• Eyeing yellow • Hank Stram dead Eyeing yellow TOURS, France — Lance Armstrong pedaled beside the overall leader of the Tour de France and admired his taste in fashion. The six-time champion wants to be decked out in yellow
• Eyeing yellow
• Hank Stram dead
Eyeing yellow
TOURS, France — Lance Armstrong pedaled beside the overall leader of the Tour de France and admired his taste in fashion. The six-time champion wants to be decked out in yellow again, and he might not have to wait long.
“Regardless of how many I’ve had in my day, it’s still a jersey I cherish,” Armstrong said.
Armstrong was content to ride safely in the main pack again Monday. He finished in 87th place in the third stage while Belgium’s Tom Boonen sprinted to victory for the second straight day, the route marked by towering gray castles, endless green fields and dozens of vineyards.
There will be nothing cautious about the key time trial Tuesday. Armstrong is a mere two seconds behind leader David Zabriskie of the United States and will be looking to gain more ground on his rivals, and perhaps move in front again.
Then, Armstrong — who has worn the leader’s jersey more than 60 times — will truly consider himself on track for a seventh straight title before retirement.
For the past two years, Armstrong’s team won the team time trial for the U.S. Postal Service squad.
Now he wants to win for new sponsor Discovery Channel in the nine-man discipline — a 41.9-mile ride from Tours to Blois.
A strong showing could bolster his advantage.
The Texan leads Jan Ullrich by 66 seconds, Alexandre Vinokourov by 51 and Ivan Basso by 84.
“It’s critical in that you can gain time and every second counts,” Armstrong said.
Hank Stram dead
NEW ORLEANS — Hank Stram, who took the Kansas City Chiefs to two Super Bowls and was known for his invena hospital in suburban New Orleans, his son said. He was 82.
Stram had been in declining health for several years and Dale Stram attributed his father’s death to complications from diabetes.
He died at St. Tammany Parish Hospital, near his home in Covington, across Lake Pontchartrain from New Orleans. He had built the home during his two-year stint as coach of the Saints and he retired there.
Stram was the Chiefs’ first coach. He took over the expansion Dallas Texans of the up-start AFL in 1960 and coached them through 1974, moving with them to Kansas City where they were renamed the Chiefs in 1963.