Tour de France Stage 13 preview: Breakaway hunters eye longest stage of the race

With a brutal weekend looming, this could be one of the breakaway's best chances to steal a stage at the Tour The post Tour de France Stage 13 preview: Breakaway hunters eye longest stage of the race appeared first on Canadian Cycling Magazine .

After two days dominated by the sprinters, the Tour de France returns to hillier terrain on Friday with a 205.8-km trek from Dole to Belfort. And, btw, probably one of the last times you’ll see a bunch sprint at this year’s Tour. The rest of the race is lumpy, very lumpy, or very, very, very lumpy.

(Or a TT.) Friday is the longest stage of this year’s race, but don’t expect the GC battle to explode just yet. (Probably.

You really never know anymore.) Stage 13 of the Tour de France The first 150 km are more or less uneventful before the race finally reaches the Vosges. The boys in France will tackle the Col des Croix before climbing the historic Ballon d’Alsace.

That’’s an 8.7-km ramp that’s around 6.9 per cent. It actually became the Tour’s first major mountain pass back in 1905. The summit comes with around 30 km still to race, leaving plenty of room for attacks on the descent and the rolling run into Belfort.

It’s a finish that rewards aggression as much as climbing legs. There could still be a selection in the main bunch if there are some riders away, so GC contenders have to be close to the front, just in case. GC weekend But, two demanding mountain stages still to come this weekend, the yellow jersey contenders are unlikely to waste energy unless an opportunity unexpectedly presents itself.

That should open the door for an ambitious breakaway, and teams still chasing a first stage win will be eager to animate the race. But again, you can’t really discount yellow jersey Tadej Pogačar; you’d think he would save his legs for the upcoming tough days, but a few more seconds might demoralize all his contenders even more. Favourites Expect the fight to make the early move to be just as intense as the finale itself.

Strong all-rounders who can survive the Ballon d’Alsace and still have enough punch for the run to the line are likely to be at the front. Riders such as Richard Carapaz, Tobias Halland Johannessen, Tom Pidcock and Quinn Simmons all fit the profile, while Mathieu van der Poel could also be dangerous if he can limit his losses on the climb and reconnect on the descent. It would be good for Alpecin-Premier Tech to get a win–Jasper Phillipsen can’t seem to get a break–or have the legs, in the sprints.

Osgoode, Ont.’s Derek Gee-West was on the offensive for Lidl-Trek on Thursday, but probably more to help set up Simmons, Mattias Skjelmose or green jersey Mads Pedersen. Still, it’s highly probable you’ll see him marking moves.

If one sticks? Who knows. We’ve had some pretty great stuff so far at the Tour, and Friday may be a fun one to watch.

Especially as–given Pogi’s dominance–it may be somewhat unpredictable. You can tune into the race on Flobikes.com at 6:50 a.m. EDT.

Be sure to check back in here at Canadian Cycling Magazine to start your weekend with a bang. Affiliate links present. Canadian Cycling Magazine may receive commissions The post Tour de France Stage 13 preview: Breakaway hunters eye longest stage of the race appeared first on Canadian Cycling Magazine .