Road

Lance Armstrong looked around near the summit of the rather anonymous Cat. 2 Col de la Schlucht in the chilly Vosges Mountains and couldn’t find many friendly faces. In the big front group he was with, there were no other Discovery Channel riders. No Chechu, no Triki, no Popo. Not even his 2005 favorite mountain goat, José Azevedo. What the six-time Tour champion did see were lots of riders licking their chops. For the first time in years at the Tour de France, Armstrong was isolated. “It was not a great day. I didn’t feel very good and the other teams did feel good,” said Armstrong, who

Dutchman Pieter Weening (Rabobank) gave a glimpse of his potential and ended a frustrating streak of runner-up places with a well-taken win on the eighth stage of the Tour de France Saturday in Gerardmer. Weening had to wait an agonizing few minutes before finding out for sure if he had really won a two-man sprint with Germany's Andreas Klöden (T-Mobile) - and when the result came he could still not quite believe it. "In a two-man sprint nothing's decided until it's over so I just tried to hold on for as long as possible," said Weening, who is the first Dutchman to win a stage

As Jeff Louder of Navigators and four other cyclists broke away from the pack, Scott Moninger and his Health Net-Maxxis teammates sat at the front of the peloton and waited. And waited. Finally, during the final climb to the finish of Saturday's Awbrey Butte Circuit Race in the Cascade Cycling Classic, Health Net made its move. Moninger, the race leader coming in, was propelled to the front by his teammates and finished second in the stage to hang onto the overall lead. "It's a lesson in patience," Moninger said. "My teammates just rotated through. We've been in this position a

On Friday, as the Tour de France headed to Karlsruhe, Germany, Gerolsteiner’s Fabian Wegmann rode solo for hours on his carbon Specialized S-Works Tarmac. However, once the race hits the mountains, two of his teammates, namely Levi Leipheimer and Georg Totschnig will be riding the even lighter, next-generation S-Works Tarmac SL frame and all-carbon S-Works fork. The SL shares the Tarmac’s geometry. Yet, because Specialized tweaked both tube shapes and dimensions while custom tuning the orientation and number of layers of carbon, the SL has been designed for maximum shock absorption, road

The Canadian National Road Championships opened Thursday with the individual time trial in Kamloops, and both the men's and women's elite titles were successfully defended. Sue Palmer-Komar (Colavita) beat Genevieve Jeanson (Rona-Colnago) by a mere 76 one-hundredths of a second to take the women's title, while Svein Tuft defeated his Symmetrics teammate Eric Wohlberg by 53 seconds for the men's title. Ryder Hesjedal (Discovery Channel) was third in the men's race and Felicia Greer (Webcor) third in the women's. Unlike last year, when temperatures of over 40 Celsius

Kirk O'Bee and his Navigators teammates sat back and waited for the finish. They weren't going to work hard if they didn't have to. O'Bee and Navigators let Health Net-Maxxis do most of the work throughout Friday night's Twilight Criterium in downtown Bend. Then O'Bee broke from the pack with one lap to go and stayed ahead to win the criterium, the fourth stage of the Cascade Cycling Classic, by 10 meters over second-place Remi McManus of Subway and third-place Gord Fraser of Health Net-Maxxis. Rain poured down throughout the race as O'Bee patiently waited for

Ina Yoko Teutenberg and Sarah Uhl were both out front battling the rain, but Teutenberg had one advantage: Teammates. With about 20 minutes left in the women's Twilight Criterium of the Cascade Cycling Classic in downtown Bend on Friday night, Uhl and Teutenberg broke away from the field and developed a lead of almost one minute. A group of six riders - three of them Teutenberg's T-Mobile teammates - gained some ground on the two leaders as the finish neared. Knowing she had the help of her teammates, Teutenberg was able to sit on Uhl's wheel, then make her move just in time,

First, a question: Dear Lennard,I was wondering why the Saunier Duval team is allowed to wear their yellow outfits in the Tour. I thought that teams that had yellow in their colors had to change them for the Tour, as ONCE did in the past.Peter Dear Peter,Here is the official answer from Virginie Geinoz, the press officer for Saunier Duval-Prodir: “The Tour asked us to make a new jersey with less yellow. Therefore, we have designed this special edition for the Tour with the shoulders in white.”Lennard Ag2R on carbon clinchersTeam Ag2R is using unmarked Reynolds carbon clincher wheels

Scott Moninger had that familiar feeling as he stood atop the podium at Mount Bachelor after stage 2 of the Cascade Cycling Classic on Thursday. Moninger (Health Net-Maxxis) was the overall champion at the Cascade Classic during 1999-2001, and his experience in Central Oregon - plus a miscue by Cesar Grajales (Navigators), who thought the finish was 10km up the road - allowed him to overtake Grajales and win the 90-mile stage to Bachelor’s Sunrise Lodge in 3 hours, 31 minutes, 28 seconds. "I've won this particular stage a few times, so I know it pretty well," Moninger said. "It's

The Cascade Cycling Classic women's race got off to a scary start on Thursday, as an early 20-rider pileup sent two racers to a local hospital. "It was one of the worst sounds I've heard in a long time," said Kristin Armstrong (T-Mobile), who won the 81.6-mile Cascade Lakes Road Race stage in a time of 3 hours, 40 minutes, 33 seconds. Leah Goldstein (Trek-Red Truck Beer Racing) sustained hip, shoulder and arm injuries in the crash, according to race director Brad Ross. She and Cat Malone (Webcor) were both taken to St. Charles Medical Center-Bend. "She'll be in the hospital for

As if taunting them, Pilot Butte loomed in the distance as Gord Fraser and Phil Zajicek raced toward the finishing climb with the peloton closing fast behind them. But the two riders stayed ahead of the pack, and they raced neck and neck for the mile-long climb up the steep road on the cinder cone in east Bend. Fraser then held off Zajicek by half a bike length to claim the 118-mile stage 1 of Central Oregon's Cascade Cycling Classic on Wednesday. The winning time was 4 hours, 38 minutes, 19 seconds. The two top finishers had broken away from a lead pack of eight cyclists at the

Tuesday’s stage was a showdown between the powerhouse time-trial teams, as well as a battle between old and new philosophies about racing against the clock. At the beginning of Lance Armstrong’s Tour victory run, the time-trial powerhouses were Telekom (now T-Mobile), ONCE (now Liberty Seguros) and U.S. Postal (now Discovery). But Liberty Seguros has become only a shadow of its former time-trialing self, and T-Mobile has also slipped a number of notches. The new guard still contains Discovery, but CSC, Phonak and Gerolsteiner are the new young bucks trying to kick the door in. All these

After David Zabriskie’s first day in the yellow jersey, I ran into Allen Lim, Floyd Landis’s personal coach, who described some of Zabriskie’s mental preparation leading up to the Tour. According to Lim, Landis repeatedly told Zabriskie that the yellow jersey was his for the taking. “Floyd lives with Zabriskie in Girona, and ever since the Giro, Floyd’s been telling David, ‘Dude, you’ve gotta aim for winning that prologue at the Tour.’ David was nervous about doing the Giro and the Tour back to back, but that helped ease his concerns. Floyd told him that if he won the prologue and got the

David Zabriskie’s third brake lever probably did not play a role in Saturday’s opening time trial, although his bunny-hopping entire traffic circles instead of riding around them certainly raised a few eyebrows (just kidding). But the extra brake lever on the handlebar extensions has been a source of great interest (see VeloNews, June 27, 2005), and a number of the teams are using them. In a flat individual time trial like the one that opened the 2005 Tour de France, the third lever may not help much beyond taking a little speed off for a corner here or there. It is very useful in courses

Jan Ullrich's bid to upstage six-time champion Lance Armstrong at the Tour de France got off to a bad start Friday when the T-Mobile rider crashed into a team car during training. The 1997 Tour winner was training with his team when he failed to spot a warning to brake and slammed into the car's back window. The five-time runner-up sustained minor cuts and scratches to his neck, but will start Saturday's time trial from Fromentine to Noirmoutier-en-l'Ile. “He did not see the special sign we make when the car has to brake,” T-Mobile press officer Luuc Eisenga said by

The Lithuanian cycling federation on Thursday deplored the aggressive manner in which the Baltic state's star cyclist Raimundas Rumsas was arrested in Italy this week. “Why use these hard-line tactics?" questioned Vytautas Zubernis, vice-president of the Baltic state's cycling federation. "Raimundas Rumsas lives in Europe. He is not in hiding. This kind of arrest would be justified if he had refused to attend his hearing" Rumsas was detained Wednesday in Italy on a European international arrest warrant issued by French prosecutors investigating drug trafficking. In 2002 Rumsas was

Floyd Landis isn’t one to take things too seriously; be it himself or the often-intense business of racing bicycles. The 29-year-old enters this year’s Tour de France anxious to prove to the world he deserves his shot at being a team leader, but that doesn’t mean you can’t have a little fun along the way. After a strong ride at the Dauphiné Libéré, Landis rolls into Fromentine this Saturday knowing his form is on target for the season’s big test. Phonak officials are quietly confident their man can deliver a top-five result, perhaps even claw his way onto the podium. VeloNews European

Lithuanian rider Raimondas Rumsas has been detained in Italy on a European international arrest warrant issued by French prosecutors investigating drug trafficking. His French lawyer, Alexandre Varaut, told AFP they would be appealing to a Florence court to get the 33-year-old Rumsas released. In 2002 Rumsas was involved in a scandal after his wife Edita was caught with large quantities of growth hormones and other drugs in her car after the Tour de France in which Rumsas had finished third. Rusmas had already left France but his wife was jailed for several months before being released and

PARIS (AP) -- Lance Armstrong's team director says only three riders could threaten the Texan's bid for a seventh straight Tour de France title when cycling's showcase race begins Saturday. Johan Bruyneel, Armstrong's tactical adviser in each of his six Tour wins, picked 1997 winner Jan Ullrich, Alexandre Vinokourov and Ivan Basso as the main competition. ''I think those three are the real challengers,'' Bruyneel said this week in a telephone interview with The Associated Press. Vinokourov is not as quick as his T-Mobile teammate Ullrich on time trials, but

The week before the Tour de France is finally here. The second half of the season has already begun. The Giro d’Italia is long over, along with the Dauphiné and Tour du Suisse. Before you know it, we will be at Lombardi racing the last race of the calendar. I raced – well okay, I participated – in the Dauphiné after the Giro. I stopped with one day to go and even that was a few days too late. I have been at home ever since. It's a weird feeling being home after more-or-less racing non-stop for five weeks. You find yourself ridiculously restless and then absolutely knackered all at

This is the last chance for Jan Ullrich and his lonely quest to beat Lance Armstrong. With just a few days to go before the pair’s final Tour de France showdown, Ullrich’s optimism proves yet again that hope springs eternal. “I’d love to beat him,” Ullrich, 31, told Welt am Sonntag newspaper. “He’s dominated the race for the last six years and broken the records of the century. That's my motivation -- this is the last chance.” The red-headed German has consistently been Armstrong’s top rival in the Texan’s six-year Tour reign. Ullrich nearly derailed Armstrong in the exciting 2003

The reigning champion, Jure Robic, concluded his domination of the2005 Insight Race Across America through furnace-like conditionson a refreshingly cool, cloudy evening on the Atlantic CityBoardwalk. He completed the 3,502 miles in 9 days, 8 hours and 48minutes. Throughout this unusually hot race, Robic proved far moreresilient than any of his rivals to the brutal heat that bore downfrom above and bounced mercilessly back off the road. When the Appalachian mountains rose as the final, dauntingchallenge to legs weary from 2,500 miles' racing, Robic remainedsmooth and strong. No rider at

T-Mobile rolls into this week’s Tour de France with a stronger focus than ever. The German team will leave sprinter ace Erik Zabel at home to fortify its Tour objective of beating Lance Armstrong in his final run at the maillot jaune. Alexandre Vinokourov said the team is more motivated than ever, with Jan Ullrich, Andreas Klöden and Vino’ sharing the load on the road to Paris. “I don’t have individual objectives. The whole team is geared up for one objective: winning the Tour de France. I won’t be there to ride my own race, but to ride for the team,” Vinokourov said on the team’s web page.

Athens, Ohio - Juré Robic’s grizzled, sun baked body resisted. It wanted to stay on the soft grass, out of the sun, relaxed by the side of the road in Athens, Ohio. But the mind of the Insight Race Across America’s defending champion had other ideas. So Robic rose, with the help of two crew members, threw a leg over his Italian race bike, and pedaled on the down the road as he has for the previous seven-and-a-half days, towards time station 45. With the departure of second place Mike Trevino from the race earlier in the day, due to a separated shoulder, Robic’s second consecutive RAAM win

Greenville, Illinois – There’s an accepted truth in the annals of the Race Across America: the race really begins once the riders hit the Mississippi River. While it’s not the mathematical half-way mark, the Mississippi is the most obvious indication that there’s still a heap of riding yet to go. If that’s so, then the leader through day seven, Slovenia’s Juré Robic, is just getting warmed up to repeat his win of a year ago. As potential challengers have fallen by the wayside, brought low by unreasonable early efforts, extreme heat, and the simple fatigue of riding 20 to 22 hours a day for a

First-year senior Gerald Ciolek ended T-Mobiles long running dominanceof the German national road championships on Sunday, beating such Germansprinting stalwarts like Gerolsteiner's Robert Forster and especially T-Mobile's Erik Zabel in the final charge to the line at the end of a 204-kilometer road race in Manheim. The German event comes on the same day as all European national championship races.With 75 meters to go, it appeared that Zabel had the national titlein the bag. But suddenly Ciolek, who has still contested junior events thisseason, charged out of the field to catch and

Lance Armstrong is not looking too good these days: He has a black eye, a cut over his right eyebrow and abrasions on his hands and knees. The six-time defending Tour de France champion crashed at low speed during the start of a training ride last week. He lost control on his time-trial bike and sailed over the handlebars, his helmet splitting in two on impact. Armstrong shrugs it off. After all, for someone who's beaten cancer and rewritten cycling's record book, bumps and bruises are small stuff. “I'm excited about the race. I feel very good on the bike,” Armstrong said

>PUTNAMVILLE, Indiana (10:47 a.m. EST, June 26, 2005) Second-placesolo racer, Mike Trevino, announced his withdrawal from RAAM this morning.According to information on his website, Trevino fell off his bikearound 8:30 a.m. EST and separated his shoulder."He was looking back for just a second and hit a little bump that tookhim down," explained a member of Trevino's crew. "We talked about continuingbut he would've had to ride with one arm the rest of theway and that's just not safe."RAAM rules also prohibit riders from taking any kind of pain medicationand with the pain quickly on

Roberto Heras enters next week's Tour de France an enigmatic figure among the list of favorites. The three-time Vuelta a España champion has kept a very low profile so far this season, leaving many to wonder if he'll be ready to face Lance Armstrong and the other Tour contenders on the same level. During the recent Dauphiné Libéré, Heras hardly left any impression at all as he rode well back in the pack during the big climbs at Mont Ventoux and Joux Plane. He insists, however, he'll be ready for the Tour. "It's not something worrisome because the mountains in the Tour are

Kyle Gritters (Team Seasilver) won the under-23 criterium on Friday at Utah’s Park City Cycling Festival, while Kimberly Geist (Victory Brewing) claimed the 17-18 win with a last-minute attack. During the 37-mile U-23 race, Gritters lapped the field with last year’s road-race champion, Ian MacGregor (TIAA-CREF), then pipped his breakaway companion at the line. Geist, meanwhile, spent much of the afternoon in a five-woman breakaway, then used the final 400-meter ascent as a springboard to victory. Other winners on the day included Rebecca Much (U-23 women); Karla Lopez (junior women 10-12);

As the Insight Race Across America rolls toward Atlantic City, Jure Robic seems likely to defend his solo title, while third-placed Marko Baloh abandoned with pneumonia. Robic, who last reported in at 2:20 p.m. EST from time station 38 in Marshall, Illinois, has fewer than 1000 miles to ride. Mike Trevino crossed the Mississippi River in second place at 1:33 p.m. Trevino has covered 2012.2 miles with 1039.5 to go. Meanwhile, Marko Baloh withdrew from the race with acute pneumonia, moving Fabio Biasolo into third place. Biasolo checked in from time station 34 in Marthasville, Missouri, at

Ian MacGregor successfully defended his U23 national championship title in Park City, Utah, Saturday with a win in the 125-mile road race at the national cycling festival. MacGregor called the victory a "100 percent team effort" after an overall performance that saw three riders from the TIAA-CREF squad in the top four. Health Net’s Tyler Farrar also rode a strong race, but in the end he was simply outnumbered by a 12-rider team that many expected to have a dominant presence on the podium by day's end. Battered by rain and severe winds, only 47 of the 117-rider field finished. After

Gerolsteiner's Michael Rich claimed his fifth national title when he dominated the field in the German national time-trial championship Friday in Schweinfurt. Rich, 35, a specialist in the race against the clock, turned a time of 47 minutes, 10 seconds for the 40km race, leaving his teammate Sebastian Lang down in second place at 1:02. CSC's Jens Voigt finished third at 1:15. Results1. Michael Rich, Gerolsteiner, 40km in 47:102. Sebastian Lang, Gerolsteiner, at 1:023. Jens Voigt, Team CSC, at 1:15 Gutierrez takes Spanish TTJose Ivan Gutierrez (Illes Baleares) won his third title in

The Park City Cycling Festival continued in Utah on Thursday with a one-two finish by Team 5280 Magazine in the men's 17-18 race and a classy display of sportsmanship in the women's 17-18 competition. After 78 miles of racing, 5280's Peter Stetina of Boulder, Colorado, crossed the line hand in hand with teammate Tejay Van Garderen of Fort Collins, Colorado. Nick Frey (Hot Tubes) took the bronze. In the 53-mile women's race, meanwhile, Kimberly Geist (Victory Brewing) sat up and waited for breakaway companion Shannon Koch ((Team LaS'port) after Koch's chain derailed in

Defending solo champion Jure Robic held a lead of nearly 10 hours over second-place soloist Mike Trevino as the Insight Race Across America continued on Friday. However, Robic is riding just short of an average speed record set in 1986 by Pete Penseyres. To break Penseyres' long-standing mark, Robic will have to pace himself at 15.40 mph or faster. So far, his average speed for this year's RAAM is 14.92 mph. Robic last reported in at 3:12 p.m. EST from time station 33 in Jefferson City, Missouri. In the team race, meanwhile, Team Beaver Creek-Vail - Mike Janelle, Jimi Mortenson,

Phonak will approach the 2005 Tour de France covering its bets with three team leaders, playing its cards behind the collective strength of Santiago Botero, Oscar Pereiro and Floyd Landis. According to team manager John Lelangue, Phonak is confident that at least one of their leading threesome will bubble their way to the top of the Tour heap. “I’m pretty sure we can have one of the riders in the top five, and the podium would be perfect,” Lelangue told VeloNews. “The main objective is the GC, not winning stages, not chasing other classifications. The main objective is to be as far as

Organizers of the Tour de France plan to use the same test for illicit blood transfusions first employed at last year’s summer Olympics in Athens, the French national drug screening laboratory (LNDD) announced on Thursday. The test, approved for use last summer, is at the center of two appeals being brought before the international Court of Arbitration for Sport by American Tyler Hamilton and his former Phonak teammate Santiago Perez after both were found to be positive for so-called homologous blood doping. Blood doping is a means of enhancing endurance by increasing the amount of

Your race day nutritional preparation should be specific and well thought out so that when you arrive to the start line you are both optimally fueled and confident that your food and fluid choices are tolerated through the intensity of racing. Depending on the distance of your race, what you eat in the 24 to 48 hours before race day can allow you to maximize the muscle glycogen content of your trained muscles- an important fuel source at any racing intensity. Often referred to as “carbo-loading” this strategy is simply tapering or resting for the race as your training programs dictates and

Iban Mayo has been champing at the bit all season long and now he's rearing to go. The Euskaltel-Euskadi rider has put everything on the Tour de France in the hopes of avoiding last year's disappointment, when the red-hot Mayo peaked too early and flamed out of contention by the time the Tour hit the Pyrénées. This year, Mayo has kept his aggressiveness in check, holding back, keeping everything pent up for one big run at the Tour. Everyone in Spain's Basque Country is anxiously waiting to see if the strategy will work. "This year we've changed the preparation, we've

The Discovery Channel team that will ride in defense of Lance Armstrong’sTour de France title will closely resemble the team he took to the Tourlast year.Tailwind Sports, owner of the Discovery Channel cycling team, announcedthe composition of the team that will join Armstrong on the start linein Fromentine in 10 days. From last year’s Tour squad are- American GeorgeHincapie, Spain's Jose Luis Rubiera, Manuel Beltran and Benjamin Noval,Pavel Padrnos of the Czech Republic, and Portugal's Jose Azevedo.The two “new” members of the team bring a wealth of grand tour experiencewith them as

A pair of surprise winners took top honors at the National Road Race Championships in Park City, Utah, on Wednesday, as Webcor’s Katheryn Curi and mountain biker Carl Decker (Broadmark Capital) outclassed two strong fields of elite riders to earn stars-and-stripes jerseys in their respective events. Worker bee no moreFor the past few years Curi (Webcor Builders) had played second fiddle as a support rider –for Genevieve Jeanson on the Rona squad and more recently for Christine Thorburn at Webcor. But at Wednesday’s national championship race the 31-year old Vermonter proved her abilities

Erik Zabel’s ongoing hunt for the green points jersey has often been a distraction from his team’s real mission at the Tour de France, T-Mobile manager Mario Kummer said Wednesday as the team announced its line-up for the race. As expected, the 34-year-old Zabel was left off of the roster for next month's Tour de France and replaced by 26-year-old all-rounder Stephan Schreck, who is riding in his first Tour. The move is intended to strengthen Jan Ullrich's bid to dethrone six-time winner Lance Armstrong. Zabel, a six-time winner of the Tour's green jersey, has raced in 11

Dropped chains - Why? Dear Lennard,

Damiano Cunego won’t be taking on Lance Armstrong in this year’s Tour de France after all. His Lampre-Caffita team confirmed Tuesday what many observers had already guessed: the Epstein Barr virus that sapped young Cunego’s strength is still nagging the Italian. “Tests carried out on June 17 have shown a fall in the number of Epstein Bar Virus anti-bodies from 580 to 170, but this is still far from normal values of 0 to 20 and Cunego is still diagnosed as 'recovering,’” the team said in a statement Tuesday. “As a result the Lampre-Caffita team management and medical staff have changed

Antelope Island, Utah –While last year’s elite time trial championships were held in Southern California’s sweaty 100-degree heat, this year’s event was held on a remote, windy rock in the middle of the Great Salt Lake –the uninhabited Antelope Island. Despite the clouds of biting flies and ever-present stench created by the coastal marsh, most riders saw the venue as a major upgrade from last year. “The course is great. With the climb and descent it really fit me well because I’m a bigger rider,” said T-Mobile’s Kristin Armstrong. Armstrong, who won the 2005 Pan American time trial

Well, I’m happy. My last – and most difficult – test before the Tour de France is now over. Unfortunately, I wasn’t able to defend my yellow jersey at the Tour of Switzerland this year, but I have to admit it wasn’t a major goal for me, either. Finishing in third was more than satisfactory and I am pretty happy with my form… besides, the yellow jersey I want is the one you wear into Paris at the end of July. As far as that goes, I think I am well on my way to being ready for that challenge. The Tour of Switzerland was a great test for me. While winning again there wasn’t in the cards, for

Overall ProTour leader Danilo Di Luca will return to the circuit on July 31 for the HEW-Cyclassics in Hamburg, Germany, his Liquigas team announced on Monday. The 29-year-old Italian has not raced since the Giro d’Italia, which finished earlier this month when he finished fourth. "I returned to training on Sunday because I wanted to rest after the Giro," he said. "If it isn't too hot I will train in the Appennine mountains. "I will return at Hamburg in order to rediscover my rhythm and then I will race in San Sebastian, Spain, and the Tour of Germany so I can pick up more points,"

Dave Zabriskie and Bobby Julich have earned tickets to the Tour deFrance, Team CSC officials confirmed to VeloNews on Sunday. While Julich's participation was never in doubt, the 26-year-old Utahanwill make his Tour debut following his strong performance in last month'sGiro d'Italia. Zabriskie has flowered under the tutelage of Team CSC boss Bjarne Riis,winning an individual time trial and providing strong support to team leaderIvan Basso at the Giro. Zabriskie bounced back from a horrible car crashin 2003 to win a stage in last year's Vuelta a España and take fifthin the

Alex Candelario (UCICT-Jelly Belly) launched an early attack in the final stage of the 13th Annual Tour de Nez in Reno, Nevada, and still managed to fend off his breakaway companion to take the win, as Health Net’s Scott Moninger finished in the field to keep the overall title. After two days of racing in wet, cold conditions, riders welcomed the sunny skies and moderate winds that greeted them in downtown Reno for the final stage of the Tour de Nez. Such favorable weather drew the largest crowds yet, with hundreds of spectators lining the .8-mile course. With beer gardens, a cycling expo,

Nathan O’Neill did a solid job of protecting his hold on the leader’s jersey in a tough final stage at the 20th edition of the Tour de Beauce: 12 laps of a tough 11-kilometer circuit in and around St Georges, Quebec. O'Neill, who took over the yellow jersey from Svein Tuft (Symmetrics), and his was the strongest squad in the race, but would it be enough to cover the inevitable attacks that would take place? The answer was yes, although a small group did finally creep away in the last two laps, giving Health Net's Doug Ollerenshaw the final stage win. The attacks began immediately,

It was an aggressive Aitor Gonzalez (Euskaltel – Euskadi) who took the overall title of the 69th edition of the Tour de Suisse. Showing the same willingness to attack – and to gamble – he displayed Saturday, Gonzalez won the ninth and final stage on Sunday by 45 seconds, more than the 36 seconds he needed to surpass Michael Rogers (QuickStep) in the general classification. “In the first climb I wasn’t sure of my legs, but I was confident after that,” said Gonzalez. “I crossed the line and I thought it was great to have won the stage, but that I could only hope to win the whole tour.” Second

Australian world time trial champion Michael Rogers, who is considered a future contender for the Tour de France yellow jersey, is set to leave Quick Step to join the T-Mobile outfit of Jan Ullrich, according to reports. The 25-year-old is the reigning two-time world time trial champion and is currently leading the Tour of Switzerland going into Saturday's penultimate stage. Although the official announcement for his move to Ullrich's team will not be until September - the beginning of the transfer period - Quick Step manager Patrick Lefevere admitted to Het Nieuwsblad on Saturday

The second day of the 13th annual Tour de Nez omnium stage race served up a 108-mile road race of epic proportions on Friday. Strong, cold winds, hail, scattered showers, and even a few snow flurries greeted riders throughout the four-hour-plus event. Racers completed three laps of a stunning 36-mile course that began and ended in the historic town of Truckee, California. From there, riders ascended a steady 13-mile grade to Tahoe City, passing Squaw Valley, home of the 1960 Winter Olympics, then continued along rolling terrain that ran parallel to the shores of Lake Tahoe. After reaching

Stage six of the Tour de Beauce had two battles going on Saturday. Charles Dionne (Team Canada) won the fight for the stage in front of his hometown crowd, while Nathan O'Neill (Navigators) managed to wrest the yellow jersey off the back of Svein Tuft (Symmetrics) by a slim six seconds after a last, desperate attack on the final climb. The Quebec City stage was expected to be the toughest of the Tour, and it did not disappoint. The last time this circuit was used was in 1999 for the TransCanada Tour, and it has certainly not gotten easier. The riders start on the Grand Allee in the

The Friday-evening criterium had no appreciable effect on the overall standings at the Tour de Beauce, though Navigators racked up its third consecutive stage victory, with Vassili Davidenko easily coming by Evan Elken (Jittery Joe's-Kalahari) at the line. Yellow jersey holder Svein Tuft (Symmetrics) finished safely in the peloton, 17 seconds behind the breakaway of 11 riders, including Davidenko. For the first time in the race, it did not rain during the stage, to the relief of the top contenders. Attacks began immediately, with Team Canada being very aggressive - particularly

Pablo Lastras (Illes Baleares) won the second-to-last stage of the Tour of Switzerland on Saturday after a brutal climb to the high ski town of Verbier. The general classification did not change substantially, as race leader Michael Rogers (Quick Step) and his two closest challengers – Jan Ullrich (T-Mobile) and Bradley McGee (Française des Jeux) – finished in a group, 1 minute, 20 seconds behind Lastras Garcia. “I rode 100 percent today,” said a sweaty Ullrich, who trails Rogers by 20 seconds going into the tour’s final stage Sunday. “The last mountain was hard, with lots of attacks. I was

It’s official: Chris Horner will be going to the Tour de France. Horner’s stage-winning ride in Thursday’s climbing stage at the Tour de Suisse assured the popular American rider of a spot on the nine-man Saunier Duval-Prodir team for July’s big dance. “Yes, Chris will be going to the Tour. It was looking good already, but his victory makes the decision final,” Saunier Duval sport director Joxean "Matxin" Fernández told VeloNews. Horner entered the Tour de Suisse with something to prove. After injury kept him out of the Giro d’Italia, the 33-year-old reloaded with ambitions of earning a

More news trickled out in the Spanish press following the tragic death of Italian veteran Alessio Galletti, felled by a heart attack Wednesday in the Subida a Naranco race in northern Spain. A five-hour autopsy Thursday confirmed Galletti died of cardiac arrest some 15km from the finish line after complaining of chest pain and breathing difficulties. It will be another three months, however, before more extensive analysis is completed on the rider’s vital organs. Galletti’s mother and wife traveled to Oviedo on Thursday to retrieve his body; they will return to Italy sometime this weekend.

The 13th annual Tour de Nez kicked off Thursday with a 5km time trial in Verdi, Nevada, followed by an hourlong criterium in Truckee, California. Now in its third year on the NRC calendar, this year’s three-day, four-race omnium has attracted its strongest field ever with a pro-Category 1-2 field of more than 100 riders, including Scott Moninger, Gord Fraser and Tyler Farrar (Health Net-Maxxis); Alexander Candelario and Dave McCook (Jelly Belly-PoolGel); and Discovery’s Steven Cozza racing with the under-23 national team. Also in attendance are full squads from Kodak Gallery-Sierra Nevada,

Germany’s young Linus Gerdemann of Team CSC joined an early breakaway group and then outlasted his peers in order to win Friday’s stage of the Tour of Switzerland. “I need to sleep one night and wake up tomorrow to realize what I’ve done,” said the 22-year-old, who has never won a race in major international competition. “But now it’s time for me to go back to my role of being a teammate.” The two remaining days of the nine-stage race could be the most difficult yet, according to Michael Rogers of Quick Step, who retained the yellow leader’s jersey, and still leads race favorite Jan Ullrich

As expected, the 27km time trial has rearranged the general classification at the Tour de Beauce. Svein Tuft (Symmetrics) takes over the yellow jersey from Dominique Rollin (Equipe Quebec), but he is just five seconds in front of Nathan O'Neill (Navigators), who crushed the competition in the stage. O’Neill finished 52 seconds in front of runner-up Tuft, with his teammate Jeff Louder giving Navigators third place on the stage and in the overall rankings. The riders woke up to heavy rain, but by the time the first rider rolled down the ramp, it had backed off to drizzle, and halfway

Italian rider Alessio Galletti complained of breathing trouble and chest pain just moments before stepping off his bike and dying of a heart attack in Wednesday’s Subida al Naranco one-day race in northern Spain. “I feel bad, I can’t breathe,” complained the 37-year-old just 15km from the finish line in the hilly race in Spain’s Asturias region. Those were his last words as the father of one and another on the way stepped out of his pedals, sat on the side of the road and collapsed. Born March 26, 1968 in Pisa, Italy, Galletti wasn’t a natural-born winner. During his 12 years as a pro,

Dominique Rollin (Equipe Quebec) will hold onto the yellow leader's jerseyat the Tour de Beauce for a second day, after the field finished togetherin stage three.  Rollin, who won stage two on Wednesday, finishedsafely in the pack, three seconds behind winner David O'Loughlin (Navigators). Mark Walters (Navigators), who is second in the overall standings, managedto gain three seconds on Rollin after taking an intermediate time bonus,and is now only 12 seconds out of the lead.The stage was shortened from 180 kilometres to 140 due to road damage,a decision that everyone agreed

With a veteran’s tactics and the heart of a rookie, American underdog Chris Horner (Saunier Duval – Prodir) picked up his first major European victory Thursday, crushing the competition in the mountainous sixth stage of the Tour of Switzerland. “I’m sorry I don’t know the names,” Horner said when an Italian reporter asked about the several riders he had dropped on the final climb. “This is only my eighth - wait, my fifth - race in Europe.” Michael Rogers of QuickStep took the yellow jersey away from T-Mobile’s Jan Ullrich, and now has a 20-second lead over the German in the general

Everyone wants to ride faster. Last week wediscussed VO2max and natural ability. Now we get to the good stuff – lactate threshold (LT). The burn. The reason we enjoy talking about LT is because it is highly trainable.Don’t get us wrong, natural ability still plays a huge role, both withVO2max and LT, but for almost every individual, training properly willramp up LT. Lactate Threshold?Lactate is a by-product of anaerobic metabolism that, despite common misconception, is produced across all exercise intensities. In fact, even when you stand up from sitting in a chair, lactate acid is

In what marks an end of era in a year that’s seen more than its fair share of big names leaving cycling, German sprinter star Erik Zabel won’t be part of T-Mobile’s Tour de France plans. The 34-year-old Berliner has ridden in 11 Tours, winning 12 stages and six green jerseys, but the decisive to leave the German ace off its nine-man Tour roster reveals T-Mobile’s real ambition – to try to beat Lance Armstrong in what will be the six-time champion’s last race. “With three riders in the team who already stood on the podium in Paris, we are clearly aiming for yellow,” said future team manager

Lac Etchemin, Quebec - Quebec riders made it two-for-two in thesecond stage of the Tour de Beauce on Wednesday, with Dominique Rollin(Equipe Quebec) winning the 180 kilometer stage.  Rollin finishedsecond to Martin Gilbert (VW-Trek) in Tuesday's opening stage and, withthe time bonuses awarded for winning the stage, takes over the yellow leader'sjersey.The race took the riders on a long, hilly loop around Lac Etchemin,through the Beauce region south of Quebec City.  The weather playeda major factor in the stage, with cold rain and strong winds forcing theabandonment of many

Liquigas’s Michael Albasini jumped out of a seven-man escape group to win the fifth stage of the Tour of Switzerland on Wednesday. The win was the first in the 24-year-old Albasini’s professional career and one that was especially sweet as it took place on home soil and came by outsprinting his old Phonak teammate, Swiss national champion, Gregory Rast at the front of a small group that finished but 38 seconds ahead of the main field. “I never thought our group could arrive ahead of the peloton,” said Albasini. “But about 10 kilometers from the end, I began to believe we just might do

The inevitable question of what the future holds for Discovery Channel following the retirement of Lance Armstrong won’t include a post-Tour shopping spree. Discovery Channel team boss Johan Bruyneel said the team is unlikely to be on the market looking for another big-time name to take over the reins following Armstrong’s departure. “Every year you take some new guys, but for the moment it’s very quiet for us,” Bruyneel told VeloNews. “I think we have a great team, even without Lance we’ve been doing great. I won’t go desperately after another guy.” Bruyneel guided Armstrong to an

Italian rider Alessio Galletti died Wednesday after suffering an apparent heart attack during Spain's Subida Naranco cycling race, chief press officer Jose Ramon Rodriguez confirmed to AFP. The 37-year-old Galletti, a rider with the Naturino-Sapore di Mare team, died near the northern town of Oviedo after losing consciousness following a fall 15km from the finish line. Spanish media quoted other riders as saying that the 37-year-old had difficulties breathing at points leading up to the climb. "He was at the back of the peloton about to begin the penultimate climb of the stage. He

After three stage wins and an early departure from last month’s Giro d’Italia, Robbie McEwen (Davitamon-Lotto) resumed his winning ways on Tuesday, taking the fourth stage of the Tour of Switzerland. The Australian national champion easily beat Daniele Colli (Liquigas) at the head of a mass sprint finish in the town of Bad Zurzach. “A stage win here in the Tour de Suisse with this field is pretty worthy,” said the Australian winner, pointing out that many of the UCI Pro Tour’s top sprinters chose the Swiss stage race over the overlapping Dauphiné Libéré. Jan Ullrich (T-Mobile) held on to

Water, water everywhereDear Lennard,My Spinergy Xaero's quite literally fill up with water if I ride whenit rains even reasonably hard. Only way to get it out is to eitherdeflate the tire and pry it off at the valve hole when the hole's at thebottom, or remove the tube/tire and drain with the hole at the bottom.This drives me nuts! It's not a little water either.It makes a big puddle. Any suggestions?MattDear Matt,I can imagine why this might drive you nuts! It’s amazing how manyquestions about this exact thing I have gotten this spring, regarding manydifferent wheel brands.

Tom Danielson is scheduled to start the Tour of Austria (July 4-10) in what will be his return to racing after pulling out of the Giro d’Italia with knee troubles. Danielson saw his Giro come to an abrupt end with pain and swelling in his knee made it impossible for him to continue. “The knee is good and I am back,” Danielson said in an e-mail. “I’ve been training just a little, but all is good. I’m healed it up and now I am strengthened the source of the problem. It is crazy how our bodies can just go out of whack from something we do everyday. Luckily, I am on the best team in the world,

A local Quebec rider, riding for a local Quebec team won the first stageof the Tour de Beauce, despite the presence of top-flite U.S. squads the likes of Navigators, Health Net and Jittery Joe's. Martin Gilbert (VW-Trek) took the leader's jersey after winning the sprint out of select group of 14 riders who finished just under a minute ahead of the peloton.The 169-kilometer stage started in light rain, and overcast skies doggedthe race all day.  The stage featured the long, rolling climbs whichthe region is famous for.  Jean Sebastien Beland (Equipe Quebec) startedthe action

Francaise des Jeux's Bradley McGee won the third stage of the Tour of Switzerland on Monday ahead of Italy's Mirko Celestino and Patrik Sinkewitz of Germany. German star Jan Ullrich, who stayed tucked away in the peloton, kept hold of the yellow jersey after the end of the 154km stage from Abtwil to St. Anton. The 29-year-old McGee, a member of the Australian Olympic team pursuit gold medal winning team in Athens in 2004, also gave his team its second win of this year's race following Austrian Bernhard Eisel's victory in the opening stage. McGee said he was delighted with

George Hincapie put an emphatic exclamation point on what’s been a fête américaine during this year’s Dauphiné Libéré, winning Sunday’s exciting finale after a dramatic two-man breakaway with Discovery Channel teammate and protégé Yaroslav Popovych. Basque bomber Iñigo Landaluze (Euskaltel-Euskadi) hung on during the fast-paced 128km seventh stage to claim the 57th Dauphiné crown by a slender margin of 11 seconds to Santiago Botero (Phonak) while Levi Leipheimer (Gerolsteiner) finished third overall at 38 seconds back for his first major podium since his breakthrough at the 2001 Vuelta a

T-Mobile's Jan Ullrich, riding for the T-Mobile team, won the second stage of the Tour of Switzerland in Weinfelden on Sunday, a 36km time trial. Ullrich, using a new bike, edged Australian duo Bradley McGee and Michael Rogers by 15 and 18 seconds respectively. Many of the fans lining the course in this German-speaking canton of northern Switzerland were dressed in T-Mobile pink to show their support for Ullrich. Bernhard Eisel, who won the opening stage on Saturday, finished well off the pace in Sunday's time trial. "Naturally I'm happy. I was wondering if I'd be able to

The Dauphiné Libéré has been a race of reckoning for many. While Lance Armstrong, Floyd Landis, Levi Leipheimer, Santiago Botero and Alexandre Vinokourov have clearly demonstrated they’re in top form, other big names have failed to leave any impression at all. One name lost deep in the daily result sheet is Spanish climbing sensation Roberto Heras (Liberty Seguros), who hasn’t finished well in any of the big climbing stages. “There’s no reason to panic yet,” insists Heras, 52nd overall at 33:29 back. “There’s still a month to go before the Tour. I don’t come here to do anything in

STILLWATER, Minn. (June 12, 2005) -- Twenty-six seconds is all that separated Webcor Builder’s Christine Thorburn from Quark Cycling Team’s Tina Pic. That’s about as much time as it took to crest Chilkoot Hill, a short climb at a grade of 20-percent that the riders had to tackle 13 times in this final stage of the Great River Energy Bicycle Festival’s Nature Valley Grand Prix. With eight turns, the 1.5-mile course also provided ample spots for breaks to sneak away out of sight. Thorburn’s team was determined not to let either of those affect who wore the general classification leader’s

STILLWATER, Minn. (June 12, 2005) – A spent Shawn Milne rolled through the finish line of the last stage of the Nature Valley Grand Prix, gasping for air after climbing the 20-percent grade Chilkoot Hill for the last time. “Today was a day you just talk with your legs, and obviously John’s spoke louder,” the Navigator Insurance rider said. For all the talk that transpired over the last two days between Milne and Health Net/Maxxis’ John Lieswyn over the way the leader’s jersey changed hands between the two of them, on Sunday everything was left on the road. Midway through the Stillwater