Stage 9 Results and Rest Day Planning
Scattered all over those mountains
They mentioned his name often, he had won Liege-Bastagne-Liege this year, they knew what he could do, and today Dan Martin proved them right. He made that stage win happen for himself, his first ever in the Tour de France and he timed his attack perfectly. We haven't heard or seen much of Garmin this past week and most of the work Dan Martin's team did today took place off-camera, but in the end - Garmin has a stage win on the books in the 2013 Tour de France. Another team that can breath a sigh of relief. Another rider well-deserved of the win.
What we thought yesterday is no longer a certainty. SKY blew up today, leaving men over the side of the road (Peter Kennaugh) and men behind at 17'59" (Riche Porte). Teams Saxo-Tinkoff and Movistar were setting the yellow jersey pace all day, but what was most noticeable was the hodgepodge mixed groupings of riders spread out across the Pyrenees. The last rider came in 26'20" behind Dan Martin who said in a post-race interview, "I didn't even look to see what gear I was in. It just felt natural. Perfect.".
"It was one of the hardest days I've had on a bike." ~ Chris Froome.
The fans out on the road were entertained for quite awhile today on the final stretches as packs of riders trickled by. The times of the minor groupings in today's stage: 0.0", 0'20", 3'54", 7'07", 11'38", 17'59", 18'59", 20'26", 22'43", 25"12, 26'20".
Also I would like to comment that it is a very good sign when we see riders having a good day then a bad day. It is normal in cycling and much preferred to the days when the same team or rider would be on the front day after day - those days were called doping. What we saw today was called human. And good racing
Photos of the Day:
Dan Martin (Garmin) and Jacob Fuglsang (Astana) broke away and stayed away on the final climb.What I love most about this photo is that not a single fans is seen with a camera in their hands - which means they are soaking up the effort in the faces of the riders as they pass. Now that is the way to watch the Tour.
A glorious day in the Pyrenees, and this - one of my favorite places in the Pyrenees - La Horquette d'Ancizan.
Magnificent Pyrenees roads. Photo from leTour website
LeTour has released a security request to fans: although some fans are taking this into their own hands (clothesline video).
Videos to watch:
Kennaugh bumped then tumbles down roadside ditch NBC Sports
Andrew Talansky Post Stage 9 Bicycling (Garmin's team strategy)
Tejay van Garderen's Tough Day Bicycling ("What happened to Tejay?")
Stage 9 Highlights at the Tour de France Bicycling
Stage 9 Highlights (11:36 English) - sbs
Read:
A Hell of a Day Hardly Serious series, By Jens Voigt for Bicycling
Chasing Le Tour: Martin pounces, Froome isolated, by Cycling Tips blog
RESULTS
Classification Jersey - after Stage 9
YELLOW - Christopher Froome (SKY)
GREEN - Peter Sagan (Cannondale)
POLKA DOT - Pierre Rolland (Europcar)
WHITE - Nairo Alexander Quintano Rojas (Movistar)
COMBATIVE - Romain Bardet (AG2R)
TEAM - Movistar
LANTERNE ROUGE - Tom Veleers (Argos-Shimano) + 01h 58' 18"
Full list of overall GC standings here: General Classification standings 2013 Tour de France
Withdrawals: 16 riders - after Stage 9
#132 Yoann Bagot (Cofidis) dehydration, withdrawal during Stage 3
#66 Andrey Kashechkin (Astana) withdrawal (Stage 3)
#14 Ted King (Cannondale) time cutoff (TTT Stage 4) "HD, hors relai"
#83 Maxime Bouet (ALM) DNS Stage 6
#73 Nacer Bouhanni (FDJ) abandon during Stage 6
#67 Fredrik Kessiakoff (Astana) withdrawal during Stage 6
#21 Jurgen van den Broeck (Lotto) DNS Stage 6, injury
#61 Janez Brajkoiv (Astana) withdrawal after Stage 6 injuries, DNS Stage 7
#179 Christian Vande Velde (Garmin) withdrawal Stage 7, shoulder injury
#146 Andriano Malori (Lampre) withdrawal Stage 7
#142 Matteo Bonon (Lampre) withdrawal Stage 8
#174 Rohan Dennis (GRS) DNS Stage 9
#38 Michael Schär (BMC) DNS Stage 9
#126 Jose Ivan Gutierrez (MOV) Withrawal Stage 9
#95 Benjamin Noval Gonzales (Saxo) Withdrawal Stage 9
#4 Vasili Kiryinka (SKY) finished outside time limit on Stage 9
The winnings from today's stages were donated to the victims of the recent floods in the Pyrenees. Pyrenees Floods.
l'ÉTAPE du TOUR
The legendary citizens ride - L'Étape du Tour - took place today in the Haute-Savoie, in Annecy, France. Every year the organizers of the Tour de france make it possible for citizen cyclists to ride one complete stage of the Tour de France. An awesome goal and achievement for any amateur cyclist. Today's Étape mimicked the penultimate stage of this year's Tour de France, taking on Stage 20 and the route from Annecy to Mont
Semnoz above the lake.
The profile map below of the 128km route might look like a typical TDF map but look closer at the symbols for water and food stations and for mechanic services available. The rest of the race is pretty much the same. It is called a citizens event ride (cyclo sportif) but it is a timed race. The winning time is crazy fast for amatuers, but no where near as fast as the real pros will ride it on July 20th.
The biggest thrill for the cyclist is being able to ride an entire stage of the TDF on closed roads with Gendarmes assisting with road safety just like during a real stage of the Tour. Actually quite needed because 8,500 cyclists participate in the ride. The best part is that those numbers bring out the supportive fans! It is thrilling to be able to ride among the cheering fans lining the roads in France - surreal to an American.
The race was created in 1993 to let citizens experience a stage of the tour (and to realize its difficulty), a different stage and area are selected every year. In recent years organizers had attempted to provide two Étapes during the month of July, this year, there will be only one stage. Registration is limited to foreigners, to sign up contact these approved Bike Tour Companies who handle Étape du Tour registration.
"L'Étape du Tour ... has become the reference race for cyclosportive riders from all
over the world. Over 50 different nationalities are represented in the field."
Étape = stage
Results: Nicolas Roux beat Julien Absalon by 9 seconds, to complete the 128km in a time of 04:15:41.
2013 Etape du Tour route map. Annecy - Mont
Semnoz
Neal Rogers, Caley Fretz and Matthew Beaudin of VeloNews, and friend Michael Meyer, rode l'Étape du Tour today in France. Don't let this image below dissuade you - the event is thrilling to participate in.
How tough was @letapedutour? Ask these guys... pic.twitter.com/4oRBcIhLvy
— Neal Rogers (@nealrogers) July 7, 2013
VeloNew rides Etape du Tour
Annecy Semnoz today at l'Étape du Tour. Photo by @RomainDenos
2008 Photo by Karen at Pedal Dancer®
2005 The Etape Village Photo by Karen at Pedal Dancer®
Lake Annecy in the rain in 2007 Photo by Karen at Pedal Dancer®
Also read by Pedal Dancer®
Best Sportives and Gran Fondos
Cyclosportives - you can do it!
TOMORROW'S STAGE - REST DAY!
Rest! The riders are flying out of Pau Airport, the staff and the entire caravan will drive tomorrow. all will be ready to start again on Tuesday in Saint-Gildas-des-Bois, France.
I will be creating a post for tomorrow's rest day highlighting some past posts I have written about travel in France and cycling education.
Related posts by Pedal Dancer:
Tour Travel - Tour de France after Stage 8
Tour Travel - Tour de France after Stage 7
Tour Travel - Tour de France after Stage 6
Tour Travel - Tour de France after Stage 5
Tour Travel - Tour de France after Stage 4
Tour Travel - Tour de France after Stage 3
Tour Travel - Tour de France after Stage 2
Tour Travel - Tour de France after Stage 1
Tour Travel - Tour de France Stage 1, 2, 3
2013 World and National Champions in the Tour de France
Most Popular Tourist Sites in France
The Tour De France Explained in Animation
The 100th Tour de France
How to Watch the Tour de France
Travel to Provence, France
Best Climbs in the 2013 Tour de France
Preview of the centenary edition of 'La Grande Boucle', By Team SKY
Preview of the centenary edition of 'La Grande Boucle', By Team SKY