In Tour de France parlance, yesterday was a rest day for me (no cycling) and I had a long transfer (a 5.5 hour ferry from Bastia to Nice). I still had time for some arts and crafts, so I celebrated Canada Day by making a sign for Garmin.
I’m so sorry to say I hadn’t realized before yesterday Sergey Lagutin was in this year’s Tour. He rides for Vacansoleil but, more importantly, he’s from Fargana, Uzbekistan! I’ve got some great memories (and some bizarre ones too) from the 18 months I lived in Uzbekistan so I made Sergey an Uzbek flag.
It was a long, hot wait in the sun for today’s team time trial but it was well worth it before the race had even started for 2 reasons. Sean Kelly was at the finish line giving commentary on what to expect and he signed my Canadian flag. But what pretty much made my day was, after bumping into my Belgian friends, we were chatting and keeping our eyes open for cyclists when just as a couple of cyclists in Orica Green Edge kits rode up the sidewalk, she suddenly pointed over my shoulder and exclaimed, “Robbie McEwen!” I turned and yelled, “ROBBIE!” He kept riding but turned back, his eyes scanning the scene, until he saw me waving like my life depended on it and even from 20 meters away I could see a big smile on his face as he waved back. So I now have had a high 5 and a wave from my all time favorite cyclist. I’m really hoping this is all leading up to a photograph together!
Today I had parked myself about 5 meters past the finish line so I had a great view of the riders coming into the final few hundred meters but the teams warming up were using a shortcut to return to their buses and so they didn’t reach us.
An advantage of watching a stage with others is having someone to hold save your spot, so I was able to find a good place at 240 meters to the finish. A few teams rode by and some chose to sit in the back of team cars and drive the course. Omega Pharma-Quick Step rode by 4 times, obviously hoping the reconnaissance would help them gain an advantage. Below: the OP-QS team, Mark Cavendish, and Sylvain Chavanel.
The first team to race the course was Argos Shimano.
Omega Pharma-Quick Step.
Lotto-Belisol.
Cannondale.
Cofidis.
FDJ.
Belkin.
Garmin.
Teams don’t have to finish together but the minimum number of riders is 5. Garmin had 6 and Navardauskas, Bauer, and Dennis all trickled in individually shortly after the team. My lifelong support for Jack Bauer was sealed at the London Olympics when he had given the individual time trial so much that he could barely catch his breath after taking off his helmet and rivers of sweat poured down his head. So with that in mind, you can imagine how I felt when I saw him trickle in alone with his jersey unzipped and then take off his helmet. If I’ve ever wanted to give someone a comforting hug, it was today!
Euskaltel-Euskadi.
Sky.
Katusha.
Sojasun.
Astana.
Movistar.
Saxo-Tinkoff.
Europcar, being lead home by Canadian David Veilleux.
AG2R.
Orica Green Edge. A clock at the finish line notes the best time so far and counted the approaching team’s time. As Orica Green Edge neared the finish, the clock ticked dangerously close to OP-QS leading time which hadn’t been seriously challenged up to this point. Orica Green Edge didn’t have a second to spare if they were to move into the lead. When they crossed the finish line, they had bested OP-QS by about three quarters of a second! It was impossible to tell if this time would stand as 4 more teams had yet to finish, but it was exciting to see such a great but unexpected team with so many riders I love (including Stuart O’Grady and Canadian Svein Tuft, both of whom gave me their autographs at stage 2, and Robbie McEwan) jump into the number one slot.
Lampre.
Vacansoleil.
BMC, with Cadel Evans in the lone red helmet.
RadioShack Leopard Trek.
It was official before RadioShack, the final team, even crossed the finish line: Orica Green Edge won the stage! The boys looked thrilled to death as they accepted their award for the stage win! I was the only person waving a Canadian flag and Svein Tuft acknowledged it with a big smile.
And just a moment later, Simon Gerrans, stepped out on the podium again, this time to don the yellow jersey for the first time in his career. He was couldn’t contain his happiness.
There were no changes in either the competitions for the sprinters, king of the mountains, or best young rider. Peter Sagan, Pierre Rolland, and Michal Kwiatkowski, respectively, retained their jerseys for another day.
The final award today was for the overall leading team. Once again, Orica Green Edge took the stage and were smiles all around.
Stage results
1. Orica Green Edge 25:56
2. Omega Pharma-Quick Step 25:57
3. Sky 25:59
Overall standings
1. Simon Gerrans (Australia, Orica Green Edge) 12:47:24
2. Daryl Impey (South Africa, Orica Green Edge) +0
3. Michael Albasini (Switzerland, Orica Green Edge) +0