Stage One...

Get used to this kids...the race isn't over til the 23rd.

Stage One:
1st: Jimmy Casper - France - Cofidis Credit - 4:10:00
2nd: Robbie McEwen - Australia - Lotto - 4:10:00
3rd: Erik Zabel - Germany - Milram - 4:10:00

Overall:
1st: George Hincapie - USA - Discovery - 4:18:15
2nd: Thor Hushovd - Norway - Credit Agricole - 4:18:17
3rd: Dave Zabriskie - USA - CSC - 4:18:21
Other notables:
9th: Floyd Landis - USA - Phonak - 4:18:26
26th: Andreas Kloden - Germany - T-Mobile - 4:18:34
31st: Bobby Julich - USA - CSC - 4:18:35
33rd: Yaroslav Popovich - Ukraine - Discovery - 4:18:37
38th: Levi Leipheimer - USA - Gerolsteiner - 4:18:38
50th: Jens Voight - Germany - CSC - 4:18:41

Yellow Jersey (Overall Leader): George Hincapie (USA)
Green Jersey(Top Point Earned - Sprinting): Jimmy Casper (France)
White Jersey(Best Young Rider): Benoit Vaugrenard (France)
Red Polka Dot Jersey (King of the Mountain): Fabian Wegmann (Germany)
Yellow Numbers (Best Team): Discovery
Red Number (Most competitive): Walter Beneteau (France)

So today was a sprinter's race. Flat course for the most part - one small hill allowing for King of the Mountain points. HIncapie made an absolutely brilliant move by sprinting up to third at one of the intermediate markers and earning a two second time bonus. Those two seconds put him in the overall lead. Awesome. The finish in sprints always scares me. The riders are going at about 40-45 mph and they are so close together. One goes down and 10 easily follow. Today, there was no real clear cut leader even up til the last couple seconds. No teams were really getting into formation to pull for their sprinting specialists. Strange. Tom Boonen and Robbie McEwen had a huuuuge rivalry last year. Boonen is the current world champion, but he kind of gave up in the last few meters. McEwen came out of nowhere to take second. And a little French guy they hadn't mentioned all day beat out both of them and Stuart O'Grady and Prologue winner Hushovd. Hushovd, in the last kilometer coming up to the line apparently hit his arm on a spectator waving something in the track and was really hurt, even though he managed to cross the lined. The fans get so close, it's a wonder more people don't get hurt this way. When most people come up with an image of the Tour, its the one of Lance Armstrong getting caught on a spectators bag and going down hard in 2004.

I get so worried about my boys.

Up early tomorrow for stage two =) Yes, I know - this is gross...but Liz gets it.