THE MISTRAL OFFERS A HELPING HAND

The morning brought another cloudless sky with not much change of weather expected in the day. Although everyone was present at the starting line on time, a few last minute mechanical hitches caused some dreaded delays and the first meters on the bike were postponed by about half an hour.

The pace was relatively low after that. We expected it to be another fairly long day, but when we crossed the first col we were suddenly given a hand by very strong winds luckily blowing in exactly the right direction. Speeds of over 50 km’s on a flat with a heart rate of 120 bpm is not something we had experienced very often. Is this how it feels to ride in the peloton? If it had not been for some more mechanical problems we would have set a new record for early finishes. As it happened Simon ran a record of his own: 3 flats in a row and eventually the need for a new wheel. Still, a pretty good stage to save some strength for the tough days to come.