Today's stage will be one that will be talked about for years to come, and not because of the great riding of Thomas Voeckler.
Voeckler rode like he was planning this stage for years, and earned himself a huge win for France. He realized that for the second straight day a breakaway would survive, and made sure he was the strongest rider in the breakaway. From there he made a daredevil descent to win himself a stage that will go down in infamy for years to come. The controversy yet again revolves around the Contador-Schleck battle. After Saxo Bank lead Andy Schleck into the final climb of the day he was left alone with Contador and the other major contenders of the Tour. After they felt each other out with a few small failed attacks, they decided to start to make some more serious moves as the climb got steeper. Just when Schleck looked almost ready to attack, disaster struck. His chain popped off and he was forced to pull over to the side of the road to wait for mechanical help. To make matters much worse, Contador, 3rd place Sam Sanchez, and 4th place Menchov saw his struggles and decided to make their attack. They easily got clear of the parked Schleck and went off on their own over the descent.
Schleck absolutely gave it his best on the chase, but was unable to pull back enough time on Contador to keep his yellow and conceded it by 8 seconds. The debate will rage on for days and maybe years to come about whether Contador was fair in attacking when Schleck had a mechanical. Personally, I can see both sides of the story but I think that Alberto was absolutely out of line. It is perfectly fair to keep riding and make Schleck earn his way back up, but attacking at that very moment is an entirely different story. He technically did nothing wrong and will not receive any punishment, but he broke one of the unwritten cardinal rules of attacking the yellow jersey with a mechanical. Personally, I think it shows that Contador is uncomfortable with his own form and does not believe that he could catch Andy when Andy's bike is working properly. Contador said that he did not know that Andy had a mechanical, but he was well behind him when Schleck pulled off the road, and teammate Alexandre Vinokourov (who clearly saw the incident right behind Schleck) must have surely said something to the team. I will also add that Sanchez and Menchov are also equally at fault, as they both were pressing Contador further into the attack while Schleck struggled for a mechanic. Whether or not you believe it was fair for Alberto to attack, it certainly is great for the TV ratings because the battle that had already been hyped beyond belief just took a whole new level. Schleck said in his post-race interview that "It was not up to me to decide whether or not it was fair, but I would not do it myself." He also added that his stomach was "full of anger," and he will "get his revenge." Schleck will be a man posessed for the next few stages, and why not considering that time gap that he needs to open on Contador before the stage 19 TT. Contador will wear yellow tomorrow, and certainly seems quite "proud" to do so.
Today's stage will be one that will be talked about for years to come, and not because of the great riding of Thomas Voeckler.
Voeckler rode like he was planning this stage for years, and earned himself a huge win for France. He realized that for the second straight day a breakaway would survive, and made sure he was the strongest rider in the breakaway. From there he made a daredevil descent to win himself a stage that will go down in infamy for years to come. The controversy yet again revolves around the Contador-Schleck battle. After Saxo Bank lead Andy Schleck into the final climb of the day he was left alone with Contador and the other major contenders of the Tour. After they felt each other out with a few small failed attacks, they decided to start to make some more serious moves as the climb got steeper. Just when Schleck looked almost ready to attack, disaster struck. His chain popped off and he was forced to pull over to the side of the road to wait for mechanical help. To make matters much worse, Contador, 3rd place Sam Sanchez, and 4th place Menchov saw his struggles and decided to make their attack. They easily got clear of the parked Schleck and went off on their own over the descent. 
Schleck absolutely gave it his best on the chase, but was unable to pull back enough time on Contador to keep his yellow and conceded it by 8 seconds. The debate will rage on for days and maybe years to come about whether Contador was fair in attacking when Schleck had a mechanical. Personally, I can see both sides of the story but I think that Alberto was absolutely out of line. It is perfectly fair to keep riding and make Schleck earn his way back up, but attacking at that very moment is an entirely different story. He technically did nothing wrong and will not receive any punishment, but he broke one of the unwritten cardinal rules of attacking the yellow jersey with a mechanical. Personally, I think it shows that Contador is uncomfortable with his own form and does not believe that he could catch Andy when Andy's bike is working properly. Contador said that he did not know that Andy had a mechanical, but he was well behind him when Schleck pulled off the road, and teammate Alexandre Vinokourov (who clearly saw the incident right behind Schleck) must have surely said something to the team. I will also add that Sanchez and Menchov are also equally at fault, as they both were pressing Contador further into the attack while Schleck struggled for a mechanic. Whether or not you believe it was fair for Alberto to attack, it certainly is great for the TV ratings because the battle that had already been hyped beyond belief just took a whole new level. Schleck said in his post-race interview that "It was not up to me to decide whether or not it was fair, but I would not do it myself." He also added that his stomach was "full of anger," and he will "get his revenge." Schleck will be a man posessed for the next few stages, and why not considering that time gap that he needs to open on Contador before the stage 19 TT. Contador will wear yellow tomorrow, and certainly seems quite "proud" to do so.
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