I read aghast that the everyone other than the French would have been banned from the 2006 Tour. If memory serves me, the French are and have been just as obsessive about training as the rest of the world. My twist to this post would have been that the same world wide juiced up cast of characters from last year should be allowed to compete this year...but, they should ban all carbon fiber and aluminum framed bikes. To everyone's shock the times per stage would be just as inhumanly fast. The next year they could mandate lugs and dt shifters too. I sense the tom foolery of Sheldon Brown at Harris Cycles at work here.
Garth Libre in Miami Fl.