Can Cadel still win the Tour de France?

July 24, 2008
by Rodney Olsen
7 Comments

James from Disciple of the Way left a comment on my previous Tour de France post, Tour de France Jerseys.

Hey Rodney

Just curious on how well placed you feel Cadel is after last nights ripper of a stage? The commentators seemed to jump back and forth from Sastre having enough time to Cadel staying just close enough.

As I do only watch the Tour de France I don’t really know how good a time trialist Cadel is, having to trust the commentators saying ‘he’s good’.

Do you think he has done enough? It def looks like it will be pretty tight!

For those who missed yesterday’s stage which finished on the punishing L’Alpe-d’Huez, Spain’s Carlos Sastre attacked on the climb and finished over two minutes ahead of the other tour leaders. His amazing effort meant that he took the Yellow Jersey from the shoulders of CSC team mate, Frank Schleck.

Cadel Evans, who started the race as favourite, is now in fourth place, 1:34 behind the leader, Sastre.

So can Evans come back from such a big loss of time? I think so.

Cadel is well and truly still in it.

On the first time trial of this year’s race Sastre lost 1:16 to Cadel. That ride was over a distance of 29.5 km.

Saturday’s time trial is much tougher and longer with a distance of 53 km. I’ve heard that Cadel rode the second time trial course four times before the tour to make sure that he knows every turn and every piece of road.

In normal circumstances I reckon he’d be able to pull back the 1:35 he needs over that distance but when Sastre has the yellow jersey on his back he’s likely to ride the time trial of his life.

Cadel Evans has always said that he sees Denis Menchov as his main rival for the Yellow Jersey in Paris.

Menchov was 7 seconds behind Evans in the first time trial so he would be a danger if he wasn’t just already over a minute behind Cadel in the overall standings. Of course anything can happen and if Menchov rides a brilliant time trial he could be a danger.

It’s quite amazing to see a Tour de France still so wide open at this point of the event. If Cadel manages to take the race it’ll be a stunning recomendation of his abilities considering his team has been missing in action most of the time when it’s counted. They say that it takes a team to win the Tour de France, and his team has supported him as well as their abilities have allowed, but if Cadel wins it will be a remarkable solo effort.



Do you think some of your friends would enjoy reading Can Cadel still win the Tour de France?? Please use the buttons below to share the post. Thanks.

Tour de France Jerseys

July 20, 2008
by Rodney Olsen
21 Comments

jerseys.jpgIf you have only started following the Tour de France this year and you’ve heard the commentators talking about different coloured jerseys, you might be wondering what all the different colours represent and why it’s so important to be wearing a jersey other than your team jersey.

Each team wears their own uniform but there are a number of special shirts or jerseys awarded each day. While it’s considered very prestigious to wear any of these jerseys throughout the race, it’s obviously even more so to be wearing one of these jerseys after the final sprint down the Champs-Élysées in Paris on the last day of the tour.

Here in Australia a lot of people are thrilled to know that Cadel Evans is wearing the Yellow Jersey but many aren’t quite sure what that means. All they know is that those who follow cycling think it’s the best thing since sliced bread so it must be good.

Many other people know that the Yellow Jersey or Maillot Jaune is the most coveted of all the jerseys but here’s a quick rundown of what it’s all about.

Yellow Jersey

The Yellow Jersey is worn by the leader in the general classification. That means that whoever has the lowest overall time at the end of each stage of the event will be awarded with the Yellow Jersey. It was first awarded in 1919 and its colour was chosen to match the yellow paper of l’Auto magazine, founder of the Tour de France in 1903.

Green Jersey

The Green Jersey is given to the leader in the points classification, rewarding the best sprinter. It’s sometimes called the points jersey or sprinters’ jersey. During each stage, points are allocated for several intermediary sprints and for the finish. The jersey was introduced in 1953.

Polka Dot Jersey

The Polka Dot or King of the Mountains Jersey is awarded to the rider who earns most of the points at each summit. The winner is known as the King of the Mountains. Although the award was introduced in 1933, the red and white spotted jersey was not introduced until 1975.

White Jersey

The White Jersey is given to the best rider in the general classification under 25. The jersey was abandoned in 1989 but reintroduced in 1999.

So now you know a little more than you did a short while ago. I hope this brief explanation helps in your enjoyment of this year’s tour.



Do you think some of your friends would enjoy reading Tour de France Jerseys? Please use the buttons below to share the post. Thanks.

It was all yellow

July 15, 2008
by Rodney Olsen
2 Comments

tour_de_france_logo.jpgCadel Evans has gone into the first rest day of the 2008 Tour de France wearing yellow … by just one second.

The Australian rode an amazing stage in the mountains on a day when both the previous yellow jersey, Kim Kirchen, and the second favourite for the tour, Alejandro Valverde, cracked in the mountains and lost time to the Australian. Valverde has now slipped back to 14th place.

Of course the race is a long way from over and with eleven stages still to come, Cadel will have a big job ahead of him defending the yellow jersey.

One of the biggest stories to come out of the tenth stage was the strength of Team CSC who controlled the mountains and put many riders into trouble with their pace. CSC rider Frank Shleck was only a second away from wearing yellow with a tremendous ride up Hautacam.

Out of the eleven remaining stages there are five flat stages, five mountain stages and an individual time trial.

The race is a long way from over but it’s great to see Cadel in yellow.

Below are the top ten places overall from the official Tour De France website.

1. EVANS Cadel 1 SILENCE – LOTTO 42h 29′ 09″
2. SCHLECK Frank 17 TEAM CSC SAXO BANK 42h 29′ 10″ + 00′ 01″
3. VANDEVELDE Christian 191 GARMIN CHIPOTLE 42h 29′ 47″ + 00′ 38″
4. KOHL Bernhard 115 GEROLSTEINER 42h 29′ 55″ + 00′ 46″
5. MENCHOV Denis 131 RABOBANK 42h 30′ 06″ + 00′ 57″
6. SASTRE Carlos 11 TEAM CSC SAXO BANK 42h 30′ 37″ + 01′ 28″
7. KIRCHEN Kim 41 TEAM COLUMBIA 42h 31′ 05″ + 01′ 56″
8. COBO ACEBO Juan Jose 173 SAUNIER DUVAL – SCOTT 42h 31′ 19″ + 02′ 10″
9. RICCO Riccardo 171 SAUNIER DUVAL – SCOTT 42h 31′ 38″ + 02′ 29″
10. EFIMKIN Vladimir 104 AG2R-LA MONDIALE 42h 31′ 41″ + 02′ 32″

I wouldn’t be surprised to see Cadel lose the winner’s jersey for a few days at some stage but if that hapopens, his time trialling skills should see him return to the number one position on the day before Paris in the 53 km time trial.



Do you think some of your friends would enjoy reading It was all yellow? Please use the buttons below to share the post. Thanks.

Need . More . Coffee

July 11, 2008
by Rodney Olsen
2 Comments

I must admit that I’m feeling a little weary today. I was up late again last night watching the latest stage in the tour.

Cadel Evans moved up to second overall in the Tour de France in stage 6, the first of the mountain stages, and with some more ‘medium’ mountains in today’s stage we could have an Aussie in yellow by this time tomorrow.

So it’s more medium mountains today before another day on the flat then two days of high mountains. After all that, and ten days straight racing, the riders are given their first rest day for the 2008 Tour de France on Tuesday.

By then I reckon they’ll all be ready for a little rest. I know I will.



Do you think some of your friends would enjoy reading Need . More . Coffee? Please use the buttons below to share the post. Thanks.

Tour 2008 Continues

July 8, 2008
by Rodney Olsen
1 Comment

After three days of racing the 2008 Tour de France is just getting started.

The official Tour de France 2008 website has all the details and standings for all riders but here’s how things stand for the top ten riders at the moment.

1. FEILLU Romain 124 AGRITUBEL 13h 27′ 05″
2. LONGO BORGHINI Paolo 59 BARLOWORLD 13h 27′ 40″ + 00′ 35″
3. FRISCHKORN William 194 GARMIN CHIPOTLE 13h 28′ 47″ + 01′ 42″
4. VALVERDE Alejandro 31 CAISSE D’EPARGNE 13h 28′ 50″ + 01′ 45″
5. KIRCHEN Kim 41 TEAM COLUMBIA 13h 28′ 51″ + 01′ 46″
6. FREIRE Oscar 133 RABOBANK 13h 28′ 51″ + 01′ 46″
7. PINEAU Jérôme 145 BOUYGUES TELECOM 13h 28′ 51″ + 01′ 46″
8. MILLAR David 198 GARMIN CHIPOTLE 13h 28′ 51″ + 01′ 46″
9. EVANS Cadel 1 SILENCE – LOTTO 13h 28′ 51″ + 01′ 46″
10. POZZATO Filippo 61 LIQUIGAS 13h 28′ 51″ + 01′ 46″

I’ve enjoyed seeing all the colour and the tactics over the past few days. Tour de France time is one of my favourite times of the year. It does mean late nights and mornings that come around far too soon but I’m enjoying watching the TV coverage half a world away in Perth, Western Australia.

The fun really begins with today’s stage.

Stage four is a 29.5 km time trial so we should start to see the main contenders come out to play. Although it’s only a short time trial I’m hoping to see Australia’s Cadel Evans put in a good performance to set himself up for greater things later in the three week event. It’s claimed that one of his main rivals, Alejandro Valverde, has been brushing up on his time trialling techniques.

Cadel’s strengths are in time trialling and his climbing ability so it’ll be interesting to see at least one of those strengths on display in today’s stage.



Do you think some of your friends would enjoy reading Tour 2008 Continues? Please use the buttons below to share the post. Thanks.