Showdown Time

I like analogies. I like hockey. Ergo it only makes sense to compare the Solvang TT to the Buffalo Sabres / Ottawa Senators game last night. Call this the pre-game show.

1) Levi Leipheimer is Marty Biron. He's got skills but he's not known for his uber agressive nature. He'll fight if he has to, but he'd rather not.

2) Jen Voigt is like Ray Emery. Solid, dependable, totally ready to drop the gloves and make you eat rubber. Jens is 100% eastern-bloc goodness. Any day he rides, he attacks. Jens doesn't ride like he stole something, he rides after the guy that stole something, steals it, then rides off.

Now with 20 seconds separating 1 place from 10th the TT is going to be wild. Everyone is going to give it all they have. The neutralization earlier in the week was a bit tragic in that the top 10 might be wildly different today. Alas, it is what it is but I would put a fair chunk of change on the Domestic teams rearing their heads loudly today with some very strong finishes.

People to watch:
1) Jens Voigt
2) Fabian Cancellara
3) Paulo Bettini (despite looking a bit heavy he's got legs)
4) the Domestic teams.

And so it begins....

...wicked, the Tour of California starts on Sunday and Ivan, Jens, Fabian, and PAULO, are all in it. The start list is PACKED with stars. Start list

My friend Kirk O'Bee will be duking it out with all the Heads of State of cycling. Awesome.

That would be cool if Tom D. could show his head in some climbs.

On another note: Peter, Pablo, and Rob, you guys forgot to sign a section of your license, so the ABA is sending it back to you, and all you have to do is sign it and throw it back in the mail. Make sure to be quick in doing this as we will be racing in about a month !!

Black History Month

Major Taylor

As some of you may know it's Black History Month. As such, this is an excellent opportunity to answer the question Who is Major Taylor?. Born Marshall Taylor in 1878 on a farm rural Indiana he earned the nickname 'Major' performing cycling tricks wearing a military uniform. Major Taylor won the world one-mile track cycling championships not once but three times in 1899, 1900, 1901. He also has the honor of being the second black world champion in any sport.

Despite his skill and ability, Major Taylor retired at 32. Sadly, racism played a large role in that decision. Major Taylor's determination and memory live on in the Major Taylor Society, the Major Taylor Association, and Team Major Taylor.

The 'Little 500' is a unique cycling race conducted at the Indianapolis University. Modeled on the Indianapolis 500 it is a 54 year old tradition broadcast on ESPN, ABC's Wide World of Sports and was the inspiration for the 1979 movie, 'Breaking Away'. Lance Armstrong called the Little 500 "the coolest event I ever attended". It is also at this event that Team Major Taylor (TMT) have become a force to be reckoned with.

Perhaps it can be best summed with a quote from Major Taylor himself:

"It is my thought that clean living and a strict observance of the golden rule of true sportsmanship are foundation stones without which a championship structure cannot be built."

Something we should all take to heart.