Quick update: Robbie McEwen won stage 2 in a bunch sprint and almost knocked Thor Hushovd off his bike. That little Aussie bastard is tough. Thor ended up snagging the yellow jersey from George by winning some time coming in 3rd.
Today, Michael Kessler from T-Mobile won by launching an attack 2 kilometers from the finish after cresting a steep short climb and getting the jump on the peloton. This is a good morale booster for T-Mobile, who are suffering from losing Jan Ullrich to the doping scandal.
There were a couple of accidents that are going to have an effect on the race. Alejandro Valverde, who was tapped as one of the favorites, broked his collarbone after going down. Another accident claimed Erik Dekker, who was racing in his last Tour. He’s had a history of getting injured, so this is bad luck for him. The same crash also took out Freddy Rodriguez, who was Robbie McEwen’s main lead-out man, so we’ll see how that affects his sprints. Also, Stuard O’Grady broke a vertebrae in his lower back and finished way behind the peloton. He’s doubtful for tomorrow’s start.
There were a shitload of flat tires too. Looks like the first week of this Tour is crazy just like the others. I don’t see the peloton settling down anytime soon either. Tomorrow will be another crazy day.