Saturday update

Italian U23 rider Gianandrea Mariola has tested positive for EPO in a test from the baby Giro. Always great to see the U23 riders getting an early start practising their doping skills. Prior to the race start, four other U23 riders were kicked out for strange blood values.

New Kimmage article.

Amusing photo shoot of Columbia riders by TDWSport, which also has good Tour photos after each stage, along with Cor Vos, Bettini, Graham Watson.

New book from Matt Rendell.

ITV podcast is usually a good listen for insider insights during the Tour.

Watched part of the time trial today, but the Versus advertising-to-race ratio is maddening. It is far better to watch one of the ad-free live streams, but many were getting shut down for copyright violation. I guess it is rather too easy for the copyright nazis to track down these free streams when they are listed on assorted cycling sites, but it still stinks when your only option is listening to endless Cialis ads (when the time is right, I am going to throw the tv out the window). Craig Hummer's voice also reminds me of a braying donkey. Great ride by Wiggins. I was a little worried about Zabriskie, who didn't look at all happy waiting to start. Maybe it was just concentration? Hope so. Sounds like Danny Pate was a bit disappointed in his ride, or more likely he just joking on his twitter when he said, "37th! Hmm... Guess I will be working at burger king next year."

In the bad luck and trouble category, Michael Rogers had technical difficulties with his chain and lost 1:13, after also crashing earlier in the week, bruising his hip. In the less than expected category, we have Menchov wilting and Columbia's other GC guy Kim Kirchen losing 1:57. Ouch. Yet somehow it seems only fair that Columbia gets a bit of bad luck for once. Maybe it will make them quit picking on Garmin. Karma? In the mysterious unknown rider category, there are quite a few riders I have never heard of in this year's Tour, which is likely due in part to the inclusion of Skil-Shimano, but also probably because I haven't been paying enough attention. Marcin Sapa? Maxime Bouet? Simon Geschke? I guess I need to do some remedial reading. Then there are those enigmatic riders whose names are certainly very familiar but whose likely performance or lack thereof in the upcoming weeks seems totally unpredictable, such as José Angel Gomez Marchante or Igor Anton for example. They have shown flashes of potential brilliance in the past but then melted silently into invisibility again. Who knows?

Meanwhile human-rocket Cancellara has apparently fully recovered from whatever was ailing him earlier in the season, and now again has enough blatant superiority to demoralize the rest of the time-trialists who simply don't have a chance. Bert Grabsch, for one, seemed not to bother today, although perhaps it was the climb that put him off, not the inevitability of getting crushed by the Swiss tidal wave. In the narrow escape category, watching Millar's back tire jumping around like a bucking bronco in that bad corner made me feel slightly ill, as it looked like he was only seconds from taking a potentially Tour-ending header straight into the barricades. Worst possible way to leave the Tour is by crashing out on the very first stage. Well...I guess maybe there are worse ways to leave the Tour, like say getting caught with dope in your room or something. Just ask Duenas. In the dangerous dark horse category, watching Kreuzinger's smooth-as-glass pedalling today made me think of a sharp blade through butter.

Yet, the best thing about the Tour is that in the minds of the fans and in the sweep of its history, it is far bigger than any one rider, regardless of how famous they may be either in reality or in their own over-heated imaginations. The world's media may be magnetically attracted to the Second Coming's antagonisms, but the Tour is not really about any of that if you ask me. All the fans are not there just to cheer for their favorite rider, they are there to celebrate the spirit of the race, its history, tradition, human drama, inspiration, and beauty. Even Lance cannot change that.

And lastly, don't be a sheep.