30 June 2012

Le Tour de France 2012: Prologue

The devil of the Alps awaits the riders in a week or so, but today is all about the quick time trial.
Today's prologue went as expected, with Fabian "Spartacus" Cancellara taking yellow to open the race. With all of the changes of team names, line ups and favorites, it is nice when something can be counted on.

So... who is going to win the whole thing in a few weeks in Paris? Well, I would have said Contador or Andy Schleck would be favorites, but Alberto is suspended and Andy's pelvis cracked. The course favors the better all around riders, so maybe Levi could pull it out, but his season has been snake bit with injuries. The easy joke is to say Bradley Wiggens might pull out a tight race by the nose... but I'm above such cheap humor. I do like Cadel's chances to repeat, especially given the course and the extra time trails.

My pick tho? Wiggo. The guy has all the form and looks to be ready to pay off the promise of his potential. There isn't any heinous mountains that seem put into the race out of spite. There is an extra time trial, fitting his skill set perfectly.

My dark horse? Ryder Hajedal. The hoser from the great white north won the Giro. He's always been in the hunt and has the skills to at least meat the podium. That and seeing Garmin Slipstream Servelo Sharp ready to take that leap of overall contention will be fun as could be. The twitter feeds alone will be worth it.

Programming note: NBC Sports seems to be running things just like VS always did, thank goodness. It works, don't muck with it. Phil and Paul sound like old friends who've come back to visit.

Enjoy Le Tour 2012, it should be an interesting ride!


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