Arcalis, Andorra ? At least one of the cyclists in the Tour de France has ties to Lawrence.

Bingen Fernandez Bustinza, a 14th-year Spanish pro who rides for the French Cofidis cycling team, is a regular offseason visitor to Lawrence. Last fall, for instance, he spent several weeks here visiting his girlfriend, Nikane Mallea.

He participated in some of the regular group rides of the Lawrence Bicycle Club and developed a bit of a following among local cyclists.

Fernandez has agreed to file regular blogs from this year’s Tour.

Stage seven: A 139.2-mile trek featuring five climbs on a route from Barcelona to an uphill finish at the Arcalis ski resort in the Pyrenees

Fernandez stage-seven finish: 169th.

Fernandez overall: 139th, 32:11 back.

Two hundred and twenty-three kilometers — today is the first mountain stage of the Tour de France and the first test for the leaders.

More than anything, the journalists have been waiting to see what will happen between the Armstrong/Contador wars.

That is about the only thing in the papers lately.

Who will be the leader of Astana?

Which of the two will win the Tour de France?

Everyone is looking for the polemics.

After a furious stage start a breakaway got away, and everyone in the team relaxed waiting for a team to take responsibility and do work on the front. We all knew that Astana would have to be that team.

As Team Astana did work on the front, the rest of us had our minds on the Cat 1 climb that waited for us at kilometer 117.

The race situation depended heavily on how Astana would climb that mountain — maybe midway into the stage the group would be split into several groups. Luckily for everyone, Astana did not attack the mountain full throttle, and we were given the chance to see the head of the race for a while longer.

I wanted to actually go up and thank them for not torturing us too much. I will have to give them my gratitude tomorrow.

The race continued on at a decent rhythm until the foot of the last mountain when there was a huge crash taking down the majority of the riders. Although I did not crash, I waited for my teammates that had been caught up in it.

On the descent, I realized that there was not much more to do for the day but save my legs, help my teammates and wait for another stage.

I just hope that the front page of tomorrow’s paper has a picture of Agritubel’s Brice Feillu instead of the Armstrong/Contador war.

I am afraid it will be the latter though.

Asi es la vida!

— Bingen Fernandez

Bustinza

Stage winner Brice Feillu of France strains in the climb toward Arcalis, Andorra, during the seventh stage of the Tour de France. Feillu won the stage Friday.

Lance Armstrong dropped one spot to third place in the Tour de France on Friday, with rival and teammate Alberto Contador breaking away in the final sprint up the mountain to claim second.

Italy’s Rinaldo Nocentini captured the yellow jersey from Switzerland’s Fabian Cancellara after a punishing climb in the Pyrenees to complete the seventh stage. It was the first time the overall lead changed hands since Cancellara won the opening-day time trial in Monaco.

The 140-mile leg from Spain into Andorra, the first in high mountains of this three-week race, was won by Brice Feillu of France in a solo breakaway.

Armstrong, a seven-time champion coming out of retirement, said he was not as tired as he thought he’d be.

“Overall, I feel pretty good. … Things didn’t quite go according to plan that we set up earlier, but it didn’t matter,” he said. “It was a fine day overall.”

The 37-year-old Texan began the stage a split second off the lead and now trails by eight. Contador, the 2007 Tour winner, is six seconds behind the leader. He finished 3 minutes, 26 seconds after Feillu.

Contador sped ahead in the last 1.2 miles, looking to seize the overall lead. He started the day 19 seconds behind Armstrong and finished 21 seconds before him.

In the final ascent, Armstrong hugged the wheel of Australia’s Cadel Evans, who briefly attacked Armstrong and Contador.

“When you’ve got a rider away, my obligation is to the team,” Armstrong said. “I had to stay on his wheel. You just got to stay on his wheel.”

“That’s not my specialty,” he added. “But it’s not bad at all, all things considered.”

Nocentini and Feillu were part of a nine-man breakaway group that jumped out early in the stage, and the main contenders were happy to let them go because they aren’t considered threats. Feillu, a 23-year-old rider for Agritubel and in his first Tour, fled the breakaway group about halfway up the last ascent.

Christophe Kern of France was second, five seconds back. Johannes Froehlinger of Germany was third, 25 seconds behind.

Feillu was hugged in the winner’s circle by older brother Romain, who wore the yellow jersey for a day last year.

“It really makes me happy,” Brice Feillu said.

“I had confidence in him. I knew it, I knew it, I knew it,” added a teary Romain Feillu.

Nocentini, a 31-year-old cyclist with the AG2R-La Mondiale team, won a stage in Pasadena in the Tour of California this year. He came into the stage trailing Cancellara by 3:13. He is first Italian to wear the yellow jersey at the Tour since Alberto Elli in 2000.

Nocentini finished the stage in fourth place, 26 seconds behind Feillu. Cancellara tumbled out of the top rankings, crossing the finish 9:16 after Feillu in 67th place.

The trek from Barcelona to the ski resort of Arcalis was the longest stage of this Tour. Competitors scaled the demanding Serra-Seca pass before concluding the day’s ride with one of the toughest climbs in cycling.

Two more days of racing in the Pyrenees await before a rest day Monday.

Today’s stage is a 110-mile route that features three hard climbs and finishes in Saint-Girons, France.

The Tour ends July 26 in Paris.