TOC(R) starts today....or will it?

That Other Cycling (Race)....HA! Sometimes I crack myself up!

Well....it's 11:30am on RACE DAY as I type, and the riders aren't riding. Guess it's a bad day up at Tahoe...VN reports the stage will be shortened and maybe starting around 1:30pm, but looking at tweets from riders and others, they are thinking it's a day off. Would they do that? (cancel the entire opening stage?) Not sure what they will do if there's still snow and ice on the roads...sure can't ride bikes in it....unless they do something entirely new and make a MTB stage out of it...now THAT would be something! Kind of like adding the cobbles into last years Tour, only better! The mechanics would really be busy...road bikes, TT bikes, and MTB bikes. I like it...who do I write to with my idea?

I am still in denial that Fabian won't be here this year...he's ALWAYS here! What's up with that? Anybody hear anything about this? And Frank too...what's going on w/ Leopard-Trek? Andy's here....I'd have thought sure Fabian and Frank would come with Andy. I don't know what kind of form Andy's truly in just now, but it seems a race he should be contesting for the win to me. Garmin Cervelo surely came to win...their team is loaded to the gills! And Radio Shack is looking pretty good too. And don't discount BMC w/ Big George...will THIS finally be his last year? I sure hope he doesn't crash out...I really want another picture of him during Friday's Solvang TT (and yes, I'll be there...most likely on the short climb up Ballard Canyon as in prior years).

On a a plus note, Bob Roll, (AKA Bobke) will be coming to speak in Santa Maria this Thursday evening as he has in years past the night before the Solvang TT. He's awesome to listen to on the air, and even more-so in person. He's showing up at one of our local bike shops, same as the prior years. The venue is small and the crowd is large. It'll be standing room only, and barely that. I'll make sure I get there early again to stake out a small piece of property.

And I know that this little local race will be dominating my cycling radar screen for the next week and a half, but HEY HEY HEY! How about Contador lighting it up on the slopes of Mt Etna in the Giro today? WOW! He storms into the pink jersey on a mountaintop finish...and all the while awaiting word from the CAS if he will be suspended (for up to TWO YEARS!). WHAT IF he goes ahead and wins this race, and is then sanctioned/disqualified by the CAS? What an ugly mess that would be for cycling. I have to wonder if they (the CAS) won't be taking all this into account as they make their decision. The Giro organizers would be FURIOUS if he were sanctioned for something that happened last year after being allowed to start, and I can only guess that they are quaking in their boots at this possibility. I see some real ugly politics ahead for sure in this debacle. This will surely be a topic to discuss over at Rant's.

OK...I'm off to do some housework and then will check back in to see if today's ToC stage indeed will start. Of course I'm watching it all online (still no VS on the satellite...won't get that until early July). I need to mow, and hopefully it's getting dry (it RAINED some this morning...most likely part of the same storm system that hit Tahoe). Happy Sunday!

Game ON (I hope!)

1:26pm UPDATE  Well...it appears today's stage has been canceled due to the weather. Holy cats...the opening stage canceled! Not a very good omen for this years race. Good thing the race is in May for better weather! Sheesh! This must be quite disappointing for AMGEN...and a lot of money spent for a non-stage. Though it can't be helped....you can't hold a race on icy roads and risk all the riders. We've already seen enough tragedy in this sport for a while. Good call (and gutsy!) by the organizers.

Maybe they can move the race into September against the Vuelta and FINALLY we can have some decent weather? Who do I call?