Lance’s day: Armstrong finished 23rd, 22:38 behind teammate Paolo Savoldelli, who won the 148.8-mile 17th stage in 5 hours, 41 minutes, 19 seconds.
Fanatic following: Dore Holte, a Seattle man astride his own bike and outfitted with a 6-by-8-foot American flag, watched the race and said, “I had to see him bring closure to his story.”
Signs of surrender: The main pack of riders took it easy Wednesday. Their average speed over the second and third hours of the stage was less than 25 m.p.h.–slower than usual.
Remaining stages:
– Thursday: 105 miles from Albi to Mende.
– Friday: 95.4 miles from Issoire to Le Puy-en-Velay
– Saturday: 34.5-mile individual time trial
– Sunday: 89.8 miles from Corbeil-Essonnes to Paris and the Champs-Elysees.
– – –
Winning margins: Currently, your Tour leader is ahead of the second-place cyclist by 2 minutes, 46 seconds. Armstrong’s margins of victory in the past six Tours:
2004: 6 mins. 19 secs.
2003: 1 mins. 1 sec.
2002: 7 mins. 17 secs.
2001: 6 mins. 44 secs.
2000: 6 mins. 2 secs.
1999: 7 mins. 37 secs.
