Zabriskie ready for Tour de France challenge

Dave Zabriskie is a lot of things.

He's known as one of the more eccentric, quirky riders in the professional cycling peloton.

He is a joker and is known to use his humor to break up long days in the saddle.

He's also one of the fastest cyclists in the world and when the Tour de France rolls out of Monaco tomorrow, the Salt Lake native and 3-time defending national champion time trial specialist will try to do his red, white and blue racing uniform proud during a 15.5 kilometer race against the clock that will determine the first wearer of the maillot jaune for the 2009 race.

"I'm race ready," Zabriskie told the Deseret News in an interview a few days before the biggest bicycle race in the world. "I can't wait."

Zabriskie, a huge comic-book fan who sometimes goes by the nickname "Captain America" because of his appropriately designed racing skinsuit and rear disc wheel decorated to look like the hero's shield, is certainly one of the favorites to win on July 4.

Though not considered a serious threat to win the overall title in the 21-stage race, Zabriskie is a legitimate threat to wear the yellow jersey for nearly a week should he post the fastest time during the race's opening stage.

After Saturday's time trial around Monaco, the Tour de France has five relatively flat stages that will probably see little shake-up in the overall standings.

"I'm excited," Zabriskie said. "I've been training for this a long time and I feel pretty good. It's been a good year so far and I think I'll be ready to go."

As the owner of the fastest individual time trial in Tour de France history — set in 2005 when Zabriskie was racing for Team CSC and during his first-ever Tour de France stage — the Olympus High grad is one of a handful of participants expected to challenge for the Day 1 victory.

He'll have to outrace Olympic champ Fabian Cancellara, former Utahn Levi Leipheimer, Lance Armstrong and race favorite Alberto Contador among 100 others to get it done.

"It's never easy," Zabriskie said. "This is the biggest race in the world and everyone is going to be gunning for it."

Armstrong, making his return to pro cycling after a three-year retirement, would like nothing more than to silence his critics with a stage victory to open the race he won an unprecedented seven times.