Le Tour - Jan's Back

As a follow on to something Mynx wrote, most of you do know that I have a tendancy to rabbit on about things I like so I trust you won't be offended by me doing just that.

Jan Ullrich won the individual time trial and therefore I am happy.

Uncle Ste will not be. I will be unhappy and angry if my least favourite journalist is rude about him tomorrow in the paper. I fully expect to be upset.

But yes, he's back, despite injury, doping scandals, being kicked off his team, more injury, the team he joined going bust and the last minute bringing together of his present team.

Plus the fugly colour of their shirt.

And he wiped the floor with everyone else. I'm hoping he hasn't used up all his reserves since they are heading into hell (aka the Pyrennes). So now two of my favourites are contending against Lance.

On that subject, Vino did extremely well to finish 3rd. Time trials are not his thing normally. He probably did a better job than Ullrich if you get what I mean.

Botero meanwhile did better than I thought he would, and according to him, better than he thought he would. For some reason, this race just hasn't come together for him.

Tyler Hamilton is amazing.

The problem with cyclists is that their bodies are such highly refined machines that they fall ill really easily and about half of the remainder are ill, including David Millar (who looks like death warmed over) and Ullrich. I wish them all lots of good health.

Beloki meanwhile looks like a half done mummy. Again I wish him well - http://sports.yahoo.com/sc/photo?slug=1058552177.spain_cycling_mad804&prov=ap

There are no good pictures of Ullrich (for some reason Yahoo is full of Armstrong and Hamilton pics, I wonder why) but this will have to do - http://sports.yahoo.com/sc/photo?slug=1058546222.cycling_tour_de_france_tdf114&prov=ap

Richard Virenque

I decided I'd try to explain why I like who I do, and try and make it seem rational. And how they all inter-connect.

-My first cycling love, Richard Virenque-

Okay so that was over the top. But he was. When I first started watching I had to be about 11. And there he was, young, amazingly gifted and to be truthful, kinda cute.

He used to race up the hills and mountains like a dolphin through water. He was the first person of whom I cut newspaper articles out.

And then came the Festina controversy.

The Festina team doctor was caught crossing the border with performance enhancing drugs. The riders all denied taking anything. Denied it for a long time. He denied it and I believed him. Then cracks started showing and one of the riders admitted it, and it turned out they were all on something (this was the return of the great doping controversy) and he finally admitted it.

It did kinda shake my faith in people for a while, silly as it sounds.

Anyway he kind of went away for a while (due to bans and legal stuff and whatnot) so I had to find someone else to like but I still love it when he wins or does well.

Take me Captain, take me hard

Zoe to Mal on Firefly. The whole episode was really funny. In a very wierd way, since most of it involved death and torture.

But anyhow, I have found out that I am in love with the show and it joins Brimstone on the list of programmes that the stupid TV channels made great mistakes in cancelling.

Jan Ullrich is now only 15 seconds behind Lance.

( Smackdown thoughts )

Oh and for anyone looking for music recs, try these,

Breed 77 - La Ultima Hora, imagine SOAD but with Spanish influences.

Sugarcult - Bouncing Off The Walls, with a ridiculously catchy chorus.