Le Tour ramblings

[BigMac]

It is with at least some regret that I must now leave this beautiful country, just when the race is about to get interesting. I will not be in Paris on the final Sunday for the 1st time since '95. Heck I won't even be at home in Italy or BayArea where I could watch as this historical event unfolds. Rather I am off to lovely Tulsa..."home of steer's and queers..." or some such nonsense as described by a Hollywood drill seargent (Lou Gossett in a mediocre film who's title escapes me). My 13 year old is in a national baseball tournament and somehow, someway they have chosen Tulsa as the host. I mean no offense to those of you in Tulsa or anywhere in Oklahoma but really, Tulsa in late July? PUULEAZE!!

So thoughts from the first 11 days of Le Tour '04? Well, Lance and USPS look very balanced, healthy and strong. There was a rumor that a bug had effected a few members but in Europe, particularly the French Press you must take absolutely everything written with a large dose of salt. I ahve personally never seen Jan look stronger or more focussed but his team appears thin and hagard before they've even hit the slopes. Mayo appears to be regaining his form, I suspect he will be agressive tomorrow but I still revert to my original pre-race prediction that he will abandon before they exit the Alps. Bjarne's boys have been the most aggressive and entertaining group thus far, that should continue as we enter the real race. I pick Sastre to win tomorrow's stage, albeit by only 30-40 seconds over Lance, Mayo, Heras and Basso will also be actively attacking as they near their home country. Lance however will not regain his yellow jersey till Saturday, this young frechman has some serious fight and will only lose 3 minutes to Lance on the final climb. I'm still picking Lance to exit the Alps with 3:00 on field, Heras, Sastre, Hamilton and Ullrich placing 2-5, respectively. Lance and Jan blow away the field on stage 19 TT by over 3:00 which moves Jan into 2nd, Sastre holds on for 3rd. Sastre wears the dots and McEwen gets green.

I do feel MUCH more comfortable with these picks than any NCAA hoops brackets which even my kids whoop me on. I do hope Tulsa gets OLN at the very least, if not I'm having DVD's burned and FedEx'd to me for viewing on a portable player. OK, its not ideal but this is history and has setup for a beautiful race.

FWIW: I'll even have a bike with me, are there any hills or decent rides in Tulsa...any at all :confused:

Ride on! :banana: :banana: :banana:

[dave thompson]

I went to Tulsa once. It was closed.


(OOhh, I'm gonna get killed for that!)

[Smiley]

Last time I was in Tulsa , you needed to bring your own bottle of booze to a resturant. Unfortunately I'll be there on business in August again.
Nice to hear from you Mr Mac , I hope all works out well for your baseball player son.

[Kevan]

OLN...Oklahoma Living Network. ;)


Tornado warnings, crop reports, and NASCAR. It's all there...

[Birddog]

Tulsa in July, now thats a vacation! Actually, Tulsa is not so bad, OKC is the real armpit of the state. There are some hills in the Tulsa area, just not real long ones. There are also myriad lakes, you just cant see through the water. The restaurant scene in Tulsa is OK but not great, remember that surf and turf in Oklahoma is Chicken Fried Steak and Fried Catfish, or sometimes Crawdads. Fried Okra is the vegetable of choice. Tulsa is sprawled out, so be prepared for that. The high today was about 98, and the low last night was 78 and the humidity is up a little, though nothing like New Orleans or Houston. Try this link for more info, sorry I don't know that much about riding up there.

Birddog

http://www.tulsawheelmen.com/index.shtm

[coylifut]

I think your analysis is dead on. Jan looks great, as does Lance. I think we are going to see two healthy and on form athletes give us a great show in the days to come.

[Tom]

Elvin Bishop sure did. It can't be all bad.

Stranger in a Strange Land. Hmm. Maybe that oughta be my signature around here.

[William]

I think you called it right, but strange things can happen. :rolleyes:

What I remember about OK in the summer is that it's fairly flat, windy, and as one of my students says, "Africa Hot". Walking out side from an airconditioned room was like walking into an oven.

I hope the game goes your way! Have fun (and drink plenty of fluids).


William

[MartyE]

OLN...Oklahoma Living Network. ;)

Kevan, I respectfully disagree.
it's Oklahoma LIVESTOCK Channel.

Bigmac I do believe there is a hill in Tulsa, where interstate 244 (44) crosses
over Rte. 169. well what else do you call an overpass in Ok?

Marty

[Kevan]

you're right. But they still have the warnings and car races. ;)

[Birddog]

Don't mistake me for an apologist for Oklahoma, but you guys are mostly just spreading common misconceptions. Oklahoma, is far from flat, the W half of the state is fairly level, but the E side is mostly rolling hills. We have a ride in an area we prefer to keep quiet about, that has over 8,000 feet of climbing in 87 miles, and we think we found a route to extend it to near 10,000 in 100 miles, not exactly flat.

Although there are plenty of NASCAR fans in OK, there are no races, but don't try to negotiate I35 when there is a race in Texas. Tornados and windstorms are arguably "big business" in OK, the last major storm was a hailstorm that caused $85m in damage. that may even make the llivestock market pale in comparison. I've been told that OK has more shoreline than any other state, and that may well be true. Of course, with shoreline comes water, and with water boats, and with boats cheap beer, so thats a major economic stimulus too. We also have more miles of tollroads, some of them even go to places that are popular. The joke about the "Indian Nation" toll road is that there are more toll booths than cars. We do process a lot of animals here, chickens for Tyson in the E and pigs for Bar S in the W. Until recently, meth labs were major manufacturers, but a new law regarding the sale of Pseudoephedrine has moved many to Texas. Ganja is still a major crop though, predominantly down in the SE. Indian Casinos are sprouting like 7/11's ,they're popping up everywhere, cigarettes and slots, how can you lose?

Now for the best. Oklahoma is one of only about 5 states that allow "handfishing", and "Noodling" as it is more popularly called is a growing sport and facination for many Okies. I'm not sure, but I think you may have to have a tatoo or a mullet to legally "noodle".
Both would be very de rigeur. A confederate flag and/or a gun rack in your pickup is also apparently necessary. You can always spot the home of a "noodler" because they have catfish heads placed on top of their fenceposts.
Here's a link to more info about "noodling". If you haven't seen this documentary, it is well worth the purchase price, trust me on this one. Throw it in the mix with some of your old TDF videos, you won't be disappointed.

Birddog

http://okienoodling.com/

[Larry]

Stage 12- Lance finishes next to a friend in Basso. What a happy ending to the stage.
And..... our favorite Texan is still holding it back for tomorrow's multiple climbs. Jan is struggling, and he looked whipped today. Postal's attack took the strength out of him. Did you see his face? ...... weathered and exhausted!!
Expect something even more special from Lance tomorrow....... he is ready to climb!!!! :banana: :beer: :banana:

[Ozz]

I think the worse the weather is, the bigger the difference in the suffering Lance can endure vs. his competitors...Jan said something to that effect in his post race interview.

[Larry]

Great excuse, Jan!
It gets back to training regime!!!

[Tom]

Around these parts you 'trout tickle'. Anybody can fly fish for trout. Anybody can fool them from thirty feet away. It takes a real fisher to steal up on them in their lair, get your hand on their belly and lightly tickle them until they are completely helpless and then scoop them right out of the water.

Don't believe me? They passed laws against it. You can look it up.

Admittedly, it doesn't have the same sort of thrill as grabbing a thirty five pound beast that bears stinging tentacles on its face. It's more of a quiet smile and 'ha!' kind of thrill than a thrashing "Whoooaaaa, Nelly!" kind of thrill. Think Dick Cavett versus Keith Jackson.