Matt Ulman

Kenny van Hummel crossed the finish after the climb of the Verbier this Sunday with a fistpump and a loud scream. The rider on Skil arrived in time only to start again after a rest day. “Today I literally ate my handlebar. I didn’t care if I was gonna make it in time or not. I’m tough, I’ll quit when I fall off my bike. A lot of sprinters went home already, but Kenny van Hummel is still here. And I’m proud of that.”

It’s so easy to forget these guys as we all focus on the front, but the race in back is no less hard:

L’étape d’analyses effectuées après le Tour de France sur des échantillons sanguins pour l’EPO Cera est terminée

Sure, those that gave unbelievable performances were cheating, and you appear to have to be on drugs to win the KOM, but CSC, Columbia & Garmin came out OK.  Spartacus’ skipping the Worlds may really have been because he was tired, and his TT losses were because he was robbed.

Interesting that Damsgaard saw this all coming.  Gives me hope for the teams he watches, and frustration at the ineffectiveness of the UCI.