Der Feedbag

Just a few random notes that won't merit inclusion in Gavia's next Gossip column...

Love the D-Tour homepage. That's a beautiful picture of T-Mobile in team time trial mode on the cover. Regrets, anyone?

Also, apologies to our German fans, but I can't help having a little fun with language this week. First, gender roles: where else but in Germany is there a "king stage"? Also, subtlety doesn't translate very well. For stage 1, the official preview says:

king stage, hill arrival; suspense guaranteed

Literally? Can they do that? I know it's one of the best-run races in the world and all. It goes on like this, til you get to the final, concluding time trial:

flat, the overall winner will literally be chosen in the last minute

Literally. Hey, don't say you weren't warned. Anyway, the D-Tour is a fabulous race, and its manageable 9 days run concurrently with the first week of the Vuelta. Which means the most common question put to team directors from riders this week is "don't you think the D-Tour fits my program perfectly?"

Five VDS points to whoever can find the longest German word on the D-Tour website. And it has to be at least 16 letters long, since I'm starting the contest with "Einschränkungen" from the front page.

My next posts, time pending: team breakdowns for the D-Tour and Vuelta, as well as an update on the VDS situation. Plus, a Quick-Challenge for the Vuelta.

Meanwhile, Team Columbia rolls on. Today Edvald Boasson Hagen won his first road stage at Cycling's top level, and his fourth victory in Columbia/High Road colors. His other wins include two time trials and a sprint over Jimmy Casper in a French continental race. Pretty awesome little resume for a first-year 21-y.o., though Boonen and Bennati left the race yesterday. Andre Greipel, fourth today, holds the overall lead by 11" over time trial ace Jose Ivan Gutierrez, who himself is looking good for his second consecutive overall title.

Update: one last item, Versus' Garmin-Chipotle Tour tribute video...