Will Frischkorn's Tour de France diary, stage 19
- Article Extras
- Photos
- Race Index
When I said yesterday that you could tell which directors weren't pleased with their teams' races, today you could tell who was f-ing pissed. If it weren't for the fact that they made the day one of the most painful I've ever raced I'd actually feel bad for the guys on Liquigas, and a couple of others to a lesser degree. As is the only sympathy is the fact that there were a lot of really, really hurting guys out there today and we all shared in it together.
That uphill start I mentioned — I don't think we ever dropped below 40ks on it. Unreal. Constant attacks, most by real hitters, the entire drag made it a screamer. A solid group of four, probably some of the strongest roulers in the race, finally went clear, and then the chasing began. And kept going. And going. And going. Pretty much all day, other than the 20 minutes after the winning move launched and we went so slow that their gap, though not huge, was enough to make it to the line.
I had guys who I haven't talked to the whole race mutter curses back and forth all day long. Conversations were limited to a couple of words each, and almost all revolved around how obscene the day had been. Almost comic. For a "transition day" there were a lot of guys out the back ... Not the way you want to leave the tour, two days from Paris.
Two days it is however, and talk about a relief to be this close. Tomorrow's long TT is going to be an interesting one; for me, probably more so to watch than to ride. The top is still so close and so up in the air — it's going to be fought to the bitter end. And then the celebratory stage to the Champs and a the biggest criterium in the world. So close. And so ready for bed right now I can barely type. Two to go ... Will
Photo Gallery
Last 5 DaysMOST VIEWED »
- Team RadioShack releases its 2010 roster: 26 riders from 16 countries/
- UCI registers 17 ProTour teams
- Someone swiped a Trek-Livestrong team bike from the Mellow Johnny's store over the weekend.
- Tech Updates: Northwave, Campagnolo and more
- Astana hits another ProTour bump
- Technical Q&A with Lennard Zinn - Of drivetrains, tires and pressure
- The Mailbag - Swimming, pure sport, money and more
- Pereiro Astana-bound?
