Highlights from the 100th Tour de France

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The Tour de France has been raced and won for another year. This year's tour, the 100th edition, might have been a one horse race for the yellow jersey but it certainly didn't detract from the excitement.

Here are a few of my highlights:

1. As an Aussie, of course the number one highlight would be Simon Gerrans winning stage 3 and the Orica-Green Edge taking the win in the Team Time Trial on stage 4 elevating Gerrans to the yellow jersey position. An Aussie holding the leaders jersey is special, but an Aussie wearing the leaders jersey as a member of an Australian pro-cycling team is something else.

2. Nairo Quintana. The pint sized Colombian walks away from her first Tour de France with two jerseys! The white young riders jersey as well as coveted polka-dot King of the Mountain jersey. Quintana has proven his worth as a serious contender for overall honours in years to come.

3. The Green Jersey Competition. Although Sagan practically had this wrapped up early on with his aggressive attacks during the intermediate sprints the battle between Sagan, Cavendish, Greipel and Kittel was still exciting to watch. Kittel was the surprise packet of the sprinters proving that his stage 1 win was not due to luck but talent and speed taking a total of four stages. Some say a changing of the guard with Mark Cavendish having an understated tour, but I wouldn't be writing him off just yet especially considering he is going to have the likes of Alessandro Petacchi and former team mate Aussie Mark Renshaw set to join his lead out team in 2014.

4. The Alps. The anticipation when the riders reach the serious mountains of the French Alps is always huge and this year was no different. Would Froome and Team Sky be able to survive? Would Contador make his move? What did Movistar have planned? How would the little Colombian Quintana hold up on the big climbs? All questions were answered in spectacular fashion. Once again the Alps didn't disappoint. Especially exciting was the race for the podium with four or five riders vying for the minor places and indeed going down to the wire.

5. Chris Froome. He may have been the red hot favourite but it was for good reason as he and his Sky team mates crossed the line on the Champs Elysees victorious. Chris Froome proved he was the the best of the best. His remarkable attacks and show of speed with this trademark high cadence on the high climbs left no doubts that he was the best of the best and deserving of the yellow jersey. Team Sky was under pressure all tour with many doubting their ability to hold it together for Froome but they certainly had all the answers, in particular another Aussie Richie Porte. Porte was Froome's right-hand man with unwavering support for his Team Leader.

6. SBS Australia. Here in Australia free to air TV channel SBS is the home of cycling. They package the tour up in all its glory and serve it to us on a silver platter beautifully. And they are set to do so for another 10 years which makes this little Peloton lover very happy indeed.

Lowlights?
Of course there were a few disappointments along the way. Cadel Evans had a tour he would rather forget. It would seem that his efforts on a third place in this years Giro d'Italia took more out of the Aussie battler than he had hoped. Time will tell if Cadel's time in the peloton is up and whether TeeJay van Garderen should take up the team leaders position next year at BMC.
Contador too was not his usual self. He lacked the legs and punchy acceleration to make any impact unable to even hold on to a podium position. Make of that what you will, but I hope the Contador of old is back next year.
Stage 1 carnage. The most anticipated opening to this years tour with a visit for the first time to beautiful Corsica promised so much, but a mammoth crash not too far from the finish line saw to it that many of the sprinters were taken out of action. The major sprinting contenders were looking forward to taking out opening stage honours and spectators and fans alike were waiting for an edge-of-the-seat fast finish but it wasn't to be. However, ask Marcel Kittel and he would be more than pleased with the outcome!

So that's a wrap on this year's tour. Now I have scheduled in a few nights of catch up sleep, which after than I'm sure the post tour blues will kick in. Thank goodness there's only a few weeks until the final grand tour of the year, The Vuelta Espana!

What were your favourite moments of this years tour?

Stories from l'Alpe d'Huez

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Stage 18 of the 2-1 Tour de France lived up to expectations. So many stories.


Do I talk about the story of Teejay van Garderen, so close yet so far?

Contador and Team Saxo Bank team tactics failing?

Rodriguez, Quintana, and Froome smashing the peloton?

The ride of Richie Porte powering up the hill to rejoin when Froome was being challenged?

The controversy of Froome taking on drink and food within the last kilometers?

Quintana taking advantage and riding away from them all, riding for a place on the podium and then Rodriguez inching back at the line?

The heroic ride of Riblon biding his time in second place for so long of the stage and then finally attacking taking the stage for his country?

The story of Porte nursing a limping and flat Froome to the line?

Contador finishing with a desperate, lethargic burst trying to limit his losses?


So many stories. Thank you Alpe d'Huez, you never fail to disappoint.

Isn't that racing? Tour de France 2013

On an exciting action packed day, Stage 16 of the Tour de France saw the rivalry continue long after the riders crossed the line.

The normally mild mannered Chris Froome had a few things to say regarding the incident that saw Contador come off his bike during the fast decent into Gap.

Contador had been in an aggressive move attacking Froome during the climb which was more psychological in nature rather than an attempt to take time. Then on the decent Contador continued his aggressive riding seeing him take a corner a little too fast and come off the bike, fortunately without any dire consequences. However, Contador's mishap caused Froome who was riding not far behind him, to have to change is line into the corner forcing him toward the end of the road having to slow down and unclip to get back on the road.

Turns out Froome wasn't too impressed with Contador's assertiveness, tweeting the following after the race:

Now I am a little bemused by Froome's comments. The last time I looked the Tour de France was a race. You take every chance you can get. It was not reckless riding, Contador was taking advantage of his (usually) superior descending skills and misjudged the corner. That's racing. Yes, it was unfortunate that Froome was hindered by Contador but... that's racing. 

My take on this is Froome was a little rattled by Contador this stage and although the yellow jersey is pretty much sewed to his back, the race isn't over until it's over and the leader of the race is always the wanted.

I think the next few days in the Alps are going to be rather interesting don't you?

Froome displays his prowess

One of the most anticipated stages of this years tour de France certainly didn't disappoint and it was yellow jersey holder Chris Froome (Team Sky) who showed who was boss of this years race.

The climb up daunting Mount Ventoux is 21 kilometers of unrelenting torture and it didn't take long before the pressure of Team Sky, namely Richie Porte, started to separate the contenders for the pretenders.

The anticipated show down between Froome and Contador was looming and when Porte dropped off after doing his jo,b within seconds Froome raised the pace. Contador was unable to match him and Froome rode away to join Quintana of MoviStar before leaving him behind as well and crossing the line for the stage win and cementing his right as race leader.

With all the talk of the possible weakness of Team Sky, they again proved they have what it takes and Froome can do it alone when necessary.

Contador admitted he couldn't keep the pace, but also said the race wasn't over. With the alps to come and days of multiple climbs he still believes he can break Froome. Only time will tell, but there would need to be a fairy tale come true for Contador to claw back the 4:25 he needs to in order to take the yellow jersey.

However, for me one of the highlights of the day was Peter Sagan. He managed to take off with the early break away in order to gain the sprint points for the green jersey which he took, now maintaining an almost unbeatable lead.

After his effort taking the uncontested sprint Sagan continued on only surrendering at the beginning of the Mount Ventoux climb. But in pure Sagan Style he didn't just casually rejoin the peloton, no, he marked the occasion with a one handed wheelie!

Gotta love his spirit!
You can view a snippet of it at http://video.cairns.com.au/v/123382/Peter-Sagan-pulls-wheelie-midstage-in-Tour-de-France

Should Froome be worried?

During last year's tour I wrote a blog post titled 'You are only as strong as your team.........leader' where I wrote about how Chris Froome almost tore the tour apart by almost upstaging his team leader and eventual winner Bradley Wiggins. Fast forward twelve months and this week we saw the brilliance of Chris Froome during stage 8, where he took a stranglehold on this years race, with amazing support of his team, notably Australian Richie Porte.

But....Stage 9 saw things take an unexpected turn and I could have very well titled this post 'You are only as strong as your....team.' Full Stop.

Poor Richie Porte had a tough day and couldn't keep the pace and ended up losing a huge chunk of time and team Movistar worked well to isolate Froome from his team and really test the waters of possibilities, although disappointingly not doing much more than that.

So the question needs to be asked...Should Chris Froome be worried?

Well, firstly it is the Tour de France and anything can happen. The race is three weeks long and there is so much to come.

Secondly, Chris Froome was, coming into this years race, a red hot favourite. The tour is Froome's ultimate goal this year and his form has been great. But is Team Sky the Team Sky we saw powerful and dominating at last year's race? On paper the answer would have to be no. And although they are certainly a strong team they have shown that they are far from unbeatable.

Stage 9 has certainly opened up the race once again. Katusha (Rodriguez), SaxoBank (Contador) and Movistar (Valverde) will all be bouyed by the events of yeserday which in turn will hopefully lead to some motivated attacks in the mountain stages to come.

All bodes for an exciting next two weeks, in which yes, Chris Froome should be worried right up until he is standing on that podium in Paris!

Le Tour 2013

Well it's been a long time between drinks. It seems that life got in the way in the past few months but as the most important race of the year is here, so am I.

And what a start it has been.

After what should have been a beautiful and exciting first stage in Corsica we were left with a shambolic race. The good old Orica-Green Edge bus getting stuck under the finish line really caused mayhem and then crashes galore changed what should have been an awesome stage. Although I'm sure Kittel would disagree!

There is no doubt there is a lot of speculation for this years Tour. After a somewhat lackluster race last year cycling fans and yearning for a real battle and although some commentators are already writing Chris Froome's name in the record books I think it will be more than a one horse (or dog) race.

A few names that spring to mind are Contador, Rodriguez, Valverde, Evans and of course Froome.

But it is the Tour de France and anything can happen and most likely will.

I'm geared up for late nights surviving on 4-5 hours sleep but it will be all worth it. It always is!

It's a wrap! Vuelta 2012

image from here

They saved the best for last. Grand tours that is. After a great start to the year with the Giro we went into Le Tour with great expectations only to be left feeling a little lackluster. Thankfully the Vuelta saved the day with some of the best racing we have seen all season.

I have mentioned before my excitement to see Alberto Contador back in the action so it is no surprise that I am thrilled that he took home the red jersey.

But mostly it was the excitement of the racing that made this the tour of the year.

Perhaps the Tour de France powers that be can learn something from this years vuelta? With shorter stages, greater and tougher climbs and perfect time trial placement the Vuelta had a good recipe for success. Throw in a couple of extra flat stages early on to whet the sprinters appetites and of course a full contingent of fit and healthy riders we have a fantastic scenario for a Grand Tour.

Caps off to Contador, Rodriguez, and Valverde for providing such great racing and ending the year on a high.


Long live the Vuelta ;)

This week in cycling. Aussies, Spaniards & Belgians.

It has been a pretty exciting week in cycling! (Positives only thank you).

Firstly at the Vuelta e Espana we will see Alberto Contador ride into Madrid wearing the red leaders jersey and then stand atop the podium, proud and accomplished. It has been a brilliant Vuelta for Contador and his team, and for spectators and cycling enthusiasts alike. Exciting racing, amazing attacks and twists and turns along the way. I for one am certainly happy to see Contador back in winning form.

Still at the Vuelta Australia's Simon Clarke will take to the podium wearing the King of Mountain's jersey for the best climber of the race. This is a fantastic result for Clarke, stage four winner, who rode a smart and tactical race and is proving he has come of age. Clarke, is the second Australian to take a KOM jersey in a Grand Tour with Matt Lloyd winning honours at the 2010 Giro d'Italia. It also marks new Australian team Orica-GreenEdge's first jersey win.

It was also great to see Aussie Richie Porte a gallant second in the tough Queen Stage. Heading over no less than three category one climbs, a category two and the final uncategorised climb to finish second behind Menchov is a fantastic result for Porte.

Also exciting this week was the one day Paris-Brussels. One of the oldest races on the European Tour, Paris-Brussels is a prestigious race and one that riders love to win. Omega-Pharma QuickStep's Tom Boonen crossed the line to take the honours ahead of Australia's Mark Renshaw. Boonen has hit top form heading into the upcoming UCI World Championships. Perfect timing.

Renshaw too, is finally showing some form after a frustrating season, however he yet again, Renshaw misses out on Australian selection for World Champs. This year though form may have had something to do with it, not only the questionable selectors.

Speaking of the World Championships with Belgian Philippe Gilbert's win on stage 19 of the Vuelta it would appear he too, is hitting form at the right end of the season which bodes well for an exciting race coming next weekend.

Finally, another Australian to finish off, Simon Gerrans is showing form also with a win at the GP Québec in Canada. It is great to see Gerro fnishing off the season well, and yes, another contender for World Champ honours.


What's been your favourite cycling story this week?

Contador The Great. Vuelta 2012

image from here

I haven't been blogging as much as I would like for this year's Vuelta. Lots of reasons, mainly as I've been a bit ill and very tired, so I have been catching up with TiVo!

It's funny though, as I was going to blog Tuesday about Rodriguez being Mr. Cool Calm and Collected, almost James Bond like, unable to put a foot wrong and withstand any attacks that came his way. If I had have written that post, I would have been eating humble pie right now.

Contador is The Great. 'El Pistolero'. He armed himself, loaded, aimed and fired. And the bullet was spot on. Game over. .... Almost.

Contador wore down his opponents with sheer determination, multiple attacks on every climb over the past few weeks in the end wore them down. Christopher Froome was the first casualty, perhaps a lot earlier than expected. Valverde was next to go, although is certainly far from down and out. And it looked like Rodriguez was holding up the best to Contador's barrage, until now.

Stage 17 saw team Saxo-Bank tactically outmaneuver Rodriguez and allow Contador to make a decisive attack that would leave Rodriguez exposed, it was clear that the past couple of weeks had finally, albeit unfortunately taken their toll.

Contador ended up crossing the line, taking the stage with an outpouring of emotion, no doubt a combination of frustration and relief after the playing out of recent events.

Love him or hate him, Contador had his day. And it will be almost impossible for anyone to dislodge the Spaniard of the red jersey.

Do you feel a little for Rodriguez? What did you think of Contador and Saxo-Bank's tactics?

Time trial sets up more excitement - Vuelta

The much anticipated time trial at the Vuelta didn't really pan out as expected.

I myself, expected to be blogging about how much time Rodriguez lost and how his chances for overall classification honors were dashed, but no so. Rodriguez has arguably raced the best time trial of his life to actually hold onto the red jersey, albeit by the narrowest of margins, one second over Contador.

The unexpected and perhaps underestimated ITT winner was Astana's Frederik Kessiakoff who rode a near perfect race against the clock to take the win for the day.

As for the general classification the 'big 4' are still all in contention setting up no doubt what will be an exciting few days to come.

Contador is poised in second place, with Froome, who probably under performed in the time trial in third, while Valverde also put in a stellar performance to stay in touch in fourth place.

	Joaquim Rodriguez	40:26:15
	Alberto Contador	0:00:01
	Christopher Froome	0:00:16
	Alejandro Valverde	0:00:59

A tale of four climbers - Vuelta Stage 8

Valverde, Rodriguez, Froome and Contador. They are the four riders who have stamped their authority on this year's vuelta and it is just a matter of time before one of them is crowned the champion. But which one?

Valverde taking Stage 8

Stage 8 saw the Vuelta again live up to it's expectations with an explosive finish to an all round exciting day.

Australia's Cameron Meyer was aggressive as part of the lead group proving himself as an up and coming GC contender. His never say die attitude saw him pound away at the pedals even when faced with the great climbers surging behind him. Even when caught he hung on only dropping back within the last kilometer after his legs had declared enough for the day.

In what was a fast and furious race it really was the last kilometer of racing that brought the goods, what all loyal cycling fans had been waiting for - riders on the attack.

Perhaps it is the Vuelta's shorter stages and time bonuses inciting more aggressive riding, or perhaps the return of Contador, the eagerness of Valverde and the unleashing of the 'Froomedog' from his master Wiggins, no doubt it is the combination of all of these factors, and as a cycling fan it is just magic.

Froome was first to attack as they rounded one of the tight bends of the final climb towards the finish but it was to no avail, he was easily reigned in before Contador turned on his legs in a beautiful change of speed and attacked in his familiar style.

He quickly distanced himself from the chasing three and with 150m to go, taking a quick glance over his shoulder, looking like he had the race all but won.

But fellow Spaniards Valverde and race leader Rodriguez would have none of that. Within the next 50m they began to round him up and it would seem out of nowhere they were in Contador's shadow,  fast approaching.

Contador tried in vein to hold them off but they would be too strong with Valverde again showing why he is one of the best at this scenario taking the win ahead of Rodriguez and a somewhat bewildered Contador.

Froome was left to skulk over the line 15 seconds behind in 4th place.

Rodriguez still holds onto a narrow lead in the general classification 33 seconds ahead of Froome and Contador closes the gap edging within 7 seconds of Froome. Valverde is in fourth place.

There is little doubt that one of these riders will be this year's winner. Many have laid bets on Chris Froome taking into account his brilliant time trialling ability. Valverde and Rodriguez will have to be concerned heading towards the Stage 11 time trial and Contador, a strong time trialist in his own right will no doubt need to be at his best on the day.

I still feel it will come down to the Contador vs Froome battle, but with explosive and exciting racing as we have seen so far I don't really mind who wins, I am simply relishing it as it all unfolds.

Thank you Contador - Vuelta 2012

Finally! Yes, finally it happened. Explosive racing, attacks, excitement, anticipation all thanks to the man pro-cycling has been missing - Alberto Contador.

Whether you are a fan or not, you certainly can't deny what took place on Stage 3 of the Vuelta e Espana.

After a couple of warm up stages the Vuelta took to the first mountain top finish for the race last night and it didn't disappoint.

The break away was caught at the foot of the final climb as the fireworks were about to start.

All the contenders were there; Valverde, Rodriguez, Van Den Broek, De Gendt, Gesink, Uran, Roach and of course Froome and Contador.

It wasn't long before the attacks came. Valverde was first to show his cards launching a minor attack which was easily reeled in and then Contador made his first move. His unmistakable prancing of pedals and lightening acceleration quickly had the others on their toes. It would initially appear that Froome was going to be a casualty however he gained his momentum and was never really in trouble.

There would be no less than five more attacks from Contador, each one displaying his sheer brilliance and excitement that tour racing has been missing in his absence.

Apart from dropping Van Den Broek and De Gendt, Contador's attacks were of no real consequence. But he certainly did make clear his intentions and show his challengers that he is the one to beat.

In a terribly close finish Valverde went on to steal the stage win from Rodriguez who thought he had it in the bag and will no doubt be kicking himself.

Froome too showed his strength by putting four seconds into Contador by taking third place time bonuses in front of the Spaniard.

Stage three was a mere taste to whet our appetites for what is to come over the next couple of weeks of racing, and with another tough hill top finish tonight we won't have to wait long for more!

What did you make of Contador's attacks? Was he just playing with them?

Vuelta Preview

Tonight, which is today on the other side of the globe the final grand tour for 2012 is beginning. The Tour of Spain, or Vuelta e Espana is probably the least popular of the grand tours yet is growing in respect and this year will be a fabulous spectacular.

Highlights to look forward to:

- Climbs, climbs and more climbs. This Vuelta will be one of the toughest to be conquered, with no less than 10 summit finishes and 36 categorized climbs this is definitely one for the uphill specialists.

- Contador v's Froome. Much has been made of this battle, here's my thoughts on it, and let's hope we are not disappointed.

- Alejandro Valverde, Joaquim Rodriguez, Igor Anton, Juan Jose Cobo, Thomas De Gendt and Robert Gesink will want to ensure it isn't just a two horse race.

- Shorter stages will ensure some explosive racing.

All of this is going to equate to a fascinating and intriguing three weeks of racing and all I can say is Bring It On!

What are you looking forward to at this year's Vuelta?

Froome V's Contador: Let the battle begin

This year's Tour de France was much talked about as one of the least exciting on record, however there are a few things to get excited about one of them being Christopher Froome.

Froome takes to the road this weekend for Team Sky in the upcoming Vuelta a espana (Tour of Spain) and this time he will be let loose as team leader. No longer will he be overshadowed by Brad Wiggins, no he will be free to bask in the limelight as he chases GC decoration.

But, wait there's more....

The return of Alberto Contador to grand tour racing.

Contador has warmed up his legs in this weeks Eneco Tour biding his time and preparing for his assault on his home tour. He is ready.

Both Contador and Froome have so much to prove and what a battle it is going to be.

Froome has a big season under his belt, whereas Contador, although he hasn't stopped training my well be underdone. Nothing compares to 'match fitness'.

Contador will be out to regrain his crown at the top of world cycling, tarnished or not, whilst Froome needs to prove what we all think he is capable of.  

However the events of the Vuelta play out there is no doubt this is a climbers race and these are two of the best in the business.

So let the battle begin!

The Return of Contador

Alberto Contador officially begins his Vuelta preparations tonight in the Tour of Eneco across Belgium and the Netherlands. 

The Spaniard is returning from a two year ban for a positive result of Clenbuterol in his system at the 2010 Tour de France.A case which sparked much controversy and one of the longest doping case decisions in history in cycling.

Critics say he should have suffered the most severe reprimand for his actions, supporters believe in his innocence and the 'contaminated meat' defense.

I am all for clean cycling and the first to call for total bans for those found guilty of doping in not only this sport, but any sport. However, in this instance I believe in Contador's innocence. The minute traces that were found in his system to me indicate an alternative reason than doping and his defense is more than viable.

It would certainly have been a shame for the sport of cycling to lose a rider of the likes of Alberto Contador. He is exciting, focused and is there anyone who looks better on a bike - like he belongs there?

Contador's return is one of the biggest stories this month and for the build up to the upcoming Tour of Spain where he will again front up aiming for another Grand Tour win.

Whether you like him or not you certainly cannot deny Contador's ability and talent and the excitement that he will again bring to tour racing. His ban will have spurred him on and he will be more than determined to perform at his best.


Are you looking forward to Contador's return?