Fabian Cancellara of Switzerland continued to lead the Tour de France 2009 standings after stage 3 of the 21 stage "race". Race is not quite the right word for it...maybe trek, marathon or torture. Torture is probably the most fitting as the Tour de France winds 2,149 miles through the mountains of France finishing in Paris on July 26 after 21 stages over 23 days, with only two days of rest.
I don't know about you but about a 10 mile bike ride is just about the max for me. Then my legs start getting tired, my ass starts getting sore (even with my nice cushy seat), and I really start craving a nice cold beer. Okay, so maybe I'm soft, but I'd rather look at it as these guys doing the Tour de France being hardcore. Check out the first three stages of the Tour:
Stage 1 - Monaco - 9.63 miles (I'm hanging in at this point, dead last but still riding)
Stage 2 - Monaco to Brignoles - 116.2 miles (Okay, I'm done)
Stage 3 - Marseille to La Grande Motte - 121.8 miles (I'm back in America already, screw the Tour de France)
And then these riders still have 18 stages to go and about 1,900 more miles. Have fun.
The overall winner for stage 3 was Mark Cavendish, who had also won stage 2. Lance Armstrong, 37 years young, was able to close in on the yellow jersey by moving up seven places into third place. He is still 40 seconds behind the leader Cancellara, but only 7 seconds behind second place Tony Martin of Germany.
