TDF

so the tour de france has started amid a now fairly typical fanfare of controversy. Ullrich and Basso (the two main favourites), amoungst others, were withdrawn on the eve of the race as a new drugs dispute hit the headlines. I can't really be arsed with it all - I love the mountains with a passion, but the flat just doesn't do it for me and I don't read about the big names and their woes - most of them dope and so I cannae be bothered anymore. I used to defend the sport until I read a few books including willy voet's 'breaking the chain'. he was the physiotherapist (dealer) for the festina team in the 1998 tour (infamously coined the tour de farce) who was caught by french customs carrying more drugs than you'd have found on a friday night in the hacienda. as a traditionalist I've always liked the good old days when pro's would think nothing of stopping at the foot of an alpine 'haute' category climb, snorting a few grams of charlie and necking a couple of cognacs. I think, though, that the death rate was a lot higher. anyway - it's been crash central in the first few days alone with dekker (above) and valverde out, but the crashes always make it more of a spectator sport, don't they?

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