"Woody Guthrie was what folks who don't believe in anything would call an anomaly. Admittedly, the intersection of space and time at the corner of July 14, 1912, and Okemah, Oklahoma, was a long shot to produce anything like a national treasure."

Fuck that is good. I wish I could say I penned that, but alas its Steve Earle, and you can read the whole article here

If you didn't see Beloki's crash in yesterdays stage of the tour, you missed out on one of the craziest moments on two wheels. This is shaping up to be the best tour in twenty years. Do yourself a favor and watch it this weekend. ABC usually has a good weekly summary show on saturday or sunday. Basically you've got a guy shooting at his fifth straight win, something done only once before (no one has won six) and 20 teams doing all they can to see it doesn't happen. Add to this the fact that he is a cancer survivor and getting older, the door is open for someone to pull off an upset. Beloki was the most likely to do this, but Ullrich is still around, and the young rider from Kazakstan kicked Lance's ass two days in a row. the stage is set.

The bags are packed. the batteries are charged. The kid has had his share of aussie wine. Damn. I be on holiday!

No Death Cab photos - they all came out waay bad. Turns out either me or my digital camera sucks at taking photos at shows.

Booked a live aboard snorkeling/dive trip for the weekend. I hear the weather might not cooperate though. Then again, I guess it doesn't matter all that much underwater.

Listening to:
Gillian Welsh - Soul Journey
Scud Mountain Boys - Massachusetts


Reading:
God's Own Singer - Gram Parsons Biography

So Lance is in yellow, but he was not the dominant texan of old. I don't know what to make of that; usually he kicks the fields ass early and then starts to fade towards the end, giving up a little bit of time (but not alot of time). Those spanish riders are looking real tough. But hey, he's got the strongest team, and his in yellow so its not like he showed up fat and tired or anything. He's still the odds on favorite, but anyone who watched stage 8 could see the chinks in his armor.

two quickies before I pass out
-Tour de France. Richard Virenque stole some thunder the other day, but L'Aplpe D'Huez is THE most storied finish in the tour. Being stage 8 today, I've never seen L'Alpe this early in the race. US Postal looks strong, but so does the german Ullrich. This could be the best tour since '88. For those of your not so steeped in tour history, Greg LeMonde came back from an impossible 50 seconds to win it all by 8 seconds on the final stage in paris. The tour is never decided in paris. No tour was decided as closely....
Oh shit. Postal is dropping the hammer as I write. Ullrich is nowhere to be found. Interestingly, Tyler Hamilton is one of 4 riders at the front. Bishop Connolly Cycling Team Alums will know him well. He was better than me then, and he is better than most now. Liva Lance!

-Went out to the Death Cab For Cutie show. At times it was kinda ridiculous, with the two guitar players and the bassist ALL with their backs to the crowd. I mean I know they are pretty emo and all that, but cmon already! But it was a very good show. Photos shortly.

Cairns is only hours (well 2+ days) away.