Just finished watching Stage 2 of the Tour de France. Check out the TdF online or on Versus TV. This is my second post highlighting what inspires me about watching the greatest cyclists of the world.
Mark Cavendish sprinted to win Stage 2 of today’s TdF race.
Last year, he won four stages of TdF and then dropped out of the race in order to train for the Olympics. Sadly, he did not win any medals at the olympics, and regrets that decision. I was glad to see him win today. He was really on fire last year, and I would like to see him finish what he started.
Here is what he had to say about his regrets:
It was the greatest mistake of my career to stop the tour. Hindsight is a wonderful thing. But ya, for sure, even between the tour and the Olympics I thought that maybe its not the best thing to have done to leave the tour. But, ya, I can’t look back and say I could have, would have, should have…you know, the only way you get results is to learn off your mistakes and focus on the future.
One of the nice things about having a blog is that I can go back and re-read old posts and remember the things I have learned along the way. Especially mistakes. Last year at Lake Norman, I learned that I cannot go “all out” on the bike during a sprint race, and expect to have a decent run. My friend Ginger, Aquaphor Chick, commented on yesterday’s post that I should race for the podium. Hmmm…thinking, thinking…
When asked about his Time Trial results from Stage 1, Lance Armstrong replied that he had gone out too conservatively in the first half of the 15.5k race. He added that he was unsure if going out harder would have been the better choice…because then he may have burned himself out for the end. Interesting that even Lance is not always 100% sure! Hmmm…more thinking, thinking, thinking.
I think it’s cool how each race is an experiment for pacing, nutrition, hydration, etc, etc. Oh, I just remembered another mistake I made… I ran out of water during the bike at Riverwood. You would think that a 20 ounce aerobottle would be enough for a 14 mile bike ride!
Other thoughts from todays TdF:
Cool site about cycling terminology: http://bikegirl2.wordpress.com/2008/07/14/cycling-101-terminology/
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