FEATURES

Under the city's first sunny skies in weeks, one million spectators lined the streets of London from Whitehall to Hyde Park. The Grand Départ certainly lived up to its name as England gave the Tour one royal send-off.

VeloNews technical editor Matt Pacocha spent the early days of the Tour with team mechanics getting the inside scoop on the most interesting time-trial bikes - plus the story on the UCI's eleventh-hour rule forbidding certain TT positions.

"Time trial" and "Whistler singletrack" are seldom used in the same breath, much less the same race, but that's exactly what happened on the seventh day of the inaugural mountain-bike stage race in early July. Some 69 two-person teams survived the seven-day race through British Columbia.

Absalon, Absalon! After his fourth repeat victory, Julien Absalon slapped an exclamation point next to his name at the fifth installment of the World Cup in St-Félicien, Québec.

Although Carlos Sastre is this year's Tour leader for CSC, Fraänk Schleck could soon be a serious contender. In fact, he could be the first Luxembourger to win the Tour in nearly 50 years - if his brother Andy doesn't beat him to it.

Six wins in a nine-week period during his rookie year were reason enough for T-Mobile management to put Mark Cavendish on its nine-man team for the Tour de France. And he owes it all to his early experience at the track.



DEPARTMENTS & COLUMNS

Cheerwine has found the recipe for sweet bubbly success, rising to second place in the NRC women's team standings.

If there's a history lesson to be learned from riders who have won their country's national championship, it's this: a tri-colored jersey can turn yellow at the Tour.

It's not the Fourth of July without a few fireworks, and at this year's Firecracker 50 in Breckenridge, Colorado, "Jungle Jay" Henry lit up the field. Finally!

Just in time for the Tour, a few companies launched consumer products you will see on the roads of France.

Specialized tailored its new S-Works Tarmac SL2 to Tom Boonen's demands.

Belgian eating myths debunked plus shaking up tried-and-true exercises.

with Ben Delaney.

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