To be honest, I only raced this stage today because I wanted to see Levarlet go up the much needed stat level. He once again failed to please me. Typical.
Still, a break went, got caught with 45km to go, Valverde rode off the front with a tonne of sprinters, got caught, so decided to shell the entire field by riding as fast as he could up the final climb.
By entire field, I, of course, refer purely to Auber riders.
Just prior to the last hill, it was certainly looking very dodgy. Levarlet was out of blue bar. Tronet had gone from sprinter to domestique within seconds, and was the last guy with him. A bit of max riding on the climb helped Levarlet get back closer to the middle of the pack, and a bit of sprinting secured him the same time.
Rojas outsprinted an unbothered Hushovd, who is for some unknown reason, Bonnet's bitch for the tour. Bonnet who didn't appear at the front.
So, one stage safetly got through without Levarlet losing time due to his rubbish flat stat. Just one more to get through before the first mountain stage of the tour. And the last for many days.
With the TDF team having varied success, a stronger, more proven squad, heads to another part of France for another Tour. The Tour du Doubs.
A hilly single day 1.1 classic, the team did ok here last year, with Levarlet placing 5th. With Malacarne and Kiryienka both classed as heavy favourites, with Belkov also in the mix, we mean business.
An early break went, literally from the start line, just before a descent, and that was it. 2 man time trial for 150km of the race!
Van Heerden, and Erki Putsep put a good 9 minutes and 30 seconds into the peloton, before Francaise de jeux, for Di Gregorio and ourselves for Malacarne and Kiryienka, start putting the hammer down.
Within 50 km, the gap fell dramatically (as did Belkov at some point, but oh well!).
With 35km to go, Malacarne attacks on the flat. A more sensible idea than the hill, as he isn't quite as strong as others there.
He creates a 4 man group that quickly catches the two men up front, and spits them out the back.
As the peloton hits the final climb, the 4 man group has a 1 minute 30 lead, and Kiryienka is ready and raring to go too. So he does.
Meanwhile, down the other side, Malacarne sees a weak spot in the other climbers, as they can't descend like he can, and so he flies off, trying to get a gap.
And he gets one!
Not a large one, but one none the less.
Di Gregorio brings the gap down, down and its getting close. With 2 km left to go, di Gregorio starts to sprint. But Malacarne grits his teeth, and around the last bend, he knows it's his.
A great victory for the Italian, especially after some strong performances in the Italian Championships. Kiryienka sealed off the good day with a 5th place as well. Easily pulling away from the peloton.
Cheers Schleck and Guido. Well, Levarlet just went up a stat level in this stage, soooo, he could potentially get a top 15-20. So I'm aiming for that really. And to win on the Champs Elysee.
SN, was a single day classic, so if I can repeat the overall win in the stage race that'd be something else. lol.
Stage 3
The new kit has finally arrived!!!
Once again a large break went, and the sprinters teams brought it back. As did Evans, Boogerd, Kroon et al. But by nailing it on the front so hard, all my riders suffered like dogs on the hills. So once again it was survival for Levarlet (he made it... but with 3 red bars! - who said the flat didn't hurt!).
Valverde was leading out the colourful sprinters train. Rojas, Eisel and Hushovd were the only ones who seemed to care about todays sprint.
As a result they got a 15 second gap (that wouldn't stand at the end, but shows they were going fast!).
I believe tomorrow will see Vaugrenard's Millar style day - ie mountains so go for broke and yellow, or just die and go off the back and lose 3 minutes (it's more likely to be 10...but hey ho!).
The most important part... Levarlet's Stat increase!
schleck93 wrote:
He could have used a little more in flat and stamania
I certainly agree there. Though the 2 more TT is a help as well. Though Im very glad one of the time trials is a mountain one. It will also help that his fitness will improve over the next few days, which will make the coming flat stages slightly easier to cope with. I hope.
Because I'm never happy unless I'm stealing SN's limelight....
The first mountain stage is upon us! Concern's are, as always, at the front of my mind. Firstly as it's my first race for a long time on extreme, and secondly, we all know how well Levarlet wasn't coping with the flat, so will it be the same case for the mountains!? Not to mention that team leader, Gaudin, is still suffering with awful form. He's slowly riding himself in, but needs to survive this first hard stage to get in another week of riding at this level.
First to attack, in a new strategy for survival, was Drujon.
With a few sprints points up for grabs, it was about time, with two sprinters on the team, to get a few points up on that ranking board.
He easily takes the first sprint, being solo over it. And had only two chasers - Hary of Cofidis, and Timochine of Liquigas. These two caught Drujon once he'd slowed up a bit, and then promptly dropped him on the first, and then second climb.
After the second climb, it looked as if he'd never make it back, but with some strategic sprinting, he did. And he nearly won the second sprint too!
But, of course, it was not to be. And shortly after, as they begun the ascent of the Peyresourde, he sat up to go his own tempo.
As we hit the Peyresourde, fireworks began in the peloton. Firstly Moreau, then Heras, Kirchen, Sastre, Valverde and Boasson Hagen all attacked!
Talk about laying it all out, these guys were not hanging about. By halfway up the climb, Sastre had caught, and passed, Drujon.
By the top, Drujon had passed behind all those riders, and was caught again by the peloton.
He sits in the peloton on the descent (of course) and shortly after hitting the Apsin sits up once more to go it alone (until he was caught by the 50 odd guys behind him).
As we hit, and proceed up the Col du Aspin, by half way up, Sastre was in the lead.
Sastre was leading Kirchen and Heras by 24 seconds.
Who had 33 on Moreau.
Valverde and Hary were a further 26 seconds back.
Timochine down another 34.
The peloton were at 3 minutes and 8 seconds to Timochine, and Drujon was back another 4.47. He still had 1.18 to Gaudin who was solo off the back of the gruppetto.
Off over the top of the Aspin, and down to the start of the Tourmalet, and Levarlet was down to just Morizot as protector. Morizot, it had to be said, was doing an awesome job today in keeping Levarlet ready and out of trouble.
When we hit he Tourmalet, of course the fireworks being once more. This time, it's much more serious, with Contador one of the many early attackers.
Gomez Marchante, Contador, Rogers, Fothen, Danielson, Menchov, and Van den Broeck all go for it.
Not long after, the group Levarlet is in all just do the wierd "we're not working" move, and then decided to all attack in mass. Levarlet powered through most of them, and started going tempo with a few FDJ lads. Soon he'd dropped them, and had for company Gesink.
By this point, Contador was solo out front (ignoring the early attackers who were bonking one after another). Followed at 30 secs or so by a group of 10 with Dekker in there, then another 9 followed at one minute, and then Levarlet at another minute back. He had 45 seconds, and growing, over the guys behind him.
He caught and passed Moreau, and then went on to catch Valverde.
The funny thing is, Valverde wasn't blown yet, so went to do a relay with Levarlet, and blocked Gesink from following. As Valverde went backwards, so did Gesink. Levarlet was free of the wheel sucker!
And so it remained like that. Contador just overtook early aggressor Sastre for the win, and Levarlet finished solo.
Gaudin, however, was having a harder day. He'd caught and joined the groupetto, but then was spat out the back and bonked on the final climb. Would he make it? Just.
KoM:
1 Carlos Sastre TEAM CSC 93
2 Maryan Hary COFIDIS, LE CRÉDIT PAR TÉLÉPHONE 67
3 Kim Kirchen T-MOBILE TEAM 62
14 Mathieu Drujon AUBER - BELTELECOM 17
Flat stages so far have been going badly for us. Today doesn't change that. Vaugrenard came in very useful at the end to help protect Levarlet, who, with 10km to go ran out of blue bar, and rather rapidly shifted backwards. Drujon then also had to lend a helping hand.
Everyone else on the team had already dropped off.
Today, it's the breakaway tactic. OK, I know it's a long stage, and none of my riders can go the distance, but I have to try. So, having two sprinters in the team, Drujon gets to go in the break. He wins the first sprint easily (no one contests), and here he is passing the second.
Shortly after, however, the break is brought back in, as it swelled to 15 strong. A counter break, including Jimmy Casper, went for it. He eventually popped, and I don't think he made the time cut.
Levarlet, was again having trouble, but today I decided he'd be ok to make it without Tronet's help. So Tronet is up there, all alone, for the sprint.
Well, by "up there" i mean he was on Pollack's wheel. Which is certainly better than we've seen from the team for a while.
Needless to say, he didn't make much of an impression, and Haussler easily won over the other big names.
Tronet was sprinting hard though, and managed an okish sprint...
that'd be something else. lol.
