Sierra Blogging Post Archives

Today is the official start of the Tour de France - the world's toughest cycling race. On the heel's of yesterday's 9.6-mile time trial through Monaco, cyclists will ride 116 miles in the first stage today, from Monaco to Brignoles.

The Adventure Blog has a nice write up about the Tour, mentioning Outside Online's top contender list...


Over the course of the following three weeks, the real contenders will begin to emerge, starting most likely on the 10th of July when the Peloton enters the mountains for the first time, riding 224km (139 miles) through the Pyrenees, which will hit them with a sudden force. That first mountain stage includes a Category 1 climb and a Beyond Category finish at 2200m (7217 feet) that is amongst the highest finishes for any Tour stage ever.

The five riders that they figure are the best bets to be in Yellow on the Champs Elysees at the end of July include Alberto Contador (labeled the Man to Beat), Andy Schleck (the Upstart), Carlos Sastre (Defending Champ!), Levi Leipheimer (the Dark Horse), and Cadel Evans (Man on a Mission).

You'll notice there's no mention of Lance Armstrong. It remains to be seen how well he'll ride as he tries for an 8th Tour de France win. He may be recovered from that pesky broken collarbone he suffered back in March, but he's 37 years old this year and is up against much younger athletes. I guess we'll just have to watch and see. It'd be pretty amazing if he could pull it off one last time.

For all the action and updates on the Tour, visit the Tour de France website.

UPDATE: Lance has moved into 2nd place during the 4th stage at the Tour de France, missing the yellow jersey by a split second to overall leader Fabian Cancellara.