wiggo

I somehow forgot to mention Bradley Wiggins yesterday. For me his was the performance of the day. The way he rode up the Alpe di Siusi was incredible for a guy really only recognised for his dominance on the track. He finished a mere 1.47 back of stage winner Menchov and ahead of the likes of Cunego and Scarponi. Great stuff.

the giro so far...

Five days in and it's been interesting. The 100th Giro has already thrown up some solid performances, answered a few questions and raised a few more. It was great to see Cav in the maglia rosa after the team TT. He then showed that he was human and that things don't always go to plan in road racing, but despite the loss to Petacchi and getting caught behind a crash on stage 3, his passion for winning and indeed for hating to lose was there for all to see. We've already seen the Jens Voigt breakaway and as always it was entertaining. Guts, grit and all that good  stuff. At 38, Voigt has the art of suffering down. The questions surrounding the return to Grand Tour action for Lance and Ivan Basso have largely been answered thanks primarily to an early trip to the Dolomites. Basso looks in good shape and is aided by a strong team looking to put the hammer down when it gets steep. Armstrong has also faired well considering the broken collar bone and again aided by a strong team has limited his losses on the tough mountain top finishes to three minutes. It will undoubtably get tougher for Lance but if riding himself into shape is the plan, then all seems good. As for potential winners? Di Luca? Menchov? Basso? I'm sticking with Levi...

pantani

The Giro hits the mountains today...which always gets me thinking about il Pirata. Never to be forgotten.

cuore matto

Franco Bitossi, Franco Balmamion and Eddy Merckx at the 1967 Giro d'Italia.

paint job

Here's Lance's ride for the Giro featuring artwork by Shepard Fairey. An easy spot for the tifosi on that bad boy!

more venice...

venezia

So the Giro starts tomorrow...it promises to be a great race. The variation in stages, from the super long to the super short, will keep it interesting, from the opening team TT against the beautiful backdrop of Venice to stage 10's reprise of Coppi's legendary 1947 ride from Cuneo to Pinerolo. I visited Venice last month with my girlfriend, so thought I'd post some of her great photos to get the Giro spirit rolling...