Have you ever followed the Tour de France, day in, day out for several years? It has no relationship to any other sport in the world. There are time trials, climbing days, flat course days, more time trials, more climbing, over thousands of miles, 3 weeks, two rest days. It will be hot it will be cold it will be rainy it will be windy, there will be crashes. The Tour is hell for three weeks and there is always someone gaining on you.

Lance has nothing to prove at the Tour anymore. Everybody else does.

By the way how many races has Lance won this year?

lifegrinder -- Of course I would not join your bandwagon. Your words lead me to conclude there is a segment of the cycling sport that makes the joy of bicycle riding a psychopathic society of sorts, bent on humilliating anyone with a personal opinion. I will not join the cyclobabble commissariat and bow to all things Armstrong.

I have understood for the first time why Lance is not a much-loved cycling ambassador in France. With voices like yours and similar others in the blogosphere, cycling is all about arrogance, brute force, happless subservience to a wily boorishness.

In your universe, Lance Armstrong and acolytes like you are not about the joy of physical activity but violent domination even in the face of stupidity. To each his or her own. Thanks but no thanks. I will continue to be a cycling palooka, dedicated to the joy found in the sport and grateful for the spectacular benefits its practice bestows on devout followers like me, Lance Armstrong and acolytes notwithstanding.

Competitive cycling is the ruthless reality you depict? Yuck.

My opinion is not some boorish sector of the cycling world as you have incorrectly concluded, but one of a person who has trained elite and world class athletes talking to someone who clearly has no experience dealing with them in any manner. You also make the poor assumption that I'm merely a Lance railbird and beleive in all things Armstrong. This is not the case. I do not agree with Lance politically or the manner in which he left his first wife considering the agony she went through standing by him while he fought cancer. My opinion is objective in that it deals strictly with his ability to go up a mountain on a bike for extended periods of time. I make no attempt to humiliate you, nor should humiliation even be possible considering both of us sit behind the veil of mystery that is our screenname. You claim to be making opinion but state everything you say as a matter of fact and as such I'll approach your arrogance and fallacy with one of firm contradiction.

Lance is not loved in France because of factors relating to the strong anti American sentiment that has existed in Europe for the last 8 years. He is also an outspoken Republican and conservative and is a strong symbol of the silent majority/Americana apparent in the late 90s and early 2000s. It is my humble opinion that if Lance had been a known progressive who spoke out against the war, the French wouldn't dislike him so. He has also spoken out against the Nazi like anti-doping practices the French agencies have unleashed against. Let's not pretend that their disdain is entirely rational either, we are all smart to remember that one agency official declared the Lance had an unfair advantage because of the "chemicals" he received while battling cancer. I never knew chemo was a performance enhancer. To the French's credit Lance hasn't exactly tried to warm up to them either.

The greatest part of your misunderstanding comes from the fact that you don't understand the ugly, dirty, grind that is the training for elite level athletics. Violent domination is the name of the game in every sport, even if the product on the field is considered beautiful. There is no joy in training for elite athlete's, the joy comes victory on the field and the progress that such training entails. You assume that the riders on the tour get the same joy from a grueling session that you do on one of your rides (even the tough ones). Sure, they sometimes take pleasure rides to get back to the joy of the sport, but the motivation for their insane training regimine comes from the success that is created by tireless preperation. This is true of nearly all of the elite athletes in their sport. This isn't just true of Armstrong, it's true of Cantadoor and any other favorite. That's why passions and emotions run so high, the training is so grueling that failure to perform can be devestating.

I know you are in denial about it, but competitive cycling is the ruthless reality I depict. So is every sport where millions, glory, fame and emotions come into play. This is the reason why some people prefer college and amatuer athletics.

lifegrinder,

I must first respectfully apologize for the perceived arrogance either intentional or not on my part. Views on a subject are being discussed here, not a personal summary indictment.

Lance is probably seen by most French people as a successful athlete, despite him being Americain. It is those pesky vicarious insiders that will rain on the arriviste's parade.

One would like to think elite athletes will execute the required physical preparation religiously and faithfully. Devotion to a cause does not have to be atavistic and paranoid.

The fear principle will destroy a person. Virtuous persistence, productive intense work, constancy in the face of the necessary grind will bring out the full potential of an individual. One will be surprised by what is achieved with positive self awareness, the joy of self-conquest, the mastery of one's self. That is the beauty the rest of us, mere mortals, revere in awe.

Allow me to cite an expert on training: "It's important to remove the emotion from it and be intellectually honest with yourself. Lance hasn't won a major international race in four years. Yeah, he won Nevada City, but you can't say that's a major international stage race. So all of a sudden to put him in the ranks of a favourite would be you're looking at it emotionally." -Chris Carmichael, Cyclingnews Jul. 8

http://tinyurl.com/ngdqg3

I have to add that if Armstrong's stated purpose for his "comeback" is the LIVESTRONG project, why, then, has this race now become the Lance Show, from jokey France. He is not his team's designated leader. He has had to apologize (http://tinyurl.com/lok25p) for aspersions he has made on last year's race. Lance has upended what was expected of him. He has disrespected Contador. He has disrespected all young riders trying to make a mark and a carreer for themselves. He has shown his true colors.

He won't usher a new era in cycling -his pathetic contempt for his teammates has been clearly established- but he is certainly well on his way to foist upon the rubes of the world the Lance Armstrong It's All About Me Show.

The 2009 Tour de France, now we know, is all about Lance. Good luck, Mr Wonderful.

where have you been the last year? contador can time trial with the best of them. he placed 4th in the 2008 olympics time trial. he has won four time trials so far this year, including the spanish national time trial championships last sunday.

shadowblue -- Contador is a natural climber, not a sprinter. He has added sprinting to his curriculum. His real strenghth will be on show next Friday, July 10.

Today Lance kept pace with Cancellara, a dominating sprinter, not so Contador. This coming Friday is when the Tour really begins.