Seriously, Lance is the best there ever was.

I disagree (well, we know that is just a subjective ranking).
For me the best is still Eddy Merckx (that's an opinion I share with, among many others, Armstrong).

Today, the cyclists take one big event and everything else is just preparation. Merckx in his time raced (and won) all the springtime classics like Paris-Roubaix, Milano-San Remo, Liege-Bastogne-Liege.

He still is the only cyclist who has won all jerseys (green, red, yellow, polka dot) more than once and even in one year all of them in one Tour. He would have been awarded the white jersey too if that had existed then. He has won more Tour etappes than anyone else and leads by number of days wearing the yellow jersey. He was a man for the long solo flights over several cols, something oner rarely sees today.

My sentimental heroes:
Joop Zoetemelk, one time winner and 6 times second in the Tour, who took part 16 times and arrived each single time.
Raymond Poulidor, who made the Paris podium eight times without a single Tour win. He not even once wore the yellow jersey and is in my opinion the best ever cyclist who has no yellow jersey to show. He should have won in 1964, but Anquetil bluffed legendarily at Puy de Dome.

Wolfgang