Tour de France Week Two Wrap: Contador on the Ropes, Cadel Evans Cruising, Voeckler for GC?

Another amazing week at the Tour de France, as the week one crash carnage gave way to dramatic racing as the Tour hit the first huge mountain stages in the Pyrenees. In the end, it was the Frenchman Thomas Voeckler who made out the best, as he emerged as the overall leader of the race by 1:49 over his closest rival Frank Schleck. Even Voeckler himself thought that he would lose the leader's jersey in the Pyrenees, but he climbed amazingly well and distinguished himself as a long shot to win the race overall.

In all liklihood Voeckler will eventually wilt under the continued pressure from the other favorites in the high mountians. But after having gone pedal stroke for pedal stroke with the big favorites in week two, he deserves to be considered as an underdog prospect for overall victory by next weekend in Paris. With almost a two minute lead heading into the final week, another scintillating performance in the mountains may see him head into the Grenoble time trial with enough of a buffer to win the race overall. Again not likely, but he has ridden too well to not consider the possibility of him continuing to ride as well as he has.

Here are other thoughts from the Tour's second week . . .

In week one Frank Schleck looked stronger than his brother, while the roles appeared reversed in the second week. The tandem will continue to be a headache for the rest of the field heading into the final week, as each seem heading toward top form.

Providing he doesn't experience bad luck or a sudden turn of poor form, Cadel Evans looks queued to win his first Tour de France. By far the best time trialist of the top five riders on the GC, Evans needs only to control his rivals, not attack them. If he makes it to the time trial with the same margins he currently enjoys, he's a shoe-in for overall victory.

Ivan Basso, as he always has, is riding well at the Tour. Unfortunately he has already lost time from week one, so an overall win looks like a tough ask. Still, the podium is in his site and with a very difficult final week anything can happen.

Alberto Contador just doesn't seem to have the top-end climbing speed he is used to. His pedaling looks labored and his body seems to rock back and forth more violently than the other top contenders. Unless he finds some contaminated meat to eat ahead of the Alps, his Tour defence looks all but over. Then again it is "El Pistolero". One good shot is all it takes to see him back at the top of the GC. Either way, he has nothing to be ashamed of in this Tour, as he has exhibited class and mental fortitude despite myriad obstacles.

Damiano Cunego and Tom Danielson continue to ride with courage and panache. Amazing to see each toward the front of the field on the toughest climbs.

Thor Hushovd's winning ride on stage 13 was the stuff of legend. A sprinter riding alone to the line on a mountainous stage like Friday's is nothing short of amazing. That he did so in the world champion's kit put the icing on the cake. Amazing Tour for Garmin-Cervelo.

Johnny Hoogerland sits in 10th place on the GC and has made it into the final week of the Tour de France despite terrible injuries sustained back in stage 9. The Tasmanian has cemented himself into Tour lore with a gritty performance after his horrible accident. He looks set to finish the Tour, and should be one of the most celebrated stories when the Tour is over.

The Belgian Jelle Vanendert has been the revelation of this year's Tour. He won his first ever Tour stage with an impressive display of climbing to Plateau de Beille. One thing is for sure: Having come completely out of nowhere, Vanendert's performance in this year's Tour seems too good to be true. Hopefully he's on the up and up, but history tells us he probably isn't.

Vincent Jerome has surrendered the title of last place on the overall to Andrey Amador Bakkazakova of the Movistar team. The 24 year old sits about 8 minutes behind Jerome after two weeks, which should lead to an exciting concluding story at the end of the Tour for last place overall on the GC.

Tour de France Week 1 Wrap: Hushovd, Crashes, and Surprises Aplenty

It was one hell of a first week at the Tour de France. Thoughts from week one of three . . .

Thor Hushovd showed his class with a gritty defense of the yellow jersey right up until the day before the first rest day. It's a bit of a pity he wasn't able to carry the jersey into the second week, but it couldn't have transferred to a more deserving guy than Tommy Voeckler.

There were a ton of crashes in the first week, and it is a shame to see a host of GC contenders out of the race. Some in the press are calling for reduced field size and others for wider roads, but one thing is for sure: There will ALWAYS be crashes in the first week of the Tour, no matter if there are 80 or 180 riders entered. The first 15 spots are what is coveted, so crash-marred stages should be expected. No way to fix it.

Mark Cavendish ends up the man with the most stage wins after week one. Didn't see that coming . . .

What happened to Andre Greipel? The German left HTC for a chance to contend in big time races in 2011. Thus far, he has fallen flat. Greipel has been overshadowed by other sprinters and his own teammate, as Philippe Gilbert looks in position to contend for the sprinter's jersey at the Tour. The Gorilla looks more and more like a chimp every day.

If you had told me that Tom Danielson would be the highest placed Garmin rider for the GC heading into week two of the Tour, I would have told you that you were stone crazy. Yet he sits in 17th place overall. Wow.

The last time Ivan Basso rode the Tour de France he finished on the podium. He currently sits in 11th place, about a minute behind Cadel Evans. To say the least, he's in with a chance.

If team owner Bob Stapleton can manage to find a new sponsor and hence keep them together, the three-headed HTC beast of Martin, Van Garderen and Velits could wreak stage race havoc on pro cycling for the next 10 years.

Damiano Cunego is in 12th place on the GC. Wait, what!???!!?!?!?

If Alberto Contador manages to win this year's Tour, he will have done so truly against all odds. His mental fortitude is astounding.

Who's on better form, Frank or Andy Schleck? Looks a coin toss thus far.

Sammy Sanchez targeted a podium place for this year' Tour, yet he is already two and a half minutes behind Cadel Evans after one week of racing. Already a podium place looks unattainable for a rider who has always been long on potential and short on results.

Sylvain Chavanel has worn his heart on his sleeve after a tortuous week of dealing with the after effects of a hard crash. Chavanel has willed himself along and done the French colors proud. With a rest day ahead of him, he'll hopefully be able to recharge for a run at the Champs. Should he finish the Tour it would be a testament to his mind more than his body.

With Gesink looking weak thus far for Rabobank, I wonder if riders like Boom, Tjallignii or Barredo will emerge as protagonists in breakaways over the next few stages like their teammate Sanchez did today?

Johnny Hoogerland and Juan Antonio Flecha should sue the Tour de France, French TV and anyone else involved in the crash in today's stage. Unbelievable that Hoogerland held on to earn polka dots on the day. He's lucky to be alive, as is Flecha.

26 year old Vincent Jerome is in last place on the GC with a strong 7+ minute lead. Let's see if he improves his position over the coming stages.

The Power of Love: Farrar's First Tour de France Sprint Win Provides Perspective

Try though I might, I can't seem to pull myself away from the sport of pro cycling. The continued scandals boil my blood, but the pure, raw beauty of the sport continues to compel me. There are still good stories in the sport of cycling, and for that I continue to watch. What else can I do?

Tyler Farrar took his first stage win this past week, dedicating the victory to his fallen friend Wouter Weylandt. To watch the American win was an amazing feat to behold. He and his Garmin team have kept the momentum going through the first week, as they also managed to win the team time trial in an impressive technical display of execution.

World Champion Thor Hushovd assumed the yellow jersey as a result of the TTT win, and the affable Norwegian has managed to hold the jersey into the first rest day.n a Tour full of dramatic subplots, none have been more compelling than watching Hushovd scrap and scrape to stay in contact with the climbing specialists over the past few days has been nothing short of astounding. Add to that the dedication of the rest of the Garmin team in controlling the first week's racing action, and the story becomes the most compelling of the 2011 Tour thus far.

Close behind the Garmin story is the yearly crash lottery. This year GC threats Janiz Brajkovic and Chris Horner of the Radioshack team and Brad Wiggins of Sky are the hard luck losers, with all three having had to abandon the race due to injuries sustained in crashes. Levi Leipheimer also has been struck down by bad luck, and is minutes off the pace.

A couple of comments on Chris Horner's situation. After crashing Horner lay unconscious in a ditch. According to team director Johan Bruyneel, when questioned by the doctor on site, Horner had no memory of the crash and was clearly disoriented. That he was allowed to continue in the race was criminal. The doctor that put him back on the bike should be disbarred and fined, as well as sued by Horner himself. Thankfully Horner made it through the stage and as of today remains in stable condition despite a concussion and broken nose.

Among all the first week drama, Alberto Contador too has been affected. He has hit the pavement as well in the first week, and in today's stage 8, the first true mountain stage, Contador looked average at best. He tried unsuccessfully to create a gap in the final few kilometers of the stage, as Cadel Evans, the Schleck brothers and all of the rest of the GC contenders had little difficulty holding his wheel. Heading into the second week, Contador's defense of his 201o Tour title is off to a tenuous start.

Last but not least, a tip of the hat to Tom Boonen, as the Belgian once again suffers a tough crash and sees his hopes in yet another race go up in smoke. 2011 has been a tough year for Boonen, yet even despite his poor luck he has managed to win a big classic at Ghent-Wevelgem. He'll be back for the final few months of the season, where he'll look to win his second world championship this fall.

The Tour rolls into the second week wide open with a host of contenders still very much in the hunt for the overall title. Currently, it looks like Cadel Evans is in a great position to go for the win. The Aussie has been uncharacteristically lucky thus far, and if his luck holds he will be very hard to beat, as his form is clearly cracking, The Schlecks both look strong as they do every July, and they'll be ready once the big mountains call. Meanwhile, Ivan Basso, Peter Velits, Robert Gesink and Alexander Vinokourov all are chugging along nicely, well within striking distance for yellow. At this point in the Tour, it is anyone's game.

So Hard to Care: Too Many Scandals in Cycling

Total lack of desire to write about cycling lately. Too many scandals. Hopefully the motivation returns soon, but unless something changes quickly it is unlikely that more posts will come. Then again you never know. Sorry.

Giro d'Italia Week Three: The Good and Bad in Italy

This year's Giro seems to lack a bit in drama as Alberto Contador has ruled the GC battle with an iron fist. No one has come close to the Spaniard thus far in the three week stage race, and "El Pistolero" looks poised to roll through the final week unchallenged as the "Patron" of this year's Giro. There are other story lines to follow though, a few of them listed below . . .

Too bad to see Thomas Lovkvist so far off the GC battle. Sky's main hope for the GC has been a big disappointment thus far, and unless he manages a stage win his 2011 Giro will be looked back on as an abject failure.

The ever-aging duo of Denis Menchov and Carlos Sastre has not yielded the results that Geox management would have hoped for. Menchov is nearly 10 minutes behind Contador while Sastre is buried in 29th place, nearly 45 minutes behind. Expect a retirement announcement from Sastre at the end of the year as he is clearly done.

Vincenzo Nibali and Michele Scarponi were clearly game to try to thwart Contador, but they, like every other cyclist in the world, are several pedal strokes slower than Contador. The two have fought hard and remained resolute in their approach against Contador, but nothing they do has worked. Had Contador not been at this year's Giro, it probably would have turned out to be one of the closest GC battles in years.

John Gadret out of nowhere. Nice to see a Frenchie riding high on the GC in a grand tour.

Roman Kreuziger has a long way to go before he becomes a serious GC threat. A nice first stab at leadership, but not ready yet to be considered among the elite.

Not a very good Giro put in by Tiago Machado. The Radioshack rider was considered a strong candidate as a dark horse for a strong GC showing, but it just hasn't happened. Perhaps he should focus on the shorter stage races?

There is no reason to believe that Stefano Garzelli can't return next year to the Giro. He is still a strong rider, and his character adds flavor to his home tour.

Danilo Di Luca is 1 hour and 44 minutes off the pace of Contador. He should retire effective immediately.