POST ORIGINALLY FILED 12:01 a.m., PT, July 3, 2009 – The waiting. The suspense. The drama. This year feels different. Take your eye off the iPhone or the MacBook for a few hours to catch up on printed copies of Outside, VeloNews, and New Yorker, and whoop, there it is. More change. More churn. New chatter. Relentless buzzing. In the span of 12 hours, Alexandre Vinokourov proclaims Team Astana is his “baby” and he’d like it back, thank you; Paris-Roubaix winner Tom Boonen hangs in the balance (wake up and he’s officially in); and rumors flare that Johan Bruyneel will be gone as director sportif of Astana by fall. Of course, more doping cases are said to be expected (press reports have Armstrong at top of list). Plus there’s increased testing planned for particular riders. And lest we not forget the new lines of 2010 bikes to feature and even Cadillacs (not Subarus) on VERSUS cable network to hawk. It’s enough to make me crave that Friday is tomorrow (Saturday), and that bike racers are racing in the Tour de France. But since it isn’t (and they aren’t), I’ll settle for a long gentle ride, shooting a few photographs and sipping an espresso or two — or maybe even three. Then, I’ll clean up and kit up for a second more unpredictable ride that is watching and observing the spectacle. The Tour de France is a 20-stage race over three weeks. And we’ve almost begun. Tomorrow. Yes, that’s when the legs start talking. When listening becomes easier as results begin to frame the real story. And what a story I hope it is. My podium picks when the peloton reaches Paris: Lance Armstrong, Alberto Contador, Carlos Sastre. Yes, I admit it: I’m a homer. Let’s race. May the best man win. (UPDATED 8:00 a.m., PT)
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