Hey Froggies: Lance Armstrong 1 second off lead
 

(just heard about this on 810) http://blogs.abcnews.com/theworldnew...de-france.html


Argument for best sports hero ever?

survived testicular cancer, 37 yrs old & still in world-class form... hasn't raced in 4 years yet appears ready to win his 8th Tour de Frogs...oh yeah, he banged Sheryl Crow with only one nut. (I'm pretty sure most guys would need at least two to handle that.)

Sorry, but isn't his 15 minutes up yet?

... and the fact that he is pissing off French snobs makes it even better.

Wow. If he pulls this off, it will be one of the greatest accomplishments in sports of all times.

FAX

Who gives a shit? They are trying to raise Michael Jackson from the dead. For Christ sakes man!

He hasn't been tested in this year's tour at all. Until the mountains, no one, including him, knows if he can be competitive. He could still lose the race by 10 minutes.

Any American that rubs the French's nose the wrong way, is okay by me.

Good point. Shouldn't stray from the path. Sorry.

He's too Favreish for me. That's probably French-American.

-All you have to do is go BOO! and the French quit.

Hey brother, I'm trying to live in the moment. Don't rain on the parade. :)

I've followed cycling since the days of Greg Lemond, so I've seen this play out before. The race will be determined in the mountains and the long individual time trials. We haven't had any of those yet. So we shouldn't read anything into these early results.

Consider Miguel Indurain, who won the tour 5 straight times from '91 - '95. In '96 he was in contention until he was dramatically dropped on a mountain stage by the winner Riis (later found to have doped). He ended up finishing 11th, 14 minutes off the lead. He was 32.

Age hits everyone in cycling. Winning at 37 would be a fantastic achievement, but the real race for yellow hasn't even started yet.

Ok, you obviously know more about cycling than I do. But do you really need to spoil my ignorance with facts? Doesn't that violate some sort of board tenet? :D

Spoiling your ignorance with facts is my whole reason for being here. :D

Your raison d'etre, if you will.

I saw what you did there.

He will probably lose, but if he wins. Can you imagine? Wow.

Actually, It is a fact that Lance use to dominate the mountain stages and come from up to 10 minutes behind to slaughter the competition in the mountain stages by double digit minute wins. Even if there is a drop off, he will still be competitive in the mountains. I remember seeing something about his lung capacity being greater than anyone on the planet and he does not get as winded and short breathed in the higher altitudes like a "normal" person. That is a genetic trait that should still be an advantage even though he is older.....Unless he is up to 2 packs a day.

The dynamics should be especially interesting since he's not his team's leader.

they will just try to manufacture some doping controversy again

I hope he wins it all again so the stoopid french fugs will shut the Fug up already. They fined him $92-so maybe that got him fired up a bit.

Go Lance Go!!!!!!

Actually I think he has already won-just by showing up and proving he is a stud.

This guy's a total stud no matter what happens.
One of the greatest athletes the US has ever known.
Tough as ****ing nails.

I won't bet against him. Won't be surprised at all to see him get 8.

No wonder he hasn't been tweeting much lately. heh.

yep. if he has it in the mountains (where he always put the race away), it's bye-bye to the competition.

You'd have to go to Tiger Woods or someone like that to find anyone who has dominated a sport the way Lance Armstrong has. Maybe not even Tiger. And the Tour de France has to be just about the most physically demanding athletic contest on earth. Isn't the distance and the effort it takes like running multiple marathons a week for a month? And after having cancer too and being given a relatively poor prognosis, to come back and do all of this, now at age 37. Just incredible.

FREEDOM FRIES

I saw the top of his head once.

NTTAWWT

I am going to sleep with my Lance bracelet under my pillow for good luck.

I thought he retired and that we could all stop pretending like we cared about cycling.

Armstrong is such a blatant PED user.

:LOL:

Just to be clear, it's actually LESS than 1 second off. He's technically tied for the lead. If he had just done two more hard pedal strokes at the end of today's time trial, he would probably have the outright lead.

I care about cycling as much as I care about syncronized swimming, still doesnt make what Lance accomplished any less significant.

A little birdie tells me that Lance is fully prepared for the mountains. In fact, he's bought a place in Aspen and has been training at altitude (far above what he'll face on the Tour) and is in exceptional shape, even for him. I expect him to win.

I don't think he started this tour thinking he would be in a position to win, but he's got a great situation right now. If Contador is in the kind of shape he was in before his suspension he's a legit GC contender. Lance had a hard time with the last couple tours because everyone was gunning for him, now he can play the card that the other teams have to defend against both Contador and himself. He could be in a very good position to steal a few stages or the GC if Contador has a bad day in the mountains and has to take a supporting role.

Goes to show how American's don't really care when their heroes are running on a little bit more than nutrients, skill, determination, and passion...

So, do you think he's not being drug tested? I guarantee you they all are. More than a few guys were kicked out of last year's event for using. Not to mention Landis getting stripped.

He's beating the french and Germans.

It takes very little effort at all to beat the french and once a German has ****ing threatened you it's not hard to find motivation.

:evil:

Armstrong hung in there in the first mountain stage today. I watched the race today since I knew it was going to be one of the crucial stages. There is a new overall leader (Nocentini), but he has virtually no chance to hold that jersey to the end. The key thing that happened in the overall standings is that Armstrong's teammate Contador launched an attack that moved him from 19 seconds behind Armstrong to 2 seconds ahead and into second place. Team tactics prevented Armstrong from responding to the attack, so it was unclear whether Armstrong could have kept up with Contador or not. I will say that Contador's attack looked very strong. Team strategy is going to play an interesting role going forward. The Astana team is incredibly strong and will ride to put Contador in the lead and then protect that lead. Armstrong will not be attack Contador unless a rider from another team with GC ambitions launches an attack that drops Contador. It's still a very long way to go but the standings now give Contador an advantage. Contador also demonstrated an advantage over Armstrong in the opening time trial, so the chances of making up ground there aren't good.


Standing Rider Rider number bib Team Time Gaps
1. NOCENTINI Rinaldo 87 AG2R-LA MONDIALE 25h 44' 32"
2. CONTADOR Alberto 21 ASTANA 25h 44' 38" + 00' 06"
3. ARMSTRONG Lance 22 ASTANA 25h 44' 40" + 00' 08"
4. LEIPHEIMER Levi 24 ASTANA 25h 45' 11" + 00' 39"
5. WIGGINS Bradley 58 GARMIN - SLIPSTREAM 25h 45' 18" + 00' 46"
6. KLÖDEN Andréas 23 ASTANA 25h 45' 26" + 00' 54"
7. MARTIN Tony 76 TEAM COLUMBIA - HTC 25h 45' 32" + 01' 00"
8. VANDE VELDE Christian 51 GARMIN - SLIPSTREAM 25h 45' 56" + 01' 24"
9. SCHLECK Andy 31 TEAM SAXO BANK 25h 46' 21" + 01' 49"
10. NIBALI Vincenzo 95 LIQUIGAS 25h 46' 26" + 01' 54"

Hell he is still close-I think he can pull it out.

GO LEIPHEIMER!!!

Sorry...gotta root for the Montana boy.

So U.S. going for a 1-2 finish?

The mountains are where he typically pulls away from everyone else. Just an FYI. I am not a huge fan of road cycling, but the dude is by far one of the greatest athletes in history considering the obstacles and his accomplishments. The only thing that bugs me is the fact that he left his wife after all the support she provided during his treatments. Who knows... maybe that is what put them on the path to divorce.

Armstrong team has 4 in the top 6.

• 1.http://www.letour.fr/img/drapeau/ITA.jpgNOCENTINI R. ALM 25h 44' 32"
• 2.http://www.letour.fr/img/drapeau/ESP.jpgCONTADOR A. AST 00' 06"
• 3.http://www.letour.fr/img/drapeau/USA.jpgARMSTRONG L. AST 00' 08"
• 4.http://www.letour.fr/img/drapeau/USA.jpgLEIPHEIMER L. AST 00' 39"
• 5.http://www.letour.fr/img/drapeau/GBR.jpgWIGGINS B. GRM 00' 46"
• 6.http://www.letour.fr/img/drapeau/GER.jpgKLÖDEN A. THR 01' 00"
• 8.http://www.letour.fr/img/drapeau/USA.jpgVANDE VELDE C. GRM 01' 24"
• 9.http://www.letour.fr/img/drapeau/LUX.jpgSCHLECK A. SAX 01' 49"
• 10.http://www.letour.fr/img/drapeau/ITA.jpgNIBALI V. LIQ 01' 54

He met Kik after he was cancer-free, BTW.

It was close, but she nursed him through it.


http://www.highbeam.com/doc/1G1-61933778.html

THEIR RELATIONSHIP BEGAN UNDER THE MOST DIFFICULT OF CIRCUMSTANCES. BUT INSTEAD OF DRIVING THEM APART, HIS FIGHT FOR SURVIVAL BOUND THEM TOGETHER.

When champion cyclist Lance Armstrong and Kristin Richard Armstrong, both now 28, first met, Armstrong was fighting for his life: He'd just been diagnosed with testicular cancer that had spread to his lungs and brain, giving him just a 40 to 50 percent chance of survival. Their dates were punctuated by doctors' visits; when they married a year later, his prognosis was still uncertain. Within three years, Armstrong beat the odds by not only becoming cancer-free, but also by winning the toughest cycling competition on the planet: ...

That's incorrect. Lance's last chemo was in December 1996 and he met Kik one month after that.

On October 2, 1996, at age 25, Armstrong was diagnosed with nonseminomatous testicular cancer. The cancer had spread to his lungs, abdomen and brain. The standard chemotherapeutic regimen is BEP (Bleomycin, Etoposide and Cisplatin (or Platinol). Armstrong, however, chose an alternative, VIP (Etoposide, Ifosfamide, and Cisplatin), to avoid the lung toxicity associated with the drug Bleomycin.[6] Armstrong had surgery on his brain tumors, which were necrotic, and an orchiectomy to remove his diseased testicle. After his surgery his doctor admitted that he had had less than a 50% survival chance.

I lived in Austin during this time frame and heard all about Lance and his relationship with her. She was definatly involved with his recovery.

Sorry, but you are incorrect. Lance met her after his last chemo treatment. She didn't "nurse" him though anything. In fact, he met her because she was involved with his foundation.

How Lance and Kristin Met:

Kristin and Lance met in January 1997 at the "Ride for the Roses" charity event. The event was a few weeks after Lance completed intense chemotherapy to treat testicular cancer.

http://marriage.about.com/cs/celebri...ekristin_4.htm

Armstrong is losing at least 40 seconds to Contador today. I don't see where he will catch him.

Armstrong ended up losing 1:40 and finished around 10th. Lance had a good ride for a 37 yo man, but no one beats Father Time.

Cdcox says it's time to give up, everyone go home.

Still in 2nd. Playing teammate today. There is still a lot of race left. Something could still happen to Contador.

Does having one ball give you a cycling edge? It's probably easier to sit on the bicycle seat, no? And when you're standing on the pedals, you're more aerodynamic as the wind passes under your ass and over the seat. :shrug:

Did you see the stage? After Contador was clear, there were several other attacks that he couldn't respond to. The other guys just rode away form Lance. He would have covered those moves if he could have. Actually one of Armstrong's teammates, Kloden, stayed back with him and hauled his old ass up the hill.

Even if Contador left the race, I don't thing Lance could hold off the others. He just can't respond to attacks on the steep mountains and his time trialing isn't what it was.

Yes, I watched the whole thing. I agree that he didn't look like he could respond, but there were quite a few riders younger than Lance that couldn't, either. There's still a lot of racing left. We don't know if maybe Lance was saving something for the end. It's entirely possible. Maybe he had a bad day. Vandevelde certainly had a bad day. Sastre was even struggling.

Contador flew today, there's no doubt about that. Since he can now TT as well as climb, I can't see anyone touching him. Unless Lance can pull something off on the Ventoux, but I can't imagine him attacking his own team leader.

Biggest Lance fan. In a post race interview he recognized Contador as the stronger rider and said he would be a support rider for him the balance of the tour. He said the "high end" stuff just wasnt there. Contrador has it and he "knows what it's like" to have it. He just doesnt anymore.

IMHO Best Athelete EVER!

Much to be admired athletically.

LMAO


:thumb:

Everybody is going to jump on my case, but winning the Tour De France a bunch of times in a row is impressive, but it's not as impressive as we have made it out to be. If you look at the history, there have been many many people repeat for several years. In fact, looking back at the historical history, it even appears likely that when someone wins their first Tour De France they have a really good chance to win the next one. It's probably because there isn't alot of deviation over the long course of the event. Either way, he's the best ever in his sport.

Lance said that if he had been training for a little longer and a little harder he may have been in better shape to handle the Tour. He thinks he might be able to do better next year.

Impressive sprint up the mountains today by Armstrong to close the gap. He looked VERY VERY strong. Maybe he's been sandbagging...

It was impressive to catch back up. But the fact of it is he still got dropped again today, that's twice now. He'll be lucky to finish top 5, which is impressive. But I don't see him not losing several minutes up Ventoux Friday.

I don't know that he got dropped so much as he didn't expect the kick and let his teammate go for it. Seemed to be more of a team strategy than anything, especially considering how Contador and Kloden waited for him.

with only 1 nut...he has less friction.

he doesn't have to win this IMO. he's already proven he can still compete. can't wait to see him next year.

The Astana team is loaded. Contador is really good and he has some really good teammates. Too bad Leppheimer went down.

Armstrong finished 16th in the time trial today, 1:30 behind Contador. He was 4th at the first time check, but faded badly at the end. He's 3rd overall right now, but definitely won't keep that position by the time they arrive in Paris on Sunday, with the brutal ride up the Ventoux on Saturday. I'll say he will do very well if he can hold on to 5th place.

Well, I have to hand it to Armstrong. He rode great today and held on to third. I honestly didn't think he had it in him. There were only 2 riders, Contador and Andy Schleck, who were clearly stronger on the mountain today. I think either of them could have taken a couple of minutes out of Armstrong instead of the :03 they gained. But Contador was more concerned with covering Andy Schleck's moves and Andy was more concerned about helping his brother Frank, who was hoping to move up from 5th.

It sounds like Armstrong might give it another go next year. I still think his decline has more to do with age than lack of training. We'll see.

I think Armstrong had a bit left in the tank today. But, he played the dutiful team mate. Third in the TDF is nothing to sneeze at for anyone, especially at 38. And, he's got a new team for next year: Team Radioshack.

Impressive showing for the old guy. Just shows you that age is relative.

FAX

Especially on PEDs!

They will be tasked not only with winning the race, but also entering the address and phone number of every spectator into bicycle-mounted computers

Lance and Favre should both retire. For good.

Actually, maybe Favre should try the Tour de France and Lance should try quarterbacking the Vikings. That would be pretty damn entertaining, at least.

Yes it it would.

Didn't Armstrong just take 3rd in the tour this year? I think he's earn the right to go for another if he wants.

Translation = who the **** are you to decide for him?

**** that. It's time for both of those guys to assume their thrones as the new spokesmen for Icy Hot.