Damiano Cunego bypassed the Giro to focus his efforts on the Tour de France. With fewer time trials, more climbing and a couple days in Italy it seems like this is a Tour made for Cunego. After some very sharp spring form where he outfoxed rack SAchleck at Amstel Gold Cunego is ready to tone up his Tour de France form by scoping out the major climbs and then riding the Tour de Suisse later this week.
The team Lampre website gives some general info about Cunego’s recent recon trip:
Under a grey, but not rainy, sky, Cunego and Marzano completed the reconnaissance of the final part of the 15th stage of Tour de France, the one scheduled on the 20th of July with arrival in Prato Nevoso. Two Lampre’s riders (foto) began the training in Chiusa di Pesio and after 40 kms reached Prato Nevoso. “This reconnaissance has been useful and I’ll remember the last climb when we’ll be here in Prato Nevoso during Tour de France – Cunego said – The climb has not very tough declination, but it could be hard to cover if the speed would be high”.
Cunego’s next races before Tour de France will be Tour de Suisse and Italian Championship.
(AP Photo/Michel Spingler, File)
This year was going relatively well in terms of cycling related drug scandals. Sure there is the Alessandro Petacchi overreaction due to one too many puffs of the inhaler, but most of the big names were relatively free from drug related scandals. Now that most cyclists stay away from the performance enhancing drugs they have to let loose when not riding. So Tom Boonen gets caught with cocaine in his system. Sad that Belgium’s golden boy fresh off another Paris-Roubaix victory is facing criminal possession charges.While WADA says it is OK to have some cocaine when you are out of competition thereby not penalizing Boonen for his out-of-competition cocaine use.
Did Boonen get some South American candies from Gilberto Simoni’s Grandmother recently? Or maybe he has a really old school dentist that uses cocaine to numb the pain when doing dental work. These are ust a couple of excuses used by Gilberto Simoni years ago when he was caught with cocaine. Otherwise he will be meeting with Belgian police who want to know where he got the coke. Boonen’s alibi’s may not work so well since his house was already searched for suspected cocaine possession earlier this year.
(AP Photo/Alex Brandon)
We do have a current cyclist in the White House and that has not turned out too well. Maybe because he is a mountain biker and not a roadie 
Meanwhile Barack Obama fresh off getting the official delegate tally to be the Democratic nominee in waiting spent the weekend chilling in Chicago and went for a bike ride. What this means is anyone’s guess but it is good to see that we may have another cyclist in the White House. Hopefully the results will be different.
The Illinois senator and his wife, Michelle, rode to a neighbor’s house with their daughters, Malia and Sasha, on Sunday and the group then headed out for the ride along the scenic lake shore. But the outing was cut short by a downpour.
Huffington Post reports that Obama’s policies would be friendlier to cyclist so that is good news.
Huffington Post
AP Article
(AP Photo/Laurent Cipriani)
Levi Leipheimer used his Giro Training camp form to get the top spot for the Dauphine Libere prologue. The American was riding some good form, while others such as Alejandro Valverde and Cadel Evans were using this race as the tune up for the Tour de France. The Dauphine is a good race for Leipheimer especially since he has some very good form to use and no real prospect for riding the Tour at this moment. The Astana team at least has some preparation for the race, so they can be ready to defend a lead if needed. The Dauphine is more interesting for the jockeying and staring down of Tour de France rivals. Cadel Evans and Alejandro Valverde will be using the chance to see how each other is doing in their run-up to the Tour.
