After stage 10, things have been sorted somewhat. It's interesting to see how the chips have fallen at this point with respect to GC standings:
1) Armstrong - In control. 2) Rasmussen - He's been surprisingly fast, but will he last? 3) Basso - Clinging on... 4) Moreau - Hanging on with his tongue 5) Valverde - Moving up in the world - rapidly. 6) Leipheimer - He said he never felt better, and he may be right. 7) Mancebo - Valverde's Hincapie 8) Ullrich - Mind and body never on the same page 9) Kloden - Ullrich's Hincapie 10) Landis - Taking Tyler's place without the obligatory crash
Vino - Cracked. Beloki - Regaining some composure and confidence. Heras - Dropped...probably telling jokes in the back of the bus with Mayo.
This is how it looks now, but with two HC climbs tomorrow, the real test will be to see how the top finishers of today recover for tomorrow's hell.
Oke a question back: WHO CAN TT? And that is who will be the most dangerous for LA. Valverde, Rasmussen very impressive rides, but lose easily 5/6 min on LA on the last TT.
Ted B said:
After stage 10, things have been sorted somewhat. It's interesting to see how the chips have fallen at this point with respect to GC standings:
1) Armstrong - In control. 2) Rasmussen - He's been surprisingly fast, but will he last? 3) Basso - Clinging on... 4) Moreau - Hanging on with his tongue 5) Valverde - Moving up in the world - rapidly. 6) Leipheimer - He said he never felt better, and he may be right. 7) Mancebo - Valverde's Hincapie 8) Ullrich - Mind and body never on the same page 9) Kloden - Ullrich's Hincapie 10) Landis - Taking Tyler's place without the obligatory crash
Vino - Cracked. Beloki - Regaining some composure and confidence. Heras - Dropped...probably telling jokes in the back of the bus with Mayo.
This is how it looks now, but with two HC climbs tomorrow, the real test will be to see how the top finishers of today recover for tomorrow's hell.
[Rasmussen]...lose easily 5/6 min on LA on the last TT
Dont count too much on that. He has never had to ride for the GC before, and has always trashed the TT's on purpose. He put himself back 7 minutes to begin with this year, because that's what he needed to make his KOM run. It's very hard to go for the KOM if you are a threat to the leaders. But now, with the way the stages have unfolded, and the fall of Menchov, the teams priorities have probably changed. No doubt LA can take a few minutes, but I highly doubt it will be more than 4 minutes max.
Dont count too much on that. He has never had to ride for the GC before, and has always trashed the TT's on purpose. He put himself back 7 minutes to begin with this year, because that's what he needed to make his KOM run. It's very hard to go for the KOM if you are a threat to the leaders. But now, with the way the stages have unfolded, and the fall of Menchov, the teams priorities have probably changed. No doubt LA can take a few minutes, but I highly doubt it will be more than 4 minutes max.
Also...worth noting the tt is actually pretty hilly, so that will reduce the amont of time he loses. Gotta say it was nice to see Valverde and Rasmussen hanging in there. But let's face it, Armstrong is clearly the stronger rider, and he has a stronger team too. Frankly, it looks like another stroll in the park for him. Awesome.
great ride from valverde but i think he will cracked probably in the pirinees its only his first tour i doubt he can keep this up for three weeks but it would be great if he could. i think that valverde can win tomorrow again if he stays with the best on the last climb he will clearly be the fastest in a sprint.
