When you work in a bike shop this time of year, everyone asks you if you're excited for Lance Armstrong. My answer is usually "no, not really...." I mean, I respect what he's done in his career; he's legendary. And I really REALLY respect his work in fighting cancer. Cancer's touched almost everyone's life. I lost my dad to it a year ago.
But when Le Tour rolls out tomorrow, I'll be cheering for the big man in pink, Jan Ullrich. I really think he's got a big one in him this year. Even if he just gets 2nd again. The 2003 tour, when Jan pushed Armstrong all the way into Paris, was one of the most exciting Tours I've ever watched. And he did all that without much of a team (I'll send a 20% discount coupon to anyone who can name another member of the 2003 Bianchi team... without consulting the internet or your old pile of Cycle Sport magazines). Plus, he's German... and you just can't go wrong there.
Click the link below to visit Jan's website. It rocks... he has a journal and everything. But my favorite feature is the Jan Ullrich e-card selection. Send one to your friends!
Bernie
Friday, July 01, 2005
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6 comments:
Can we still be friends if I admit that I am really rooting for Levi? I would love to see him be the top finishing American. Probably won't happen but I'd be stoked. Jan is too busy running through the rear windshield of his team support car ;)
Kenneth Alan
kennethalan@winteristoofar.com
Well, I suppose Levi would be my 3rd choice (behind Jan and Beloki).
Tough Luck for Zabriskie today. If he hadn't crashed, he might have been able to pull CSC that much harder, resulting in only a 1 second loss to Discovery, and leaving the Maillot Jaune on his shoulders. How sweet would that have been?
I definitely am with you on the Beloki choice. I have been pulling for him since the moment he hit the pavement. I really hope he comes back strong. I was quite surprised by how well liberty-seguros did today. That was good to see. I was really sad to see that happen to Zabriskie as well. I really can't imagine he will be able to carry on with the race, he looked to be in really rough shape when they were walking him to the team bus on his way to the hospital. We'll see if Basso and the rest of the team rally now for him. This is going to be really interesting.
P.S. When is the first annual Panther City Downtown AlleyCat? ;)
Kenneth Alan
kennethalan@winteristoofar.com
OOoooh... an alleycat! That would be fun.
What about a sort of hybrid allycat/randonnee. Like a longer distance race, but with no set route?
O.K., here's what I envision. We do it in Fall to take advantage of cooler camping weather. We start here at the shop, stop at a couple of checkpoints in town, and race to Mineral Wells state park, where there will be a sweet post-race campout.
What do you think?
Sounds great. Just cut out the part where we ride all the way to Mineral Wells. Ok, I'm kidding. I like the sound of that for sure. I'd be down.
I rode from the shop the other day to downtown and on my way back I cut down main street. I was cruising under one of the old bridges (vickery overhead I think) where you go underground. It was getting dark and there are no lights under there. Shortly after getting underground I realize I am on the wrong side of the rode and cars are coming from up ahead. Trust me my cruise turned into a full on sprint since I was on an all black bike with no lights or reflectors. I did get honked at by a city bus along with a shaken fist thrown in from the driver. That's bonus points I do believe. So consider me the pre-race favorite for the leaders jersey this fall. What does the winner get? Maybe his own tent for the night? A stack of firewood and a lighter? Deer Urine?
Kenneth Alan
kennethalan@winteristoofar.com
Hey, didn't you get enough of that urine smell going under that bridge? Man... that's a sweet story. Those underpasses scare me when I'm going the right direction sometimes. Cars go from bright sun to complete darkness so quickly, there's no way they can see you.
I think you're on the right track with prizes. I don't know what first prize will be. But the runner-up should definitely get something nobody would wan't. Like a lifetime subscription to Tiger Beat magazine or something.
On a different note altogether, I wonder if there's a spot at the state park where we could get away with building a lake jump?
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