Tour de France- STAGE 14 - Nîmesto Digne-les-Bains

letour.com ^ | 07.19.08 | 194.5 km

[leilani]

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RACE PREVIEW

Stage 14 would appear to be yet another one of those ostensibly flat transitional days which may nonetheless conceal a few challenges within
the route. The first 50km out of Nîmes stretches across the flat Rhône delta before threading through some gentle Provençal hills along
the way to the Durance Valley. It's only in the final 50 km the riders start meeting some real foothills of any consequence,
including two moderate CAT 4 climbs, but the whole course from start to end will have taken the peloton from nearly sea-level
at Nîmes to alt.735m atop their second climb at Col de l'Orme just outside Digne-les-Bains at the threshhold of the Alps. From there,
the riders hop a speedy 9km descent into town zipping around a couple of roundabouts (AKA wipeout magnets) to the finish line.

Says BicyclingMagazine : "...it's a mostly uphill course that will tempt the peloton's strongmen to jump into a modest-size break and try to outlast the
chasing peloton to the stage's final 6-mile descent.The leader's team will be forced to work on the front for long stretches and negotiate the
gap between them and the leadout riders.If the time gaps are manageable in the last hour or so of the race, expect to see the sprinter's teams take
over the chase.If the man in yellow is a true contender in the mountains, his team may choose to minimize its efforts in order to "rest"
for the big mountain days ahead[and] even concede the jersey to a rider in the break should hot weather tax the peloton."

Ah well, if members of the peloton are taxed by the hot weather, or, God forbid, should come down with a vicious case of road rash
tackling those crazy roundabouts at top speed today, they can always jump into the therapeutic thermal waters for which this evening's stopover
in the southern Alps, Digne-les-Bains, has acquired a measure of modest fame over the centuries in order to grab a little relief tonight.

And speaking of relieving one's misery, here's your trivia for today: Digne-les-Bains played a featured role in Victor Hugo's Les Miserables.
It was the Bishop of Digne, Myriel (AKA Monseigneur Bienvenu), whose remarkable acts of charity & forgiveness inspired the novel's protagonist
Valjean to turn over a new leaf. Hugo modeled his fictional clergyman after Digne's real-life Diocesan Prelate, Bishop Bienvenu de Miollis,
who was widely known for his extraordinary compassion and who was reputed to have performed the very act of kindness to a thief
which Hugo depicted in the book as Valjean's transformative experience.

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Climbs:

Cote de Mane, 128.5km (4th Category)
Col de L'Orme, 185km (4th Category)

Intermediate Sprints:

Saint-Remy-De-Provence, 37 km
Oraison, 145 km

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[leilani]

Tour de France Stage 14 Nîmes-Digne-les-Bains ping!

If you want on or off FR's TdF ping list tell...um.... somebody or other. (green iguana maybe? lol, we're not very organized around here, sorry.)

[PeteB570]

I'm here, great finish yesterday.

To bad MC is going to drop out to prep for the China Games. It would be great to see him take the sprint in Paris.

But we have the next three years to look forward to before the Olympics round around again.

[leilani]

Good morning Pete. Is he really going to leave? I knew he was thinking about it, but I didn’t know he’d decided to drop out to prepare for the Games. That’s crazy, IMO.

[PeteB570]

Everybody has been talking about it since the Tour began.

He’s got 4 stage wins so far - a record, might get one today but the Olympics only roll around every four years.

Another thing - He’s in the Madison. Thats a 2 man team. He has a team mate counting on him for their chance at a Gold Medal.

[leilani]

Gag. Just noticed a typo in the title. (sigh) Sorry everybody, I’m just hopeless I think - I just can’t do this kind of stuff so early in the morning. Just too scatterbrained to post safely at this hour, I’m afraid.

[leilani]

He's in the Madison? Now that event would definitely require a lot of training with one's teammates - synchronizing the tagging part esp.

[PeteB570]

This is a crash course on Olympic Bike Racing

http://bicycling.about.com/od/olympiccycling/a/track_racing.htm

[leilani]

Not really a huge fan of track racing.(unless Dennis Quaid is on the team, lol!)

Defeats the purpose of cycling, it seems to me. Or at least, it defeats what I like about cycling: sailing through the scenery.

[Sir_Ed]

You gotta go to the Olympics if you’re an athlete. The TDF is great, and he’s doin’ great, but man...it’s the Olympics!!

My old next door neighbor in Newport Beach went to three Olympics in water polo. Never won gold, but had a blast!

Ed

[leilani]

Link to FR'S Stage 15 thread; Embrun to Prato Nevoso, Italy; Sunday 07.20.08