Friday was Stage 12 of the Tour de France. It was the first real mountain stage, and Lance Armstrong didn't disappoint. He moved from sixth to second, trimming 4 minutes off the gap between himself and the race leader Thomas Voeckler. The most astonishing part was that Armstrong's biggest rival, Jan Ullrich, never really mounted a challenge and fell another 3 minutes further behind Armstrong. He looked like a beaten man early in the final 8-mile ascent.
This was one of the more entertaining stages to watch with the wild seemingly out-of-control descents on very wet winding roads. The announcers called the riders brave, but to me it looked like insanity.
I marvel at these guys.
P.S. - following Stage 12, Butte Montana's Levi Leipheimer (RoboBank) is still looking good in 12th place overall, about 3 and a half minutes behind Armstrong.