Stage 10
The rest day came a day early. A bunch of nobodies went on a long break and nobody bothered to reel them in. The pelton lost by over 20 minutes, but it didn't matter since all of the leaders hung back. The only real news of the day was that Cooke won the peleton sprint to finish ninth, but ahead of Mcwen and Zabel. And Garzelli abandoned. So we enter the halfway point, let's run through the teams. But first, a chart...
tdf.xls
Looking at the leaders of each team gives you an idea of how they are doing.
AG2R (Botchorov - 33rd- 15:15 out)
Hey, they had the white jersey for a day! They aren't seriously contending for any calssification, and their top rider is in 33rd place. They could drop out of the Tour tommorrow and no one would notice.
Alessio (Caucchioli - 15th- 5:17 out)
They went in riding for DuFaux, but he's over 10 minutes out. Caucchioli is now their best chance. They have no honrs, nor are they a threat to win one. I wouldn't call their Tour a total disaster thus far, but it hasn't been good.
Banesto (Mancebo -4th- 1:37 out)
They've got three of the top four in the youth standings, and they have Mancebo knocking on the Armstrong's door. Mancebo hasn't really shown he can attack Armstrong, but he has shown that he won't get dropped on the tough climbs. The Posties aren't really moving to neutralize him, but he's a threat by virtue of hanging around. If he can continue to just ride with Armstrong in the Pyranees, he just needs one big break to win the whole thing.
Brioches de Boulangere (Rous- 22nd- 8:45 out)
They haven't embarrassed themselves. That's all we ask from Brioches.
Credit Agricole (Moreau -12th- 4:04 out)
I thought Moreau would ride for the King of the Mountains, but he's back in 9th. They have two sprinters in the top six in Points, but neither O'Grady or Hushovd looks like a threat to win it. As it's quickly becoming a two-man race. So they are making a nice appearnce in every classification, but they aren't threatening to win anything. Another disappointing year, but at least its better than 2002.
Cofidis (Millar- 19th- 7:15 out)
Millar was never going to win anything, he's about where he should be in the GC. This is just a team that isn't nearly as good as they think they are. Though Lelli has had an outstanding Tour so far, he deserves to be riding for someone who could actually win.
CSC (Hamilton -5th- 1:52 out)
What can you say about Hamilton? If he hadn't broken his collarbone, he might be winning this race. He's riding terrific even with the injury. Unnoticed in the brillaint Tour he's having is the mediocre Tour Sastre is having. This was probably his last chance to establish himself as a serious contender. Now he's a domestique for a guy with a broken clavicle. The team is right now in 1st because of Piil's ride, but that won't last.
Jean Delatour (LeFevre - 37th- 18:03 out)
OK, so they won't win the yellow. And Nazon is a longshot to win the Green. But they are having a pretty decent Tour. They even had a day in yellow. That's pretty much going to be the highlight.
Euskatel (Mayo -3rd- 1:02 out)
They went in looking to win a mountain stage, wreak some havoc, make a nice name for themselves. Instead, they are now thinking that they can win this thing. Mayo has a real chance to win the Yellow. We know they can climb, so the big day for Mayo will be the time trial. He can't lose too much time to Armstrong. And he still needs to win another stage. A tall order.
Fassa Bortolo (Basso -7th- 2:25 out)
I'm still angry with Petacchi. But Basso's doing well. He won't win considering almost the entire team dropped out because of a flu virus going around. He doesn't have the support to win, but he can hold on to the top ten. But he's on his own.
FDJ (Fritsch -70th- 53:49 out)
Kiddie time is over, but it was fun while it lasted. 2 stage wins, 3 days in yellow, 5 in green, 5 in dots. Oh, and Cooke is still in Green. They have a very real chance to win something. They were leading the peleton along with US Postal today. Talk about making the most of your bid...
Gerolsteiner (Totschnig -14th- 4:58 out)
A complete non-factor. Even their jerseys are bland.
Kelme (Parra- 25th- 9:46 out)
Parra's got an outside shot at King of the Mountains. It's the only thing they have to ride for. Actually, Parra's having a great Tour, it's just the team around him is disintegrating.
Lotto (Bauget -79th- 56:57 out)
Wow, they only have one rider within one hour of the lead. The only reason they have a shot at the Green is because Petacchi decided to quit. So, our advocated strategy of leave McEwen alone seems to be working. but now he should mark Cooke, not Zabel.
ONCE (Jaksche - 18th- 7:05 out)
Beloki's crash completely changes their Tour. What to ride for? Jaksche could win King of the Mountains but Virenque has a huge lead there. They were having a very good Tour, and one unfortunate crash ruined the whole thing.
Quick Step (Virenque - 16th- 5:59 out)
Virenque's got a huge lead for the dots. Jaksche is 60 points out and in 2nd place. So Virenque would actually be well-served to take a stage easy and let Lance build a bigger lead in the GC, thereby making him less of a threat. That will mean Postal will then allow Virenque to go out on insane breakways as he would pose no threat to their man.
Rabobank (Boogerd -23rd- 8:53 out)
It's been a very bad Tour. Once Leipheimer went down, it's pretty much been a struggle to find a reason to keep riding. They are acquiting themselves well, but they aren't really competing for anything. It was over on day one.
Saeco (Ludewig -55th- 43:42 out)
Man, did Simoni lay an egg. He's never been in it, and he's 55 minutes out. Just a horrific Tour. Probably the wrost performance from a real contender.
Team Bianchi (Ullrich -6th- 2:10 out)
Ullrich isn't out of it yet, but he hasn't really shown he can press an advantage. They will probably keep riding for their man, develop a team heirarchy and build for next year. Ullrich just isn't all of the way back, and they know it.
Telekom (Vinokourov -2nd- 0:21 out)
I've really been impressed with their ride. Zabel hasn't been able to finish his sprints, but the team has consistently put him in the position to win. Botero came out in terrible form, and they immediately shifted gears to support Vino, who has now successfully broken from Armstrong twice. Their top guys have let them down, but their domestiques have ridden better than any other team except maybe the Posties.
Vini Caldirola (Zampieri -96th- 1:06:04)
Not a single rider within one hour. Barely in the top 100. Garzelli just abandoned. I'm looking for a positive but I can't find it. Rides like this justify the organizers decision to add lousy French teams instead of the Italians.
US Postal (Armstrong- 1st)
Not blowing away the field, but Lance is in first. As always, the team is riding solely for Armstrong's benefit, no other goal matters. Riders kill themselves early on to set the pace and then drop off and finish 30 minutes out, completely spent. They lead the peleton every day. It's just been an exhausting ride for these guys, and they need to step up and ride even better over the last half of the race if they hope to get Armstrong his fifth title. He needs some breathing room, and that means an attack in the Pyranees.
The rest day came a day early. A bunch of nobodies went on a long break and nobody bothered to reel them in. The pelton lost by over 20 minutes, but it didn't matter since all of the leaders hung back. The only real news of the day was that Cooke won the peleton sprint to finish ninth, but ahead of Mcwen and Zabel. And Garzelli abandoned. So we enter the halfway point, let's run through the teams. But first, a chart...
tdf.xls
Looking at the leaders of each team gives you an idea of how they are doing.
AG2R (Botchorov - 33rd- 15:15 out)
Hey, they had the white jersey for a day! They aren't seriously contending for any calssification, and their top rider is in 33rd place. They could drop out of the Tour tommorrow and no one would notice.
Alessio (Caucchioli - 15th- 5:17 out)
They went in riding for DuFaux, but he's over 10 minutes out. Caucchioli is now their best chance. They have no honrs, nor are they a threat to win one. I wouldn't call their Tour a total disaster thus far, but it hasn't been good.
Banesto (Mancebo -4th- 1:37 out)
They've got three of the top four in the youth standings, and they have Mancebo knocking on the Armstrong's door. Mancebo hasn't really shown he can attack Armstrong, but he has shown that he won't get dropped on the tough climbs. The Posties aren't really moving to neutralize him, but he's a threat by virtue of hanging around. If he can continue to just ride with Armstrong in the Pyranees, he just needs one big break to win the whole thing.
Brioches de Boulangere (Rous- 22nd- 8:45 out)
They haven't embarrassed themselves. That's all we ask from Brioches.
Credit Agricole (Moreau -12th- 4:04 out)
I thought Moreau would ride for the King of the Mountains, but he's back in 9th. They have two sprinters in the top six in Points, but neither O'Grady or Hushovd looks like a threat to win it. As it's quickly becoming a two-man race. So they are making a nice appearnce in every classification, but they aren't threatening to win anything. Another disappointing year, but at least its better than 2002.
Cofidis (Millar- 19th- 7:15 out)
Millar was never going to win anything, he's about where he should be in the GC. This is just a team that isn't nearly as good as they think they are. Though Lelli has had an outstanding Tour so far, he deserves to be riding for someone who could actually win.
CSC (Hamilton -5th- 1:52 out)
What can you say about Hamilton? If he hadn't broken his collarbone, he might be winning this race. He's riding terrific even with the injury. Unnoticed in the brillaint Tour he's having is the mediocre Tour Sastre is having. This was probably his last chance to establish himself as a serious contender. Now he's a domestique for a guy with a broken clavicle. The team is right now in 1st because of Piil's ride, but that won't last.
Jean Delatour (LeFevre - 37th- 18:03 out)
OK, so they won't win the yellow. And Nazon is a longshot to win the Green. But they are having a pretty decent Tour. They even had a day in yellow. That's pretty much going to be the highlight.
Euskatel (Mayo -3rd- 1:02 out)
They went in looking to win a mountain stage, wreak some havoc, make a nice name for themselves. Instead, they are now thinking that they can win this thing. Mayo has a real chance to win the Yellow. We know they can climb, so the big day for Mayo will be the time trial. He can't lose too much time to Armstrong. And he still needs to win another stage. A tall order.
Fassa Bortolo (Basso -7th- 2:25 out)
I'm still angry with Petacchi. But Basso's doing well. He won't win considering almost the entire team dropped out because of a flu virus going around. He doesn't have the support to win, but he can hold on to the top ten. But he's on his own.
FDJ (Fritsch -70th- 53:49 out)
Kiddie time is over, but it was fun while it lasted. 2 stage wins, 3 days in yellow, 5 in green, 5 in dots. Oh, and Cooke is still in Green. They have a very real chance to win something. They were leading the peleton along with US Postal today. Talk about making the most of your bid...
Gerolsteiner (Totschnig -14th- 4:58 out)
A complete non-factor. Even their jerseys are bland.
Kelme (Parra- 25th- 9:46 out)
Parra's got an outside shot at King of the Mountains. It's the only thing they have to ride for. Actually, Parra's having a great Tour, it's just the team around him is disintegrating.
Lotto (Bauget -79th- 56:57 out)
Wow, they only have one rider within one hour of the lead. The only reason they have a shot at the Green is because Petacchi decided to quit. So, our advocated strategy of leave McEwen alone seems to be working. but now he should mark Cooke, not Zabel.
ONCE (Jaksche - 18th- 7:05 out)
Beloki's crash completely changes their Tour. What to ride for? Jaksche could win King of the Mountains but Virenque has a huge lead there. They were having a very good Tour, and one unfortunate crash ruined the whole thing.
Quick Step (Virenque - 16th- 5:59 out)
Virenque's got a huge lead for the dots. Jaksche is 60 points out and in 2nd place. So Virenque would actually be well-served to take a stage easy and let Lance build a bigger lead in the GC, thereby making him less of a threat. That will mean Postal will then allow Virenque to go out on insane breakways as he would pose no threat to their man.
Rabobank (Boogerd -23rd- 8:53 out)
It's been a very bad Tour. Once Leipheimer went down, it's pretty much been a struggle to find a reason to keep riding. They are acquiting themselves well, but they aren't really competing for anything. It was over on day one.
Saeco (Ludewig -55th- 43:42 out)
Man, did Simoni lay an egg. He's never been in it, and he's 55 minutes out. Just a horrific Tour. Probably the wrost performance from a real contender.
Team Bianchi (Ullrich -6th- 2:10 out)
Ullrich isn't out of it yet, but he hasn't really shown he can press an advantage. They will probably keep riding for their man, develop a team heirarchy and build for next year. Ullrich just isn't all of the way back, and they know it.
Telekom (Vinokourov -2nd- 0:21 out)
I've really been impressed with their ride. Zabel hasn't been able to finish his sprints, but the team has consistently put him in the position to win. Botero came out in terrible form, and they immediately shifted gears to support Vino, who has now successfully broken from Armstrong twice. Their top guys have let them down, but their domestiques have ridden better than any other team except maybe the Posties.
Vini Caldirola (Zampieri -96th- 1:06:04)
Not a single rider within one hour. Barely in the top 100. Garzelli just abandoned. I'm looking for a positive but I can't find it. Rides like this justify the organizers decision to add lousy French teams instead of the Italians.
US Postal (Armstrong- 1st)
Not blowing away the field, but Lance is in first. As always, the team is riding solely for Armstrong's benefit, no other goal matters. Riders kill themselves early on to set the pace and then drop off and finish 30 minutes out, completely spent. They lead the peleton every day. It's just been an exhausting ride for these guys, and they need to step up and ride even better over the last half of the race if they hope to get Armstrong his fifth title. He needs some breathing room, and that means an attack in the Pyranees.
posted by Poseur at 1:32 PM
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