Michael Rogers not dead yet
Standing at 27th overall after the sixth stage, Team HTC-Columbia rider Michael Rogers has no choice but to dominate in the coming mountain stages of the Tour de France. If he still means to contend for the podium, the mountain stages are the place to make up for the lost in the cobblestones.
''It certainly does change things,'' Rogers said on Wednesday of the impact of the cobbles. ''If I want to get back that time I have to go on the attack. I'm not the only one. For sure it would have been better that I didn't lose the time, but that's the way it is. I am going to do everything I can to get it back.''
Rogers was the best Australian performer in the prologue, placing 14th, 0:35 behind Fabian Cancellara. He lost 2:25 in the third stage after puncturing a tire on the cobblestones. The Australian was three minutes behind leader Cancellara after the fourth stage and outdid himself in the fifth and sixth stages, but not by enough.
"It's always a difficult thing to balance, having a team with goals in the sprints and green jersey and for the GC (general classification)," he said.
Rogers was among many overall contenders to lose time because of crashes and mechanical problems. The entire peloton knew the risk. The Australian lost touch with the group that included two time Tour champion Alberto Contador after Frank Schleck crashed out with a broken collarbone.
''I was quite happy,'' Rogers said. ''I went into the crucial sections in the top group. The legs were there. It was just a bit of misfortune. When Frank crashed that split [the group]; I was trying to make up that lost ground and probably cut a corner, hit a rock and punctured.''
His career resume includes recent additions as being the overall winner of both the Tour of California and the Tour of Andalucia this year, and being the 2009 Australian Time Trial Champion. His best performance at the Tour de France so far was in 2006, when he finish in the top ten overall and his team took home the Team Classification. His proudest moment is “being the only person in the worlds to win three consecutive World Time Trial Championships.”
“I've been racing since I was seven years old; I guess it's in my DNA. Cycling is a special sport because it follows so much culture and history. I think it is the only sport where fans can still get close enough to touch the top athletes as they're performing.”
Rogers began his professional career and has since earned 16 victories and 50 podium spots.
“My father bought a race bike from the local bike shop to commute to and from work. From then on he started to get more into cycling, and then took part in his first race with the local cycling club some months later. From there my two elder brothers and myself became interested. I started riding at age seven.”
The Australian had to set aside his own ambitions last year as Team HTC-Columbia went in a bid to support Mark Cavendish, ultimately winning the Briton six stage wins thanks to his dedicated lead-out men. While Cavendish, with two stage wins already under his belt this year is still seeking the green jersey, Rogers has an opportunity to go for broke in the second half of the race. He is hoping his team will allow him to exploit the form which could land him a top finish.
"But I think we've got the mix about right. We've got the right people (riders), the right attitude and we're all good friends who want to ride hard for each other. Last year we had nine guys committed to the sprints (stages), but this year we have to be a little bit smarter. For what we want to do here I think we brought the most balanced team we could have."
He plans to reap the benefits on the tough final climbs of the race's six mountain stages, and he is confident his efforts will pay off.
"I've made a lot of changes both on and off the bike this year, including investing in a personal trainer who has helped me a lot," Rogers said Friday. "Training-wise I've reduced the volume and replaced that with quality. The aim is for me to be able to do something on the final climb of the long mountain stages, which hasn't always been the case in the past."
The Tour peloton faces the first serious climbs in the seventh stage, and the route moves into the Alps in Sunday’s eighth stage. Rogers said the contenders and the pretenders will reveal themselves after the summit finish on Sunday night.
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