Leadville 100: wiens buries armstrong on last climb

Don't come to David Wiens with tales of Tour de France victories and expect any sympathy. Wiens, 2-time world mountain bike champion and Lance Armstrong, 7-time Le Tour winner, separated themselves from the field on the climb up Mt. Columbine to make the Leadville 100 mountain bike race a 2-person breakaway. And then much like last year, Wiens went by the former maillot jaune holder on the final climb. Wiens, despite riding the last few miles on a flat tire, then cruised to victory to earn his 6th consecutive victory in the Leadville 100. Last year Wiens dropped another Tour legend, Floyd "Flance" Landis, in the Colorado Rockies.

Wiens also did this in record time (6:45:45), breaking his mark from last year. For the mathematicians, that's an average of almost 15 miles an hour. On a mountain bike. Above 10,000 feet. Don't try that at home unless you're being paced by a legend. Wiens or Armstrong. You choose.

Elsewhere:
warrior ant press: the 2-mile high club

Photos: Joseph Kreiss, Velonews