It's getting good

I'm not a huge fan of road racing but it's more due to being soured on it from the local scene than anything else. On the big stage (which, all should remember, is about as far removed as a local softball league v. MLB) I am amazed by the athleticism and courage and power that the riders display. This preamble is my justification for watching the Tour. And it's been really good so far. And it just got better:

"Renshaw, the lead-out man for British sprinter Mark Cavendish, was shown by television pictures trying to headbutt the Garmin-Transitions rider from New Zealand three times in the final 400 metres of the home straight.

Cavendish then raced ahead towards eventual victory, his third this year on the race and 13th in three participations, with Renshaw then seen trying to block Dean's sprinter, Tyler Farrar, as the American tried to come up the inside of the barriers.

Top race official Jean-Francois Pescheux said after the race: "Renshaw was declassified immediately but we have decided to also throw him off the race.
"We've only seen the pictures once, but his actions are plain for all to see. This is a bike race, not a gladiator's arena."