Not what it seems!

Lance Armstrong moved into second place today in the Tour De France but lost ground on the Yellow Jersey. I am completely confused by cycling but this one is fairly simple to understand. Second place rider, and Armstrong teammate, Alberto Contador took the lead in the Tour by winning Sunday's stage and Armstrong came in ninth, one minute and thirty-five seconds behind Contador. There are very few upsides however to Lance's strong showing today and his borderline miraculous contention up to this point.

It is a widely known fact that the climbs have long been Lance Armstrong's strong point in the Tour De France. He has only been trailing after the first big climb once. But he finds himself trailing today. There is a lot for Lance to think about tomorrow during his day of rest. See Contador and Armstrong both share the climbing stages as their strengths, and if this was a test of whose will was stronger I would pick Armstrong 100 percent of the time. But this Tour will test far more than Lance's desire to win. Armstrong must decide now if he will really play the good teammate as originally planned and set Contador up for victory, or if he will cut all ties with his teammates and make a final run at glory. See Lance is at a disadvantage due to his age and his absence from the sport, but like I said earlier you cannot question his intestinal fortitude.

With the Tour playing into both Armstrong and Contador's hands, we will have to wait and see which one chooses to play the proverbial bad guy. I hope with all my might that Lance will go out and take the Yellow Jersey, but it will be just as admirable if he settles into his role as second fiddle and aids Contador in victory. Either way these two men should start to run away with the Tour at this point and the rest of us will have to watch with our breath held. Live like no one is watching and conquer your hills!