Three stages, three jerseys* change hands
Sometimes it pays to be lazy. On Tuesday I thought about writing an I-told-you-so piece on the demise of Cadel Evans. That was before I found out he was racing with a broken elbow. So, while I still think he's not a strong enough climber to win the Tour, he's gone from goat to Iron Man with that revelation. While I'll criticize a guy for not living up to the hype, I'll also commend him for struggling against adversity. Years ago Petacchi abandoned while wearing the green jersey because they were approaching the mountains, which is just sissified; what Evans did is the opposite. Three cheers for Cadel Evans.
Speaking of Petacchi in green, he's finally caught and passed THOR! and he even intends to make it all the way to Paris. That's the sort of thing I'll believe only after seeing it, given his track record and the thought of 4 mountain stages upcoming. It's only a 4 point gap, but THOR! has got to do better at the finish line. THOR! has won the green jersey without winning a stage before, and he does it by consistently finishing in the top 5 and picking up points in the mountains. Well, he's dropping further down the pack at the finishing line, and Petacchi managed to pick up a few points on the mountain stages too. So, THOR! has got to pick up his game, because assuming Petacchi will drop out may be wise, but it's no substitute for a real strategy.
And that leads me to the disqualification of Mark Renshaw following the sprint finish of stage 11. When I saw it live, I thought for sure Renshaw would get relegated to last place for headbutting another cyclist and drifting into someone else's line. That was real crummy and dangerous--a real no brainer to relegate his finish. I didn't expect he'd be thrown out of the Tour. Then again, relegating a lead out guy who fades away and picks up no points isn't much of a punishment to HTC Columbia or Marc Cavendish. Booting Renshaw out of the race is a big deal. I think it may be overkill, but then, what punishment between those two extremes would be appropriate? In any event, we're about to see how important Renshaw's lead out is to Cavendish's success.
*Well, Pineau lost the KoM and got it back, so there were 4 changes of jerseys, but, then again, only two.
Speaking of Petacchi in green, he's finally caught and passed THOR! and he even intends to make it all the way to Paris. That's the sort of thing I'll believe only after seeing it, given his track record and the thought of 4 mountain stages upcoming. It's only a 4 point gap, but THOR! has got to do better at the finish line. THOR! has won the green jersey without winning a stage before, and he does it by consistently finishing in the top 5 and picking up points in the mountains. Well, he's dropping further down the pack at the finishing line, and Petacchi managed to pick up a few points on the mountain stages too. So, THOR! has got to pick up his game, because assuming Petacchi will drop out may be wise, but it's no substitute for a real strategy.
And that leads me to the disqualification of Mark Renshaw following the sprint finish of stage 11. When I saw it live, I thought for sure Renshaw would get relegated to last place for headbutting another cyclist and drifting into someone else's line. That was real crummy and dangerous--a real no brainer to relegate his finish. I didn't expect he'd be thrown out of the Tour. Then again, relegating a lead out guy who fades away and picks up no points isn't much of a punishment to HTC Columbia or Marc Cavendish. Booting Renshaw out of the race is a big deal. I think it may be overkill, but then, what punishment between those two extremes would be appropriate? In any event, we're about to see how important Renshaw's lead out is to Cavendish's success.
*Well, Pineau lost the KoM and got it back, so there were 4 changes of jerseys, but, then again, only two.
posted by uberschuck at 8:44 PM
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