Big, grande, enorme. Call it what you like, this is the biggest stage of the 2011 Tour de France. It might not settle the result, far from it, but three hors catégorie climbs including the finish in the Galibier mean it’s a massive day in the race. The French call it the Etape Reine, literally the “Queen Stage”.

Today’s stage from Pinerolo to the Galibier crosses back to France. Ignore the “Serre Chevalier” name since the ski resort is actually a good distance from the finish, it reminds me of the low-cost airlines in Europe that claim to fly to a capital city but land in a provincial airport far from the stated destination.

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The only stage outside of France this year, the race takes a classic route from France to Italy. 150 years ago the region was as one as the Kingdom of Savoy, a mostly French speaking area where the finishing town was called Pignerol. Today the differences are still subtle as both sides of the border are dominated by the Alpine peaks, indeed the start and finish towns are twinned.

The first climb of the Côte de Sainte-Marguerite is more a ramp than a notable climb but 2.8km at 7.6% is a rude warm up for the upcoming intermediate sprint in Villar Sainte Pancrace, which is itself uphill too albeit at a milder gradient. Then the climb of La Chaussée which is another ramp, this time in the middle of Briançon.

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The start is near the foot of Mont Ventoux in Saint-Paul-Trois-Châteaux, which means St Paul Three Castles. Tourist brochures feature lavender fields, vineyards and the views towards Ventoux. It certainly is a pleasant place… except for the vast nuclear power station on the edge of town. With its four reactors, the plant produces 6% of France’s electricity and one day the town will be renamed St Paul Quatre Réacteurs.

Look at the profile and it’s uphill all day. But it is not severe, the pace should be high as a breakaway tries to go clear near the start. The race follows the river Eygues up a gorge with predictably impressive scenery. The intermediate sprint is tricky with a couple of roundabouts on the way in and some speed bumps, before the final kick to the line with an uphill of around 4%.

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There’s a time limit to finish each stage, a rider who finishes outside of the cut-off is eliminated from the race. It’s cruel but designed to ensure nobody can sit up and take some stages easy. It forces the non-climbers to race in the mountains.

Movistar have announced they’re planning to set a fast pace in the mountains with the aim of putting Mark Cavendish in trouble. If the Briton finishes a mountain stage hors délais then Jose Joaquin Rojas is in line to recover the green jersey. So let’s take a quick look at how the cut-off time is calculated.

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Another rest day on the Tour de France and a time for many to take stock of the race so far and plan for the upcoming stages in the Alps. But it’s also a business day and if you can hear the sound of cash registers ringing and riders are walking round with $ and € signs in the their eyes then it’s because many teams and agents are finalising contracts for 2012 and beyond today.

We should know more on the fate or future of the HTC-Highroad team today, it’ll be one thing to secure the team’s financial future but it will need to retain a core of riders to retain its ProTeam status amongst the top-18 teams.

Talking of money, it won’t be top priority but some teams have racking more prize money in the second week. Thanks to their endless attacking, in particular their keen racing for the intermediate sprint, FDJ – appropriate for the French state lottery – have hit the jackpot. Here’s the full breakdown of prize money.

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An easy day after the Pyrenees as the riders leave the mountains and around the Mediterranean coast, a place where millions of French and northern Europeans migrate for the summer to profit from the sea and sunshine. The stage starts in Limoux, half-famous for its sparkling white wine that struggles for attention alongside the more famous champagne.

But the route today is inland, not by the sea and more appealing than the often over-build coastline. The race will pass by many vineyards and look out for the rugby posts in sports fields, this is the heartland of what the French call le balon oval.

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