Tour de France Tour de France 2025 Stage 9: Chinon – Châteauroux (174.1k)

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its affected by where the TdF starts though surely ? youre not going to be dropping mountain stages in if there arent any mountains around the area you are in.
I think that's true for the overall backloaded pattern of this year's Tour. But they could have easily improved this weekend by, after yesterday's stage, doing a longer transfer to the Massive Central and have two medium-mountain stages there instead of just the one.
 
I think it would make more sense to rank the stretch before first mountain stage than doing this...
The main complaint this year is how late that is. So if you ignore that by design, you don't engage with the criticism.

When you say "it has been a great first week", would that really only be compared to the first three stages last year and not the gravel stage??
 
I refuse to hope, because that's what kills you. Everyone will help Quickstep and Trek.
Because I do not hope to turn again
Because I do not hope
Because I do not hope to turn
Desiring this man's gift and that man's scope
I no longer strive to strive towards such things
(Why should the agèd eagle stretch its wings?)
Why should I mourn
The vanished power of the usual reign?
TS Eliot
 
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Anyone who has a sprinter capable of getting any top 10 result at all today should chase if they‘ve missed it. Better to try for the breakaway first of course, but you get even less if you don‘t do anything.
Which is the god damn problem in the first place. Really horrendous from the 10-15 teams without a top tier sprinter and top tier GC-rider to just sit back and enjoy. Especially mad at those teams with third tier sprinters sitting on their behind and fighting for a placement between 5-15 on a stage like today instead of actually trying to win. Its not like you are gonna invest a lot with only one man joining in.