Der Kaiser has another ow-eey
 

http://sports.yahoo.com/sc/news;_ylc...ters&type=lgns

Jan looks like he is having more troubles. The other contenders are racing and winning and Jan is taking it easy. Not sure this bodes well, but we will see come tour time. I iwll say that Lance certainly seems to have caused Bike racing to reorganize its priotrities. Everybody is keyed on the TdF and all else is now mere prelude.

Der Kaiser is my kind of rider - get fat and out of shape in the winter, then suffer intense pain trying to catch up with all of the other gazelles in the spring and summer.

I don't recall ever reading Lance predicting an "easy" win as stated in the article. A win, maybe, but the field is so even with several very strong riders that an easy win is probably not in the cards for anyone this year.

I'm definitely down with Jan's off season regime. UNfortunately, all I ever see of the gazelles is their rear ends at the start line.

I don't recall the 'easy' part either. I am looking forward to this TdF. it should be good. Have any of you heard definitively whether there will be an American TV outlet for it?

Is OLN not carrying it this year? If so, I was unaware. I know several people who have dropped dish network in favor of Direct TV solely for the fact that Dish will no longer carry OLN.

If they did drop the tdf in America, could you blame them? I imagine that now that The Lance is out, the casual sports fan will also tune out and the ratings will plummet as compared to the past 2-3 years.

That was me btw.

Rookie mistake.

I last heard that it was unclear if OLN was picking it up, although this was several months ago and I am sure that they know by now. I iwll see if I can find out and will post it.

Not sure about the tpour, but POLN is covering the Tour of Flanders and the Tour de Georgia, so it is hard to imagine they wouldn't cover the TdF, eh?

Here is the OLN schedule, taken from an announcement they made:

April 23 - Liege-Bastogne-Liege/La Fleche Wallone (Belgium) - 5 p.m. ET
May 7 & 14 - Giro D’Italia (Italy) - 5 p.m. ET
May 21 & 28 - Giro D’Italia (Italy) - 4 p.m. ET
July 1 – 23 - Tour De France - TBA

This does not include the tours refernced in my last post, so I am not sure what the final schedule is, but it seems clear they will cover the TdF.


And yes, it is rewarding to have a conversation with oneself on line. Why do you ask?

I was one who was going to switch. However, the package to get OLN on Direct TV was something ridiculously expensive. If I remember correctly, nearly $90/month. So, I've kept my Dish and I'll have to try and watch it at somebody elses house.

You might want to ask DB or MS about the pricing. I had heard that it was only about $45-50 for the complete package. As all I have at home is rabbit ears, I am probably the last person to consult on the issue.

And I think we should call that last segment "Point/Counterpoint with creekster and creekster".