Road

Italian Franco Pellizotti (Alessio-Bianchi) won the hilly, chilly GP di Chiasso on Saturday as the Swiss racing season opened in near-freezing temperatures with the remnants of a recent snowfall on the roadside. The 166km course began with seven circuits of 12km each, followed by five trips around a 16km loop that extended and enhanced the day’s climbing. A seven-man group escaped on the third lap and built a margin of 1:35 before Viktor Rapinski (Navigators) bridged up near the end of the fourth lap. The foursome stayed away until the first of the large circuits, where the field swept them

Team Adidas Fiat Rotwild was the first to cross the finish line on Saturday as The Cape Epic, an eight-stage mountain-bike stage race in South Africa, got under way. The 750km stage race, which began on the Garden Route in Knysna and ends March 6 at the Spier Wine Estate, just outside Cape Town, will send its 273 teams through the Western Cape and across some of the most magnificent mountain passes in South Africa. Each team consists of two riders, who must stay together throughout the race. The first stage, a 120km leg that gained 3050 meters of elevation as it crossed the Outeniqua

Italian Alessandro Bertolini (Alessio) claimed what will be a memorable overall victory on the final day of the Tour of Lucca in Altopascio, Italy, on Friday. The fourth and final stage of the Italian season-opener was won by Florent Brard (Chocolat Jacques), a victory made easier for the Frenchman by the absence of most of the peloton. On Thursday, organizers disqualified 120 riders – including Italian sprinters Mario Cipollini and Alessandro Petacchi – after they were deemed to be taking too long to finish the stage, a situation which had also been decided by the need for locals to regain

Mario Cipollini will make his long-awaited return to the Tour de France this year after organizers issued the seven remaining wildcard invitations for this year's race Friday.Fourteen first division teams have already qualified for the race in accordance with their UCI (International Cycling Union) rankings at the end of last season.Organizers have left open the possibility for a 22nd team to be added to the list at a later date.Cipollini has missed the world's biggest race for the past two years, with his non-inclusion last year during the race's centenary edition causing an uproar in

The four-stage Geelong Tour began Sunday night with an eight-kilometer prologue time trial. T-Mobile is the only all-American team here, but there are a handful of Americans dispersed on different teams. Jessica Phillips is riding with the German Nuremberger team this season. She will be based in Liepzig, Germany and racing in Europe most of the year, but their team has started the season in Australia with the tour and a short training camp. Meredith Miller, who is based in Copenhagen, Denmark is riding with the Scandinavian SATS team. SATS is a chain of gyms that is prominent throughout

There was no stopping Alejandro Valverde (CV-Kelme) as he shot to his second win a row and into the overall leader’s jersey as he won a wet and messy stage into Sagunto to claim the third stage of the Tour of Valencia. Valverde timed his move perfectly, came off the fifth wheel and sprung to his third victory of the season. With the 10-second time bonus, he nudged ahead of Toni Colom (Illes Balears) by one second to take the leader’s jersey. “I have good form now and I want to take advantage of it,” said Valverde, who came across ahead of sprint specialists Isaac Galvez (Illes Balears) and

I just got back from a whirlwind trip out to Wisconsin where VeloNews's Nick Ramey and I were able to visit with both Trek and Pacific Cycle. With one long day slated for our Trek visit, we had high hopes of getting a look at what the venerable company is planning for coming years and, 12 hours later, we left very satisfied. Our main guide for the day was Fisher/LeMond/Klein/Bontrager brand coordinator Ryan Atkinson. Our stops included visits to the massive 182,000-square-foot Whitewater production facility where 240 employees assemble many of the Trek, Fisher, Klein and LeMond models. While

New Zealand Commonwealth champion, Sarah Ulmer, 27, sprinted home fora win in the final stage of the Geelong Tour on Wednesday but it was Canberra’sOenone Wood, 23, (Australian Institute of Sport) who celebrated overallTour victory.The 2004 dual Australian road champion, Wood, took over the lead onTuesday from Victorian Katie Mactier, 28, (Jayco) and went into the finalstage with a slender seven second lead. But the strong support of her teamin countering all threats saw her successfully defend the leader’s bluejersey. Mactier finished in second place six seconds behind while KatherineBates,

Alejandro Valverde (CV-Kelme) is proving he’s a “todo terreno,” an all-roundrider capable of winning in any conditions. The world champion runner-up shot ahead of veteran Rolf Aldag (T-Mobile)on a steep finishing approach to claim the rainy 148.5km second stage ofthe Vuelta a la Comunidad Valenciana on Tuesday for his second win of theseason. “For me, this win is an injection of moral because this season couldbe my confirmation,” Valverde told Spanish television. “I haven’t set specialgoals. Every race I start that I feel good I want to go for the podium.” Valverde, who lives in nearby

Dear readers,I have gotten so much mail on the chain wear and replacement issue, thatI decided to clarify my perspective on the cost/benefit equation and postthe best samples of the mail I have recently received opposing as wellas supporting my position. I just completed writing a new book that I turned in to VeloPress lastThursday, two hours before flying off for my annual appointment to competein (or suffer through) the American Birkebeiner, the great 51km cross-countryski race in Wisconsin. The book, which is sort of my "Top 50" list of things you can do tobe faster, more efficient, more

Australian road champion Oenone Wood, 23, (AIS) took over the leadfrom Katie Mactier, 28, (Jayco) in the Geelong Tour on Tuesday, as PetraRossner (Team Nurnberger) scored a solid sprint win to take stage threeof the four-day Australian stage race.Wood was aggressive throughout the 77.5km stage which offered bonusseconds in three intermediate sprints and at the finish. Wood claimed themaximum three second bonus on the first two sprints to overtake Mactier’slead and also picked up two seconds on the third sprint. Mactier couldn’tcounter her rival’s attack.“I knew Katie (Mactier) would be trying

Spanish rider Toni Colom took another win for the new Illes Balears team Tuesday after out-sprinting David Blanco (Valencia-Kelme) in Tuesday’s opening stage of the Tour of Valencia. Colom, who won the Ruta del Sol race in 2002 while riding for Fuenlabrada, delivered the overall but unofficial title at the Mallorca Challenge earlier this month to open the Spanish racing calendar. “It’s nice to actually win the stage instead of just take the leader’s jersey like I did at Mallorca,” Colom said. “It was very rainy at the start of the stage but we’re going to keep fighting. I’m maybe not quite

Dual Australian road champion, Oenone Wood, 23, (AIS) put in a strongfinal burst on Monday to take the second stage of the Geelong Tour, a 35 kilometer criterium raced in Geelong’s Eastern Park.The Canberra rider, wearing the green and gold national champion’s jersey,pipped Sydney’s Katherine Bates, 21, (NSWIS) on the line with RochelleGilmore (AUS - Team SATS third.“We were trying to get working and attacking to get a break away butthe course proved difficult to do that on,” said Wood of the 2.2km circuiton which the riders completed 16 laps. “The course wasn’t technical, exceptfor one

The team has started the season better than it ever has with five wins to date. Last year we didn’t have five before the Tour and only 12 in the entire year. The teams in both Ruta del Sol and Algarve were strong and successful. The nice thing is that we hadn’t really planned on being in flying form for these races; they were simply build-up for the main objectives, so it is definitely a confidence boost and a nice bonus to have the victories under the belt. Going into Algarve we knew the last two days were to be key. The time trial was a long one, 24 km, with many false flat sections and

Floyd Landis won Sunday’s final stage and the overall at the Tour ofthe Algarve in Portugal to mark the best start to the season ever for U.S.Postal Service. The team also won two stages at the Ruta del Sol last week.Five-time Tour de France champion Lance Armstrong started the stagewearing the yellow jersey, but told Landis to ride for the victory. Armstrongwon Saturday’s time trial and finished fifth overall.“Lance is generous, so he said I could go for the win if I was feelingwell. Everybody worked together,” Landis told the AP. “It's good for theteam to start the year with a win, so

How is easier better?Dear Joe and Dirk,I have to confess that I don't really believe what I've been readingabout base-building.As I understand it, if I have two hours to ride on a given day, basetraining says I will achieve better conditioning if I ride at 6 percentof my maximum heart rate than I would were I to ride at 75 percent.Is that true, and if so, why? It seems counter-intuitive.Jack RawlinsDear Jack,The answer to your question really depends upon where your currentfitness levels are. Simply riding for two hours in a relatively easy state(heart rate zones 1-2) will not improve fitness

Two-time world champion Oscar Freire (Rabobank) is known for his quicksprint, but the Spanish rider won Sunday’s Trofeo Luis Puig after holdingout on a solo bid to spoil the fiesta for the sprinters.The Spanish semi-classic held over a rolling course between Valenciaand Benidorm along Spain’s sunny Mediterranean Coast hit the difficultAlto del Coll de Rates early on. Freire joined several riders who peeledaway from the main bunch on the descent.Joining Freire were four other Spanish riders: Ruben Plaza, Toni Colom,Koldo Gil and Bingen Fernandez. The quartet held a 30-second gap on thebunch,

Being in Australia this week has been a stark contrast to the past few weeks I spent training at home in Boulder. One week ago, I was Nordic skiing or riding my bike in sub-zero weather, trying to avoid ice patches in the shady sections of the canyons West of town. On Friday, I was riding along the Great Ocean road southwest of Melbourne watching the surfers along the coast. It was 40 degrees Celsius, the sun was beating down on us, sweat was beading on our faces, I had sunscreen spread all over my body, but was struggling cover the one spot I missed on the back of my neck with the collar of

Katie Mactier, 28, (Jayco) leads Australia’s four-day Geelong Tour after claiming a delayed victory in the opening twilight time trial stage raced at the Bellarine Peninsula beachside town of Portarlington. Her victory came in unusual circumstances after officials amended the original result when a recording error was noticed. After reviewing the timing tape officials moved Mactier into first and Sydney’s Kate Bates, 21, (NSWIS), who was originally awarded the win, down to fourth. Bates, while disappointed, accepted the mistake with good grace while Mactier was thrilled to learn she would

A day after losing Saturday’s time trial by one second to teammate LanceArmstrong, U.S. Postal’s Floyd Landis continued strong to win Sunday’sclimbing stage and claimed the overall title at the Tour of the Algarve. The difficult 178km stage was held over narrow roads and steep climbsin the hills north of Portugal’s glimmering Algarve coast. A breakawaypeeled away early, but the favorites moved to the front for the secondand final charge up the Category summit finish at Malhao. Landis held off Peter Farazijn (Cofidis) to win by five seconds andclaim his first individual title in Europe since

Lance Armstrong’s arrival at the Tour of the Algarve is the biggest thingthis otherwise modest Portuguese race has seen since the arrival of MiguelIndurain in 1996.Big Mig used this five-day race to kick-start his bid at a record sixthTour, but Armstrong is hoping this race provides a better ending laterthis year than the Spaniard faced in that year’s Tour.Armstrong sat down before 20 or so eager Portuguese journalists Fridayevening to answer some questions. Had he been to Portugal before? Yes,last May for a presidential cancer panel. Does he want to go to the moon?Well, he’s actually thought

Lance Armstrong fought through a brisk headwind to claim victory in Saturday’s individual time trial and shot into the overall lead with one day left in the Volta ao Algarve. Racing in the fourth day of his season debut, the five-time Tour de France champion edged U.S. Postal Service teammate Floyd Landis by one second in the 24km time trial. “It was very windy. I was surprised to win. I started too fast and I paid the price in the end,” said Armstrong, who finished in 31 minutes, 53 seconds (45.165 kph). “I rode with the SRM, started with big watts, finished with small watts. It’s always

Lance Armstrong’s season debut turned a little soggy Friday as Portugal’s sunny Algarve coast got drenched with afternoon showers late in the 180km third stage of the Volta ao Algarve. Armstrong rode at the front of the main bunch of the day’s major obstacle at the Category 2 Fóia climb at 57km and was content to let the sprinters take over coming into Lagos, where Martin Garrido (Barbot-Gaia) pipped Stuart O’Grady (Cofidis) to take the flowers. Candido Barboso (LA Pecol) took third and retained the overall lead after sprints have finished the action in the opening three days. Going into

The first race of the year always feels a little odd. The change from a training bike and long ride in a group or alone to a race bike and an attacking peloton is quite extreme and the body senses it almost immediately. But by the second day, my mind was back into it, the legs had come around and it seems like just a week ago I was in the Vuelta a España. The Volta Algarve is a nice race to start the season, as the weather is fairly mild in the south of Portugal, the racing is quite tame, and the countryside is nice for racing with undulating terrain. The vegetation and environment seem

LA Pecol's Candido Barbosa won the second stage and moved into the overall lead at Portugal's Tour of the Algarve Thursday, edging out Spaniard Alberto Benito (Antarte) and Cofidis's recent Aussie recruit, Stuart O'Grady, at the end of a 201km haul from Castro Marim on the Spanish border to Portimao. U.S. Postal leader Lance Armstrong, whose presence at the normally low-keyearly season race has brought international attention to the event, finishedthe day in the middle of the field. "Everything's going fine, as good as possible for the first race ofthe season," said Postal director Johan

"I'm all alone." — Written on a note found at Marco Pantani’s bedside at the time of his death.

George Hincapie will line up alongside Lance Armstrong today for the opening stage of the Tour of the Algarve in southern Portugal. Hincapie was scheduled to race Ruta del Sol, but he came down with what he called “a stomach bug” and delayed his start to the 2004 season. U.S. Postal Service sport director Johan Bruyneel told The Associated Press that Armstrong chose the Algarve race to kick off his season because he wants to spend more time in the United States later this spring. “The main attraction is the date, because we're starting racing earlier this year,” Bruyneel told the AP. “The

U.S. Postal’s Dutch sprint ace, Max van Heeswijk, claimed his second stagewin in three days at the end of the fourth stage of the Ruta del Sol inJaen, Spain, on Wednesday. The 30-year-old Van Heeswijk held off Belgians Nico Mattan (Relax)andPeter van Petegem (Lotto) at the finish line of the 159.3km stage betweenLa Zubia and Jaen. It is Van Heeswijk's second stage win of the race following his victoryon stage 2 on Monday, which was the first victory of the season for U.S.Postal. Juan Carlos Dominguez, of Saunier Duval, held on to the race leader'sjersey. Thursday's fifth and final stage

Italian young gun Fillipo Pozzato (Fassa Bortolo) roared to victory in Tuesday’s 183km Trofeo Laigueglia along the Italian Riviera. Pozzato held off Lorenzo Bernucci (Landbouwkrediet-Colnago) to win the race for the second consecutive year. Former world champion Romans Vainsteins (Lampre) came through third in the bunch sprint. Laigueglia is the traditional kick off to the Italian racing calendar and the 22-year-old Pozzato becomes the first racer since Eddy Merckx (1973-74) to win the race back-to-back. “This victory comes thanks to my teammates, who believed in me,” Pozzato said. “I didn’t

Dear Lennard,I am considering purchasing a compact chainring with my next bike.I am confused. Some literature suggests that the 50/34 tooth compact chainringwith a 11-23 cassette has a more expanded range than the conventional 53/39chainring with a 12-25 cassette. Is there a formula for determining the"high" and "low" range of gearing?RobDear Rob,There sure is!Gear = (number of chainring teeth) X (tire diameter) & divide; (number of cog teeth)If you want the gear in inches, put in the tire diameter in inches.To find out how far you get with each pedal stroke (gear rollout), multiply the gear

Here's a quick update on my earlier reporton Michelin’s announced plans to begin testing its tubeless road tiretechnology.I also wanted to thank all those readers who sent in additional questionsfor me to ask Michelin’s Steve White when I finally managed to corner himon the phone. As luck would have it, White called me early this morningto clear-up my questions.The following is an edited transcript of our discussion: VeloNews: Steve, how easy will it be to seat and inflate a tubelessroad tire? I’m also curious how regular riders might be able to patch andreinflate tubeless road tires out in

U.S. Postal Service wasted no time to score its first victory of the 2004 season as Max Van Heeswijk edged Oscar Freire (Rabobank) to win Monday’s second stage of the Ruta del Sol. Erik Zabel (T-Mobile) came through third in the 184km stage from Arcos de la Frontera to Benalmádena to grab the overall lead in the five-day race in southern Spain. U.S. Postal’s George Hincapie didn’t take his planned departure in Sunday’s opening stage after suffering stomach problems and might race later this week alongside Lance Armstrong at the Tour of Algarve in Portugal. Michael Rasmussen (Rabobank) also

Racing at altitudeDear Dirk;I've got a few questions about altitude training and just general living.First, if I'm planning on racing at about 6000 feet above sea level,how long do I have to live at a similar altitude to become acclimated? Second, should I were to be required to take a blood test, is it advisableto get a blood test before living at altitude, and some midpoint to showan increase in hematocrit level?  Do you have any general suggestionsfor adjusting to altitude?  Any information would be appreciated,DevinDear Devin,It can take about two weeks to get fully acclimated to an

Heading into the final stage of the Valley of the Sun stage race, Mariano Friedick (Jelly Belly-Aramark) and Lynn Gaggioli (T-Mobile) were just seconds out of the overall leads in the men’s and women’s races, respectively. And by the end of the day, both pulled out the overall victory to get their 2004 season off to a good start in Arizona. Friedick entered the criterium just two seconds behind Colavita Olive Oil’s Nathan O’Neill, on the strength of his second-place finish in the time trial – just 22 seconds behind O’Neill – and his victory in the road race, where he picked up a 20-second

In a sport long dominated by a Belgian juggernaut, Richard Groendendaal scored an upset World Cup cyclo-cross victory in front of hometown crowd on Sunday and grabbed the season’s overall title in the process. By winning the double-point final in the six-race World Cup series in Pijnacker in the Netherlands, Groenendaal unseated former World Cup leader Sven Nijs - his Rabobank teammate - and denied world champion Bart Wellens a shot at scoring cyclo-cross’s “grand slam” (the World Cup title along with the Belgian and world championships). While he rode a strong solo race at the front of the

[nid:26885]For the second consecutive year, Panaria’s Ruben Bongiorno took the field sprint at the Tour de Langkawi’s closing stage, a steamy hot, 60km criterium through Malaysia’s capital city of Kuala Lumpur. With no major changes to the overall classification, Colombia Selle Italia’s Freddy Gonzalez — King of the Mountains at the Giro d’Italia in 2001 and 2003 — took top honors, his biggest win to date.

Investigators on Sunday ordered an autopsy to determine the cause of death of former Tour de France champion Marco Pantani who was found in a hotel room in central Italy with sedatives near his bed. The cause of death of the 34-year-old rider was not immediately known but investigators ruled out violence. Magistrate Paolo Gengarelli told reporters on Sunday that there were no illegal drugs in the room but tranquillizers were found near the body and in the kitchen section. Pantani, who had been suffering from depression, was found dead in a hotel in the Adriatic coastal resort city of

Jorg Jaksche and his CSC teammates barnstormed to victory in Sunday’s26km team time trial up the steep roads to Mont Faron high above the FrenchRiviera. While a team time trial by name, riders were awarded individual timesas eight-man teams rode the twisting course. It wouldn’t have matteredas CSC dominated the proceedings, sweeping the top three positions in thestage as well as the overall. “We rode this stage to perfection,” said CSC team manager Bjarne Riis.“The riders followed the tactics down to the last detail and on the climbthey were simply outstanding. All the riders deserve praise

Walter Perez of Argentina won the 15km men’s scratch race as the UCI Track World Cup season kicked off on Friday in Moscow, Russia. Perez won in 17:41:321, ahead of Volodymyr Rybin (Ukraine) and Christopher Newton (Great Britain). American Colby Pearce was fifth, the strongest American showing on the day. In the women's 20km points race, it was Olga Slyusareva (Russia) taking the win with 25 points. Belem Guerrero (Mexico) was second with 17, while Yoanka Gonzalez Perez (Cuba) took third with 11. Americans Erin Mirabella and Sarah Hammer finished 16th and 25th, respectively.

American Kirk O’Bee (Navigators Insurance) finished second to Bo Hamburger (Acqua e Sapone) in a 100km kermesse that replaced stage two of the Giro della Liguria on Saturday. After traffic problems forced race organizers to cancel the Friday and Saturday stages of the three-day race, they decided to call off the entire event. But late Friday evening, they got the green light to hold Sunday’s road race and quickly put together today’s criterium, a 40-lap race on a 2.5km, four-corner circuit. Within two laps, a group of nine separated from the rest of the field. It contained O'Bee, Hamburger,

[nid:26873]Colombia-Selle Italia’s svelte climbers Ruber Marin and Freddy Gonzalez conquered the steep 25km ascent to Malaysia’s Genting Highlands during stage 9 of the Tour de Langkawi, taking 1-2 on the day and keeping the leader’s jersey within the team after fellow countryman and first-year teammate Marlon Perez was dropped in the final 6km.

Mario Cipollini (Domina Vacanze) quickly erased the bad taste in his mouth following Friday’s loss with an emphatic victory in Saturday’s 147km fourth stage of the Tour Mediterranean in France. The 2002 world champion left no doubt that he’s back in top form, easily blowing down the finishing straight to score his first win of the 2004 season. Cipollini finished ahead of Domina Vacanze teammate Andrus Aug while Marco Zanotti (Vini Caldirola) came through to take third. The win counts as Super Mario’s 14th career stage victory at the Tour Med and the186th of his career, coming some 270 days

Mariano Friedick (Jelly Belly) stepped it up a notch on Saturday, winning the second-stage road race at the Valley of the Sun stage race in Phoenix. Friedick, who finished second in the opening time trial behind Nathan O’Neill (Colavita-Bolla), outkicked Derek Wilkerson and Cuban speedster Ivan Dominguez (Colavita-Bolla), to win the 89-mile road race in 3:27:35. O’Neill held onto the overall lead, but Friedick moved into second, just two seconds back, with Gordon McCauley (Team Monex) at third in 0:27. In the 57-mile women’s race, it was Nicole Freedman (Team Basis) soloing to victory in

First, officials canceled Friday’s opening stage of the fourth Giro della Liguria due to traffic problems. Then they canceled Saturday’s stage for the same reason and finally pulled the plug on the entire race, the Italian ANSA wire service reported. Local officials weren’t happy that key roads along Italy’s Italian Riviera would be closed for the opening stages and said race organizers hadn’t received official approval for the event. Unable to find a compromise, the race has been canceled and teams will reconvene for Tuesday’s Trofeo Laigueglia (UCI 1.2). Armstrong to test-drive new TT

The three-day Valley of the Sun John Earley Memorial Stage Race kicks off today with an individual time trial in the western Phoenix-metropolitan area. The 12th annual race continues Saturday with a road race south of Phoenix and concludes Sunday with a criterium downtown, near the State Capitol. Among the elite men’s teams slated to compete are Colavita-Bolla, featuring U.S. national champion Mark McCormack, Australian national champion Nathan O’Neill and Cuban sprinter Ivan Dominguez; the local Landis-Trek-VW squad, which won the 2003 Tour of the Gila and Vuelta de Bisbee; and Team Monex,

Baden Cooke (FDJeux.com) nipped Mario Cipollini (Domina Vacanze) in an exciting photo-finish sprint to take his second stage in three days Friday at the Tour Mediterranean. The 25-year-old Australian picked up his fourth win of the season (Tour Down Under stage, GP d‘Ouverture and Med Tour stage 1) at the expense of 37-year-old Cipollini, racing for just his fourth day of the season. Cooke was beaming after beating Cipollini head-to-head for the first time. “It was a difficult sprint. Cipollini tried to block me but couldn’t,” Cooke told Reuters. “To finally beat Cipollini, that’s

Nathan O’Neill (Colavita-Bolla) gave his new sponsor something to celebrate with a victory in the opening stage of the Valley of the Sun stage race on Friday. The former Saturn racer covered the 13.6-mile individual time trial in 24:05:06, 22 seconds faster than Mariano Friedick (Jelly Belly) and an additional two seconds ahead of Joey Dantoni (Cycles de Oro). Defending champ Aaron Olsen (Colavita-Bolla) was 14th, 1:12 off the pace. In the women’s race, T-Mobile put two racers in the top three. Mari Holden took the win in 27:15:17, with teammate Lynn Gaggioli third at 0:15 and Rona’s

[nid:26864]Brazilian sprinter Luciano Pagliarini (Lampre) took a chaotic mass sprint at the end of the Tour de Langkawi’s eighth stage Friday, edging out Enrico Degano of Barloworldin a photo finish. Graeme Brown (Panaria) finished third, while Gord Fraserof Health Net-Maxxis took fourth. It was Pagliarini's second field sprint victory in as many days, bothexecuted to perfection without the use of a teammate’s lead-out. When askedabout the aggressive sprint, which saw Panaria’s Ruben Bongiorno and Wismilack’sMatnur Matnur crash in the final 500m, Pagliarini laughed.

In the beginning there was RockShox. When first raced in 1990, Paul Turner’sRS-1 fork jump-started the suspension revolution. As you’re most likelyaware, Manitou followed suit and produced its own elastomer-sprung forkjust a year later. Within two short years the two suspension companieshad locked horns over market share (albeit small dollars way back then). Fast forward to 2004 and the two are back at it again-this time vyingover potentially millions of dollars in original equipment spec' and aftermarket sales. Stroll on down to your local bike shop and take an informal poll and I’ll bet

An Australian cyclist is facing doping charges, an Australian Sports Commission (ASC) spokesman said Thursday. Reuters reported that the ASC released a short statement but declined to name the cyclist, although his identity has been widely published in local media. “The ASC and Cycling Australia have both written to the athlete outlining the nature and basic details of the alleged doping offences and are awaiting a response from the athlete,” the ASC said. “The ASC continues to work with Cycling Australia in relation to this matter. ASC rules state an athlete on doping charges has 14

After four days of training together, and with just two days until their first race of the season, the new-look Colavita Pro Cycling Team is beginning to take shape. Significantly upgraded in the personnel and organizational departments, the 2004 iteration of Colavita bears only a passing resemblance to the ’03 version of the squad. Just four riders remain from the Colavita-Bolla squad that passed last year in relative anonymity, and the 11-rider roaster boasts a host of “name” riders. Chief among the changes in the ’04 was the late-fall signing of USPRO road champion Mark McCormack. After

Two big names moved to the front of the pack in Thursday’s climb-riddled 130km second stage of the Tour Mediterranean. World Cup champion Paolo Bettini (Quick Step) and world champion Igor Astarloa (Cofidis) finished 1-2 ahead of about 30 lead riders, with Bettini taking the stage and Astarloa grabbing the race leader’s yellow jersey. The pair made headlines last fall when Astarloa suggested Bettini offered a pay-off to throw the road world championships in Hamilton. Astarloa quickly retracted the statement and the two have since made up. There was no sign of any hangover of bad feeling

[nid:26855]On a hot, flat stage 7 designed for the peloton’s musclemen, Brazilian hotshot Luciano Pagliarini (Lampre) took a mass sprint Thursday, narrowly edging out points leader Gord Fraser (Health Net). It was Pagliarini’s first win this year, to add to the three consecutive wins he took in Malaysia in 2003. “I want to thank my team,” a grinning Pagliarini said, clearly happy to have the first win of the year under his belt. “They had a lot of confidence in me, and brought me to the finish.”

World Cup champion Nicole Cooke says she might skip the series opener later this month in Australia to focus entirely on the Olympics and world championships. The 20-year-old British star became the youngest rider to win the overall World Cup last year, but she told BBC Sport that she’s still feeling pain from a knee injury suffered in a crash last June “I've had 10 weeks without training and that's left a massive hole in my preparation,” she told BBC Sport. “Given that, the Olympics and the World Championships are the target this year.” Cooke said the allure of the Olympics could prove

It was an all-star cast taking the initiative in Wednesday’s 111km opening stage of the Tour Mediterranean with last year’s green jersey winner Baden Cooke (FDJeux.com) edging classics strongman Michele Bartoli (CSC) in a 20-up sprint. Some of cycling’s biggest names seemed anxious to test their form as a group of about 20 riders tore away from the main bunch early in the sunny stage featuring two Category 1 climbs. “Since I was the only sprinter in the group I worked to stay with them in the break,” said Cooke, who’s already won at the Tour Down Under and the GP d’Ouverture. World

[nid:26841]Italian sprinter Ivan Quaranta (Formaggi Pinzolo) won the first fieldsprint of the Tour de Langkawi Wednesday, following a pancake-flat 175kmstretch from Muar to Johor Bahru, Malaysia’s portal to neighboring Singapore.Two South Americans — Brazilian Luciano Pagliarini (Lampre) and ArgentineanRuben Bongiorno (Panaria) filled out the top-three; Canadian Gord Fraserwas fourth.

Dear Monique,This time of season many of us are including resistance training inour current training programs. What can I do nutritionally to maximizemy strength-building efforts? I am specifically interested in what I caneat before and after weight training. How do my nutritional strategiesdiffer after a long bike ride or run?ThanksBK Dear BK,For the cyclists and triathletes who opt to include resistance trainingin their program, nutritional considerations should include both one'sdaily training diet (especially when combined with your regular endurancetraining), and before and

Portuguese rider Candido Barbosa won his second stage and wrapped up the overall victory in the three-day GP Correos in Portugal. Barbosa edged two Spanish riders to take his second stage in three days and lay claim to the spoils of the first Portuguese race of the season. Garzelli confident in GiroStefano Garzelli (Vini Caldirola-Nobili Rubinetterie) wants another maglia rosa to go along with 2000 victory and is putting everything into winning the 2004 Giro d’Italia. The 30-year-old from Varese told La Gazzetta dello Sport that he’s confident he can take down defending champion Gilberto

Keeping important parts comfyDear Lennard,This isn't a nuts and bolts question, but I thought you might shedsome light on this subject. Most roadies I know (including myself) preferto wear bib shorts with leg warmers instead of tights in cold weather.I can't understand why nobody makes a short with a windproof panel in thesensitive chamois region. Surely I'm not the first to think of this.JayDear Jay,Good question! No, you are certainly not the first to wonder this!Here are somewhat contradictory answers from De Marchi and from Sportful,which also owns Castelli.From De MarchiDear Lennard,The

[nid:26838]Canadian rocket Eric Wohlberg stormed through a tight 18km circuit in central Melaka to take the time-trial stage of the Telekom Malaysia Le Tour de Langkawi on Tuesday. “I went as hard as I could. It was really tough out to the turn but I had the lead at that point and was really surfing coming back,” Wohlberg said at the finish. It was a double triumph for the strong man, originally from Ontario but now residing in California, as he also led his compatriots Roland Green and Peter Wedge to the team prize.

Sprinting superstar Mario Cipollini will start Wednesday’s Tour Méditerranéendespite crashing hard in Sunday’ GP Costa degli Etruschi, team officialsreported Monday. Cipollini wasn’t seriously injured in the spill about 2.5km from thefinish line along Italy’s coast, with his helmet evidently protecting the2002 world champion from serious injury. “Despite the hard crash in the finish Sunday, Cipollini will be at theTour Méditerranéen,” said Domina Vacanze sport director AntonioSalutini. “This will be the first stage race of the season for Cipolliniand the team. Our goal is to win a

[nid:26834]It was another day for breakaways in Malaysia, as Australian Sean Sullivan of the South African Barloworld squad took the fourth stage of the Tour de Langkawi in a dramatic two-up sprint against breakaway companion Devis Miorin (De-Nardi) after 100km off the front. Behind, Canadian Gord Fraser of Health Net won the bunch sprint for a second consecutive day, adding to his points jersey tally and confirming that, at this tour, he’s the sprinter to beat.

[nid:26830]Panaria’s 24-year-old Brett Lancaster, a member of Australia’s four-man world record-setting team pursuit squad, pulled off a courageous stage victory Sunday in heavy rain at the Tour de Langkawi. After Saturday’s 60km climbing day, the event’s third stage featured 100km of flat terrain before ascending a gradual pitch at Gap Rest House (elevation 881m), deep in Malaysia’s highland country. The course then quickly dropped into a fast and winding 35km descent to the town of Raub.

French team Ag2r enjoyed a banner day Sunday in the final day of theEtoile de Bessèges, claiming the overall title with Laurent Brochardand the stage victory for veteran sprinter Jaan Kirsipuu.Thirteen riders escaped early in the 145.8km stage between Pont Gaignièresand Bessèges and stayed away until the final lap on the finishingcircuit. Kirsipuu surged ahead of Saulius Ruskys (MBK-Oktos) to take hissecond stage of the five-day race.Stuart O’Grady (Cofidis) nipped former teammate and rival Thor Hushovd(Credit Agricole) to take third, but the Aussie didn’t win a stage in hisseason debut.

Teammates Marlon Perez and Freddy Gonzalez of the Columbia-Selle Italia squad set the stage for the general classification on the first of two mountain stages at the 10-day Tour de Langkawi Saturday, finishing first and second on the day’s nearly 60km gradual climb into the Cameron Highlands. It was a good day for the South American squad, which now holds both the yellow leader’s jersey (Perez) and the blue sprinter’s jersey (Gonzalez).

Laurent Brochard (Ag2r) won Saturday’s fourth stage and slipped into the overall lead of the Etoile de Bessèges with just one stage remaining. The victory makes it the first by a French racer of the 2004 season and proves the 36-year-old former world champion still has the desire to race at the sport’s top level. Brochard outfoxed the younger French rider Sylvain Calzati (MBK-Oktos) and Spanish rider Joseba Zubeldia (Euskaltel) in the 150km stage between Branoux les Taillades and Les Salles du Gardon in France. Seven riders attacked on the day’s climb at La Baraque and took a one-minute

With our 2004 Buyer’s Guide entering the critical home stretch, I was hoping I’d be able to dodge this week’s Tech Report, but this press release from Michelin was too important to overlook. As rumored for the past three years, tubeless technology is officially making the crossover to the road. Here are some excerpts from Michelin’s release: Michelin is initially targeting the world of professional road racing in 2004 with three new products: the Michelin Pro Race Tubeless, the Michelin Pro Grip Tubeless and the Michelin Pro Grip Special Paves Tubeless. This year, Michelin-sponsored

[nid:26826]Spectators at the finish of the Tour de Langkawi’s flat stage 1 from Penang to Taiping, Malaysia, were surprised to see the peloton roll across the line intact without a contested sprint. What initially appeared to be a rider protest proved to be more a matter of survival after local police marshals errantly waived traffic onto the course following the first of two 8km closing circuits.

South African sprinter Robert Hunter (Rabobank) took care of business in the Middle East to win Friday’s final stage and claim the overall title of the third Tour of Qatar. Hunter won his second stage in three days to claim the overall prize, scoring a big win ahead of Italian Francesco Chicchi (Fassa Bortolo) and Wouter van Mechelen (Vlaanderen), who came across third. With only one second separating race leader Hunter and archrival Robbie McEwen (Lotto-Domo) going into Friday’s 163km finale, it was heated battle from the gun. A group of about 40 riders tore away early as Lotto-Domo

Toni Colom (Illes Balears-Banesto) sewed up the overall title of thefive-day Mallorca Challenge on Friday – too bad it won’t be in the officialrecord books. The Mallorca Challenge is technically a series of one-day races, whenriders can pick and choose which races they want to start. Officially,there are no UCI points for the final GC, but that didn’t stop the Spanishriders from racing break-neck through the final five-climb stage. Kelme – oops, Comunidad Valenciana-Kelme – tried to rattle Banesto –oops again, that's Illes Balears-Banesto – but couldn’t over the challenging up-and-down

The 10-day, 1251km Tour de Langkawi is set to start Friday, February6, on Malaysia’s resort island of Penang. Now in its ninth year, the Tour’s2004 course will follow a clockwise loop along the western coast of PeninsularMalaysia, offering a feast of sprint finishes with just three mountainousstages and two mountain-top finishes. Twenty teams of seven riders will contest the Tour, which boasts thefourth largest prize list in pro cycling. However, missing from the raceis any one overwhelming favorite, generating a consensus that it’s anyone’srace to win. Last year’s winner, American Tom

Training camp has finished. I am back in Colorado and will soon be heading overseas for the beginning of the season. In the last week the training load increased and that old competitive spirit reappeared in the team. We rode between 4.5 and 6 hours each day with one easy day and one travel day when we left Solvang, California for Scottsdale, Arizona and our "sponsor camp" - which consisted of a weekend of fine meals at a nice hotel, where we could both ride and meet up with our sponsors and friends of the team before heading overseas for the races. The new team jerseys were also unveiled

Belgian Tom Steels (Landbouwkrediet) got his season off to a good start Wednesday, beating compatriot Jo Planckaert (Mr Bookmakers) in a bunch sprint to open the five-day l'Etoile de Bessèges race in France. Stuart O’Grady (Cofidis) and Gorka Gonzalez (Euskaltel) livened things up early with a long breakaway, but the Aussie was reeled in with 15km to go and it came down to a mass gallop coming into Marseille. The race continues Thursday with the 149km second stage into Palavas-les-Flots. l'Etoile de Bessèges, Stage 1, Marseille1. Tom Steels (B), Landbouwkrediet, 139km in 3:34:03 (39.131

Tour de France green jersey winner Baden Cooke (Française desJeux) stormed to victory in the Grand Prix La Marseillaise on Tuesday toopen the French racing season. Cooke nipped Jo Planckaert (MR Bookmaker.com) to take the bunch sprintin the 152km race from Gardanne to Aubagne. Italian Fabio Baldato (Alessio-Bianchi) came across the line third. Racing continues Wednesday in France with the five-day l'Etoile de Bessèges.GP La Marseillaise (UCI 1.3)1. Baden Cooke (Aus), FDJeux.com, 152km in 3:38:302. Jo Planckaert (B), Mr Bookmakers3. Fabio Baldato (I), Alessio-Bianchi4. Stefan Van Dijck

Things that work and things that don't Dear Lennard, Would my 9-speed FSA Carbon cranks work with my 2004 Campagnolo Record 10-speed? Do I need to take off my 10-speed rings from my Record cranks and put them on the FSA cranks? Chad Dear Chad, Yes, it will work fine as is. And you could not take your Campy rings and put them on the FSA crank anyway, because the Campy rings have a 135mm bolt circle, and the FSA crank has a 130mm bolt circle (or 110mm, if it is a Compact Road crankset). Lennard Were it a Brooks, it would just be getting broken in Dear Lennard, How many miles can a saddle last

Oscar Freire profited from quality work from his orange Rabobank train to win Monday’s stage into Port d'Alcudia by a half-bike length ahead of Erik Zabel (T-Mobile). Five Rabos set a blistering pace over the final 10km to catapult the former two-time world champion to victory. Sunday’s winner, Allan Davis of Liberty Seguros, was caught out of position but sprung back to finish third. “Today was different than yesterday’s circuit course when it was hard to find the right position,” Freire said after winning in 3 hours, 57 minutes, 38 seconds. “Today the team did amazing work over the final

Allan Davis christened the 2004 European road season with a sprint victory in Sunday’s Trofeo Mallorca to give his new Liberty Seguros team the best possible start to the year. The Australian fought hard to get back in position after being boxed out in the final kilometer of Sunday’s 82.5km circuit course along the harbor at Palma de Mallorca to open the five-day Mallorca Challenge. Davis overcame a strong effort by Rabobank to set up former two-time world champion Oscar Freire to grab the victory. Erik Zabel (T-Mobile) ill-timed his sprint and came through to take third. Racing was

Using the climbing skills that won her the world mountain-bike title at Mont-Ste-Anne five years ago, French off-road star Laurence Leboucher took her second world cyclo-cross title on her home turf Sunday morning. “We’ve talked about the world’s taking place in Pont-Château for a long time, but actually doing them, and winning, was another thing,” said Leboucher. “And I couldn’t have won without Maryline’s help behind.” She was referring to her teammate Maryline Salvetat, who closely marked two-time world champion Hanka Kupfernagel when the German was the only rider strong enough to chase

Bart Wellens made the right choice, Mario De Clercq didn’t. The younger of Belgium’s past world elite cyclo-cross champions chose to start the final sprint from the front. The older man chose to follow. And though there was only about an inch between their knobby front tires at the line, Wellens just held on. “Eight times out of 10 I would lose the sprint to Mario, so it was a great honor to beat him,” said a jubilant Wellens, 25, who thus kept the title he first earned last year in Monopoli, Italy. “Today was much more special for me than Monopoli.” Perhaps this was De Clercq’s final best

The 2004 European bike racing season kicks off Sunday with the five-day Mallorca Challenge, the continent’s first major race of the road season. Many big-hitters are starting the series among the 19 teams and 300 riders, including such big guns as Erik Zabel (T-Mobile), Oscar Freire (Rabobank) and Alejandro Valverde (Comunidad Valenciana-Kelme). Held over five stages, the races are held as a string of one-day races rather than accumulative time. Races: Day 1: Palma to Palma, 82.5km; Day 2, Alcudia-Port d’Alcudia, 159km; Day 3: Soller-Port de Sóller, 150,6km; Day 4: Calabona-Manacor,