Riding his first event after crashing out of the Giro d’Italia, David Zabriskie finished 12th on today’s eerily quiet two-circuit, 47 km time trial course. Canadian Ryder Hesjedal finished 16th and the win went to world champion time trialist Fabian Cancellara.

Olympic individual time trial results
1. Fabian Cancellara 1h02′11.43″, avg speed 45.633 kph
2. Gustav Larsson +33.36″
3. Levi Leipheimer +1′09.68″

12. David Zabriskie +3′06.39″
16. Ryder Hesjedal +3′30.90″

The longest stage race I have ever ridden starts today. So far, Portugal has impressed. Awesome hotel, good roads for training at least, weather isn’t great yet but that will get better, and a lot of fans. I have heard good things about the number of spectators at this tour, and judging by the crowd at today’s presentation, it looks to be true.

The teams were presented two by two with a dance thing between each session. Amazingly, all of this was aired live. All three hours of skinny guys waving at a TV camera and Portuguese dancing girls. No idea who would sit through such a drawn out epic, as we were pretty damn bored seeing it live. Maybe I underestimate the devotion of Portuguese cycling fans. Or perhaps the rather tasty dancing girls were not just for our entertainment.

The race looks tough. There are a number of strong teams and that doesn’t even take into account the portuguese unknowns, who apparently have secret compartments holding motorcycle-like engines hidden in their frames to aid them in their pursuit of victory. That remains to be seen. We are just aiming to get the arms in the air.

With a fine balance of two time trials, three hill-top finishes and a load of stages that look good for sprints, the race seems as well balanced as our team. But then cycling has the habit of being horribly unpredictable, making the racing as exciting for us as I hope it is for you guys!

ExpressIndia.com talks to Taylor Phinney about his hopes for his first Olympics and the importance of his family.

From the article: “I don’t come into this race as a huge favourite, which is something I like,” the 18-year-old said. “I’m sort of an underdog due to my age and my inexperience. I’m just here exactly for the experience and being a part of the Olympic Games.” Phinney is extremely close to his family and cites them as his most important support structure.

Location:
Salt Lake City, Utah, United States

Overview:
Finishing 2nd overall in the 2008 Tour of Utah, Blake Caldwell used his Garmin Edge 705 to record all but the final individual time trial of this five-stage race.

The opening stage of the 2008 Tour of Utah was a 101-mile long road race on flat to rolling terrain and includes just 4,851 ft of climbing and the Hill Top climb on Highway 89.

Just 20 km in to today’s stage, Jason Donald joined a break that stuck all the way to the finish where he took the stage win, race lead, and KOM jersey. Blake and the rest of team rolled in together with the field.

Difficulty: Moderate

Distance: 102.86 miles

Total Elevation Gain: 4,554 ft.

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As you can tell, I have been experimenting with various riding machines. I own two vintage Mustangs - a ‘66 and ‘68 - and figured I ought to keep the ball rolling on the track. What I have chosen here is a 1950 Chinese Flying Pigeon.

Please notice all its performance features. The basket in front is specifically designed for aerodynamic efficiency. It pushes the wind around my body before my body enters the pocket of wind. Next you will notice the brakes that I use in a stop-go pattern that catches my opponents off guard. Plus they are really great for brake checking in emergencies. Last is the weight. At 37 pounds, it’s really easy to accelerate up to speed. And during exchanges, it’s a real whistle!

So far the Olympic Games have been fantastic! The Chinese have really out done themselves in all areas. The velodrome here is the best I have been on, and not just the track, but the entire facility. When you watch the riders in training, you don’t hear a thing except the beautiful sound of the drive trains. Plus the eagerness and willingness of the volunteers to help in any situation is impressive. They are so friendly and come by the 3’s and 4’s if you ever need anything.

The village has been pretty fun just in terms of people\athlete watching, and the cafe is surreal. It seats 5,000 people and is open 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. But the best thing about it is probably the McCafe with all the free coffee beverages any caffeine junky can handle. Plus they aren’t too bad.

But don’t worry JV! I’m starving myself ;)!

The opening ceremonies were out of this world. It was another page turned in my life. There have been a lot of those this year and I think I’d like to start writing a book. Thanks for reading!

Taylor Phinney has been getting in some training time on the Laoshan track this week.

NBCOlympics.com talks to Taylor Phinney about his preparations for next weekend’s individual pursuit and the fast conditions of the Laoshan Velodrome.

From the article: “I think everybody’s going to be a lot faster,” said Phinney, who was fourth at the Beijing World Cup in December, 0.109 second away from claiming a bronze medal there and 1.033 seconds off the winning time turned in by world champion and prohibitive Olympic favorite Bradley Wiggins of Britain. “But in the past couple weeks, I was turning the fastest lap times of my life. So that’s a pretty good sign.”

Tour of Utah preview from DS Chann McRae

Our now seasoned Tour riders Danny Pate (above right) and Will Frischkorn (above left) will be looking to back up their impressive results in France with top rides here in Utah. As well, newly crowned national U23 time trial champion Peter Stetina will be hitting the climbs hard with Blake Caldwell. The guys will finish the Tour of Utah with one stage win and 1st in GC.

Race preview from DS Johnny Weltz

It’s extremly hot here, around 38 degrees Celsius. And that’s very normal for the Volta a Portugal. We have a good mix of riders with our fast guys Tyler Farrar and Chris Sutton and our climbers Dan Martin, Pat McCarty and Lucas Euser. We have our new guy Christian Meier. Though he is new to European racing, Christian is the current Canadian national road champion and a good climber as well. And we also have our all-around talent, Steven Cozza.

Tyler and Steven will have the opportunity to show their talents in the prologue. Then there will the high mountain days that begin with stage three. We have been in this area before in June and Dan did well on the infamous hors categorie Serra da Estrela climb. Our overall goal is to get a stage win but we will also be looking to go for the GC.