Back in 1999 at the Dauphiné Libéré, on a sun-filled June afternoon of 80-degree weather, Jonathan Vaughters raced up the Giant of Provence, Mont Ventoux, faster than anyone in history. His record time for the 21.6km between the tree-shaded village of Bedoin and the bare, exposed 6263-foot summit was 56:50, an average speed of 22.8 kph.

It was a record that the now-retired Colorado climber expected to be beaten on Thursday, when the weather was almost identical to that of five years ago. There were several factors that backed up Vaughters’s prediction. First, bicycle technology and training methods have progressed markedly over recent years.

Sage advice pays off.

Photo: Graham Watson

Second, the entire Ventoux climb, which averages almost 9 percent for its final 16km, has recently been resurfaced in beautifully smooth tarmac. Third, a three-way battle was expected between Basque climber Iban Mayo of Euskaltel (whom Vaughters tipped to win) and the American’s two former teammates, Lance Armstrong of U.S. Postal and Tyler Hamilton of Phonak.

Before any of these protagonists came into sight from the rocky mountaintop, Vaughters was even more convinced that Mayo would score a prestigious stage victory. “I talked to him before the start, and he said, ‘What should I do?’ I told him, ‘Start really slow and then hit it really hard at the end.’ So if he took my advice, that probably means he’s gonna do a really fast time.”

Other knowledgeable race followers thought that the relentlessly long climb would be a tough proposition for Mayo, because he is not a renowned time trialist, and a solo effort of almost an hour can do strange things to the mind. Would he keep his focus?

What worked in Mayo’s favor though was that he started four minutes behind Armstrong and two behind Hamilton. After the relatively easy opening stretch of 5.7km at 4.2 percent, Armstrong set a then-best time of 10:13. Hamilton came through in 10:20, while the supposed-to-be-going-slow Mayo sped though in10:04.

“I didn’t expect to do the fastest time in that first phase,” said Mayo. “I was riding within myself and just getting a feel for the bike.” For the first time, he was using a brand-new climbing bike from Orbea, the lightest that Mayo has ever ridden.

Armstrong: Just lulling the competition into complacency?

Photo: Graham Watson

While Vaughters was chatting at the finish, the three favorites all reached the second time check at Chalet Reynard, after the steepest 10km section of the climb. The splits showed that Armstrong was struggling, because he had fallen back behind two other Spanish climbers: Hamilton’s teammate Oscar Sevilla and Juan Mercado of Quick Step.

Armstrong’s time for that second phase was 29:49, an average speed of 19.72 kph. On that same stretch, Hamilton started to close on his old boss by racing it in 29:01 (20.26 kph). This was a remarkable split by Hamilton because Mayo, the specialist climber, was just one second faster. That meant that the Euskaltel rider went into the final 6km with a 17-second advantage over Hamilton.

Who’d be the fastest over the final phase? Was Hamilton going to put in his traditionally fast finish? Or was Mayo taking the advice of Vaughters and ready to go really hard?

With no television coverage, the media and spectators alike were looking down the bleached mountainside, straining to see if Hamilton could actually catch Armstrong — which would have been a humiliating experience for the defending Dauphiné champion.

At first, that looked to be happening. But the man wearing the green and yellow Phonak colors was not Hamilton, but Spaniard Oscar Pereiro — who had actually been caught and passed by Armstrong.

Hamilton was not far behind though. After Armstrong crossed the summit in 57:49 ( which is actually the fastest by three seconds that the five-time Tour winner has ever climbed Mont Ventoux), we had to wait only 37 seconds before Hamilton cruised across the line in a new record time of 56:26 — 24 seconds faster than Vaughters’s 1999 time.

But Mayo was still riding strong, “not even thinking of holding anything back.” The 26-year-old Spaniard doubled his lead over Hamilton in those final 6km to zip home in a masterly 55:51, an average speed of 23.202 kph. It’s going to be a hard record to beat, just as Vaughters’s was.

In taking the stage and setting a new record, Mayo also wrested the leaders' jersey from Hamilton's Phonak teammate Jose Gutierrez.

Meanwhile, Jogi Muller, spokesman for U.S. Postal, said Armstrong is not as determined to win the Dauphiné this year, focusing instead on getting in the best shape possible for the Tour, Muller said.

"If victory falls into place, then sure," Muller told The Associated Press by telephone. "He's just not going to kill himself in order to win."