Assuming this is actually from Chavanel himself:
"
Of course, against the pure climbers, it will be hard. In the last climbs of the high mountain stages, the points count double, which means I have to be there with the best - that'll be difficult. But I don't think too much about it right now, I prefer to take it day by day.
You know, I just want to race! That may sound simplistic at first, but I'll explain: In this Tour, I get the impression that nobody really races. I mean, everybody is saving their energy for later, for the final week. I'm surprised with the peloton this year: usually, it takes ages for a breakaway to form. This year, they just let go the first guys to attack. We went with ten kilometres into the stage, and we were only three! It would have been better had we been more numerous.
And then, it's weird that only the Frenchmen attack. It seems as though the foreigners are keeping their forces up their sleeves for the last week. But I don't care about later... I don't care about a top 15 placing. That's not why I'm here. Cycling would be quite a sad affair if everybody was speculating like that. I mean, you shouldn't be afraid to take a blow. It's also much more exciting for the spectators: they want us to attack - and if we blow up on the next day, it doesn't matter! At least, we gave everything on the day we really went for it.
That's what cycling is really about in my opinion. We're not here to wait in an armchair for things to happen. I'm not here to win the Tour - those riders are in a different position. I just want to race and make things happen for me! Who cares if I suffer later... And I will, that's for sure. Today, I feel a bit more tired. I hit the pedals hard yesterday, and I was in a break already on Sunday, so there's no wonder."
http://cyclingnews.com/riders/2008/d...d=chavanel0803
I love riding like that - with your heart on your sleeve.
If you win, you win - if you don't, you still had a good time.