Le Tour 2010 - Stage 19 - Hesjedal and Menchov impress, but the expected happened. Except for Van Summeren's spectacular tumble

Forget the private race between friends Alberto and Andy, it was Menchov and Hesjedal that made the running. The usual Phil and Paul TV commentary was appalling and made it all sound more exciting than the fizzer it really was. But that's showbiz and the game we are playing these days. If you want to make money, make it dramatic - be it politics or sport, it all comes down to the artificial: the soap-operatic drama of it all. Thus we get the endless inquisition on the so-called "mechanical" and now how the race - a 3 week race, mind - was "really" lost on day 1 (the prologue, I mean) because of a wet road for Andy.

Perhaps we should hold Le Tour inside on single-speed bikes under controlled conditions to save ourselves from sloppy gearchangers and the vagaries of weather?   

OTOH just imagine the race we may have had if Cancellara hadn't annulled stage 2. Imagine if Andy Schleck was left holding his arm on the side of the road, waiting for a new bike - and was significantly gapped by a host of riders. Imagine if Hushovd and McEwen had got a significant swag of points instead of nothing. Just imagine. And unlike the hamfisted "mechanical" or the state of the weather it was Andy's teammate Fabian who changed the direction of the whole race. We shouldn't worry about the little details, it's the bigger fish we have to fry instead.   

Contador Elated But Admits He Struggled | Cyclingnews.com

"The truth is there's a lot of emotion. I think it's the first Tour to give me this much emotion. You can't imagine how much I've given. Yes, there were few days when I wasn't in my best form, and that might be why I'm so emotional."

"The last year has been difficult for all kinds of reasons," the Spaniard said. "This year I've not been at my best all the time and that was the case today. But of course in the end I'm very happy with how the year has now turned out. All the victories this year have been the result of a lot of hard work. It's been said that I've not competed in a lot of races but I've spent a lot of time away from home preparing for this objective."

Contador Elated But Admits He Struggled | Cyclingnews.com

"But this year I've not been in my best shape. Today I didn't feel too well. I didn't sleep well and woke up with stomach ache, but ultimately the day turned out pretty well for me, although I suffered more today than at any other time this year."

He would not be drawn on how far he was below his best or what his worst days had been. "I can't really say what percentage I was below my best, but there were some moments that I had the same good sensations as last year. I wasn't at the same level as last year, but I still managed to win. I won't say which my bad days were. I'll keep that to myself for obvious reasons.

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The wind makes Denis Menchov’s ride all the more impressive. He was the fourth from final rider to leave the start house and he managed to finish 11th in the time trial and take two minutes out of Sammy Sanchez. He was the top-placed rider of anyone in the top 10 overall, and his performance moved him ahead of Sanchez and into third place overall. For years, Menchov has been talked about as a potential Tour de France winner, but in each of his previous attempts at the race he’s cracked and fallen out of contention. This year he quietly rode a nearly-perfect race. He wasn’t able to stay with Andy Schleck or Alberto Contador in the mountains, but with the 2009 Giro d’Italia victory in his back pocket and a really strong performance in this year’s Tour de France, he could very well return to the Tour in 2011 as a very serious contender for the overall victory. This would be especially true if the 2011 edition of the race has two long individual time trials and/or a team time trial.

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There’s also no doubt that the chance to take the yellow jersey off Contador’s back today provided immense motivation, perhaps more so than last year when the two riders entered the final time trial separated by 2:26 (a gap Schleck knew to be unassailable).

But I have a hunch that Schleck’s result today was not an anomaly. I don’t think he pulled a once-in-a-lifetime effort out of his body today, but that he’s significantly narrowed the gap between himself and Alberto Contador in terms of time trials. And if Andy Schleck continues to improve in the mountains (he and Contador were equals in the mountains this year, where Contador could accelerate away from him last year) and in the time trials, he could very well beat Contador in the 2011 Tour de France.

Tour De France: Stage 19, Route Maps & Results | Cyclingnews.com

"I did the first 40km really, really fast," said Schleck. "I lost more in the final 10 kilometres than in the rest but I fought to the end."

The Luxembourger accepted his defeat, even more so because it did not come down to the mechanical. When asked about the 42 seconds he conceded to the Spaniard on the Tour's very first day, three weeks ago, Schleck said, "The prologue was terrible for me but it's part of the Tour de France. I haven't got any regrets. Anything can happen in the Tour. I know that. I'm satisfied and I'll be back next year to try and win," he said.

Tour De France: Stage 19, Route Maps & Results | Cyclingnews.com

Menchov will thus be the third man to feature on the famed podium on the Champs-Elysées Sunday evening, with the rest of the top ten classification unchanged except for Ryder Hesjedal (Garmin-Transitions), who moved up from eighth to seventh: an excellent performance for the 29-year-old Canadian.

Tour de France Stage 19

Garmin team rider Johan Van Summeren of Belgium falls at the start of the individual time-trial. Photo: Reuters

Hesjedal into 7th overall, DZ takes 5th on day – Tour de France, stage 19 – Team Garmin-Transitions

Hesjedal’s amazing run up the overall began after the crash-marred stage 2 that saw Christian Vande Velde abandon.

“On the morning of stage 3, Matt White said, ‘It’s open, give it the best you can.’ I didn’t wait around,” he told Velonews’ Neal Rogers.

“I went for it, and I wanted to keep that going the whole race. I didn’t want to be high in the standings and fade away through the Tour de France. I wanted to stay up there.”

“I’ve always believed I was capable, and here I am now.”

addicted2wheels

I guess yesterday's - or last night's - debacle at Le Tour can be blamed on too many riders on too-narrow roads. Add some rain and maybe a sprinkle of oil and bingo, they all fall down. Well, some had better luck than others. Chavanal made his own luck and kept well clear, making his win a deserved one - but the points and time gap were not a "real" result and I'm sure even he feels a bit cheated that the remaining riders - and not just Cancellara, although he spontaneously took up the 'lead coordinator' role - turned off the chase. Yes, it was the right thing to do when big names were splattered all over the road - it's meant to be an athletic contest, not a smash-em-up derby after all. But many of us have been in bike races where conditions were bad - rain, hail, dirt roads, crashes - and still the race went on. So why last night was different I'm not sure. It was bad and riders were confused, but did it need to be neutralised all the way to the end...? What if Cancellara and others were not just seeking to be "fair" to the fallen but also hoping that their teammates made it back, too?

Phil (Anderson) was also asked about Cancellara's 'control' of the "risk" on the stage won by Chavenal, at the expense of those who had suffered and clawed their way back to the front in search of points (like McEwen and Hushovd). Rightly, Phil pointed out the obvious conflict of interest in a rider seemingly annulling a stage (his teammate Andy Shleck had been gapped for example) and pointedly called Cancellara a "bully". Well Fabian may actually be a very nice guy (Scott Sunderland said so earlier this week so it's probably true) but he certainly displayed a degree of self-assured "Tour Patron" aura not seen since Lance was the Boss. Or maybe not since Hinault last pulled on the yellow jersey and gave the peleton a piece of his mind.

OTOH there's money on the line here and decisions were made on the road by individuals with a vested interest in the final result. Now if the riders were not connected by radio to team directors I'd be less inclined to question their motivations, but in any event it was obvious that neutralising the stage was in the best interests of several teams - and perhaps the majority. And the minority who were coerced into following what the Saxo Bank team wanted could do nothing. Oh sure, they could've attacked when the main field regrouped but they would also have been chased down by the man with the yellow jersey on his back and given at least some sort of tongue-lashing, or worse.

Le Tour 2010 - Stage 8 - Surprises abound! Armstrong hits the ground, doesn't bounce. Evans bounces, Schleck pounces.

What would you say about Paris in 2 weeks time, all things being equal from here? Schleck 1st, followed by Contador and Evans? Too early to be sure about Contador? Thinking that Evans will bleed time on key stages but gain it back on the long TT? Concerned about someone else falling, or a joker in the GC pack, perhaps 1 or even 2 minutes back, biding their time?

It feels more like the '80s again. At least in the warm, fuzzy glow of hindsight, anyway. I mean before it got a bit too predictable, with the strongest TT rider (usually someone called Indurain or, later, Armstrong) claiming the overall win in Paris. Again. And again. Usually achieved more by 'best average performance' than by bold and exciting moves, too. Yes, OK, there were some classic attacking performances in the past 25 years or so, but how many tours were won more by grinding obsessives rather than mercurial pirates? (Let's leave the pharmaceuticals out of it for the moment and just consider the drama.)

Whether the peleton has become "cleaner" or not is debatable, but we are - arguably - seeing more variation and a greater degree of suspense over the whole 3 weeks. (Yes, it is just week one but you know what I mean.) Whilst we may recognise Contador as king we also harbour doubts - we see a chink in the armour. And can Schleck keep it up? Is Sastre planning a big attack later in the tour? Will Evans keep close enough in the mountains to win it back in the TT? What of Menchov, Rogers and Basso? We can see a competition every day.

And there are so many possibilities. Whilst we can write Armstrong off overall he may well turn super-domestique for Leipheimer. Sastre and Menchov may save it all up for week 3. Evans and Basso may limit their losses. Wiggins may strike back. Even more likely, though, is that Contador may have just had his 'one bad day' and will come back fighting.

It's all possible, rather than predictable.

Tour De France: Stage 8, Route Maps & Results | Cyclingnews.com

"I've got to get my head around the position that I'm in now," said Schleck, with a rest day ahead of him tomorrow. "There are still a lot of very hard days, but I am pretty relaxed for the moment. I've done my thing, and I hope I can do a great race and I hope I don't have a bad day."

Ten seconds behind, the group was led in by another of the day's aggressors, Robert Gesink (Rabobank), with Roman Kreuziger (Liquigas) fourth and Contador fifth. Sixth, though, was the day's other big winner, Cadel Evans (BMC), who survived an early fall to claim the yellow jersey.

Evans now leads the general classification ahead of Schleck by 20 seconds, with Contador up to third, 1:01 behind the Australian.

Many will expect the overall winner to come from this trio, meaning, inevitably, that one of the day's big stories was the end of Armstrong's challenge - indeed, the definitive end of the Armstrong era.

Schleck Gives Warning Of Things To Come | Cyclingnews.com

“I really felt good. My legs were turning well, and the team was great. On the last climb I had no problem. I thought about attacking earlier but I have a plan for this Tour and I’m going to stick to it. Pressure motivates me. I’m here for a goal, to win in Paris, but if I can win a stage, I’ll take it,” he said at the finish.

Vinokourov Fills Domestique's Shoes | Cyclingnews.com

Vinokourov didn't expect Armstrong to disappear so quickly from the top positions of the classification. "I think he suffered in the heat," said the Astana star. "He also crashed quite a bit as well. Now he's out of contention for sure. We'll see - day after day - how we can get rid of our other adversaries."

Saxo Bank's Andy Schleck, who won the day's stage, isn't a major concern for Vinokourov. "He hasn't taken much time on Alberto, I'm not worried," he said.

Evans Gives BMC Its First Yellow Jersey | Cyclingnews.com

Evans played a somewhat cagey game, aware that his team will shoulder the responsibility of controlling the race before the Pyrenees start. "We'll wait for stages after tomorrow, but I'm happy it's a rest day. We'll think about it and come up with plan but the Pyrenees are very hard, Andy (Schleck) is going well, (Alberto) Contador and Astana (are) really strong, so we'll have to see and decide how to approach the mountains."

Wiggins Limits Damage In Tour De France Test | Cyclingnews.com

"I felt pretty good most of the day, especially on the second climb. It was just on the last one that I was overcooked and there came a point when I had to back off so I wouldn't completely blow. It was a damage limitation exercise,” he said at the finish.

Armstrong's Tour Challenge Collapses | Cyclingnews.com

"I clipped a pedal [in the roundabout -ed.] and next thing I knew I was rolling on the ground at 65 kilometres per hour," Armstrong explained after the stage. "I didn't make it back on until la Ramaz and I was pegged."

His jersey torn, Armstrong was slow to remount but made contact before the critical climb of Col de la Ramaz. However Sky and Saxo Bank set a strong pace, and it proved too much as the American slipped back from the leaders. At first he was assisted by Chris Horner but later Janez Brajkovic took over, as Levi Leipheimer and Andreas Klöden stayed with the leaders.

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Back in 1996, the cycling world wondered whether Miguel Indurain could become the first cyclist to win the Tour de France six times. He had dominated the race for five consecutive years by steamrolling the competition in the time trials and riding steadily in the mountains. But 1996 he struggled, and on Stage 7 he was suddenly unhitched from the lead group in the mountains. The calm demeanor and steady pedaling action were gone and Big Mig was in trouble. He lost more than 4 minutes that day, and by the time the race reached Paris, Indurain finished what would be his final Tour de France in 11th place, more than 14 minutes behind winner Bjarne Riis.

Le Tour 2010 - Stage 7 - Redemption, confirmation. Whatever. Chavanel proves something, anyway

No so surprisingly Sylvain Chavanel had something to prove after that slightly hollow win a few days ago. And equally fittingly the main agitator for that earlier non-race - Cancellara - was spat out he back.

For the rest it was a bit of a sorting out, a prelude for tougher days ahead, but told us nothing really. We expected Cancellara and Saxo Bank to rest up, there was no need to defend the yellow on Stage 7 - but every reason to prepare to launch Andy Schleck in the mountains to come. Evans equally didn't want yellow just yet. And the domestiques of the GC leaders had a quiet day in expectation of the real battle to come in Stage 8.

A small surprise was Kloden's failure to match the GC leaders, but he hasn't lived up to expectations for some years, has he? He will be back - rehydrated - and up to the task of helping launch Armstrong's attack. It's just up to the others to match Armstrong, to keep him in check and leverage any opportunity that subsequently comes along. Basso and Sastre will also want to join in, even if it's too early in the tour to commit everything they, like Armstrong, will be keen to reduce the gap to everyone else. 

Contador will also look to gain time on Schleck and Evans if that chance comes up. He may well launch Vino as a distraction... with Vino up the road Contador and Astana will hope to draw out the real GC favorites. It will put Menchov, Rogers and Wiggins to the test as well. 

And then there could be the odd surprise... Hesjedal? Roche? Van Den Broeck?


Tour De France: Stage 7, Route Maps & Results | Cyclingnews.com

Sylvain Chavanel (Quick Step) won his second stage of this year's Tour de France at Station des Rousses on Saturday, and completed another double, taking over the yellow jersey, just as he also did in Spa at the end of stage 2.

Unlike in Spa, however, the history books will show no asterisk against Chavanel's name after this victory - which, again, he achieved alone.

Tour De France: Stage 7, Route Maps & Results | Cyclingnews.com

But while the Croix de la Serra acted as the launchpad to Chavanel's victory, and effectively ended Fabian Cancellara's (Saxo Bank) spell in yellow, it told us very little about the climbing form of Alberto Contador (Astana), Andy Schleck (Saxo Bank), Lance Armstrong (RadioShack) or Bradley Wiggins (Team Sky), with last year's top four all present, correct and looking comfortable.

Armstrong Keeps His Cool Despite Heat, Saddle Sore | Cyclingnews.com

"I suffered," said Armstrong. "I think about everybody did. It was so incredibly hard. It was just the heat. Everybody really paid. Everybody would say it was much harder than we'd think because of the temperature. If you get a little behind on hydration and nutrition - that's what happened to Klödi (Andreas Klöden) - the man with the hammer comes and you're done."

Leipheimer Keeps An Eye On Vinokourov | Cyclingnews.com

Levi Leipheimer's task during stage 7 of the Tour de France was to mark Alexander Vinokourov (Astana). The RadioShack rider, who finished alongside Vinokourov in the lead group of GC contenders, said that the Astana rider was too dangerous to escape without company from someone on Lance Armstrong's Radioshack squad.

Van Den Broeck Ready For Battle In The Alps | Cyclingnews.com

"Today went well," he told Cyclingnews as he warmed down on the team bus. "It was an easy day with no problems but tomorrow will be all out war."

Van Den Broeck Ready For Battle In The Alps | Cyclingnews.com

In Matthew Lloyd, Van Den Broeck has a strong mountain domestique and the Australian is sure that his teammate can make a serious impression on the race over the coming two weeks. "Today we made sure Jurgen was fresh all day, especially when the speed was relatively high."

Roche Passes First Mountain Test | Cyclingnews.com

"I passed the test but I'm exhausted," Roche told Cyclingnews as he ground to a halt after the finish line.

After downing a bottle of water, the 26-year-old looked up and gave his impression on day that saw all the yellow jersey contenders finish together.

"I was feeling good but I guess there was a big group at the finish. It just proves that it's going to be pretty tough to stay with these guys," Roche told Cyclingnews.

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when BBox Telecom missed the breakaway today, their team manager sent them to the front to chase. That brought the breakaway close enough to the peloton for French National Champion Thomas Voeckler to attack for a possible stage win.


- By Chris Carmichael -

Not to be outdone by his countryman, Sylvain Chavanel (winner of Stage 2) set off in pursuit. Chavanel had a great ride and won the stage, and took the yellow jersey for the second time in this year’s race, but the Battle of the Frenchmen – along with the heat - also made the stage much more difficult than many riders had anticipated.

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If the lead group of yellow jersey contenders is all together at the bottom of the final climb, I fully expect Alberto Contador to attack on the final climb of Stage 8. Right now there are too many riders who are close to him on the overall classification and he’ll take the opportunity to ‘thin the herd’. The big question is how well the others will respond. Cadel Evans is better than he was in 2009, and so is Lance Armstrong. Andy Schleck was the only man capable of accelerating with Contador last year, but his pre-Tour preparation wasn’t as perfect as in 2009. And what of the dark horse in the periphery, Ivan Basso. He’s looking to make up some serious time in the overall race for yellow, and the mountains are where he overcame a big deficit to win the Giro d’Italia earlier this year.

Robbie McEwen (mcewenrobbie) on Twitter

@bdlancaster i was swearing at you for going so quick but thanks mate. expected bigger time cut. was too delerious to work it out

really had to battle thru tday, world of hurt as they say, but made it. v sorry 4 my team+roommate StijnVdb, outside time limit.

Cadel's Diary | Cadel Evans 2009-2010 - The Official Site of Cadel Evans - World Champion 2009, Tour de France runner-up in 2007,2008.

Why is it the roads always melt in Europe? More hot-mix less blue-metal?...feels like riding on underinflated tyres. So much so, that the GC teams did not want to lay it on the line today. Allowing break away specialist Chavanel to win the stage and reclaim the yellow jersey. It's been a great start to the Tour for Quick-Step so far, they were not in the greatest moods with the omission if Tom Boonen. Carlos Barredo gave them all a moral boost yesterday, you have all seen the post stage 'fight' on YouTube? Our dinner table was entertained.... How he got away with only 400CHF in fines mystifies me.

Evans distinguishes between pave and cobbles, Menchov discounts Paris-Roubaix as a career option and Frank Schleck blames an unnamed HTC rider

Another mixed bag (or musette) of interesting quotes and notes....

Evans’ MTB Background Gives Him New Advantage In Grand Tours | Cyclingnews.com

Evans: “Even in my most pretentious plans, I couldn’t have imagined that I could gain so much time over adversaries like Contador and Armstrong”, Evans told L’Equipe after stage three to Arenberg. “I had put a mark on that day because I knew it could be chaotic. We prepared it well with the right material. We discussed a lot about technical details, choice of tyres and gears. We didn't make any mistakes.”

Fränk Schleck Talks About His Crash On The Cobbles | Cyclingnews.com

Schleck: "(After what happened on Monday) we told them we owed them a lot and that we're going to do everything we can to win this Tour de France. Today (Tues) we had perfecting position, a perfect job from everybody and the team stuck together. Then it happened. I was going on the pave and was in fourth position but a guy from Highroad crashed in front and just took me down. But that's sport. Now I've got a broken collarbone that is broken three times and I'm heading back to Luxembourg to get surgery and see how long it takes (to recover)."

(My comment: I've watched the video over and over and whilst a Highroad rider may also have gone down they looked to be to the right and behind Schleck and caught up in Frank's fall, not the other way around. There appeared to be no-one in front of Schleck or close enough to actually cause the fall. But there may have been someone else out of shot - perhaps.)

Menchov Escapes Pavé Unscathed | Cyclingnews.com

"I'm very satisfied," Menchov said. "I have felt very good from the first day in Rotterdam and if you're good, then a high finish in this stage is possible.  I did not fall and did not puncture, but I still missed the group of Cancellara because Fränk Schleck was in front of me when he crashed. All day I felt unafraid on the cobblestones. It was very nice," said Menchov. "I got a lot of good help from the other guys. Too bad there was a gap [to the group with Andy Schleck - ed.], but the result is acceptable and I am satisfied with my performance today."

Now that he has gone successfully over the pavé and emerged unscathed, does Menchov plan to race in Paris-Roubaix some day? The answer from the 32-year-old was unequivocal: "Not on my life."

Déjà Vu For Basso After Tour Pavé | Cyclingnews.com

"It's been an extremely demanding day," Basso said. "But we expected it. I can't see it as a positive day, but it's also not too negative. I've had worse times in my career, for example in this year's Giro d'Italia. I'm smiling now for coming home physically safe, but I'm not so happy with losing a bit of time."

Basso's ride was delayed because of a crash that put an end to Fränk Schleck's 2010 Tour de France. The Italian started a new race trying to catch up with groups ahead.

Cadel's Diary | Cadel Evans 2009-2010 - The Official Site of Cadel Evans - World Champion 2009, Tour de France runner-up in 2007,2008.

Whoa... Cobbles, NOT pave - let's get this clear. There is a distinct difference! Seriously, we always knew this was going to be an important stage, and we prepared for it accordingly. Obviously being sponsored by a bike company that targets Paris-Roubaix is an advantage. I rode a different bike, the 'SLR' with normal Easton low profile carbon wheels, and specially prepared Continental tyres. Along with a careful course reconnaissance with my good friend and team mate Steve Morabito under John (Lelangue's) watchful eye.

Great work, CSC - maybe

And nice work Simon Gerrans: Schleck had trailed Evans by just one second going into the 15th stage, and ended the day with a seven-second lead over Bernhard Kohl, who headed home the chasing pack behind the breakaway group. The rest day has come at the right time for Evans, so don't write him off yet. Kohl was fifth over the line, and now has a one-second advantage over Evans, who has dropped to third in the overall standings. Gerrans produced a perfectly timed late surge to secure his stage win..

A great stage? Maybe. Actually I don't particularly like to see days like this. It smells like bad sportsmanship, a bit like the old US Postal 'launch' move, but not as obvious. Here we see 3 CSC guys basically gang up (it's called 'teamwork', ha ha) on one isolated guy in yellow - a typical bully-boy gang thing to do. It's great that CSC has a strong team, and that they play to win. I'm sure they are all great guys, too. There's also no law against being good, or great, or working as a team. Indeed at this level of the sport collusion like this is accepted and indeed encouraged. I just don't like to see it.

Thankfully CSC individually are weaker in ITTs - which will even things out. And sure, it's all part of the game and gripping to watch - but I personally like to see a select group of individuals fight it out, man to man (or woman to woman or whatever you prefer). It's just a bit pathetic - akin to bullying - to see 3 guys - in this case Sastre and the Schleck brothers - take turns in attacking Evans (or whoever it may be tomorrow).

OTOH it was a joy to watch Menchov attack - and what a move it was! What a shame he took that slippery bend too quick - and too tightly - and ended on the deck. To my mind it's Menchov vs Evans in this race and only the unexpected or CSC can break it up. Rest day, then back to it.

Just my opinion.

Le Tour: efforts unrewarded - yet?

I had mixed feelings about a stiff and sore Evans hanging tough in what proved a punishing but not decisive stage 10. What were Riis and CSC on about? Yes, it was impressive teamwork. Yes, they have some amazing riders and at least 2 GC contenders, but what were they expecting? To drop everyone on the flat? Or was the plan simply to dislodge Cunego and Valverde on the first climb and then keep them behind? Was that the plan? To thin the field?

Or were they hoping to hurt an injured Evans? Or all of the above? It seemed that CSC were scheming and hammering to little effect, other than exhausting Voigt and Cancellara. Sure, they got close to launching someone, but it didn't really happen. We all knew that Sastre wasn't going to get away, surely? So was the real plan to boost Schleck up the leaderboard? At least they achieved that, if little else. A puzzled Menchov saw both sides: On the climb to Hautacam CSC went on the attack with Carlos Sastre and eventually got Fränk Schleck away. "It's a little bit strange [what CSC did]," Menchov said. "Well, it's not really strange since CSC had to try. In the end it worked out well for them."

Although the rest day will help them - and everyone - recover, in essence it was a big tactical and power display for small reward - with most of the racing still ahead. They have indeed removed some threats, but will the Sastre-Schleck 1-2 punch be enough when Ricco is sitting on, waiting to pounce?

Ahhhh, crystal ball time. One Pyrennean stage to go. Ricco grabs another win. Ricco edges closer on GC. Evans lets the golden fleece go, hoping to get it back in week 3. Schleck and Menchov battle it out in the Alps. Sastre tries to get away, but is marked. Ricco gets away, grabs more time. Indeed, bring on the Alps. And that delicious, long time trial..

Vuelta a Espana 2007 Stage 10: Menchov of the mountains

Denis Menchov affirmed his leader's status with a fighting win in the mountainous 10th stage. We saw Sastre repeatedly attack, thinning the field, and Piepoli returned yesterday's favour by "possibly" pacing Menchov at times. Who knows, it look like some inter-team teamwork but then again... there's no sure way of knowing unless they admit to it. Evans tried to take the stage but Menchov countered. Efimkim hung in there too, so it's Menchov, Efimkin and Evans, 1-2-3.

From CN: Denis Menchov put a golden stamp on the Vuelta a España leading into its first rest day. Clad in the maillot oro of race leader, the 29 year-old Russian of Team Rabobank won the stage to the top of Arcalís ahead of Australian Cadel Evans (Predictor-Lotto) and Spaniard Samuel Sánchez (Euskaltel-Euskadi). "No, I think it's not that way," said Menchov answering a question about whether he was aided by Piepoli in the finale. "Truly, we didn't talk about anything for today. Leo always rides this way; he tried to change the tempo many times. I followed him just in case, to see if someone stays behind. Leo tried to put a strong rhythm."