Tour de Luxembourg 2008 Part IV

This Portuguese store is located just 70 meters from the Start. It was
June 8th Sunday. The day before that day (Saturday), the Portuguese national
team won a match against Turkey in European Championship (succor or football).
This store owner was happy, I guess. I saw Portuguese flags flying at several
places in Luxembourg. I had not known that there were Portuguese communities
in Luxembourg before that day.


They had flags and other items delicately displayed.

Well, back to the race.

Kurt-Alse Arvesen and Bobby Julich giving out their autographs to fans.



Ditto.



Andy is ready to go with a bunch of snack bars in his back pockets.



Frank Schleck giving out his autograph.

 

Fabian Cancellara going to the start line.



Team CSC cars.



Andy is being photographed.



The Start gate. Can you see those pink elephants?



Filippo Pozzato signing.



The race is about to start.



Volodymir Gustov just after the start.



Bobby Julich just after the start.

Team Saxo Bank in 2009

Wow! Riis Cycling has made it known that it has found a new sponsor for
the three upcoming seasons.

Team CSC will be known as Team CSC/Saxo Bank effective immediately and
will be known as Team Saxo Bank starting 2009.

What will the UCI code be? SAX?

Tour de Luxembourg 2008 Part III

The sky was blue and it was sunny.


What a beautiful place! This is just 50 meters down the Finish gate. I think this
ruined brick structure is called Casemates.



The ville de Luxembourg (the city of Luxembourg) has a dynamic landscape.
It has this deep valley just out side the city center.



The church peak just over the Finish gate is St. Michel.



Beautiful, isn't it?



This is the front view of University of Luxembourg, I think. This photo
was taken while I was driving to ville de Luxembourg from Mersch.



University of Luxembourg



Sure, it was a hot day in Luxembourg but they mean something else
by Hot City. The city of Luxembourg offers these Wifi hot spots.



You see that antenna up there.



Wifi zone, it says.

Calendar and Results (After June 8th)

My plans for the next few months.

June 15th - 22nd: In Switzerland (Tour de Suisse, Stage 2, 5, 6, 8 and 9)
June 29th Sunday: National Championship (Bochum Germany or other country?)

July 5th - 27th: Tour de France (All the stages including the Team Presentation)

August 24th Sunday: Eneco Tour (Benelux)
August 31st Sunday: Deutschland Tour

September 1st Monday: Deutschland Tour
September 7th Sunday: Vattenfall Cyclassics (GER)


Autograph collection:

1. Stuart O'Grady
2. Karsten Kroon
3. Allan Johansen
4. Kurt-Asle Arvesen
5. Matthew Goss
6. Anders Lund
7. Matti Breschel
8. Marcus Ljungqvist
9. Lasse Bøchman
10. André Steensen
11. Jens Voigt
12. Andy Schleck
13. Nicki Sørensen
14. Michael Bludzun
15. Alexndr Kolobnev
16. Kaper Klostergaard
17. Bobby Julich
18. Gustav Erik Larsson
19. Fränk Schleck
20. Carlos Sastre Candil
21. Chiris Anker Sørensen
22. Lars Bak
23. Volodymir Gustov
24. Jurgen Van Goolen
25. Juan José Haedo
26. Fabian Cancellara

Hopefully, I will get these men to give their autographs on my jersey.
27. Inigo Cuesta Lopez de Castro (during Tour de France, I think he will be there)
28. Bradley McGee (Eneco Tour?? or Deutschland Tour??)
29. Jason McCartney (Eneco Tour?? or Deutschland Tour??)

Tour de Luxembourg 2008 Part II

Tour de Luxembourg 2008 (Stage 4 Mersch - Luxembourg) June 8th 2008.

I left for Mersch 07:00 in the morning and arrived 09:50. Around 10:40,
team cars began to arrive. While waiting for the Team CSC riders to come
out, I checked their bikes.


The O, Symetric chainring on Bobby Julich's spare bike. The bike has 
Ultegra FD equipped on it.



Ultegra is visible.



Only Andy Schleck's bike had this Alpha Q's new GS-40 fork.



Fabian Cancellara's Soloist has this sticker on it. You know by now what
Tony M. means or who it is if you are a Team CSC fan.



Tony's crank set is a bit suspicious.



I saw this similarly suspicious crank in 2007 in Kuurne (Kuurne-Brussel-Kuurne) used
by Lars Bak. Back then, it had FSA sticker on it. You can clearly see the remnants
of the sticker.



The work place for the Team CSC boys. As far as I remember,
Tony M., Bobby Julich, Kurt-Asle Arvesen had SRM. Who else had one?
I think there were four bikes with SRM.



The race bike of Bobby's had this roughly machined O, Symetric chainring.
It is just machined but not refined. It does not even have the logo on it.



You can see the rough edges. The FD is a Dura-Ace model.



Voiture balai



This voiture balai had a programable LED board on board. It reads "TDL."

Calendar and Results 2008

My plans for the next few months.

June 8th Sunday: Skoda Tour de Luxembourg
June 15th - 22nd: In Switzerland (Tour de Suisse, Stage 2, 5, 6, 8 and 9)
June 29th Sunday: National Championship (Bochum Germany or other country?)

July 5th - 27th: Tour de France (All the stages including the Team Presentation)

August 24th Sunday: Eneco Tour (Benelux)
August 31st Sunday: Deutschland Tour

September 1st Monday: Deutschland Tour
September 7th Sunday: Vattenfall Cyclassics (GER)


Autograph collection:

1. Stuart O'Grady
2. Karsten Kroon
3. Allan Johansen
4. Kurt-Asle Arvesen
5. Matthew Goss
6. Anders Lund
7. Matti Breschel
8. Marcus Ljungqvist
9. Lasse Bøchman
10. André Steensen
11. Jens Voigt
12. Andy Schleck
13. Nicki Sørensen
14. Michael Bludzun
15. Alexndr Kolobnev
16. Kaper Klostergaard
17. Bobby Julich
18. Gustav Erik Larsson
19. Fränk Schleck
20. Carlos Sastre Candil
21. Chiris Anker Sørensen
22. Lars Bak
23. Volodymir Gustov
24. Jurgen Van Goolen

Hopefully, I will get these men to give their autographs on my jersey.
25. Juan José Haedo (at Td Luxembourg or Td Suisse)
26. Fabian Cancellara (ditto)
27. Inigo Cuesta Lopez de Castro (during Tour de France, I think he will be there)
28. Bradley McGee (Eneco Tour?? or Deutschland Tour??)
29. Jason McCartney (Eneco Tour?? or Deutschland Tour??)

Bayern-Rundfahrt 2008 Part II

I predicted (or at least knew) where they were going to put up the sign
indicating the beginning of the feed zone. And they were exactly where I
thought they would be!

By taking a look at the document on the organizer's site and at the picture
from Google Earth, I predicted the point as "N49 52.237 E10 48.879". Here is
the actual photo of the signs.


As you can see it was a hot summer day down there. Around 9:00 the temperature
was already 24 degrees Celsius and in the afternoon it was over or close to
30 degrees Celsius.

The end of the feed zone was at the end (in the direction of the race) of the
village called Unteraurach. I thought the signs would be at the beginning
of the village. I missed them by 100 meters. Here is the photo. You are
looking at the village from the opposite direction of the race course.


Around 11:40?, the first team car arrived there. It was a Credit Agricole car. By 12:00,
most of the team cars were there.



Here are the team cars. You can see the rough location by looking at the
road sign.


Our Team CSC car was also there.　At the feed zone, I picked up three musettes
and two bidons. Three musettes were of Aqua & Sapone Caffe Mokambo, Topsport
Vlaanderen and Wiesenhof-Felt. Two bidons were of Thuringer Energie and
Team Gerolsteiner.

... Wait a minute! Wiesenhof-Felt? This team ceased to exist at the end of 2007.
Who used this musette?


At the finish.


There was still this small breakaway when the race arrived at the finish. They were to make one
more round.



So Team Milram had to keep the pace up for the race leader,
Christian Knees. They were to catch the breakaway in the following round.



Eventually, the race was won by Heinrich Haussler of Team Gerolsteiner. 
I did not know he was participating in BRR, but the moment I saw a jumpy
feisty man in Gerolsteiner jersey at the finish line, his name came to my mind. 



Team CSC riders. Lars Bak and Karsten Kroon after the finish.



Karsten Kroon



Marcus Ljungqvist receiving a bottle of some cold drink and the instructions how to get to
the cars where he could change and rest.

After this, I went to a bit remote place on foot where Team CSC cars parked and waiting for the riders to come home. They were friendly. I had fun hanging out there.