I apologize for being so late to the game but McDaddy has a new job search going on so haven't had time to take the Tour too seriously. However, Stage 15 through the Pyrenees has got me pretty fired up and has inspired me to add my two cents to the drama that unfolded yesterday between then yellow jersey wearer Andy Schleck and current yellow jersey wearer Alberto Contador. For those of you who haven't seen, Schleck and Contador have checked each other through the mountains without either gaining any real advantage over the other. They both look indestructible and have both attacked the other to no avail.
Up to Stage 15, Andy Schleck had a 30 second advantage over Contador which seemingly made Contador pretty dam nervous. With Andy checking his every move, how would Contador gain enough time back to win his 3rd Tour de France? Well opportunity struck and Contador capitalized, but it was the manner in which he capitalized that has strewn up a Pyrenees mountain of controversy.
The situation unfolded like this...Schleck felt strong enough to attack Contador during the steepest portion of the final climb. He jumped a good 30 feet in front of Contador before Contador reacted. Then all of a sudden, Schleck's bike shuddered, his pedal cadence became abnormal, his acceleration all but halted and Contador caught and passed him as if he was standing still.
So here's the deal, Andy Schleck had a chain malfunction for whatever reason and right or wrong Contador capitalized on it. The malfunction allowed Contador to gain about 38 seconds on Schleck overall which has put him in Yellow by 8 seconds over Andy. The controversy surrounds whether Contador should or should not have capitalized on the malfunction. Something like, "You couldn't beat me, mano y mano so you needed an advantage."
I've never raced the Tour de France so I'm not one to say whether it was right or wrong, but I do know this much. After the race, Contador stated that he did not know that Andy had a malfunction. He only matched the attack and then launched his own attack. This is crap. Contador had a clear view of the violent shock that shook Andy's chain loose, and once he passed him he never looked back, not even a quick glance back. These guys have been checking each other back and forth through the mountains. They look back at each other incessantly, monitoring the other's progress by the seconds. So why didn't Contador look back after Schleck's malfunction? Is it because he knew in the back of his mind that what he was doing was wrong? He didn't look back because he knew for a fact that Andy had a problem. Looking back would have acknowledged to the world that he knew, so he choose to look forward, push his advantage and act like he didn't do it on purpose. Alberto Contador is a liar and lying in sports essentially makes you a cheater. Alberto Contador is a cheater. I hope you relish your 3rd Tour de France victory Contador. You truly are an unbeatable athlete.
