Looking back on this year’s Tour, it occurs to me it’s been one of the best Tours I’ve seen. The 2003 Tour will forever go down as my favorite, but mostly because we were there that year, my boy Jan Ullrich nearly won, and I got to sit on Ullrich’s TT bike right before he stomped all over Armstrong. I never said I wasn’t biased.
This year has seen a battle between two riders so closely matched that neither has been able to decisively take the upper hand, although the scales appear to be tipped in the favor of the defending Champion as we enter final time trial. As I look to tomorrow’s stage, I take inspiration in the closest-ever Tour: 1989. I take inspiration for three reasons. The first and most obvious is that in that year we saw a similarly close pairing between Greg LeMond and Laurent Fignon. The second is that the underdog was behind and had little chance of stepping onto the top step of the podium in Paris – but there was a chance. The third reason is that the final winning margin by LeMan over Le Professeur was 8 seconds – the same amount of time that separates Bertie and the Grimp as we enter the stage. Coincidence? No, it is more likely to be a prophesy, methinks.
In all likelihood, however, the stage win will not be fought out between the top two men overall; tomorrow will be the domain of the TT specialists who managed to drag themselves over the bumps, hills, and mountains to get this far. Spartacus, Millar, Syrup, Martin; these are the men who will fight for stage glory.
So, without further ado, we continue with the inaugural Velominati Super Prestige’s final Tour de France VSP Sub-Competition for Stage 19. Usual game; contestants have the opportunity to win bonus points in the VSP Tour de France by choosing the top three finishers of the final time trial for a chance to win 3 points for first place, 2 for second, and 1 for third.
New for this competition: An additional bonus point goes to anyone who identifies the most egregious Rule Violation of the day.
Make your picks by the time the stage starts, regular VSP Rules apply. Good luck!
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@Kermitpunk
Ha! Your other post came through while I was typing the other on my phone.
(Anyone ever watch the old Clouseau movies? I always pronounce "phone" as "phee-own".)
The "Hippy-Douche" clause was indeed the item that got you through the intense screening process.
@all who ordered kits:
They are here!! I will do what I can to get them all packed and shipped tomorrow and the rest will go out Monday. Cheers!
@frank
Great news! I'm doing my first master's race on August 2 (holiday up here); it would be great to fly to the colors for that one. Still missing the Samson hair, but the BFGs look huge and ripped with less hair on top (go figure).
Ithaca is actually the middle point between us and my sister's family in New Jersey. To boot, my father went there, so it's a bigger meeting of the clans, although"”by the sounds of it"”I think I'd rather be going for work. I've been told the bike has to stay at home, which caused a riff, but we come back and then I have a week on my own to rack up some kilometers before a trip to Norway. Any good riding in Trondheim?
@Kermitpunk @frank So now we know why the Russian Rug Salesman has sold his last rug - Katowsha are to race in Velminati kit. Cool.
@Geof
fi'zi:k antares? i'm a fan. i know what you mean about the family gathering. good times but it eats way into the training. i'm heading to Kalamazoo next week for my so's reunion and am hating the idea of missing rides. too bad, i've heard Ithica has some great places to ride.
@Marko
Was actually considering the Aliante, which is on sale at my LBS (and maybe a better indication of my "animal" than the Antares"”frankly, I'm somewhere in between the two). That, or the Selle Italia Prolink.
Motorcus
Odor
RatPack
@Kermitpunk
Worst crash ever in my life was missing a turn on a road in Ithaca. Slid over/off retaining walls, through a barbed wire fence, and over all kinds of glass and gravel. Leave the bike.
@frank
You never cease to amaze me: I really thought this was the one place on the whole interwebs that I would get some encouragement/sympathy. Ithaca is the most dangerous cycling region on the continent? (sorry about your crash, mind).
1. T-Mart (why not?)
2. Sir Not-Necessarily-Appearing-in-This-Tour Wiggins
3. Chrono Schleck - didja notice that Frankie came out and torched the TT in the TdS? Did you really think that Le Brothers Grimpeur (notice: not Grimpito anymore, the Pyrenees are gone) would just write off TT training knowing that ChronoBerto was out there, just waiting? I say Andy rides the shit out of the TT and slams Bert. Luxembourg's SportCenter has it's new opening title sequence for the next quarter century.
It pains me to say, but I don't think Faboo has a chance - he and the rest of those sour-faced Saxo boys have been run ragged JENS!ing themselves for Andy. Twice - TWICE - now I've seen JENS! and Faboo ride themselves to the LIMIT on a climb to the point where they can't even pedal and damn near stop on the climb. Can't be good for the overall constitution.
@Kermitpunk
Freshly groomed, the proud owner of some sharp new kit - and then cruelly denied the perfect opportunity to proudly come out as an aesthete. I feel for you, Brother.