Tour notes: ‘I'm happy,' says Schleck

Saxo Bank's Andy Schleck saw his 41-second lead reduced by 25 percent on Friday, as Alberto Contador finished 10 seconds ahead of him after a late charge up the final climb.

Schleck said his decision not to attack was part of the game plan, and the Luxembourg rider also noted that he had a difficult time on the bike during the up-and-down Stage 12.

"The day was a little hard; I suffered a lot all day," Schleck said in a Reuters story. "As for the final climb, I knew it would be tough. It doesn't suit me at all; it's short and you have to be explosive.

"At the end of the day, I'm happy I only lost 10 seconds. I was not too surprised I could not stay with him on this climb."

Schleck and Contador have ridden together most of this week, and during Stage 11 the pair chatted about a vacation they took together. The Tour is now a battle between the two men; the four upcoming stages in the Pyrenees will probably decide who wears yellow in downtown Paris on July 25.

Schleck said he is ready for the challenge.

"I knew before the start of the Tour that my best days would come in the Pyrenees," he said. "I prepared to be at my peak in the third week."

Contador ‘embarrassed'
When Contador started his push in the middle of the steep climb up the La Croix Neuve pass, it caught Schleck and everyone else off guard. The Spaniard quickly closed the gap between a handful of riders ahead of him -- including fellow Astana rider Alexandre Vinokourov -- and eventually overtook Katusha's Joaquim Rodriguez for the lead.

But instead of powering past Rodriguez at the finish, Contador almost seemed to allow him to cruise to victory. Contador continually looked behind him as his legs churned on the bike. There was speculation that Contador conceded the defeat so Rodriguez, a fellow Spaniard, would help him in the mountains.

After the stage, however, the reason behind Contador's seemingly soft finish was revealed.

"Alberto was embarrassed for Vino, he paused a bit, tried to wait for him," Astana manager Yvon Sanquer told Reuters. "Had Vino not been in front, Alberto would have attacked earlier."

Vinokourov did not seem upset afterward, and said the team's goals were bigger than merely winning a stage.

"We're riding for the general classification," he said.

Quotables
Schleck on the mountain stages in Pyrenees, which start Sunday: "The Pyrenees will be something different. There won't be 15 riders in the final climb but just Alberto and me. He's nervous and I'm nervous too. But I'm ready for the fight."

Garmin-Transitions team manager Matt White on American Tyler Farrar, who withdrew from the Tour on Friday. Farrar broke his wrist in a Stage 2 crash: "Every day after Tyler's sprints, he's in a world of pain."

Lance Armstrong, who is 21 minutes, 16 seconds behind Schleck, on Stage 12 (via Twitter): "That was one helluva hard day."