News-Record.com

Actually asst. sports editor John Newsom - aka the Spotter - had a stronger term, but we run a family blog here.

Newsom was referring to the July cover of Cycle Sport America magazine. Just go through the checklist of contenders listed- out, out, injured, still in , still in and out. Gee, thanks.

Now, I feel for the poor saps who paid money for the magazine and are now reading previews of a race that no longer resembles anything we expected. But who do I really feel sorry for? My fellow sportswriters of course. The Tour de France is THE event in competitive cycling - I don't want to hear any different from you fat-tire junkies. I would imagine these guys spent months compiling the info that went into this magazine, which is probably far and away the best selling issue of the year. Now, it's all for naught.

It's like pouring your heart and soul into a preview edition of the ACC tournament only to have six teams lose three starters apiece due to eligibility issues on the eve of the event. Only worse.

What's that? You actually want to know about what's going with the Tour and not with the lives of ink-stained wretches? Okay, fine.

(SPOILER ALERT for those who haven't already watched the Tour today. Although, if you pass up watching Phil Ligett and Paul Sherwin and settle on Bob Rolle and Al Trautwig, I urge you to seek professional help immediately.)

Four weird things about today's tour.

1) Somebody actually donned one of those fake sumo outfits and showed up roadside in the Pyrenees to root on the riders. Weird? Yes. Surprising, given that some German dude dresses up as a devil and runs alongside riders every freaking year? Not really.

2) Poor Sergei Gonchar (the yellow jersey wearer, Jeff Carlton, not the former Washington Capitals defenseman.) Has anyone gone faster from cycling's penthouse to its proverbial outhouse? The guy starts the day wearing the maillot jaune. Midway through the stage his team makes it clear it's not chasing the breakaway and are thus abandoning any defense of Gonchar's jersey. By the end, we see Gonchar drifting pack to the team car to pick up fresh water bottles for all of his teammates - the ultimate domestique duty. When's the last time you saw the yellow jersey wearer have to perform such a menial job.

3) What's up with Levi Leipheimer? First, he looked terrible in the time trial, dropping behind the yellow jersey by over six minutes. Then, he gets dropped on the second climb today. Granted, he caught back up on the descent, but tomorow's stage is supposed to be the killer - not today's. Did this guy really win the Dauphine Libere? Are we sure? I'm ready to write him off as a contender. Might be time to sneak over the border into Spain to see one of its cycling friendly doctors. I kid, only because I care.

4) At least Levi's not Iban Mayo. What happened to this guy? He looked awful in the 2005 tour, yet Bicycling magazine touts him as a contender this year, crowing that Rabobank's Michael Rasmussen only dreams of climbing as well as Mayo. Sure, if that dream is a nightmare. Mayo got dropped early in today's stage and never recovered, finishing over 24 minutes behind the winners, with the straggler pack normally reserved for beefy sprinters and burnt out domestiques. Way to go, Mayo.

That weirdness aside, there wasn't much drama in the first mountain stage. Maybe the big boys were saving themselves for tomorrow's stage, which, I'm told, is supposed to be a killer. Look for someone among the contenders to make a move then.

Who, you ask, are the real contenders now? Good question. Here's a short, very inexact, list.

Andreas Kloden and Michael Rogers, T-Mobile - Two strong riders from the tour's strongest team. I pick Kloden over Rogers, if only because Bob Rolle keeps calling Rogers, "Mick Rogers." What, were they frat brothers in college?

Paolo Salvadelli, George Hincapie and Yaroslay Popyvych, Discovery - I'll be honest here folks. Until Disco sorts out which one of these three is going to be the main guy, I don't see any of them making a serious run for the yellow jersey. My heart though is with Hincapie - big shout out for Greenville, South Carolina! Represent!

Vladimir Karpets, Caisse d'Epargne-Illes Balears. - Didn't this guy once win the white jersey - given to the best young rider in the Tour - a few years back? He's been a consistent top finisher and now that his team leader, Valverde, is out of the race, Karpets can devote his full energy toward chasing a podium spot. I'd like him more if he'd just get a haircut.

Cadel Evans, Davitaman-Lotto - He was a top-10 guy last year and Phil and Paul seem to love him. I can't help wonder if there's a little pro-Commonwealth bias seeping in there, though.

Floyd Landis, Phonak - My pick to click. Provided his hip doesn't crack.

Not exactly a huge list is it? Throw in Denis Menchov off Rabobank and Carlos Sastre off CSC if you feel so inclined. Maybe even Juan Miguel Mercado from Agritubel (what is that, a water pipe company?) as well.

And maybe even Levi ... nahhh.