Stage 17

T
D
F

2
0
0
6

Back to Main Tour Index
Go to coachcarl.com Home Page

Stage 17

Day 19 Bourg d'Oisans -La Toussuire Les Sybelles 182 km

Analysis

Can you believe this race? I don't recall ever seeing anything like it before. This has to be the most exciting and fun Tour I have seen. Do you realize that the four top spots on GC were domestiques just two months ago and that the best placed team leader and race favorite is Evans in fifth place? That is fantastic. I think they should bust the rest of the dopers and see how many more stars rise to the top. How much more fun would that make this great and beautiful sport?

I think I warned you about everything that happened today except one or two things like Pereiro taking the lead back. This guy could win this race and he was riding as a domestique for Valverde until Valverde crashed out of the race. Go figure.

In second place is Sastre who was supposed to ride for Basso, in third is Kloden who was supposed to ride for Ullrich, and in fourth is Dessel who as riding for Moreau but now Moreau is riding for him. It just shows what kind of talent is being hired to ride for these team leaders and I have been telling you that for years.

If any of those four riders are riding as domestiques next year, they should fire their agents and get good ones. This is great stuff.

I warned you that one bad day could turn this Tour up-side-down and it did. Landis broke on the last climb just like he broke on a climb in the Dauphine and lost over 8 minutes on GC. I would call that a bad day.

This type of leg break or blow up is almost certainly the result of overtraining causing an accumulation of fatigue so that it only takes one or two really strong efforts during a stage race and your legs leave you. He dropped from first to eleventh in just a few miles of the race, that is a major leg blow out. He is out of the race at over 8 minutes down and will now be joining DSC chasing stage wins.

As expected, both Sastre and Kloden moved into the top three, Dessel moved down, Evans moved up, and Menchov moved down. With a really great effort, Moreau moved back into the top ten while riding for Dessel. Maybe Moreau should ride for others more often. :-)

As expected, Rassmussen took an early hike looking for the KOM Jersey and got it with a really great effort that included an impressive solo win. As expected, DSC tried to put riders into breaks for the stage win with Popovych and Rubiera making a break for a while. PHO chased today and the team's legs broke leaving Landis exposed too far from the finish and the others finished him off with relay attacking just like I teach in my e-book, "A Better Way To Train." CSC even forced the pace on the second HC climb to break the PHO team legs because they smelled the blood.

Leipheimer tried a long break to bring back some of the 6 minutes he was down on GC but it didn't work, he is now over 7 minutes down, and riding as domestique for Fothen in the White Jersey.

On the last climb, Sastre obviously knew Landis was in trouble and attacked, breaking and dropping Landis and almost catching Rassmussen for the stage win. Menchov attacked dropping Rogers and then Kloden attacked dropping Menchov. Kloden and company went after Sastre but couldn't quite catch him putting Pereiro in the Yellow Jersey.

Did you notice that most of the riders who rode hard in Stage 15 got dropped in Stage 16? I told you that what you do in one stage will effect what you can do in all subsequent stages. It works.

Buuuut, this race isn't over yet. The first five riders are all within three minutes of first and there are still two good GC stages left; the mountain stage tomorrow and the time trial. There are still five riders who could win this race in the next four days. Kloden, Dessel, and Evans are all fighting for third, at the very least, and are all within 30 seconds of each other. Add to that that Kloden is only 39 seconds out of second place with Sastre only being 1'50" out of first. When you consider that Landis just lost 8 minutes in one stage with a bad day, any of those riders can win this Tour.

Buuuut, the racing just keeps getting better. Bennati just crashed out of third place all but giving McEwen the Points Title with the only rider close enough to pose any kind of threat being Freire who is down 45 points or more than two stage wins. Zabel, who, just two days ago, was riding for fifth is now in third and should be able to hold it.

As expected, Rassmussen went on the offensive today taking the lead for the KOM Title by a good solid 45 points but that race isn't over because he is going to be very tired tomorrow from such a long break today and De La Fuente rode smart, dropping out the back of the peloton to rest for tomorrow. Watch this race to heat up for the next two days with former team leader Menchov, now out of the running on GC and relagated to riding as domestique with Boogerd and the rest of RAB in support of Rassmussen to win the KOM Title. How fast things have been changing in this Tour.

Add to that that Cunego cut Fothen's lead for the White Jersey by four minutes today and is now within three minutes of taking that lead away from GST after Leipheimer dropped out of contention for GC and you have a rare battle brewing for the White Jersey. Expect to see Leipheimer and the rest of GST riding as domestiques for Fothen to protech the White Jersey while the Lampre Team, which was riding for Bennati until he crashed out today, will be riding for Cunego to win the White Jersey. This battle is looking more fun each day.

Then there is the changing fortunes of CSC. They went from chasing stages to being second on GC and third for the KOM Title. Will they send Schleck up the road for the KOM Title and find some way to use that to Sastre's benefit or will they have Schleck sacrifice the KOM Title to ride directly for Sastre to get him into first place? Hmmmm, interesting choices are being made while I write this. Don't you just love bike chess? :-) Schleck could move into second and, maybe, even first for the KOM Title tomorrow but Sastre could move into first on GC. I think they will probably focus on GC.

They couldn't write anything this good and fun for a movie or book. You just can't make stuff like this up. One more really bad or really great day and it will all change again. What a bike race!!!

Tomorrow

Tomorrow's long stage of 200.5 kilometers follows two really hard days in the mountains and legs will be tired. There will be five KOM primes with there beint two cat 1 climbs, a cat 2 climb, a cat 3 climb, and, just 12 km before the finish, an HC climb. In my course analysis, I warned you about the potentials for this stage and, with what has already happened, it is even more likely that this stage will effect GC significantly. That nasty little HC climb at the end of a long stage following two hard mountain stages has to break at least one or two pairs of tired legs tomorrow. Will the mountain break riders or permit some one to gain enough time they can hold it on the short downhill to the finish and change GC? Tune in tomorrow at the same time and same place for more of "As The Tour Turns"!!!

There will be two road primes that won't mean much. Most likely this stage will be won by a break. Watch for the KOM action with De La Fuente and, possibly, Schleck taking a long hike to take the lead from Rassmussen and RAB fighting hard to keep Rassmussen in the lead. Also watch for large numbers of riders attacking for a stage win with DSC in the mix again.

Also keep an eye on the White Jersey battle tomorrow because this stage could easily break a pair of legs determining the out come of that race.

Wow, I just can't wait for tomorrow's stage! What a race! Too bad it will be over too soon. :-P This Tour has to be the greatest accident in the history of bike racing. Maybe we can get the organizers to make the Tour a 180 day race for next year! (jk) :-)

Back to Main Tour Index

Top of Page