Weds will tell Levi's Tour tale.

[creekster]

I think Wednesday is Levi's last chance to podium. He needs to put 2-3 minutes into Evans to podium. The first minute and a half is to pass Evans and the last is a margin to let him hang oin by his teeth at the last ITT. This will only happen if Evans is under a lot of pressure. The stage offers 2 HC climbs. 2 cat ones and a cat three. Importantly it has a summit finish, which means that COntador will try to put the hurt on Rasmussen on the climb and this will help Levi try to hurt Cadel. Look for disco to set tempo up the next to last climb or two to try to split the peloton and isolate Rasmussen and evans. Then look for COntador to go for it on the last climb tot he finish, with levi trying to do the same thing to evans, just a little father down the hill. This will leave only the ITT on Saturday to sort out the GC. It will come down to a couple of little climbers trying to outdo each other in a TT. Levi will probably not beat evans, so if Levi wants to podium in Paris, he will need to take the time Wednesday.

Of course most of my predictions have been wildly wrong so far, so we'll see.

[MikeWaters]

I was the one who suggested Rasmussen might win the whole thing when he first took yellow.

I think you are right.

What is the ITT going to be like? Anything to indicate that time gaps will be bigger than the last one?

[creekster]

Originally Posted by MikeWaters

I was the one who suggested Rasmussen might win the whole thing when he first took yellow.

I think you are right.

What is the ITT going to be like? Anything to indicate that time gaps will be bigger than the last one?

The course is flat (a few very small grades but they are nothing for these guys). It is 55km and should give a guy like Evans time to get back a few minutes. I see nothing that sets this that much apart from the first ITT; about the same length and about the same grade. The main difrference is they have just raced for three weeks so some guys will be tired and others will be too tired. I'll make some more fearless predictions on Thursday or Friday.

I was the one that said rasmussen had no chance. He has defied my expectations, buti I still don't like him. I much prefer contador or Evans.

[creekster]

Here's some commentary from Velonews about the upcoming ITT:

Evans now sits exactly four minutes behind Rasmussen, 2:23 behind Contador and 1:25 ahead of Leipheimer - the same time difference he finished ahead of the American on Saturday's stage 13 time trial. Evans said that the way Contador and Rasmussen are climbing he has to "be realistic," about taking time out of them on Wednesday's stage 16, which finishes atop the Col d'Aubisque.
"Rasmussen and Contador seem to be on a different level in the hills," Evans said, saying he can only hope to chisel away on Contador and Rasmussen on Saturday's flat 55.5km time trial.
On last Saturday's 54km time trial, which featured a category 4 climb, Evans finished 1:04 ahead of Contador and 1:41 ahead of Rasmussen. In the absence of a climb, Evans can hope to gain another 20-30 seconds maximum.
"In theory I would be more suited to the flat time trial than they would be," Evans said.
But even if Evans were to make up time in the time trial, if stage 16's outcome is anything like stages 14 and 15, it won't be enough. Evans lost 1:52 to Rasmussen and Contador at Plateau de Beille, and 56 seconds over the Peyresourde.
Asked how he likes his chances to make the final podium in Paris, Evans answered, "Less and less as [Contador and Rasmussen] take more time."