Posted: Wed, Jul 23rd
Inside the Tour, with John Wilcockson - D-day on the Alpe I’m writing these words on the road to L’Alpe d’Huez where, at the end of this glorious Wednesday in the French Alps, the 95th Tour de France could be decided. The infamous 21-turn mountain climb concludes a gigantic stage 17 after the riders have already crossed the ...
Posted: Mon, Jul 21st
Inside the Tour, with John Wilcockson - Closer and closerThere has never been a Tour de France as closely poised as this 2008 edition, less than a week before the finish. The most similar state of the race came in 2003, when prior to the final mountain stage, just 18 seconds separated race leader Lance Armstrong from his two remaining ...
Posted: Sun, Jul 20th
Inside the Tour, with John Wilcockson - The Alps are here!There are seven major mountain climbs to tackle in the next three stages of the 95th Tour de France: the Col Agnel, Prato Nevoso, Col de la Lombarde, Cime de la Bonette, Col du Galibier, Col de la Croix de Fer and L’Alpe d’Huez. Race leader Cadel Evans has ridden them all in ...
Posted: Sat, Jul 19th
Inside the Tour, with John Wilcockson - Mark Cavendish, the Manx FlyerUntil Mark Cavendish came on the pro scene just over a year ago, the most successful British Tour sprinter was Barry Hoban, who won eight stages between 1967 and 1975. Hoban was not a natural sprinter, but he could sustain a long finishing effort and he won stages with smart ...
Posted: Fri, Jul 18th
Inside the Tour, with John Wilcockson - Doped and dupedWhile the news media were massed around the pale yellow Saunier Duval team bus in Lavelanet Thursday just as stage 12 was setting out farther down the street, Philippe Brunel stood back from the crowd watching the spectacle. I felt sorry for him. As an award-winning French ...
Posted: Thu, Jul 17th
The new dynamic of the 2008 TourWith the Pyrénées in the rearview mirror, the riders in the 95th Tour de France can now look forward to three less nervous stages across the South of France, where the main obstacle to overcome will be the heat. Temperatures will be in the upper-80s by the end of Thursday’s ...
Posted: Tue, Jul 15th
Evans relaxed and ready at rest-day get-togetherThere’s a “down home” quality to Cadel Evans that was emphasized by his rest-day get-together with the media on Tuesday. It was certainly not a rest-day event in the style of a Lance Armstrong, whose Tour de France press conferences were all business, much in the style of ...
Posted: Tue, Jul 15th
Inside the Tour, with John Wilcockson - Cadel Evans, the Boxing KangarooWhen Phil Anderson became the first rider from the Southern Hemisphere to wear the yellow jersey at the Tour de France back in 1981, the French called him “Le Kangourou” simply because he’s Australian. Almost three decades later, this Tour’s new maillot jaune, ...
Posted: Sun, Jul 13th
Inside the Tour, with John Wilcockson - Hautacam is this Tour’s first major challenge On a day when race leader Kim Kirchen of Team Columbia admitted he was suffering, and third-placed Stefan Schumacher of Gerolsteiner was dropped on the final climb, Garmin-Chipotle’s Christian Vande Velde rode as strongly as he has ever since the start of this 95th Tour de ...
Posted: Sat, Jul 12th
Inside the Tour, with John Wilcockson - Cavendish on top of the worldSprinters who are capable of winning stages of the Tour de France rarely keep winning for long. They either burn themselves out (either mentally or physically) or soon lose the leg-speed that’s so essential for winning a highly charged field sprint at 40 mph. In view of the ...
Posted: Fri, Jul 11th
Friday's semi-mountain stage was another tough day in a Tour with no easy stages.There are no easy days in this very different Tour de France. This was especially true on Friday when stage 7 was raced more like a one-day classic than a semi-mountain stage of the Tour. One man who knows a thing or two about the classics (and the Tour!), George Hincapie, had ...
Posted: Fri, Jul 11th
Hail ColumbiaWhile the spectacular battle for stage 6 unfolded on the erratic climb to Super-Besse on Thursday, I was standing at the finish line next to Bob Stapleton, the owner-manager of Team Columbia. As we watched, we speculated whether his team leader Kim Kirchen could make up the 12 ...
