Le Tour de France

I have been glued to the TV for the last three weeks, enjoying the Tour de France. There have been numerous reports about the doping scandals, etc., and I don't want to give that any more attention than it already has, so I am not going to comment much on it. It hurts the sport terribly when people cheat - but it hurts us all when people cheat. I think we all lose a little bit of heart when "playing by the rules" is no longer honored and "whatever it takes to win" becomes the secret mantra of a few athletes.

One thing I love about le Tour is that it is so inspiring. I love the heroic story of an unknown 24-year-old winning the Tour. Alberto Contador has a bright future ahead of him and I expect we'll be seeing him on the podium many times in the years to come.

I love the excitement of 31 seconds separating the first place rider and the third place rider. Think about it - they ride about 2200 miles in the 21-day race and the top three competitors finished only half a minute apart. That boggles my mind.

I take great inspiration from the Tour. I admire the athletic ability, determination, and strategic skill it takes to win a stage. It encourages me to try to do my best at everything - a boost that I appreciate in the middle of summer.

I love the pluck of the French rider who won a sprint yesterday - sneaking up behind two QuickStep riders to grab some points and some money. Not only was it fun to see him coming from behind, it was admirable that the QuickStep riders let him have that small vicotry without a fight - it seemed honorable.

I could go on and on - I think this is a great sport. I will greatly miss seeing the Tour this week, and anxiously await next July.

To the athletes and coaches - thank you for a wonderful ride in 2007!
Cynthia
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