Stage 20: Grenoble Time Trial (42.5km) There’s nothing easy about a 42 kilometer time trial at the Tour de France, but this one is especially tough. Many times there’s a relatively flat stage between the final mountain stage and the final time trial. This year, the riders go directly from finishing atop l’Alpe d’Huez to …
By Chris Carmichael When going uphill is what you do best, you have to focus your efforts on building a lead – or making up time – before the Tour de France leaves the mountains. Stage 19 was the final day in the Alps, and it ended with a summit finish on the 21 hallowed …
Stage 19: Modane – l’Alpe d’Huez (109.5km) Stage 19 is almost half the length of Stage 18, which is good because there will be a lot of very tired riders in the peloton. But anyone with any energy will see this short stage as an opportunity to grab a stage win atop one of the …
By Chris Carmichael Fortune favors the bold, and Stage 18 of the Tour de France was the perfect setting for bold moves. At 200 kilometers in length, featuring three “beyond category” climbs, and finishing at the high-altitude summit of the Col du Galibier (8678 feet above sea level), there was no doubt that Stage 18 …
Stage 18 Pinerolo – Galibier (200.5km) Even though Stage 19 finishes on the fabled Alpe d’Huez summit, Stage 18 is the Queen Stage of the 2011 Tour de France. It is brutally difficult because it’s long (200 kilometers), contains three gigantic climbs (the 23-kilometer Col Agnel, the 14km ascent of the Col d’Izoard, and the …
By Chris Carmichael What goes up must come down, and while Stage 17 of the 2011 Tour de France featured some very big ascents, it was the descents that had the biggest impact on the race. Of the final 62 kilometers of Stage 17, only 8 kilometers were uphill and there may have been another …
Stage 17 Gap – Pinerolo (191.5km) Stage 17 is unique in that there is a cluster of significant climbs in the middle of the stage, and then there are 40 kilometers of generally downhill roads leading to one final Category 2 climb. The Cote de Pra Martino features some of the steepest pitches in the …
By Chris Carmichael As soon as the Tour de France route is announced, riders and teams start plotting and planning. They examine the balance of the challenges – mountains vs. time trials vs. long windy stages, etc. – and that information sometimes influences the composition of their Tour squad. The yellow jersey contenders, sprinters, and …
Stage 16: Saint Paul Trois Chateaux – Gap (162.5km) Stages like this are often referred to as “transition” stages. They’re not easy, but they’re not terribly hard, and they move the peloton from one type of terrain to another – typically into the mountains. Stage 16 introduces the peloton to the Alps, and gradually …
By Chris Carmichael With a flat and windy race today and the Tour de France’s second rest day tomorrow, the majority of the peloton was probably hoping for a relatively easy day. And while in some ways it was easier than the previous three stages in the Pyrenees, the high speeds, high winds, and somewhat …