Road

You never really know how you’ll feel until you give it a go at the line. Yesterday for the rest day, I gave up plans to go out on a short ride and actually stayed in my bed from morning until the evening. I had a bit of a sore throat, a sore knee and I wanted to let the ankle heal up, so I spent the day in bed sleeping and watching a couple of DVDs. I didn’t do a single meter on the bike yesterday, which is normally not a good thing to do on a rest day, but I really needed to give the ankle a rest. The ankle problem also caused some small knee problems for me – that usually happens when

The Koppenberg Circuit Race lived up to its namesake on Sunday, dishing out rough dirt roads, wind and a leg-breaking climb that shattered fields and crowned two new champions in the elite men's and women's events: Will Frischkorn (Colavita-Bolla) and Ann Trombley (Excel Sports). The women's race didn't stay together long, as Trombley, a former Olympic mountain-bike racer, Shannon Tupa (Tokyo Joe's) and Erin Huck (Denver Spoke) surged up the rutted Koppenberg on the first lap and found themselves away early on. Huck eventually dropped back, but even with the second group chasing hard,

Giro d'Italia leader Damiano Cunego planned to kick back and relax on Tuesday’s first of two rest days in Porto Sant'Elpidio, Reuters reported. "I will try to recover during the rest day," said the Italian, who leads Saeco teammate Gilberto Simoni by 10 seconds in the general classification. “I'll do one and a half to two hours on the bike, eat a little and rest.” But the Italian is already looking ahead at the challenging week.“I'm thinking about the next few stages, for example the one in Cesena [stage 11], which could be more difficult than it looks,” he said. Nevertheless, Cunego is

“Fast” Freddy Rodriguez was fast enough Monday to score the biggest win of the 30-year-old Californian’s career after snatching victory in the ninth stage of the 87th Giro d’Italia. Rodriguez surprised sprint master Alessandro Petacchi (Fassa Bortolo) by jumping with 300 meters to go. The two-time U.S. champion buried his pedals to open up a two-bike gap and had enough in the tank to hold Petacchi by a wheel. “It’s the best day of my career,” Rodriguez beamed in Italian to TV interviewers. “I tried to take Petacchi by surprise, rushing from behind, and it paid off.” Petacchi, a winner of

A banged up and dejected Mario Cipollini hinted at retirement following his early withdrawal from the 87th Giro d’Italia. The 2002 world champion hit the deck hard in Wednesday’s fourth stage, but couldn’t muster the will to overcome the pain and frustration and didn’t take the start in Saturday’s climbing stage. While Cipollini earned a long sought after bid to return to the Tour de France, the dejected Lion King said he might retire instead. “It is possible that my career will stop here. It is difficult to find stimulation. For now, I don't want to think about the Tour de France,”

Well now, this is a nice note to start these Giro diaries on. Even though I won in the last couple hundred meters of today’s stage, this really began yesterday. For the last 24 hours, I’ve been very upset. Because of that, I’ve been totally focused on winning today. Yesterday was a very disappointing day for me. Coming into the finale yesterday I felt really good – better even than I felt today – and as we hit the last corner, McEwen hooked me really hard and I had to shut down my sprint. Last night, after that, we had a big discussion on the team, trying to decide how we were going to

Tour de L’Aude is a 10-day stage race in the South of France. The Aude region contains a portion the Midi canal, which stretches from the Atlantic to the Mediterranean and is situated in the Pyrenees and along the Mediterranean coast. This region is famous for it’s Mistral winds along the Mediterranean that make the wind surfing spectacular and also make the cycling quite challenging at times. The Mistrals greeted us on day one, as we started in the coastal town of Gruissan. Our bikes were tilted all day in the direction that the wind was blowing. My T-Mobile teammates traveled here from

Fassa Bortolo’s Alessandro Petacchi once again dominated a sprint finish at the Giro d’Italia to win the eighth stage of Italy’s national tour, a 210km race from Giffoni Valle Piana to Policoro. It was Petacchi's fourth victory of this year's race, which was still being led by 22-year-old Saeco team rider Damiano Cunego. Petacchi, who last year became the first rider in history to win at least three stages in the three major Tours of Italy, France and Spain in same year, proved simply too fast for Australian sprinter Robbie McEwen as he surged towards his tenth-ever Giro stage victory.

We had Alessandro (Bertolini) up in the break today. Actually, we were hoping it was going to hold and, for a while there, it looked like it might. They were up there hovering at around five minutes and then, even when two or three teams threw their guys to the front of the peloton, they managed to hold the gap for a long time. There were points when we were doing 55 to 60kph and we were still not putting any time on them for the first 35, 40 kilometers, but no one can hold that for too long in a breakaway and the peloton eventually pulled them back in. It makes sense, too, since Petacchi

Iban Mayo (Euskaltel) scored his second win of the month after snatching the overall title Sunday in the final stage of the Vuelta a Asturias in northern Spain after a remarkable demonstration of attacking style. A winner last weekend at the Clasica Alcobendas, Mayo erased a 46-second deficit to Colombian Felix Cárdenas (Cafés Baqué) in an attack-filled final stage over steep hills from Cangas del Narcea to Oviedo. Mayo made a surprise attack on a steep climb out of the seaside fishing village at Cudillero with 50km to go. Cárdenas was unable to follow the explosive move and could only

Reigning USPRO champion Mark McCormack (Colavita Olive Oil) put in a strong performance Sunday to win the 137-mile opening stage of the Tour of Connecticut. The stage began with a 117-mile opening loop around scenic Litchfield County, with the start and finish in Torrington. The day threatened rain, but instead provided beautiful sunshine for the 120 cyclists at the start. After just five miles, a nine-man break went away and forged a 4.5-mile lead on the field by mile 20. Olympic champion Marty Nothstein (Navigators) won the first and second sprints of the day just before the break was

Lance Armstrong wasted no time upon his return to Europe on Monday – he’s already been on a scouting mission to L’Alpe d’Huez. The five-time Tour de France winner said the 15km climbing time trial will be a decisive stage in the upcoming Tour, when Armstrong will try to win an historic sixth victory. L’Equipe reported Armstrong rode the legendary climb several times solo on Wednesday before being joined Thursday by teammates Manuel Beltran, Chechu Ruiera and Jose Azevedo. Armstrong will return to racing next week for the Tour du Languedoc-Roussillon (May 19-23) in southern France with

Saturday was a day of out with the old, in with the new at the 87th Giro d’Italia. A banged-up Mario Cipollini (Domina Vacanze) didn’t take the start, still smarting from his dramatic crash in stage 4, while young gun Damiano Cunego (Saeco) snatched his second stage victory in a week and slipped on the maglia rosa after winning atop the climbing finish to Montevergine di Mercogliano near Naples. The 37-year-old Cipollini’s early exit left the proud Lion King without a Giro stage win for the first time since 1989 and some were wondering if he’d be back next year for another shot at the

American Jennie Reed claimed the 200 World Cup keirin title on Saturday after finishing second to China's Shuang Guo during the fourth and final round of the series in Sydney, Australia. Germany’s Katrin Meinke was third. Meanwhile, another American, Colby Pearce, lapped the field not once, but twice to win the men's 30km points race in the Dunc Gray Velodrome. Pearce ended rwith 50 points, 14 ahead of 2002 world champion Chris Newton of Great Britain (36 points plus1 lap). Two-time world champ Juan Llaneras Rosello, last year’s silver medalist in Stuttgart, was third (35 points plus1 lap),

VeloNews European correspondent Andrew Hood dropped by for a peek at the Vuelta a Asturias in northern Spain on Friday and captured a few shots of the riders at stage 3. For a brief report on today's stage, see Saturday's EuroFile – meanwhile, enjoy the pictures.

Alessandro Petacchi (Fassa Bortolo) overcame rain-soaked roads and a fast downhill finish to win the 164km sixth stage of the Giro d'Italia from Spoleto to Valmontone on Friday. Petacchi beat Olaf Pollack (Gerolsteiner) and Alejandro Borrajo (Ceramiche Panaria) to the line in a bunch sprint for his third stage win of this year's race. Last year's winner, Gilberto Simoni (Saeco) retained the overall race lead after finishing in the same time as Petacchi. Teammate Damiano Cunego is second, 13 seconds behind, and Yaroslav Popovych (Landbouwkrediet-Colnago) is third, a further eight seconds

Italian police on Friday arrested four alleged drug dealers suspected of supplying cocaine to Italian cycling great Marco Pantani, who died of an overdose in February. Police sources had said they were pursuing one person they believed supplied the deadly dose to the 1998 Tour de France winner. Pantani was found dead in a hotel room in the coastal resort town of Rimini on February 14. "Searches are still under way," a Rimini police official told Reuters. He added there would be a news conference later in the day. Pantani won the Giro d'Italia in 1998 but was disqualified while leading

A bit of a crazy day, wasn’t it? With all the rain those last 20km were just absolutely unbelievable. It was amazing how much water was on the road heading into the finish, and that made things incredibly dangerous; but even if it had been dry, that course was right on the limit of what might be considered safe. Wet roads just made it crazy, and that’s where I figure I should start my thoughts here today. It really wasn’t the finishing straight itself, it was the route we covered coming into town. The last 3km were fine. I mean the rain made that dicey, but the closing stretch was just

Giro

Robbie McEwen couldn’t have asked for a better finish than the one that was handed to him at the end of stage 5 of the Giro d’Italia on Thursday. For sure, the 177-kilometer ride from Civitella in Val di Chiana to Spoleto, featured one of the flattest courses of this year's Giro, but the peloton was treated to a challenging finishing circuit that seemed to suit the Lotto-Domo rider’s talents more than anyone else’s in the peloton. By the time riders had completed three trips around the 7.3km loop through Spoleto, the steep 1.4km hill had taken its toll on some of the field’s better

Why can't I climb?Dear Joe,I'm a recreational roadie who spends some time on a mountain bike as well. I've been actively riding for four years. I put in 100-150 miles a week, with mostly mixed rides - by virtue of living in remote Wyoming, I don't get many flat, easy spins! Here is my challenge. I feel fit, but I cannot climb hills. I'm 5'11", approximately 160 pounds, resting HR of 44, no chronic illness, and I can't ride up hills! I do well on the flats between any rises, which means I make my pulls when riding with a group, I can spin around 22-24 mph, and am reasonably comfortable at

Replace those face-plate boltsDear Lennard,I have heard that 3TTT has recalled their Zepp stems. I have an XL version of this stem – how can I find out if it is on the recall list? Can you tell me more about the problems associated with the stems? Should I pull this puppy off the bike?William Dear William,Yes, there has been a recall of those stems. You do not necessarily need to remove it from the bike, but you must replace the face-plate bolts with longer ones.Lennard Wippermann chain with Dura-Ace?Dear Lennard,I’ve got a Shimano 7800 drivetrain on my Seven Elium. In your most recent

As luck would have it, a few members of the VeloNews staff and I were able to sneak away two weeks ago to Moab for a little product testing/vacation mountain bike riding. But before we hit hit the legendary slickrock, I wanted to make sure to bring along a fair share of mountain bike product to test in the harsh desert environment. Coincidentally, RockShox is nearing final production of its 2005 Pike and Reba suspension forks, which provided me the perfect opportunity to beg to borrow one for a bit of test riding. A quick call to one of the RockShox product managers resulted in a

A few members of the VeloNews staff and I were able to sneak away two weeks ago to Moab for a little mountain-bike product testing that was part work, part vacation. Coincidentally, RockShox is nearing final production of its 2005 Pike and Reba suspension forks. And as luck would have it, a quick call to a RockShox product manager resulted in a freshly-built, long-travel Pike being delivered just in time for our departure. I planned to install the Pike on my 2004 Specialized S-Works in the classy digs of Moab’s Apache Motel, then head for the trails. Silly me – I forgot that Pike is a

Hi, Monique:What is the best strategy for pre-training fueling in regards to timing and low and higher glycemic index foods? Thanks.DV DV,Often pre-training timing is a product of your work or school and training schedule. Depending on the timing of your workouts, you may decide to eat something two to four hours beforehand, or your schedule may even require that you ingest some fuel in the hour before training. Depending on the timing, you can adjust your food choices and portions. You can also decide if the glycemic index of foods is something that you also want to consider when making

Spanish rider David Herrero (Paternina-Costa Almería) won the 153km second stage of the Vuelta a Asturias in northern Spain on Thursday while Luis León Sánchez (Liberty Seguros) retained the overall lead. Herrero attacked with 4km to go coming off the descent on the Puerto de El Infanzón to deliver a big stage-win for the modest Division II team against the larger teams. Miguel Angel Martín Perdiguero (Saunier Duval) and Josep Jufré (Relax-Bodysol) came through second and third, respectively, as the main bunch crossed the line two seconds slower. The race continues Friday with the 166km

It’s been a bit of an eventful day. First off, I really twisted my ankle last night. The thing is, I was just walking down the stairs to dinner. So I had to have that taped up and it’s a bit swollen and a bit sore to walk around on. I spent the early part of the day trying to test that out a bit. In fact, it was my ankle that really made me try a shot at that break today. I really wanted to do the sprint today, but early on I tried a couple of times to do a couple of good accelerations. It hurt my foot a little too much when I really accelerated, so I figured I should try something else… if

One thing you have to keep in mind about tactics is that they have to change to suit the circumstances. All teams start the day with a general plan, but then everyone has to be ready at a drop of a pedal stroke to change that plan and improvise. This is certainly what happened in today’s stage at the Giro. I can fully imagine the Fassa Bortolo team meeting this morning before the start of the stage. “This should be an easy day. All we have to do is keep the group together and set up Alessandro for the sprint with 10 kilometers to go. Every one knows their job on the lead out, so let’s get

Luis León Sanchez (Liberty Seguros) surprised the big guns forthe second time in a week after taking victory in the opening stage ofthe 48th Vuelta a Asturias in northern Spain. Less than a week after winning the final time trial of the ClasicaAlcobendas last weekend in Madrid, the 20-year-old shot clear with DavidNavas (Illes Balears) with 3km to go to take the stage between Oviedo andLlanes along Spain's northern coast. Despite the victory, León Sanchez said he's racing to help teamcaptains Isidro Nozal and Roberto Heras in the five-day stage race thatconcludes Sunday. León Sanchez says

What’s the difference between a fall and a crash? Ask Alessandro Petacchi and Mario Cipollini. The former suffered a fall midway through the rainy 184km fourth stage of the 87th Giro d’Italia, but rebounded to win his second stage in four days. The latter crashed 200 meters from the line, landing hard on his left side before getting hit by another rider in the hard-charging bunch. Cipollini finished the stage – 150th at 1:35 back -- and didn’t suffer any broken bones, but the cycling world will have to wait until Thursday to see if Cipollini’s spirit was crushed in the horrific high-speed

I’m relieved… I think my heart has finally started to beat again. As you might recall, the other day I said that I was not feeling up to contesting the sprint, figuring that it was not my day and I wanted to stay out of it, mostly out of respect for the guys who were in a position to contest it. Well, today I was feeling up for it, got myself into the mix and had a very, very, very close call when Cipo’ went down. I even had his bike clipping my foot as he went down, so I just missed it. I stopped breathing there and my heart is just now starting up again. Some times it is just so, so close

Iban Mayo (Euskaltel) sent another shot across the bow with a dramatic win in Tuesday’s Subida al Naranca one-day climbing race in northern Spain’s rugged Asturias region. Just days after sweeping to victory in the Clasica Alcobendas in the mountains north of Madrid last weekend, the Basque rider punched the accelerator with 2km to go to drop the bunch on the short, but steep climb. In further proof that the Alpe d’Huez stage-winner from last year’s Tour de France is hitting some fine early season form, Mayo set a new record up the 5.2km climb to the Naranco summit, covering the distance

Gilberto Simoni (Saeco) erased any doubts of his form with a dramatic victory in Tuesday’s summit finish at Corno Alle Scale and slipped on his favorite color in May. The two-time Giro d’Italia champion was uncharacteristically quiet in the spring, letting teammate Damiano Cunego take the spotlight while he calmly prepared with the idea of arriving to July’s Tour de France with fresher legs than last year’s disappointing meltdown. But first comes the Giro, and Simoni made a clear demonstration Tuesday that he’s the man to beat, gapping pre-race favorites Yaroslav Popovych

Let’s set the stage. Gilberto Simoni, a former winner and climbing specialist of the Saeco Team had already said that he intended to make his first mark on the Giro on this stage. He began the day wanting to put some time between himself and the man in the leader’s jersey, Bradley McGee (FDJeux) and more importantly, his closest rivals. Now McGee is a flatlander and pursuiter, who is a respectable climber, but no specialist and was not expected to challenge on a day with a long difficult climb to the finish. Of course, Simoni had a host of other climbers to contend with, including the

Well, a guy can’t be too disappointed with that. Today worked out nicely for the team. It was actually a bit better than we might have expected for the first mountain-top finish. Despite all of that heavy Saeco firepower driving at the front of the field, our little Alessio team got two of our guys - Franco Pellizotti and Andrea Noe' – into the top ten. Franco crossed in third, 16 seconds behind Simoni and Andrea took tenth at 34 seconds. Not bad. I’m sure that if you’ve seen any of this on television, you can tell that it’s really hard going up against Saeco right now. As far as I am

Tim Johnson (Saunier Duval) gets back into action this week with two races in Spain. The American was hoping to earn a start in the Giro d’Italia, but flu then a rotten stomach in March delayed his preparation by nearly a month. “Having a bad month in the lead-up like that set me back. To start a grand tour when you’re not exactly as strong as you need to be is almost worse,” Johnson told VeloNews. “I wish I were doing it, but I almost know enough to be smart. Going when you’re not ready it could screw up your whole season.” Instead, he’ll be racing at the Subida al Naranco on Tuesday and

The Saeco team knew it had a real talent on its hands this spring when Damiano Cunego scored a string of wins - five over the course of just 10 days - leading up to the Giro d'Italia. Last Friday, just before the start of Italy's national tour, the team added another two years to the young rider's contract and just in time, too. The 22-year-old from Verona scored on Monday what will surely be the first of a string of grand tour stage wins in coming years, as he edged Brad McGee in a sprint into Pontremoli. The day's 184-kilometer stage began in Novi Liguri, not far from Castellania, the

Okay, so it didn’t go so great today. I mean I sort of knew that this was going to be a tough one, but I figured I might last a bit longer than I did. I knew this day was going to come… it’s just a little hard to take. I’ve been feeling pretty good up until now, but, to be honest, I was in grovel mode pretty much after the first climb started. It was pretty hard today and I wasn’t too happy with how things went, but that’s normally the case for me on the first day into the mountains… it’s just at this tour, the climbing kicked in a bit earlier than usual. We’d been talking about getting

Alessandro Petacchi picked up right where he left off last season, winning the first grand tour sprint finish of the year and setting himself up for a repeat of his spectacular record-setting 2003 season when he earned at least three stage victories in each of the three grand tours. The first road stage of the Giro d’Italia covered 143 stunningly beautiful kilometers between Genoa and the truffle capital of Alba. While the peloton took a moderate approach to the opening kilometers of the stage, a great deal of intensity was reserved for a hard-fought touch-and-go sprint battle between

It was a chaotic day… pretty much like every first stage in a big tour. You’ve probably already read about the way today’s stage went and, as you know, the day started out at a very easy pace and just got faster and faster and faster as we got closer to Alba. At least for me, it wasn’t exactly the best course on which to start a three-week tour. I mean I do feel good – actually really good – on the road right now. It’s just that on a three-week tour it always takes me at least a day or two to get into the rhythm of it. In the big tours, the final 10 or 15km are just so much faster than

Brad McGee (FDJeux.com), winner of the prologue in last year’s Tour de France, added the Giro d’Italia prologue to his palmares in Genoa on Saturday. The 28-year-old Australian won the difficult 6.9km prologue through the streets of this city and donned the overall leader's maglia rosa, finishing10 seconds faster than Germany's Olaf Pollack (Gerolsteiner) and 20 seconds up on Yaroslav Popovych (Landbouwkrediet-Colnago). It wasn’t exactly a ride in the park for the young Aussie. McGee said he banged his left knee against the frame of his bike when he braked hard to avoid hitting spectators

The fast men had their day in the sun on Saturday during the prologue of the 87th Giro d’Italia as, one at a time, 169 riders from 19 teams fought for the right to wear the leader’s pink jersey going into Sunday’s first stage. Bradley McGee (FDJeux.com), who won the prologue in the 2003 Tour de France, had been widely favored in the short, technical 6.9km race. Other hopefuls included Tomas Vaitkus (Landbouwkrediet-Colnago), Magnus Backstedt (Alessio–Bianchi), Rubens Bertogliati (Lampre), Florent Brard (Chocolade Jacques), and the elder statesman of speed, Mario Cipollini (Domina

Well, here we go. This is the first big race I’ve done after Paris-Roubaix, and despite the fact that I’ve done the Giro d’Italia before, this time it’s all new to me. It’s just been a pretty strange time, these last few weeks, leading up to the Giro. Winning something like Paris-Roubaix really does a job on your life (see "Backstedt a big surprise at Paris-Roubaix"). For one thing, people are actually paying attention to me when I’m just doing little things like warming up for the prologue. That never really happened before. Today, media were constantly coming by to ask questions, others

Nicole Freedman, the 2000 U.S. national road champion and Sydney U.S. Olympic team member, filed an appeal Saturday against the UCI with the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS). The appeal takes issue with the Team Basis rider’s latest UCI ranking, which in effect prevents Israel from sending anyone to the elite women's road race in the Athens Olympic Games this August. Freedman, who holds dual citizenship with Israel and the United States, says her UCI point total is off by three. According to UCI Olympic rules, since Israel is ranked outside of the top 21 nations in the world for

1. Gilberto Simoni (I), Saeco2. Leonardo Bertagnolli (I), Saeco3. Damiano Cunego (I), Saeco4. Paolo Fornaciari (I), Saeco5. Eddy Mazzoleni (I), Saeco6. Alessandro Spezialetti (I), Saeco7. Gorazd Stangelj (Slo), Saeco8. Sylvester Szmyd (Pol), Saeco9. Andrea Tonti (I), Saeco11. Ruggero Marzoli (I), Acqua & Sapone 12. Andrea Ferrigato (I), Acqua & Sapone 13. Rinaldo Nocentini (I), Acqua & Sapone 14. Bo Hamburger (Dk), Acqua & Sapone 15. Crescenzo D'Amore (I), Acqua & Sapone 16. Fred Rodriguez (USA), Acqua & Sapone 17. Kyrylo Pospyeyev (Ukr), Acqua & Sapone 18. Ondrej Sosenka (Cz), Acqua & Sapone

As the 87th Giro d’Italia got under way, Saeco announced that it has signed Damiano Cunego for 2005-06 and given him a raise “reflecting the value of the rider and the results he has already obtained.” "Damiano Cunego has again his seriousness and maturity and has rightly valued the way we have helped him develop and improved in our team,” team manager Claudio Corti said. "The agreement will guarantee this development in the next few years and should give us both a successful and important future.” "Obviously I’m very happy,” Cunego said after signing his new contract. "I know I’ve made the

Two riders have been excluded from the Giro d'Italia two days before Saturday's start in Genoa after failing pre-race blood tests. Colombian Uberlino Mesa Estepa (Colombia-Selle Italia) and Slovenian Jure Golcer (Formaggi Pinzolo) were found with blood values above the limits allowed in tests carried out by the Union Cycliste Internationale. The UCI said on Thursday the two riders had been suspended for 15 days and would have to undergo further blood tests before being allowed to race again. –Reuters French judge orders Rumsas arrestedA French judge has issued international arrest

This story appears in the current issue of VeloNewsAFTER A COUPLE of rough-and-tumble years that included doping scandals, challenges from the Vuelta a España and snubs from Tour de France stars, the Giro d’Italia seems poised toreclaim its rightful position as one of cycling’s legendary events.Following an exciting 2003 edition that saw Gilberto Simoni return todominance over a strong field, the 87th Giro will cover a balanced 20-stage,3435km route that has only three summit finishes during its May 8-30 run,yet contains more climbing than last year’s race (61,000 feet versus 57,000).And with

GILBERTO SIMONI (I)SAECO: WINNER 2001, 2003The two-time Giro champion took his time finding his racing legs goinginto May. Typically firing on all cylinders by early April at the Tourof the Basque Country, “Gibi” was still pack fodder at the Tour of Aragon, just three weeks before the Giro’s start. Simoni blamed rain andcold weather for his sluggish start, but that’s all part of his plan. Afterstorming to victory in the Giro last year, Simoni suffered an equally dramaticmeltdown in the Tour de France, despite his confident declarations thathe would derail Lance Armstrong. “This year we are

This story appears in the current issue of VeloNews MARIO CIPOLLINI AND ALESSANDRO PETACCHI are a study in contrasts. Cipollini is the flamboyant showman who brings kitschy glam to cycling,while Petacchi is the hardworking pupil, anxious to fulfill his potential.Super Mario is cycling’s extroverted showman, the man who showed up atthe start of a stage in the 1999 Tour de France dressed in a toga and waspulled around by his similarly clad teammates in a rigged-up chariot. “Veni,vidi, vici [I came, I saw, I conquered],” Cipollini boasted after scoringfour stage wins, then promptly abandoning

Alessandro Petacchi and Mario Cipollini aren’t the first to spar in the Giro d’Italia. The first great Giro rivalry was between Constante Giradengo, a Giro winner in 1919 and 1923, and Alfredo Binda, Italy’s first cycling superstar.

In Thursday night’s unseasonably chilly night air at Porto Antico, Genoa, 189 cyclists shivered through the official presentation of the 19-team lineup for the 87th Giro d’Italia. Waiting for their stage call, the Lampre team clipped in and out, bounced on their forks, and mused about this year’s Giro, observing that stages 3 and 7 would be key. Vladimir Miholievic (Alessio-Bianchi) agreed about stage 3, which finishes atop the Corno alle Scale in the Apennines. The final 3.2km of that 12km climb is on a 14-percent grade, and Miholievic noted, “It’s hard to have a big climb so early on,

Belgian rider Marc Streel (Landbouwkrediet) pulled a “DuDu” in Thursday’s 183km second stage of the Four Days of Dunkirk, holding off an epic solo breakaway typical of teammate Jackie Durand to grab the stage and take the overall lead. Streel opened up a 12-minute lead in the stage before the peloton woke out of its slumber, but it was too late. Streel nursed a 1:37 gap coming into the finish ahead of sprinting Jean Patrick Nazon (Ag2r), second for second consecutive day. U.S. Postal’s Max Van Heeswijk came through fourth while overnight race leader Jimmy Casper (Cofidis) drops to second at

Jimmy Casper gave his Cofidis team a welcomed boost in Steenvoorde, France, on Wednesday as he won the first stage of the Four Days to Dunkirk on the team’s very first day back to competition following a month's absence over a drugs scandal. Casper edged out Ag2r's Jean-Patrick Nazon in the 181km ride in northern Dunkirk which claimed a notable victim in the 2003 winner of the race as Christophe Moreau retired after being dropped by the peloton in wet and windy conditions. The dreadful weather also saw former Paris-Roubaix champion Servais Knaven and Jan Koerts of the Netherlands taken to

Tyler Hamilton (Phonak), fresh off his final time trial and overallvictory at the Tour de Romandie (SWI 2.HC), says he’s “on target” for theTour de France.The victories were Hamilton’s first since winning a stage in last year’sTour. The 33-year-old New Englander successfully defended his overall titleand proved his new Phonak team is up to the task of supporting him in bigraces.“In the Basque Country tour, Bobby Julich just barely squeezed me intosecond place in a test of truth. Now I'm celebrating two big coups at once:the best time trial rider by far as well as a comfortable overall

Dear Lennard,My right leg is half-an-inch shorter than my left. The difference appearsto come from a shorter right tibia. I get saddles sores on the right side.Should I shim or raise my right cleat? If so, how? I ride Look A-5 pedaland Sidi Titan blue cleats. Thanks for any input you might have.Rick Dear Rick,With a shorter tibia, a cleat shim of the same thickness as your leg-lengthdiscrepancy should work out pretty well. But it is not always so simpleas that. I get so many questions about leg-length discrepancies that inthe Bike Fit section in my new “Zinn’sCycling Primer,” I have devoted

Tim Johnson (Saunier Duval) said illness in March destroyed his chances of making the team selection for the Giro d’Italia (May 8-30). The 26-year-old American was hoping to earn a spot on the Saunier Duval line-up in his first season racing based in Europe, but he missed nearly a month of racing after becoming sick during a cold and wet introduction to Europe. “I was so sick, I missed a month and I just couldn’t race,” Johnson said during last week’s Vuelta a Castilla y León in northern Spain. “I’m feeling good now. I’m finally racing, getting in the action.” Johnson was among 24 riders

Scott Moninger (Health Net /Maxxis) and Amber Neben (T-Mobile) sealed their Tour of the Gila victories on Sunday after the race’s toughest stage, the Gila Monster Road Race. Moninger proved he was back to his old form after 106 miles, nearly 10,000 feet of climbing and relentless attacks from challengers, by winning the men’s event, while Neben kept close tabs on her nearest challengers - Christine Thorburn (Webcor Builders) and Brooke Ourada (Victory Brewing) – as teammate Kim Anderson went off to chase an early break, taking the final stage win for herself. Moninger seals the dealIt was

LTHR testDear Joe and Dirk,I have read how you suggest testing for Lactate Threshold Heart Rate for either running or biking, but I have not yet have the chance to fit such a test into my training. I did recently run a half marathon, at a relatively even pace, with a fast last 2.1 miles. I can calculate a reasonably accurate average heart rate for the last 20 minutes of this race. Will this average be a good measure of my LTHR? Does it matter if the last three-fourths of a mile was fairly hilly (at least by southeastern Michigan standards)?C. Thomas LuddenBloomfield Hills, MichiganDear Mr.

Alejandro Valverde (CV-Kelme) just can't help himself. The 23-year-old Spanish sensation sped to his third victory of the week in Sunday's fifth stage of the Vuelta a Castilla y Leon (SPA 2.3) in northern Spain, pipping Martin Perdiguero (Saunier Duval) in a bunch sprint. Angel Edo (Milaneza) came through to take third in the 155km stage from Ponferrada to Villafranca del Bierzo. Koldo Gil (Liberty Seguros) finished safely in the main bunch to conserve his grip on the overall leader's jersey and deliver his team's first stage-race victory of the season. Illes Balears, which won the team time

The teams of overall race leaders Amber Neben and Scott Moninger showed their depth Saturday as former Olympic silver medalist and world time trial champion Mari Holden (T-Mobile) and Healthnet/Maxxis strongman Mike Sayers dominated the finishes of the Silver City Downtown Criterium to win stage 4 of the Tour of the Gila. Held on a 1.08-mile course that included an elevation change of 110 feet per lap, Sayers went off the front with five laps to go, followed only by Arizona-based regional pro Jacob Rubelt (Landis Trek/VW), and kicked the final sprint to put a stamp on the men’s race.

Tyler Hamilton (Phonak) erased any doubt he was the strongest man at 58th Tour de Romandie after cruising to a dominant victory in Sunday’s 20.4km individual time trial to sew up the overall title. Hamilton widened his 19-second lead to a 1-minute, 43-second victory over second place Fabian Jeker (Saunier Duval) to successfully defend his title in the demanding Swiss race on a course much more difficult than last year’s. The dominant win further confirms Hamilton’s status as one of the top contenders for the 2004 Tour de France, which the 33-year-old said is already on his mind. “I came

Scott Moninger (Health Net-Maxxis) won his second straight stage in the Tour of the Gila Friday, taking a bunch sprint by five bike lengths. Teammates Mike Sayers and Mike Jones took second and third. The win adds precious bonus time to Moninger’s GC lead over Drew Miller (Landis-Trek-VW), who finished safely in the field but 13 seconds down. Christine Thorburn (Webcor Builders) was awarded first place in the women’s race after Lynn Gaggioli (T-Mobile) – who was working to protect teammate Amber Neben’s GC lead by taking away any possible sprint time bonuses – was called by officials for

Alejandro Valverde (CV-Kelme) is the quintessential todo terreno, capable of victories in any conditions. Just a day after winning a sprint, Valverde took yet another win, this time up a twisting steep mountain road in the barren mountains of northern Spain. The 23-year-old fought to his ninth victory of the season, enduring snow and fog up the steep climb to the Category 1 Alto de Morredero in the 133km fourth stage of the Vuelta a Castilla y León (SPA 2.3). Koldo Gil (Liberty Seguros) finished three seconds back, but slipped into the overall lead after overnight leader David Navas (Illes

Racers woke up in Leon to find snow falling before Saturday's two-climb fourth stage of the Vuelta a Castilla y Leon. A little snow isn't the sort of thing to stop Europe's tough pros, even though a few were half-wishing that the stage would be canceled. Alejandro Valverde (CV-Kelme) was probably not among them, however – he won the 133.4km stage ahead of Koldo Gil (Liberty Seguros).VeloNews European correspondent Andrew Hood made the rounds before the start to snap a few pictures.

Tyler Hamilton (Phonak) withstood a double-barreled attack in Saturday’s short but challenging three-climb 127km fourth stage to ease into the overall lead of the 58th Tour de Romandie with Sunday’s decisive time trial on tap. Saunier Duval sent Fabian Jeker and Leonardo Piepoli on the march on the day’s third Category 1 climb at Crans Montana high in the Swiss Alps. Hamilton found a new faithful ally in Slovenian national champion Tadej Valjavec, who helped his captain mark the pair’s every move. Former mountain biker Dario Cioni (Fassa Bortolo) bridged out from a chase group in the 27km

Comunidad Valenciana-Kelme has been through the wringer the past few weeks. First, the team has endured the indignity of fired racer Jesus Manzano's charges of organized doping practices within the team, in a paid interview in one of Spain’s largest sports dailies. Then the team was banned from the Tour de France, followed by the Giro d’Italia, which delivered the same bad news just yesterday. On the heels of all this, new title sponsor Comunidad Valenciana announced it is having second thoughts about spending 1.8 million euros to underwrite a team that only races in Spain. But Alejandro

Tom Danielson is racing in this week’s Tour de Romandie in Switzerland, his third major stage race in Europe since penning a two-year deal with the Italian team Fassa Bortolo. The 26-year-old Coloradan is quickly learning the ropes of European-style racing. His first race with Fassa Bortolo was GP Costa delgi Etruschi, an early season jaunt along the Italian coast. Hassles with his working papers prompted a quick trip back to Colorado in March before his first ‘real’ race at Setmana Catalana, a tough UCI-rated 2.1 race in northern Spain. Illness promoted Danielson to pull out of the even

Scott Moninger (Health Net-Maxxis) won the 92-mile Silver City to Mogollon stage of the Tour of the Gila Thursday, leading a strung-out peloton up the final 5.5-mile Category 1 finshing climb and finishing 20 seconds ahead defending winner Drew Miller (Landis-Trek-VW). With his effort, Moninger overtook time-trial winner Ryan Blickem (Aida's Bail Bonds) for the lead on the general classification. And although Blickem’s full-minute advantage after yesterday’s time trial was enough to keep him in the GC hunt after finishing 2:24 down on Thursday, it looks like the Tour of the Gila will live

The French Cofidis team on Friday announced an end to its self-imposed three-week exile from competition, saying its riders would return to racing in Wednesday's start of the Four Days of Dunkirk.. Cofidis' decision to suspend racing, prompted in part by a sacked rider's stinging doping revelations, cost world champion David Millar the chance to make his international track debut at the World Cup in Manchester. It also kept the team from taking part in the recent series of World Cup classics. "This exceptional break allowed the sponsor time to reflect on the team's future and its investment

Tyler Hamilton’s Phonak team led the way in Friday’s “queen stage” of the 58th Tour de Romandie, delivering Alexandre Moos to the stage victory and the race leader’s jersey while positioning Hamilton perfectly for overall victory. It might have looked easy, but Team CSC and Saunier Duval made the home team sweat in the decisive two-climb 145km stage from Romont to Morgins high in the Swiss Alps along the Swiss-French border. Team CSC put four riders into the final group of about 20 riders hitting the final Category 1 summit finish to Morgins while Saunier Duval’s Leonardo Piepoli was doing

Race officials revealed the 2005 Tour de France will start with a 19kmindividual time trial with the Vendée region of western France hostingthe “grand depart.”The time trial and two road stages will be featured for the openingof the 92nd edition July 2-4, 2005, which will then push east toward Choletinto central France, Societe du Tour de France officials revealed Thursday.Challans will be the site of the “Grand depart,” but the first stagewill be a 19km ITT from nearby Fromentine to Noirmoutier en l’Ile. Becauseof its length, it will be called stage one rather than a prologue, raceofficials

The knives were out in what was expected to be an innocuous second stage of the 58th Tour de Romandie in Switzerland on Thursday With some serious mountain stages on the menu Friday and Saturday, Thursday’s 156km circuit stage into Romont served up a nice appetizer for what awaits this weekend. Stefano Garzelli (Vini Caldirola) confirmed he’s on rising form just in time for the Giro d’Italia with an impressive stage-win on the rising finish near the historic chateau at Romont. A winner two weeks ago at the Tour of Aragon in Spain, Garzelli led home a group of 27 riders fractured by Phonak’s

We’re still settling down from the madness that was this year’s Sea Otter. While you can read the blow-by-blow race coverage in VeloNews No. 8, I thought I’d follow up on one of the more interesting tech stories fluttering about the Laguna Seca raceway: The return of Scott U.S.A to the United States market. You may or may not remember when Scott – which began life as a ski pole manufacturer – became involved in cycling. The company started producing aero' handlebars based on Boone Lennon's design way back in 1986. Of course, the brand really hit the big time when Greg LeMond used a Scott

Veteran sprinter Jan Svorada (Lampre) proved he still has it in the sprint, taking victory Wednesday in the opening road stage of the 58th Tour de Romandie against a field of young guns nipping at his heels. The 35-year-old Czech sprinter has racked up 70 wins since turning pro in 1991, including stage victories in all three grand tours. He won his second race as a pro at Romandie in 1992, but seemed happier in 2004. “I’ve arrived here in good condition and I really wanted to win a stage,” said Svorada, who barely held off a late-charge by Marco Zanotti (Vini Caldirola). “The team worked

The 18th annual 2004 National Geographic Adventure Tour of the Gila got underway Wednesday in Silver City, New Mexico, opening with the Tyrone Time Trial, a hilly 16-mile out-and-back course. Ryan Blickem (Aida’s Bail Bonds) of Albuquerque, New Mexico took the men’s event in 36:01, a full minute ahead of second place and former Gila winner Scott Moninger (Healthnet/Maxxis). In the women’s time trial, Amber Neben (T-Mobile), posted a time 18 seconds faster than her teammate Mari Holden, a former world champion time trialist and fresh of a three-day, four-stage training stint in the pro men’s

The peloton ripped apart over a Category 2 climb midway through the opening stage of the five-day Vuelta a Castilla y León in northern Spain. Strong winds finished off the job as José Ivan Gutierrez (Illes Balears) drove home a seven-man group. Pre-race favorites Comunidad Valenciana-Kelme missed the move, which Liberty Seguros had leader Igor Gonzalez de Galdeano safely tucked into the seven-rider group that came through 29 seconds ahead of the chasing Alejandro Valverde (Comunidad Valenciana-Kelme). Joining Gutierrez in the lead break were Galdeano, teammate David Navas, Gorka Beloki (La

Dear Monique,I have heard a lot about the glycemic index. There seems to be no low glycemic index sports drink on the market. I know that Gatorade is high glycemic, and that fructose is low glycemic. Wouldn’t a fructose only sports drink be better (provided it had the right balance of electrolytes)? It would be low glycemic and work for diabetics, and not raise insulin or blood sugar levels like sucrose. Wouldn’t this be a better alternative than a high glycemic product? I have heard some negatives things about fructose in relation to tolerance. Also, how important is the 4- to 8-percent

Brad McGee – winner of the 2003 Tour de France opening prologue – sliced his way through a short, technical course in Geneva to win Tuesday’s opening prologue of the 58th Tour of Romandie. Fueled by his recent success on the track, McGee put his excellent time trial skills to good use on the narrow 3.4km course to claim the victory three seconds faster than Olaf Pollack (Gerolsteiner). Defending champion Tyler Hamilton (Phonak) didn’t take any unnecessary risks and finished fifth at eight seconds back. Hamilton’s Phonak team, motivated to win the race on home soil, put three riders into

Over the last week I have been in Belgium, at a hotel just outside of Liège. This was our base for the Ardennes classics of the spring: Amstel, Fleche and Liège. The hotel here is a bit of a bike zoo at the moment with several teams of riders cooped up in rooms, bikes and trucks filling the parking lot and fans flowing in and out of the lobby looking for a photo with their hero or a free hat or water-bottle. This week marks the transition in the season from the flatter cobbled races to the hillier races. Some of the riders from Roubaix will push through until Amstel but few will go all the