The peloton found its legs again on today’s stage from Villers-Cotterets to Joigny, which made yesterday’s soft-pedalled marathon all the more bizarre. This being the Tour de France conspiracy theories abounded at this morning’s packed start village in the Place Aristide Briand. Why had the peloton ridden the longest stage of the 2007 Tour at an average speed of 35.8 kilometres per hour, the lowest speed for a Tour stage since 1998?
Ah well, it was obviously a protest by the riders at the presence of former soigneur turned doping kiss-and-tell merchant, Jef d’Hondt, in the Francaises des Jeux team car. Except that d’Hondt, who recently revealed the extent of doping within the Telekom team, one of his former employers, wasn’t in the car — although he had apparently popped in at the team hotel the night before.
Yes, but maybe the riders were riding slowly to make all the journalists miss their deadlines because they are so fed up with all the stories on doping?Unlikely, given that their teams are supported by sponsors who are desperate for media coverage that goes some way to returning their year-long investment.
Or perhaps they were riding slowly simply because cycling has cleaned up its act and there are few riders taking drugs, which means that they get tired more easily, which in turn leads to lower average speeds??
That last explanation may have some justification, but the truth appears to be more mundane.
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There was a long-winded and highly tactical game of cat and mouse being played.
Two breakaway riders, neither of whom were given the slightest chance of staying clear to the finish in Compiegne, were allowed to steal clear, but not so far clear that they might actually be out of reach.
So, every time their lead increased, race leader Fabian Cancellara’s team, CSC, picked up the pursuit to protect their team mate’s hold on the yellow jersey.
At the same time, the two escapees saw little point in hopelessly exhausting themselves into a head wind, with two and half weeks still to race, knowing that they would inevitably be reeled in.
So the game of cat and mouse continued — for 230 kilometres. As long as the breakaways stayed clear, their sponsors branding was prominent on TV, and as long as their lead stayed within reasonable limits and maintained the status quo, the peloton was happy.
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When the peloton speeded up, the breakaway speeded up. When the peloton slowed, the breakaway slowed.
This ebb and flow culminated in team manager Marc Madiot ordering breakaway rider Matthieu Ladagnous to stop for a natural break at one point. “The goal was to get as close to the finish with a three or four minute lead, without exhausting themselves,” Madiot explained.
Fair enough, but this was hardly the kind of racing to keep a global television audience on the edge of their seats...