Stage Seventeen

 

My timing worked out that I was in the sizeable city of Mont-de-Marsan at 3:30 with several bars open on this national holiday, meaning I could see the day’s dramatic stage, making it a happy Bastille Day for me.  I had the good fortune, too, of earlier in the day coming upon a grocery store that was open, a very iffy proposition, so I didn’t have to resort to my reserves of peanut butter for lunch-time sandwiches and Ramon for dinner.

I had begun the day in Mourenz, Ville Départ for Stage Nineteen.  It offered up the year’s oddest Tour concoction in its welcoming roundabout.  Adding to its oddity was that it was Yellow-free. Mourenz is famous for being the Ville Arrivée for one of Eddie Merckx’s most audacious stage triumphs, a long breakaway in 1969 coming down from the Pyrenees. The city has forever linked itself with Merckx by putting his name on its Velodrome

Posters about town promoting The Tour featured Merckx as well.

The neutralized zone out of Mourenz included a couple of steep climbs on narrow roads.  Once again I was riding in a cold rain that persisted off and on until I had my Tour viewing pleasure.  Despite the chill, most of those at the bar were sitting outside, sparing me of any hassles as I had on Sunday in a very cramped bar with no outdoor tables.

The bar faced the city’s gallant Hotel de Ville (city hall), another beauty.  They are often as stunning as a Carnegie Library.  They rival the chateaux and cathedrals of France, that get all the attention, as marvels of architecture worthy of searching out.

With it Bastille Day the French riders were asserting themselves.  Three were in a five-rider breakaway four minutes ahead of the Yellow Jersey group with twenty-five miles and two huge climbs left in the stage.  Partway up the first climb it was down to three French riders.  Perez of Cofidis went off on his own.  Once the final ten-mile Beyond Category climb began his lead on the fast-charging Yellow Jersey group plummeted and within four miles was gone and he was mercilessly left behind, his only consolation a fair amount of camera time.  Though Cofidis hasn’t won a stage in years, fans flying Cofidis banners along the Tour route outnumber all others.

With all the breakaway riders dispatched Pogacar had a chance for a stage win.  He accelerated five miles from the summit taking the second through fourth-placed riders with him.  They’ve been inseparable for days.  In short order the cozy foursome suffered a rupture, with Uran falling off.  

That moved the young Dane, Vingegaard, into second overall.  He and Pogacar took turns setting the pace as Carapaz clung on.  Vingegaard had just a second advantage on Carapaz, so was hoping to drop him.  Suddenly Carapaz accelerated and Vingegaard fell off and faded away.  Carapaz had moved into the coveted position of first behind Pogacar. 

Vingegaard kept fading, but then found his legs and slowly clawed his way back, regaining the two ahead shortly before the finish.  Even though Pogacar sprinted ahead for the win, Vingegaard’s recovery was the ride of the day.  He accomplished what Uran couldn’t.  Uran frequently catches his breath after being dropped and regains the group that dropped him.  Not today.  He finished ninth in the stage 1:42 back, falling from second to fourth.  He’s a strong time trialist, so he could overtake Carapaz on Saturday’s time trial, if he doesn’t in tomorrow’s final day in the mountains.  

Poels and Quintana both gained some King of the Mountain points today, but Pogacar gathered a bunch to move into second.  With another performance tomorrow like today he’ll take the Polka Jersey just as he did last year on the climactic time trial with a big climb.

Vingegaard proved once again that he’s virtually the equal of Pogacar as a climber.  Armstrong mentioned on his podcast that Vingegaard has the best time on a climb in Spain on the Costa Blanca south of Valencia that many of the pros ride to test their fitness.  It is the Col de Rates.  Rates is Spanish for “rat.”  Armstrong asked, “Why would anyone want to name a climb for Floyd Landis,” his teammate that bared all to the drug authorities, bringing down Armstrong.  Landis actually received a seven-figure award from the government, a percentage of the settlement that Armstrong agreed to.  Landis remains arch enemy number one. 

Jonathan Vaughters is another ex-teammate he feels nothing but spite for, but he has managed to avoid castigating him this year, though he usually does.  It was Vaughters who dreamed up the idea of Lachlan Morton riding The Tour route and transfers as a touring cyclist.  He has garnered more press than his teammate Uran, who has been sitting second for days.  Armstrong has mentioned Morton, as has everyone in the media, but hasn’t given Vaughters credit for this brainstorm that has generated tons of press for the EF team.  

The publicity exploded when Morton arrived on the Champs Élysées beating the peloton by five days.  Some riders have said they wish they’d done the same thing as Morton, as they would be glad to have their Tour and all the suffering over with.  Geraint Thomas on his podcast with Luke Rowe couldn't conceive that a rider who had ridden the Giro would subject himself to such an ordeal, riding  close to two hundred miles and twelve hours a day, and not having a massage afterwards.  “He’s got to be crazy,” he said.  He had a film crew with him to  make a movie of his ride, so the world will learn if he is or isn’t.