Finally, the mountains. The Critérium du Dauphiné has been marked by sprint stages and breakaways up to this point, but, after the aperitif that was Wednesday's time trial, Friday signals the start of open hostilities between the Tour de France contenders.
Stage 6, from Villars-les-Dombes to La Motte-Servolez, has one glaring focal point: Mont du Chat. A hellish climb on the cusp of the French Alps, 8.7km long with an average gradient of 10.3 per cent, the story doesn't end at its summit, as the riders will also have to negotiate the white-knuckle ride down the other side before they reach the sanctuary of the finish line.
And the significance is two-fold. Not only is this the first of three back-to-back mountain stages that will be decisive in the outcome of the race, it's also a reconnaissance and a dress rehearsal for next month's Tour de France, where stage 9 will replicate almost the exact same finale.
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While the Tour stage contains two major climbs before the Mont du Chat, the Dauphiné comes in cold, but the final 50km of the stage are exactly what they'll face in the Tour. Up the climb, down the other side to the Lac du Bourget.
The only difference is that at the Dauphiné the finish line is placed in La Motte-Servolex, almost at the foot of the climb, whereas the Tour stage continues for a further 12 flat kilometre to Chambéry.
The rider and team that know the Mont du Chat better than anyone are Romain Bardet and AG2R-La Mondiale, which is based in La Motte-Servolex. Bardet, along with a few teammates and a couple of members of staff, went out there on a recon last Friday.
The descent
The GC battle
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