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Race Across the Sky

If you just can't get enough of Lance Armstrong, then go see the documentary "Race Across the Sky," which takes a look at this year's Leadville Trail 100 mountain bike race.

Thursday's showing of "Race Across the Sky" is being billed as a one-night event. In addition to the film, panel discussions featuring Armstrong, six-time winner Dave Wiens and other elite and amateur cyclists will be shown before and after the film.

Only four theaters in the St. Louis area were chosen to show "Race Across the Sky" at 7 p.m. CDT. The theaters are:

• Edwardsville Showcase, 6644 Center Grove Road, Edwardsville, Ill.
• AMC Esquire 7, 6707 Clayton Road, St. Louis
• St. Louis Mills 18, 5555 St. Louis Mills Blvd., Hazelwood, Mo.
• AMC Chesterfield 14, 3000 Chestefield Mall, Chesterfield, Mo.

If you don't live in the St. Louis area and want to know where the movie will be shown near you, go to the NCM Fathom site, type in your ZIP code in the box near the top of the page and off you go! The movie starts at 8 p.m. EDT, 6 p.m. MDT and will be shown on tape-delay on the West Coast at 8 p.m. PDT.

For those of you who aren't familiar with the Leadville Trail 100, here's a brief description from the Fathom site:

At 10,000+ feet, against the misty backdrop of a former mining town, Leadville, Colo., 1400 cyclists line the starting line. For many, it will be the most difficult race of their lives. For some, a bragging right to say they raced alongside the best in the world. Some imagine victory. Most hope only to finish. But everyone will count.

The race that started 25 years ago as a running race to drive tourism in Leadville has now grown to a lottery cap of 1000+ competitors, many of them the world’s most elite cyclists. But the Leadville Trail 100 "Race Across the Sky" Mountain Bike Race is not just a race of man against man:  It’s man vs. man, man vs. self, man vs. elements, man vs. time. A clock set for 12 grueling hours slugs through 100 miles, over 14,000 vertical feet of climbing, some two miles above sea level, through extreme climate changes ranging from heat to hail, from rain to snow.  To the racers, the risks of injury, fatigue and mechanical failure pale next to the chance that they will fall behind the 12-hour cut off mark and be eliminated.

Armstrong won the 2009 Leadville race, knocking more than 15 minutes off of the old record, about a half hour ahead of  Wiens. You can read more about this year's race at VeloNews.

Labels: Lance Armstrong, mountain biking, movies

Roger 0 comments links to this post 12:48 AM

Wednesday, October 07, 2009

Lance Armstrong inks deal with Michelob Ultra

A few years ago, when I found out Lance Armstrong was a fan of Shiner Bock, I decided to check it out. I figured that if Shiner was good enough for Lance, it was good enough for me!

I was not disappointed. It still remains one of my favorite beers.

Yesterday, I found out Lance has agreed to a three-year deal with St. Louis-based Anheuser-Busch InBev to be the spokesman for Michelob Ultra.

As part of the agreement, Armstrong will appear in a new Michelob Ultra television commercial titled "Little Bumps," and he will make a cameo appearance in a second ad titled "Escalator," both which are scheduled to air in 2010. Michelob Ultra will use Armstrong's likeness on print, outdoor advertising, digital marketing programs, product packaging and point-of-sale advertising.

"I'm always making decisions that complement my active lifestyle, and this includes my beer choice when I want to enjoy a cold one with friends or when taking a break from training," Armstrong said in a press release. "I'm excited about my association with Michelob Ultra, a brand that supports cycling and running communities across the U.S. and is a favorite among active adults."

Over on his Twitter page, Armstrong briefly described his trip to St. Louis to speak before 5,000 Anheuser-Busch InBev distributors. He even posted photos of the Gateway Arch.

Michelob Ultra is a sponsor of cycling events such as the Tour of Missouri, the Hotter N Hell 100 and El Tour de Tucson, so it's natural that Anheuser-Busch InBev would want cycling's most popular figure as a spokesman.

Michelob Ultra has only 95 calories and 2.6g carbohydrates, 0.6g protein and 0.0g fat, per 12-ounce bottle. And that's what's wrong with it, in my humble view. I tried it -- once -- and found it lacking in flavor. If I wanted to drink something with that little flavor, I'd just assume drink a glass of water.

I do enjoy other Anheuser-Busch InBev products and I'm appreciative of the support the brewery has given to cycling. But I'm afraid, Lance, I won't be joining you in becoming a Michelob Ultra drinker.

Labels: advertising, beer, Lance Armstrong, St. Louis

Roger 1 comments links to this post 12:54 AM

Thursday, July 23, 2009

Lance Armstrong's new team

RadioShack and Lance to Form New Cycling Team in 2010 -- powered by http://www.livestrong.com

In case you missed the news earlier today, Lance Armstrong and his LiveStrong charity will team up with RadioShack and other sponsors to form Team RadioShack for the 2010 season.

Not only does Armstrong and his new team plan to race in the 2010 Tour de France, The Associated Press reports Armstrong plans to participate in running and triathlon events for Team RadioShack.

“It’s a huge opportunity for us as an organization and as a cancer survivor. It’s pretty mega,” Armstrong added after Thursday's Tour de France time trial stage in Annecy, France.

Armstrong put himself back on the podium with today's performance. Earlier this week, Armstrong more or less conceded the yellow jersey to current Astana teammate Alberto Contador. Barring a major catastrophe on Contador's part, the best Armstrong can hope for is second or third. Still, it's a major accomplishment for a 37-year-old professional cyclist.

Labels: Lance Armstrong, Tour de France

Roger 0 comments links to this post 9:44 PM

Tuesday, July 07, 2009

Lance leads strong U.S. showing so far

In case you haven't noticed, American cyclists hold 5 of the top 17 spots -- and 4 of the top 12 sports -- after four stages of this year's Tour de France.

Thanks to Astana's dominant performance in the Stage 4 Team Time Trial today, Lance Armstrong is virtually tied for the overall lead, just two-tenths of a second off yellow jersey wearer Fabian Cancellara.

Astana teammate Levi Leipheimer is fifth, just 31 seconds behind Cancellara and Armstrong. David Zabriskie (Garmin-Slipstream) is ninth at 1:09 back, Christian Vande Velde (Garmin-Slipstream) is 12th at 1:16 back, and George Hincapie (Team Columbia-HTC) is 17th at 1:36 back.

That, along with Tyler Farrar's (Garmin-Slipstream) second-place finish to sprint king Mark Cavendish (Team Columbia-HTC) in Sunday's Stage 2, have made for an amazing start for U.S. cyclists so far.

Armstrong's confidence is high after the Team Time Trial, as he said on the Tour de France Web site:

“I wanted to be one of the strongest in the race. I think that I am. I may not be strong enough to win but I think somebody on this team will win. I know the race and I understand what it’s all about. Yesterday we saw a critical point in the race. It’s the Tour and I know the Tour; I know how to race it and how to be in the peloton… so sometimes it pays to be old and experienced and not young and strong. We’ll see what happens from here but I’ll take it day by day."

Labels: Lance Armstrong, Tour de France

Roger 0 comments links to this post 2:46 PM

Thursday, July 02, 2009

Tour de France 2009

There's no doubt that the folks over at Versus are absolutely thrilled that Lance Armstrong is back in the Tour de France. There no doubt Armstrong's presence should boost ratings for the cable TV channel, and it also helps there will be six other Americans in the race.

The question, of course, is how well will Armstrong do. Is he capable of winning after spending three years away from the world's most prestigious bicycle race. My hunch is that if anyone is capable of pulling it off after such a long absence, it's Armstrong. However, Astana teammate and 2007 Tour de France champion Alberto Contador is considered the favorite to win.

I guess we'll see what happens on the road. Versus' coverage of the Tour de France begins at 8:30 a.m. CDT with the Stage 1 time trial in Monaco. As been the case in recent years, Versus will air plenty of Tour de France coverage until the July 26 finale in Paris. Go to the full schedule for details; keep in mind that all times listed on the Versus schedule are Eastern Daylight Time.

Another Astana teammate, American Levi Leipheimer, has to be considered a contender for a podium spot, as could Illinois native Christian Vande Velde, who finished fourth last year then came back to the States to win the 2008 Tour of Missouri. George Hincapie back for another go, although it will be odd to see him not riding in support of Armstrong.

I probably won't write about the Tour in great detail, mainly because there's so many sources out there who can provide much more insightful coverage than I can, including Versus, VeloNews, Bicycling magazine and other news sources on the right column of my blog.

Have fun following the Tour!

Labels: Lance Armstrong, racing, Tour de France

Roger 0 comments links to this post 1:40 PM

Thursday, June 11, 2009

Lance Armstrong: The Movie

It looks like a movie about Lance Armstrong and his amazing comeback from cancer is in the works.

The Hollywood Reporter's Risky Biz Blog reports Gary Ross, who wrote and directed multiple-Oscar nominee “Seabiscuit,” has been hired to pen the Armstrong script. Shooting could begin as early as next year.

The blog says the movie the pic is based on Armstrong’s first book, the 2000 tome he wrote with Sally Jenkins titled “It’s Not About the Bike,” which traces his story from his difficult Texas upbringing, his cancer diagnosis in 1996, his relationship to first wife Kristin, the birth of their child and his remarkable comeback from illness that saw him first win the Tour de France in 1999.

Matt Damon supposedly is under consideration to portray Armstrong, although no casting decisions have been made. The blog says the movie has hit several obstacles over the years, but were revived by Armstrong's comeback this year.

Labels: Lance Armstrong

Roger 0 comments links to this post 10:14 AM

Friday, March 13, 2009

Astana signs up for Tour of Missouri

The Tour of Missouri scored a major coup this week with the signing of Lance Armstrong's team, Astana, for this year's event.

"This is a big development for the Tour of Missouri," said Chris Aronhalt, the managing partner of event organizer Medalist Sports in a press release. "To have the participation of Astana is yet another huge step for this race. The Tour of Missouri's reputation is evidently very solid in the minds of the top teams and riders. To have Team Astana join the already great line-up of teams is good for all coming to see the 2009 Tour of Missouri."

Tour of Missouri organizers did not say whether Armstrong would indeed race in Missouri.

In addition to Armstrong, Astana is the team of top American Levi Leipheimer, who has won three straight overall titles in the Amgen Tour of California. Astana's roster also includes 2007 Tour de France winner Alberto Contador of Spain, who raced in the inaugural Tour of Missouri, and Tour de France podium finisher Andreas Kloden of Germany.

“We are very much looking forward to coming to the Tour of Missouri. We like to compete in the big American races,” said Johan Bruyneel, the general manager of Team Astana. “The Tour of Missouri is a very good race and will be competitive this year looking at the initial roster of teams. As always, we will bring a very good team to compete for the win.”

Labels: Lance Armstrong, Tour of Missouri

Roger 0 comments links to this post 12:42 AM

Saturday, February 14, 2009

Tour of California 2009

In a matter of hours (3:30 p.m. Central Time), the Amgen Tour of California gets under way with the 2.4-mile prologue. Cycling broadcaster Phil Liggett has ranked it "as the fourth or fifth biggest race in the world,'' and who am I to doubt him!

Clearly, the vast majority of eyes will be upon Lance Armstrong, who is racing for the first time in the United States since ending his retirement, But Armstrong insists he will be riding in support of Astana teammate and two-time defending Tour of California champion Levi Leipheimer.

The eyes also be on a group of former dopers, including Ivan Basso, Tyler Hamilton, David Millar and Floyd Landis, who won the 2006 Tour of California before later that year stripped of his Tour de France championship. The San Jose Mercury News likens the field to the "equivalent to inviting Barry Bonds, Mark McGwire, Jason Giambi and Alex Rodriguez to play ball."

But it's possible the winner could be someone like defending Tour de France champion Carlos Sastre, defending Tour of Missouri champion Christian Vande Velde and American cycling legend George Hincapie.

I'l try to cover the race the best I can from 2,000 miles away, but I suggest you follow some of the links on the right side of the page to get up-to-date coverage from people who are there. You also might want to follow California-based blogs such as Cyclelicious to get the inside story. You also can watch it on Versus, which is airing the Tour of California with nearly the same frequency as it does the Tour de France. (Note: The times listed on the Versus schedule are Eastern Time.)

The Tour of California site is offering a live tracker of the event, and you can watch the race for free at Cycling TV.

Labels: cycling, Lance Armstrong, racing, Tour of California

Roger 0 comments links to this post 12:37 PM

Sunday, January 25, 2009

Around the horn ... again

Midwest Bicycle Expo and Swap Meet: I spent most of the morning and afternoon at the St. Louis Regional Bicycle Federation's Midwest Bicycle Expo and Swap meet in Collinsville, Ill., pushing the Tour de Stooges and selling raffle tickets for a benefit for cyclist Gerry Frierdich. I'm happy to report that we sold nearly $400 worth of tickets for a Bacchetta recumbent bike that will be awarded Feb. 7!

I want to especially thank Mark Cockson, executive director of the Gateway Council of Hostelling International, who helped me sell tickets today. More importantly, I want to thank all of you who bought tickets or donated money for this most worthy cause!

I had my annual conversation with Brent Hugh, executive director of the Missouri Bicycle Federation. He talked about wanting to ride the Tour de Stooges as many of his cycling friends from the Kansas City area have done. I pointed out that it's only about an additional half-hour drive on U.S. 40 to get from Collinsville to Highland.

My longtime friend Doug Kaufman helped man the MoBikeFed booth, and I got to chat with some of my best friends from the Belleville Area Bicycling and Eating Society, including Arlene Willmann, Thomas Carter, Tracy Hall, Charles Beil and David Weidler.

If that wasn't enough, I had nice chats with Karen Karabell and Carrie Zukoski of the St. Louis BikeFed and Amy Schmidt of Trailnet. All in all, a pleasant way to spend a Sunday!

Lance Down Under: Saturday night, I got done with my work at the Belleville News-Democrat early enough to watch the final two laps of the final stage of the Tour Down Under. Lance Armstrong finished 29th overall in the Tour Down Under, 49 seconds behind winner Allan Davis of Australia, but was satisfied with his ability to keep up with top riders after 3 1/2 years out of professional cycling.

“It’s given me a reassurance that I can still race because I’ve got to say, man, you never know. You’re out 3 1/2 years, you don’t know how the body deteriorates or gets older," Armstrong told The Associated Press. "It reassures me that I can work hard and do the right work and I think I can still race at the highest level.”

Next up for Armstrong is the Amgen Tour of California. Armstrong says he will riding in support of defending champion Levi Leipheimer, but it wouldn't surprise me at all if Armstrong provides some exicitng moments of his own.

Even in the Tour Down Under, Armstrong had his moment in the sun. On the next to last lap of the race, Armstrong found a burst of power and briefly took the lead. His move even had Phil Liggett and Paul Sherwin all a-flutter, predicting that he could pull away and take the stage. Liggett and Sherwin often are wrong with their in-race predictions, including this one, but it was fun to hear them get excited about Armstrong again.

Social Networking Addiction: I'm not teaching this semester at Southern Illinois University Edwardsville, but my addiction to social networking sites is keeping me away from this blog.

My primary addiction is Facebook. Not only do I have a page for me, but this blog has an application there. If that wasn't enough, I am the primary administrator for the Belleville News-Democrat's page there.

I have a MySpace page as well, but I rarely look at it. In my humble opinion, Facebook is so such much better and mature than MySpace. In the past few weeks, many of my old friends from Southwestern High School have made their way to Facebook and have managed to find me!

I'm also on Twitter, although most my posts there are headlines from this blog and from my Blip.fm page. As with Facebook, I'm also the primary administrator of the News-Democrat's Twitter page.

Blip.fm is my newest addiction. It's basically Twitter with music! You can find a wide range of song there, write a brief note about the song and creat your own playlist. Fun stuff. I'm trying to get a few other people addicted to it as well so I'm not alone!

Labels: Gerry Frierdich, Internet, Lance Armstrong, St. Louis Regional Bicycle Federation

Roger 0 comments links to this post 11:20 PM

Friday, January 23, 2009

Landis to ride in Tour of Missouri

Floyd Landis, coming off a two-year ban because of a doping violation at the 2006 Tour de France, says he's planning to ride this year's Tour of Missouri with his new domestic cycling team, OUCH. The team plans to ride the major U.S. races, starting with the Amgen Tour of California in February.

"Starting with the Tour of California, every race we enter we’ll be entering to win," Landis told Outside magazine. "Not that it will be easy. The Tour of California is huge, so it’s kind of a stressful first race back. And there are some very strong domestic teams we’ll be up against this season: BMC, Bissel. Guys come along each year who you’ve never heard of and surprise you. There’s real talent in the U.S. And great races. After the Tour of California there’s the Tour of Utah, the Tour of Missouri. I’m looking forward to it."

Landis' entry in the Tour of Missouri isn't official yet. The Kansas City Star reports that the only team that has received an invitation to compete in this year’s race is the Garmin-Slipstream team led by Christian Vande Velde, the 2008 individual champion. The September race still is in its planning stages.

Landis also had an extended interview with USA Today in which he not only confirmed plans to ride in the Tour of Missouri, but said he has no more faith in anti-doping controls.

"Those are half-(hearted) tests and they know it, but I have no choice if I want to race. You have to agree to those terms. But I trust those guys less than just about anyone I've ever met," Landis said.

After a long legal battle with the U.S. Anti-Doping Agency over a test that showed he had an illegally high testosterone-epitestosterone ratio after his dramatic win in the 17th stage of the 2006 Tour de France. Landis ultimately was stripped of his overall Tour title because of the test.

One cyclist who's welcoming Landis' return is one-time teammate Lance Armstrong. The 7-time Tour de France champion, racing this week in the Tour Down Under in Australia, told Australian media the people should "forgive and forget" and welcome Landis and other cyclists who have done their time for doping violations.

"It's good that the strongest people in the world are in the strongest races in the world," Armstrong said in the Herald Sun. "You've got to remember that Floyd might have been found guilty but at the end of the trial, if you polled people more than 50 per cent thought he was innocent."

Speaking of Armstrong, he's is 38th place in the Tour Down Under after today's stage, in which he finished 47th. He's 39 seconds behind Australian Allan Davis after four stages with two more stages left.

Labels: cycling, Lance Armstrong, racing, Tour of Missouri

Roger 0 comments links to this post 9:59 AM

Sunday, January 18, 2009

The comeback begins

In case you're wondering -- and I'm sure you are -- Lance Armstrong began his comeback today in the Tour Down Under. The seven-time Tour de France champion finished 64th, safely within the peloton in the Cancer Council Criterium in Adelaide, Australia, 24 seconds back of winner Robbie McEwen.

The criterium does not count, however, in the overall standings of the Tour Down Under. Racing begins in earnest Tuesday. Here's a short excerpt from the VeloNews account:

Those who doubted Armstrong’s ability to find his racing legs again should not have. For much of the hour-long criterium, he rode at the front, at ease, and as if he never left the sport, his legs still a willing slave to the rhythm of professional bike racing.

Toward the end, Armstrong slipped toward the back of the field.

"I'm glad it's over," said the American, who is far more suited to stage racing than hectic criteriums where the threat of crashes is ever present.

If you're hoping to see Armstrong's exploits in Australia, Versus is probably your best bet. Versus will be airing half-hour highlight shows at 3 p.m. Central Time today, Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday and Friday, and 2:30 p.m. Central Time on Saturday. Versus will air a full-hour show at 4 p.m. Central Time next Sunday (Jan. 25).

In addition, you can watch the final stage of the Tour Down Under live at 9 p.m. Central Time Saturday (Sunday afternoon in Australia) at Versus.com.

Labels: cycling, Lance Armstrong, racing

Roger 0 comments links to this post 10:26 AM

Tuesday, September 09, 2008

Lance says it's so

Lance's Comeback to Cycling in 2009 -- powered by http://www.livestrong.com

Lance Armstrong is back, as you can see from the video from LiveStrong.com.

Based upon sources, VeloNews first reported Armstrong would try for an eighth Tour de France title last year, and other media outlets picked up on the story.

In a story posted today at Vanity Fair, Armstrong confided to writer Douglas Brinkley -- a neighbor of his in Austin, Texas -- that he will race. Here's an excerpt:

As we sat in our terrace chairs overlooking the manicured vista, Armstrong nervously fingered the yellow band on his wrist. He insisted he had something on his mind. “Something huge,” as he put it. I braced for the worst.

Then, in almost robotic fashion, he said, “I’m going back to professional cycling. I’m going to try and win an eighth Tour de France.”

For a moment I gaped at him. Was I being punked? (Armstrong would later tell Doug Ulman, the president and C.E.O. of L.A.F., that my eyes bulged into saucers, like some boinged-out character in a Ralph Steadman illustration.) As the news sank in, though, I realized he was deadly serious. I knew from Armstrong’s memoir, "It’s Not About the Bike," that his VO2 max (the gauge by which the human body’s capacity to transport and use oxygen is measured) is superhuman, his ship-sail lungs uncommonly efficient.

But at age 37? A 2,000-mile, 23-day race, much of it uphill? By next July? I asked him, rather ungraciously, if he wasn’t too old to get back into shape that quickly.

He laughed. And he was off and running. “Look at the Olympics. You have a swimmer like Dara Torres. Even in the 50-meter event [freestyle], the 41-year-old mother proved you can do it. The woman who won the marathon [Constantina Tomescu-Dita, of Romania] was 38. Older athletes are performing very well. Ask serious sports physiologists and they’ll tell you age is a wives’ tale. Athletes at 30, 35 mentally get tired. They’ve done their sport for 20, 25 years and they’re like, I’ve had enough. But there’s no evidence to support that when you’re 38 you’re any slower than when you were 32.

“Ultimately, I’m the guy that gets up. I mean, I get up out of bed a little slow. I mean, I’m not going to lie. I mean, my back gets tired quicker than it used to and I get out of bed a little slower than I used to. But when I’m going, when I’m on the bike—I feel just as good as I did before.”

Armstrong said he is "100 percent" committed to competing next year.

Armstrong doesn't have a team, yet, and his camp acknowledges there's still a lot of work to do. But given Armstrong drive, I have no doubt he will find a way to be in France.

The Vanity Fair article covers a wide range of topics, including speculation he will run for governor of Texas and his ongoing work with cancer research. It's a rather length story and spends a lot of time setting the scene, but the article is worth the effort.

Labels: cycling, Lance Armstrong, racing

Roger 0 comments links to this post 4:34 PM