Little M's Big Day

She had cx stud and overall freak John Gadret for the win. Serpa and Contador in the top 5. And Cataldo at 7th place. It all added up to 390 points and a decisive stage win for Miriam today on a stage that looked like it would do a passable job as a stunt double for one of the Ardennes classics. Dan and Chris O were second and third. But they were both over 100 points back.

So Miriam extends her overall lead to 140 points over Chris O. It is starting to look very much like a two horse race. Third place is more than 400 points back by now. That is currently occupied by Graham. But KK is lurking just off the podium and getting ready to pounce. He's just 7 points from the lowest step of the podium.

For those who may not be aware, you are getting your asses handed to you by a nine year old. And yes, she picks her own team. She has some interesting methods for selecting her riders. For her wildcards, she had me scroll the screen up and down. She then closed her eyes, told me to stop, and pointed at the screen. This approach brought Cataldo to her team. He has already contributed over 200 points to her efforts. That is almost half of what Kim's entire team has gained so far. Sometimes you eat the bear. Sometimes the bear eats you.

Full results and overall standings here.