Well, it's September 11th. Watch the ESPN documentary "First Pitch" (Not First Take) about what happened in the aftermath and how sports was able to help out, maybe just a little bit. It's a great little bit about how a small thing like sports can contribute somewhat to the healing of a city after a great tragedy.
On to other news, Stage 20 of the Vuelta is tomorrow. Doom leads Fabio Aru by 6 seconds. Remember, Doom is not a climber. He specializes in the Time Trial. So it's incredibly surprising that he's leading the race with two (really, just one) stage to go. Tomorrow, the profile is like this:
So can he do it? Probably. He's surprised all of us so far by staying with all of the climbers throughout the high mountain stages. And because this isn't a summit finish, he still would have 17 km to work back to Aru in the small chance that he gets distanced. Aru will do something, but we'll see how Doom responds. Also, remember that there are other people in the top 10 who also want to move up or defend their positions, so there may even be attacks on the penultimate climb. I'll be Valverde is going up the road at some point. We'll see what happens. I hope that Doom defends his lead, and that we're even racing on the last day in Madrid, where traditionally nothing much happens until the last 5 km. Also, understand that Giant-Alpecin (Yes, the caffeine shampoo company) doesn't have many climbers, so Doom will probably be isolated very early on in the race. We'll see how Lawson Craddock recovers. But today Doom put in an attack in the last 2 km that was worthy of the race winner. I really hope he wins. Who was the last time-trailist to win a grand tour? You guessed it right. It was Sir Wiggins.
Here's a picture of Doom in the leader's jersey:
Here's a picture of Doom compared to the other GC guys. Look at how much bigger he is than anyone else. That is not a fat-angle, it's the real thing:
And remember this guy?
It's been a bunch of years since Fränk has been relevant. Luckily for him and the rest of his team, he can still climb. In fact, Trek Factory Racing hadn't had much good happen to them this year until the Vuelta. When Spartacus gets injured, the whole season is not so good anymore. Let's hope for a full recovery for him. It's a shame because the Worlds course this year in Richmond definitely suited him. And remember Andy? Well, he's opening up a bike shop next year. Let's hope that goes well.
After a rest day, we finally get some true GC excitement as well as a handover of the polka-dot jersey. Great job for Teklahaimanot, but it's time for the big boys to come out and play.
Stage 10: Tarbres to La Pierre-Saint-Martin - 167 km
Stage Finish: 1) Froome
2) Van Garderen
3) Quintana
Maillots after the stage: Jaune) Froome Vert) Greipel Pois Rouges) Froome Blanc) Quintana Laterne Rouge) Matthews
Sorry guys, I forgot to do a prediction yesterday for stage 8. It was a complicated stage and there was no way anyone was going to predict the winner. Today will be exciting. Look for Orica-GreenEdge to be last place, because they've lost a third of their team unfortunately.
Stage 9 (TTT): Vannes to Plumelec - 28 km
Stage Finish: 1) BMC
2) Astana
3) Sky Maillots after the stage: Jaune) Van Garderen Vert) Sagan Pois Rouges) Teklahaimanot Blanc) Sagan Laterne Rouge) Matthews
