darrencope

GC:

1 001 ARMSTRONG Lance DSC USA
2 057 RASMUSSEN Mickael RAB DEN 00' 38"
3 021 BASSO Ivan CSC ITA 02' 40"
4 101 MOREAU Christophe C.A FRA 02' 42"
5 038 VALVERDE Alejandro IBA ESP 03' 16"
6 164 LEIPHEIMER Levi GST USA 03' 58"
7 031 MANCEBO Francisco IBA ESP 04' 00"
8 011 ULLRICH Jan TMO GER 04' 02"
9 014 KLÖDEN Andréas TMO GER 04' 16"
10 066 LANDIS Floyd PHO USA 04' 16"

HokkaidoRider

No problem Coney. For those who saw the final sprint live, did Valverde just drop the hammer? I'm seeing Armstrong and Rass 9 seconds behind..

oboeguy

So much for Moreau being a threat.

geneman

That Rasmussen could put such a hard effort in two days ago and then hang with LA on the final climb today is simply AMAZING!!

Mark

Laggard

Armstrong got the same time as Valverde.

samp02

Still some tough stages but this is Lance's MO. He just knows how to race the Tour.

JungleCat

No doubt Jan is still the man in TMO but Kloden sounds like he's back.

Was the finish contested at all?

gsteinb

and to all those who said I didn't know what I was talking about....Kloden will be the undisputed leader of T-Mobile by the middle of the week

skinnyone

Its still early but I was really impressed the way disco rodetoday. If Lance continues his sublime form and Disco supports him like today the chances for the other teams look slim... CSC kidna fell apart after that busted attack by Sastre, Julich was away back and Basso eventually cracked...

Rasmussen and Valverde were impressive, hanging with Lance...

Tmobile and Vino were the biggest shock... Creak, Crack and down...

lemurhouse

Lance backed off right at the end, but its not clear that he could have won the sprint. So did he contest it or give it to VanV? I dunno.

si2k2000

Wow what a way to open up the Tour. I thought Vini was looking real menacing but he dropped like a stone. I know there is a long way to go but this makes things easier for Discovery as they dont have as many people to keep an eye on.

Dolomiti

Well Ullrich did just as well as Kloden today, and he is also really bruised up from his crash yesturday. So considering that and the fact that Ullrich almost always has his worst day in the first mountain day... and being a better time trialist... I'd guess Ullrich would be the leader. But it all depends on what happens later

skinnyone

Well he started the attack with 300 odd mts to go and Valverde stuck to his wheel.. Once Lance got a bit tired and into the red... Valverde timed everything perfectly ... Lance did not give it to Valverde ..

and remember this guy has won sprint stages in the past...

gsteinb

I know, but I was called a n00b for even suggesting Kloden would do well within his team hierarchy

Laggard

Valverde will beat 90% of the peloton in a sprint. 9 times out of 10 he'll also beat Lance.

97 Teran

Exactly, well said. Although I posit that he'd beat 93% of the peloton...

What a bonk from Vino, that really is astounding... 5:18 down on Armstrong & Valverde. Wow. And yes, before I get flamed by trigger-happy board members, I know I couldn't stick with Hushovd up a Cat.1 climb. But it's not like today was hard by Tour standards, even with it being the "first" mtn. stage- which it isn't really, seeing as how we'd had a Cat. 2 and tons of 3s and 4s already. Today had two climbs, I'm amazed that (supposedly 'big' GC) guys lost 3-5 mins. Lots of craziness in this Tour, but then ppl. have been talking about the fast pace and how hard it would be once they reach the higher mtns. Maybe that explains it partly.

Dolomiti

No really, today cannot compare to the days before. These two climbs were far more difficult than anything faced so far. And yes, with those two monster climbs, and the fact that Discovery pushed the pace so hard, it was definetly a difficult Tour stage. These two climbs today probably should have been rated HC (there have been many climbs as or less difficult that have been rated HC in the past) - not Cat 1. And even if they weren't much more difficult, the fact that it was a mountaintop finish changes everything.

Allen H

Every time there's one of these mountain-top stages, I'm sitting on pins and needles, scared one of these kooks will knock a top GC guy off his bike, or stick a flagstick in somebody's spokes, or worse.

waltergodefroot

This has surprised me also. Based on the gradient and height of the climbs, I am surprised there has been such a selection already. I had really hoped to see a rider like Moreau take advantage of these factors, but it was not to be. At least Levi had a good day. It's good to have someone likeable to cheer for.

Corsaire

It really was a crazy pace for a mountain stage, they really wanted to blow this race to pieces, the average speed before the first climb was almost 29 mph.

Corsaire

gsteinb

happened to Gianno Bugno on Alpe D'huez



Hey I have an idea......

all armstrong's rival should gang up on him and attack in turn, forcing him to defend against them all

Albert G.

Valverde beat Armstrong by half a wheel, do you think Armstrong let him or not?

Laggard

No, no and no!

Valverde is faster than Armstrong. Why is it that people can not accept the fact that Lance can sometimes be beaten?

Corsaire

Valverde is an "all arounder", he's also the future of the TDF. He even might surprise this year, who knows, it all remains to be seen..........(drums)

Corsaire

Devil

Lance can't hang with Valverde in a sprint. Good ride by Valverde, Lance, Rasmussen and Mancebo today. I was very surprised to see Rasmussen and Valverde up there at the front of it. Can't wait for tomorrow..