Publications
Partners
Comment: Jens Voigt
That was one hell of a day. Fortunately I was ready for it today. It started out just so hard I was like, "Oh, I think I'll just drop dead right here."
Heck, it didn't take me any time to think of my book of the day. Today it was easy, Norman Mailer's "The Naked and the Dead." It's just such a classic and Sunday's stage was such a classic. I had to read it in high school in East Germany like all the kids and it was just one of those books you can never forget.
Stage 8 was so much like the book, at least for me and my team. I mean my team-mate Andy Schleck won the stage, but there was just so much drama!
It was a tragic day for Lance Armstrong. I was just behind him when he went down in that roundabout and had Andy on my wheel.
First he touched a pedal and then his front wheel rolled and after that there was nothing he could do. Like I said I was just a couple riders behind and it was like, "Oh my God, oh no!" And I'm thinking, "No, please no, Andy please don't go down!" and when I got past Lance and looked around and saw Andy still on my wheel I thought, "Oh yes."
Going into the stage, one of the worst kept secrets was that Alberto Contador wanted to attack. I know he said he thought the leaders would really wait until the Pyrenees, yeah, yeah, yeah. This is Contador. Last night we were in the same hotel with Astana and I could just sense that they were motivated.
But Andy was just great and I knew he would be. On Saturday at the foot of the last climb he told us he was not great, but by the end he could chase down anything, so obviously he had found his climbing legs. And Sunday's stage was perfect for him. Astana were pacing the front group up the last two climbs and that worked out perfect for us because Andy was just on a good day.
At the team meeting this morning, we told him, "Andy, you're the leader. If you want us to pick up the pace, just tell us." And then midway through the Ramaz Pass he told us to accelerate and I was like, "Wow, somebody is feeling really good here!" So it was great to see him win.
He obviously was better than Contador on the day. Okay the time difference was only 10 seconds, but Alberto is not just going to give up time. First of all, Alberto is not calculating enough to let Andy go. He's Spanish, he would have won the stage if possible. And hey, this is the Tour de France. You don't just give up 10 seconds. Heck the Tour de France has been lost by eight seconds previously.
But what I think what we really saw on Sunday was that there are two riders, Alberto and Andy, that are just above the rest. Okay, Cadel Evans is in yellow tonight, and you have to take him seriously. He has twice finished second in the Tour and now as world champion he is just riding like a different rider. It's great to see really. But I just think he has too much muscle to stay with Andy and Alberto in the high mountains with all of this heat.
But right now it is kind of like a déjà-vu. Two years ago Cadel was in yellow going into the second week. And that was the year my team-mate Carlos Sastre won. So now that Cadel is in yellow, hopefully my team-mate Andy will win!
That was one hell of a day. Fortunately I was ready for it today. It started out just so hard I was like, "Oh, I think I'll just drop dead right here."
Heck, it didn't take me any time to think of my book of the day. Today it was easy, Norman Mailer's "The Naked and the Dead." It's just such a classic and Sunday's stage was such a classic. I had to read it in high school in East Germany like all the kids and it was just one of those books you can never forget.
Stage 8 was so much like the book, at least for me and my team. I mean my team-mate Andy Schleck won the stage, but there was just so much drama!
It was a tragic day for Lance Armstrong. I was just behind him when he went down in that roundabout and had Andy on my wheel.
First he touched a pedal and then his front wheel rolled and after that there was nothing he could do. Like I said I was just a couple riders behind and it was like, "Oh my God, oh no!" And I'm thinking, "No, please no, Andy please don't go down!" and when I got past Lance and looked around and saw Andy still on my wheel I thought, "Oh yes."
Going into the stage, one of the worst kept secrets was that Alberto Contador wanted to attack. I know he said he thought the leaders would really wait until the Pyrenees, yeah, yeah, yeah. This is Contador. Last night we were in the same hotel with Astana and I could just sense that they were motivated.
But Andy was just great and I knew he would be. On Saturday at the foot of the last climb he told us he was not great, but by the end he could chase down anything, so obviously he had found his climbing legs. And Sunday's stage was perfect for him. Astana were pacing the front group up the last two climbs and that worked out perfect for us because Andy was just on a good day.
At the team meeting this morning, we told him, "Andy, you're the leader. If you want us to pick up the pace, just tell us." And then midway through the Ramaz Pass he told us to accelerate and I was like, "Wow, somebody is feeling really good here!" So it was great to see him win.
He obviously was better than Contador on the day. Okay the time difference was only 10 seconds, but Alberto is not just going to give up time. First of all, Alberto is not calculating enough to let Andy go. He's Spanish, he would have won the stage if possible. And hey, this is the Tour de France. You don't just give up 10 seconds. Heck the Tour de France has been lost by eight seconds previously.
But what I think what we really saw on Sunday was that there are two riders, Alberto and Andy, that are just above the rest. Okay, Cadel Evans is in yellow tonight, and you have to take him seriously. He has twice finished second in the Tour and now as world champion he is just riding like a different rider. It's great to see really. But I just think he has too much muscle to stay with Andy and Alberto in the high mountains with all of this heat.
But right now it is kind of like a déjà-vu. Two years ago Cadel was in yellow going into the second week. And that was the year my team-mate Carlos Sastre won. So now that Cadel is in yellow, hopefully my team-mate Andy will win!
