Tour de France 2017 stage 9: Nantua > Chambéry - 181,5 km

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Rollthedice said:
Upping the pace means you have to go to the front with a few men who hopefully can go so strong with 112k before the finish and two other HC climbs that they can shed the likes of Nieve, Landa or Henao and still have enough in the tank to protect their leader.

You wouldn't need much at all to drop Knees and Rowe, the sooner they drop the sooner the good climbers can start tiring themselves out
 
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TomLPC said:
Rollthedice said:
Upping the pace means you have to go to the front with a few men who hopefully can go so strong with 112k before the finish and two other HC climbs that they can shed the likes of Nieve, Landa or Henao and still have enough in the tank to protect their leader.

You wouldn't need much at all to drop Knees and Rowe, the sooner they drop the sooner the good climbers can start tiring themselves out

Hopefully that will happen on Colombier.
 
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Rollthedice said:
Upping the pace means you have to go to the front with a few men who hopefully can go so strong with 112k before the finish and two other HC climbs that they can shed the likes of Nieve, Landa or Henao and still have enough in the tank to protect their leader.

Don't have to shed those guys now, but earlier they start riding the better your leader's chances will be on Mont du Chat. If BMC threw Schar and Roche to the front, they could burn off Knees and Rowe and distance them enough that when they're done, it's Kwia who has to ride. If it comes to Mont du Chat, and Sky are still using Rowe or Knees, you've no chance
 
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Son of Amsterhammer said:
Those roads don't look the best.

Well I figure there's reasons like this for the TDF avoiding some of these climbs for so long. They've only recently become a bit more bold about them. Even so I bet they requested plenty of improvements all over...
 
Mont du Chat don't have a very wide road. Can Sky use Thomas, Kiry, Henao, Nieve, Landa, Kwia, Rowe, Knees and Viviani to block the road, so no one can attack?

EDIT: I know Viviani isn't in the race, but at this pace he can start his journey from Italy (or Austria, if he's still there), and arrive at the bunch just before the start of Mont du Chat.