What a Day
My friend Jean-Paul called me yesterday, during Wout van Aert’s astounding ride up Mount Ventoux – the second ascension – that brought the Belgian Champion his fourth career Tour stage win, saying, “What a coureur! What class on the bicycle.” I stated the other day that FDJ director Marc Madiot is the most French man in France, but in fact Jean-Paul might be, especially given his lusty pursuit of the gastronomic marvels that spring forth from that fertile country. Jean-Paul brought me to France back in 1979 and taught me how to race: he knows cycling.
“Van Aert is fantastic, not like that van der Poel! How could he come, race the Tour as through it were Paris-Nice, and when things aren’t going his way, quit and leave his team behind? Look, van der Poel pulls off some super performances, of course, but Merckx was right, it was a disrespectful way to approach the Tour, something Mario Cipollini would have done.”
My French American friend Wade, another fine observer of the sport about whom I wrote last year - https://www.pelotonperspectives.com/posts/2020/8/27/wades-beautiful-bicycles was also flummoxed: “ You mean van der Poel just walked out on the Tour? That doesn’t make any sense.”
In short, the French don’t like that. Mario never recovered his reputation there after habitually winning early Tour stages before retiring and heading to the beaches of Viareggio. Now, in the ongoing battle between the two Van’s, their fight for victories and public acclaim, Wout van Aert, with yesterday’s performance, one that has us all thinking that he might in fact become a true Yellow Jersey contender – he’s a monster in Time Trials don’t forget, and now can haul his 172-pounds over the Ventoux – has come out the clear and quite possibly permanent winner in France. His was such a beautiful victory, pure cycling, arriving alone resplendent in his tri-color Belgian Champion jersey after conquering the mythical Mont Ventoux. Contrast that image with van der Poel’s while giving the press conference to explain why he wasn’t going to take the start; those two contrasting images are now in the French consciousness, and, stubborn like Terriers as they are, won’t be going away anytime soon.
Julian Alaphilippe showed what racing with joy was yesterday, by attacking like a demon and forcing the formation of a breakaway, seemingly all for the pleasure of leading the race over the first ascension of Ventoux to the wild acclaim of his adoring public. He was the first World Champion to crest the summit of Ventoux in 66-years, made the race interesting for us all, and at the end, with a healthy dose of humor stated, “It was one lap too many for me.” The Champion put himself in the service of Mark Cavendish over these past days, and he took the opportunity of yesterday, once of the most viewed stages of the Tour, to put on the Alaphilippe show. I for one, and am not alone, am most grateful for it.
The question on everyone’s mind after the stage was: What were the Ineos doing? The team rode the front behind Alaphilippe’s break as though they were defending the Yellow Jersey. They did the work that Tadej Pogačar’s UAE teamn should have been doing. Are they riding merely for the podium? Their steamroller tactics put young Ben O’Connor in trouble – he’s still in 5th overall – but regarding the larger picture, everyone is shaking their heads. “They wanted to do something”, said Pogačar afterwards, “I’m just not sure exactly what it was.” According to team director Gabriel Rasch, “We wanted to toughen up the race, move Richard Carapaz up on the GC, and try for the stage win.” Ok, but at what cost? Pogacâr, and his team, got a free ride the entire day, Ineos road captain Luke Rowe didn’t make the time cut and is out of the Tour, Geraint Thomas and Michal Kwiatkowski rode themselves into the ground just for the team to come up short. Their team bus discussions must be intense now.
I’ve been watching Jonas Vinegaard all year, especially after his excellent second place behind Primoz Roglič at the Tour of the Basque Country. The 24-year-old, who worked at a fish processing plant before his pro contract and who insists, like Kasper Asgreen, to stay home and train in the harsh, North Sea weather rather than heading for sunnier climes, was a last-minute replacement for Tom Dumoulin on the Jumbo-Visma team. He was third in the Time Trial it should be noted, and has become, unofficially at least, the first rider in history to put Tadej Pogačar in difficulty on a climb. It really was a ‘shout at the TV moment’ when Pogačar lost the Dane’s wheel and Vingegaard flew alone up the Ventoux. The long descent back into Malaucéne ended his solo raid, but with two mountaintop finishes to come in the Pyrenees, a spark of hope is kindled in us all. Unfortunately for the Dane, the team is down to five riders, Tony Martin having crashed out, and that paucity of firepower represents a great handicap Unless of course, the Ineos just keep doing everyone’s work for them.
There were seven abandons yesterday, one missed time limit – Soren Kragh Anderson made the cut by three-seconds only – Groupama-FDJ is down to four riders….this Tour has been nuts. “They’re racing like juniors” observed Brad Wiggins. There’s been an awful lot of destruction in this Tour de France, some blame van der Poel for igniting the race the way he did for the first week while knowing that he was going home, but I think there’s something else. The tears that are flowing out of these riders – even van Aert looked choked up approaching the finish – are something I’ve never seen. Add that to the crackups of Marcel Kittel and Tom Dumoulin, and I think that these racers are living through the most intense pressures imaginable, that the winner’s tears are the result of a sudden release of those burdens. You can see it in the way they ride in the peloton, the constant and frantic attacking, the non-stop crashing. Something’s got to give here, the sport needs to take a step back and reflect a bit. Maybe find a way to unload some of the marketing and social media pressures on the riders, or for them to figure out a new normal for the peloton. But someone’s got to take charge and take a good look for the sake of the racers.