We had nice conditions for a TT Tuesday night -  warm mid-80s temps, reasonable humidity and about a 5mph NW breeze.

Seven riders toed the start line -   perhaps inspired by the upcoming TDF!

Ron Nelson took the FMT honors by ripping through the course in 25:24 (23.62 mph).  He has been incredibly consistent in his TTs....  Tuesday night was a PR by 1 second.  His three TTs this year are separated by only 3 seconds!    Junior Mariana Rinaldo squeezed by Stephanie Tashjian by 6 seconds for the FWT honors,  cruising through the course in 29:58 (20.02mph).  To be fair,  she did have the advantage of aerobars and wheels.  

Notes:   The Tour starts Saturday!  Three glorious weeks of action.  Hopefully all of the favorites get through it all without any major crashes.    Froomey is now cleared to race after testing for excessive Salbutamol in his urine during the Tour of Spain.  

Cavendish is seeking the record for most TDF wins.. currently he's  at 30.  Needs 35 to pass Eddie Merckx.

Stages to keep an eye on - 

Stage 3 -   Team Time Trial -  the contenders on strong teams get a time bonus.  Froome and Porte may gain time.

Stage 9 -  Cobblestones !   Will Nibali make a move here?

Stage 10 -  First Mtn stage -   some really steep climbs - one is 3.6 miles at 11% ave grade!  Two of them are around 5 miles at 8%

Stage 12 -  Mo mountains!   3 above Category climbs...  Col de Madeleine  15 miles at 6% and then finish on Alpe D'Huez !  Yikes   Will anyone make a move on the first first climb and break open the race.

Stage 19 - now in the Pyranees -    Col de Tourmalet 10miles at 7% .  Imagine climbing up on Rt20 to Cazenovia about 8-9 times without any respite !

Stage 20 -  Individual Time Trial  -  who knows?  The race winner could still be contested in this stage.  certainly, like last year, spots on the podium can change on this day.

Enjoy!

Brian

TT Directore

315-727-1458