Monumental. The night before a race, the last thing I do before I climb into bed is to prepare my bag for the next day. Each rider has a suitcase and a race bag. The suitcase travels to the finish in the team truck and we carry the race bag, which holds everything we’ll need for the day, in the bus on the way to the start. With everything ready to go, tucked in bed, I look over the race book one last time before closing my eyes.
Check out CyclingTips's author page.
Morgan Chedhomme (Auber 93) won the prologue to the Tour de Normandie on Monday. The 22-year-old Frenchman covered the 5.1km course in Mondeville in 6:20, four seconds faster than Thomas Berkhout (Rabobank) and five better than Frederik Wilman (Joker-Bianchi). His average speed was more than 48 km/h. Tuesday’s second stage takes the 130 riders from Colombelles to Forges-les-Eaux.
Very few people will be talking about the biggest win of Joaquín Sobrino’s career. The Burgos Monumental rider sped to victory in the opening stage of the Vuelta a Castilla y León, but the world’s media were focused on the crash involving Lance Armstrong (Astana) with about 15km to go. The seven-time Tour de France winner went down in a nasty pileup as the peloton was completing its chase of a four-man breakaway and left the race in an ambulance (see main story).
After a relative lull in mid-March, with the European racing schedule dominated by two big races (Paris-Nice and Tirreno-Adriatico) and the first classic of the season with Milan-San Remo, the peloton is making up for lost time. There are major races this week in Spain, Belgium and Italy and the women’s World Cup begins in Switzerland. There’s a lot to cover, so let’s jump right in:
Lance Armstrong crashed hard in Monday’s opening stage of the Vuelta a Castilla y León and was transported by ambulance to a hospital in nearby Palencia, Spain. Race organizers and the Astana team doctor confirmed that the seven-time Tour de France champion had broken his right collarbone after Armstrong underwent an X-ray at a hospital in the city of Valladolid. “Lance suffered a fracture of the middle third of the right collarbone as well as some bruises on his right hip and arm,” said team doctor Pedro Celaya, who was with Armstrong at the hospital.
Fly V Australia's Ben Day turned a blistering opening time trial performance into an overall victory at the three-day San Dimas Stage Race in California this weekend. Day's teammate Jonathan Cantwell won the final stage criterium, ahead of Colavita's Lucas Haedo and OUCH-Maxxis' John Murphy. Team Type 1's Shawn Milne added to Team Type 1’s polka dot jersey collection by winning the King of the Mountains classification.
An unnamed cyclist and former Austrian Nordic ski coach Walter Mayer, who was involved in the 2006 Turin Olympics doping scandal, have been arrested in connection with new doping allegations, Vienna prosecutors said Monday. Mayer, who was arrested Sunday, is suspected of having provided a top Austrian cyclist with the banned blood booster EPO, prosecution spokesman Gerhard Jarosch said. The cyclist, who has not been named, was arrested on March 13 for trafficking.
Check out CyclingTips's author page.
Stuart O'Grady, who was injured in a fall during Milan-San Remo on Saturday, will be forced to skip the Spring Classics, his Saxo Bank team said Sunday. The 35-year-old Australian fractured his right collarbone and has broken a rib. He also suffered bruising between the lungs and the ribs. "It is extremely sad to see the Classics disappear because of a crash," O'Grady said. "The past several months of hard work had a purpose and focus – the classics and especially Paris-Roubaix. Now I've seen it all crumble, but hopefully I'll get the opportunity to come back later."
Alberto Contador has downplayed the significance of his first race alongside new Astana teammate Lance Armstrong in the Vuelta a Castilla y León that gets underway on Monday. The pair will be joined by 2009 Tour of California winner Levi Leipheimer, but Contador rejected suggestions the race would be a dry-run for this summer's Tour de France. "It's a coincidence (that we're racing together), but it will help us see how things go in a race," he said on his personal website.
If there was any doubt about who is cycling’s most exciting sprinter, Mark Cavendish erased it Saturday with an explosive victory in the 100th Milan-San Remo. Judges had to break out the zoom lens to determine Cavendish the winner in a photo-finish to a devastated Heinrich Haussler as Cervélo TestTeam went two-three with Thor Hushovd rounding out the podium. Haussler pounced out of the left side of the pack with 350 meters to go —he said to set up Hushovd — only to look back and see that Hushovd wasn’t on his wheel and a surging Cavendish was closing in fast.
Check out CyclingTips's author page.
Milan-San Remo didn’t end the way Tyler Farrar would have liked. The Garmin-Slipstream rider -- fresh off beating eventual winner Mark Cavendish in a bunch sprint this week at Tirreno-Adriatico – crashed out with a possible broken clavicle. Farrar flew back to his home base in Belgium on Saturday night and will be treated by doctors there, but team officials are worried that the injury could take Farrar out of the upcoming northern classics.
Lance Armstrong wanted a long, hard day at the office and that’s what he got in Saturday’s Milan-San Remo. In his first race back on European roads since winning the 2005 Tour de France, Armstrong lost contact with the fast-charging peloton near the top of the Cipressa climb with about 25km to go. A lead group of about 40 riders stayed clear to fight for the victory while the seven-time Tour champion -- racing for the first time since the conclusion of Tour of California on Feb. 22 -- crossed the line in 125th at 8:19 in the second group.
Fly V Australia's Ben Day and Columbia-Highroad's Mara Abbott won Friday evening's 3.7-mile prologue up a piece of Glendora Mountain Road in the San Gabriel Mountains.[nid:89496] Mitchell Clinton was there to photograph the action for VeloNews. The race continues Saturday with a 84-mile circuit race for the men; pro women will do 56 miles.
Mark Cavendish proved the skeptics wrong yet again. After most experts believed he couldn’t get over the late-race climbs, the Columbia-Highroad rider sprinted to a dramatic victory to win the 100th Milan-San Remo. Here are excerpts from his post-race press conference: Question: What does it mean to you to win a classic?
Professional endurance competitor Rebecca Rusch has tackled her fair share of adventure races and 24-Hour mountain bike races throughout the years. Now, the Idahoan is back in South Africa, competing for the second time in the Absa Cape Epic, endurance mountain bike stage race across the country’s scenic Western Cape. And we’re along for the ride. — Editor
Price: $250 Sizes: Small to Extra Large Colors: Blue or Red Web site: www.showerspass.com
Lance Armstrong says his return to the top spot of the winner’s podium at the Tour de France is no guarantee. The seven-time Tour champion is confident he will attain a high level come July, but admitted he cannot take for granted he will be the same rider who won barnstormed to seven consecutive titles from 1999-2005.
Lance Armstrong clicks into his pedals Saturday for the 100th Milan-San Remo in his first European race since winning the 2005 Tour de France, but even he admits he isn’t expecting to stand on the winner’s podium. The seven-time Tour champ acknowledges the Italian classic doesn’t suit his style of racing, yet Armstrong is promising to make a strong showing in the 298km race.
Fabian Cancellara won’t be defending his Milan-San Remo title on Saturday and admits that he likely won’t be back at his best in time for the northern classics. A training crash and illness have derailed Cancellara’s hopes of repeating his extraordinary spring campaign last year that saw him win Monte Paschi, Tirreno-Adriatico and San Remo and claim second in Paris-Roubaix. Cancellara told VeloNews his spring campaign is all but a wash this year.
BMC is one of three American teams invited to this year's Paris-Roubaix. Garmin-Slipstream and Columbia-Highroad are the other teams invited to the April 12 event. "It shows the level of confidence that the race organizations have in our future," team directeur sportif John Lelangue said.
Check out CyclingTips's author page.
Spain's triple world champion Oscar Freire was on Thursday forced to shelve his return to action which had been penciled in for the Tour of Castille and Leon from March 23-27, his Rabobank team said. Freire, who suffered broken ribs in a nasty fall during the Tour of California in February, has not recovered fully from the accident. "Oscar can't train normally," said Rabobank team sporting director Erik Breukink.
Check out CyclingTips's author page.
Mark Cavendish isn’t expecting to win his first crack at Milan-San Remo, but he’s getting some advice from someone who has. Four-time winner Erik Zabel has been quietly working and training with the British sprinter since retiring. Cavendish is expecting that expert advice to pay dividends sooner than later. “He knows every race by the back of his hand, so it’s perfect for me,” Cavendish told VeloNews. “It takes away at least one year for experience. We’re talking and training together all the time, at the races or after.”
Options in aftermarket brakes have multiplied in recent years. A category once defined by feathery but flimsy-looking carbon and aluminum has matured, and the TRP R960 is evidence that shedding weight need not result in shredded skin from a blown corner. At 245 grams for the pair (with pads, but minus mounting hardware) they are almost 50 grams lighter per pair than Shimano Dura-Ace, but proved to function almost as well.
Henk Vogels is back. Well, sort of. After a career that included a pair of top-10 finishes in Paris-Roubaix, second at the 2003 Gent-Wevelgem, wins at the USPRO road and criterium championships, an overall victory at the Tour de Beauce and an Australian national road title, Vogels quietly retired at the end of the 2008 season. There was no announcement, no send-off race or ceremony — just a shift, from the bike to the driver’s seat in a new role as team director.
Price: $90 Weight: Colors: Silver and Black Web site: www.ryderseyewear.com
Price: $189 Weight: 315 grams Sizes: 39 to 48 Colors: Black/red Web site: www.lakecycling.com
The domestic stage-racing calendar opens up this weekend with the three-day San Dimas Stage Race. The race begins Friday with a 3.7-mile climbing prologue, followed Saturday by a hilly road race run on a 7.15-mile circuit. The race concludes Sunday with the Old Town Grand Prix, raced on a 1.2-mile circuit in downtown San Dimas. Rising Canadian star Cameron Evans of OUCH-Maxxis returns to San Dimas Friday as the defending champion.
A bad crash during training this week meant a trip to the hospital and now a break from racing for Team Saxo Bank’s Fränk Schleck. The rider from Luxembourg skidded and crashed on a downhill curve. Seven stitches on the chin and a heavy contusion on his left wrist was the immediate damage.
More than 200 men and nearly 150 women will line up for the Redlands Bicycle Classic, starting Thursday March 26. “Not only is this one of the largest number of entrants we’ve had for both the men’s and women’s fields, but it’s also one of the most prestigious,” said Race Director Dan Rendler. “The women’s field reads as a ‘who’s-who’ of female cycling, while the men’s field features 11 of the 13 registered UCI Continental teams.” Among the women are five current national champions, one current world champion and the current NRC champion.
Check out CyclingTips's author page.
Check out CyclingTips's author page.
Italy's reigning world champion Alessandro Ballan and Olympic time-trial champion Fabian Cancellara of Switzerland have both pulled out of this weekend's Milan-San Remo race, their teams announced on Wednesday. Ballan, who had also withdrawn from the Tirreno-Adriatico, must take a fortnight off owing to an infection on the orders of Lampre team doctor Dr. Carlo Guardascione.
Add Mark Cavendish to the growing list of people who think Daniele Bennati is one of the big favorites for Milan-San Remo. The British sprinter easily handed Bennati defeat in Tuesday’s final stage at Tirreno-Adriatico, but when pressed to give one name who would win Saturday, Cavendish thought long and hard before saying, “Bennati.” “Three hundred kilometers at 23 is a long way,” said Cavendish, discounting his own chances for his San Remo debut. “I will be ready to win San Remo in a few years. Bennati looks strong. He can get over the climbs and he has the sprint.”
Price: Tubular $2500; Clincher $2800 Weight: Tubular 1840g/pair; Clincher 1910g/pair Web site: www.bontrager.com New from Bontrager, the high profile Aeolus 9.0, a 90mm-deep time trial wheelset. As with past Aeolus models, the 16 spokes are embedded within the rim for better aerodynamics. Why upgrade to the 9.0 model? Bontrager reports that the Aeolus 9.0 is 10 seconds faster over 40km than the Aeolus 6.5.
Tom Boonen leaned back on the hood of the Quick Step team car on a sunny morning in San Benedetto del Tronto before the final stage of Tirreno-Adriatico. Life was good. The sun was out, his form was closing in on its annual spring peak and, most importantly, his left knee wasn’t giving him any problems.
Check out CyclingTips's author page.
I’m still being deluged with letters about CO2, and I promised to end it, so now I’m switching to letters about wheels. However, at the bottom, you’ll find one more CO2 letter addressing environmental points, which I think to be important and a duty to bring up.
Mark Cavendish wasn’t going to let anyone pass him this time. Just days after Tyler Farrar (Garmin-Slipstream) relegated Cavendish to a rare second place in Friday’s third stage, Cavendish evened the score in Tuesday’s 169km finale at the 44th Tirreno-Adriatico. Daniele Bennati (Liquigas) tried in vain to sprint early, but Cavendish darted past him in easy work to win for the fifth time in 2009. Farrar trailed through second in another strong performance for the American while Baden Cooke (Vacansoleil) took third.
Twenty teams have been selected for the 2009 Tour de France, but Fuji-Servetto won’t be among them.
There are a few races around Europe this weekend, but it is Saturday’s Milan-San Remo that will be the center of attention. The race is celebrating its 100th edition this year and the Italians are expected to pull out all the stops. The presence of Lance Armstrong in his first European race since his comeback will only heighten the media attention and anticipation for the 100th edition of the Italian spring classic.
Price: $220 Weight: 350 grams/pair Web site: www.time-sport.com New from Time are the Julien Absalon signature ATAC XS mountain bike pedals. Even if you can't attack like Absalon, at least you can ride the same pedals.
Lance Armstrong will lead the Astana colors at Milan-San Remo on Saturday in his first race on European roads since he retired after winning the 2005 Tour de France. Just like during Australia’s Tour Down in January and the Tour of California in February, Armstrong’s appearance is expected to pique interest for the centenary edition of the Italian classic. It will be Armstrong’s first appearance at Milan-San Remo since 2002, when he finished 44th with the same time as winner Mario Cipollini.
It was another day of epic racing at Tirreno-Adriatico, this time with Michele Scarponi (Diquigiovanni) snatching the stage victory and the leader’s jersey in Monday’s 235km climbing stage to Camerino. Scarponi, back to the winner’s circle after serving a racing ban after being implicated in the Operación Puerto doping scandal, darted ahead of Stefano Garzelli (Acqua e Sapone) to win the stage. Ivan Basso (Liquigas), riding with strength in grand tour-like conditions, crossed third.
Team Type 1's Jesse Anthony won the King of the Mountain title at the seven-stage Tour de Taiwan, which ended Saturday in Taipei. Poland's Je?owski Krzysztof of the Merida Europe team won the overall title, followed by Australia's Peter McDonald (Drapac Porsche) and Roman Zhiyentayev (Kazakhstan National Team). Anthony was 17th on the GC. His teammate Ken Hanson, the only other American to finish the race, was 29th on GC and was sixth in the final stage.
Four-time Tour de France stage winner MarkCavendish has been included in a largely experimental 19-man British track cycling squad that will head to the World Championships in Pruszkow, Poland next week. Cavendish, who normally plies his trade with the Columbia-High Road team, is a surprise inclusion in a squad that will be shorn of many of its big names. At last year's Olympic Games Britain won seven of the ten golds on offer at the Laoshan velodrome in Beijing, with Scotland's Chris Hoy claiming three and Bradley Wiggins winning two from both pursuit events.
Check out CyclingTips's author page.
It was another day of the double at Tirreno-Adriatico. Twenty-four hours after Joaquim Rodríguez (Caisse d’Epargne) won a stage and claimed the overall leader’s jersey; it was Andreas Klöden’s turn in Sunday’s individual time trial. The veteran Astana rider notched a commanding, 20-second victory in the 30km fifth stage featuring two short but steep hills. With his first victory of the 2009 season, he takes the overall leader’s jersey, six seconds ahead of Thomas Lövkvist (Columbia-Highroad).
Luis Leon Sanchez (Caisse d’Epargne) trumped compatriot Alberto Contador of Astana to win the 67th Paris-Nice cycling race after the eighth and final stage here on Sunday. Sanchez finished the race one minute ahead of Luxembourg's Frank Schleck in the overall standings, with French rider Sylvain Chavanal a further 9 seconds adrift in third.
It was a double-whammy times two for Caisse d’Epargne in racing across Europe on Saturday. Barely an hour after Luís León Sánchez won the stage and took the overall lead at Paris-Nice in France, Joaquim Rodríguez pulled off the same feat at Tirreno-Adriatico in Italy. Attacking with less than 500m to go up the punishing Montelupone climb, Rodríguez held off Davide Rebellin (Diquigiovanni) to win the hilltop finish and claim the overall leader’s jersey in the 171km fourth stage.
Spain's Luis Leon Sanchez (Caisse d'Epargne) won the seventh and penultimate stage of Paris-Nice on Saturday to take the leader's yellow jersey. Overnight leader Alberto Contador (Astana) suffered over the final four kilometers, losing almost three minutes. He later admitted that he had forgotten to eat and drink properly. Sanchez broke away 15km from the finish line and eventually came home 50 seconds ahead of Antonio Colom (Katusha), Frank Schleck (Saxo Bank) and French rider Sylvain Chavanel (Quick Step). Sanchez said afterwards that everything had gone as expected.
Price: $125/pair Weight: 205 grams Sizes: 700 x 23 only Colors: White! Web site: www.conti-online.com With the popularity of white cycling gear gaining ground, Continental is releasing a limited model GP4000 white tire. The tire will use the same casing and construction as the GP4000 S, including Vectran puncture protection.
Suggest retail:$24.95 Pages: 352
Suggested Retail: $12.24 Web site: www.cacoethespublishing.net
Price: $290 Weight: 165 grams Sizes: XS, S, M, L, XL, and XXL Colors: Black, Orange, and Blue Web site: www.rapha.cc New from Rapha, a high-end producer of stylish cycle wear, is the windproof and water resistant Stowaway jacket. Meant for year-round use, the Stowaway is designed to keep you protected from the elements, without compromising your sense of style.
Tyler Farrar did what many haven’t been able to manage lately – come around Mark Cavendish to win a bunch sprint. That’s just what the 24-year-old Garmin-Slipstream did on what was a very lucky Friday the 13th. He timed his final punch to the line perfectly to win the 166km third stage from Fuchecchio to Santa Croce Sull’Arno at the 44th Tirreno-Adriatico on Friday. Farrar bolted past Cavendish’s left shoulder, taking a prestigious bunch sprint ahead of the likes of Tom Boonen (fourth) and Robbie McEwen (fifth).
Re-introduced in September 2008, after a two year hiatus, the Litespeed Blade is a bike with a storied history. The signature titanium airfoil tube shape was created by accident in the early 1990s and brought to widespread prominence when Lance Armstrong used one (disguised as a Trek) in the 1999 Tour de France. Ten years after that historic ride, Litespeed is wielding a totally new Blade, and we had a chance to check out one of the first bikes to leave the test lab.
There’s seemingly no one who’s capable of stopping Alberto Contador through the first weeks of the 2009 season. The Spanish climber dropped arch-rival Frank Schleck (Saxo Bank) on the mountain dubbed Mont Ventoux’s “little sister” to win Friday’s sixth stage and take back the overall lead at Paris-Nice. Contador, winner of the opening time trial in Amilly on Sunday, bolted away from the pack on the snow-covered, 1600m Montagne de Lure summit to win for the fourth time this year.
Tyler Farrar (Garmin-Slipstream) bolted past Mark Cavendish (Columbia-Highroad) to win Friday’s third stage at Tirreno-Adriatico. Cavendish looked to have the sprint in the bag when Farrar came off Cavendish’s wheel and surged past his left shoulder to take the biggest win of his European career.
The Segal I rode most of last season was without a doubt the finest Israeli-made magnesium road bike I've ever had the occasion to try. That's an admittedly subjective statement, but I feel pretty sure I can back it up.
Check out CyclingTips's author page.
It's too early to say if Alberto, Levi, Andreas or Lance will show, but Team Astana is confirmed to race in this year's Tour of Missour, September 7-13. The Kazakstan-registered team joins Garmin-Slipstream, Columbia-High Road, Liquigas, Cervelo TestTeam as confirmed ProTour teams at the race, which will feature 15 teams. “To have the participation of Astana is yet another huge step for this race," said Chris Aronhalt, the managing partner of event organizer Medalist Sports.
Alessandro Petacchi (LPR Brakes) won the second stage of the Tirreno-Adriatico over 177km from Volterra to Marina di Carrara on Thursday. Petacchi edged out compatriot Daniele Bennati of Liquigas and Spaniard Koldo Fernandez in a sprint finish. Frenchman Julien El Fares of Cofidis, who won the first stage on Wednesday, held onto the leader's jersey with Bennati in second 15 seconds behind.
Jeremy Roy (Française des Jeux) won the fifth stage of Paris-Nice on Thursday. Roy won the 204km stage from Annonay to Vallon Pont d'Arc, crossing the line in 4hr 58min 47sec. Sylvain Chavanel (Quick Step), retained the overall lead.
Of all the lessons I learned during this past year of getting coached, No. 1 by a long shot is this basic tenet: More time on the bike does not necessarily translate to increased fitness. Instead, the key is finding that critical balance between high intensity and adequate rest. Better to crush yourself a couple times a week, and then have several short truly easy days, than to noodle around whenever you can and rarely take time off.
If you’re an early adapter and have been aching to try out a tubeless road system, you now have a new option, the Hutchinson RT1 carbon wheelset. The wheels are Hutchinson-branded, but are made by Corima and are exactly the same as Corima’s Aero + Tubeless wheelset (which is not available in the United States).
French rider Julien El Fares (Cofidis) held off the chasing peloton to win the first stage of Tirreno-Adriatico. Led by Liquigas and Columbia-Highroad, the chasing pack fell 11 seconds short of ending the Frenchman’s adventure in the 147km stage to Capannori on Wednesday. El Fares dropped his fellow escapee, Vladimir Duma (Flaminia), with about 20km to go but Duma chased back with 9km to go. They held a slender lead of 1:34 to hungry sprinters.
Italian Liquigas racer Gianni Da Ros was arrested on Wednesday in the northern city of Padua amid an investigation into the trafficking of banned doping products, the ANSA news agency reported. Da Ros, 23, was arrested during a team run out at the Padua velodrome and was to be questioned Thursday by a Milan judge, ANSA reported. The news agency added that the investigation at the behest of the Milan state prosecutor had seen 12 people arrested in total as well as 64 searches of properties across the country.
Britain's Olympic gold medalist Bradley Wiggins (Garmin-Slipstream) pulled out of Paris-Nice on Wednesday to attend the funeral of his wife's grandmother, team sports director Lionel Marie said. Wiggins scratched from the 173.5km stage from Vichy to St Etienne after placing second in the opening time trial only to lose 11 minutes on the leaders in Tuesday's third stage.
Christian Vande Velde’s world went from black to kisses from the podium girls in just four days at Paris-Nice. The Garmin-Slipstream captain attacked with 20km to go out of a seven-man breakaway to snatch a thrilling solo victory in a hard-fought rainy and cold day in Wednesday’s fourth stage at the 67th Paris-Nice. “I was good at (Tour of) California, nothing special, so to come out and do that today, it gives me a lot of confidence,” Vande Velde told VeloNews. “The form is coming along really well. I am just surprising myself.”
Check out CyclingTips's author page.
SRAM has taken over title sponsorship of New Mexico's Tour of the Gila stage race, which begins this April 29 in Silver City. “SRAM has given this race security for the next several years and, with their increasing popularity in the peloton, we can only anticipate growth for our event. And SRAM’s professional neutral race support, along with their great team relationships, make them a perfect long-term partner,” stated Jack Brennan, Tour of the Gila Race Director.
Optimal recovery nutrition is essential.
Kelly Benefit Strategies' David Veilleux will miss a few weeks' racing after breaking his collarbone in a crash during a team training camp in Texas. Veilleux was reaching back to put his sunglasses in his jersey pocket when he hit a pothole and crashed. He is returning to his native Quebec, Canada to recover and is expected to miss the Redlands Bicycle Classic and the Tour of Uruguay. His team expects him to return to racing at New York's Tour of the Battenkill April 18-19.