and the winner is...

Marscat 27.5 pts
Velo Bella 17.5 pts
Pabcid 14 pts
Panda 9 pts
Flandria 8 pts
OV 6 pts
Ippoc 3 pts
LilyBella 1 pt
Bunny 0 pts

news flash

marscat has pulled away in the final week and has probably secured a win with today's final time trial bonus points...do we have a winner who is "real"? we'll hope the outcome of the doping control proves we have a worthy winner.

Marscat 22.5 pts
Velo Bella 17.5 pts
Pabcid 12pts
Panda 7 pts
OV 6 pts
Flandria 6 pts
Ippoc 3 pts
LilyBella 1 pt
Bunny 0 pts

more bonus points

5 pts - Name the winner's final time on the Stage 19's ITT (hour.min.sec)-closest person to winning time get pts
3 pts - Name the gap between the winner and 2nd on Stage 19 (sec)-closest person to gap gets pts
3 pts - Name the top 10 GC rider who will have the best time on Stage 19

We have a tie for 1st place:
Velo Bella 14.5 pts
Marscat 14.5 pts
Pabcid 12pts
Panda 7 pts
OV 6 pts
Flandria 6 pts
LilyBella 1 pt
Bunny 0 pts
Ippoc 0 pts

p.s. Bunny-some of the riders in the top 10 have three names.

p.p.s. And because some people wanted frites, this has just been added to the prize list for 1st place which still includes the 24 water bottle (2nd is 20oz).

more bonus questions - 10 points

2 pts - What ex T-Mobile rider is GC leader at Altoona as of 7/25/07? tip
3 pts - Name two of their former teams, not including T-Mobile.
5 pts - What was the rider's previous last name?

Updated GC standings including today's bonus sections - We have a tie for 1st place:
Velo Bella 14.5 pts (got 8pts the hard way + Kori's bonus questions)
Marscat 14.5 pts (Kori Seehafer questions)
Pabcid 12pts
Panda 7 pts (point review in Panda's favor)
OV 6 pts
Flandria 6 pts
LilyBella 1 pt
Bunny 0 pts
Ippoc 0 pts

8

Looks like Bruyneel will finally get #8, the hard way.

Bonus question for 8 points:
Name 8 teams to DNF the Tour de France since 1988 not including this year.

p.s. Bonus points are open to players (LilyBella, you can get some points too).

what's next???

Yesterday, I was a bit more disappointed than a 47 year old mildly intelligent woman should have been when I heard that Vino and Astana had quit the Tour. When I read David Millar's press report that he broke down in tears, I shed a little tear myself. During the day as I thought about the whole thing, I felt little tears welling up again. We all knew that Vino's performances were beyond words. They were exciting feats, but they stood out too much. Why was I sad when he got kicked out? I guess because it seemed that he knowingly raised his arms and saluted the crowd as they cheered him on to victory. He stood on the podium and showed us how proud he was to win. I was sad because in a naive way, I trusted him as a winner. How stupid is that? I believed that all those silly riders signing that silly statement on doping was real, sort of. And finally and most importantly, all these guys really screwed up my tour de france game choices.

vodka anyone?

Vinokourov did manage a joke about his situation. "I heard that I made a transfusion with my father's blood," Vinokourov said. "That's absurd, I can tell you that with his blood, I would have tested positive for vodka."

5 points for the Casino connection

Gamble: win some and lose some...





Update and no points awarded for the Casino connection bonus question:
Pabcid 12pts (due to Vino's big fat bow out-10 pts for the 1st contender to dnf)
Marscat 6 pts
OV 6 pts
Flandria 6 pts
VB 5 pts
Pabcid 2 pts
Panda 0 pts
Bunny 0 pts
Ippoc 0 pts

The super duper prize list unveiled

someone's idea of an alternative prize list...

***SPOILER***

Spoiler - TdF Update

After the first big time trial, there is still a three way tie for 1st.
Marscat 6 pts
OV 6 pts
Flandria 6 pts
VB 5 pts
Pabcid 2 pts
Panda 0 pts (could have had 1 pt for the leadout to Moraga-but Marscat said NO!)
Bunny 0 pts
Ippoc 0 pts

5 points to VB

There is still a three way tie for 1st, but VB is closing the gap:
Marscat 6 pts
OV 6 pts
Flandria 6 pts
VB 5 pts
Pabcid 2 pts

extra points...

5 POINTS...
I've been noticing a certian bald man accompanying a certian rider lately so here is a special point opportunity for the nerds out there.

The link...Serge has worked with two very high profile riders...who are they?


tip: Serge is not a coach.

something different

We went riding with our GoVegan dude who gently reminded us that perhaps we should cut back on the bad stuff. I think we'll visit
Che Flandria more often.

someone requested more points

to be available during the Tour game.


So here's an extra 10. Who will be the first GC favorite to DNF this year's Tour?

My pick, the guy with the badass.

Ippoc-Kloden
VB-Mayo
Bunny-Oscar Periero Sio
Marscat-Salvodelli
Panda-Valverde
Pabcid-Vino, then Kloden

As of Bastille day, there is still a three way tie for 1st:
Marscat 6 pts
OV 6 pts
Flandria 6 pts
Pabcid 2 pts

***SPOILER***

DOWN BY OVER 2 MINUTES...

Who's in first of the real race?

Prologue
I almost scored an upset with the pick of Bradley Wiggins, but he faded and came in 4th. Still a great result for a newcomer to the Tour. Disappointing results for previous front runners had to be Levi, Millar, Valverde, and the Z. And for the guys with 3 names, not a bad result for Jose Luis Arrieta. For the team standing, if the reace were over to day, I'd have won that. But, as we know, there's a lot of racing left until Paris.

GC
Fabian
Kloden
Hincapie

Points
Fabian
Kloden
Hincapie

Team
Astana
CSC
DiscoGreenies

After the Prologue, there is a three way tie for 1st:
Marscat 6 pts
OV 6 pts
Flandria 6 pts
Pabcid 2 pts

by popular demand

Who's in for a fun TdF game? Just pick 23 riders and fill in the boxes..we'll keep score oursevles. Highest score wins. p.s. I added a tie breaker-best young rider.


the 2007 starters

Ippoc

Marscat (Pereiro who???)

Panda



OV (who invited Tinkoff???)

Bunny (3 names only but I just wrote two)
Pabcid


Flandria


Until we hear otherwise...
VB and Lauren

3 days until the Grand Depart

I bet Moreau makes it to the podium. Evans has a shot at a spot too. Vino, Kloden, and even Levi should do fine. And watch out for the Rabo wonderboy, he may be young, but he could add some excitement to a blah field.