It’s official, Alberto Contador has signed a three and half year contract to ride for Saxo Bank. He will rejoin the Danish team in August and ride for them until the end of 2015.
Contador is like a corner piece in a jigsaw puzzle. Once he is in place with Saxo Bank other riders in the market can now be placed with different teams.
The race heads for the mountains and the Grand Colombier. It is not a famous climb.
But consider this for a moment: the Col du Galibier from Valloire is 18.1km long and averages 6.9%. The Grand Colombier from Culoz is 18.1km long and averages 6.9%.
The Col du Tourmalet is one of the legendary climbs of the Pyrenees. With tough ascensions on both the east and west, it is a regular feature of the Tour de France. Indeed the Tour has tackled this pass more times than any other in France. So you’d hope the altitude of the pass is agreed. In case of doubt a giant sign marks the pass.
Only a new jersey by Rapha created to celebrate the legendary climbs of the Pyrenees appears to mention the wrong altitude.
A 53.5km time trial, a festival of big ring riding.
A prestigious stage in its own right, it will also shape the overall classification for the race. This is also vital test of form ahead of the Tour de France and similar in style to Stage 9 of the Tour, a 41.5km time trial. Plus the results will be scrutinised by national federations who need to pick a rider for the London Olympic Games.
With less than a month to go before the Tour de France Andy Schleck is well off the pace. When there is a climb or a time trial the Luxembourger seems to go backwards. Fans are frustrated, journalists exasperated and management nervous. Is this the 2012 Dauphiné? No, I’m talking about the June 2011 and the Tour of Switzerland.
Here’s the breakdown of Andy Schleck’s riding in the Swiss race last year listed stage by stage. As you’ll see he was struggling with the pace on some climbs only to put on a mountain masterclass on the penultimate day… and then finish second in the Tour de France weeks later.
It’s only Wednesday but today is the last chance for the sprinters in this race. Look at the graphic above and once the climbs are out of the way there’s a nice run to the finish. But crunch the numbers and yesterday’s stage was for slated the punchers and climbers with 2,900 metres of vertical gain yet today features a comparable 2,600 metres. A sprinter must be able on the ascensions to be fresh for the finish.
| Wins | Team |
| 30 | Omega Pharma – Quickstep |
| 25 | Team Sky |
| 21 | Liquigas – Cannondale |
| 16 | Lotto – Belisol |
| 15 | Movistar |
| 14 | Katusha |
| 14 | Orica-Greenedge |
| 13 | Garmin – Barracuda |
| 11 | Rabobank |
| 9 | FDJ – BigMat |
| 8 | Vacansoleil – DCM |
| 7 | BMC Racing |
| 6 | Euskaltel – Euskadi |
| 6 | Lampre – ISD |
| 5 | Astana |
| 3 | Radioshack – Nissan |
| 3 | Saxo Bank |
| 3 | Ag2r – La Mondiale |
The start and finish are only 25km apart but instead today’s stage does a big loop to borrow the route of one of France’s most popular cyclosport rides, the L’Ardéchoise with over 10,000 riders taking part each year. But there’s nothing amateur about today’s stage.
Riis Stages of Light and Dark by Bjarne Riis
Bjarne Riis won the 1996 Tour de France and later confessed to doping. This alone makes his autobiography of interest because few have won the race, admitted they cheated and then wrote a book about the experience. But there’s more since as Riis has since become an influential team owner and the book covers a lot of his time in management.
A page-turning book that covers big moments in the sport and features an intriguing man with many news ideas for the sport… this is also a frustrating read.
The race heads away from the mountains for the Rhone valley but takes a winding route over several small climbs. If the race took a straight line it would head over the awkward Vercors mountains, instead it avoids such testing roads but still, this is an awkward stage for riders and teams alike, none more than Luke Durbridge and Orica-Greenedge.