Thursday Anticipation

Next Tuesday, we race. It will be bumpy. Maybe traumatic. But definitely memorable. Be there.

But before that, there's this. Note that you don't need a race license for this one.

The Sweetest Jersey in the World does Pinawa

It got a little muddy. But it's black, so it blends in nicely. And adds some texture too.




Lots more photos here, courtesy of Peter Taylor and Frank Walton. Thanks to Bill A. for the link.

OTT: Phil Roy, Exceptionally Ordinary

Cobbles, Tunnels, and Darkened Alleys

Another Tuesday night, another sweet ride. Mostly the Forks and the Exchange. Some recon for future races, and a little random wandering. First post-Burger Cat visit to VJ's. Which is good, because it was so much better yesterday than the last time we at there. We're back on track. Five errors helped the Goldeyes blow a 9 run lead, and yet they still celebrated with fireworks. There were plenty of spooky characters lurking in the trees along the river trails as we made our way over to the F&H. And some kids who mistook us for aliens. We're lucky to have made it home alive, really.

The clubhouse, as always, was warm and welcoming. Like a grandmother's hug. Highlights included a vigorous discussion about the state of the MCA and local racing. Names were named and fingers were pointed. Math and electronics seemed to come up a lot too. And traffic tickets, especially the kind that arrive in the mail. The gist, if I recall correctly, is that it's all Cousin Adam's fault.







OTT: The Raveonettes, Aly, Walk With Me

mud = fun

problem with road races is you don't get to play in the mud. geoff kabush took second at mount st. anne last weekend. the tour is overrated.

Get on Your Bikes and Ride

No race tonight. Just a ride. Meet at my place, 9:30 pm.

OTT: Vancougar, Phone Calls

new kid in the extended club

lukas e of the flip flops from last week's race had a child in the last day or two... i guess he won't ride with us tomorrow, unless of course, his kid is awesome and says that he can come.

Burr Oak TT

How does a Wednesday Night Race turn out when everyone gets the hole shot? Find out this Sunday. If you're not going to 9-Mile, this would be the place to be.

2008 FGBC TdF Pool: Done

I'm back from Crystal City. Good times in the motherland. Fortunately, I was able to watch stage 20. Unfortunately, I was without an internet connection.

It's all over but the second-guessing now. Thanks for playing. I hope it was fun. Here's how things panned out over the last couple of stages.

Bacon Wrapped Hot Dogs and You Like Samurai Swords, I Like Baseball win the final stwo stages. Team Runner Up holds on to take the overall victory. Congratulations! After all the bonus points were awarded, however, the rest of the standings got completely reshuffled. Nothing Stops a Party Barge moves from 5th place onto the 2nd podium step. With over 1100 bonus points, they cut a lead of over 600 points to less than 300. Team Toulouse remains on the podium, but just barely. They end up clinging to 3rd spot by the fingernails ahead of Fuck It, Let's Go Bowling, who rocket up from 12th to come shy of the podium by just 5 points. In the race for the lanterne rouge, it was a nail-biter. It came down to the bonus points awarded for the best young rider competition. The 20 points for Vincenzo Nibali move Viva Italia just ahead of Turn Up the Good, Turn Down the Suck, who reclaim their rightful place at the bottom of the heap. It's hard to capture just how awful those two teams were. They are over 800 points worse than the 3rd worst team, the Sturmy-Archer All Stars. But they gave us the most exciting and hard-fought race of the pool.

Final GC:

Team Runner Up (Mike) 3700
Nothing Stops a Party Barge (Donna) 3415
Team Toulouse (Vic) 2990
Fuck It, Let's Go Bowling (Colin) 2985
Los Lobos Soundcheck Disaster (Bill) 2815
English on the Ball (Matt) 2805
Zed's Dead, Baby (Chris) 2745
Powered by Veggies (Jonny B) 2655
Farm Team (Tinker James) 2610
Frequent Flyers (Tom K) 2405
Bacon Wrapped Hot Dogs (Johnny M) 2375
Dolphin Ankle Tatoos (Ian) 2270
You Like Samurai Swords, I Like Baseball (Arlene) 2170
Mylie Sigurdur's Wheels of Fury (Dallas) 2075
Don't Stop to Smell the Flowers (LeAnn) 2030
The A Team (Adam) 2020
You Suckers Don't Have a Chance Against the King (Andy) 1990
Annie Proffitt's Kids (Rachel) 1700
Poison Ivy Weedwackers (Hal) 1635
Arms Akimbo (Brad) 1525
Sturmy-Archer All-Stars (Kevin) 1445
Viva Italia (David S) 645
Turn up the good, turn down the suck! (Paddy & Naomi) 630

The full breakdown is as follows:

Stage 20:

Bacon Wrapped Hot Dogs (Jonny M) 295
Frequent Flyers (Tom K) 255
English on the Ball (Matt) 255
Farm Team (Tinker James) 215
Arms Akimbo (Brad) 205
Fuck It, Let's Go Bowling (Colin) 190
Nothing Stops a Party Barge (Donna) 185
Powered by Veggies (Jonny B) 170
Mylie Sigurdur's Wheels of Fury (Dallas) 150
Don't Stop to Smell the Flowers (LeAnn) 145
Dolphin Ankle Tatoos (Ian) 125
Los Lobos Soundcheck Disaster (Bill) 115
Annie Proffitt's Kids (Rachel) 95
You Suckers Don't Have a Chance Against the King (Andy) 90
Poison Ivy Weedwackers (Hal) 75
Team Runner Up (Mike) 70
Turn up the good, turn down the suck! (Paddy & Naomi) 70
The A Team (Adam) 20
You Like Samurai Swords, I Like Baseball (Arlene) 15
Team Toulouse (Vic) 0
Zed's Dead, Baby (Chris) 0
Sturmy-Archer All-Stars (Kevin) 0
Viva Italia (David S) 0


Overall Standings after Stage 20:

Team Runner Up (Mike) 2925
Team Toulouse (Vic) 2400
Zed's Dead, Baby (Chris) 2375
English on the Ball (Matt) 2300
Nothing Stops a Party Barge (Donna) 2270
Los Lobos Soundcheck Disaster (Bill) 2225
Powered by Veggies (Jonny B) 2190
Farm Team (Tinker James) 1930
Bacon Wrapped Hot Dogs (Johnny M) 1910
Fuck It, Let's Go Bowling (Colin) 1860
Frequent Flyers (Tom K) 1835
Mylie Sigurdur's Wheels of Fury (Dallas) 1765
You Like Samurai Swords, I Like Baseball (Arlene) 1660
You Suckers Don't Have a Chance Against the King (Andy) 1580
Dolphin Ankle Tatoos (Ian) 1550
The A Team (Adam) 1460
Arms Akimbo (Brad) 1335
Annie Proffitt's Kids (Rachel) 1170
Sturmy-Archer All-Stars (Kevin) 1150
Poison Ivy Weedwackers (Hal) 1020
Don't Stop to Smell the Flowers (LeAnn) 1015
Turn up the good, turn down the suck! (Paddy & Naomi) 630
Viva Italia (David S) 550


Stage 21:

You Like Samurai Swords, I Like Baseball (Arlene) 290
Team Runner Up (Mike) 215
English on the Ball (Matt) 205
Team Toulouse (Vic) 195
Zed's Dead, Baby (Chris) 170
Arms Akimbo (Brad) 130
Nothing Stops a Party Barge (Donna) 115
Bacon Wrapped Hot Dogs (Jonny M) 105
Powered by Veggies (Jonny B) 105
Annie Proffitt's Kids (Rachel) 90
Los Lobos Soundcheck Disaster (Bill) 90
The A Team (Adam) 75
Frequent Flyers (Tom K) 70
Mylie Sigurdur's Wheels of Fury (Dallas) 65
You Suckers Don't Have a Chance Against the King (Andy) 50
Viva Italia (David S) 45
Farm Team (Tinker James) 40
Fuck It, Let's Go Bowling (Colin) 25
Don't Stop to Smell the Flowers (LeAnn) 25
Sturmy-Archer All-Stars (Kevin) 0
Dolphin Ankle Tatoos (Ian) 0
Turn up the good, turn down the suck! (Paddy & Naomi) 0
Poison Ivy Weedwackers (Hal) 0


Overall Standings after Stage 21:

Team Runner Up (Mike) 3140
Team Toulouse (Vic) 2595
Zed's Dead, Baby (Chris) 2545
English on the Ball (Matt) 2505
Nothing Stops a Party Barge (Donna) 2385
Los Lobos Soundcheck Disaster (Bill) 2315
Powered by Veggies (Jonny B) 2295
Bacon Wrapped Hot Dogs (Johnny M) 2015
Farm Team (Tinker James) 1970
You Like Samurai Swords, I Like Baseball (Arlene) 1950
Frequent Flyers (Tom K) 1905
Fuck It, Let's Go Bowling (Colin) 1885
Mylie Sigurdur's Wheels of Fury (Dallas) 1830
You Suckers Don't Have a Chance Against the King (Andy) 1630
Dolphin Ankle Tatoos (Ian) 1550
The A Team (Adam) 1535
Arms Akimbo (Brad) 1465
Annie Proffitt's Kids (Rachel) 1260
Sturmy-Archer All-Stars (Kevin) 1150
Don't Stop to Smell the Flowers (LeAnn) 1040
Poison Ivy Weedwackers (Hal) 1020
Turn up the good, turn down the suck! (Paddy & Naomi) 630
Viva Italia (David S) 595


Yellow Jersey Bonus Points:

Fuck It, Let's Go Bowling (Colin) 1020
Don't Stop to Smell the Flowers (LeAnn) 950
Nothing Stops a Party Barge (Donna) 900
Dolphin Ankle Tatoos (Ian) 680
Farm Team (Tinker James) 620
Poison Ivy Weedwackers (Hal) 575
Frequent Flyers (Tom K) 500
Team Runner Up (Mike) 500
Annie Proffitt's Kids (Rachel) 440
The A Team (Adam) 425
Los Lobos Soundcheck Disaster (Bill) 420
Team Toulouse (Vic) 335
Bacon Wrapped Hot Dogs (Jonny M) 300
Powered by Veggies (Jonny B) 300
English on the Ball (Matt) 300
You Suckers Don't Have a Chance Against the King (Andy) 300
Sturmy-Archer All-Stars (Kevin) 275
Mylie Sigurdur's Wheels of Fury (Dallas) 225
Zed's Dead, Baby (Chris) 200
You Like Samurai Swords, I Like Baseball (Arlene) 180
Arms Akimbo (Brad) 60
Viva Italia (David S) 30
Turn up the good, turn down the suck! (Paddy & Naomi) 0


Green Jersey Bonus Points:

Nothing Stops a Party Barge (Donna) 90
Team Runner Up (Mike) 60
Bacon Wrapped Hot Dogs (Jonny M) 60
Powered by Veggies (Jonny B) 60
You Suckers Don't Have a Chance Against the King (Andy) 60
Los Lobos Soundcheck Disaster (Bill) 20
Mylie Sigurdur's Wheels of Fury (Dallas) 20
Fuck It, Let's Go Bowling (Colin) 0
Don't Stop to Smell the Flowers (LeAnn) 0
Dolphin Ankle Tatoos (Ian) 0
Farm Team (Tinker James) 0
Poison Ivy Weedwackers (Hal) 0
Frequent Flyers (Tom K) 0
Annie Proffitt's Kids (Rachel) 0
The A Team (Adam) 0
Team Toulouse (Vic) 0
English on the Ball (Matt) 0
Sturmy-Archer All-Stars (Kevin) 0
Zed's Dead, Baby (Chris) 0
You Like Samurai Swords, I Like Baseball (Arlene) 0
Arms Akimbo (Brad) 0
Viva Italia (David S) 0
Turn up the good, turn down the suck! (Paddy & Naomi) 0


Polka-Dot Jersey Bonus Points:

Fuck It, Let's Go Bowling (Colin) 40
Don't Stop to Smell the Flowers (LeAnn) 40
Nothing Stops a Party Barge (Donna) 40
Farm Team (Tinker James) 20
Sturmy-Archer All-Stars (Kevin) 20
Dolphin Ankle Tatoos (Ian) 0
Poison Ivy Weedwackers (Hal) 0
Frequent Flyers (Tom K) 0
Team Runner Up (Mike) 0
Annie Proffitt's Kids (Rachel) 0
The A Team (Adam) 0
Los Lobos Soundcheck Disaster (Bill) 0
Team Toulouse (Vic) 0
Bacon Wrapped Hot Dogs (Jonny M) 0
Powered by Veggies (Jonny B) 0
English on the Ball (Matt) 0
You Suckers Don't Have a Chance Against the King (Andy) 0
Mylie Sigurdur's Wheels of Fury (Dallas) 0
Zed's Dead, Baby (Chris) 0
You Like Samurai Swords, I Like Baseball (Arlene) 0
Arms Akimbo (Brad) 0
Viva Italia (David S) 0
Turn up the good, turn down the suck! (Paddy & Naomi) 0


White Jersey Bonus Points:

The A Team (Adam) 60
Los Lobos Soundcheck Disaster (Bill) 60
Team Toulouse (Vic) 60
Fuck It, Let's Go Bowling (Colin) 40
Dolphin Ankle Tatoos (Ian) 40
Poison Ivy Weedwackers (Hal) 40
You Like Samurai Swords, I Like Baseball (Arlene) 40
Viva Italia (David S) 20
Don't Stop to Smell the Flowers (LeAnn) 0
Nothing Stops a Party Barge (Donna) 0
Farm Team (Tinker James) 0
Frequent Flyers (Tom K) 0
Team Runner Up (Mike) 0
Annie Proffitt's Kids (Rachel) 0
Bacon Wrapped Hot Dogs (Jonny M) 0
Powered by Veggies (Jonny B) 0
English on the Ball (Matt) 0
You Suckers Don't Have a Chance Against the King (Andy) 0
Sturmy-Archer All-Stars (Kevin) 0
Mylie Sigurdur's Wheels of Fury (Dallas) 0
Zed's Dead, Baby (Chris) 0
Arms Akimbo (Brad) 0
Turn up the good, turn down the suck! (Paddy & Naomi) 0

Sylvain's Joyride

Sylvain Chavanel stormed the party barge, grabbed hold of the rudder, and took it for a joyride today. It seems like there hasn't been a stage this year in which he hasn't launched an attack. He tried again today and it stuck. He wins his first ever stage of the Tour, just as Nothing Stops a Party Barge wins their first stage of the 2008 TdF Pool. No significant changes at the top of the GC in either race. But there was a major shakeup at the bottom of the TdF Pool. With Chavanel on their squad, Turn Up the Good, Turn Down the Suck! breaks out of their slump in a big way. They finish second on the day with 150 points. Viva Italia, however, managed only 30 points from Allesandro Ballan. They take over the lanterne rouge by a mere 10 points. Something tells me this one's going down to the wire.

And the race for the Tour itself is going down to the wire too. It all comes down to a somewhat hilly 53 km individual time trial. Carlose Sastre vs. Cadel Evans. Sastre has 1.34 to spare. Will it be enough? The consensus seems to be that it won't be enough. But there are some notable dissenters. Chris, of the Podium Cafe, thinks he can hold on and presents some numbers to back up his claim. Either way, it should be an exciting hour or so while those two guys are out on the road.

ASO/VN highlights here.

Stage 19:

Nothing Stops a Party Barge (Donna) 215
Turn up the good, turn down the suck! (Paddy & Naomi) 150
Team Runner Up (Mike) 145
Zed's Dead, Baby (Chris) 115
Powered by Veggies (Jonny B) 115
You Like Samurai Swords, I Like Baseball (Arlene) 115
You Suckers Don't Have a Chance Against the King (Andy) 100
Bacon Wrapped Hot Dogs (Jonny M) 95
Mylie Sigurdur's Wheels of Fury (Dallas) 60
Team Toulouse (Vic) 55
English on the Ball (Matt) 55
The A Team (Adam) 45
Viva Italia (David S) 30
Sturmy-Archer All-Stars (Kevin) 10
Fuck It, Let's Go Bowling (Colin) 10
Annie Proffitt's Kids (Rachel) 0
Frequent Flyers (Tom K) 0
Farm Team (Tinker James) 0
Los Lobos Soundcheck Disaster (Bill) 0
Dolphin Ankle Tatoos (Ian) 0
Don't Stop to Smell the Flowers (LeAnn) 0
Arms Akimbo (Brad) 0
Poison Ivy Weedwackers (Hal) 0


Overall Standings:

Team Runner Up (Mike) 2855
Team Toulouse (Vic) 2400
Zed's Dead, Baby (Chris) 2375
Los Lobos Soundcheck Disaster (Bill) 2110
English on the Ball (Matt) 2045
Nothing Stops a Party Barge (Donna) 2035
Powered by Veggies (Jonny B) 2020
Farm Team (Tinker James) 1715
You Like Samurai Swords, I Like Baseball (Arlene) 1645
Fuck It, Let's Go Bowling (Colin) 1620
Mylie Sigurdur's Wheels of Fury (Dallas) 1615
Bacon Wrapped Hot Dogs (Johnny M) 1615
Frequent Flyers (Tom K) 1580
You Suckers Don't Have a Chance Against the King (Andy) 1490
The A Team (Adam) 1440
Dolphin Ankle Tatoos (Ian) 1425
Sturmy-Archer All-Stars (Kevin) 1150
Arms Akimbo (Brad) 1130
Annie Proffitt's Kids (Rachel) 1075
Poison Ivy Weedwackers (Hal) 945
Don't Stop to Smell the Flowers (LeAnn) 820
Turn up the good, turn down the suck! (Paddy & Naomi) 560
Viva Italia (David S) 550

OTT: Or, the whale, Death of Me

Kid KO'd

Poor old Damiano Cunego. Things haven't exactly worked out as planned for the Little Prince at the 2008 TdF. He skipped the Giro to focus on the Tour and came in as one of the favourites. But he simply hasn't been able to keep pace with the main heads of state. And as if that wasn't bad enough, he crashed yesterday and turned his chin into ground beef. His team dropped back to drag him to the finish some 20 minutes back. But a post-race visit to the doctor confirmed that his Tour was over.




Marcus Burghardt won the stage ahead of his breakaway partner, Carlos Barredo. No changes among the top spots.

ASO/VN Highlights here.

In the FGBC TdF Pool, Dolphin Ankle Tatoos wins its 2nd stage in three days, ahead of a four-way tie for second place. No change in the top three but Team Toulouse edges a little bit closer. In the race for the lanterne rouge, Turn up the good, turn down the suck! has turned the suck up to 11. The score a grand total of 0 points for the fifth consecutive stage. Luckily for them, Viva Italia sucks almost as much and still seems to be alive in the race for last place.

Stage 18 Results:

Dolphin Ankle Tatoos (Ian) 135
Farm Team (Tinker James) 125
Team Toulouse (Vic) 125
Los Lobos Soundcheck Disaster (Bill) 125
English on the Ball (Matt) 125
Team Runner Up (Mike) 115
The A Team (Adam) 70
Zed's Dead, Baby (Chris) 70
Powered by Veggies (Jonny B) 70
Arms Akimbo (Brad) 70
Fuck It, Let's Go Bowling (Colin) 65
You Like Samurai Swords, I Like Baseball (Arlene) 65
Poison Ivy Weedwackers (Hal) 65
Annie Proffitt's Kids (Rachel) 60
Bacon Wrapped Hot Dogs (Jonny M) 45
You Suckers Don't Have a Chance Against the King (Andy) 45
Nothing Stops a Party Barge (Donna) 40
Viva Italia (David S) 15
Frequent Flyers (Tom K) 0
Mylie Sigurdur's Wheels of Fury (Dallas) 0
Sturmy-Archer All-Stars (Kevin) 0
Don't Stop to Smell the Flowers (LeAnn) 0
Turn up the good, turn down the suck! (Paddy & Naomi) 0


Overall Standings:

Team Runner Up (Mike) 2710
Team Toulouse (Vic) 2345
Zed's Dead, Baby (Chris) 2260
Los Lobos Soundcheck Disaster (Bill) 2110
English on the Ball (Matt) 1990
Powered by Veggies (Jonny B) 1905
Nothing Stops a Party Barge (Donna) 1820
Farm Team (Tinker James) 1715
Fuck It, Let's Go Bowling (Colin) 1610
Frequent Flyers (Tom K) 1580
Mylie Sigurdur's Wheels of Fury (Dallas) 1555
You Like Samurai Swords, I Like Baseball (Arlene) 1530
Bacon Wrapped Hot Dogs (Johnny M) 1520
Dolphin Ankle Tatoos (Ian) 1425
The A Team (Adam) 1395
You Suckers Don't Have a Chance Against the King (Andy) 1390
Sturmy-Archer All-Stars (Kevin) 1140
Arms Akimbo (Brad) 1130
Annie Proffitt's Kids (Rachel) 1075
Poison Ivy Weedwackers (Hal) 945
Don't Stop to Smell the Flowers (LeAnn) 820
Viva Italia (David S) 520
Turn up the good, turn down the suck! (Paddy & Naomi) 410

wooly mammoth team time trial

team 'shallow end of the talent pool' participated in a rather wet and windy team time trial last night and came away with a second place finish (okay, it was a second out of four teams, one of which was a women's team, but a second none-the-less). yeah, we got our clocks cleaned by a team of skin suit wearing, one-of-our-carbon-time-trial-bikes-is-worth-four-of-your-bikes roadies, but if we included points for best dressed we came out on top. the decision was to wear wool come hell or high water - thank god for the high water, which was in our faces the entire race as we sucked up each other's rooster tails sitting in our "tight" drafting formation. second place netted us $30 which was promptly invested in a six of leffe, a six of anchor steam, and two bags of chips to be consumed in the crowded porch of mr. and mrs. dr. h.

one more thing - if you did not get a chance to read this post on local races by the new york bike snob do so, it is damn funny

garbage hill redux

the race in pictures:

determining the course direction

luc first over the hill

g negotiating the corner

tom first up the road

darryl on the switchback

adam (ooops - craig) making the road climb

brad the impaler was impaled twice (three times if you count the ride home)

post race

Dumped

They may be climbing some scary looking hills in the Alps, be we at the FGBC have been doing some climbing of our own. 4 laps at the Dump last night, two times up per lap. The grassy descent was a little frightening on the skinny tyres, and the switchbacks caused a few dismounts as well. Jonny G went over the bars. Brad had a dreaded double flat on the way down but managed to keep the rubber side down. Tomek kicked ass, while Luc and Craig rode well to take 2nd and 3rd. Halberto was there playing race photographer.

Results:

Tomek (geared)

Luc (fixed)

Craig (ss)

Chris (fixed)

Ian (geared)

Luke (ss?)

Darryl (fixed)

Jonny G (fixed)

Vic (geared)

Colin (geared)

Course Consultation

Luke knows how to give 'er

He also takes home the sweetest footware award on the day

Colin crests the final climb in style

On the way back, the stadium was scouted as a potential future race venue. We will make some inquiries.

The F&H served up the good times, as usual. The bike racks are sitting in the back of the vendor. We've witnessed them. Maybe one of these days they'll even be up.

On his ride back home NK, Brad flatted again. Already down several tubes, he stashed his bike in porch of the Tuesday Night Ride HQ and took a cab home. Pricey evening.

OTT: Malajube, La Valerie

Carlos Slays the Queen

60 kms of uphill road, with over 1300 ft. of total climbing. The Queen stage was no doubt a killer. But Carlos Sastre killed the killer Queen today. Attacking at the base of the Alpe d'Huez, he climbed it all alone to take over the yellow jersey from his teammate, Frank Schleck. Team CSC had a plan today, and it was kind of obvious what they'd try to do. Garmin-Chipotle DS Matt White predicted as much:

I don’t think that l’Alpe D’Huez stage will be critical. I can tell you CSC ’s tactics now – Sastre will be sent up the road tomorrow, they have to try and isolate Menchov and Evans, they’re the danger men in the TT; but I don’t think Sastre is strong enough to do the job they need done. Apart from Schleck there’s no one going to have a team mate with them in the finalé. Menchov, Kohl, Evans, Christian – it’s going to be mano à mano.

His only mistake was to misjudge the strength of Sastre. The Schleck brothers helped by taking turns attacking Evans and the other contenders, which not only weakened their legs, but caused the group to slow down a little bit each time they'd been caught. This worked to Sastre's advantage. And by the time they reached the top of the mountain, he took 2.15 from Evans. He ends up with a cushion of 1.34 for Saturday's 53 km ITT. That may not be enough to get him the win, but it's enough to keep things exciting right up to the end.

Highlights here.

The top 5 are as now follows:

1 Carlos Sastre Candil (Spa) Team CSC - Saxo Bank 74.39.03
2 Frank Schleck (Lux) Team CSC - Saxo Bank 1.24
3 Bernhard Kohl (Aut) Gerolsteiner 1.33
4 Cadel Evans (Aus) Silence - Lotto 1.34
5 Denis Menchov (Rus) Rabobank 2.39

In the FGBC TdF Pool, Fuck It, Let's Go Bowling picked up the stage win. Colin predicted it last night at the F&H. The two other teams with Sastre--Don't Stop to Smell the Flowers and Nothing Stops a Party Barge--finished 2nd and 3rd. Team Runner Up remains in the lead for the 5th consecutive day. But Team Toulouse moves into 2nd place as Zed's Dead, Baby drops into third, rueing the ill-fated decision to take Cunego instead of Sastre. It's so clear in retrospect.

Stage 17 Results:

Fuck It, Let's Go Bowling (Colin) 285
Don't Stop to Smell the Flowers (LeAnn) 240
Nothing Stops a Party Barge (Donna) 235
Team Toulouse (Vic) 225
The A Team (Adam) 200
Frequent Flyers (Tom K) 150
Farm Team (Tinker James) 140
Zed's Dead, Baby (Chris) 140
Los Lobos Soundcheck Disaster (Bill) 140
Poison Ivy Weedwackers (Hal) 140
Dolphin Ankle Tatoos (Ian) 120
Sturmy-Archer All-Stars (Kevin) 80
Annie Proffitt's Kids (Rachel) 75
You Suckers Don't Have a Chance Against the King (Andy) 75
Team Runner Up (Mike) 70
You Like Samurai Swords, I Like Baseball (Arlene) 65
Bacon Wrapped Hot Dogs (Jonny M) 60
Powered by Veggies (Jonny B) 60
English on the Ball (Matt) 60
Mylie Sigurdur's Wheels of Fury (Dallas) 20
Viva Italia (David S) 15
Arms Akimbo (Brad) 0
Turn up the good, turn down the suck! (Paddy & Naomi) 0


Overall Standings:

Team Runner Up (Mike) 2595
Team Toulouse (Vic) 2220
Zed's Dead, Baby (Chris) 2190
Los Lobos Soundcheck Disaster (Bill) 1985
English on the Ball (Matt) 1865
Powered by Veggies (Jonny B) 1835
Nothing Stops a Party Barge (Donna) 1780
Farm Team (Tinker James) 1590
Frequent Flyers (Tom K) 1580
Mylie Sigurdur's Wheels of Fury (Dallas) 1555
Fuck It, Let's Go Bowling (Colin) 1545
Bacon Wrapped Hot Dogs (Johnny M) 1475
You Like Samurai Swords, I Like Baseball (Arlene) 1465
You Suckers Don't Have a Chance Against the King (Andy) 1345
The A Team (Adam) 1325
Dolphin Ankle Tatoos (Ian) 1290
Sturmy-Archer All-Stars (Kevin) 1140
Arms Akimbo (Brad) 1060
Annie Proffitt's Kids (Rachel) 1015
Poison Ivy Weedwackers (Hal) 880
Don't Stop to Smell the Flowers (LeAnn) 820
Viva Italia (David S) 505
Turn up the good, turn down the suck! (Paddy & Naomi) 410

OTT: Daniel Ledwell, I Have Made You a Mixed Tape

Rumble at the Dump: An Update

Last night, in a secret location on the other side of the river, a consultation was held. It was decided that the race tonight will be a skinny tyred affair. Keep 'em slick too. Leave your fat tyres at home along with your excuses. That doesn't mean it's on the pavement though. Be prepared for grassy descents and loose gravel climbs. And be prepared to enjoy some good times.

Meet at my place, 9pm.

High Times

They climbed the highest road in Europe today. Over 9000 ft. Cyril Dessel won the stage. CSC looked strong once again. Other than Vandevelde, all the contenders stayed together on the way up. But Menchov couldn't keep up on a screaming downhill plunge into the finish. He ended up conceding about 30 seconds. He can really go fast in the ITT, but at this point he'd need to pull back over a minute on Evans, which doesn't seem likely. It does make it all the more likely that he'll try to attack tomorrow. The CSC boys will have to attack too, at least if they want a realistic shot at winning this thing. All of which means tomorrow's stage is shaping up to be pretty exciting.

In the FGBC Pool, Dolphin Ankle Tatoos wins the stage with 315 points, just ahead of Team Runner Up. Arms Akimbo finished third. Team Runner Up is running away with the overall competition. Their lead over Zed's Dead, Baby is up to almost 500 points. Team Toulouse takes over the revolving door third spot. Turn Up the Good, Turn Down the Suck looks to be solidifying its grip on the lanterne rouge. The gap is up to 80 points to Viva Italia. Speaking of Turn Up the Good, Turn Down the Suck, that was the cheer that our competition in a game of ultimate yelled out last night after a late game timeout. They were up on us at the time. But we came back and beat them. Clearly some bad karma associated with that name. You'll want to try something different next time, Paddy.

John Lee Augustyn misjudged a corner and rode his bike off the side of the mountain. He managed to stop, but his bike tumbled all the way down to the valley below.



Stage 16 is the so-called queen stage of this year's tour. Not so much Elizabeth as Freddie Mercury. This queen's a killer: 210 kms, three HC climbs, and finishing by going up Alpe d'Huez. Ouch. Definitely worth waking up early for.


The top 5 spots on the GC are as follows:

1 Frank Schleck (Lux) Team CSC - Saxo Bank 68.30.16
2 Bernhard Kohl (Aut) Gerolsteiner 0.07
3 Cadel Evans (Aus) Silence - Lotto 0.08
4 Carlos Sastre Candil (Spa) Team CSC - Saxo Bank 0.49
5 Denis Menchov (Rus) Rabobank 1.13

Stage 16:

Dolphin Ankle Tatoos (Ian) 315
Team Runner Up (Mike) 300
Arms Akimbo (Brad) 265
Team Toulouse (Vic) 250
Los Lobos Soundcheck Disaster (Bill) 235
Zed's Dead, Baby (Chris) 225
Poison Ivy Weedwackers (Hal) 225
Fuck It, Let's Go Bowling (Colin) 220
Sturmy-Archer All-Stars (Kevin) 160
Mylie Sigurdur's Wheels of Fury (Dallas) 145
Nothing Stops a Party Barge (Donna) 130
You Suckers Don't Have a Chance Against the King (Andy) 125
The A Team (Adam) 100
Farm Team (Tinker James) 70
You Like Samurai Swords, I Like Baseball (Arlene) 50
Frequent Flyers (Tom K) 40
Viva Italia (David S) 35
Annie Proffitt's Kids (Rachel) 30
Don't Stop to Smell the Flowers (LeAnn) 30
Bacon Wrapped Hot Dogs (Jonny M) 0
Powered by Veggies (Jonny B) 0
English on the Ball (Matt) 0
Turn up the good, turn down the suck! (Paddy & Naomi) 0


Overall Standings:

Team Runner Up (Mike) 2525
Zed's Dead, Baby (Chris) 2050
Team Toulouse (Vic) 1995
Los Lobos Soundcheck Disaster (Bill) 1845
English on the Ball (Matt) 1805
Powered by Veggies (Jonny B) 1775
Nothing Stops a Party Barge (Donna) 1545
Mylie Sigurdur's Wheels of Fury (Dallas) 1535
Farm Team (Tinker James) 1450
Frequent Flyers (Tom K) 1430
Bacon Wrapped Hot Dogs (Johnny M) 1415
You Like Samurai Swords, I Like Baseball (Arlene) 1400
You Suckers Don't Have a Chance Against the King (Andy) 1270
Fuck It, Let's Go Bowling (Colin) 1260
Dolphin Ankle Tatoos (Ian) 1170
The A Team (Adam) 1125
Arms Akimbo (Brad) 1060
Sturmy-Archer All-Stars (Kevin) 1060
Annie Proffitt's Kids (Rachel) 940
Poison Ivy Weedwackers (Hal) 740
Don't Stop to Smell the Flowers (LeAnn) 580
Viva Italia (David S) 490
Turn up the good, turn down the suck! (Paddy & Naomi) 410

Pinawa

The word of the day is mud. The new course at Pinawa had its moments, with some whiteshell rock and a narrow and slippery suspension bridge. But it was the mud that made the race interesting. The FGBC picks up its first win of the season. LeAnn moved up to comp. and promptly kicked ass in her first race. Nicely done. Some poser in a FGBC jersey--I think his name is Halberto--won the mens Expert race. DNF for me. About five minutes into the last lap my seatpost bolt snapped. Bummer. And I was all set to not finish last too. Results here, eventually.

Hot dogs and FGD at Bill's Pinawa pad after the race. Good times.

Slugfest on Prata Nevoso

CSC worked its team to perfection in yesterday's first Alpine stage. Cancellara and Voigt drove it to the base of the final climb, where Sastre and the Schleck brothers took over to give Evans the beating he had to have been expecting. Kohl, Menchov and Valverde chipped in with a few shots of their own. Menchov launched a viscious attack at one point, and looked to be riding away, but then went down around a corner and lost some of his gusto. Nice to see him riding aggressively. With a little bit of luck, he may well be in yellow. Remember the 38 seconds he lost on stage 3?

Eventially the little squeeky-voiced and bad-tempered Aussie cracked under the pressure and found himself unable to respond. Kohl and Sastre gained the most time, taking back 47 seconds, while Valverde got 38 seconds. Menchov took back 27 seconds, and now has to be considered a serious threat for the overall because of his TT strength. Frank Schleck finished 9 seconds ahead of Evans and now wears the yellow jersey. He holds a 7 second lead over Kohl and has 8 seconds on Evans. In light of the 53 km TT coming up on Saturday, that's not nearly enough. So expect CSC to continue attacking over the next couple of days.

It might not be a bad idea to organize a party for Wednesday morning.

The list of contenders now looks like this:

1 Frank Schleck (Lux) Team CSC - Saxo Bank 63.57.21
2 Bernhard Kohl (Aut) Gerolsteiner 0.07
3 Cadel Evans (Aus) Silence - Lotto 0.08
4 Denis Menchov (Rus) Rabobank 0.38
5 Christian Vande Velde (USA) Team Garmin-Chipotle p/b H30 0.39
6 Carlos Sastre Candil (Spa) Team CSC - Saxo Bank 0.49

Not to be forgotten in all of this is Simon Gerrans. He won the stage out of a breakaway group of 4 who spent most of the day off the front.

Oscar Pereiro had a bad, bad day. He crashed on the first descent, flying over a guard-rail and plunging 20 feet to the road below. Busted arm and no more TdF for him.


ASO/VN Highlights:



The final few kms (auf Deutsch):



In the FGBC TdF Pool, we had a three way tie for first place between Powered by Veggies, Fuck It, Let's Go Bowling, and English on the Ball. They each pick up 180 points. Team Runner up was next with 165, extending its lead over Zed's Dead, Baby to 400 points. English on the Ball rounds out the podium another 20 points back.

Stage 15:

Powered by Veggies (Jonny B) 180
Fuck It, Let's Go Bowling (Colin) 180
English on the Ball (Matt) 180
Team Runner Up (Mike) 165
Farm Team (Tinker James) 140
Don't Stop to Smell the Flowers (LeAnn) 140
Poison Ivy Weedwackers (Hal) 135
Nothing Stops a Party Barge (Donna) 130
Frequent Flyers (Tom K) 125
The A Team (Adam) 105
Team Toulouse (Vic) 105
Arms Akimbo (Brad) 100
Annie Proffitt's Kids (Rachel) 90
Dolphin Ankle Tatoos (Ian) 90
Sturmy-Archer All-Stars (Kevin) 85
Zed's Dead, Baby (Chris) 70
Los Lobos Soundcheck Disaster (Bill) 65
Bacon Wrapped Hot Dogs (Jonny M) 55
You Suckers Don't Have a Chance Against the King (Andy) 55
You Like Samurai Swords, I Like Baseball (Arlene) 50
Mylie Sigurdur's Wheels of Fury (Dallas) 30
Viva Italia (David S) 5
Turn up the good, turn down the suck! (Paddy & Naomi) 0


Overall Standings:

Team Runner Up (Mike) 2225
Zed's Dead, Baby (Chris) 1825
English on the Ball (Matt) 1805
Powered by Veggies (Jonny B) 1775
Team Toulouse (Vic) 1745
Los Lobos Soundcheck Disaster (Bill) 1610
Bacon Wrapped Hot Dogs (Johnny M) 1415
Nothing Stops a Party Barge (Donna) 1415
Frequent Flyers (Tom K) 1390
Mylie Sigurdur's Wheels of Fury (Dallas) 1390
Farm Team (Tinker James) 1380
You Like Samurai Swords, I Like Baseball (Arlene) 1350
You Suckers Don't Have a Chance Against the King (Andy) 1145
Fuck It, Let's Go Bowling (Colin) 1040
The A Team (Adam) 1025
Annie Proffitt's Kids (Rachel) 910
Sturmy-Archer All-Stars (Kevin) 900
Dolphin Ankle Tatoos (Ian) 855
Arms Akimbo (Brad) 795
Don't Stop to Smell the Flowers (LeAnn) 550
Poison Ivy Weedwackers (Hal) 515
Viva Italia (David S) 455
Turn up the good, turn down the suck! (Paddy & Naomi) 410

Mark Cavendish is pretty much just like Johnny S

At least in the sense that he doesn't like the hills. The 4th Cat. climb at the end of today's stage was enough to do him in. He got spit out the back in a hurry when the road went up. But it didn't seem to do much to impede Oscar Freire, Leonardo Duque, and Erik Zabel. They're the top three finishers in this final stage before the mountains. Yes, the Alps are finally on the horizon. The guns are drawn and the lines in the sand have been drawn too. It's showdown time at the 2008 TdF. CSC vs. Cadel Evans. Bring it on.

In the FGBC TdF Pool, Team Runner Up is not exactly living up to its name. With another stage win, it looks like they're now setting it up for Andy or Arlene-style pool domination. Their lead has now stretched to over 300 points. Powered By Veggies and Team Toulouse were 2nd and 3rd on the day. Zed's Dead, Baby remains 2nd overall. But Los Lobos Soundcheck disaster, holding down 3rd place for the last three days, has slipped a bit. They drop down to 6th place, having been elbowed off the last podium step by Tenacious V's Team Toulouse. The Poison Ivy Weedwackers retain the lanterne rouge. But Turn Up the Good, Turn Down the Suck and Don't Stop to Smell the Flowers are right there wiating in the wings.

Stage 14:

Team Runner Up (Mike) 215
Powered by Veggies (Jonny B) 160
Team Toulouse (Vic) 130
Bacon Wrapped Hot Dogs (Jonny M) 120
Farm Team (Tinker James) 115
You Suckers Don't Have a Chance Against the King (Andy) 100
Zed's Dead, Baby (Chris) 90
You Like Samurai Swords, I Like Baseball (Arlene) 90
English on the Ball (Matt) 90
The A Team (Adam) 75
Viva Italia (David S) 75
Nothing Stops a Party Barge (Donna) 70
Frequent Flyers (Tom K) 65
Dolphin Ankle Tatoos (Ian) 25
Los Lobos Soundcheck Disaster (Bill) 5
Mylie Sigurdur's Wheels of Fury (Dallas) 5
Annie Proffitt's Kids (Rachel) 0
Sturmy-Archer All-Stars (Kevin) 0
Fuck It, Let's Go Bowling (Colin) 0
Don't Stop to Smell the Flowers (LeAnn) 0
Arms Akimbo (Brad) 0
Turn up the good, turn down the suck! (Paddy & Naomi) 0
Poison Ivy Weedwackers (Hal) 0


Overall Standings:

Team Runner Up (Mike) 2060
Zed's Dead, Baby (Chris) 1755
Team Toulouse (Vic) 1640
English on the Ball (Matt) 1625
Powered by Veggies (Jonny B) 1595
Los Lobos Soundcheck Disaster (Bill) 1545
Mylie Sigurdur's Wheels of Fury (Dallas) 1360
Bacon Wrapped Hot Dogs (Johnny M) 1360
You Like Samurai Swords, I Like Baseball (Arlene) 1300
Nothing Stops a Party Barge (Donna) 1285
Frequent Flyers (Tom K) 1265
Farm Team (Tinker James) 1240
You Suckers Don't Have a Chance Against the King (Andy) 1090
The A Team (Adam) 920
Fuck It, Let's Go Bowling (Colin) 860
Annie Proffitt's Kids (Rachel) 820
Sturmy-Archer All-Stars (Kevin) 815
Dolphin Ankle Tatoos (Ian) 765
Arms Akimbo (Brad) 695
Viva Italia (David S) 450
Don't Stop to Smell the Flowers (LeAnn) 410
Turn up the good, turn down the suck! (Paddy & Naomi) 410
Poison Ivy Weedwackers (Hal) 380

OTT: The Clash, Straight to Hell

Cavendish is King

As far as the sprints go, there's really nothing more to say. Nobody was even close today. He won by a couple of bike lengths over McEwen.

Here's the finish in Flemish (Cavendish the Speedball?):



Another big win for English on the Ball. They rack up 325 points on the day to continue their torrid ascent toward the top of the GC. Sitting in 11th just two days ago, they're up to 4th place after today's stage, and only 5 points out of 3rd. Team Runner Up finished 2nd today, with 275 points. They move into first place with a lead of almost 200 points over Zed's Dead, Baby. Team Toulouse finished 3rd on the day while Los Lobos Soundcheck Disaster remains in 3rd overall.

In the race for last place, Viva Italia takes over the lanterne rouge. Poison Ivy Weedwackers are right there as well, sitting only 5 points away from the dubious distinction.

Stage 13 Results:

English on the Ball (Matt) 335
Team Runner Up (Mike) 275
Team Toulouse (Vic) 185
Annie Proffitt's Kids (Rachel) 125
Los Lobos Soundcheck Disaster (Bill) 125
Arms Akimbo (Brad) 125
Powered by Veggies (Jonny B) 115
You Like Samurai Swords, I Like Baseball (Arlene) 115
Zed's Dead, Baby (Chris) 75
Nothing Stops a Party Barge (Donna) 75
Bacon Wrapped Hot Dogs (Jonny M) 65
You Suckers Don't Have a Chance Against the King (Andy) 65
Turn up the good, turn down the suck! (Paddy & Naomi) 55
The A Team (Adam) 50
Farm Team (Tinker James) 25
Dolphin Ankle Tatoos (Ian) 25
Viva Italia (David S) 15
Mylie Sigurdur's Wheels of Fury (Dallas) 10
Frequent Flyers (Tom K) 0
Sturmy-Archer All-Stars (Kevin) 0
Fuck It, Let's Go Bowling (Colin) 0
Don't Stop to Smell the Flowers (LeAnn) 0
Poison Ivy Weedwackers (Hal) 0


Overall Standings:

Team Runner Up (Mike) 1845
Zed's Dead, Baby (Chris) 1665
Los Lobos Soundcheck Disaster (Bill) 1540
English on the Ball (Matt) 1535
Team Toulouse (Vic) 1510
Powered by Veggies (Jonny B) 1435
Mylie Sigurdur's Wheels of Fury (Dallas) 1355
Bacon Wrapped Hot Dogs (Johnny M) 1240
Nothing Stops a Party Barge (Donna) 1215
You Like Samurai Swords, I Like Baseball (Arlene) 1210
Frequent Flyers (Tom K) 1200
Farm Team (Tinker James) 1125
You Suckers Don't Have a Chance Against the King (Andy) 990
Fuck It, Let's Go Bowling (Colin) 860
The A Team (Adam) 845
Annie Proffitt's Kids (Rachel) 820
Sturmy-Archer All-Stars (Kevin) 815
Dolphin Ankle Tatoos (Ian) 740
Arms Akimbo (Brad) 695
Don't Stop to Smell the Flowers (LeAnn) 410
Turn up the good, turn down the suck! (Paddy & Naomi) 410
Poison Ivy Weedwackers (Hal) 380
Viva Italia (David S) 375

Meanwhile, more information is emerging on the Ricco case (courtesy of PdC):

How did the testers catch up with Riccardo Ricco? According to an article in eurosport.fr, suspicions of Ricco's activities date from the Giro. In the course of testing samples taken from Ricco during the race, testers at CONI found a substance they could not identify. They knew that the substance did not belong and recognized its synthetic nature, but did not know exactly what it was.

CONI contacted experts at the LLND in France, and there began an cooperative effort to identify the mystery substance. The knowledge of doping experts around the world contributed to the monthlong seminar, and soon their efforts led to the ability to detect the new variant of EPO, Ricco and perhaps Peipoli, chose to use. In a comment in the Danish press, Damsgard, who heads the anti-doping program at CSC, applauded the effort and predicted more positives before the Tour ended. He also predicted that many of these cases would likely end up decided by TAS, but believed that route represented the only way forward, given the speed with which doping practices, and the tests to prevent them, evolve.

Old man Leonardo Piepoli is gone too. Fired by his team, at least, with an announcement from the race officials likely to follow shortly.

Clearly, they thought they'd found something that was not yet detectable. Just like the first time riders started with EPO. Turns out the time lag between the appearance of new drugs and the tests to detect them is closing much faster than it used to. Which probably means we can expect a whole wack of additional positives to be announced in the coming weeks. Either that or a number of abandonments as riders feel the noose getting tighter. Remember, these tests were taken on stage 4. It takes a while to finish the lab work, so we'll have to wait and see what they found in the Pyrenees stages. I wonder how those tests for genetic manipulation are coming along.

OTT: The Faint, Dropkick the Punks

Thursday Anticipation

Get yer climbing legs on, boys and girls. Next Tuesday we return to a rather more traditional style of bike racing. You know, the kind where the racing actually involves riding a bike.


Halberto, Jonny G, and me had a sweet race there a few years ago. It seems like a good time for a return engagement. Unlike The Coward Formerly Known as Juan "Name Me a Cuisine" Eppstein, I will be there to defend the victory I garnered in the inaugural edition. A successful defense it may not turn out to be, but that's the risk a real competitor is willing to take. The only way to find out is to show up and throw it down. Be there.

OTT: New Ruins, Book Lung

Three for Three

Mark Cavendish hasn't lost a mass field sprint in this year's TdF yet. And judging by the way he's going, he's not going to either. He takes his third win with another furious pummeling of the other fast men.

English on the Ball, indeed. The young Brit gives Matt's team its second win of the Tour. 260 points ahead of Team Runner Up's 230. Zed's Dead, Baby and You Like Samurai Swords, I Like Baseball tied for third with 190. Zed's Dead, Baby still holds the overall lead. But Team Runner Up creeps up ever closer and now sits a scant 20 points back. Those 25 points for each day Evans holds onto yellow are sure coming in handy. So will the extra 600 if he hangs onto it until Paris. But to do that, he has to survive the CSC onslaught in the Alps first.

We've got ourselves quite the battle for the laterne rouge as well. Turn Up the Good, Turn Down the Suck! looked to have it in the bag. But with 125 points today, courtesy of Sebastian Chavanel's 2nd place finish, Team Viva Italia is only 5 points away and the Poison Ivy Weedwackers are separated by just 25 points.

Stage 12 Results:

English on the Ball (Matt) 260
Team Runner Up (Mike) 230
Zed's Dead, Baby (Chris) 190
You Like Samurai Swords, I Like Baseball (Arlene) 190
Team Toulouse (Vic) 145
Nothing Stops a Party Barge (Donna) 145
Powered by Veggies (Jonny B) 130
Annie Proffitt's Kids (Rachel) 125
Turn up the good, turn down the suck! (Paddy & Naomi) 125
Los Lobos Soundcheck Disaster (Bill) 95
Bacon Wrapped Hot Dogs (Jonny M) 90
You Suckers Don't Have a Chance Against the King (Andy) 90
Arms Akimbo (Brad) 70
Mylie Sigurdur's Wheels of Fury (Dallas) 35
The A Team (Adam) 30
Viva Italia (David S) 30
Dolphin Ankle Tatoos (Ian) 50
Farm Team (Tinker James) 15
Frequent Flyers (Tom K) 0
Sturmy-Archer All-Stars (Kevin) 0
Fuck It, Let's Go Bowling (Colin) 0
Don't Stop to Smell the Flowers (LeAnn) 0
Poison Ivy Weedwackers (Hal) 0


Overall Standings:

Zed's Dead, Baby (Chris) 1590
Team Runner Up (Mike) 1570
Los Lobos Soundcheck Disaster (Bill) 1415
Mylie Sigurdur's Wheels of Fury (Dallas) 1345
Team Toulouse (Vic) 1325
Powered by Veggies (Jonny B) 1320
Frequent Flyers (Tom K) 1200
English on the Ball (Matt) 1200
Bacon Wrapped Hot Dogs (Johnny M) 1175
Nothing Stops a Party Barge (Donna) 1140
Farm Team (Tinker James) 1100
You Like Samurai Swords, I Like Baseball (Arlene) 1095
You Suckers Don't Have a Chance Against the King (Andy) 925
Fuck It, Let's Go Bowling (Colin) 860
Sturmy-Archer All-Stars (Kevin) 815
The A Team (Adam) 795
Annie Proffitt's Kids (Rachel) 695
Dolphin Ankle Tatoos (Ian) 715
Arms Akimbo (Brad) 570
Don't Stop to Smell the Flowers (LeAnn) 410
Poison Ivy Weedwackers (Hal) 380
Viva Italia (David S) 360
Turn up the good, turn down the suck! (Paddy & Naomi) 355

OTT: Los Campesinos!, Broken Heartbeats Sound Like Breakbeats

Say it ain't so, Ricco

Turns out the whole bad boy persona is not just for show. And the bizarre infatuation of Pantani just a bit too literal. He's busted. So sad. And so much for all the talk about the "next generation" of riders being different. Shit.

Sounds like the latest weapon of choice is CERA/Micera, a relatively new EPO drug. Doping expert Michal Audran explains it this way (courtesy of CN):

Wow. I'm stunned. I'm amazed they're saying it's Micera, simply because there's no validated test for that yet. The World Anti-Doping Agency is working on a test, but it certainly doesn't exist yet.

CERA is a delayed-action EPO, which has a different molecular mass from EPO. It's only been commercially available since the start of the year. We can tell when someone's used it but we can't declare them positive. In that respect it's like Dynepo, another EPO-like product. We know that Micera was being used on the Giro, so I'm not surprised that it's also turned up at the Tour. But I would be very surprised if they AFLD had declared Riccò positive for Micera, for the reasons I've just mentioned. Maybe they searched Riccò's room and found the product itself...

It's more convenient for clinical patients. They might only have to take Micera once a fortnight or once a month. EPO has to be administered much more often. The effect for an athlete is the same: raised haematocrit, raised haemoglobin, more oxygen to the muscles. It's funny, because Riccò has UCI certification for his high haematocrit already.

Saunier-Duval has withdrawn their whole team from the Tour.

Fortunately, I don't think there are any huge ramifications for the FGBC TdF Pool. Nobody had Ricco, and I don't think anybody had Cobo either. And the good news is that everybody below 7th on the GC now moves up two spots.

It sounds like they're targeting riders based on a blood profile taken at the start of the Tour. And they're getting them, or getting to them. Moreau's early departure is rumoured to be the result of an indication from the testers that they knew something was amiss. Kinda makes one wonder who's going to be next.

What the Foix?

Last day in the Pyrenees and it was breakaway time on the road in to Foix today. CSC's Arvesen wins the stage by a milimetre or two over Elmiger. Hushovd takes home the sprint for 13th.

In the FGBC Pool, it was a stage to reward some of those $1 dice throw picks. Or not. There were plenty of zeroes today. The A Team wins it over Team Toulouse and the Farm Team. Zed's Dead, Baby still holds the overall lead, but Team Runner Up has started to close the gap. They now sit just 60 points back. Los Lobos Soundcheck Disaster is another 20 points back in third.

The next few stages tilt back in favour of the sprinters before they hit the Alps on Sunday. But with the kind of team tactices CSC has been playing, something decisive can happen on any stage.

Stage 11 Results:

The A Team (Adam) 145
Team Toulouse (Vic) 125
Farm Team (Tinker James) 105
Bacon Wrapped Hot Dogs (Jonny M) 100
Viva Italia (David S) 100
Team Runner Up (Mike) 60
Nothing Stops a Party Barge (Donna) 50
Annie Proffitt's Kids (Rachel) 45
Powered by Veggies (Jonny B) 45
You Suckers Don't Have a Chance Against the King (Andy) 45
Dolphin Ankle Tatoos (Ian) 25
Los Lobos Soundcheck Disaster (Bill) 20
Mylie Sigurdur's Wheels of Fury (Dallas) 20
Frequent Flyers (Tom K) 15
Fuck It, Let's Go Bowling (Colin) 10
English on the Ball (Matt) 10
Arms Akimbo (Brad) 5
Zed's Dead, Baby (Chris) 0
Sturmy-Archer All-Stars (Kevin) 0
You Like Samurai Swords, I Like Baseball (Arlene) 0
Don't Stop to Smell the Flowers (LeAnn) 0
Turn up the good, turn down the suck! (Paddy & Naomi) 0
Poison Ivy Weedwackers (Hal) 0


Overall Standings:

Zed's Dead, Baby (Chris) 1400
Team Runner Up (Mike) 1340
Los Lobos Soundcheck Disaster (Bill) 1320
Mylie Sigurdur's Wheels of Fury (Dallas) 1310
Frequent Flyers (Tom K) 1200
Powered by Veggies (Jonny B) 1190
Team Toulouse (Vic) 1180
Bacon Wrapped Hot Dogs (Johnny M) 1085
Farm Team (Tinker James) 1085
Nothing Stops a Party Barge (Donna) 995
English on the Ball (Matt) 940
You Like Samurai Swords, I Like Baseball (Arlene) 905
Fuck It, Let's Go Bowling (Colin) 860
You Suckers Don't Have a Chance Against the King (Andy) 835
Sturmy-Archer All-Stars (Kevin) 815
The A Team (Adam) 765
Dolphin Ankle Tatoos (Ian) 665
Annie Proffitt's Kids (Rachel) 570
Arms Akimbo (Brad) 500
Don't Stop to Smell the Flowers (LeAnn) 410
Poison Ivy Weedwackers (Hal) 380
Viva Italia (David S) 330
Turn up the good, turn down the suck! (Paddy & Naomi) 230

OTT: Frightened Rabbit, Forgotten Leper

tinker pics

Tinkered

Those guys down south have it so good. The singletrack is as sweet as the sweetest jersey in the world is beautiful. It flows like nothing else around here, and there's plenty of climbing to be had as well. And they just keep adding more and more. It's a veritable fat tire feast.

50+ kms of that sacharine stuff for Halberto and me yesterday. First a couple of laps around the lake trail and the adjacent Trans-Canada Trail section with John L. And then, after a delightful dinner back at John's place, we rode the new cuts of the last couple of years south of Tinker with their Tuesday Night Ride crew. Kevin B and Tinker Tim made the drive out for the evening as well. I think there were 15 riders. Very impressive.

We have to pull off a FGBC ride there before the summer's done.

No pictures of the trails. I was too busy walking my bike up the hills. But I did manage a couple of token group shots. Halberto has more.




OTT: The Eames Era, Little Brother

Tuesday Night Ride

Halberto & I (and maybe some others) are heading out to Morden and Tinker tomorrow. Lake trail first, beginning around noon, and then we're joining up with the regular Tuesday Night Tinker Creek ride at 7pm. Best singletrack in the province. Yup, it is.


OTT: Now It's Overhead, Dark Cycle

blokes

while skateboarding through europe last year my nephew made friends with a couple of bmx guys from england (they met up in spain). cory and dan have been visiting winnipeg (they love it here), riding the parks here, and making friends. they have been living with my brother and sister-in-law for the past four weeks and last night they were over for pizza and dan showed me his website - dude takes some pretty good photos

Kaboom!

Just like that, there goes the Tour. At least for Valverde, Cunego, Kirchen and a whole bunch of others who had been touting themselves contenders through the first week. Turns out the Green Bullet is firing nothing but blanks. He grabbed an impressive win in Stage 1 but now looks to have peaked just about 20 stages too early. The Kid hasn't really done anything to warrant all the talk he has generated this year. And we all knew Kirchen's luck was about to run out once the roads turned up. CSC drilled it at the front of the peloton early on. Everyone assumed they were setting up to launch Sastre up the Hautacam. But in the end it was Frank Schleck who attacked and very nearly snatched the yellow jersey as well. I wonder what the mood is like in the CSC hotel tonight. Evans, Menchov, Sastre, Ricco, and CVV marked each other. This was fine for Evans, who slips into yellow with a 1 second lead over Schleck. But it doesn't really do much for the others. The top 10 in the GC now looks like this:

1 Cadel Evans (Aus) Silence - Lotto 42.29.09
2 Frank Schleck (Lux) Team CSC - Saxo Bank 0.01
3 Christian Vande Velde (USA) Team Garmin-Chipotle p/b H30 0.38
4 Bernhard Kohl (Aut) Gerolsteiner 0.46
5 Denis Menchov (Rus) Rabobank 0.57
6 Carlos Sastre Candil (Spa) Team CSC - Saxo Bank 1.28
7 Kim Kirchen (Lux) Team Columbia 1.56
8 Juan Jose Cobo Acebo (Spa) Saunier Duval - Scott 2.10
9 Riccardo Riccò (Ita) Saunier Duval - Scott 2.29
10 Vladimir Efimkin (Rus) AG2R La Mondiale 2.32

CVV is still hanging in there. Sweet.

VN/ASO stage highlights here

In the FGBC TdF Pool, Tinker James' Farm Team picks up the win. He has Schleck and Vandevelde, who get him 155 points. Don't Stop to Smell the Flowers was second with 130, and Fuck It, Let's Go Bowling and Nothing Stops a Party Barge round out the top 3 in a tie with 125 points. No change in the GC today. But with Valverde and Cunego fading, Zed's Dead, Baby's days in the lead are numbered. It doesn't look good for Los Lobos Soundcheck Disaster and Mylie Sigurdur's Wheels of Fury either. But Team Runner up is lurking just behind these three with a certain Cadel Evans on its squad. I have to think they're now the favourites.

Stage 10 Results:

Farm Team (Tinker James) 155
Don't Stop to Smell the Flowers (LeAnn) 130
Fuck It, Let's Go Bowling (Colin) 125
Nothing Stops a Party Barge (Donna) 125
Sturmy-Archer All-Stars (Kevin) 100
Team Runner Up (Mike) 90
Dolphin Ankle Tatoos (Ian) 90
You Suckers Don't Have a Chance Against the King (Andy) 70
Frequent Flyers (Tom K) 65
Annie Proffitt's Kids (Rachel) 60
Poison Ivy Weedwackers (Hal) 60
Bacon Wrapped Hot Dogs (Jonny M) 55
Powered by Veggies (Jonny B) 55
English on the Ball (Matt) 55
Viva Italia (David S) 55
Mylie Sigurdur's Wheels of Fury (Dallas) 45
Los Lobos Soundcheck Disaster (Bill) 30
Zed's Dead, Baby (Chris) 25
You Like Samurai Swords, I Like Baseball (Arlene) 15
The A Team (Adam) 10
Team Toulouse (Vic) 10
Arms Akimbo (Brad) 0
Turn up the good, turn down the suck! (Paddy & Naomi) 0


Overall Standings:

Zed's Dead, Baby (Chris) 1400
Los Lobos Soundcheck Disaster (Bill) 1300
Mylie Sigurdur's Wheels of Fury (Dallas) 1290
Team Runner Up (Mike) 1280
Frequent Flyers (Tom K) 1185
Powered by Veggies (Jonny B) 1145
Team Toulouse (Vic) 1055
Bacon Wrapped Hot Dogs (Johnny M) 985
Farm Team (Tinker James) 980
Nothing Stops a Party Barge (Donna) 945
English on the Ball (Matt) 930
You Like Samurai Swords, I Like Baseball (Arlene) 905
Fuck It, Let's Go Bowling (Colin) 850
Sturmy-Archer All-Stars (Kevin) 815
You Suckers Don't Have a Chance Against the King (Andy) 790
Dolphin Ankle Tatoos (Ian) 640
The A Team (Adam) 620
Annie Proffitt's Kids (Rachel) 525
Arms Akimbo (Brad) 495
Don't Stop to Smell the Flowers (LeAnn) 410
Poison Ivy Weedwackers (Hal) 380
Turn up the good, turn down the suck! (Paddy & Naomi) 230
Viva Italia (David S) 230

Ricco!

Say what you want about him. He's shameless, immature, and a bit of a cry-baby too. But he sure knows how to animate a race. He won't win the Tour. But having him in it sure makes it more exciting to watch. Wheelsucking up the hills may be a good tactical move for a time trialist like Evans, but it makes for rather humdrum television. With all the contenders watching each other today, Ricco rocketed up the day's final climb, caught all the riders from the early breakaway, and held on during the descent to win by over a minute. Vladimir Efimkin finished 2nd and Cyril Dessel was 3rd. CVV was up there as well to move into 3rd place on the GC. Cadel Evans crashed earlier on, but it looks like he escaped with a bunch of scrapes. In any case, he was able to keep pace as all the big contenders finished together.

CN stage highlights here; last 10 km here.

Will the Cobra strike again tomorrow? Probably. And the contenders should be more attacks from the likes of Valverde and Cunego too in light of the uphill finish. Definitely a stage worth calling in sick for.

In the FGBC TdF Pool, Zed's Dead, Baby got points from Dessel, Valverde and Cunego to win its second consecutive stage. They also extend the overall lead to just over 100 points. You Suckers Don't Have a Chance Against the King and Team Toulouse were 2nd and 3rd on the day, while Los Lobos Soundcheck Disaster and Mylie Sigurdur's Wheels of Fury sit in 2nd and 3rd in the overall race.

Stage 9 Results:

Zed's Dead, Baby (Chris) 230
You Suckers Don't Have a Chance Against the King (Andy) 195
Team Toulouse (Vic) 170
Los Lobos Soundcheck Disaster (Bill) 170
Dolphin Ankle Tatoos (Ian) 165
Sturmy-Archer All-Stars (Kevin) 160
Mylie Sigurdur's Wheels of Fury (Dallas) 130
Fuck It, Let's Go Bowling (Colin) 125
You Like Samurai Swords, I Like Baseball (Arlene) 125
Team Runner Up (Mike) 100
Arms Akimbo (Brad) 100
Viva Italia (David S) 100
Poison Ivy Weedwackers (Hal) 80
Frequent Flyers (Tom K) 75
The A Team (Adam) 70
Farm Team (Tinker James) 30
Bacon Wrapped Hot Dogs (Jonny M) 5
Powered by Veggies (Jonny B) 5
Nothing Stops a Party Barge (Donna) 5
English on the Ball (Matt) 5
Annie Proffitt's Kids (Rachel) 0
Don't Stop to Smell the Flowers (LeAnn) 0
Turn up the good, turn down the suck! (Paddy & Naomi) 0


Overall Standings:

Zed's Dead, Baby (Chris) 1375
Los Lobos Soundcheck Disaster (Bill) 1270
Mylie Sigurdur's Wheels of Fury (Dallas) 1245
Team Runner Up (Mike) 1190
Frequent Flyers (Tom K) 1120
Powered by Veggies (Jonny B) 1090
Team Toulouse (Vic) 1045
Bacon Wrapped Hot Dogs (Johnny M) 930
You Like Samurai Swords, I Like Baseball (Arlene) 890
English on the Ball (Matt) 875
Farm Team (Tinker James) 825
Nothing Stops a Party Barge (Donna) 820
Fuck It, Let's Go Bowling (Colin) 725
You Suckers Don't Have a Chance Against the King (Andy) 720
Sturmy-Archer All-Stars (Kevin) 715
The A Team (Adam) 610
Dolphin Ankle Tatoos (Ian) 550
Arms Akimbo (Brad) 495
Annie Proffitt's Kids (Rachel) 465
Poison Ivy Weedwackers (Hal) 320
Don't Stop to Smell the Flowers (LeAnn) 280
Turn up the good, turn down the suck! (Paddy & Naomi) 230
Viva Italia (David S) 175

this one too

of course it is a little late to attend this one (it's going on this weekend), but it would be fun. no reason why we could not do one here

Letter from Cork

This looks kind of interesting. More information here. Too bad it's so far away.

Can Anybody Keep Up With This Guy?

When the road is wide open, nobody is faster these days than the young man from the Isle of Man. Mark Cavendish wins his second stage of the 2008 TdF going away. He was followed by his main lead-out man, Gerald Ciolek. Casper, Freire, and Forster round out the top 5. Kirchen is still in yellow as we head into the Pyrenees for the next two days. It's going to heat up.

Last 10 km here.

Over in the FGBC TdF Pool, Zed's Dead, Baby is the team of the day. Its trio f $4 sprinters (Chicchi, Forster, Casper) net a stage win and the overall, as the pattern of daily leader changes holds true yet again. That's seven consecutive days in which we've had a change atop the GC. English on the Ball and You Like Samurai Swords, I Like Baseball took 2nd and 3rd on the day, while Mylie Sigurdur's Wheels of Fury and Los Lobos Soundcheck Disaster sit in 2nd and 3rd in the GC. It's still very close, as the top 6 teams are separated by just 100 points. Perfect.

Stage 8 Results:

Zed's Dead, Baby (Chris) 220
English on the Ball (Matt) 180
You Like Samurai Swords, I Like Baseball (Arlene) 165
Powered by Veggies (Jonny B) 135
Mylie Sigurdur's Wheels of Fury (Dallas) 110
Team Runner Up (Mike) 110
Nothing Stops a Party Barge (Donna) 90
Bacon Wrapped Hot Dogs (Jonny M) 80
You Suckers Don't Have a Chance Against the King (Andy) 75
Turn up the good, turn down the suck! (Paddy & Naomi) 65
Annie Proffitt's Kids (Rachel) 50
Los Lobos Soundcheck Disaster (Bill) 50
Team Toulouse (Vic) 30
Arms Akimbo (Brad) 20
Frequent Flyers (Tom K) 5
Farm Team (Tinker James) 5
Sturmy-Archer All-Stars (Kevin) 5
Fuck It, Let's Go Bowling (Colin) 5
The A Team (Adam) 0
Dolphin Ankle Tatoos (Ian) 0
Don't Stop to Smell the Flowers (LeAnn) 0
Poison Ivy Weedwackers (Hal) 0
Viva Italia (David S) 0


Overall Standings:

Zed's Dead, Baby (Chris) 1145
Mylie Sigurdur's Wheels of Fury (Dallas) 1115
Los Lobos Soundcheck Disaster (Bill) 1100
Team Runner Up (Mike) 1090
Powered by Veggies (Jonny B) 1085
Frequent Flyers (Tom K) 1045
Bacon Wrapped Hot Dogs (Johnny M) 925
Team Toulouse (Vic) 875
English on the Ball (Matt) 870
Nothing Stops a Party Barge (Donna) 815
Farm Team (Tinker James) 795
You Like Samurai Swords, I Like Baseball (Arlene) 765
Fuck It, Let's Go Bowling (Colin) 600
Sturmy-Archer All-Stars (Kevin) 555
The A Team (Adam) 540
You Suckers Don't Have a Chance Against the King (Andy) 525
Annie Proffitt's Kids (Rachel) 465
Arms Akimbo (Brad) 395
Dolphin Ankle Tatoos (Ian) 385
Don't Stop to Smell the Flowers (LeAnn) 280
Poison Ivy Weedwackers (Hal) 240
Turn up the good, turn down the suck! (Paddy & Naomi) 230
Viva Italia (David S) 75

OTT: Devendra Banhart & Noah Georgeson, Don't Look Back in Anger

Pay Attention Kid--Corrected

Update: I forgot to add the 25 point bonus for Kirchen's yellow jersey. Yesterday too. It's corrected now. That's 50 more points each for Bill and Dallas. See below.

Luis Leon Sanchez wins a hard day of racing. Those guys were hauling all day long, mostly trying to take advantage of an inattentive Cunego, who found himself caught out a couple of times. He ended up 33 seconds back in the end. It looks like the Kid needs a few lessons in staying focused. That's not how you win the Tour. Kirchen holds onto yellow, even though Schumacher tried to get it back. No significant changes in the GC other than Cunego.

After the stage it was announced that Manuel Beltran had tested positive for EPO. He's gone and, like last year, there will likely be pressure on Liquigas to withdraw their entire team. Lovely.

Last 10 km:

Los Lobos Soundcheck disaster takes the win in the FGBC TdF Pool, followed by the Frequent Flyers. In the overall, we have yet another lead change, as the Frequent Flyers reclaim the top spot. Los Lobos Soundcheck disaster moves up into 2nd place, just 40 points back, while Team Runner Up slips down to 3rd place. Los Lobos Soundcheck Disaster takes over the top spot. The Frequent Flyers are just 10 points back, and Mylie Sigurdur's Wheels of Fury are in 3rd. It's all very close so far. 5 different leaders through 7 stages. Nothing like the Giro Pool. Sweet.

Stage 7:

Los Lobos Soundcheck Disaster (Bill) 245
Frequent Flyers (Tom K) 215
Mylie Sigurdur's Wheels of Fury (Dallas) 190
Farm Team (Tinker James) 160
Fuck It, Let's Go Bowling (Colin) 150
The A Team (Adam) 135
Team Toulouse (Vic) 135
Bacon Wrapped Hot Dogs (Jonny M) 135
Powered by Veggies (Jonny B) 135
Team Runner Up (Mike) 120
Sturmy-Archer All-Stars (Kevin) 100
Zed's Dead, Baby (Chris) 80
Nothing Stops a Party Barge (Donna) 75
You Like Samurai Swords, I Like Baseball (Arlene) 75
English on the Ball (Matt) 60
You Suckers Don't Have a Chance Against the King (Andy) 60
Dolphin Ankle Tatoos (Ian) 45
Don't Stop to Smell the Flowers (LeAnn) 45
Annie Proffitt's Kids (Rachel) 30
Poison Ivy Weedwackers (Hal) 30
Arms Akimbo (Brad) 0
Turn up the good, turn down the suck! (Paddy & Naomi) 0
Viva Italia (David S) 0


Overall Standings:

Los Lobos Soundcheck Disaster (Bill) 1050
Frequent Flyers (Tom K) 1040
Mylie Sigurdur's Wheels of Fury (Dallas) 1005
Team Runner Up (Mike) 980
Powered by Veggies (Jonny B) 950
Zed's Dead, Baby (Chris) 925
Bacon Wrapped Hot Dogs (Johnny M) 845
Team Toulouse (Vic) 845
Farm Team (Tinker James) 790
Nothing Stops a Party Barge (Donna) 725
English on the Ball (Matt) 690
You Like Samurai Swords, I Like Baseball (Arlene) 600
Fuck It, Let's Go Bowling (Colin) 595
Sturmy-Archer All-Stars (Kevin) 550
The A Team (Adam) 540
You Suckers Don't Have a Chance Against the King (Andy) 450
Annie Proffitt's Kids (Rachel) 415
Dolphin Ankle Tatoos (Ian) 385
Arms Akimbo (Brad) 375
Don't Stop to Smell the Flowers (LeAnn) 280
Poison Ivy Weedwackers (Hal) 240
Turn up the good, turn down the suck! (Paddy & Naomi) 165
Viva Italia (David S) 75