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Whew! I'm gassed.

Watching the climb up L'Alpe d'Huez will do that to you. All those switchbacks. All the attacks. All the counter-attacks and comebacks. All that drama. And all that pain.

It lived up to the hype. There was the fight up in front, won by Frank Schleck (CSC) - big shout out for Luxembourg!. Then there was the yellow jersey battle behind. Carlos Sastre (CSC) and Leipheimer (Gerolsteiner) fell behind early, then steadily crawled back into it. Denis Menchov (Rabobank) faded back, and kept fading. Cadel Evans (Davitamon Lotto) cracked like an egg.

Steady all the way through were Andreas Kloden (T-Mobile) and Floyd Landis (Phonak). They probed each other with a few attacks, eventually deciding that neither was going give (and probably that a huge effort wasn't smart with two more Alpine stages to go). So they settled in and chugged to the top.

Oh yeah, the yellow jersey. Almost forgot. Oscar Pereiro (Caisse d'Epargne) was in the picture, but just barely. So once Landis and Kloden crossed the line together, the drama of clock-watching began. Pereiro put on a game sprint at the end, but wound up 10 seconds short.

So Floyd's back in yellow and we ask ourselves the question again - Who's going to win this race?

Here's a quick look at the top 10 after Stage 15

Overall
1. Floyd Landis (USA), Phonak
2. Oscar Pereiro Sio (Sp), Caisse d'Epargne-I.B., at 0:10
3. Cyril Dessel (F), Ag2r Prevoyance, at 2:02
4. Denis Menchov (Rus), Rabobank, at 2:12
5. Carlos Sastre (Sp), CSC, at 2:17
6. Andréas Klöden (G), T-Mobile, at 2:29
7. Cadel Evans (Aus), Davitamon-Lotto, at 2:56
8. Michael Rogers (Aus), T-Mobile, at 5:01
9. Levi Leipheimer (USA), Gerolsteiner, at 6:18
10. Haimar Zubeldia (Sp), Euskaltel-Euskadi, at 6:20

While Pereiro was game, don't expect him to be a factor in the next two mountain stages. Then he's toast when the time trial comes. So he's out.

So is Cyril Dessel. He showed us something on d'Huez, coming in 19th. But if coming in 19th in a stage is an achievement, then you're not a race factor. So he's out.

With another strong ride in the mountains, Levi Leipheimer has ridden himself back into the top 10, as well as solid, "What if?" territory. Levi's 6:18 back overall. He lost 5:05 of that to Landis in the Stage 7 time trial, where Levi was mysteriously terrible. Maybe he was ill. Maybe his bike had a problem. We may never know the exact answer. To his credit Levi didn't make any direct excuses. But if Levi could have ridden even an average time trial that day, he'd be in the top five and still have an outside shot of winning it all. Instead, he's left hoping to maybe, just maybe, sneak on the bottom step of the podium.

Denis Menchov? He made my prediction of a podium finish look very, very bad today. At one point he was so wiped out that he didn't have the strength to reach out and grab a water bottle that teammate Michael Rasmussen was trying to hand to him. Maybe he can rally tomorrow or Thursday, but today was a big test that he failed.

I'd bump Menchov off the podium completely if not for the ride of my other podium prediction, Cadel Evans. He did even worse, finishing 28 seconds behind Menchov and 1:39 behind Landis. Sorry mate, thanks for the memories.

My new guy on the podium, just one step from the top, is Andreas Kloden. He looked strong all day. Though he didn't have enough to drop Landis, he had more than enough to gain time on all the other top rivals. I see him leaping Sastre, Menchov, Dessel and Pereiro ...

but not Landis. The guy looked good in the prologue - except for the bike problem that caused him to start a few seconds late. He looked good in the time trial - except for the problem with his handlebars that probably cost him half a minute or so. He looked good in the Pyrenees. Now he's looked good in the Alps. A guy could always blow up on any day - that's what makes the mountain stages so exciting - but we have no evidence to suggest that Floyd is anything but the favorite at this point. My biggest concern for him is the shoddy work of his freakin' mechanics. What if one of them forgets to tighten up the quick release on his back wheel and it falls off on a descent tomorrow?

Oh, and Lance Armstrong was the top of d'Huez today. Wonder if he smiled when Landis donned the yellow jersey again ... or just gritted his teeth.

Speaking of drama in the Alps, here's the tidbit that I did not know about Lance's 2004 time trial up d'Huez (courtesy of Agence France Presse)

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Armstrong revisits L'Alpe d'Huez
Lance Armstrong was back in a familiar spot -- at the top of L'Alpe d'Huez.

The retired seven-time Tour de France champion pedaled to the Alpine ski resort Monday on the Tour rest day. Riders will attempt the grueling 116-mile 15th stage on Tuesday.

Armstrong plans to watch the stage on TV, visit the team bus Wednesday before the 16th stage and join manager Johan Bruyneel in the Discovery car on the course route.

Armstrong's presence could serve as motivation for his former Discovery teammates -- none are in the top 10 in the overall standings.

The stage Tuesday ends with a 21-bend climb up L'Alpe d'Huez, a famed ascent where Armstrong decimated the opposition during a tense time trial in 2004. Armstrong had police snipers riding behind in a support car after the Texan received death threats.

Armstrong will leave the team on Wednesday, spend a few days relaxing and rejoin the Tour for Sunday's finish on the Champs-Elysees, Discovery Channel team spokesman P.J. Rabice said.

Armstrong won his record seven Tour titles under Bruyneel's guidance, first with U.S. Postal before Discovery acquired sponsorship of the team. Armstrong is a part owner of the team.

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Police snipers? Holy cow. I thought it was bad when the German fans spit on him.

As for Lance providing motivation for Team Disco ... not so much. My guy George was in the big breakaway, but started pedaling backwards on d'Huez and wound up 30th. He finished right with Popovych, who's 13th overall.

So there you have it folks. Stage 15 is a wrap and my new 1-2-3 is Landis, Kloden, Menchov. I know, gutsy picks. And I'll probably change them again tomorrow.