Surprises from the Tour de Suisse

The Tour de Suisse (Tour of Switzerland) wrapped-up last Sunday with a mountain-finish time trial, won emphatically by Portuguese rider Rui Costa (Movistar).  He moved decisively from GC 2nd place to the overall winner of the yellow jersey, while former leader and Swiss favorite-son Mathias Frank (BMC) lost 2 minutes and fell to 5th.  Danish youngster Bauke Mollema jumped from 5th to 2nd, while Roman Kreuziger (Saxo-Tinkoff)  held on to 3rd place.

The surprises for me were the results for Tejay van Garderen (BMC), Andy Schleck (RadioShack-Leopard) and Ryder Hesjedal (Garmin-Sharp).

Tejay was always near the top, and finished in 7th place overall, but he never really challenged for a podium finish.  He lost 1:19 to Costa in the final time trial.  Team BMC will expect him to work for Cadel Evans in the Tour de France.  Tejay may finish in the top ten, but probably not on the GC podium.

Andy Schleck fared even worse.  He lost over 3 minutes in the final time trial, and placed 40th in the final GC standings at 25:28 behind Costa.  The competition at the Tour de France will be twice as keen as at the Suisse, and nothing Andy has done yet this year suggests that he will factor in the battle for the yellow jersey in Paris.  No one from his team made any noise either, so I doubt he has the supporting cast to mount a credible challenge.

When Hesjedal crashed out he was at least challenging for the GC lead.  But, having failed to finish in the Tours of both Italy and Switzerland this spring, he leaves a giant question mark as to his ability to ride with the yellow jersey favorites, such as Chris Froome (Sky) and Alberto Contador (Saxo-Tinkoff).

On the other hand, positive surprises for me were Rui Costa, Bauke Mollema and Roman Kreuziger.

Costa’s Movistar team has animated pro cycling for over 30 years.  Carrying the names of successive sponsors “Reynolds,” “Banesto,” “Caisse d’Epargne,” and now “Movistar” (a Spanish telecom giant, not a movie company), it has consistently won glory in the Grand Tour.  Does five-time Tour de France winner Miguel Indurain ring a bell?  Costa’s two-year domination of the Tour de Suisse should raise his credibility.  He seems to be peaking at the perfect time.  The so-called favorites had better not overlook this Spanish team and its Portuguese hero.

Mollema’s team Blanco lost its name sponsor this year (formerly Rabobank), hence the name “white” or “blank” while it searches for a new sponsor.  But this proud Danish team has won glory with mostly Danish riders in seventeen previous Tours de France.  Besides winning Stage 2 at the Suisse, youngster Bauke Mollema challenged for victory in at least two other stages, and finished with an impressive 2nd place on the GC podium, earning the designation of team GC leader (over veteran Robert Gesink!) for the TDF.  He may not finally win the yellow jersey in Paris, but look for him to keep the leaders honest.  Mollema, Gesink, Lars Boom and/or Laurens ten Dam or others of their Blanco teammates will probably make their share of stage-by-stage headlines.  (Word on the street is that next week the team will announce the name of new sponsor, Belkin, and new colors for their TDF kit.  Will they be “Blanco” or “Belkin” in the Tour?)

Kreuziger’s 3rd place GC finish (ahead of van Garderen, Schleck and Hesjedal) could make him a contender for the TDF yellow jersey.  But he rides for Saxo-Tinkoff, where he will be expected to sacrifice himself for Alberto Contador.  I look for Kreuziger’s name to appear often in the narrative of this year’s race as a key to Contador’s fight for the top prize.  He could do for Contador in 2013 what Chris Froome did for Brad Wiggins (Sky) in 2012.

I can’t say I was too surprised by the sprinting in the Tour de Suisse.  Peter Sagan (Cannondale) won two stages (making 11 victories already this season!).  No surprise there!  Look for him to challenge Mark Cavendish for sprint finishes and the green jersey in the Tour de France.  The other sprinters were “close, but no cigar.”  Again, not too surprising.  We may see flashes of glory from Tyler Farrar (Garmin-Sharp), Matt Goss (Orica GreenEdge), John Degenkolb (Argos Shimano), and Philippe Gilbert (BMC), but I don’t expect any of them to consistently achieve results sufficient to upstage the Cavendish-Sagan duel.

The Tour de France has its Alps and Pyrénées, and the City of North Salt Lake in Utah has its "Three Kings."  This is a bike race with relentless climbing to test the legs and lungs of the hardiest cyclist!  These photos from the 2012 Three Kings race are offered with permission from photographer Scott Wolford.  (Thanks Scott!)

These photos give you some idea of the steep grades encountered on the Three Kings, as the riders climb from the valley floor to the highest roads in the over-looking foothills.  All cyclists who consider themselves to be climbers should put their legs and lungs to the test by riding the Three Kings.  The 2013 race is scheduled for this coming Saturday, June 22, 2013.

So, you say "Put up or shut up?"  OK, I'm going to do it.  This coming Saturday, yours truly will take up the challenge in the fourth running of the brutal Three Kings race.  At age 67, I do not expect to win the polka-dot jersey for best climber, but I do hope to climb all Three Kings before the "sweeper" car officially closes the race.

If the climbing doesn't make your heart race, then maybe the attack of this ferocious guard dog will!