Denis Menchov, the Tour of Italy champion, went from bad to worse on a campaign littered with crashes and mediocre performances. Having also lost riders through injury, the Dutch outfit were set to go home empty-handed and had been looking to Spanish sprinter Oscar Freire to lift morale on the ride to the Champs Elysees on Sunday.

Maybe Lance Armstrong will like Mont Ventoux a little more now. Armstrong hung tough on the mountain that’s always given him trouble to fend off attacks from the Schleck brothers and secure a podium spot with third place going into Sunday’s finale at the 2009 Tour de France. “I cannot complain for an old fart coming here,” Armstrong said after the stage. “Getting third on these young guys is not so bad.”

Columbia's Mark Cavendish says he never focuses on his rivals, but on Sunday's final stage of the Tour de France the Columbia rider would do well to keep a close eye on Thor Hushovd. Despite going one better than he did in 2008 by winning five stages at the race so far this year Cavendish has unfinished business - challenging for the points competition's green jersey. Going into Sunday's 164km ride from Montereau-Fault-Yonne to the Champs Elysees in Paris Hushovd has a significant lead of 25 points on Cavendish.

Rabobank finally got a victory in the 2009 Tour de France as Juan Manuel Garate joined an early break on Saturday and stayed away to win the penultimate stage atop the forbidding summit of Mont Ventoux. Saxo Bank's Andy Schleck did all he could do to upset the top of the GC — his team powered the peloton much of the day and Schleck led the yellow jersey group for much of the climb, attacking alone and with his brother Frank.

Moises Aldape (Team Type 1) must have experienced a little déjà vu as he crossed the finish line of the Cascade Lakes Road Race by himself in stage 4 on Friday – he won this same stage last year. Phil Zajicek (Fly V Australia p/b Successful Living) won a bunch sprint to take second place 13 seconds later, while Francisco Mancebo (Rock Racing) took third. The top of the GC remained unchanged with Oscar Sevilla (Rock Racing) retaining his lead, Jeff Louder (BMC) in second at 40 seconds back, and Mancebo in third at 1:00 back.

The courses for Thursday's Annecy time trial stage vs. the team time trial in Montpelier a few weeks ago were quite different. The same can be said of the TT bikes in use by various teams and riders — they are all quite individual. However there are always some common themes, and at the TTT in week 1 of the Tour, we noticed some trends. Let’s have a look at some trends in the team paddock.

Slippery wheels

Columbia's Mark Cavendish won 19th stage of the Tour on Friday, a hilly stage tucked between the Annecy time trial and the penultimate Mont Ventoux stage. All the GC favorites and race leader Alberto Contador finished safely in the front group, setting up a battle for the Parisian podium on the slopes of Mont Ventoux Saturday. Lance Armstrong (Astana) was the only GC favorite on the right side of a four-second split at the end, picking up a small edge going into the final two days.

Friday's tough day of racing at the Tour de France was contested with Saturday's big stage to the Ventoux at the back of most riders' minds. Photographer Casey Gibson spent much of the day on a motorcyle crossing this part of France with the peloton.

Alberto Contador (Astana) all but has the 2009 Tour de France in the bag. The same goes for second-place Andy Schleck (Saxo Bank). At 4:11 back, the younger Schleck probably won’t be passing the Spanish climber, yet if his climbing legs click back into gear, he won’t have to worry too much about anyone else bouncing ahead of him on the podium. That leaves a real dogfight for the final podium spot, with four riders separated by just 38 seconds.

Second-placed Andy Schleck says only a disaster on Mount Ventoux for yellow yersey holder Alberto Contador will give him any chance of winning the Tour de France. With just two stages left, 24-year-old Schleck is 4:11 behind Contador, with his teammate Lance Armstrong in third and determined to finish second behind Spain's 2007 Tour winner. But Saxo Bank leader Schleck says he will do everything he can to take time off Contador on Saturday's penultimate stage from Montelimar, which finishes after the fierce 21.1km climb up Mont Ventoux.

Lance Armstrong ruffled some feathers when he called the 2008 Tour de France a “joke” in the months ahead of his celebrated comeback. The seven-time Tour winner has since apologized for making those remarks, but the top stars from last year’s Tour are not having much luck in the 2009 edition. Of last year’s top 10, only two – Frank Schleck and Christian Vande Velde – are hanging among the leaders this year. Four – Bernhard Kohl, Samuel Sánchez, Alejandro Valverde and Tadej Valjavec – aren’t even in the race.

Garmin chief Jonathan Vaughters said Friday that while Tour de France leader Alberto Contador is a "fantastic rider," he would not confirm rumors his team was hoping to hire the Tour de France leader. Contador, of Astana, has a virtually unassailable lead of 4min 11sec over second-placed Luxembourger Andy Schleck ahead of Saturday's 20th and penultimate stage to the summit of Mont Ventoux. Two days before the end of the race a huge question mark is hanging over the future of the Astana team, whose leaders are Contador and seven-time champion Lance Armstrong.

Lance Armstrong said Friday he is already looking at potential riders for his new team at next year's Tour de France. Armstrong will lead Team Radioshack in the 2010 race and while no riders have yet been signed, he is looking at several options. "We haven't signed anybody yet, but there are still a lot of guys on the radar," said Armstrong. "Obviously there are a few guys I have already been working with like Levi Leipheimer, Chris Horner and Andreas Kloden. "We have a good bunch of guys here and we want to keep them together.