Ivan Basso Wins 2009 Giro d'Italia

That's right I said it and yes I am American who knows we will have several riders like Levi Leipheimer and Lance Armstrong but..............................I am an Italian/American well more like American/Italian ......my parents were both born in Sicily and my grandparents and didn't speak a lick of English so what ever that makes me.

First, its not gonna happen for all the Lance fans out there. He will be getting some solid training in and that's it. Levi?.....no way he can peak again for this and the tour so knock him off the podium. I know there are others but I don't care Ivan basso was a stud before his recent suspension and will be again this year. Why do you ask am I so confident. Well lets take a look at doctor Aldo Sassi ( He runs the Mapei Sports Lab and works with a ton of top guys) on Basso in the winter.

"Ivan Basso took the 'endurance' test at Mapei Sport Lab. The test consists on a 10-minute sub-maximal (410W) constant power protocol to estimate the time to exhaustion at the concerned power. The predicted time to exhaustion was 11 minutes at the beginning of the winter training, November 26, 2008, and he showed an increase up to 17 minutes. The 2008 best predicted time to exhaustion was 25 minutes.

His heart rate at the 10th minute of the constant power test dropped from 204 beats per minute to 188.

Roughly, Ivan is now at two-thirds of his 2008 best condition. The test showed that the fitness level is increasing as expected, despite the cold and snow forced Ivan to perform some training sessions on home trainer or on mountain bike." Not bad start and combine that with his win at Giro del Trentino he looks mighty ripe to me. Plus he is Italian and ya know we do it better. The rest of the field is lucky that the Recovery Doc will not be advising him in Italy this year or it would be game over, pack your... bags go home.

Kinesio Tape: 2008 Olympics

Check out this article seen on http://www.nbcolympics.com/

What's with that tape athletes are using?
By Karyn Greer
Posted Saturday, August 16, 2008 8:11 AM ET

ATLANTA -- Some 11Alive viewers have e-mailed, asking about the tape athletes like Olympic beach volleyball player Kerri Walsh have been seen wearing.

Walsh's shoulder has been taped with what is called Kineso tape.

"This would be the kind of tape I would do for somebody, let's say, that's having tennis elbow," said physical therapist Michelle Miller.

A Japanese chiropractor developed Kineso tape in the 1970s, and it was seen widely at the 2004 Olympic Games in Athens.

"Something you use to assist the exercise -- the stretching. You know, all the rehab that we do. This helps us to get to a place where they're not hurting," Miller said. "In the hands of a skilled chiropractor, or a physical therapist, it's a healing tape. Cyclist Lance Armstrong calls it a miracle tape -- and it does come in other colors: pink, blue and black."

It lifts the skin around the muscles and bones, breaking up adhesions and letting blood flow through the injured area.

Misty May-Treanor and Kerri Walsh headline the group of teams playing in Day 6 action of the Olympic beach volleyball tournament.

"It allows for function. It allows for decreased joint pain," said Miller. "I mean it works for some people and it doesn't work for others. I've put it on patients and they've felt an immediate difference. I've put it on patients and they haven't felt a single thing."

Thirty-one-year old Carrie Brady is a triathalete -- used to injuries. She said she likes the way the Kineso tape feels.

"It's loose enough that it's not limiting at all," Brady said. "Just kind of reminds you to just be careful with it too. So I think it's just a good presence to have. But it also gives you kinda some warmth. So you remember that the muscles are kind of still there and getting tightened. But it doesn't limit any of the motion."