Tour de France

Curious about the potential outcome of this year's Tour de France?  Washington Post sports columnist Sally Jenkins was online Friday, July 1, at Noon ET to preview the race the day before it was scheduled to begin.

Jenkins books include "It's Not About the Bike: My Journey Back to Life" and "Every Second Counts" with cyclist Lance Armstrong.

A transcript follows.

More on Tour de France:

Armstrong Is All Business Entering Final Tour de France (Post, July 1)

Related Link:

Official Web Site: Le Tour de France

Interactive Guide: Tour de France 2005

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Louisville, Ky.: Lance Armstrong won't be wearing a USPS jersey this year. How much do you think this will affect his performance, and would you have accepted (another) raise in stamp fees for the USPS to have won a bidding war with Discovery Channel?

Sally Jenkins: I'd have paid a hefty stamp fee to see Lance and the fellas in red white and blue again. It's hard to imagine the color of Lance's jersey affecting his performance, unless the jersey is yellow.

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Sally Jenkins: Okay folks, here we are, ready to go. It's hard to believe that Lance is going for No.7 -- seems like yesterday he beat cancer and won his first Tour.

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Washington, D.C.: Hi Sally,

Do any local sports bars or pubs plan on hosting Tour de France parties? Where can I go, as someone without OLN, to watch Lance go for 7?

Thanks.

Sally Jenkins: You might check your local cycle shops. Most of the ones I go into have the Tour on TV, or if they don't get OLN, they post the results on the wall, or in the window, and all of the staff can tell you what's happening. The other thing you can do is follow it on the Internet, which is great fun. OLN's Web site is good and so is the official Tour site, and so is Lance's own site. They provide lots of info, course profiles, etc.

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Laurel, Md.: Several articles have singled out Ullrich, Basso and Vinokourov as the three main threats to Lance's 7th win. But what about Mayo? He seems to be getting overlooked by many of the prognosticators. He is basically the only rider who can boast of a couple of monster wins over Lance in mountain stages, and he seems to have been smarter about not overdoing it in the build-up to the tour this year. How do you rate his chances?

Sally Jenkins: I think you're right about Mayo. One person who certainly doesn't discount him or overlook him is Lance. In fact Lance went out of his way in a press conference yesterday to mention him. But they're all very dangerous -- Kloden is another. And then there is always some bright young rider you hadn't heard much of who has a big race and announces himself as a big new talent.

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Washington, D.C.: I know that Lance is THE big news story of this Tour, but it really would be nice for The Post to spend some effort laying the groundwork for American interest in this sport after his retirement. Can we get some coverage of Landis, Leipheimer, Horner, Rodriguez, Julich, and Zabriskie? (Hint: they're all Americans who can win either stages or the overall!)

Sally Jenkins: I'd expect OLN to just what you suggest. They need to find a new focal point for the American audience. Landis is a great story, and a terrific talent. He's a Quaker who became a mountain biker, before Lance took him in hand and made a Tour cyclist out of him. He's got loads of talent and he's a funny, quotable, telegenic kid. And then there are guys like George Hincapie who have never gotten enough coverage -- really wonderful athlete and interesting funny man. I will say this, OLN has tried to give Julich a lot of coverage for years, but his performances have been uneven or he's crashed and gotten hurt, so he's never really become the star he could have. I think OLN will try to keep the American audience interested apart from Lance.

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Arlington, Va.: A couple of years ago, Lance struggled through the Tour but found the will to win. He is older now and just had a bumpy off season. Is his will still stronger than everyone else's, and is it still enough?

Sally Jenkins: Lance's will is the biggest question. Winning last year really completed him. It's the first time I've ever heard him sound...satisfied. And I think training this year was very difficult because he resented the time away from his children and from his girlfriend and friends. He's really tired of the toll training takes on his personal life. But he did write me an email the other say that said, firmly, 'By the way, I plan on winning.'

He's finally gotten himself in good shape, though it took him awhile. And once the race starts, and the competitiveness kicks in, you just don't know what will come out of him. If something makes him angry, look out. He really feeds on anger and discontent.

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Arlington, Va.: Why is Nike only donating $1 per item from the 10/2 collection? Couldn't Lance make them pony up at least a measly $5 from $85 items?

Sally Jenkins: Well, that's a good question. I guess the stuff is already so expensive...

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Arlington, Va.: Sally- I enjoy your columns so much! My wife and I don't get the Outdoor Life Network, do you know of any bars/restaurants in the area that will be showing the Tour?

Sally Jenkins: ESPN's the Zone usually has every sports event known to mankind on some kind of screen. But it's not on, good luck asking a waiter to switch from baseball to the Tour.

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Reston, Va.: So where does Lance go after this? I know he's said he's retiring to spend time with his family but is he really going to drive carpool and go to PTA meetings (not that there's anything wrong with that)? I know Nike just announced a new clothing line based on 10/2...so is there a 2nd career as 'spokesman' and announcer in Lance's future.

I hope he wins #7 - it'd be nice to go out on top....

Sally Jenkins: I'd expect Lance to do some TV, and a lot of lobbying for cancer research funding. I believe his contract with Discovery calls for him to do a certain amount of broadcasting. And he enjoys managing his own money. Also, he owns a big piece of the Austin music festival. And the Foundation is much more time consuming than anyone knows. He has a pretty heavy schedule of speeches and appearances as well board meetings and so on in the cancer fight. And he really loves talking to other cancer patients. And that's quite apart from raising his children. I think his schedule will be pretty full. He's been holding three jobs the last few years, and now I think he's looking forward to just working one or two.

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Fort Worth, Tex.: What are your predictions for the podium?

Sally Jenkins: Hey Ft Worth!!! My predictions are Armstrong, Basso, and a third rider whose name we don't yet know. A surprise.

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Alexandria, Va.: Will The Post increase its coverage of the Tour this year?

Team tactics are always important.

Sally Jenkins: I think you'll see deeper coverage in the Post this year. There's a wonderful story in today's paper from my friend Bonnie DeSimone who's over there filing special reports. She's a terrific writer and knows her cycling, so hopefully you'll find what you want in our paper.

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Chesapeake Beach, Md.: Is this an anti-Armstrong tour route this year? Did they try to change it so as to play to his weaknesses or minimize his strength (such as the team trials)?

Overall, what does the course look like this year?

Sally Jenkins: Well, every year the course is supposedly set up against Lance. The trouble is that he's such a complete rider, it doesn't matter. Some years it's shorter, some years it's longer, some years there is an emphasis on time trials, some years the mountains are especially brutal. He has won on every kind of Tour course. So there really isn't any such thing as an anti-Armstrong course, unless you make a course that is perfectly flat and strictly for sprinters. Then he might have trouble. But it wouldn't be a Tour if it was flat.

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Horsham, Pa.: I have followed Le Tour when the race was recapped on ABC once a week on Sunday. Now I can watch it live everyday! I'm an OLN addict in July the last few years since Lance has started his current streak. After this tour, will some of the luster for Le Tour diminish in the U.S. because of Lance's retirement? I'm asking because Lance is such a good story for the sport with his cancer survival, consecutive winning streak, and his competitive attitude with his rivals. Thank you and keep up the great work!

Sally Jenkins: That's the big question. I think it depends on whether an American talent comes along to fill the hole that Lance's retirement will leave. Floyd Landis is a very talented rider and we'll see if he can challenge for a podium spot. But at the moment the successors to Lance are Europeans.

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Arlington, Va.: Suggestion for those who don't have OLN - Summers Restaurant at Clarendon Blvd and Courthouse Rd. near Arlington Courthouse has lots of TVs and the satellite power to see many sporting events.

I've been there to watch several baseball and hockey games not on network/local cable, and they stay open at odd hours during World Cup time. I imagine they could be persuaded to tune in to the Tour.

Sally Jenkins: thanks

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Columbia, Md.: Lance seems to place a ton of emphasis on loyalty -- almost to the point that he views Hamilton, Heras and Landis as traitors. Do you think this is a bit unfair? It seems like these men put in their time as faithful lieutenants, and it would be only natural to want to venture out on their own to see how they would perform as the #1 on a team. How do you think Heras and Landis will fare this year?

Sally Jenkins: I think that's overstated. Lance knows he can't keep a talented young rider as his second forever. It's inevitable that some of these guys move on and become leaders of their own teams, for more money. Once a Heras or Landis moves on, Lance treats them like he treats all opponents: they become outsiders and competitors. Also, in my opinion Lance often looks for an excuse to build a competitive fire. So he'll say, Floyd Landis left me after everything I did for him -- just as a way of firing himself up to ride against him.

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Lexington, Ky.: What constitutes a typical Tour de France breakfast and dinner?

Thanks,

John

Sally Jenkins: I love this question, because you wouldn't believe it if you watched them eat. They eat big bowls of muesli, heaping platefuls of eggs, and a ton of carbohydrates, even pasta, at 6 a.m.. I've watched Lance devour cereal, four eggs, a big bowl of linguini, and break off huge hunks of French bread in between courses.

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Alexandria, Va.: What do you think cycling in America will look like post Lance? There are so many amazing American riders right now - Chris Wherry, Floyd Landis, Bobby Julich, David Zabriskie etc that I know one of them will the Tour one day - but they also win other HUGE European races or stages, and no notice is paid to them at all. I really hope we will still be able to get the Tour on OLN and others post Lance, but fear the "Cyclism" will die when Lance retires.

Sally Jenkins: I'm very high on Landis, and will be really interested to see what he does without Lance pushing him. Julich and Zabriskie have been around for awhile, and so I'm not sure I see them getting much better. What I think we'll see in the next couple of years, if not now, is a whole new raft of American names. I've got to believe that Lance's performances over these last six years caused a bunch of kids to buy bikes. The kids who bought their first 10-speed back in 1998 will be coming into their own shortly, and maybe one of them is the next American star.

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Washington, D.C.: Somebody was wondering where to follow the Tour on-line. Cycling News is the place for really in depth Tour news that isn't always focusing on Lance.

Sally Jenkins: That's a great site, thanks for adding it.

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Silver Spring, Md.: Sally-

Thanks for the chat. Do you have any sense that Lance is worried about not having Ekimov up at the front of the "blue train" with Hincapie?

Sally Jenkins: I don't know if worried is the right word. The lineup changes every year, and every year it's just as strong. Johann Bruyneel will put some hardy bodies around Lance, I'm sure.

What would worry Lance more is just the chemistry. The Postal team really thrived on chemistry, they loved each other and cracked each other up and each brought a different strength to the team. We'll see if that transfers to the Discovery team.

I suspect that Lance will simply miss Eki. Personally.

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Harrisonburg, Va.: Lance is clearly very physically gifted but it seems like others could achieve similar results (or at least become much more competitive in the tour) if they applied a similar approach to training, stage research and team organization. Do the euros not understand this or is this not compatible with their philosophy of bicycle racing?

I'm pretty sure Landis is Mennonite, not Quaker.

Sally Jenkins: You're exactly right, Landis was raised Mennonite, not Quaker, my error. Thanks for the correction.

Yes, I think Lance's highly organized and scientific-technological approach to the Tour is very different, and I think it's a significant advantage. I think his training methods are superior, I think his bikes and equipment is better. And I think he accompanies all of that with personal discipline -- he treats his body like a machine. The Europeans seem to disapprove of this, they consider it too robotic, or too professional. It's a very corporatized approach. But it works.

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Sally Jenkins: Okay folks, gotta run, thanks for tuning in.

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