Tour de France 2014 July 20, Stage 15: Tallard - Nîmes 222km
Guess what?! We have a poll!
Some of best Tour action of recent years has played out on flat, inconspicuous roads where wily teams have used a jinking route and a stiff wind to blow the race to pieces. Often it’s not just the stage result that’s in the balance but the overall classification too; Chris Froome was taught a valuable lesson last year when Saxo-Tinkoff drilled holes in the Team Sky defence on the road to Saint-Amand-Montrond last year in such conditions.
The wide-open roads travelling southwest from Tallard to Nîmes could provide the same theatre this year. Towards the end of the day, the race route crosses the Rhône Valley, down which the stiff and uncompromising Mistral often blows.
Directeurs sportifs will be radioing ahead for as much intel on conditions as possible – some looking for a window of attack while others will be processing the information defensively. If the wind does blow, the day will be tense from the start. No one, not least the GC contenders can afford to be left on dead wheels on such a day. It could be as much a test of a team’s logistics and brain power every bit as much as the riders’ strength.
Guess what?! We have a poll!
Some of best Tour action of recent years has played out on flat, inconspicuous roads where wily teams have used a jinking route and a stiff wind to blow the race to pieces. Often it’s not just the stage result that’s in the balance but the overall classification too; Chris Froome was taught a valuable lesson last year when Saxo-Tinkoff drilled holes in the Team Sky defence on the road to Saint-Amand-Montrond last year in such conditions.
The wide-open roads travelling southwest from Tallard to Nîmes could provide the same theatre this year. Towards the end of the day, the race route crosses the Rhône Valley, down which the stiff and uncompromising Mistral often blows.
Directeurs sportifs will be radioing ahead for as much intel on conditions as possible – some looking for a window of attack while others will be processing the information defensively. If the wind does blow, the day will be tense from the start. No one, not least the GC contenders can afford to be left on dead wheels on such a day. It could be as much a test of a team’s logistics and brain power every bit as much as the riders’ strength.
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