"European riders seem to think that bravado, tradition, and nationalistic pride are all you need to win." ???

A reality check. 2 Americans have won the TDF. 31 have participated. What is it? 6? Have won a stage.

Anyone who's ever raced with any of these guys knows that the statement above isn't worth commenting on, but we'll go for the bait this once. Every American in the TDF peloton would laugh at you, not with you. Every American in the domestic pro peloton would do the same. Lance would ask you to look up the nationalities of the guys who get the job done for him day in and day out. It's pretty apparent that there's very little objective understanding stage racing/training/ or how incredibly strong all these guys are compared to all cat.1 riders and 99.9% of the N.American pros. (Talk to any of them who did the tour of Georgia that they peaked for while LA, LL, FL,BJ, and their teams rode for early season training.) We're lucky enough to see the physiological phenomena at his peak with a strong, well organized, well funded team and support apparatus. I think if you asked LA, he'd agree that even with his gifts and drive, it's never been easy... Review the 2003 tour tapes. Win without boasting, lose without excuse.


"I think it's ashame: he's obviously a great gifted rider, and we don't get to see it."

Believe us, you're seeing it everyday.