Canadian Ryder Hesjedal made the most of his last off day at the 2011 Tour de France. J.J. Wilcox Cowboys Jersey . There was leisurely ride and a massage to keep the body limber, plus a burrito meal courtesy of Chipotle, which sponsors Garmin-Cervelos junior development team. A few laughs with his Garmin-Cervelo Tour colleagues as well, no doubt. "You have to, to make it through this," the laidback Hesjedal told The Canadian Press on Monday. "Thats the key. "Theres guys on this team now that Ive done all four of my Tour de Frances with. Thats a bond thats pretty hard to duplicate. We go through it, we support each other, we have fun -- the best moments are on the bus, before the race and after the race." Success helps ease the pain of the gruelling 3,430.5-kilometre Tour -- or any competition at this elite level. "Theres been a lot of days where theres no victories -- just suffering. This race has been a huge accomplishment for us," Hesjedal added. "We kind of joke on the bus were still suffering and tired and hurt. And we just imagine what some of the other guys are feeling like, that havent won three stages and had the yellow jersey for a week. "Its tough, but were smiling and joking and taking care of each as best as possible." Mondays meal included a "lovely" glass of Chateauneuf-du-Pape, perhaps the most famous Cotes du Rhone wine in France. The burrito is a team tradition on the second rest day of the Tour. The riders are well taken care of the rest of the time -- the Garmin-Cervelo entourage includes a chef. Seventh last year in a breakthrough performance, Hesjedal stands 32nd after 15 stages. Crashes, the talent on his team and the progression of the race have changed his role this year. His role in the remaining stages will be to help American teammate Tom Danielson, who is ninth overall. The 30-year-old from Victoria will also be doing his bit for Garmin-Cervelo in the team standings. The times from the top three riders count towards the team competition and that means Hesjedal cant fade to the back when his duties with Danielson are done. "I dont just get to chill out and cruise up (to the finish) as easy as possible and try and recover. Ive got to fight right to the line and keep that going. Its quite a bit of work load to do the rest of the race." Not thats hes complaining. Getting that work done gives him "a nice sense of accomplishment." After hurting his back and neck on a crash on Stage 7, Hesjedal said returning to action after the first rest day July 11 was tough. But his body recovered and he did better over the 2,115-metre Col du Tourmalet in Stage 12 than most. "A lot of the guys suffered," Hesjedal said. Still the damage from crashes lingers on, he explained. Bruised and battered bodies make for inefficient riding, which can take a toll on energy later in the race. "Its hard to get it back," he said. "Well see how this last week goes for me. But I was definitely tired coming out of the Pyrenees. You try to get into a breakaway (group) for a hour-plus at the start of the race and still try to be there right to the end with all the favourites -- supporting someone thats riding the GC (general classification), its end up being a lot of energy youre putting out." It wont get any easier as the riders mark the 100th anniversary of the Tour de France first climbing the Col du Galibier. The riders will do it twice this time, with the 18th stage making the highest finish in the Tours history, at 2,645 metres. "Theres no easy way to get through the Pyrenees or the Alps in the Tour de France," Hesjedal, a good climber, said with a laugh. "Theres still a lot of racing to go." The Tour ends Sunday in Paris. Jay Novacek Cowboys Jersey . A number of magnificent stories emanating from Englands neighbour to the West have been worthy of praise. Daryl Johnston Cowboys Jersey . Head coach Corey Chamblin announced on Monday that Avon Cobourne had been hired as the defending Grey Cup champions new running backs coach.BOSTON -- So much for Bostons mini surge of offence. The Red Sox managed just two hits and were beaten by the Chicago White Sox 4-0 on Monday night, Bostons sixth loss in seven games. Scott Carroll pitched 6 2-3 innings of one-hit ball, and Dayan Viciedo hit a three-run homer off Clay Buchholz in the fourth as Boston was shut out for the ninth time this season and tied its season-low hit output. Adam Dunn also homered off Buchholz, but he recovered well from the rocky start and kept the Red Sox in the game. All four runs came on home runs as Buchholz (3-5) allowed five hits, struck out a season-high seven and walked one. "Its been real frustrating, especially tonight. Buchholz threw a good game," said Boston leadoff hitter Brock Holt, who went 0-for-4. "We werent able to get anything going. Two hits. Two singles." A.J. Pierzynskis third-inning single was the lone hit off Carroll. Jackie Bradley Jr. singled off Javy Guerra to lead off the eighth for the only other Red Sox hit. Boston entered Monday having scored 22 runs in its last four games, but allowed 32 during the same span. Buchholz was willing to talk about the mistakes he made to Dunn in the second and Viciedo in the fourth, but stood up for his teammates when asked about the lack of run support. The Reed Sox scored just one run in his previous start, a 2-1 loss to the Cubs in Boston.Joseph Randle Cowboys Jersey. "Im done talking about the offence. Its not like theyre out there not trying or anything," he said. "Its just not working right now. Im not going to answer any more questions about our offence." Making the eighth -- and best -- start of his career, Carroll (3-5) walked two and struck out five while shutting down the defending World Series champions. Dunn hit a solo homer in the second inning and doubled and scored on Viciedos home run in the fourth. The start of the game was delayed by 39 minutes because of severe weather moving through the area. There were two brief but torrential downpours during the game that sent fans scurrying but didnt stop play. NOTES: Carroll allowed seven runs on 10 hits and three walks in six innings in his previous start. ... The Red Sox won a managers challenge at first base even though replays showed that Jim Joyces original call, that Mike Napolis foot came off the base, was correct. ... The Red Sox activated 1B/OF Mike Carp from the 15-day disabled list and optioned INF Jonathan Herrera to Triple-A Pawtucket. ... The Red Sox fell to 2-5 against Chicago teams, having been swept by the Cubs at home last week in a three-game interleague series. ' ' '
