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FAN CULTURE

PARIS ROUBAIX

12 APRIL 2008

Encounter with a dad-to-be

As we have done year after year, my husband and I attended the presentation of the teams taking part in the 2008 Paris-Roubaix at the race departure in Compiègne, a nice historic town located 75 kilometres north of Paris.

Once again, we felt the absence of our favourite team and all the people we know.

We mainly wanted to say hello to Dirk Demol, now sports director for Quick Step, but at the team hotel we were told that Dirk would only arrive in the evening.

Then we headed for the High Road team hotel and waited in the lounge for Roger Hammond and George Hincapie, two ex-US Postal and Discovery riders.







When George appeared, on his way to the dining room, he immediately approached us to say hello.

Big George is shy and it’s not easy to have a chat with him. He said that Melanie, his lovely French wife, whom he had met during the 2003 Tour de France (where she was a podium girl for Crédit Lyonnais main sponsor of the race) is seven months pregnant and going to give birth to a little boy at the end of June.

It will be George’s second child, and the whole family is delighted at the idea of welcoming an heir, specially three-and- a-half year old Julia (nicknamed Juju). Don’t forget that George is of Colombian origin, speaks Spanish with both his parents and his brothers, and in Latin countries having a boy is important.

On our way back from Compiègne, it was a miracle that we were not stopped for speeding because we were in a great a hurry to witness Alberto Contador’s TT and overall GC victories in the Tour of Basque Country race live on TV.

Photographs by Christine and Roger Kahane

A DOG CALLED CHECHU

Ana and Julian Sevillano in Miami, Florida emailed us this photo of their gorgeous dog, Chechu.

And yes, the perdiguero frances was named in honour of a certain Asturian cyclist.

Ana and Julian caught up with Chechu in Palo Alto, venue for the stage 1 of the Tour of California.

Any more pets called Chechu? GET IN TOUCH

CHECHU JOINS LOCAL CYCLE TEAM

We're grateful to members of Barcelona road club, Amics del Pendès, for their team photo taken with Chechu last weekend.

The team is from Barcelona, and it sounds like Chechu went out with them for a ride.



See TEAM WEBSITE (español)

THE TURQUOISE T-SHIRT

I must have had an intuition when I purchased that Astana Cycling Team T-shirt at the small town of Saint-Arnoult en Yvelines, yearly departure point of the penultimate ProTour race: Paris-Tours. It was the last T-shirt labelled “final clearance” on the rack of a stall, and no-one seemed interested in it.

Turquoise and yellow, the colours of the Kazakh national flag, happen to be two of my favourite colours, and from the start, I loved the Astana Cycling Team outfit.

So I bought the T-shirt for a ridiculous price (by French standards!) without trying it on, and it just happened to be the perfect fit.

I am now sure that, back then in October, I must have had a gut feeling that somehow Chechu and that T-shirt would be connected, although there was not the slightest sign, nor did Chechu have a clue concerning his future at that time.

I loved that T-shirt at first sight and wore it throughout my recent trip to Florida. Totally cut off from cycling news and with no access to the internet, in the middle of the night (due to the time difference), I received an sms from Scotland with Nicky’s five words. "He has signed with Astana”.

That’s when I realised that, unconsciously, I had known it all the time.



Christine in the turquoise t-shirt in Orlando

OUR MESSAGE OF SUPPORT FOR CHECHU

11 NOVEMBER 2007

Chechu Rubiera has not put a wheel wrong in his thirteen seasons as a professional cyclist. Yet astonishingly, after the withdrawal of Discovery Channel and with the new season only weeks away, he's still not on the 2008 roster of a ProTour team.

Chechu once told us that he had the best fans in the world. We travel across Europe, with our Asturian flags, to stand and cheer at the roadside as he passes. We watch for him on TV and on the internet. We gather his news, his photos, and his words. We learn his language and visit the country he loves.

The team which hires Chechu Rubiera in 2008 will gain not only a dedicated professional and gifted athlete, but an extraordinary group of fans around the world. From Australia, South America, Africa, Germany, France, Belgium, Great Britain and Hungary. And in the US, from California, Texas, Missouri, Massachusetts, Washington, Arizona and Kansas. Not forgetting his aficionados, Spaniards who have supported him since his first win twenty years ago.

Of course, we all wait for another win. It’s his dream and ours.

Chechu Rubiera is important to us, not just for his titles and trophies. We support him because he is a decent man, who since 1995, has performed his role as team leader and gregario in Artiach, Kelme, US Postal and Discovery Channel with sacrifice and loyalty, and who has represented the interests of professional riders with integrity.

Chechu Rubiera is a role model, both to us and the new generation of young, clean cyclists, on whose integrity the future of professional cycling depends.

The cycling community, struggling to survive every day, can’t afford to lose Chechu Rubiera. They must ensure that this outstanding career does not end here.

You can send a message of support to Chechu Rubiera today.

See MESSAGE BOARD

FAN DIARY

7 November 2007 Michel Roth and his wife Carolin, from Germany, watched Chechu storm up Alpe d'Huez with Lance on his wheel in 2001 and 2003.

We saw Chechu riding first time in France in 2001 on Alpe d'Huez. He was pacing Lance at the front of the peloton. It was such a great moment. We stood at the bottom of the climb, Chechu had such great speed there. No-one could follow. Cool.

In 2003, it was the same situation at the bottom of the Alpe. Crazy. Chechu led the whole peloton. Nobody could follow.

After that, we went every year to the Tour and every year, it was great with Lance and the team. The best in the world.

Stage 15, Tour de France 2006

In 2006, we are on the Alpe again, but Chechu was injured and we had to wait for him for a long time. But I have this great picture of him on the Alpe.

We love him cycling. (If and) when he steps off the bike, we wish him and his family all the luck for the future.

He is one of the best climbers I have ever seen.

See ENCOUNTERS
Also WITH CHECHU AT THE GIRO 2006

WHERE ARE THEY HEADED?

As we wait for Chechu to finalise his plans for 2008, Christine has been speaking with her friends, Valentin Dorronsoro and Craig Geater to find out where key Discovery staff are heading.

Elvio Barcella, Valentin Dorronsoro, Ryszard Kielpinski (massage therapists) and Alan Buttler, Craig Geater and Chris Van Roosbroeck (all mechanics) are ASTANA bound. Also possibly massage therapist Geert Tiebergijn.



Elvio Barcella, Ryszard Kielpinski, Valentin Dorronsoro and Alan Buttler

To PREDICTOR-LOTTO go Dimitri Borysov, Kurt Van Roosbroeck (Chris’ brother), Vincent Monserez, all massage therapists.

Vincent Gee, the American mechanic is going to BMC Professional Cycling Team. And Nick Mondelaers, mechanic, is heading to LOTTO.



Vincent Gee, Craig Geater, Dimitri Borysov and Chris Van Roosbroeck

No news yet about mechanics Julien de Vriese and Jeanick Verstraete, and bus driver Luc Verloo, all Belgians.

TOUR DE FRANCE 2008

5 to 27 JULY 2008

This time last year, Christine Kahane met the Discovery Channel staff, looking forward to Tour de France 2007. Now Discovery has disbanded, and Johan Bruyneel is top man at Astana. Read Christine's report from this week's 2008 Tour presentation in Paris.

The Tour de France 2008 unveiling kicked off at 11am on Thursday 25th October, 2007 in the huge Paris Palais des Congrès convention centre, located one mile due west of the Champs Elysées.

Despite an(other!) strike at Paris CDG airport, Johan Bruyneel made it, arriving among the stragglers, followed by Alain Gallopin, and I greeted him with a kiss. He said the only two Discovery people who would attend were Alberto and himself.



When I queried how I would find Alberto, Johan rather facetiously suggested I just follow the swarm of photographers...et voila!

There was Alberto sitting in the second row between Cadel Evans and Oscar Pereiro. All three were surrounded by so many photographers and media that you could hardly catch a glimpse of them, and I had a hard time getting near enough to say a few words to Alberto and take some pictures for our website. The photos were almost all blurred because I was being jostled by heavy cameras held by big men.



Then the lights went down and a giant screen broadcast a very well-made feature highlighting the best and worst moments of the Tour de France 2007.

Patrice Clerc, Manager of ASO, made a short but very clear speech saying “never again” ie. no doping anymore.

He stressed that ASO will exercise total freedom in deciding which teams (and riders?) may be admitted to the race. And that each rider will need to show a passport validated by an independent and neutral medical commission before being able to qualify for the Tour de France.

At noon, Christian Prudhomme, Manager of the Tour de France, began his presentation of the detailed 2008 itinerary by saying that the Tour belongs to France’s cultural heritage and must be protected. He added that 200 French towns applied to host a stage, and that the Tour, for the first time in its history, signed a partnership with an entire French administrative region (Brittany).

As a result of this agreement, the 2008 Tour will depart from Brest and the first three stages will all take place in Brittany, a region where several famous champions originated from, such as Jean Robic, Louison Bobet, or Bernard Hinault who was attending the event.

The giant screen then gave us an animated, stage-by-stage terrain-hugging look at the 2008 route: 3,550 kms and 21 stages, with no prologue, no plane/train transfers, fewer mountain passes, and only two time trials, but with a mix of difficulties designed to make the racing very open and undecided from beginning to end.

From time to time, we could catch a glimpse, on the right side of the screen, of the face of 2007 Tour winner, Alberto Contador with his angel look, who seemed totally serene, a couple of days after signing a two-year contract with Astana.

REPORT FROM PARIS-TOURS

13 - 14 OCTOBER 2007

SATURDAY : Christine Kahane checks in with the team at the hotel prior to the race

Paris-Tours, last classic of the 2007 cycling season

Upon arriving at the hotel accommodating several cycling teams, we are told that team Discovery Channel only has 6 riders instead of the 8 originally planned, Bileka and Devolver having scratched at the last moment.

Lately at Discovery it has been a disaster. The Belgian riders Devolver, Meersman and Van Goolen have been injured, and Bileka had to return at once to Ukraine for an emergency, his coach, to whom he is very attached, being seriously ill.

The mechanic Nick Mondelaers confides to us that Trek will be Astana’s supplier next year.

Dirk Demol tells us he decided to sign a one-year contract with Quick Step, following the choice of his heart. On the one hand, Quick Step is a Belgian team and, on the other, his decision has been determined by Tom Boonen and some other young riders, whom Dirk has coached in the past, and they all want him back.

Johan Bruyneel wanted Dirk to sign with Astana, a solution which would have granted him a three-year contract and material security, but Dirk is a sentimental person.

The soigneurs/therapists Elvio Barcella, Ryszard Kielpinski and Valentin Dorronsoro will follow Johan to Astana, and everybody expects that Alberto Contador also will join Astana together with Tomas Vaitkus.

We witness the arrival of Tomas Vaitkus and Brian Vanborg in Tomas’s personal car, a BMW with a Lithuanian license plate. But Tomas lives during the whole cycling season at a Spanish seaside town located between Valencia and Alicante.



The three big Tours, that have broken off relations with the International Cycling Union, have opted out of the Pro-tour system. Therefore, the organizers of the Giro, the Tour and the Vuelta have no obligation to invite the teams they don’t like. For example, ASO, which never had a good relationship with Johan Bruyneel (since the time of Lance Armstrong’s supremacy) could very well exclude Astana from the 2008 Tour de France, the more so following the Vinokourov-Kaschechkine doping scandal in this year’s Tour.

This could be another reason why Dirk Demol did not choose to sign with Astana.

SUNDAY : Christine talks to Dirk Demol and Valentin Dorronsoro before the race begins

It’s a beautiful sunny day with a totally blue sky; no clouds, but a biting cold when we leave for the departure of Paris-Tours, taking place in the small town of Saint-Arnoult-en-Yvelines, 50 kilometers south-west of Paris, on the road to Rambouillet.

It’s an emotional moment for Dirk Demol as he talks about his last appearance with Discovery Channel. Dirk is sentimental and admits it. He will soon take a two-week vacation on a Spanish island to unwind. This year has been very stressful.



As for my friend Valentin, soigneur and bus driver, he is following the riders to Tours and then will take them back to Charles de Gaulle airport (more than 250 kilometers each way). Then he will drive the Discovery Channel bus to the Belgian depot, all of this in the same day.

His season ends with this race, and tomorrow he will fly back to his home, near San Sebastian. Later on he may visit Cuba with a friend in November. Valentin enjoys travel (which must be a pre-requisite in this business!).

FAREWELL DISCOVERY!

TOUR DE FRANCE 2007 : ANNOUNCEMENT

Report and pictures by Christine Kahane, Thursday 26 October

The whole cycling world gathered this morning at the Paris Palais des Congrès where the details of the 2007 Tour de France were to be unveiled.

Although we were not able to get an invitation to attend the "show", we did manage to mingle with the crowd amassed in the lobby, and before the doors of the Paris’ largest amphitheater were opened, we had a chat (and photo opportunity) with the three managers of Discovery Channel, Dirk Demol, Lorenzo Lapage and Sean Yates. They told us no DSC rider would attend the event, nor Johan Bruyneel.

Roger spoke to Dirk Demol who, as usual, was very graceful and ready to chat and pose for photos. He is still basking in the euphoria of the team’s superb collective performance in the Vuelta, as well as the excellent individual exploits of DSC riders in that race : Janez Brajkovic, Vladimir Gusev, Tommy Danielson, and Egoi Martinez, the first three being still very young, and Egoi only 28. Dirk sounded very optimistic about the team’s future with a host of recent signings for the coming season.

I took a few pictures of two famous French past champions : André Darrigade, a sprinter in road races in the 1960s, who won many green jerseys, and Laurent Fignon, winner of the Tour de France in 1983 and 1984, and now a TV reporter. Even Christophe Moreau, the French "great white hope", was more available than usual and posed amicably for me.

By the time you read this little contribution, the route and other details regarding the 2007 Tour de France should be common knowledge.



Photo by Christine Kahane

MUSIC FOR CHECHU : SELECTED BY FANS

Just before this year's Tour de France, we decided to send a present to Chechu from his fans. We asked you to suggest some music for his iPod, we know plugs himself into it when he's warming up. We had a great response, from fans across the world, and some brilliant suggestions.

Rebecca has donned her headphones and listened to some remarkable sounds. We sent the final selection to Chechu on two CDs, Warm Up and Cool Down. So here are your selections.

Rolling Stones . Start Me Up
T Rex . I Love To Boogie
George Thorogood . Move It On Over
Capercaillie . Coisich, A Rúin
Tony Arco . Nataraj
Gypsy Kings . Una Rumba Por Aqui
U2 . Do You Feel Loved
Massive Attack . Unfinished Sympathy
U2 . Where the Streets Have No Name
Golden Earring . Radar Love
David Bowie . Starman
Queen . We Are The Champions
Gustavo Santaolalla . Gaucho
Ramon Melendi . Asturias

Music selected by Rebecca Bell . Cricket Martin . Larry Martin . Nicky Orr . Eduardo Sarmiento . Cathy Mehl . Martha Carver . Tom Orr . Susan Bailey . Patrick Sharp . Vaughn Trevi . Gaston Hoffman.

Mary Youngblood . Lady Bug Dance
Chris Norman . The Flower Of Port Williams
Johann Pachelbel . Canon In D
Air . Ce Matin La
Sheryl Crow . Letter To God
The Beatles . Long And Winding Road
Teenage Fanclub . Your Love Is The Place Where I Come From
Jeff Buckley . Hallelujah
Aaron Copland . Appalachian Spring
Walter Taieb . Bolero For Violin And Orchestra

Music selected by Rebecca Bell . Joan Poates . Tom Orr . Krishnamurti Mortela . Nicky Orr . Christine Kahane.

Thank you to everybody who took precious time to email us. We realised our project in just over a week, and it was such a lot of of fun. Does Chechu like your choices? Well, we don't know ... yet! We'll find out and let you know.

We downloaded all these tracks from two great websites, All of MP3 and Calabash Music.

Thank you especially to Christine Kahane for delivering the CDs into Chechu's hands. Watch out for Christine's photos and news from the Tour this week, coming soon at www.chechurubiera.info.



Photograph of Christine and Chechu by Liz Kreutz, thePaceline.com

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TWO DAYS IN GIRONA

Christine Kahane follows the trail in search of Discovery

We decided to head off for a couple of days to Girona, Spain to track down the resident American cyclists, many of whom are still with Discovery Channel.

It’s not difficult to understand what attracted them to Girona. The city was built on both sides of the river Onyar and preserves a lovely old town with cobbled narrow and steep streets, but it is also a lively and modern place with a wide choice of shops and catering, everything within walking distance. The city is surrounded by a hilly forested landscape. It’s a perfect place for long hours on the bike.

On our first day, we visited the medieval part of town and strolled along the path running around the ancient walls dating from emperor Charlemagne, with a spectacular view over the city. We passed in front of the three-story ancient stone building where Tyler Hamilton and his wife, Haven were once photographed for thePaceline. Lance and his family also lived in this building.

Then, we crossed a quaint bridge over the river Onyar, on its banks are the ancient multicolored houses dating from the Middle Ages. We headed towards the Plaça de la Independencia, a pretty square in the more modern part of town, with flowers and arcades. Here we found Café Boira, the meeting place of the colony of American riders referred to in Michael Barry’s book “Inside the Postal Bus”. Unfortunately, there was no cyclists in sight.

Next day, we visited the famous Cathedral, a mix of Romanesque, Gothic and Baroque styles, and then entered a narrow medieval street in the historical district, where we had heard several professional riders used to rent apartments during the European cycling season until they each bought their own homes in the city.

In a quaint three-story house, on top of a hill next to the Cathedral, we saw the place where Antonio Cruz, Christian Vandevelde, Floyd Landis, Levi Leipheimer, George Hincapie, Tyler Hamilton, Frankie Andreu and of course, Lance Armstrong has all stayed at one time. The lady in charge told us that even today, their relatives stay there when they are visiting Girona.

In the hall, there is a wide display of books by or about Lance, autographed photos of all sizes, and cycling kit : jerseys and caps, bidons and other sports items which belonged to riders who had lived in this elegant historical place. I even think I recognized the signature of Chechu on a US Postal jersey. Several photos and jerseys are autographed “for Cristina”. The landlady explained that Cristina is her sister, who was a physiotherapist for all the riders portrayed in this small museum when she worked for the Posties. This was the perfect end to our two days in Girona.

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REVIEWS

CONTEMPORARY SPANISH WRITING

Caperucita en Manhattan, Carmen Martin Gaité.

Christine Kahane writes, I recently read a well-written and entertaining little book which I strongly recommend to those who are interested in Spanish culture.

Caperucita en Manhattan (or Little Red Riding Hood in Manhattan) is a charming short novel, easy to read for those who are learning Spanish, which has been translated into all the major languages.

Carmen Martin Gaité adapts the well-known tale by Perrault/Grimm to our modern society, with Little Red Riding Hood living in Manhattan.

All the main characters from the tale appear in this novel. It’s a spontaneous, sensitive story that initially appears to be a children’s tale. But it is not.

Through the ingenuous but lucid and critical vision of a ten-year-old girl, who is accumulating all kinds of experiences and who at times does not manage to understand what is happening in the minds of the adults surrounding her, the fundamental philosophical ideas and truths of life, such as the fight for freedom or the struggle against fear, are encountered. Furthermore, this book incites everyone to keep forever the vision, the spirit and the heart of a child. Those who enjoyed the “The Little Prince” by French writer Saint-Exupéry will love “Caperucita en Manhattan”.

Nicky adds, According to Amazon.com, this title isn't available in English. However, there are other recommended works by Carmen Martin Gaité, including Variable Cloud and The Back Room.

Race2Replace Webisode : Mining for Chechu

Seven years in the shadow of an American Icon, once faithful soldiers in Lance Armstrong’s rolling army, seven elite cyclists, chase the dream: Who will be the next Lance?

So begins each video in Discovery’s Race2Replace series. Currently found at the team website, Race2Replace is a promotion that combines short videos, called “webisodes”, with a campaign of TV commercials, and a cycling contest for fans.

The webisodes are vignettes that show something about each rider’s personality, and indicate what sort of leader he would be, should he take over Lance’s position as team leader.

Chechu’s webisode is called Mining for Chechu, and visits his home in Asturias, in the north of Spain. It’s a combination travelogue and introspective interview, in elegant English.

Chechu shows us his garden and house, filling us in on the background of his family and the coal mining history of the place. His stories are warm and charming, and include several generations of family, back to his great-great-grandmother and the intriguing place where she did her laundry!

Chechu also goes on a training ride with teammate and fellow Asturian, Benjamin Noval, and shows us his electrical engineering studies. Throughout the video, he communicates his love of cycling, the importance of training and taking care of himself, his contentment with home, his desire to win and awareness of how complicated that is, and how vital it is for people to challenge themselves mentally.

The video is deeply beautiful, surprising to all of us who were not aware that Asturias must have been the Garden of Eden. The mountains and fields, the cattle and apple orchards all spin past our eyes to the rhythm of enticingly lovely Spanish music. Ideas like loyalty, faithfulness, and endurance permeate the text of the video.

Perhaps it’s good to live near family and reminders of the past, surrounded by nature and agriculture, with a view of it all from the bicycle. Chechu’s life seems to have made him a man with a beautiful soul. The cycling world senses this, but only labels it collegially by calling him “The Nicest Guy in the Peloton.” Mining for Chechu gives some clues as to how Chechu got that way, and how he stays that way.

Review by Rebecca Bell.

Lance Armstrong: tour de force, Daniel Coyle, 2005

I don’t read sports books generally. In recent weeks, however, I’ve delved into more cycling books than ever before. Some I’m happy to skim for references to Chechu, a few have caught my attention because they’re well written.

American journalist Daniel Coyle has written a lively book about the 2004 pro cycling season, which gives colour and life to a world I simply can’t imagine.

Coyle was given extraordinary access to the US Postal team and to Lance Armstrong’s private world. He offers glimpses of life on the road with US Postal and some perfect moments to savour. I love the idea that cyclists check out each other's backsides to see who is carrying too much weight. And poor Jan Ullrich had to hold in his stomach at an early season sign-on. Coyle enjoys the cool efficiency and all-knowing of the US Postal’s Belgians. Bruyneel’s commentary, given word for word, to Armstrong on 2004 final time trial is thrilling. Interesting chapters on Hamilton, Landis and Ferrari bulk out Coyle’s entertaining commentary.

This book has an easy, flowing style, packed full of great stories and you will laugh out loud.

A quick note: the US title is Lance Armstrong's War.

cycling.tv

We discovered cycling.tv soon after its launch last year. It had a kind of home-spun feel. Whilst the live race coverage, mainly from Belgium, was truly impressive, features such as the video diary of the Etape du Tour hopeful, Alex Aruja, shot over his long training period, were mesmerising.

This kind of real person’s view of cycling is sadly missing from the redesigned slickness of cycling.tv 2006. But no complaints, the quality of pictures is matched by great commentary (we’ve been known to turn the sound off during David Duffield’s rambles on Eurosport).

At the moment, the content is focussed on the Belgian classics but they’ve just announced that, together with OLN, they will be broadcasting from the Giro d’Italia to the US in May. Don’t miss that, if you thought the Tour de France is exciting, wait until you see the Giro. And of course, Chechu’s scheduled to ride this year.

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