Cruising On A Sunday Afternoon...

The flat tire was overcome (caused by the point -speck on the sink edge- of the twig pictured above), and again we ride! Alberto Contador wasn't as fortunate, being stripped of a title, and suspended until August of this year!

http://sports.yahoo.com/sc/news?slug=ap-doping-contador

No matter what sports you may like, dislike, or may be involved in, this is a class act!!! Here is a quote from one of Alberto Contador's fellow cyclists (Radio Shack/Nissan/Trek rider Andy Schleck), and toughest competitors:
“There is no reason to be happy now,” Schleck said in a statement issued by his team. “First of all I feel sad for Alberto. I always believed in his innocence. I battled with Contador in that race and I lost.”

That's classy no matter what the sport may be!!! He embraced the pain of a fellow rider and didn't bash him, and say something along the lines of:
It would've been much better if they had caught this cheater in the first place, so I would not have had to win it this way! He realized that purposely or not, he is still a cyclist, and if it was contaminated meat that caused this, and the doping was not intentional, then it could very easily happen to anyone, even him!

What's even classier, however, is riding with a friend that will ride with you even though they haven't been on a bike in several years! ;) Sunday was a casual take it easy ride, but had great company, and a great day to enjoy! The sun, and the Sunshine were brilliant! Until the next one.

Weekend Activities:

Biking
Is totally stoked that NC is working on their Trail Systems, and bike paths! I just found a great ride that will allow me to traverse the once ensurpassable mountain that links the two counties I need to travel. At one time the freeway, and/or a gravel mountain road were the only ways to cross the mountain. The paved bike/walking/running path, now allows riders, walkers, runners, and hikers a safe passage through the mountains. It's wooded so cyclists have to ride cautiously, the wet autumn leaves could prove to be fatal. The open views to the mountains and valleys below are breath taking, and the ride is not a difficult one. It is a gradual climb to the west, and a sweet steady descend to the east. I wish that I had known about the trail earlier in the season!


NCAA Soccer That Matters
Tar Heels vs Devils Mens soccer... The two schools collided literally on Friday night. The conference foes both nationally ranked played fast and physical. The highlight for Duke fans, was the skirmish that saw Jordan McCrary red carded. He was ejected from the game. The Duke player that retaliated with a punch was not. So goes life, but we still didn't give up a W! They say that a tie is like kissing your sister. If that is the case, then tying Duke is like a kiss on the mouth from her, just after a vurp! Yes, it is just that nasty!

NCAA Football That Matters
Tar Heel Football... 35-20 Victory over East Carolina, in a win that could not be labeled as pretty. East Carolina, had more first down conversions, more total yards from scrimmage, and scored late to cut the lead to 15. A W is a W, but sloppy football will catch up with you!

Wisconsin, flexed their muscle in a very impressive victory against Nebraska. Wisconsin had big performances again from Montee "Let's Make A Deal" Ball, and Russell "Let's Move From NCSU To Wisconsin" Wilson. Wilson is now being mentioned among the Heisman hopefuls. 48-17 over a Top 10 Nebraska team, should boost their ranking a bit... I mean after all this wasn't Nebraska Community College, it was the Cornhuskerdoo's...

UPsets
Again Auburn was considered an underdog, and this game labeled an upset, but just because Cam Newton, is not involved in this college football program, doesn't make them dead! 16-13 Tigers over Gamecocks.

Speaking of Tigers... South Carolina's other football program went to Blacksburg and had a little Turkey! 23-3 drubbing of Virginia Tech, yeah should do a little somethin, somethin, for Death Valley's Jungle Tabby's ranking as well.

Pitt takes down South Florida, Arkansas recovers their own fumble for a TD, and defeats the Aggies of Texas A&M, and Baylor after upsetting TCU earlier in the season, was upset by Dorothy's State Kitty, the Kansas State Wildcats....

MLB That Matters

Brewers serve the Snakes a cold one. Nuff said.

NFL That Matters

Packers take on the Broncos, and I am going to say it now, this will be the week that John Fox makes a QB change, just sayin'! Here comes the Tebow express, so beware.

The Raiders will have their hands full with the Pats, and the odds are very much against them. Has Bilicheat's Pats ever lost three straight since winning a Super Bowl? Well if not, hopefully the Raiders will be the second defeat for them that leads to three, if not more.

Last but not least, it would be good to see Carolina walk all over the Bears, and Benedict Peppers. Again Nuff said!!!

Changes...

Change in crown holder.

Fabian Cancellara is no longer the man to beat as a Time Trial Specialist. He has abdicated his throne for German rider, HTC Specialized Time Trial beast and new king Tony Martin. Fabian rode hard in the Grand Tours, in both the Tour de France, and the Vuelta (Tour of Spain) and only relinquished his title in 2008 because of the Olympics, and a tough Grand Tour Schedule that year. This year, a well trained and very fit Tony Martin, had his way! not once but 5 times! Fabian had a few slips, trying to override, and his mistakes proved to be costly, but in all honesty, the slips that he had going all out, showed that he was determined but knew that Martin had swag for a reason! The Big Swiss did not go quietly, but nevertheless had to settle for a bronze medal this year. So my Win didn't win, and my show didn't show, but my place was dead on! I had a feeling that Wiggins was gong to be on fire, but just not have quite enough to pull off the major upset. Realistically I expected Martin to win, but as a Cancellara fan, and as a Trek fan, my bias blinded me. Here are the final results of the 2011 ICU World Championship Time Trial:

1	Tony MARTIN (Gold Medalist & new World Champion)	GER	GER	26	53:43.85
2	Bradley WIGGINS (Silver Medalist)	GBR	GBR	31	+1:15.83
3	Fabian CANCELLARA (Bronze Medalist)	SUI	SUI	30	+1:20.59
4	Bert GRABSCH	GER	GER	36	+1:31.76
5	Jack BOBRIDGE	AUS	AUS	22	+2:13.86
6	Richie PORTE	AUS	AUS	26	+2:29.54
7	David MILLAR	GBR	GBR	34	+2:45.62
8	Lieuwe WESTRA	NED	NED	29	+3:18.52
9	Alexsandr DYACHENKO	KAZ	KAZ	28	+3:19.76
10	Jakob FUGLSANG	DEN	DEN	26	+3:30.59
11	Jonathan CASTROVIEJO NICOLAS	ESP	ESP	24	+3:34.37
12	Gustav LARSSON	SWE	SWE	31	+3:34.62
13	Svein TUFT	CAN	CAN	34	+3:35.89
14	Janez BRAJKOVIC	SLO	SLO	28	+3:44.74
15	Taylor PHINNEY	USA	USA	21	+3:52.58
16	Andrew TALANSKY	USA	USA	23	+3:57.89
17	Nelson OLIVEIRA	POR	POR	22	+4:14.98
18	Jesse SERGENT	NZL	NZL	23	+4:26.31
19	Jack BAUER	NZL	NZL	26	+4:26.99
20	Stef CLEMENT	NED	NED	29	+4:33.93

Change in team.

Levi signs with Quickstep Merckx... This is not quite the Darrell Waltrip leaving Chevy, and going to Ford for me, but still wished that Levi could have finished his career with Trek. Not to say that he can't still, but at 38 and a two year deal... the Giro, Amgen Tour of Cali, Tour de France, USA Pro Cycling Challenge, or the Vuelta, will put the miles on a body in a hurry. Actually, in a months time with each race, or at the very least a very grueling week (Tour of Utah/California/Colorado) of it anyway!

Remember when franchise owners were loyal, and players were too? When you stayed in the city that loved you, raced for the fans that loved you? Well there are those fans again... The fair weather, manufacturer, player/driver, fan. I am a little partial to all the above. Levi being an American rider, is one of my favs, and I love the Trek brand! So this is a tough one for me, but I will still pull for Levi. It would be hard for me to pull against him. But then again, it is hard for me to pull against the guys and gals from Waterloo also!

Change of character?
The British are not shy in cycling in most cases, that's for sure, but was this Wiggins talking a bit out of class today? This is usually a trait displayed by Mr. Cavendish. Cavendish is usually the bold one, doing the trash talking or calling shots...
http://www.cyclingnews.com/news/wiggins-suggests-tour-de-france-and-olympics-are-too-much-for-cavendish?ns_campaign=news&ns_mchannel=rss&ns_source=cyclingnews&ns_linkname=0&ns_fee=0

The Road Race is tomorrow, and there are plenty of men that could be World Champion.
Thor Hushovd, Andy Schleck, Phillipe Gilbert, Jakob Fulgsang could all come away with the title. Or could the Time Trial specialist do it, with the rolling hills? If so watch out for Wiggins, or TT Champion Tony Martin. And if it is not a rain soaked day, and the switchbacks don't affect them, then you could see the sprinters bring it home... Sagan, Bennati, or even Rui Costa. I am hoping for a close race, and a major upset! Bring on Trek and Mr. King!!! That would be a lovely week of UCI World Championships.

THE World Champion is...

UCI Elite Mens Elite Time Trial World Championship Shed - You'll (Schedule)

First Group starting with the first rider (Azzedine Lagab of Algeria) will start at 12:30pm. The last twenty riders and highest favored riders will start at 2:48pm and work their way out of the gate in a minute and a half increments.

20 HERRADA LOPEZ Jesus ESP
19 TUFT Svein CAN
18 RABON Frantisek CZE
17 FARIA DA COSTA Rui Alberto POR
16 KIRYIENKA Vasil BLR
15 BRAJKOVIC Janez SLO
14 BOBRIDGE Jack AUS
13 GRABSCH Bert GER
12 LARSSON Gustav SWE
11 WIGGINS Bradley GBR
10 PINOTTI Marco ITA
9  WESTRA Lieuwe NED
8  OLIVEIRA Nélson POR
7  FUGLSANG Jakob DEN
6  PORTE Richie AUS
5  PHINNEY Taylor USA
4  IGNATYEV Mikhail RUS
3  MILLAR David GBR
2  MARTIN Tony GER
1  CANCELLARA Fabian SUI

Tony Martin is heavily favored after dominating in the TT's in both the Vuelta a Espana (Tour of Spain) and the Tour de France.

I personally hope to see US rider Taylor "Mini" Phinney do well, and hope the Trek riders do well also. I don't know that Phinney is ready to pull off a World Championship victory just yet, but stranger things have happened. Win, Place, and Show pays bragging rights to your buddies. The exacta pays the big bucks and gets ya some big time pull. So here's my Exacta for the Top 7 finishers, and my Win (Gold), Place (Silver), and Show (Bronze) medalist: 

Some believe the rain will help the bigger more powerful riders, on the rolling streets of Copenhagen. Some say that the technical riders will fair better. Me personally I think the mind games have already begun, and it is now a matter of who handles the nerves best.

10. Canadian - Svein Tuft Canadian National Champion
9. Aussie - Jack Bobridge Australian Champion ***Road Race***
8. Swed - Gustav Larsson Swedish National Champion
7. Portuguese - Nelson Oliveira Portuguese National Champion
6. American - Taylor Phinney US National Champion
5. Australian - Richie Porte
4. German - Tony Martin German National Champion
3. Brit - Tony Millar (Bronze)
2. Brit - Bradley Wiggins (Silver) British National Champion
1. The Big Swiss - Fabian Cancellara (Gold) Swiss National Champion

Mostly National Champions, and winner of some very impressive stages. But that is my Exacta. Fabian is well rested, and has said that he believes that Martin is the winner, but that this is also a one day event, that he believes he can win. I think in the most humble way that he knew how to say it, he was truly saying: I am not 4 time World Champ for nothing...

Martin has ridden strong in TT's this year claiming two of the Grand Tour TT Stages. That is not to be taken lightly, but he also had the luxury of saving himself for just those stages. Wiggins put in a full Tour, and I believe he is still hungry. Their are a couple of experienced riders in this group that are 30 or better (Fabian Cancellara and Gustav Larsson), and you know what they say about age, and treachery versus youth and cockiness right? Well if you don't and my prediction comes to its fruition, then you will after tomorrow... I don't foresee a blowout, in fact I anticipate that this will be one of the closest races in the history of the World Championships. Again we shall see after tomorrow.

Leo-Shack!?

http://www.cyclingnews.com/news/leopard-trek-confirms-merger-with-radioshack

http://www.leopardtrek.lu/news/leopard-trek-welcomes-radioshack-and-nissan-new-main-sponsors


http://www.livestrong.com/teamradioshack/news_press-release-radioshack-nissan-trek-cycling-super-team-links-top-riders-sponsors/

Rumors, rumors, rumors... First Leopard was shutting down, then it was said that Leopard would be financing a big part of the merge. So I have posted a few links above for your reading pleasure.

Most cyclist know their roll. It is one of the most loyal sports that a sports enthusiast can be a part of. Be it a fan, or participant. I am praying for the chemistry to be with the new Trek team. Hopefully the leadership and the merge will bring forth growth in the combined team. It is said that Leipheimer has not yet received an invitation to this merger, nor Jen Voigt. Fuglsang among other names have been excluded because of the 30 member limit. Regardless, the combination of riders will be lethal, and I believe will do some remarkable things. But will Andy be strong enough to lead? Frank showed great character in the Tour de France, and in the USA Pro Challenge seemingly outshining his brother on several occasions. Does Andy have the toughness to step up to the next level? Can he out battle Contador, Evans, and the rest of the world? Time will tell, and I pray that Trek and all of it's riders fair well.

Well onto the Vuelta to take care of business in Spain. I am praying that Fuglsang, Monfort, and all others looking for spots will use this Tour of Spain as a strength builder to their resume`s. Well back to the mountains of Spain... see ya tomorrow.

Labor Day Weekend Review...

Football is here! Or at least College Football anyway. Still have a little time to trash talk before the Nobody's  Faithful League to keep up. For the love of money... not Championships, and especially not for your fans or city, but for the For Self League. College athletics are not far behind, but the majority of those guys still play for pride, and love of the game! That may not pay the bills, but the education they obtain, just might...

So what games meant a hill of beans to you? I am starting off with College Fottball, and getting start to business.

College Football

DUKE 21 Richmond 23
Dook at Wallace Wade (home), is downed by the Richmond Spiders! 23-21 and a Dook loss! That was good enough to end with, but had to get things started on the right foot.

Auburn 42 Utah St 38
Baylor 50 TCU 48
Auburn came back on USU scoring two late TD's to take a victory, and continue their win streak into the new season, and Baylor and TCU were in an offensive dog fight! If Griffin 3 keeps playing at the rate that he did this weekend, he is most def a Heisman candidate in my book!

Wisconsin 51 UNLV 17
The Badger game was almost my top pick for the thumpin' of the day, but I believe I will have to give those honors to Cinci, for bullying up on Austin Peay. Final 72 - 10! However, I will say this again, with Toomer and a talented receiving corp, taking passes from Russell "Mr." Wilson, things could look even brighter for the Badgers this year. The Bucky faithful are once again in the hunt for their conference title and possibly a little more, but I just don't know even with above mentioned and the one-two punch of Ball, and White in the backfield, that they can win it all. If they are going to do so, then the D is going to have to get better!

UNC 42 JMU 10
Last but certainly not least, Carolina opened the season, and took care of their new Head Coach. UNC defeated James Madison by the score of 42 - 10, and gave Coach Withers his first victory as the new skipper. I am praying that this continues. Bryn Renner connected on 22 of his 23 attempts, and tied a school record for consecutive completions by connecting on his last 14... Nicely done Bryn, nicely done!

Cycling

It saddens me to say, that Jakob Fuglsang, of Leopard Trek, dropped in the standings even more. He is now a bit more than 3 minutes off the pace of the race leader (Cobo), and with one week remaining, I just don't think you can be this conservative, and win. The majority of the stages left are mountain stages, with no time trials, and no easy paces from here on out, so being down by minutes at this stage of the race is crucial...

1 Juan Cobo (GEO)
2 Chris Froome (SKY) 3 Bradley Wiggins (SKY)
4 Bauke Mollema (RAB) 5 Maxime Monfort (LEO) Trek honorable mentions: 7th Jakob Fuglsang (LEO) 22nd Janez Brajkovic (RSH)
25th Oliver Zaugg (LEO) 29th Tiago Machado (RSH) In the Team Overall: 1 Geox - TMC 2 Leopard Trek Trek honorable mentions: 11th Radio Shack Trek
Moto GP: Jorge Lorenzo led the Misano race from pole to finish, and dominated. He still has a lot of ground to make up, with only five rounds remaining, but anything is possible. If JoLo (HoLo) wins out, he still needs help from Stoner. Here's to a couple of third place finishes and a couple of Yamaha 1-2 podiums with Lorenzo, Spies, or even better 1-2-3 finishes with Edwards helping play spoiler too. Breaking News or not...This just in... Trek teams Radio Shack, and Leopard are rumored again, to be looking toward a merger. http://www.cyclingnews.com/news/more-rumours-around-leopard-trek-radioshack-merger Now a few key elements have to come into play. 1. Andy is going to have to be the overall rider that he needs to be to make this work. It's a lot easier said than done, but his overall performance is going to have to be on point. He must improve in the areas of weakness. Most notably his Time Trialing. 2. Is the Chemistry there? With a team full of heavy hitters you have to deliver! If Andy doesn't step up, and is out ridden by his brother (Frank), then will one of the other riders step up, and if so, what will that do to the morale of the team? Can you say Miami Heat? D Wade, and LeBron sounded like an unstoppable tandem, and don't get me wrong, if I am a franchise owner, and can get both of these guys on my squad, then it's a done deal! The talent is there, now how do you get them to utilize it? More Breaking News! Appears to be closer to a done deal now!!!
Leopard is done after a year and Schleck's are said to join Radio Shack!!! Leipheimer, Horner, Schleck Bros., Cancellara, Fuglsang, and others... could be very interesting if the chemistry is there!

Jam packed sports weekend. Everything from full contact to, "shouldn't" be any contact. First Phillipe Gilbert took the first stage of the Tour. Cancellara made an attempt to break for the finish but Gilbert followed and finished stronger to take the victory in the opening stage. Cadel Evans followed Gilbert but could only chase, as he was not strong enough to over take Gilbert and placed second. You heard it here first, I still think Horner or Cancellara will be the 2011 Tour de France winner.

Then Maria Sharapova was upset by... what was her name again? I would offer a prize for the first person to guess, but all I have to offer is bragging rights.

Let the smack talking begin! Klitshko defended his "titles" again successfully and won another defeating Englishman David Hayes. Hayes found out today that he is not a master of psychology like fellow countryman and former Heavyweight Champion Lennox Lewis was. Of course Lewis had that massive six foot, four inch, two-hundred and forty plus frame to back him up though.

What happens in Vegas eventually comes to light too! Uriah Faber and Dominic the Dominator square off there tonight, but the big fight for me is the fight featuring a very lean, very tough, and very aggressive Wand Silva sending Tito Ortiz off on a sad note. I think Ortiz will get gassed and Silva will stop him. I'm talking the Dominator in 3 on points, and The Axe Murderer Silva by stoppage mid way of the second against Ortiz.

Rub them the right way! NASCAR presented a thriller tonight from Daytona. David Ragan after 163 starts i believe it was, won his first ever race at Daytona! How sweet would that be!? He held off a bumper pushing Matt Kenseth for the win. Kenseth played fair, and didn't put him in the wall like a few others would have or at least tried to do. Jeff Gordon had a strong car and was making a great late charge, then Vickers got into the 4 car that turned him completely sideways, down the track from the wall, almost to the grass, and after yelling OMG, OMG, OMG... the 24 car was straight and working up the track again! What a fantastic save by Jeff Gordon! Oh and the "G" in OMG stands for "goodness" in my blog. Not using the Lords name in vain or being blasphemic and making it stand for Gordon! At any rate, their is the imperfect day in sports...

So what sport did I miss? Yankee baseball doesn't count so don't bother.

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