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Robbie McEwen does not now have to be asked how he is feeling every year on the eve of the final Tour de France stage which brings the peloton into Paris. The 32-year-old Lotto rider, for the third year in a row, will ride around the chic quartiers surrounding the Champs Elysees knowing that at the end of the day he could pull on the green jersey for a second time since 2002. McEwen won the points classification's coveted prize two years ago before losing it on the final stage to Baden Cooke last year. This year, he will have to defend a small lead, of 11 points against Norwegian Thor

Can someone please tell Robbie McEwen to retire the Big Fat Helmet™ thathe and his teammates wore during Tour de France time trials? It is physically painful for me to look at that thing. Not only is his helmet just plain dorky looking, there isn’t a doubt in my mind that it is an extremely slow helmet and ultimately is a detriment to his time-trial performance. What would make me say such a thing? Well, I was recently lucky enough to spend some time in the Allied Aerospacewind tunnel where I got to tunnel test some one-piece aero bars.During that entry I also got to stick my long-legged and

STAGE 19 July 24 Besançon - Besançon (TT) (37.284mi/60km)

STAGE 19 July 24 Besançon - Besançon (TT) (37.284mi/60km)

STAGE 19 July 24 Besançon - Besançon (TT) (37.284mi/60km)

Armstrong powers to yet another victory in the final time trial

Armstrong powers to another stage win and virtually cinches a sixth straight Tour

Ullrich finished second to Armstrong, but will miss the podium

Basso gave it his all, but slipped back a spot on GC

Landis had the best time before the big dogs started barking

Vande Velde's Tour: Venga! Venga! Venga!

Figure 1 In the tunnel at Allied Aerospace.

Figure 2. The photo studio and Lucho

Figure 3. L to R: no helmet, 1994 Specialized, 1998 Giro.

Figure 4. Big helmet on the left. Big Fat Helmet™ on the right

COURSE: This stage has five climbs but none are particularly steep;the Col de la Faucille, which overlooks Lake Geneva, is the longest, butcomes before halfway. The small Nogna hill and fast descent to the finish offer some chances for a late break. FAVORITES: The sprinters that have survived three difficult daysin the Alps will covet this stage. If someone like Bettini fails in a latemove, the field sprint will favor the talents of a Cooke or Zabel. HISTORY: Two stages have finished at Lons-le-Saunier. In 1937, the fifth stage was held in three parts: a 175km road race from Belfort

It was meant to have been a day for the minnows in the 2004 Tour de France peloton to fight for the scraps. And whoever won the stage could steal some thunder from the Armstrongs and Ullrichs of the race. But instead, the 166.5km stage 18 from Annemasse to Lons-le-Saunier became the platform for an ugly and bitter dispute between the biggest name in cycling, the overall race leader Lance Armstrong (U.S. Postal Service) and one of the lesser known names in the sport, Italian Filippo Simeoni (Domina Vacanze), who has won only seven races in his 11-year pro career. For a race that is now 48

It’s been nearly two weeks since my last column, so I suppose I got some ‘splaining to do. Let’s just say that with the VeloNews editorial staff spread out across France, Italy and the United States, we’ve been running a skeleton crew here at the office putting together our 132-page Tour de France issue. Example: On Monday, July 12, our industrious intern Brock Adams, a junior at the University of Florida, brought his mother into the VN office, video camera and all, to say a round of goodbyes to the editorial staff before they made the drive back home. Sadly, every single member of our

STAGE RESULTS1. Juan Miguel Mercado (Sp), Quick Step-Davitamon, 4:04:032. Vicente Garcia Acosta (Sp), Illes Balears-Banesto, 00:003. Dmitriy Fofonov (Kaz), Cofidis, 00:114. Joly Sébastien (F), Crédit Agricole, 00:115. Marc Lotz (Nl), Rabobank, 00:116. Juan Antonio Flecha (Sp), Fassa Bortolo, 00:117. Thor Hushovd (Nor), Crédit Agricole, 11:298. Robbie Mc Ewen (Aus), Lotto-Domo, 11:299. Danilo Hondo (G), Gerolsteiner, 11:2910. Stuart O'Grady (Aus), Cofidis, 11:29 11. Carlos Da Cruz (F), FDJeux.com, 11:2912. Erik Zabel (G), T-Mobile, 11:2913. Serguei Ivanov (Rus), T-Mobile, 11:2914. Karsten

Lance Armstrong dealt sharply with an off-the-bike rival and the press on Friday, chasing down Italian Filippo Simeoni’s attempt to join an early breakaway and chiding the media for only being interested in “part of the story.” The 32-year-old U.S. Postal captain, who leads the race by more than four minutes and has won four stages, chased down the 32-year-old Domina Vacanze rider as he sought to join a break of six riders, hoping for a stage win. Simeoni is a key witness in the pending trial of Italian sports doctor Michele Ferrari, with whom Armstrong has worked in the past. He also has

The Mail Bag is a Monday-Wednesday-Friday feature on VeloNews.com, but will appear daily during the Tour. If you have a comment, an opinion or observation regarding anything you have seen in cycling, in VeloNews magazine or on VeloNews.com, write to WebLetters@InsideInc.com. Please include your FULL NAME, HOMETOWN and STATE, or NATION if you live outside the United States. Letters may be edited for length and clarity.The code of OmertaEditors,Has the “Blue Train” turned into the “Blue Wall of Silence?” Armstrong should not be making "zip the lips" signals in the pelotonregarding Simeoni. If

Looking at the route of the 2004 Tour de France last fall, team directors and riders knew Stage 18 would be the last chance for opportunists to take a stage win. Covering small mountains and situated between the final big Alpine stage and the last individual time trial, today’s stage was tailor-made for a breakaway. Once the composition of the breakaway was finalized, the six-man group rode away to fight for the stage win. Back in the peloton, there wasn’t much incentive to chase or race aggressively. T-Mobile wasn’t going to be able to attack and isolate Ivan Basso to gain time on him

Dear Lennard,Here’s a question. There was some hype about Lance’s speciallydeveloped skinsuit (Project 1 as seen on OLN) with wind tunnel testingand so forth. Special light jerseys for climbing and so on.How does that factor in when he’s in the yellow jersey? Does Nikehave to submit samples to the tour organization for approval to wear asthe yellow jersey?Charlie Dear Charlie,Yes, Nike made the white, yellow, polka-dot and green jerseys withthe same fabrics as the Postal clothing, so the TT suit is the Swift andthe jersey for mountain days is the HC, which I described in detail in the tech

At a meeting in Salzburg, Austria, Friday the management committee of the UCI gave final approval to an agreement committing the organization to sign anti-doping protocols created by the World Anti-doping Authority nearly four years ago. On the eve of the 2004 Olympics in Athens, the UCI becomes the last international governing body to sign the rules. The committee’s failure to sign would have prevented cycling events from taking place in Athens this year. UCI president Hein Verbruggen has expressed concern on several occasions that cycling would be treated unequally because of its

STAGE 18 July 23 Annemasse - Lons-le-Saunier (103.152mi/166km)

STAGE 18 July 23 Annemasse - Lons-le-Saunier (103.152mi/166km)

STAGE 18 July 23 Annemasse - Lons-le-Saunier (103.152mi/166km)

Mercado wins

Phil Zajicek

Jonas Carney

Tim Johnson and Lyne Bessette

Simeoni has a dig - and Armstrong was having none of it

We'd like to have been able to listen in on that chat

With the Armstrong-Simeoni thing resolved, the break proceeds

Armstrong and Simeoni exchange compliments

Armstrong on the podium

Armstrong was not going to allow Simeoni to go anywhere unchallenged

Armstrong was not welcome in the break, but he wasn't leaving until Simeoni did.

Armstrong awaits the peloton after snuffing Simeoni's plans

Carl Decker's homemade time trial helmet

Armstrong had the firepower to back up any threats

Tour de Tech: Questions about Clothing, Giants and that little bag

Tour de Tech: Questions about Clothing, Giants and that little bag

Tour de Tech: Questions about Clothing, Giants and that little bag

Tour de Tech: Questions about Clothing, Giants and that little bag

COURSE: This is statistically the hardest day of the Tour with 16,827feet of climbing over five mountain passes in 205km. The 25km haul up theGlandon, followed by the 20km of the steeper Madeleine, will soften thingsup before three difficult climbs in the last 70km. There are 13-percentslopes on the narrow Col de la Forclaz above Lake Annecy, while the Croix-Frysummit is just 13km from the line. FAVORITES: A breakaway by men lower down the standings is likelyin the early kilometers and could gain enough time to stay clear all theway. Perhaps Carlos Sastre or Juan Mercado will win the

Lance Armstrong was in familiar territory Thursday, once again standing atop the winner’s podium, following the 17th stage of the Tour de France, a brutally difficult race from Bourg d'Oisans to Le Grand Bornand. But after outsprinting German Andreas Klöden (T-Mobile) in the final meters of the 204.5km stage, Armstrong said “the man of the day” was really his U.S. Postal Service teammate Floyd Landis. “He was again ... the man of the day,” said Armstrong, whose win in the final of three stages in the Alps was his third consecutive individual stage win and fourth for the Tour. But Armstrong

Back in 1995, my parents owned a dog named Bosun. They bred him with a female named Baby. Tugboat was the pick of their litter. I chose him because he was the most animated of all the puppies. Quite often, Baby's owner would find Tugboat out of the puppy kennel and perched on its roof. He was an entertainer, even at a few weeks old. When Tugs was born back in Massachusetts, I was living in Colorado. When he was old enough to be separated from Baby and his eight siblings, he spent a brief hiatus at my parents' home in Marblehead. A couple weeks later he was loaded onto a plane, all by

STAGE RESULTS1. Lance Armstrong (USA), U.S. Postal Service, 6:11:522. Andréas KlÖden (G), T-Mobile, 00:003. Jan Ullrich (G), T-Mobile, 00:014. Ivan Basso (I), CSC, 00:015. Floyd Landis (USA), U.S. Postal Service, 00:136. Axel Merckx (B), Lotto-Domo, 01:017. Levi Leipheimer (USA), Rabobank, 01:018. Carlos Sastre (Sp), CSC, 01:029. Mickael Rasmussen (Dk), Rabobank, 01:0210. Georg Totschnig (A), Gerolsteiner, 01:02 11. Azevedo José (P), U.S. Postal Service, 01:0212. Vladimir Karpets (Rus), Illes Balears-Banesto, 02:0013. Oscar Pereiro Sio (Sp), Phonak, 02:0514. Giuseppe Guerini (I), T-Mobile,

Frenchman Richard Virenque made certain of winning a record seventh polka-dot jersey as best climber on the Tour de France during Thursday’s 17th stage. The 34-year-old Quick Step rider last year equaled the record of six victories held jointly by Spaniard Federico Bahamontes and Belgian Lucien Van Impe. Virenque began the 204.5km stage from Bourg d'Oisans to Le Grand-Bornand with 177 points, ahead of race leader Lance Armstrong (U.S> Postal Service-Berry Floor) with 142 and Italian Ivan Basso (CSC) with 101, and went out on the attack after an hour of racing to take enough points to secure

Dear Lennard,How about a report on the stuff that hasn't work in the Tour? I don't think I've ever heard of more riders being injured in crashes or having to stop from broken handlebars, stems and forks and other equipment-related mishaps. One really goofy example is Phonak using track tires in the rainy team time trial. Are these folks pushing the envelope too far? I didn't used to thinkthe minimum bike weight was a good idea, but it might keep things safer. On the other hand, how about Ulrich on L'Alpe? It looks like he carriedan extra couple of pounds of useless aero stuff up the hill.

Australia's Robbie McEwen survived the last mountain stage of the Tour de France on Thursday to remain the favorite to win the prestigious points competition. The Lotto-Domo rider finished 109th in Le Grand Bornand, more than 35 minutes behind stage winner Lance Armstrong, but with none of his rivals scoring points he kept the green jersey for another day. "On paper it looked as if it would be a really hard day but it turned out fine," he said after the 204.5km stage through the Alps. "I got over the first climb with the main field and then we formed a gruppetto on the Col de la Madeleine

Superior fitness makes a rider more versatile, and Lance Armstrong proved that by winning his third stage in as many days. Including the team time trial, Lance has won five stages of the 2004 Tour de France and he’s won them by being a complete athlete. Some riders are pure climbers, while others see the time trials as their best chance of winning a stage. When you are remarkably fit, however, you can excel in almost any racing situation and find a way to win on top of mountains, in time trials, uphill sprints and flat sprints. Extreme fitness provides benefits beyond power and endurance.

Okay, I am beat now. It was another hard day. They keep hitting us with these insane stages. Today was perhaps one of the hardest days on paper with some serious climbing and the highest peak of the Tour, the Col de la Madeleine. My watch tells me we did 5000 meters of climbing in 71 km. Kilimanjaro is 5896 meters high so we didn’t do too badly today. As a kid I used to do a loop back home with my Dad that was 70km around. I can remember thinking it was a pretty solid ride back then- today we climbed the same distance. Today is was hot. In the last three weeks we have had all sorts of

The Mail Bag is a Monday-Wednesday-Friday feature on VeloNews.com, but will appear daily during the Tour. If you have a comment, an opinion or observation regarding anything you have seen in cycling, in VeloNews magazine or on VeloNews.com, write to WebLetters@InsideInc.com. Please include your FULL NAME, HOMETOWN and STATE, or NATION if you live outside the United States. Letters may be edited for length and clarity.Lance Armstrong, man of the hour?Editor:Six is in the bag, but seven, schmeven! How about the hour record for Lance? What say ye, Big Tex? Dawn WrightCorvallis, Oregon Not a

Stage 17 of the Tour de France saw some great tactics played out in the final kilometers of an extremely hard and hot day in the Alps. The day’s stage finished with a first-category climb followed by a 10km descent to the finish. It was clear that Lance Armstrong wanted his U.S. Postal teammate Floyd Landis, who was pressing the pace for him up the final climb, to win the stage. So over the top of the climb, Landis didn’t so much attack as he just kept the pressure on over the top and rode away. Jan Ullrich jumped across, followed by Armstrong. Once Ullrich caught Landis, he sort of sat up

STAGE 17 July 22 Bourg d'Oisans - Le Grand Bornand (131.737mi/212km)

STAGE 17 July 22 Bourg d'Oisans - Le Grand Bornand (131.737mi/212km)

STAGE 17 July 22 Bourg d'Oisans - Le Grand Bornand (131.737mi/212km)

Armstrong pips Klöden at the line

Tugboat and Tyler

Tugboat demonstrates the art of 'lazy-dog fetch'

Phonak and other teams have opted for the red Corima cork pads

Haselbacher after the crash. You can see the offending bike, and its broken bar, leaning against the barrier on the upper left of the photo and enlarged below.

Tour de Tech: Product failures at critical moments

Virenque on the hunt for polka dots

Postal en masse

The Glandon

The Madeleine

One more for the boss

Great tire, but not for those conditions

Great tire, but not for those conditions

Everyone dealt with the heat in their own way

STAGE DETAIL: 15.5 km (time trial) KM CLIMBING: 13.8 (average grade: 7.9 %) COURSE: Despite the ballyhoo this stage has created, it’s notthe toughest uphill time trial in Tour history. That honor goes to Mont Ventoux (used in 1958 and 1987), which is 7km longer than the 13.8km of the Alpe d’Huez climb with the same average grade of 7.8 percent. After a flat 1.7km start the Alpe d’Huez climb opens with its steepest pitches. FAVORITES: Armstrong may still be the favorite, but his strongest challenger on the stage may be Iban Mayo, who won the stage to L’Alpe d’Huez last year and

Although he’s virtually unknown to the public, hotelier Georges Rajon wasinstrumental in the Tour de France’s longstanding relationship with L’Alped’Huez. He is the man credited with bringing the Tour to the famous climb,and he has made significant contributions to the development of this alpineresort, where he still loves to spend his time. But Rajon will tell youit wasn’t his idea to bring the Tour up to L’Alpe d’Huez. “It was an artisan painter from Bourg d’Oisans, Jean Barbaglia, whocame to see André Quintin [another hotelier at L’Alpe d’Huez] andme one day in 1951 and asked, ‘Why don’t

Former world sprint cycling champion Sean Eadie was re-nominated to compete for Australia at the Olympics on Wednesday, two days after drugs allegations against him were dismissed. His reinstatement to the Games team is now expected to be a formality. Eadie was cleared by Australia's Court of Arbitration for Sport on Monday night of trying to import banned human growth hormones. He was dropped from the Athens line-up when the drug trafficking claims emerged two weeks ago but has fiercely maintained his innocence since. Eadie was replaced on the proposed cycling team by 22-year-old Ben