Sanctuary. That's the best term one could use when describing the first rest day at the Tour de France. After nine difficult days and the ridiculously stressful Roubaix stage, riders who have made it this far will be able to relax and recover, but the vast majority will just be relieved to have made it this far.
The terrible loss of Richie Porte, who crashed earlier on stage 9, changes everything in the race – not just for BMC Racing, but for the rest of the GC peloton too. From now on, the other 'big teams', like Sky and Movistar, can't rely on anyone else being interested in controlling proceedings, so when something happens out on the road, they'll have one less ally to control proceedings.
Even Tom Dumoulin, Vincenzo Nibali and Romain Bardet will be affected by the absence of the Australian from the overall fight because it will disrupt the pattern and flow of the race. It means that instead of having eight additional riders working towards a GC bid, you've now got seven rogues who will be looking to disrupt the race and challenge for stage honours. It doesn't sound like a huge difference but, trust me, over three weeks it can be crucial.
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One could argue that the demise of Porte has been compensated for by the spell in the race lead for Greg Van Avermaet, who has ridden brilliantly, but it's more than likely even their management would have traded some of that success for a bit of luck for Porte.
As predicted, it hasn't taken much for Peter Sagan to take control of the points classification and, despite the emergence at this year's race of Fernando Gaviria, and with Dylan Groenewegen building on last year's success, the likelihood of the Slovakian staying in what has become his jersey all the way to Paris is highly likely.
There was some criticism over the length of some of the stages in week one, and the pace at which they were raced, but I think that was a little harsh on the riders. My assessment was that the trek across Brittany must have been even more energy-sapping than usual, as once out of there and onto the flatter terrain to Chartres and Amiens, the slowdown in the peloton was quite noticeable.
You can read more at Cyclingnews.com
via Cyclingnews Latest Interviews and Features http://www.cyclingnews.com/features/philippa-york-analysis-the-agony-and-ecstasy-of-the-tour-de-france
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