Discovery takes TTT; Lance in lead

David Zabriskie was leading Lance Armstrong by two seconds when he started stage 4, but at the end, Lance got it back. Discovery and CSC (Zabriskie's team) were close the whole day, so there wasn't a clear winner. Discovery came in with the best time before CSC, and when CSC came in, Discovery was two seconds ahead. Zabriskie was leading Lance by two seconds, so who gets the jersey? It is not close at all, because just outside of 1 km to go for CSC, and David Zabriskie, the yellow jersey, crashed, and therefore couldn't stay with his team to keep the jersey.


Discovery takes the stage by two seconds... (image: Roberto Bettini)


...over CSC,... (image: Graham Watson)


...but it was Zabriskie's crash... (image: Graham Watson)


...that gave Lance the yellow. (image: Graham Watson)

You can do this too--it's a meme

bold the states you've been to, underline the states you've lived in and italicize the state you're in now...

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Go HERE to have a form generate the HTML for you.

Collegiate Cycling Clubs

Faculty advisor of Harvard's Cycling club, Jeff Barneson is quoted in this Harvard Magazine Article.

USA Cycling has information about NCCA (National Collegiate Cycling Association) on their website.

From University of Colorado Boulder (in Colorado)

The CU cycling team is a club sport which has been a dominant force in the collegiate ranks since the inception of the National Collegiate Cycling Association (NCCA) in 1987. The Buffs won the mountain biking national championships from 1997-2000, and again in 2002. Before this year’s road biking national championship, the Buffs had brought home the honor three consecutive seasons from 1998-2000.

“Other teams model their programs after ours,” MacEachran said. “We have very talented athletes, but they are also great kids.”

and the United States Naval Academy has a cycling club.

Why the fourth of July and what is the history of this holiday

It was at our little lunch where we started talking about the signing of the declaration of independence, the dates of the actual signing of the document, how that document was then carried forward to let the British know and the colonists themselves know.

Some of that background is here, at the American University in Washington, DC.

Some of the fact according to them:

The declaration was unanomously adopted by the Continental Congress on 4 July 1776; Signature gathering started 2 August 1776.

The Declaration of Independence was publicly read on July 8

It was published in various newspapers

Congress made sure that all states would have access to an authenticated copy of the Declaration by ordering a special printing of multiple copies on January 18, 1777.

So that's how they did things before the internet. Hmm.

Boonen Takes 2 Stages; TTT Tomorrow

Tom Boonen has had a great season so far by winning the momumental Classics Paris-Roubaix and the Ronde Van Vlaanderen (Tour of Flanders). He now has two Tour de France stage wins under his belt this season in only 3 days' racing.

Tomorrow is the team time trial, where you should expect Discovery to deliver the goods and put Lance in yellow, as they won the test in 2003 and 2004. But so far, Lance is second, two seconds behind David Zabriskie.


Boonen takes stage two. (image: Graham Watson)


Boonen does it again ... (image: AFP)


... by more than a bike length. (image: AFP)

New weather stickers

For our traveling family and those curious about France, two new weather geographies are included to the right.

T de F: Stage Two Notes

Tom Boonan came in first today.

David Zabriskie keeps the yellow jersey.

Lance Armstrong is 9 seconds out of the lead position in today's race, not to worry. He is second in overall standing; Ullrich is sixth.

There was a crash near the end of the route in the main peloton near the end, but I didn't see the video of it.

[Dance Wilstrong is on assignment today. He may check in with news from the field.]

Jan Ullrich wrote in his diary yesterday

Jan Ullrich wrote in his diary yesterday - "I can't quite put a finger on what went wrong. Perhaps it had something to do with the crash, I did lose some blood. But I don't really think that's the reason.

"I felt in good shape actually and because of this was optimistic for today's stage. Lance did, of course, ride very strongly to come in just behind the winner but at first, I did feel somewhat demoralised. Despite that, I´m happy that things have finally got started.

"There is still three weeks of racing to go in the Tour and I will battle on."

From the Daily Peloton

[Reporter Dance Wilstrong was off today.]

Happy Independence Day 2005

So, this is the document that pushed it over the top--your signature, an act of treason or sedition, starts a war and a country.

IN CONGRESS, July 4, 1776.

The unanimous Declaration of the thirteen united States of America,

When in the Course of human events, it becomes necessary for one people to dissolve the political bands which have connected them with another, and to assume among the powers of the earth, the separate and equal station to which the Laws of Nature and of Nature's God entitle them, a decent respect to the opinions of mankind requires that they should declare the causes which impel them to the separation.

We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness.--That to secure these rights, Governments are instituted among Men, deriving their just powers from the consent of the governed, --That whenever any Form of Government becomes destructive of these ends, it is the Right of the People to alter or to abolish it, and to institute new Government, laying its foundation on such principles and organizing its powers in such form, as to them shall seem most likely to effect their Safety and Happiness. Prudence, indeed, will dictate that Governments long established should not be changed for light and transient causes; and accordingly all experience hath shewn, that mankind are more disposed to suffer, while evils are sufferable, than to right themselves by abolishing the forms to which they are accustomed. But when a long train of abuses and usurpations, pursuing invariably the same Object evinces a design to reduce them under absolute Despotism, it is their right, it is their duty, to throw off such Government, and to provide new Guards for their future security.--Such has been the patient sufferance of these Colonies; and such is now the necessity which constrains them to alter their former Systems of Government. The history of the present King of Great Britain is a history of repeated injuries and usurpations, all having in direct object the establishment of an absolute Tyranny over these States. To prove this, let Facts be submitted to a candid world.

He has refused his Assent to Laws, the most wholesome and necessary for the public good.
He has forbidden his Governors to pass Laws of immediate and pressing importance, unless suspended in their operation till his Assent should be obtained; and when so suspended, he has utterly neglected to attend to them.
He has refused to pass other Laws for the accommodation of large districts of people, unless those people would relinquish the right of Representation in the Legislature, a right inestimable to them and formidable to tyrants only.
He has called together legislative bodies at places unusual, uncomfortable, and distant from the depository of their public Records, for the sole purpose of fatiguing them into compliance with his measures.
He has dissolved Representative Houses repeatedly, for opposing with manly firmness his invasions on the rights of the people.
He has refused for a long time, after such dissolutions, to cause others to be elected; whereby the Legislative powers, incapable of Annihilation, have returned to the People at large for their exercise; the State remaining in the mean time exposed to all the dangers of invasion from without, and convulsions within.
He has endeavoured to prevent the population of these States; for that purpose obstructing the Laws for Naturalization of Foreigners; refusing to pass others to encourage their migrations hither, and raising the conditions of new Appropriations of Lands.
He has obstructed the Administration of Justice, by refusing his Assent to Laws for establishing Judiciary powers.
He has made Judges dependent on his Will alone, for the tenure of their offices, and the amount and payment of their salaries.
He has erected a multitude of New Offices, and sent hither swarms of Officers to harrass our people, and eat out their substance.
He has kept among us, in times of peace, Standing Armies without the Consent of our legislatures.
He has affected to render the Military independent of and superior to the Civil power.
He has combined with others to subject us to a jurisdiction foreign to our constitution, and unacknowledged by our laws; giving his Assent to their Acts of pretended Legislation:
For Quartering large bodies of armed troops among us:
For protecting them, by a mock Trial, from punishment for any Murders which they should commit on the Inhabitants of these States:
For cutting off our Trade with all parts of the world:
For imposing Taxes on us without our Consent:
For depriving us in many cases, of the benefits of Trial by Jury:
For transporting us beyond Seas to be tried for pretended offences
For abolishing the free System of English Laws in a neighbouring Province, establishing therein an Arbitrary government, and enlarging its Boundaries so as to render it at once an example and fit instrument for introducing the same absolute rule into these Colonies:
For taking away our Charters, abolishing our most valuable Laws, and altering fundamentally the Forms of our Governments:
For suspending our own Legislatures, and declaring themselves invested with power to legislate for us in all cases whatsoever.
He has abdicated Government here, by declaring us out of his Protection and waging War against us.
He has plundered our seas, ravaged our Coasts, burnt our towns, and destroyed the lives of our people.
He is at this time transporting large Armies of foreign Mercenaries to compleat the works of death, desolation and tyranny, already begun with circumstances of Cruelty & perfidy scarcely paralleled in the most barbarous ages, and totally unworthy the Head of a civilized nation.
He has constrained our fellow Citizens taken Captive on the high Seas to bear Arms against their Country, to become the executioners of their friends and Brethren, or to fall themselves by their Hands.
He has excited domestic insurrections amongst us, and has endeavoured to bring on the inhabitants of our frontiers, the merciless Indian Savages, whose known rule of warfare, is an undistinguished destruction of all ages, sexes and conditions.

In every stage of these Oppressions We have Petitioned for Redress in the most humble terms: Our repeated Petitions have been answered only by repeated injury. A Prince whose character is thus marked by every act which may define a Tyrant, is unfit to be the ruler of a free people.

Nor have We been wanting in attentions to our Brittish brethren. We have warned them from time to time of attempts by their legislature to extend an unwarrantable jurisdiction over us. We have reminded them of the circumstances of our emigration and settlement here. We have appealed to their native justice and magnanimity, and we have conjured them by the ties of our common kindred to disavow these usurpations, which, would inevitably interrupt our connections and correspondence. They too have been deaf to the voice of justice and of consanguinity. We must, therefore, acquiesce in the necessity, which denounces our Separation, and hold them, as we hold the rest of mankind, Enemies in War, in Peace Friends.

We, therefore, the Representatives of the united States of America, in General Congress, Assembled, appealing to the Supreme Judge of the world for the rectitude of our intentions, do, in the Name, and by Authority of the good People of these Colonies, solemnly publish and declare, That these United Colonies are, and of Right ought to be Free and Independent States; that they are Absolved from all Allegiance to the British Crown, and that all political connection between them and the State of Great Britain, is and ought to be totally dissolved; and that as Free and Independent States, they have full Power to levy War, conclude Peace, contract Alliances, establish Commerce, and to do all other Acts and Things which Independent States may of right do. And for the support of this Declaration, with a firm reliance on the protection of divine Providence, we mutually pledge to each other our Lives, our Fortunes and our sacred Honor.

Zabriskie Takes Stage; Lance Makes Big Time

Lance Armstrong was expected to win the 19-km (11.8-mi) first stage today, and he certainly came close to it. Dave Zabriskie, winner of a time trial stage at the Giro d'Italia in May, was the surprise of the day with the win at 20:51:840, and Lance was just two seconds back. Alexandre Vinokourov was third at a massive 53 seconds behind Zabriskie.

Ullrich, the five-time runner-up in the Tour, was passed by Lance today, which was probably the first time Ullrich was ever passed in a time trial, as time trialing is his forté. That must be quite embarrasing to the German.

Phil Liggett and Paul Sherwin were speculating that since Lance was first three seconds behind Zabriskie at the first time check (because right when he started his right foot came out of the pedal), then three seconds ahead at the second time check, then two seconds behind at the finish, Lance could have just let up at the end to let another American win and take the responsibilty of the maillot jaune.


David Zabriskie (CSC) USA, won the opening individual time trial.


Lance passed Ullrich, who was 60 seconds ahead to start.

Photos from VeloNews.com, by AFP.

1 David Zabriskie (Team CSC) 20.51
2 Lance Armstrong (Discovery Channel) 0.02
3 Alexandre Vinokourov (T-Mobile Team) 0.53
4 George Hincapie (Discovery Channel) 0.57
5 Laszlo Bodrogi (Credit Agricole) 0.59
6 Floyd Landis (Phonak Hearing Systems) 1.02
7 Jens Voigt (Team CSC) 1.04
8 Vladimir Karpets (Illes Balears-Caisse d'Epargne) 1.05
9 Igor Gonzalez de Galdeano (Liberty Seguros-Würth) 1.06
10 Bobby Julich (Team CSC) 1.07
11 Jose Enrique Gutierrez (Phonak Hearing Systems) 1.12
12 Jan Ullrich (T-Mobile)

Traveling in Uk

We are on the ship now. Visited Stonehenge yesterday. Very overcast rainy day. We were lucky and no heavy weather to get us wet, just damp. We have today at sea then we will arrive in Dublin. Will post a few pictures. We are having a good time. Lots of naps on the coach between destinations. Impressive structures and interesting food. Never had mint beef before. Everyone along the way has been pleasant and interesting individuals. 23 on the coach part, 2000 + on the cruise. Full cruise. The four of us sat in a stern lounge and watched as we left port. Very relaxing. Our cabin is very comfortable. Had the door to the balcony open and listen to the ocean. The picture is us riding the London Eye. It lifted us high over the Thames. The other picture is us at Warrick Castle. Another of Shakespere's birth place. Still learning how to work this here. My cel-phone hasn't worked at all. Very little coverage in UK. We will check e-mail and keep you all posted.

And, now a word from Doris!

Well I'm back after 9 days visiting with Lorraine Albright in West Virginia. As Cindi said we landed in S Carolina and actually spent a lot of time in Virginia where Jaletta Albright Desmond lives and she and Lorraine sent greetings especially to my family who know her and to those who don"t actually know them but are closelly related to those they know. Did you'all get that? They live about 5 minutes apart and share the town name of Bluefield but the states are different. Taxes are less in Virginia but Lorraine couldn't find a town house there. We learned all about coal mining, millionaires and poverty and wonder what holds them together since coal mining stopped in 1947.

Everytime I'm gone for awhile I loose something in the bloog and this is the only access I can find to write so hope B and S will read this and get me something from Wales. They may already have left that country. Took me awhile to read all the bloog and delete all the trah in my e-mail this morning,
More later on the trip. Really glad that Audrey Albright and I were able to go.

[previously posted a s comment to "Where in the World is Steve"]