Credit to @Devil's Elbow for this stage write up
https://forum.cyclingnews.com/threads/tour-de-france-2024-stage-by-stage-analysis.39775/post-3032425
For the first time in over a week, real climbs. This is potentially one of the best stages of this Tour, so buckle up.
The route
A sizeable transfer south has taken the peloton out of the plains and into the hills, for a start in Évaux-les-Bains. The town owes its existence to its thermal baths, already in use in Roman times but abandoned when the western half of the empire collapsed. A village, based around a monastery (later replaced by the present collegiate church) survived , and eventually, in the 17th century, the spa was restored. The current developments mostly date back to the 19th century, when the construction of a now-defunct railway led to a peak in the spa’s popularity. It has not hosted the Tour before.
The stage is rolling to hilly for its first three quarters. The first point of interest is the intermediate sprint in Bourg-Lastic.
Shortly after, there are two KOMs at Côte de Mouilloux and Côte de Larodde. I don’t have profiles for either, so with little to talk about away from cycling we’re skipping ahead to the finale. This starts with the Col de Néronne.
At the summit, we join the route of the 2016 stage into Le Lioran. The next 11.4k are the final 11.4k of the profile below. Puy Mary/Pas de Peyrol may be overcategorised, but it’s still the steepest, highest and most famous pass of the Cantal massif, and can do real damage off the back of the hard side of Néronne as seen in the 2020 MTF here.
After the first proper descent since the one down the Galibier, it’s time for the third and final of the steeper climbs, Col du Perthus.
The ensuing descent is short, but narrow and fairly technical. Once we’re off it, it’s onto the main road for a while, and now the gradients are far lower. Just before the summit, it’s away from the main road and up to Col de Font de Cère.
The final descent is very narrow, but also very short. The final 800 metres, on the main road once more, are uphill at a consistent 6.5%.
Le Lioran is one of the largest ski resorts in the Massif Central and the only one in the Massif du Cantal, the largest (though long-extinct) stratovolcano in Europe. It is the wettest place in France (weather stations on mountains aside). This will be its third finish in the Tour, after 1975 (Michel Pollentier, ahead of Eddy Merckx two stages before he was famously brought to his knees on the way to Pra-Loup) and 2016 (Greg Van Avermaet).
What to expect?
I know the slightly easier version of the same finale didn’t do much for GC in 2016, but given that almost every mountain stage wasn’t raced properly that year and given how well this stage suits both Pogacar and Evenepoel, there is a very good chance of things being different this time round. Major GC action or not, the break will have high hopes here too
https://forum.cyclingnews.com/threads/tour-de-france-2024-stage-by-stage-analysis.39775/post-3032425
For the first time in over a week, real climbs. This is potentially one of the best stages of this Tour, so buckle up.
The route
A sizeable transfer south has taken the peloton out of the plains and into the hills, for a start in Évaux-les-Bains. The town owes its existence to its thermal baths, already in use in Roman times but abandoned when the western half of the empire collapsed. A village, based around a monastery (later replaced by the present collegiate church) survived , and eventually, in the 17th century, the spa was restored. The current developments mostly date back to the 19th century, when the construction of a now-defunct railway led to a peak in the spa’s popularity. It has not hosted the Tour before.
The stage is rolling to hilly for its first three quarters. The first point of interest is the intermediate sprint in Bourg-Lastic.
Shortly after, there are two KOMs at Côte de Mouilloux and Côte de Larodde. I don’t have profiles for either, so with little to talk about away from cycling we’re skipping ahead to the finale. This starts with the Col de Néronne.
At the summit, we join the route of the 2016 stage into Le Lioran. The next 11.4k are the final 11.4k of the profile below. Puy Mary/Pas de Peyrol may be overcategorised, but it’s still the steepest, highest and most famous pass of the Cantal massif, and can do real damage off the back of the hard side of Néronne as seen in the 2020 MTF here.
After the first proper descent since the one down the Galibier, it’s time for the third and final of the steeper climbs, Col du Perthus.
The ensuing descent is short, but narrow and fairly technical. Once we’re off it, it’s onto the main road for a while, and now the gradients are far lower. Just before the summit, it’s away from the main road and up to Col de Font de Cère.
The final descent is very narrow, but also very short. The final 800 metres, on the main road once more, are uphill at a consistent 6.5%.
Le Lioran is one of the largest ski resorts in the Massif Central and the only one in the Massif du Cantal, the largest (though long-extinct) stratovolcano in Europe. It is the wettest place in France (weather stations on mountains aside). This will be its third finish in the Tour, after 1975 (Michel Pollentier, ahead of Eddy Merckx two stages before he was famously brought to his knees on the way to Pra-Loup) and 2016 (Greg Van Avermaet).
What to expect?
I know the slightly easier version of the same finale didn’t do much for GC in 2016, but given that almost every mountain stage wasn’t raced properly that year and given how well this stage suits both Pogacar and Evenepoel, there is a very good chance of things being different this time round. Major GC action or not, the break will have high hopes here too
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