"The back wheel locked up and he couldn't control it, and then the back tire rolled and exploded," said Armstrong, recalling his rival's crash.
http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/cycling/news/2003/07/15/armstrong_tues_ap/
"
The road was in a very bad state because of the heat and it was not safe to go down at that pace," said Armstrong. "His tyre exploded and it was impossible for him to stay on his bike."
http://sport.scotsman.com/index.cfm?id=769192003
Tyler: "It was a dangerous ride as well since the tar was soft and pretty slippery in some spots. It was really a shame to see Beloki go down like he did. My read on the crash was that he had hit a slick spot where the tar had melted, had his wheel slip out, then got caught up on dry pavement.
The speeds combined with the elements made it impossible for him to control his bike. It was a bad situation. And it could have happened to any one of us."
http://www.cervelo.com/tyler-diary.html#July 18, 2003
Bob Roll: "The Spaniard lost control of his bicycle on a nasty piece of melted tar, and went down hard, breaking his femur. His tire seemed to roll off the rim and sheer the valve stem out of the tube, causing a blowout. In the best of situations, it’s hard to control, and
during a serpentine, tortuous descent in the Tour de France, it proved to be absolutely lethal for Beloki’s overall chances in this bike race"
http://www.olntv.com/tdf03/roll9.html
"Temperatures during the mountainous stage reached 95 degrees Fahrenheit on the plains and 77 degrees atop the day's two major climbs, the Col du Lautaret and the Col d'Izoard. Those are
wilting temperatures in France, where a day in the mid-80's is considered torrid."
http://www.nytimes.com/2003/07/14/s...&en=86aea87e92c5c437&ei=5007&partner=USERLAND
Chris Brewer, LA site manager: "Bombing down the descent into Gap, ONCE's Beloki had come to the front to help drive the chase.
Phil and Paul had just said how hot it was and that the roads were basically melting under the riders' wheel. A slight bend to the right came up, and
Beloki overshot the angle and when he went to correct it, it looked like he used too much rear brake and just locked it up. His rear wheel slid left as the tire rolled off and and then blew - he face / shoulder / elbow / hip planted hard - with Lance about .05 seconds behind him on his wheel."
I'm not saying that Beloki caused his own crash, but he is not entirely blameless in it. First, temperatures were very high and everybody knew it. Second, LA and JB were on a fast descent and going at high speeds trying to catch Vino. I'm not saying that these factors were THE cause of Beloki's crash, but they were contributing to the crash and JB (and LA) should have thought about them.