After today’s stage and seeing how aggressive Ryder Hesjedal continues to be, anyone with an understanding of what it takes to be a good bike rider has to impressed.

As a rider that is not considered a star, he knows he has to take chances with his energy reserves and flail himself in attempts to get ahead. This in opposition to what the predictable stars can do by being a lot more calculating and reserved with their efforts. The big boys can dole it out at select moments.

Reading Ryder’s comments vis-a-vis his riding tactics, he absolutely knows that big aggression on his part is needed for his career and his results to go forward. He knows there is no real point of saving himself because the bigger guns are indeed bigger guns. What’s he got to lose? A 22 rimfire can knock out a 44 magnum if used correctly and he is proving himself so well in this Tour.

I’m especially impressed because he hails from my home province of British Columbia where (unless there are some good out-of-towners in the race) the racing is so negative and non-aggressive with most riders happy to be big fish in a little puddle. It never ceases to amaze me how the local racers can’t seem to figure out that they are never going to be any good unless they start racing as opposed to saving themselves for the sprint or suchlike. Bernie Hinault once said something to the effect, ” As long as I can breathe, I attack”. Apparently his credo worked for him because he won a few races in his life.

So, wankers of the bike racing world take note. You want to be a good racer?….keep hammering off the front until the string finally breaks. Yes you too can be a hero.

For those riders that simply enjoy their sport cycling, don’t be afraid to kick it up a cog or two on the hills and hurt like a madman for a bit. What’s the worst that will happen? Maybe you’ll blow before the top but maybe you won’t next time.

Well no doubt about it..this is one colourful TdF. After all the rider antics in the some of the first stages, things looked to be back to just hardnose bike racing.

My opinion is that its been great racing since the finish line crawl of last week. Its kinda like the riders had a good talking to and off they went the next day on the cobbled stage, racing extremely well..and seem to have ever since. I thought the upper portions of yesterday’s descent into Gap looked pretty frightening, especially the areas where there was no guard rail. Good riding as no one seemed to come acropper. Il Cavallino is back to being the fastest galloper in the group BUT, what will happen now that his last hit of nitrous in the form of Mark ‘The Butter” Renshaw, got the boot? Il treno del Marco is missing a locomotive which is going to make the aging Ale-Jet a hard man to catch in the points cat.

Actually I think its great that Sig Petacchi had made it over the big hills intact. Truly, people say that these sprinters can’t climb, and well this is true in comparison to the ‘real’ climbers of the world, but those hills are nuts. The average local Cat 1 or 2 racer would freak on them let alone all these weekend warrior types that fancy themselves as ‘bike riders’. Triathletes???…no chance.  Don’t underestimate how well even the pure sprinter types can elevate themselves.

Hills to a Euro pro are a lot different than what North American riders generally regard as climbs. Some years ago a group of us were the 100 mile lap of what is used in the Penticton Iron-Man course. This loop takes in the ascent of Richter Pass which makes many a trialthoner tremble but really isn’t much of a bump. Within our little peleton was Canadian ex pro Steve Bauer and as we were nearing the latter parts of the ride, I asked  him he thought this would make a pretty decent race course. His reply was simply,”Yeh not bad, but pretty flat though”. Likely you’d never lose the sprinters.

On the other end, the guys that you see climbing at the front are incredible. Its freaky how fast they can go uphill. There’s a local hill in my area that runs up Cypress Mountain (the infamous no-snow hill for the snowboard events at our recent Olys) and its a ride that everyone seems to do just because. Many moons ago (like 30 years) I could manage a plus or minus 29 minute run on my old Cinelli. Keeping mind that I was actually a pretty good climber (at a local level) and got most of most decent results in hilly races, you can imagine how much faster it really was when one Vancouver’s best ever riders, Brian Walton smoked off a mid 25 minute effort. Brian was absolutely no slouch. He  got a contract with Motorola and was off to Europe. We heard he’d won the GP Eddy Merckx and had some other reasonable race placings as well. When he returned I asked how the climbing was over there thinking he must have been right at the sharp end. His retort was to the effect there’s no way he could keep up with the real climbers and figured they’d be doing a 21 minute ride up this Cypress hill thing. Makes you want to sell your bike huh?

So anyway, when you see those hilly stages on the telly, have as much respect for those ‘can’t climb’ sprinters as you do for the climbers. I actually don’t know which ones are braver.

Makes you wonder if the peleton got a bit of a talking to last night from the various powers that be. Even Phil and Paul seemed to be allowed to speak of the ‘non-sprint’ finish as a bad choice for the riders to make. With yesterday’s tantrums under the bridge, the TdF riders put on a fabulous race today. Hardship, drama and heroes. Great stuff. One’s heart to go out to Chavanel for his misfortune with bad tyres and for the massive effort of Hesjedal, caught so close to the end. France needs a cycling hero for their grand event and certainly Canada could do with another road star, its been a while since the days of Bauer, Stieda and Hayman. We’ve had some great participants in the likes of  Barry and Fraser in recent times but the Euro winners still evade us.

Great to see Armstrong’s late effort on the stones to pull back a bit of vital time in that tough going. I’ve only ever ridden Belgian cobbles once and I can tell you its not like riding over a bunch of relatively smooth brick as some seem to think. Imagine loaves of bread made of stone….with the occasional one missing.

This may well turn out to be the most REAL Tour de France in some years. Can’t wait.

Well after watching today’s stage into Spa and the feeble antics of most of the riders I can only think of them as a bunch of biking babies. Professionals???….what a joke. These (albiet fit) little prima donna maggots are paid to ride their bikes. their job is basically to entertain the public and create an awareness for the their hands that feed (the sponsors).

Imagine holding a ’strike’ just because the road got a bit greasy and some fell down. Its the Ardennes…there are hills and sometimes it rains. Gee, let’s think back 65 years to the Battle of the Bulge when there was some real suffering in those woods. I could barely think what both Hinault and Merckx, both of whom were on the victory podium today, must have been thinking. Their day was not so long ago and they had to contend with so much more. Today’s riders are so coddled with the ultra light bikes, race radios, smoother, wider roads, nearly twice as many wheels to sit on, shorter distances, more rest days and even more comfortable saddles and shorts yet they whine like never before. Its downright embarrassing! The Tour is SOOOOO much easier than it used to be and yet these wieners feel the need to protest the hardship.

Thankfully Chavanel saved the day with a magnificent ride deserving of tremendous praise. That was a ride of epic professional proportion. The day absolutely needed his victory to save the public’s disgust of the children’s protest. If it was indeed Cancellara that organized the protest he should kicked out of the Tour altogether.

My girlfriend knows little of bike racing but her first comment when seeing the bunch finish was,”Look at all these spectators who came out to see the sprint and nothing happening. Certainly doesn’t seem very professional.” She later added, “They all must come from this wimpy generation where ‘everyone’s a winner”.

So what do you think will happen tomorrow? Good Lord, there’s some bumpy roads! Why don’t these guys (not in the mood to call them men) check out the terrible conditions of the early days of the Tour…now that IS sadistic stuff.

Hopefully I’m in a better mood after tomorrow’s race.