The Pyrenees

It was after Tuesday’s first Pyrenean stage, during the pre-podium warm-down period, that I was struck by the efficiency of the Jumbo-Visma squad. Vingagaard and Van Aert were both immediately put into ice vests and, as that fine cycling observer Big Al put it, “You could see their moods improve by the second as their core temps went down. By the end they were both laughing and joking.” Over on their right, UAE’s Tadej Pogačar was also warming down, jersey wide open, no ice vest. These are the details, the respect for science, that win three-week races.

That stage was a 1-2-3 triumph for North American cycling. Hugo Houle, the kind of rider every director loves for his seriousness, humility, and incredible work ethic, won an emotional race, dedicating it to his deceased brother for whose memory Houle had promised to one day win at the Tour. His was not only the first Canadian Tour stage win since Steve Bauer in 1988, but the first-ever for a Québécois. Je Me Souviens all of the beautiful French-Canadian stages races I rode as a kid, ones that opened my eyes to true cycling. That, and the fact that Houle rode my Univest GP in 2011, made his win especially joyful and poignant for me.

A crazy incident severely damaged Pogačar’s campaign on that stage: his right-hand, the ever-present-at-the-crucial-moments road captain Rafal Majka, broke his chain while flat-out on a steep climb, the sudden shock so severe that he tore a leg muscle. Pogačar was now down to four teammates while Vingegaard, losing Kruijswijk, had five, including Wout van Aert who counts as two…or maybe three. The two, very hard following days gifted us with almost unprecedented racing drama.

It began with UAE’s Marc Soler, alone, off the back, vomiting on the bike, clearly in extreme distress. Pogačar was now down to three. UAE and their proud champion responded with force by sending 6’3” Mikkel Bjerg, the three-time U-23 World Time Trial Champion, a flatlander if there ever was one, to answer the call. The Dane put himself on the front of the peloton on the col du Aspin and simply shredded the peloton with a long and astounding effort, hauling his 172-pounds (enormous by Tour standards) up the steep slopes, crushing pure climbers with his power before collapsing on the side of the road. American Brandon McNulty took up the relay, forcefully riding everyone except his team captain Pogačar and the Yellow Jersey off his wheel. Pogačar, who makes these odd violent attacks then suddenly stops his efforts, made several attempts to dislodge the Yellow Jersey, failed, but was satisfied with a prestigious stage win. McNulty, even after all that effort, came in for third and was awarded “Most Combative.” But for me, it was Bjerg who landed the most damaging body blows. Also to note was the dramatic arrival, seconds before the time delay that would have eliminated him from the race, of heavy-legged Quick-Step Sprinter Fabio Jakobsen. Urged on by his teammates who had been ordered to abandon him on the road, the emotional scene was just one more of the never-ending dramas of this Tour.

The final day in the mountains showcased a masterclass in tactics from Jumbo-Visma. UAE’s Bjerg, who’d gone far beyond any previous limits the day before, was quickly dropped, leaving Pogačar with only the damaged Marc Hirschi – who should be home – and McNulty. Wout van Aert exploded out of the gates, forcing on as only he can, attacking, being reabsorbed then reattacking until he was up the road with a group that included Christophe Laporte. Jumbo-Visma riders ahead, Jumbo-Visma riders behind with their Yellow – textbook racing. With 40-k to go, Pogačar did what he had to do, attacking five times on the narrow col de Spandelles, dropping everyone except the Yellow Jersey. The duo began the now infamous descent.

I have a different take on what happened there. As Floyd Landis once told me, “To win the Tour you have to have murder in your heart.” Pogačar was trying to kill Vingegaard on that descent, almost succeeding when the Yellow went sideways on a turn, his legs flying desperately out of the pedals trying to save his skin – and his Tour. Had he crashed, Pogačar might have– but certainly in my book – should have kept going. This is bicycle racing. In F1 racing does Verstappen stop and wait if Lewis Hamilton stuffs in in a corner? You race up, you race down. If the Yellow Jersey has an issue mid-way through the stage, that’s one thing. But on the final mountain of the Tour, in full battle cry? Nah. As far as Vingegaard’s gesture, it too was tactical genius. He came out looking like a hero, calming Pogačar down so that he’d be safe, doing it all of that knowing that he was the stronger of the two.

Ahead and behind, the Jumbo-Visma duo of Van Aert and Sepp Kuss came together for their Yellow Jersey with exquisite timing, making hard tempo to keep the Slovenian under control before Van Aert made a turbo charged effort on the final Hautacam climb, blowing Pogačar away and launching Vingegaard to a solo win, one that cruelly took the Polka Dot Jersey off the back of Simon Geschke. As I stated before, these guys play for keeps.

Barring craziness, Vingegaard should ride into Paris in Yellow. Geraint Thomas, that most honorable racer rode a most honorable Tour to finish the best of the rest. He’s an example for every bicycle racer. The American’s were just wonderful. Quinn Simmons, the youngest rider in the race, spent countless kilometers off the front, buried himself for his team, (he’s currently off the front as I’m writing) and is a great star of the future. Neilson Powless has been feeling the effects of his constant attacking this last week but was always in the action now sitting in 12th overall. Like Simmons and Powless, Matteo Jorgenson was constantly on the attack and is 4th in the Youth Classification, one behind the incredible Brandon McNulty, with Simmons in 10th. Add in the warp speed climbing and professionalism of Sepp Kuss and the 2022 Tour de France should leave us all, and our Canadian neighbors, delighted with the results and the action we witnessed.

A couple of notes to close out with: French TV has had the highest Tour ratings of over a decade such is the excitement of this new, attacking generation of racers. I did start by watching the NBC feed as I so love to hear my friend Phil Liggett, that pro of pros, but the manufactured in-fighting – producers do that - and all the weird supplementary stuff they throw in just became boring. So, I switched to Peacock’s second feed which feature the excellent Anthony McCrossan, such a user-friendly style, and for me the great media discovery of the Tour, Nicolas Roche. “Nico” is a superb commentator. He and McCrossan have fine chemistry, yet make sure that the Tour is the star of the show, not them. As it should be. Nico is so close to the peloton – he’s just retired – and is chock full of tidbits along with clear, calm expert tactical analysis. I learned so much from him. Nico has that subtle Irish humor too that makes the commentary so very enjoyable. He’s the one.