Tour de France

The Tour de France started this weekend - it's one of my favorite sporting events. There is something oddly exciting about the race - the team strategy, the breakaways, the sprints, the fact that is such a long a grueling race.

For those of you who don't keep up with the Tour, here is a quick rundown.

Reasons to watch:

(1) The sprints are fantastic. These riders usually travel over 130 miles per day. The pace starts relatively slow then gains speed as the peleton (the big pack of riders) nears the finish. The sprinters teams jockey for position as they hope to lead out their rider, ie slingshot them, into a stage victory. The tactics are wonderful, and you often see the same riders at the front: Robbie McEwen, Tom Boonen, Eric Decker, Thor Hushovd, and others. It's amazing how much energy these guys have after riding for so long, and how fast they go as they propel towards theh finish line.

(2) The mountain stages. Near the end of the race every year the race heads into the mountains for the long steep climbs. This is usually where the race is won or lost. In years past this has been Lance's feeding ground, eating away at his rivals til they break. Once again the tactics are fascinating, as teams try to protect their contender. Usually the best teams only have one or two riders as these stages near the end, and at the finish most of these domestiques, or work horses, have dropped back and struggle to finish, having done their work for the greater good.

(3) Borat: 2,200 Miles of France for Make Benefit Glorious Nation of Kazakhstan. This years odd's on fav to win, Alexander Vinakourov, is from Kazakhstan. Chances are he grew up near Borat and they were probably friends - maybe even training partners. Wouldn't it be a sight to see Borat celebrating a win by Vino at this years tour.