Indurain won the mountain stage at Luz Ardiden in 1990. OK, so he didn't win the tour that year.

Indurain's margins of victory were generally larger than the time he gained in the TT's. Where did he make up the extra time? In the mountains. The "competition" may have won the stage one day, but then lost significant time the next day or the day after. Indurain was consistently strong in the mountains. I would definitely consider him an all rounder.

J.

  

The next Tour phenom will probably be a young rider who bursts onto the scene, not one of the current good riders. That could be someone like Cadel Evans, Mike Rogers, Ivan Basso, Tom Danielson, or someone even more obscure. Nobody knew who Jan Ulrich was in June of 1996, but we all knew he who was by the end of July, 1996.

I agree, If USPS continues to sponsor cycling post LA (and thats a BIG "if") they will want a US rider to lead the team. I think I've read that Saturn will discontinue its sponsorship after this year making Danielson a free agent. USPS has been sniffing around him for a while so I would think if they don't sign him this year that is probably a pretty good indication that they are through with cycling after Lance. Danielson seems to me like the only really exciting new American prospect.
Ivan Basso is now signed with CSC if Riis can work the same sort of ju-ju on Basso that he did on Hamilton and the two stay together for a few years...look out, thats where I would put my money for a tour run (after Ullrich gets his 2 or 3). Of course alot happens in pro cycling in 2 or 3 years.
Also, David Millar. still a young guy and obviously a very good time trialist, if he can get it together in the mountains, not crash, and find a better team I would look to him for a least 1 tour win in the future.
Of course none of these guys are five time (I said five but I'm thinkin' six. yeah, I said it! 6!!!) TDF winners. To do that you need to find a sponsor who only cares about, and a team built exclusively to ride the tour. Chances are you will only find a sponsor like that in North America. And when you find that sponsor I bet they will probably only agree to it if there is a "local" boy riding at the front. What you really need is another LA to get the whole thing going again!

Certainly he's an all-arounder enough to be successful in the Tour, but he was nowhere near as well rounded when compared to the other 5-timers. All of them have had multiple victories in mountain stages as well as TT's. I'm not doggin' Indurain. Quite the opposite. I'm just pointing out that his domination was the result of his TT skills, not his all around skills when compared to the likes of Hinault, Lemond, Armstrong, Merckx, and Anquetil.