It’s that time of year when sports people, including cyclists, are picking up awards, left, right and centre. So I thought I would join in by nominating my cycling team of the year. I should stress that there will, alas, be no glittering award ceremony, no trophies and no champagne.  Though if any of them cares to pop around in the off-season, I will be happy to crack open a bottle of my favourite beverage. The awards will, like all these awards, be totally subjective and will involve one, well-known judge – me.

The criteria for selection to Sheree’s Superteam of 15 riders are multitudinous; but being hardworking and having a cute smile will certainly put you in the mix. I had to apply a numerical limit otherwise I’d have found it hard to stop and, before you know it, everyone would be on my team. So in no particular order, here are the winners:-

Alberto ” Big Brown Eyes” Contador: What girl wouldn’t want this year’s Tour winner on her team. Bert makes the cut thanks to his stoicism in the face of relentless provocation. Yes, he let his legs do the talking.

Tom “Bad Boy” Boonen:

Tom with my friend Susi

Not his most glittering season - true - but as the winner of the first cycling race I ever saw (TdF Stage 6, 2004), Tom is guaranteed a place on my team whatever. I should add that Tom is very popular with the ladies, whether or not they’re cycling fans. It’s hard to explain his allure but suffice to say he’s a man who looks damm good in lycra.

Cadel “Cuddles” Evans: For attacking and  proving everyone wrong on his home turf (Mendrisio) and having the “guts” to leave the comfort zone of Silence-Lotto for a team (BMC) which may or may not ride in next year’s Tour.

“Fabulous” Fabian Cancellara: He showed everyone how to win a World Championship time-trial (again) with style, panache, power and with room to spare.

Sammy “Gold Medal” Sanchez: Yes, the Olympic Champion makes the cut too mainly because he’s a joy to watch going downhill and he’s nearly always got a great smile on his face.    

Philippe “Pant on Fire” Gilbert: I just couldn’t leave out the man who singlehandedly hoovered up four wins in a row at the end of the season. Plus, he’s another one with a cute smile.

Barbie Barbie

Heinrich “Barbie Barbie” Haussler: Probably, the best smile in the peloton. That’s right, no other reason.

Alexandre “He’s Back, He’s Attacking” Vinokourov: He’s done his time, he’s back and he’s launching those trademark attacks which make him so popular with cycling fans.  

Johnny “Off the Front Again” Hoogerland: I appreciate that after the Vuelta and World Championships, Johnny’s fans are now legion. Almost single-handedly he justified Vacansoleil’s invitation to the Vuelta. Will this, plus the freres Feuillu, be enough to guarantee a Tour invite next year? We all hope so. 

Mark “Manx Missile” Cavendish: The fastest man on two bicycle wheels for giving me bragging rights down at the cycling club. Long may it continue.

Bradley “So-Skinny” Wiggins: For proving to me incontestably that if I lose weight I too will climb faster, though probably not as fast as Brad.  

Jens “Hardman” Voigt: A huge favourite among cycling fans for his unstinting team work. I still wince at the thought of his face plant in this year’s Tour. I also love the way the French announcers say his name “Jen-sa Voy-te”.

Kenny “Never Say Die” van Hummel: Another one who won over fans with his determination to pretty much daily beat the cut off in this year’s Tour; often after riding most of the parcours on his own. A sight we will probably be denied in next year’s Tour.

Jose Vicente “Really Long Name” Garcia Acosta: He’s finished 25 Grand Tours and he’s Valverde’s faithful and untiring domestique. This man can ride tempo all day and for that he gets on my team.

Bernard ”Faithful” Eisel: The man charged with shepherding the Manx Missile to within sniffing distance of the finish line: yet another upstanding lieutenant for the team. 

David “Dodgy Bike Handler” Moncoutie: You’re probably wondering why he makes my team. It’s partly because of his climbing ability but largely because, like me, his bike handling skills leave a lot to be desired.

Now those of you who can count are possibly wondering why, when I said a team of 15, there are 16 names. Obviously, I have one reserve rider.

My team will be managed by Bob Stapleton, head of the most successful team of the last couple of years, Columbia-HTC, but they’re going to be wearing Cervelo kit; easily the nicest and most flattering, even in white and, like me, riding BMC bikes. That’s, regrettably, where the similarities start and end.

From last week to this, we’ve gone from an Indian summer to autumn. Today I wore my long sleeved club jersey and gilet, teamed with ¾ bib shorts for what might well be my last assault this year on the Col de Vence. It was a chilly descent back home and I was forced to don my windproof.

After my 100km ride I was back home in time to watch the Tour of Lombardy on Rai Tre. I prefer, if at all possible, to watch racing on the host broadcaster’s channel.  Of course, I should have been tackling the Vuelta and post Vuelta ironing mountains, but what the heck!

I see the weather around Como was a little chillier than here and the sky somewhat greyer, but at least it was dry. Obviously the Italian commentators were hoping for and even anticipating a 4^th Cunego victory.

Philippe “Pants on Fire” Gilbert had other ideas. Going for his 4^th consecutive win in 10 days, he took off in the last 6km and only Sammy Sanchez was able to bridge up to him. Vino tried too but dropped back to the chasing group.

Both riders worked together until the final few hundred metres. Sammy gave it his best shot but he was never going to beat Gilbert in a sprint. Let’s not forget this is the man who bested Tom Boonen in a sprint at Paris-Tours last week end. The Italians had to settle for Cunego’s team mate, Santambrogio, winning the “most combative”.

Podium Boys

So, two of my favourite riders finishing 1^st and 2^nd; a highly satisfactory result which could  have been bettered only if Vino, rather than Kolobnev, had also finished on the podium. This wasn’t the only good bit of sporting news. Villa beat Chelsea 2-1 at home. Let’s see if OGCN can make it three in a row tomorrow evening.

Tomorrow we’re off to Beausoleil, followed by a climb up Mont des Mules to La Turbie, weather permitting. Yes, there’s a storm brewing with spectacular flashes of lightening illuminating the shoreline. With any luck it’ll have cleared up by tomorrow morning.

Postscript: Chilly, but sunny and very enjoyable ride today; Vino won the Chrono des Nations (3rd in a row) but OGC Nice failed to give me 4 in a row by losing 4-1 away at Lorient.

This coming week end we have once again a combined pointage and cyclosportif. I took part in this last year because, having already completed my maiden trip up Col D’Eze during Paris-Nice, I knew exactly what to expect. This, you may recall, was the year Astana were banned from the Tour de France as a consequence of events at the previous year’s Tour. The club had planned to cycle up to the summit of the Col wearing “Astana au Tour” t-shirts, thoughtfully provided by Vino, to highlight the team’s plight to one Christian Prudhomme.

The protestors

Having refueled at Vino’s restaurant in Nice over lunchtime, we split into groups to head off up the Col. I was partnered with a much younger couple who promised to take it slowly on my account. It took us some time to find our way onto the Grande Corniche and I therefore anticipated that my club mates would arrive at the summit well ahead of me. The first few kms are quite tough and it was a very warm afternoon in early March. The younger couple started to flag, so I left them behind.

I ascended at my pace (painfully slow), stopping every so often for a quick drink. As I reached the last km, there were a number of club mates watching from the roadside who gave me plenty of verbal encouragement. Soon others had joined in and I felt emboldened to go as fast as I could: still pretty slow. At the summit there was no sign of the other riders. A quick call to M le President confirmed they’d been delayed by a puncture and could no longer ascend to the summit, as the road had been closed by the police.  This was going to be a one woman protest: probably not so visually forceful. However, I did manage to attract the eye of Prudhomme as he was driven past.

I drove home from Mendrisio yesterday evening having had five very enjoyable days with my most hospitable Swiss friend and his mother. I had watched ALL of the races, ridden the parcours and met up with friends old and new.

Cadel crowned champion

Local Boy, Cadel Evans (he lives in Ticino), is the nearly man no more. Having ridden away from the other favourites, who were all marking one another,  in a solo attack a few kilometres from the line. He’s the first ever Australian world road race  champion. His team worked tirelessly for him and he’s probably wishing he could avail himself of their services for next year’s Tour de France.

It was a thrilling race, particularly in the final rounds when both Cancellara and Vino launched trademark attacks but failed to  maintain their momentum, probably thanks to their efforts in Thursday’s TT.

I had ridden into Mendrisio on Saturday to watch the Women’s Elite and U23 Road Races. Unfortunately, it had rained heavily in the early hours, giving the girls a few tricky rounds before the roads dried out. I should mention that the GB team were fortunate to even be on the starting line. The previous day, I had followed them down the one technically difficult descent. At a T-junction, our route was suddenly blocked by a policemen.  I yanked on my sometimes suspect Campy brakes and squealed to an abrupt halt, narrowly missing piling into several GB riders. That would have made for an interesting headline.

Saturday I rode to where I had previously enjoyed spectating only to discover an entire UCI Hospitality Village had sprung up overnight. So I retreated to the other side of the track, next to the platform for the handicapped spectators with a good view of the track and TV screen. The Italian ladies proved to be strong, sandwiching a Dutch former world champion, while the French boys more than lived up to their billing.

U23 road race podium

Romain Sicard, the recent winner of the Tour de l’Avenir, proved to be the strongest and no doubt will now be hailed by the French Press as a future Tour winner. Truthfully, the entire team were strong which bodes well for the future of French cycling.

I rode into Mendrisio this morning ostensibly to meet my friend Ute for a coffee. She’s working as a part-time volunteer in the Press Centre. Of course, the real reason was to ride on the same course, at the same time  as the Elite and U23 riders who were just out spinning their legs and checking  the parcours. While the roads weren’t closed, there were police at every junction waving us through.

Who did I see? Who didn’t I see might be an easier question. Undoubtedly the highlight was riding behind Fabulous Fabian for the last 5km of the course. I saw Vino and the rest of the Kazakhs and, while I would have liked to say hello, I had no spare breath as I was scaling the bottom half of Monte Generoso; short and sharp.  I appeared to be the only non-elite, female rider on the course and therefore on the receiving end of plenty of support from the roadside spectators. This is always tremendously encouraging.

On the way back to Lugano, I was passed by the Spanish squad who had evidently decided that it was way too dangerous to lodge, as previously planned, in Como. As we were going downhill I was able to smile at Messrs Valverde and Sanchez, congratulate them on their performances in the Vuelta and wish them well for Sunday.

The course reminds me of an Ardennes Classic. So we should be looking to riders who have previously performed well in those and who showed form in the Vuelta: Cunego, Valverde, Sanchez, Evans, Vinokourov. Nor would I discount Cancellara, after last year’s performance on a more difficult course in Beijing. Of course, given the strength and depth of the Spanish and Italian squads, it’s hard to bet against them.

I arrived in Lugano on Tuesday evening after a 5 hour drive from Nice. No sooner had I arrived than we were out on our bikes enjoying the warm summer evening. We cycled around the lake and then headed towards Mendrisio to check out the parcours. It’s a tough course, particularly one of the hills which, while not long, reaches gradients of 12% and which is bound to be leg sapping in the road race. It was dark by the time we got back home, my first nightime ride.

Wednesday morning, I was up bright and early ready to head down to the finish area to watch the U23 and Elite Women`s TTs. I found an excellent spot to watch the races, just in front of the podium, to the right of the large TV screen and about 50 metres from the finish line.

The two Tribunes opposite, particularly the VIP one, were largely empty. In fact, the volunteers outnumbered guests 3:1. Gradually, folk trickled in but you could still count them on the fingers of one hand. The winners of both races were predictable but I enjoy watching emerging talent in the U23s and seeing the ladies race since both feature so infrequently on the TV.

My Swiss friend was helping out on the Santini stand where I indulged my husband with a pair of their latest shorts and a transparent windproof top – much cheaper than Assos. Their ladies line however was not at all to my taste, so it’s not about to wean me off my Rapha and Assos habit.

After a long day standing in the sunshine, I was looking forward to dinner and an early night. One of the problems with watching races on one’s own is that, having secured a good spot, one has to stay put for the duration. The trick is to drink enough to stay hydrated but not so much that you need a comfort break.

I caught up with one of the girls with whom I worked as a volunteer last year in Varese. She was working in the VIP stand but  was kinda bored as there were hardly any VIPs to look after. Ah yes, one of the perils of being a volunteer is periods of terminal boredom.

Thursday morning, I took the train into Mendrisio with my friend’s mother, herself a keen cyclist and extremely spritely for her age. I stood in the same spot as the day before. The Men’s Elite TT comprised 3 laps of the circuit and, with Cancellara in the line-up, the stands soon filled up. The organizers had shipped in a load of schoolchildren who obligingly raised the roof everytime a cyclist passed adding an encouraging cacophony of sound.

Fabulous Fabian

What can I say that hasn’t already been said by those more eloquent and articulate than me about Fabian Cancellara’s performance? It was truly out of this world. I kept checking his bike on the big screen to spot the jet propulsion engine, but it was just his heart, lungs and legs. He was always going to win on home soil but it was the manner of his victory. He quickly overhauled Larsson, his minute man. Next up was  Bradley Wiggins, who was subsequently undone by a mechanical and a missing in action support vehicle. Cancellara then overtook Sebastien Rosseler who shook his head in disbelief, checking his speed on his monitor and ultimately finishing well down the pack.

The roar from the spectators was amazing as they watched Fabian on the big screen. It’s the first time I have ever seen someone celebrate a TT win 100 metres from the line, but he had time to spare. Larsson, who also overtook Wiggins, was 2nd and Tony Martin 3rd. Martin was later pictured slumped on the ground totally exhausted by his efforts. My man Vino finished a hugely creditable 8th, beating the gold and silver medallists from last year, in a very strong field.

The World Championships gives those emerging cycling nations an opportunity to compete with the best. There were two competitors from St Kitts & Nevis and, while they finished well down on the rest of the field, this will have been a huge learning experience for them. I feel I should also mention the performance of one Edvard Novak, from Romania, who beat his two-legged team mate. That’s right, Edvald is a below the knee amputee – chapeau!

I am very happy to see a nice ensemble of riders forming for Team Radio Shack. Armstrong of course announced during the TdF that the new team was forming. Soon after, team director Johan Bruyneel announced his move, and now Levi Leipheimer has made a similar announcement.

All three individuals were part of Contador’s TdF 2009 victory and all three will now be against him. Furthermore, with any luck, Vinokourov will be able to help dismantle Contador’s run for the title in 2010.

Notably, Leipheimer crashed and broke his wrist in the TdF 2009 but was back on his bike in no time.

Elsewhere in the cycling world, Big George Hincapie has signed with BMC. I think most of us hoped he would go to Radio Shack too. Although after the incident earlier this year maybe it shouldn’t come as a surprise.

I sat down yesterday afternoon to watch the Vuelta Prologue from the Moto GP track in Assen. What a great idea, it put me in mind of a lot of the old photos in my cycling books where races often finished in stadia. The place was packed and the wall of sound was amazing everytime a Dutch rider or a rider on a Dutch team took to the track.

It was a real shame about the weather although most of the favourites benefitted from similar climatic conditions, a drying course, except David Millar who took to the track during the deluge. Probably just as well that bike handling maestro Denis Menchov had passed on the Vuelta this year, otherwise the bookies would have been taking bets on how long he would stay on his bike. I felt particularly sorry for Carlos Barredo whose bike slid down the start ramp ignominiously dumping him on his rump. Thereafter, the ramp was cloaked in what I assume was some sort of artificial grass to give the wheels some traction.

Heading for the gold jersey

It was no great surprise that this man won yet another Prologue, it’s his forte. Next on GC were a whole host of sprinters. Again, no real shock on a short flat course. Then, there were a whole load of GC contenders, headed by Roman Kreuziger.

Personally, I was delighted to see this man in 7th place. Just look at the absolute

He's back!

concentration on his face and doesn’t he look lean and mean? According to Nice Matin he was booed by some of the crowd. Why? Like Basso (and Millar), he’s done his time and is entitled to ride once again. He was the highest placed Astana man on GC and that’s where I expect him to remain. Don’t bet on him not getting on the podium.

A combination of my recurring chest infection, the heat and a whole load of work has meant that I’ve probably spent more time than I would have liked indoors over the past week or so. On the plus side, this has allowed me to watch the Eneco Tour, Tour du Limousin, Tour of Ireland, GP de Plouay and some of the action from the athletics in Berlin.

Specifically, I had to check out how Romain Mesnil fared in the pole vault. You may recall this was the gentleman who ran around Paris naked, with only his pole for company, in order to attract a new sponsor. Apparently, it had the desired effect plus, according to L’Equipe, he now has a large female fan club. There were three Frenchman in the pole vault final, with Mesnil finishing second. This was sufficient for him to get his kit off yet again though his modesty, in the photos I saw, was safeguarded by the French flag.

The live racing I watched was notable for a couple of things: Boonen back to winning ways as the Eneco Tour went through his home turf; Cavendish notching up his 21st win of the season in Ireland; Russell Downing holding off a stellar bunch of names to clinch the overall in the Tour of Ireland and Simon Gerrans coming nicely into form with a win at GP de Plouay.

I am of course now looking forward to seeing Messrs Valverde, Sanchez and Vinokourov duking it out in the Vuelta. I already have an hors category mountain of ironing to keep me occupied during the first few days, while the Vuelta is in N Europe.

Cycling, even at a gentle pace, in this heat is tiring: doubly so with my cough. Last Friday, I rode up to Tourrettes-sur-Loup and had there been no one around I could have quite happily dived fully clothed into the village fountain. Instead, I had to be content with dousing myself with several bidons worth of cooling water.

It’s also been very humid which has a disastrous effect on my hair, when it’s not confined under my helmet. Do you remember that episode in Friends where Monica plays table tennis in the Bahamas and her hair looks as if she’d stuck her finger in an electric socket. Yes, well mine’s not quite that bad but you get the general idea.

A girlfriend has likened the effect of the current weather conditions as one big, long, hot flush. Since I’ve never had one of those, nor do I want one, I’m prepared to take her word for it.

Since the announcement that Lance and his acolytes would be Team Radio Shack in 2010, there has been copious speculation as to the fate of Alberto Contador, the winner of this year’s Tour de France. While rumours have abounded about a new Spanish Fernando Alonso-led squad, choc full of Spanish stars, and sponsored by Santander, this won’t come to fruition before 2011. So what’s going to happen in 2010?

According to today’s L’Equipe (as good a source as any), he wants to buy himself out of next year’s contract with Astana. Despite the Kazakhs, promising he’ll be their leader and throwing Euros 4 million (net) at him for each of the next four years, Alberto’s brother Fran, who’s his agent, says “it’s not about the money.”

Put yourself in Alberto’s shoes and you can understand why, despite his friendship with Vino. He was prevented from riding the Tour in 2008, because he was riding for Astana. The return of Vino and Kash to the Astana fold could give rise to similar issues with ASO for 2010 and Astana without those two would be a considerably weaker side. He’s endured a number of months of uncertainty due to the war between Bruyneel and the Kazakhs, culminating in the blatant preference of Bruyneel to put Lance, and not Bert, in yellow and the subsequent psychological stresses of being isolated from the team one’s supposed to be leading. Frankly, this must have been both confusing and wearing for Alberto.

 Given that ASO will be courting Lance for next year’s Tour, we can assume that the course will be Lance-favourable, featuring not too many steep mountain top finishes, two ITTs and one TTT. Many of this year’s favourites found their GC chances laid to waste by the TTT. So Bert has to join a squad that can perform at TTTs. This doesn’t leave him with too many choices. You only have to look at the performance of the teams in this year’s to see how limited.

 STAGE TEAM STANDING

Standing Team                                        Time Gaps

1. ASTANA 46′ 29″

 2. GARMIN – SLIPSTREAM 46′ 47″ + 00′ 18″

3. TEAM SAXO BANK 47′ 09″ + 00′ 40″ 

4.LIQUIGAS 47′ 27″ + 00′ 58″ 5.

5.TEAM COLUMBIA – HTC 47′ 28″ + 00′ 59″

6. TEAM KATUSHA 47′ 52″ + 01′ 23″

7. CAISSE D’EPARGNE 47′ 58″ + 01′ 29″

8. CERVELO TEST TEAM 48′ 06″ + 01′ 37″

9. AG2R-LA MONDIALE 48′ 17″ + 01′ 48″

10. EUSKALTEL – EUSKADI 48′ 38″ + 02′ 09″

My excitement is rising as the Tour de France is fast approaching. Having enjoyed its warm-up act, the Critérium du Dauphiné libéré, I’m now looking forward to the real thing. And I’m not the only one. Journalists seem to be taking a totally over-the-top approach to a couple of topics.

The key one, not unnaturally, features Lance. Will he be riding the Tour de France in Astana’s colours? If not, will he be riding for another sponsor? If so, which one? Will the Kazakh government agree to the UCI’s demands and pay up? Will Astana still have a UCI licence at the start of the Tour? Can Contador and Lance peacefully co-exist on the same team: will each be prepared to ride in service of the stronger rider. When you look at the proposed list of starters, there are more chiefs than Indians: never a recipe for success. Will there indeed be any Kazakhs riding the Tour for the Kazakh sponsored team? The fevered speculation is filling endless column inches in the press and on the internet. Although, at least one thorny question has been answered in recent days: Vino won’t be able to resume his professional career until 24 July, 2009.

Then there are the riders who have suspicious values in their UCI biological passports. How many are there? Are there any big fish on the list? What action is the UCI going to take against them?  

Another, equally interesting discussion involves another “will he, won’t he” situation. Namely, will Messrs Boonen and Valverde be riding the Tour this year? The UCI have given Boonen

Tom

 the green light (for the moment) while they have yet to opine on the case of Valverde. If they say yes, might he be arrested by the Italians when the Tour ventures onto foreign soil? If he does ride, will Contador be collecting his dues for support during the Dauphiné libéré? If he doesn’t ride, will the whole team be riding for Bert? The next hurdle for both of them is the ASO who will be more interested in serving its own commercial interests by ensuring that Lance rides than perhaps unduly worrying about these two.

All these issues will be coming to a head in the next 10 days or so. Of course, this fevered speculation allows the other genuine contenders to go about their Tour build ups outside of the cauldron.

My Tour, like that of the riders, kicks off on Wednesday 1 July, when I’ll be working as a volunteer. I have been much impressed with the professionalism of the Monaco organizing committee which, in all aspects, is second to none and who will ensure that this is a truly memorable Grand Depart for everyone, particularly the spectators. I’m going to be deployed in the port area. Great gig as this is where the prologue starts and finishes and is the site of the team paddocks, a device “borrowed” from F1. I can hardly wait, but we’re all going to have to!  

For me, doping is one of the worst aspects of professional cycling. It’s even worse when one of your favorite cyclist — who you believed was clean — tests positive. This is the case with Tyler Hamilton. There were a couple of stories in the news during the past few days that highlight the extent of the problem. Professional riders are put under a microscope. If that is what the sport needs to stay clean, then I’m all for it. Here is an update on Alexandre Vinokourov’s doping suspension, a bit of background on biological passports, and an update on the drug testing procedures of this year’s Tour de France. Lance Armstrong has even started posting his drug test results on his blog. If you are interested in more background, check out the website of the World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) and the WADA Anti-Doping Administrative & Management System (ADAMS). Let’s hope for a clean Tour de France this year!

Le Kazakh Alexandre Vinokourov ne participera pas au prochain Tour de France sur décision du Tribunal arbitral du sport. Vino avait été convaincu de dopage au cours de la Grande Boucle en 2007.

La clémence n’autorise pas tout et certainement un pardon trop rapide. C’est ce qu’a estimé le Tribunal arbitral du sport (le TAS) en refusant que le coureur kazakh, Alexandre Vinokourov participe au prochain tour de France dès le 4 juillet prochain.

La décision du TAS fait suite à la requête de l’UCI qui avait réclamé contre le coureur d’Astana une suspension de deux ans quand la Fédération kazakhe ne l’avait écarté que pour un an. Vinokourov, coupable aux yeux du tribunal de dopage sanguin ne pourra reprendre la compétition qu’après le 24 juillet. L’année dernière, après avoir été convaincu de dopage, le coureur kazakh avait annoncé sa retraite. Peut-être eut-il été plus judicieux de sa part de s’en tenir à cette décision. Et de se faire un peu oublier.

On my blog there are plenty of photos of cyclists past and present but only one of them has ever had his photo taken alongside me – Vino. Generally, I find it’s not a good idea to be photographed with anyone who weighs less than you.  Let me illustrate why.

Swiss boys

Take Fabian Cancellara,  height 186cm (6ft 1”) and weight  80kg (176lbs), who when seen in the peloton appears to be one of the more generously proportioned riders. However, put Fabian  next to my Swiss friend, an excellent cyclist who’s a not dissimilar weight to Spartacus et voilà, my friend looks (unfairly, though the billowing shirt doesn’t help) to be carrying a few extra kilos. Of course, one should bear in mind that 2kgs of Fabian’s weight can probably be attributed to that magnificent mane of hair, and assorted hair products to keep it under control.

At the other end of the scale is Alberto Contador. Here he is with the owner of my LBS, his wife (typical, petite build) and a very good local rider who’s the French FSGT U23 Champion. First impressions: yes Bert’s actually taller than you think.

Post Paris-Nice dinner

Whenever I see him I have this overwhelming urge to take him home and give him a good meal. Next, both of the guys admittedly weigh more than Bert but are not far off their ideal cycling weights and again, by comparison, look to be carrying a few too many kilos, but they are not.   

My husband and I were at the same post Paris-Nice dinner with Bert and we, wisely, declined to have our photos taken with him. Incidentally, there’s absolutely no need for me to take Bert home and feed him up. He has a perfectly normal appetite, in fact, even a bit of a sweet tooth!

You may be wondering how my fight to shed those extra 10 kilos is going? It is going, more slowly than I might like, but it is going.

I took up cycling really on a challenge from my husband who said I either had to start playing tennis again, take up golf or cycle. He kind of snorted out the third alternative and I’m quite sure he never expected me to take up cycling. It wasn’t even a case of reverse psychology.

I had just gotten back from working as a volunteer at the World Road Race Championships in Salzburg. One of the few occasions when the guys, the gals and the youngsters all take part and one gets to see six races in a few days. I had originally intended just to go and watch but when I went on the site to buy tickets, I noted that they were looking for volunteers, so I volunteered.

I had said that I was happy to do anything and, given my relative availability the organisers asked me to turn up a week before the racing started. I found myself a small, family-run,  B&B just outside of Salzburg and set off into the unknown on what turned out to be the first of many solo, cycling-related, road trips.  

I spent my time in Salzburg largely looking after the volunteers. Firstly, I sorted and handed out the uniforms. These had been made in China and the sizing was all over the place. For example, I wore an XL t-shirt, a small jacket and medium trousers. Caps and bum-bags were thankfully all one-size. Thereafter, my new-found friend Valeria and I were in charge of distributing the packed lunches each day to the 2,000 volunteers. Yes, an army of volunteers does march on its stomach.

Fortunately, our billet was round the back of the podium, next to all the TV wagons and their chow truck. Needless to say we were sitting pretty with refreshments on tap all day long.

We ensured that the packed lunches were distributed well before any racing started and then settled down in our ringside seats to enjoy the action.

During the podium ceremonies we were entrusted with the handbag of the Lady Governor of the province of Salzburg. This was our equivalent of a backstage pass and, as a consequence, got to meet and have our photos taken with some of the winners.

Vino and Sheree

On the last day, after presenting the medals in the men’s road race, the presentation party left the podium via the back stairs. We were standing at the foot of the stairs, undertaking our bag guarding duties, and we duly shook hands and were thanked in turn by the afore-mentioned Governor, the Mayor of Salzburg and the President of Austria.

The best thing about this event wasn’t meeting the riders, or even seeing all the cycling up close and personal, it’s all the people that you meet along the way that make it such fun. Like this gentleman in the photo.

Super Mario

He’d retired before my interest in cycling was borne and was therefore fairly ambivalent until I met him – what a charmer!

I’m looking forward to meeting up with some of the people I met at Salzburg at this year’s Le Grand Depart in Monaco, where I’ll be a volunteer and they’ll be spectators.

High, strong winds woke me at 04:00 and I found it difficult to go back to sleep. Thanks to my tree pollen allergy my lungs and head felt very congested, not an auspicious sign. Our plan had been to set off ahead of the scheduled 07:30 start but my husband was feeling tired, jet lag. I let him sleep a bit longer.

We have these early starts now down to a fine art. We get absolutely everything ready the night before so that we can be up and out of the flat in less than 20 minutes.

We set off with everyone else at 07:30.

Last one back buys the drinks

I sat on Vino’s wheel, he was riding at what for him must have been a very leisurely pace. The main bunch stayed pretty much together until the climb to Gattieres where I dropped back through the peloton like a stone. Yes, my congested lungs were giving me problems and I knew straight away that I’d have to settle for the 100km parcours. Not even my Stars’n’Bars were going to get me out of this one. Despite that my husband kindly rode with me all the way.

As we climbed up to Bouyon, the wind appeared to have died down. The weather was pretty idyllic, as was the scenery. It’s a lovely route and there’s very little traffic. After a fast descent into Roquesteron, we topped ourselves up at feed zone manned by my clubmates who were duly supportive of my efforts and, as usual, had put on an excellent spread.

In fact, if there were a cup for “Best Refreshments” I’m sure my club would win it hands down. Considering that there’s a trophy for everything else, I don’t see why not. In addition, it just might encourage those clubs, whose refreshments generally leave a great deal to be desired, to make more of an effort.

Having crested the leg sapping rise to Gillette, we descended and made our way to the finish along the Var valley into a strong headwind. You may be thinking that at this point I was sheltering behind my husband or at least we were taking it in turns to pull on the front.

Catch me if you can

 But no, he took my wheel and stayed there until the finish. I was quicker than last year, but not by much.

We finished just ahead of Vino, who had ridden the longer route. Apparently, he’d rung M Le President part-way into the course when one of the lead riders had suffered a mechanical. M Le President had to break the bad news to him that the nearest support car was the broom wagon. Undeterred, Vino chased down the car at the front of the peloton for assistance. Not quite what you might expect from a soon-to-be-again pro-tour rider. But suffice to say he’s a very kind and generous individual.

Everyone had finished by 15:45. If I had done the longer course, the latter stages of which were very windy, I might have just gotten back in time for the eagerly awaited tombola. Then again……………………..

Moi, je n’y crois plus. Il m’arrive bien de zapper sur France Télévisions vers 17h15, juste avant de laisser la place à TSR2 et aux tennismen de Gstaad, pour connaître le nom du vainqueur de l’étape. Peut-être regarderai-je aussi quelques étapes de montagne, juste par curiosité. Mais cela s’arrête là. La Petite Reine a perdu sa magie.

D’abord le scandale Festina en 1998, les années Lance Armstrong, (1999-2005) riches en suspicion (eh bien oui, un cancer des testicules et un retour fulgurant plus le témoignage de son entourage de l’époque ou encore celui de Greg LeMond), puis le vainqueur déchu Floyd Landis en 2006 et enfin 2007, l’année des scandales avec, notamment, les aveux d’Eric Zabel, sextuple maillot vert du Tour, ceux de Bjarne Riis et la chute de Jan Ullrich, vainqueurs respectivement en 1996 et 1997, les disqualifications de Michael Rasmussen et Alexandre Vinokourov (coureur pour lequel j’avais un grand respect jusqu’alors) pendant le Tour. Cette suite ininterrompue de scandales n’engage pas à garder sa confiance dans le cyclisme.

Quelque chose s’est cassé. Un événement en particulier a achevé ma foi en ce sport. Ces deux jours extraordinaires de la Grande Boucle 2006. Le premier jour, Floyd Landis est dans le rouge, complètement largué, il fait peine à voir. Mais le lendemain il se ressaisit et écrase tous ses adversaires, les éclabousse de sa classe. On apprendra plus tard que cette “classe” était largement entachée de produits dopants. Et cela, c’est se moquer de tous les passionnés de cyclisme et de sport en général qui ont pris un plaisir énorme à suivre cet exploit. Un exploit qui s’est finalement révélé être le fruit d’une minable tricherie.

Il faut tout de même relever que les instances du cyclisme font beaucoup dans le domaine de la lutte anti-dopage. En tout cas beaucoup plus que ne font d’autres sports. Mais il ne faut pas se leurrer, le dopage a toujours eu dix ans d’avance sur ceux qui luttent contre lui. A quand la découverte que des Valverde, Evans, Cunego ou autre Cancellara ne roulent pas seulement aux Kellogg’s et à l’eau fraîche, après coup, naturellement ?

Je tire mon chapeau à Thierry Adam, Gérard Holtz, Joël Grivel ou encore Romain Glassey, qui arrivent encore à s’enthousiasmer en direct en commentant les étapes. Je ne crois pas que je pourrais. En tout cas pas sans arrière pensée. Mais finalement, ce superbe vainqueur, cet échappé magnifique, qu’est-ce qui nous prouve qu’il n’est pas dopé ? Par contre quand on entend Richard Virenque, dans son beau costume de consultant, évoquer le cyclisme propre, c’est à hurler de rire.

Quand on voit les “trials” américaines pour les Jeux olympiques, et la foule de records mondiaux qui tombent chaque jour, notamment en natation, on ne peut pas s’empêcher, un peu cyniquement il est vrai, d’être sceptique. Et en athlétisme, ce record du monde du 100 mètres qui s’abaisse à grandes enjambées jamaïcaines, est-ce réellement possible ? Bref, vivement les JO ! Et puis, vous savez, le cyclisme sera aussi présent à Pékin. Comme ces Jeux ont déjà obtenu la médaille d’or de l’hypocrisie avant même d’avoir commencé, autant en remettre une bonne couche tant qu’on y est.