Spartacus had no peer in Bordeaux as he romped to victory in the final time trial of this year’s Tour. That was perhaps less surprising than the number of people who had not picked him to win, and far less surprising than seeing erstwhile grand tour time trial maestro Contador finish in 35th place almost six minutes behind the Swiss precision timepiece. I leave it to you dear armchair tipster to decide if Schleck’s tantalising performance was more or less surprising than that. What exactly happened out there? Did Andy ride according to expectation while Alberto dogged it? Or did Andy really do the ride of his life in cross-wind conditions not suited to the smaller frame of the GC specialists?

No doubt much will be made of the 39 second gap. What if Alberto had waited? What if Andy knew how to put a chain on? What if Andy got his no-pave wish? Frank might have made it to the mountains but Andy wouldn’t have gained 53 seconds on Alberto on that pounding day on the cobbles. Perhaps in the end what it proves to Specialized’s delight is that it is after all, all about the bike, and that Andy didn’t really take out the bear with one punch.

Meanwhile I have been charged with the task of passing on O’Dirty’s apologies for having gone beyond the reach of the internet for the final crucial stages of the Tour, and scotching any rumours that might be circulating to the effect that he has retired to a chateau on the Garonne, bought with the winnings from an unlikely bet placed on the final ITT using the Fantasy Tour cashpot. I will attempt to provide updates on the tipping competition for the final two stages, but alas cannot do so until tomorrow when I can get access to my safely stowed copy of the magical software required to analyse and publish the data.

Meanwhile I hope that the race for the green jersey and victory on the Champs Elysee is enough to divert you from the far more interesting chase for glory in the C.C.C. Fantasy Tipping Competition.