Off the Back: Five Thoughts on the Tour de France So Far

Author:
Austin Murphy
Publish date:
Jul 10, 2014

Like a lager overflowing its stein at a Munich biergarten, Germany’s athletic prowess has spilled over the soccer pitch and onto the roads of the Tour de France, where Lotto-Belisol’s Andre (the Gorilla) Greipel beat his fellow sprinters by a bike length to take today’s sixth stage. The Gorilla, who can fairly be described as a life-support system for a pair of ridiculously hypertrophied quadriceps, had been overshadowed in this Tour by his countryman, Marcel Kittel, the Giant-Shimano rider who won three of the first four stages. But in the hectic, boiling final kilometer on today’s run-in to Reims, Kittel apparently punctured, opening the door for his fellow German, to whom we say: Prosit!

Five thoughts on the Tour so far:

1. More rain, more crashes, more attrition. While the conditions may not have been as miserable as Wednesday’s epic and cobbled instant classic—during which defending champion Chris Froome of Team Sky crashed twice, then abandoned—the casualties were costly. Alberto Contador, who could end up being the biggest beneficiary of Froome’s departure, lost teammate Jesus Fernandez, who would’ve been a key wingman for the Spaniard in the high mountains. Likewise, Sky’s Xabier Zandio snapped a clavicle in a mass crash 79 kilometers from the finish, and couldn’t go on. That means Richie Porte, the talented Aussie all-around rider promoted to leadership of the squad following the loss of Froome, is down to six teammates, with 15 stages to go.

2. The race is still searching for a new equilibrium after the muddy, bloody upheaval of Stage 5, destined to go down as one of the more controversial, and iconic, in recent Tour history. The inclusion of nine cobbled secteurs–reduced to seven before the stage began— promised to inject a large dose of anarchy, and that was before lashing rain and winds turned each cobbled section into a high-speed Slip ’N Slide. Attacking the cobbles with panache befitting the race leader, the surprising Vincenzo Nibali, the Italian riding for Astana, kept the yellow jersey. Below him, the leaderboard was jumbled.

The Tour de France Through the Years

Keystone-France/Gamma-Keystone via Getty Images

The arrival of the cycling bunch at Albi in France at the first Tour de France in 1903.

Cyclists taking their bag of provisions on the Tour de France.

La Foule des Jeunes au 'Tour de France: les voila! (The crowd of young people at the Tour de France: here they are!)

French racing cyclist Maurice Garin, winner of the first Tour de France in 1903.

Rene Pottier, a French racing cyclist in the Tour de France in 1905.

Maurice Branger/Roger Viollet/Getty Images

The start of the 1908 Tour de France in Paris on July 13, 1908.

Racing cyclist Nicolas Frantz, from Luxembourg, celebrates his Tour de France victory, in Parc des Princes, Paris, on July 15, 1928.

French cyclist Andre Leducq (left) won the Tour de France in 1932.

Belgian team racing cyclists Georges Ronsse (left), Frans Bonduel (center) and Jean Aerts (right) write letters during a rest time of the Tour de France, on July 8, 1932 in Nantes.

French racing cyclist Antonin Magne (left), winner of the 28th Tour de France is interviewed at the end of the 23rd stage Caen-Paris, on July 29, 1933.

Racing cyclist Arsene Mersch of Luxembourg changes his wheel with Josy Krauss one's after a puncture during the fourth stage of the Tour de France, on July 10, 1934.

Henri Desgrange (left), founder of the Tour de France, stands next to French rider Roger Lapebie on July, 21, 1937 in Pau, before the start of the 16th stage between Pau and Bordeaux.

Roger Pingeon, French racing cyclist and winner of the Tour de France 1967 (right), shaking hands of Eddy Merckx (left), Belgian racing cyclist.

The French cyclist Jacques Anquetil, winner of the Tour de France, upon his crossing the finishing line at the Parc des Princes on July 16, 1961.

Cyclists Jacques Anquetil, Eddy Merckx and Felice Gimondi were the three winners of the Tour de France in 1970.

Lucien Van Impe from Belgium, wearing the red and white Polka Dot Jersey of the best climber, rides during the 64th Tour de France in July 1977.

Lucien Van Impe from Belgium waves from podium during the 64th Tour de France between June 30 and July 27, 1977. Van Impe finished third placed in the overall ranking.

Frenchman Bernard Hinault leads in front of Portuguese Joaquim Agostinho, Dutchmen Joop Zoetemelk and Hennie Kuiper (left) and Swedish Sven-Ake Nilsson during the third stage of the Tour de France between Luchon and Pau on June 30, 1979. Hinault won the stage in a sprint finish beating Belgian Rudy Pevenage and Italian Gian-Battista Barronchelli and went on to capture his second consecutive Tour de France's victory in Paris, winning seven stages overall.

Dutchman Joop Zoetemelk, wearing the leader's yellow jersey, rides uphill next to Frenchman Raymond Martin during the 17th stage of the Tour de France between Serre-Chevalier and Morzine on July 14, 1980. Zoetemelk finished 13th of the stage won by Frenchman Mariano Martinez but went on to win his first and only Tour de France in Paris.

French cyclist Laurent Fignon undergoes a medical exam before the start of the Tour de France cycling road race on June 27, 1984 in Bobigny. Fignon revealed on June 11, 2009, during the recording of a TV show that he suffers advanced stage cancer, but said that there he has no links with doping products. Fignon won the Tour de France in 1983 and 1984.

During a day-off on July 12, 1985 in Villard-de-Lans, Frenchman Bernard Hinault, the overall leader of the 72nd Tour de France, displays his four yellow jerseys won in previous years (1978, 1979, 1981, 1982). Hinault won the 1985 edition as well to tie the record set by his compatriot Jacques Anquetil and Belgian rider Eddy Merckx.

The American cyclist Greg Lemond rides in the Tour de France on July 16, 1986.

Spanish Julian Gorospe (right) leads a final breakaway from Nimes to Gap in the 73rd Tour de France, with French Jean-FranÁois Bernard (left) and French Bernard Vallet (center).

The riders reach the top of the Col du Galibier in France, between Le Bourg-d'Oisans and La Plagne, during Stage 21 of the Tour de France in July 1987.

French cyclist Stephen Roche is rescued after fainting, on July 22, 1987 at the arrival of the 21st stage of the Tour de France between Bourg d'Oisans and La Plagne.

A group of cyclists recover after a fall during the third stage of Tour de France in Francorchamps, Belgium on July 3, 1989.

American Greg Lemond celebrates on the podium wearing the yellow jersey after winning the 1990 Tour de France in Paris. It was his third in the Tour de France.

Greg LeMond sucks his thumb like a baby as he waits for the medical examinations on Friday, June 29, 1990, in Poitiers, France.

Cyclists pass through the Alsatian countryside in the 10th stage of racing between Luxembourg and Strasbourg in the 79th Tour de France in July 1992.

Spanish cycling champion Miguel Indurain (right) takes one of the final turns of the 79th Tour de France on the Champs Elysees in July 1992.

American cyclist Lance Armstrong undergoes a medical examination in Lille, northern France, in June 1994, a few days before the start of the 81st Tour de France cycling race.

Fabio Roscioli of Italy splashes himself with water during the 12th stage of the Tour de France from Isola 2000 to Marseille in July 1993. Roscioli raced ahead and alone for 112 miles before winning the stage. Miguel Indurain had no problem holding onto the lead even though he finished in the main pack, more than 20 minutes behind Roscioli.

The American flag flutters in the air in the foreground as the pack of riders pass under it on their way up the coast during stage six of the Tour de France in 1994.

Defending chamption Miguel Indurain of Spain going through medical checkups prior to the start of the Tour de France in 1995.

Four-time winner of the Tour de France Miguel Indurain of Spain takes a lung-capacity check-up in Saint-Brieuc, France prior to the start of the 1995 edition of the race.

Sunflowers frame cyclists as the pack rides by under cloudy skies during the 14th stage of the Tour de France cycling race in July 1995.

The peleton climbing La Freissinouse leaving the start at Gap on its way on the 11th stage of the Tour De France in 1996.

American George Hincapie performs during the 13 stage of the Tour de France in July 1997.

The yellow jersey German Jan Ullrich demonstrates with other cyclists at the beginning of the 12th stage of the Tour de France in Tarascon-sur-Ariege, South of France, in July 1988 to protest against the media coverage of the race focusing on doping affairs.

The winner of the 1999 Tour de France American Lance Armstrong is supported by spectators during his victory lap on the Champs-Elysees in Paris in July 1999.

The 2000 Tour de France winner Lance Armstrong is supported by spectators during his victory lap on the Champs-Elysees after the last stage of the 87th French cycling race in July 2000.

The 2002 Tour de France winner US Lance Armstrong celebrates as he makes his victory lap on the Champs-Elysees after the last stage of the 89th French cycling race in July 2002.

Yellow Jersey holder Alberto Contador of Spain and Astana passes L'Arc de Triomphe during the 21st stage of the Tour de France on July 26, 2009 in Paris, France.

Bradley Wiggins of Great Britain celebrates on a processional lap after winning the 2012 Tour de France after the twentieth and final stage from Rambouillet to the Champs-Elysees.

Britain's Chris Froome wins the 2013 Tour de France winner, making it back-to-back British winners of the cycling race.

Young American Andrew Talanksy, Garmin-Sharp’s leader, leapfrogged from 22nd to 9th place, and now sits just over two minutes behind Nibali. Contador, riding conservatively and with an eye toward the Tour’s five upcoming mountaintop finishes, lost a shocking 2 ½ minutes to Nibali—precious time that will be difficult to claw back from the Italian.

Three places and six seconds behind Talansky is fellow American and BMC leader Tejay van Garderen. Though both riders took significant time out of Contador, their moods diverged after the stage. The BMC rider vented his frustration to NBC at the Tour’s decision to add cobblestones to the race: “You guys got your drama, but that takes the race down a notch when you got your top favorite out. In theory, it could make the race less exciting toward the end. I think ASO needs to rethink having days like this in the race.”

Talansky, for his part, sounded borderline euphoric, talking to Andrew Hood of VeloNews: “I’m very pleased. If you look at the list of guys that are up there, a lot of those guys are going to be gone when we get to the mountains, and aren’t going to factor in the overall GC. So we’re sitting pretty well.”

“It was an epic day to be a part of. It was a day I’ll remember for the rest of my life.”

Medics tend to Spain's Xabier Zandio after he crashed during the sixth stage of the Tour de France cycling race over 194 kilometers (120.5 miles) with start in Arras and finish in Reims, France, Thursday, July 10, 2014. Zandio is the second team Sky rider to abandon the race after Britain's Christopher Froome crashed and abandoned yesterday.
AP Photo/Christophe Ena

3. Nibali can do no wrong—other than this awk-sauce moment with a podium woman following his victory in Stage 2. The 29-year-old Astana leader had a slow start to the season, but seems to have found his top form at exactly the right time. When the rider known as The Shark launched his late attack in Stage 2, none of the other heads of state could answer. While other riders complained about the slippery cobbles in Stage 5, Nibali had reconned those sections before the Tour, then made his homework pay off. He’s a strong rider with a strong team around him.

4. Whither Britannia? After his race-ending crash in Stage 1, Mark Cavendish required surgery on his right shoulder. Right around the time Cav came to in the hospital, following the operation, Froome crashed out as well. And so this Tour, which started with a strong British flavor—race director Christian Prudhomme described the Grand Depart from Yorkshire as the “grandest” in the event’s history—is down to just a pair of U.K. riders: the Welshman Geraint Thomas, and Orica GreenEdge’s 21-year-old Simon Yates.

5. Crashes are inevitable (and, for NBC producers seeking highlights to tease the broadcast, invaluable) in this first, nervous week of the Tour. While there may be no more pileups than usual, the reaction to them seems to be more cutthroat, according to Trek Factory Racing’s Jens Voit, who is the Tour’s oldest rider, at 42, in addition to being one of its most perceptive.

First-week carnage comes with the territory in this race, Voit told NBC’s Steve Schlanger following Stage 5:

“Everybody’s fresh, ready to take any risk. But it also feels like the sport’s getting a little more rough.” Riders are less inclined, Voit believes, to worry about “taking care of each other. Today we had a big crash, 25 riders on the ground or blocked behind them. And teams just decide to profit from it.”

“There was the green jersey on the ground”—points classification leader Peter Sagan. “And I remember days when [race elders would say] ‘No, that’s a distinctive jersey on the ground, we slow down and wait.’” No mas. Today, teams pressed on, trying to take advantage of Sagan’s misfortune. “I think the sport is getting more rough,” repeated Voit, who also expects pyrotechnics in the upcoming mountains:

“Now that some of the climbers lost time on the flat stages, they need to make the race hard and spectacular. I’m gonna suffer—sorry for my words—I’m gonna suffer like a pig in the climbs. But for the spectators, I think we have some pretty cool racing ahead of us.”

Off the Back: Five Thoughts on the Tour de France So Far

The Tour de France Through the Years

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