Armstrong plays it safe in scorching 2nd stage of Tour de France

Armstrong battles heat in Tour 2nd stage

BRIGNOLES, France — Lance Armstrong could not tell right away how much weight he lost in a stifling and humid second stage of the Tour de France, marred by crashes and won by Mark Cavendish.

The seven-time Tour champion, who is 10th in the overall standings and 40 seconds behind race leader Fabian Cancellara, spent the day without taking any risks.

Asked how Sunday’s stage went, Armstrong said: “Hot.”

The American, who entered the race at 160 pounds — lighter than he was during his dominant spell at the Tour — said he will watch his weight carefully.

Riders need to keep their weight down, but being too light can suggest they are dehydrated.

“These days, that are hot like this, you should really check (your weight) before and after” the stage, Armstrong told reporters near his Astana team bus. “It’s hard to hydrate. But you know, it’s hot for everybody.”

Armstrong finished 80th in the stage. He trails his rival and teammate Alberto Contador by 22 seconds and even if the Spaniard is the clear favorite to win the race, the American still has a chance. The two men were very cautious Sunday in a stage made for sprinters.

“Just avoid trouble and get in the rhythm of the race,” Armstrong said, summing up his journey in the Mediterranean hinterland. “You know, yesterday (time trial) was not really a normal stage.”

In the overall standings, Cancellara, who finished 38th, leads Contador by 18 seconds. Bradley Wiggins of Britain is third, 19 seconds back.

Armstrong said he had recovered from his time trial and mentioned the lack of competition before the Tour to explain his 10th-place finish in Monaco.

“I think that was maybe my biggest issue yesterday, was the break from the Giro to here without races, so to speak,” Armstrong said. “It’s hard to throw yourself back into competition.”

After finishing 12th in the Giro d’Italia in May, Armstrong spent most of his time training in Colorado and also won the Nevada City Classic in California last month.

“If you do the Dauphine (Libere) and (the Tour of) Switzerland, it’s probably better training for an opening time trial like that,” said Armstrong, referring to two stage races in June. “Anyway, I think the Giro helps in the final week here.”

Besides Armstrong, many riders muttered about the hot conditions.

“The heat was like you were baking bread … it was terrible,” Cancellara said, adding that temperatures had hit 104 degrees “I haven’t seen heat like that in years.”

Contador, who finished 58th on Sunday, said: “I think that I drunk at least five liters during the stage.”

Cavendish won his fifth stage on the Tour following excellent work by his teammates, who set him up perfectly. After catching a group of four breakaway riders about 6.8 miles from the finish, the teams with strong sprinters moved to the head of the peloton, and Cavendish’s Columbia team was the strongest.

“It was dangerous at the finish. It was quite hard to stay in position,” Cavendish said after clocking 4 hours, 30 minutes and 2 seconds — the same time as all but two of the riders.

“There were guys fighting to stay up front,” he said. “As soon as my team picked up to line the peloton out, it made things a little less hectic.”

After a crash on the final turn, Cavendish started his sprint about 380 yards from the finish and held off a late challenge by American Tyler Farrar, who finished second, and Romain Feillu of France in third.

“It’s impressive work from my team,” said Cavendish, who won four stages in last year’s Tour.

“When George goes, he just strings the peloton out and it frees things up a little,” he said, referring to his teammate, U.S. veteran George Hincapie. “We had some of the best guys in the world riding hard and keeping the pace hard for the last 5 kilometers.”

This is Cavendish’s third Tour, but he has never finished. He said his goal was to win a stage and complete the three-week race.

“The green jersey has been a big target for me,” he said. “I’m wearing it now and well, OK, I’ve been a pro for three years, but this is all I’ve wanted since turning pro. For sure I want to keep it; I’ve made a good debut at the Tour and I want to hold onto the jersey. It was a hard, hot day today and hopefully it won’t get too much hotter.”

Twelve riders including Frank Schleck of Luxembourg were involved in crashes and Belgium’s Jurgen Van de Walle suffered numerous bruises on his shoulder, knee and torso. It was not clear whether he would take the start Monday.

Riders will face a similar trek for Monday’s third stage, a 122.1-mile course from the Mediterranean port city of Marseille to La Grande Motte.

The Tour ends July 26 in Paris.