Photographer Casey Gibson has been given full access to shoot behind the scenes with the Garmin-Chipotle team at the Tour. He will share some of his best shots from the first four days.

Stefan Schumacher (Gerolsteiner) rode to a dominant — if surprising — victory in stage 4 of the Tour de France on Tuesday, taking the yellow jersey from overnight leader Romain Feillu (Agritubel). The German posted the fastest time by far in the 29.5km individual time trial, 35:44, some 18 seconds faster than green-jersey Kim Kirchen (Team Columbia) and David Millar (Garmin-Chipotle), and a further nine seconds quicker than overall contender Cadel Evans (Silence-Lotto).

French cycling legend and five-time world champion Jeannie Longo on Tuesday clinched a 55th national title in winning the individual pursuit at the national championships in 3:48:896 ahead of great rival and holder Cathy Moncassin. "I started off a bit less quick than Cathy but from half-way I gave it all I had," said the 49-year-old Longo, who later this summer expects to compete in her seventh Olympics. She booked a berth last month with an outstanding win in both the road race and time trial at the French championships.

Team CSC’s Anker Chris Sorensen slipped into the leader’s jersey at the 60th International Tour of Austria after winning the second stage on Tuesday. Sorensen finished 12 seconds in front of Thomas Rohregger (Elk) and 27 seconds ahead of Ruslan Pidgornyy (LPR Brakes) in the stage from Toblach/Dobbiaco up to the Kitzbüheler Horn. Dimytro Grabovskyy (Quick Step) and Michael Barry (Team Columbia) escaped the peloton after 40km and eventually built a lead of 13:40.

For the last year, American cross-country mountain bike racer Adam Craig (Giant) has been battling it out on the World Cup and National Mountain Bike Series for a slot on the U.S. team. Last week, after a solid performance at the world championships, Craig got word that he had made the team. This week he shares his journal and includes a report from his Giant teammate, Carl Decker. —Editor

This Tour de France couldn’t be going any better for Cadel Evans. In four days of racing he and his Silence-Lotto team have ridden conservatively, largely out of the spotlight — just like the modest Aussie wants it. He showed his form was coming along nicely on opening day, losing by just one second to the explosive Alejandro Valverde on the uphill finish at Plumelec. On stages 2 and 3, his team kept him near the front of the peloton all day, well away from the crashes that were all too common.

Retail Price: $21.95 Web site: www.velogear.com The Tour Is Won on the Alpe: Alpe d'Huez and the Classic Battles of the Tour de France is a new book by cycling historian Jean-Paul Vespini. Each chapter covers one Alpe d'Huez stage, starting with Fausto Coppi’s victory in 1952. Vespini tells the story of the celebrated climb that so often determines the winner cycling’s biggest prize.

Team Columbia won her third consecutive stage of the Giro d’Italia Femminile on Tuesday, increasing her overall lead in the race to 17 seconds over Kirsten Wild (AA Drink). “It feels pretty unreal to get the hat trick,” said Teutenberg. “I can’t believe it but I’m definitely happy about it. For sure though, it will be a different story tomorrow and another girl will be in pink." Wednesday's stage climbs twice up the Monte Serra and finishes at the top after 106km of racing. “No matter how hard I try, it will be a different race tomorrow,” added Teutenberg.

The extra 20 pounds Hi Monique, I enjoyed your article in the recent VeloNews (May 22, 2008) about nutrition for cyclists. A lot of what you discussed I was already doing (learned from trial and error over my riding career of 25 years), but have a question I'd like to address to you that a lot of other cyclists might also find interesting.

Garmin party: Garmin-Chipotle was in a good mood today. The riders raced with a yellow dossard because they stood atop the team GC while Will Frischkorn raced with a red background on his number after winning Monday’s most aggressive rider’s prize. Frischkorn said he felt Monday’s effort in his legs, but admitted he didn’t go too hard in Tuesday’s TT.

And now the real racing begins... After three road stages on the rolling roads of Brittany, we had a bit of a change today with a shorter-than-normal-for-the-Tour time trial. We'd flown in a day early last week to scout this one out so there were no surprises out there, nice for the heads of the guys really gunning for it. And gun they did. Danny lit it up with a hot early time, then Christian and David put in some really solid rides near the end that solidified our lead in the team GC and sets us up well looking forward to the days ahead.

Stage 4, Cholet-Cholet, 29.5km (individual time trial) Weather:
Mostly sunny, with building clouds in afternoon, no rain. Strong SW winds up to 35kph, highs in upper 60s Stage winner:

While Gerolsteiner’s Stefan Schumacher scored an impressive ? and surprising ? win in Tuesday’s 29.5km individual time trial in Cholet, he’s still not ranked among the favorites to wear the yellow jersey in Paris on July 27.

Germany's Stefan Schumacher pulled on the Tour de France yellow jersey here Tuesday, and was then forced to defend himself quickly over a positive test for amphetamines last year and explain why he was invited to race the Tour, while Tom Boonen was not. Schumacher, who denies taking the stimulant, tested positive after a police stop while returning from a disco. The incident reminds some of Boonen's out-of-competition positive test for cocaine this spring, which resulted in Boonen being denied a Tour start.

Shimano’s electric time-trial shifters made their racing debut on Tuesday during the stage-4 individual time trial in Cholet. Ever since the “E-Dura-Ace” group showed up three years ago there was speculation that it might become a powerful time-trial tool. The system can be routed internally through a radically shaped time trial bike without hampering shifting performance. And the time-trial version sports shift buttons in both bar-ends and brake levers, which means a rider can shift regardless of whether he’s on the aero bars or the bullhorns.

You’ve already seen the new Bell Volt helmet, even if you didn’t recognize it as new. Thor Hushovd put the Volt in the spotlight of victory at the end of Sunday’s stage two. The new model will slot in as the top road and cross-country race helmet from Bell.

Oh so close. Garmin Chipotle’s Will Frischkorn, out ahead of the peloton in a four-man breakaway from the first 10 kilometers of the Tour’s third stage from Saint-Malo to Nantes, came within a wheel’s length of winning a stage in his first grand tour. Not a bad ride for a rider who only learned he was heading to the Tour de France a week before the start, on a team that earned a wildcard invitation to the world’s biggest bike race.

When I was an amateur racer in Brittany a few decades ago, one event I did was the local classic, Nantes-St. Nazaire. We raced on some of the same flat roads that the Tour de France peloton covered Monday; and the weather was similar: heavy rain showers and a strong southwest wind. Although I usually enjoyed racing in the rain, that classic was the first time I encountered fast-moving echelons, angled into the wind. It was all I could do to grovel in the gutter, trying to hang on to the thin line of riders stuck at the back. It’s not a pleasant memory.

Aging tires
Dear Lennard,
I have known people that have road bicycle spare tires in their garage for more than two years. Also, I have a nine-year-old Nokian studded tire on the front of my mountain bike for snowy/icy conditions. I have a pair of Michelin Pro Race tires that have been in my garage for four or five years, and have only been pulled out of their boxes a few times. Although they have not been exposed to sunlight, I am concerned about the pressurizing these tires to 115-120 psi considering that they may have dried out.

While the Cascade Classic has always enjoyed top tier competition, the story of this year’s event is undoubtedly the participation of two of America’s most decorated road racers; Astana teammates Levi Leipheimer and Chris Horner. Leipheimer will likely use the Classic to fine tune his form for the Olympics while Horner, who was left off the US team, will be seeking redemption with a hometown win.

Stage 3, Saint Malo to Nantes, 208km

Samuel Dumoulin (Cofidis) outsprinted three breakaway mates to win stage 3 of the Tour de France on Monday, while Romain Feillu (Agritubel) took the yellow jersey from Alejandro Valverde (Caisse d’Epargne). "It was phenomenal to win the stage today. It was something you dream about,” said Dumoulin. “The priority was to make the breakaway stay clear. We had some common interests in the breakaway and we worked well together. I knew the yellow jersey wasn't possible so I started to think about winning the stage.”[nid:79536] Feillu was elated, too.

Ina-Yoko Teutenberg took her second consecutive stage of the Giro d'Italia Femminile Monday, defending the Maglia Rosa going into stage four. "I'm psyched to win the the pink jersey and be able to ride with it another day," said Teutenberg. "We couldn't have had a better start in the Giro and hopefully we can keep playing a big role in the race." The flat stage from Ca’ Tiepolo Porto Tolle to Rosolina Mare was hot and relatively fast with cross winds in the last ten kilometers. Team Columbia started the lead out for Teutenberg with three kilometers remaining in the race.

Yellow jersey hopeful Alejandro Valverde willingly gave up the Tour de France lead on Tuesday, but admitted he had raced the hectic third stage with more of an eye on the crucial fourth stage.

Rabobank’s Denis Menchov became the of the Tour de France's top yellow jersey contenders to lose a significant amount of time Monday when he got caught napping in a hectic run to the finish of a 208km stage. Menchov, a two-time Vuelta a España winner, found himself in a group that had been left trailing by some furious accelerations at the front of the peloton and a mid-field crash as sprinters’ teams ramped up an ultimately futile pursuit of a four-man break.

First, apologies, as this one is going to be a bit shorter than normal. It's been a bit of a hectic afternoon and I'm writing this from the massage table on the crackberry. Sorry Sophie! [nid:79554]

BADGER STILL BITES: Don’t say the Bernard Hinault has lost any of his punch with old age. Just as Samuel Dumoulin was stepping atop the podium to accept his prize as the day’s winner, a protester dressed in a neon yellow vest jumped in front of the pint-sized Dumoulin and raised his arms in defiance. Hinault — who works with the Tour organization and appears daily on the podium to present the day’s awards — quickly sprung into action and shoved the hapless protester off the front of the stage. Tour goons swarmed and shuttled him out of the way.

There is what’s best theoretically, and then what’s best in practical application. As applies to time trial aerodynamics, riders and engineers are always struggling to balance the very best position and design with what’s realistic out on the road. This year, Specialized tweaked the design of its TT3 helmet to better match how its sponsored riders like Cadel Evans actually ride.[nid:79530]

World Champion Paulo Bettini (Quick Step) got his first win of 2008 Monday after surprising Austrian Gerrit Glomser (Volksbank) on the line of the first stage of the Tour of Austria. Gerolsteiner's Davide Rebellin finished third. "I like Austria!" Bettini said. "I was world champion in Salzburg and this season has not been very successful for me at the classics and the Giro d'Italia."

Ryder Hesjedal (Garmin-Chipotle) is the first Canadian riding the Tour de France since Gord Fraser rode in 1997 with the small French team, La Mutuelle de Seine et Marne. The former mountain biker is the fourth Canadian to start the Tour. Along with Fraser, Alex Stieda and Steve Bauer have participated.

National criterium champion Tina Pic (Colavita-Sutter Home) won Sunday's Workers’ Credit Union Criterium, the final stage of the Fitchburg-Longsjo Classic stage race in Massachusetts. Pic outsprinted Cheerwine's Laura Van Gilder and ProMan's Megan Guarnier to take the win. [nid:79501] In the men's race, John Murphy (Health Net- Maxxis) outsprinted Emile Abraham and Alejandro Borrajo (Colavita). After four days of racing, the overall winners were Cheerwine's Catherine Cheatley and Colavita's Kyle Wamsley.

Thor Hushovd (Crédit Agricole) shot out of a chaotic bunch dash to win stage 2 of the 2008 Tour de France on Sunday. Alejandro Valverde (Caisse d’Epargne) finished safely near the front of the peloton to retain the overall lead. “Yesterday was not a great finish for me,” said Hushovd. “I felt stronger today in the final today. I like Brittany; it's a bit like Norway, always windy and rainy. Maybe I'm not a pure sprinter like Mark Cavendish, but after some hard climbs like today, I usually have some strength left, so maybe that's why I was able to win today."

Toshiba-Santo strongman Mark Hekman showed the form he displayed in 2007 by winning Saturday’s fourth annual Iron Hill Twilight Criterium in West Chester, Pennsylvania. Hekman, who held the lead in the 2007 USA CRITS Series until a crash at Downers Grove ended his pursuit of the title, lapped this year’s Iron Hill field with 20 laps remaining in the 60-lap event, run on a 1km course. “I got away on the 10th lap and just crushed it." Hekman said. "This is a really technical course with the hill on the back side and I thought I was going to die.”

Anyone who follows American politics knows that in the build-up to the 1992 presidential elections, Arkansas governor Bill Clinton had the message “It’s the economy, stupid!” pinned to a wall in his campaign headquarters. By keeping that mantra in mind, Clinton came from behind to win the Democratic nomination, and then the Presidency. In these opening days of the 2008 Tour de France, the message to would-be winners is: “It’s the wind, stupid!”

A violent thunderstorm forced officials to cancel the prologue of the Tour of Austria on Sunday. Officials decided to stop the race soon after Quick Step's Tom Boonen finished his effort on the 1.5km prologue course in Chisua. Boonen is competing in Austria after Tour de France organizers barred him from competing in the Tour because of a recent out-of-competition positive test for cocaine.

A SECOND IS A MILE: Alejandro Valverde’s one-second grip on the yellow jersey might seem slim, but it should keep him in the maillot jaune going into Tuesday’s first time trial. Because the Tour eliminated time bonuses in this year’s race, Valverde simply had to follow the wheels in Sunday’s rush to the line into Saint-Brieuc. Monday’s easier profile should assure another bunch sprint and another day in yellow for Valverde.

This part of France, Brittany, is a cycling-mad area. I could write again about the crowds, as they were just as impressive as yesterday, if not more so, and still blowing my mind.

When Caisse D’Epargne superstar Alejandro Valverde stormed past Columbia’s Kim Kircken in the last 200 meters of the opening stage of the 2008 Tour de France he did it on a brand new bike. The winning bike wasn’t new in the sense of a new design — it is the same bike as his teammates ride, a Pinarello Prince — but it was new to Valverde. In fact, it was his first ride on the new bike.

Stage 2, Auray to Saint-Brieuc, 164.5km

The first four stages of this year’s Tour take place on the windy, often rain-soaked roads of [nid:79435]northwestern France. The riders don’t truly escape it until the first time trial in Cholet. Because of the conditions, many teams, or individual riders, take special measures to ensure their safety and ability to perform in the less than perfect weather on less than perfect roads. [nid:79433]

American legend Greg LeMond believes there have been enough positive changes in cycling that he can believe in the winner of the Tour de France. LeMond, 47, returned to the Tour this week for the first since the late 1990s, when he become so disillusioned with cycling’s doping problems that he refused to even attend the race that he won three times.

Alex Wrubleski (Webcor) won the second Canadian national road title of her career on Saturday when she outsprinted Leigh Hobson (Cheerwine) and Felicia Gomez (Aaron's) after 114km of racing. Julie Beveridge (Aaron's) took the under-23 title after finishing seventh in the lead group. A nontechnical 28.5km course with no major climbs meant that the only way to reduce the number of contenders was through attacks, and time trial champion Anne Samplonius (Quebec) did just that on the second of four laps with a strong move along a crosswind section.

It’s not a coincidence that the front-page photo chosen for Saturday’s edition of L’Équipe, the top-selling French sports newspaper, was a shot from the rear of the Tour de France peloton climbing the Mur de Bretagne, a 10-percent-grade, wall-like climb that marks the midpoint of stage 2. The shot is from the 2004 Tour de France, the last time the race came this way, but it will look much the same on Sunday.

Gear combinations: 53/39; 52/39 [nid:79403] Lengths: 170, 172.5, 175 Weight: 715g including bottom bracket Available: December 2008 Web site: www.shimano.com Originally shown at Eurobike 2007, Shimano's carbon Dura-Ace crank, model FC-7800-C, is being revised before its release at the end of this year. The new crank will feature improved chainrings to offer better shifting without the need to trim the shifter. The rings also will be available for aftermarket purchase.

Cheerwine's Robin Farina outsprinted her breakaway companion to take a win Saturday in the third stage of the Fitchburg-Longsjo Classic stage race in Massachusetts. Her teammate Catherine Cheatley maintains her overall lead in the race. In the men's race, Colavita's Kyle Wamsley won the stage and widened his overall lead. KBS/Medifast's Justin Spinelli sits second and Bissell's Ted King is third. The men rode 75 miles around a 3.1 mile loop through the hilly streets of Fitchburg. The women rode 34 miles.

With his Pinarello painted bright yellow and red, Spain’s new national champion Alejandro Valverde clawed his way up to and past an attacking Kim Kirchen (Columbia) on the steeps of the Côte de Cadoudal to take the first stage and yellow jersey of the 95th Tour de France.

It’s not a coincidence that the front-page photo chosen for Saturday’s edition of L’Équipe, the top-selling French sports newspaper, was a shot from the rear of the Tour de France peloton climbing the Mur de Bretagne, a 10-percent-grade, wall-like climb that marks the midpoint of stage 2. The shot is from the 2004 Tour de France, the last time the race came this way, but it will look much the same on Sunday.

BANG-BAM-BOOM: Tour brass will surely preen with pride at the huge crowds lining the route across the heart of Brittany, but not everyone was happy that the opening prologue was ditched in favor of a hectic, nervous road stage. Since 1967, the Tour started with some form of a time trial. This year, Christian Prudhomme wanted to shake things up and simply decided to let them sprint for the yellow jersey.

The 2008 Canadian National Road Cycling Championships began on Friday with the individual time trial events for Elite and Under-23 men and women in Saint-Georges, Quebec. Svein Tuft (Symmetrics) took his fourth title in the men's 40 kilometer event, while Anne Samplonius (Équipe du Québec) won her second title in the women's 20 kilometer race. David Veilleux of (Kelly Benefit Strategies-Medifast) won the Under-23 men's category and Julie Beveridge (Aaron's) the women's Under-23 race.

Team Columbia manager Bob Stapleton is looking to Britain's Mark Cavendish for a Tour de France stage victory after his team missed out on an historic first stage win here Saturday. Stapleton's team have come to the Tour looking to fight on several fronts, but at the start of the 2008 race - being held without a prologue for the first time in 41 years — he was reminded that they'll get nothing for free.

Stage 1, Brest to Plumelec, 197.5km

Robbie McEwen’s bike was lined up unassumingly, mid-pack, among his teammates' rigs in front of a roped off and guarded Silence-Lotto bus. All of the extra protection was meant to protect the race favorite — McEwen's teammate Cadel Evans — but McEwen’s bike benefited. He was suppose to start the race on Campagnolo’s new 11-speed group, but instead he unassumingly rode away from the team bus on a 10-speed bike. [nid:79347]

Garmin-Chipotle rider Will Frischkorn is riding his first Tour de France. He will share his journal entries with VeloNews.com readers after each stage. People. That's the word of the day. I'm always amazed by how many people swarm the climbs in races like the Tour of Flanders and the Pave of Roubaix ... that's nothing. I'd seen the videos and the pictures, heard the stories about the crowds on the epic climbs of the Tour, but had no idea how many people would be EVERYWHERE! Crazy.

On the eve of his fourth Tour de France, Silence-Lotto’s Cadel Evans told a crowded hotel lobby that though he might be the pre-race favorite heading into the race, due to his second-place finish last year, given this year’s list of contenders, actually winning the race is something else entirely.

Last year Oakley revamped its most popular sport sunglass the M-Frame into a new sunglass. Though the M-Frame is still available its predecessor, the Radar, has become as instantly popular as the decade old staple of Oakley’s line. Using the opening stage of the Tour as a springboard, Oakley introduced a complement to the new Radar in the form of a newly styled Racing Jacket. Columbia’s George Hincapie and Credit Agricole’s Thor Hushovd are the two riders charged with introducing the new shade, and the only two riders who currently have it. [nid:79335]

Editor's Note: Subaru/Gary Fisher pro endurance racer Nat Ross has been sharing daily diaries from the BC Bike Race with VeloNews.com readers. Today, Ross reports on the final stage in Whistler. We just finished the 7th stage in the 2nd Annual BC Bike Race and my body is pretty worked. My legs feel great because I was getting daily massages, and they are accustomed to high mileage in the summer months, but everything else on my body is sore.

Jeremiah Bishop wore a face of bewilderment and agitation as his Trek-Volkswagen teammates doused him in beer at the finish line of Breckenridge, Colorado’s Firecracker 50 on Friday. Bishop, 32, had no idea he’d just won the race and taken the marathon national championship, his first U.S. title as a pro rider. The look changed to one of joy once the Virginian realized that he’d crossed the line first. [nid:79320]

Editor’s note: Every day during the 95th Tour de France, VeloNews editorial director John Wilcockson will be writing his “Inside the Tour” column. It will have a more personal slant than most of the pieces he writes. There will be comments on each day’s tactics, insights on what to look for the next day, and stories he has witnessed in the 40 years he has been reporting the race. This first column includes thoughts on the opening stage and what to looking for on the wild roads of Brittany over this first weekend. * * *

A day before the start of the Tour de France is almost too late to accomplish anything significant. Nonetheless, it’s a frantic time for mechanics and support staff as clock ticks down to the start of the world’s biggest bicycle race. Teams build bikes up to the last minute, busses are stocked and there are always bikes, kits and cars to be washed and shined in last hours before the race kicks off. Instead of diving right into a single piece of equipment for this year’s race, let’s take a look at the frantic activity on the eve of the Tour.

Cheerwine Cycling has all but dominated the first two stages of the women’s race at the Fitchburg-Longsjo Classic. After winning Thursday’s time trial, the team took the top two spots in Friday’s 69-mile road race, with Catherine Cheatley and Kristin McGrath finishing one-two. The last step on the podium was taken by Kathleen Billington (Connecticut Coast).

When Lance Armstrong was winning the Tour every year, the only real question before the race was not “Who will win?” but “Can anyone get close to him?” Now, after two totally unpredictable Tours, both of them ruined by doping controversies, it looks like we’re about to start on another Magical Mystery Tour. All the same, it’s still fun trying to peek into the crystal ball.

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"He's not the Messiah! He's a very naughty boy!—an exchange between Brian's mum and his followers in Monty Python’s “Life of Brian”

For the second consecutive day, an American team kicked off its Tour de France by unveiling a fresh jersey design created for a new title sponsor. Team Columbia, the former T-Mobile team referred to as Team High Road for the first half of the 2008 season, presented its new look and new sponsor in front of a packed press conference at the Penfeld Parc des Expositions in Brest, France, where the Tour will start Saturday morning.

Spain’s Green Bullet isn’t sweating it. Alejandro Valverde says if he doesn’t win the Tour de France this year, he’s got plenty more in his legs. That’s not to say that he’s shying away from a unique opportunity to become the third consecutive Spanish winner, but Spain’s El Imbatido – “the unbeaten one” – is trying to tamp down over-zealous expectations from national media who are hyping his chances in the absence of defending champion Alberto Contador.

There were big crowds at the teams' presentation at the Tour de France Friday afternoon. Photographer Casey Gibson was there, too.

Just looking at the faces of Team CSC-Saxo Bank’s nine-man lineup Tour de France squad and it’s obvious that this team means business. With the lone exception of baby-faced Tour rookie Andy Schleck, CSC consists of hard-nosed, bad-asses who intend to impose their will on the race. And maybe even take the overall to boot.

Pure Singletrack Bliss. Today’s course was something that Max Plaxton and Andreas Hestler (Rocky Mountain) will remember forever. On top of riding some of the best singletrack that North America has to offer, they won today’s stage in style. The incredible 65km course was a combination of two local top-notch cross-country courses: The Test of Metal and The Gear Jammer.

Editor’s Note: After team leader Alexander Vinokourov tested positive for homologous blood doping during last year’s Tour de France, the entire Astana team left the race under a cloud. Vinokourov’s top lieutenant Andrey Kashechkin tried to relax by spending time with his family in Turkey. His time out of the limelight, however, was short-lived as anti-doping testers knocked on his hotel room door and asked for a sample.