Team High Road are not a very old team but their early success continues to come and this time it’s through Brit sprinter Mark Cavandish.  He beat out some of the fastest men in the world, including old boy and legend Erik Zabel.  It is his first win in  one of the grand tours and one im sure he will remember for a long time.

Overall Italian Franco Pellizotti continues to lead in the early going — we’re only through four stages with lots of big mountains to come!

As for the young Irish rider in the pack Philip Deignan, he finished in the bunch and remains in 64th place 1:50 back on the overall leader.  He also sits 12th in the young rider clasification.

I have to admit to have not been paying much attention to the pro scene at all lately.  I dont think I’m alone in that either.  It is the reason however that I completely missed the news that the Tour of Italy has started.  Thankfully it’s only one stage down with the second stage currently being raced.  To be honest though I’m missing most of this second stage because of the final games of the Premier League season.  It’s only early in the Giro and this — afterall — is the crunch games to see who will win and who will go down from the Premier League.

Stage 1 in the Giro was a 23.6km team time trial.  Bit strange seeing something like that starting a tour and believe it or not but the pink leaders jersey goes to the rider from the winning team that crossed the line first in his team.  Bizarre and it’s making me wonder does each team sprint for the line in the hope that the winning rider will get that leaders jersey should his team post the best time?  Now I’m beginning to really regret having missed the start of this race.  I would have liked to have seen that one.

Anyway, the winning team was that new team, Slipstream Chipotle Presented By H30, which I was glad to see.  They beat CSC into second place and another new team, Team High Road into third.  Good to see two very anti-drug teams finishing first and third.

As it turns out it was Christian Vande Velde who was the first man across the line for Slipstream and so he takes the Pink jersey into today’s race.

As for todays race . . . Flicking over to Eurosport from the football  . . . There is a huge bunch together and I believe they are not very far from the line.  6km’s according to Sean Kelly who has told us that we will see the real action in the last 4k.

So, it’s great to have a major tour back on.  Just in time for the end of the footballing season.

*****

As it turned out Riccardo Riccò beat out fellow Italian Danilo Di Luca for the win.  Overall the new leader in Pink will be Franco Pellizotti.  Christian Vande Velde falls to second in whats been a good day for the Italians at their home race.

One of the hardest events in the NI sportive callendar, the Tour of the Glens took place today. Organised by the Castlereagh club the course covered the same 127 mile route as last year. Unfortunately the weather forecast took its toll on the entry, being much reduced on last year. However, close to 100 hardy riders did take part. Although wet for long stretches and very misty in the high Glens, at least the temperature was fine for cycling and we were blessed by a stiff tailwind for the first 50 miles or so, which thankfully, eased for the homeward run. Starting in Belfast the first checkpoint was at Ballygalley, followed in a few miles by the first climb, Glenarm Glen which is nicely graded 3.5miles and not too steep. The descent back to the coast, down Ballyvaddy Road was wet, as were most of the long descents, and care had to be taken, which spoilt the fun a little - not a day for 120psi.

 Following a quick stop a Cushendall the ‘Loop’ commenced - 50K, with 2 serious climbs - Glendun and then the long headwind drag up Altnahinch Road back to the top of Glendun. The lunch stop back at Cusnendall was so welcome - thanks to the Kinnings and others from Castlereagh for the hot tea and sandwiches.

 Homeward bound then, with the hardest 50 miles in the country, starting up Glenariff, then that horrible road between Cargan and Broughshane, with its 2 wicked steep wee hills just designed to sap your last bit of reserves before the longest 13 miles in the country, on over to Ballyclare. How awful is that road? The first climb is hard, though its good enough to take a turn or two, but the Colin Road, up the Battery, can be seen from miles off going straight up into the heavens, and its steep, and its at 110 miles. You know its the last climb but boy does it hurt. Freewheel in to Ballyclare, with many a stop for fuel, and then the grind back to the City Hall, 127 miles completed. Over 100miles alone!

Never again!!

My 6th time!

Well done to all finishers.

Here are a few pictures.

http://www.cycleseen.com/TourofGlens08/index.html

Talk about cleaning up!! The British team won a record number of medals at this weekends World Championships in Manchester. For more on all that follow this link here.

I just want to say how great it was to see our sport get so much television coverage. Sure Eurosport were doing their usual excellent bit with tons of coverage but to see live cycling on terestrial BBC channels was a suprise but a joy. I don’t know how many people tuned in but it no doubt looked a sucess with the amount of success the team were having on the track. Even Saturday’s prime-time Grandstand show had hours worth of track coverage.

The sinister people amoung us, including myself at times, will say that the BBC are getting on baord now because they know this is were most of our Olympic success will be in Beijing. That is true, I mean Britain will struggle to win medals in most other areas so why wouldn’t the BBC use this as a chance to get the viewing public on board in time for the Olympics. Fair enough I say. I may not be for the Olympics being in China and I still hope to see a boycott but if we do end up there and competing it would be great to see the coverage of cycling and the media attention it would gain if it did indeed produce about 90% of our total medal haul.

For Photo’s by CycleSeen’s Eric Blayney, CLICK HERE

It was the toughest stage of the Tour so far on the final day.  A 70-mile race through South-Down that seen Glen Kinning take the win and Ryan Connor hang onto his yellow jersey for the over all victory.  It’s the third time Connor has won the event in the past five years having previously took the overall title in 2005 and 2007.

I wasn’t at Monday’s event so do not have much of a race report but Eric was on hand to take a bunch of excellent photos.  For a more indepth race report visit the Cycling Ulster website’s review.

RESULTS  Continue Reading »