Question for Levi: I have read conflicting reports about your Grand Tour plans for the remainder of 2008. Are you going to compete in the Tour of Spain as originally planned, since you were not able to prepare ideally for the Tour of italy? If you are not going to race the Vuelta, why have you decided against it? Thanks.

A few questions that have come in by email:

Carl Findlay from the UK asks:

hey levi

the current doping issues in the tour make their decion to exclude astana seem a little pointless, how do you feel about the ricco / saunier duval scandal? and do you think astana will be back in the tour next season?

cheers
fin

John Pollard says:

It was really cool to see you at some of the local Norcal races this past spring. The way that you were able to ride away from the field, I had to wonder if you got anything out of it that you wouldn’t get on a solo training ride.

How do you maintain the intensity without other people to push you along? I find that there’s a little bit of magic in race situations that allows me to do numbers that I really shouldn’t be able to generate. I can’t seem to duplicate that on my own.

Keith Russell, another Brit, wants to know:

Hi Levi, will you be riding the Vuelta in September and if so have you had a chance to look at Angliru at all? Would you consider using a compact for a climb as severe as this?
Good luck at the Olympics!
Keith Russell
United Kingdom

This came in by email to the Kyte channel. Unfortunately, we don’t know where it came from. As a reminder, please send any written questions to theroaddiaries@gmail.com or post a comment here. Thanks! Here’s the question:

Levi I very much looked forward to seeing you In this years tour.Drop me a email and let me know when you are going to be around the phx area and we will hook up for a ride for sure.Good luck with the rest of the season.Do you still spend any time in Montana?

A couple of questions and a comment:

Do you know if Team Astana is coming back to Albuquerque, NM for
winter training next year and will you be able to come back after the
Olympics to Abq, to climb to the top of Sandia Mtn(10,678ft) when
there isn’t snow?

The comment is thank you for taking time and being gracious to sign a
jersey for me while you and the team were training here this past year.

Thank you and Good Luck!!!

David Candelaria
Albuquerque, NM

Hello Levi,

We could already marvel at your new Olympic Road and TT bikes at the Cascade Classics, and
it made me wonder how the technical support on the US team is regulated. The US Olympic squad
consists of riders from 4 teams, are there really 4 different sets of equipment on the cars?

And how much do you think the air pollution will be a factor and how early are you going to arrive in Beijing
to accustom yourself to the “environment”?

Thank you very much and all the best!

Christian Borsodi
Vienna, Austria

Hi Levi,
congratulations on your season so far. You and team Astana have done an awesome job, we are very proud.

Do you had a favorite race? Why is it your favorite?

Aleene

Hey Levi,

I was just wondering how you got into cycling, how old you were when you first started riding and how old you were when you got your first sponsorship?

Levi,
What was the biggest challenge you faced when you were an amateur trying to get a professional contract?

Levi,
I understand you hold the local record for the Snowbird Hillclimb at 46 min (10 mi, 3000 ft). There is a cash purse this year to beat your record. How do you train for a shorter power climb versus a longer high endurance climb (Big Cottonwood, 14 mi, 3800 ft)?

A few more questions by email:

Levi, my condolences to you on missing out on the Tour this year.

You have been forced to change the angle of the aero bars on your TT bike to
the horizontal position from the raised position that you preferred. Have
you calculated how much slower this makes you, or have you experienced no
loss of speed, ’cause it looks to me like you still get around the course
pretty fast.

Best of luck in the future.
John Gravis

From parts unknown:

When do you think riders will reach the point where they will turn in their colleagues who are doping? Despite the obvious disasteous impact of doping on loss of sponsorship that has resulted in loss of many jobs including at Phonak, T-Mobile and most recently Saunier Duval, riders still seem reluctant to turn in their teammates. What gives?

From Mattias Derynck (sounds Belgian?) in NYC:

Most cyclists had and have a driving force – whether anger, escape, or other – that may not have put them on the bike but that at a young age provided the energy for them to stay on the bike day after day for hours at a time. What was that driving force for you and how has that changed over time?

Thanks in advance for an honest answer.

How often do you make decisions during a race according to your power metre?
Do you use it all while you race?

Thanks,

You are very welcomed to give a hop to Israel off season
Send an e-mail and I’ll offer you some training routes & local team to accompany you

Hi Levi! I’m a big fan, and wish you the best in all aspects of your life! What do you think of the new Tour of Calif. route? I see its finally making its way to San Diego County, I hope to see you there in the Golden Fleece!

How does the new Trek Madone compare to other bikes you have ridden, including the old Madone, in terms of being stiff, compliant, etc. I am looking to purchase a new bike soon!