TDF 2021: Stage 9, Cluses > Tignes 144.9 km **Spoilers**
blazing_saddles
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Stage 9, Cluses > Tignes 144.9 km
4-7-2021Start 12-00.
Two years after a stage on the Tour de France to Tignes was washed (along with Geraint Thomas's chances) away by flash floods, the ASO have made true on their promise of bringing the race back.
The route amounts to 145 kilometres, so making it the second short, punchy mountain stage. There are five climbs peppered along the route between Cluses and the ski station at Tignes. Consequently, the climbing starts relatively early and probably means that a large break will get away, while the sprinters labour, hoping for the pace to let up, sooner, rather than later.
The punchy Côte de Domancy is likely to see a lot of attacks. It's short at 2.5 kilometres, but has steep agradient of 9.4% . It appears after 17.5 kilometres. The route then moves through the Arly valley to enter the Col des Saisies after 40 kilometres. After a long descent and having past the world famous cheese village of Beaufort, the riders next face the Col du Pré, which climbs for 12.6 kilometres. A short descent leads to the short equally short ascent of the Cormet de Roselend.
After taking in some of the most stunning scenery of the race so far the riders begin the long descent down into Bourg-Saint-Maurice followed by the 21km climb of the Montée de Tignes.
The Climbs:
After 40 kilometres. The 9.4 kilometres Col des Saisies climb averages 6.2%.
The Col du Pré climbs for 12.6 kilometres and the average gradient sits at 7.7%.
A short descent and a section on the flat lead onto the next obstacle. The Cormet de Roselend is a 5.7 kilometres climb at 6.5%.
The Montée de Tignes is 21 kilometres long, while the average gradient sits at 5.6%. Halfway up the climb the route flattens out for 2.5 kilometres before continuing with a slightly steeper second half.
While this a brute of a climb, especially in it's second half, this isn’t a summit finish, as the road flattens out with 2 kilometres to go.
Final Kilometres
With five climbs the certainty for a full on GC battle was there, until yesterday. It's now hard to see the breakaway not surviving to the finish, with UAE content to control the race until Wednesday at least, but probably the Pyrenees. Indeed, some climbers may now switch their attention to the Polka Dot jersey: a positive to come out of yesterday's annihilation of the challengers.
Favourites stage 9 Tour de France 2021
***** Tadej Pogacar (nevertheless)
**** Richard Carapaz, (only because he deserves some credit) Wout Poels
*** Miguel Angel Lopez, Esteban Chaves, Emanuel Buchmann, Steven Kruijswijk, Jakob Fuglsang
** Tao Geoghegan Hart, Sepp Kuss, Guillaume Martin, Julian Alaphilippe
* Ben O’Connor, Ion Izagirre, Mattia Cattaneo, Simon Yates, Ruben Guerreiro
Cluses
Stage town for the 3rd time
Population: 17,100
In the 18th century, watchmaking was introduced into the valley to supply the firms in Geneva and the Royal School of Watchmaking was created in Cluses. Faced with the needs of industry, the manufacture of small micromechanical parts in series developed: screw-cutting was born. This activity consists of manufacturing turned metal parts from metal bars or wire. The outlets are mainly the automobile industry, aeronautics and dental equipment. Cluses and the Arve Valley have thus become the economic lung of Haute-Savoie.
Cluses twice hosted the finish of a Tour de France stage from the Tarentaise valley. This was the case in 1994, with a stage that started in Moutiers and was won by Piotr Ugrumov and in 2002 for a stage staring in Aime. Cluses has been more often on the programme of the Critérium du Dauphiné, the last time in 2019 for the start of a stage won in Switzerland in Champéry by Dylan Van Baarle, but also of the Tour des Pays de Savoie, with prestigious winners, Tao Geoghegan Hart in 2016 and Egan Bernal in 2017.
On the Road
Km 66.6
Beaufort (Pop: 2,050)
Beaufort cheese
The "Prince of Gruyères", Beaufort is a smooth, ivory to pale yellow cheese with a fruity taste of extreme finesse.
Km 93
Cormet de Roselend (1,968 m)
Linking the Beaufortain valley and the Mont-Blanc massif, the Cormet de Roselend has been climbed 12 times by Tour de France riders since 1979. The last rider to lead over the pass was Marc Hirschi last year, on the opposite side.
Tignes
Stage town for the 3rd time
Population: 2,400
The Tour de France had to return to Tignes after the truncated 2019 stage, where torrential rain and a landslide prevented the riders from cycling to the Tarentaise resort. An exceptional setting, between lakes, glaciers and mythical peaks, a privileged experience consists in climbing onto the roof terrace of the Grande Motte cable car (accessible only in summer), and enjoying a 360° view of an exceptional panorama at an altitude of over 3,000 m. One of the most beautiful in the French Alps, with a view of Mont Pourri,
the Grande Sassière ridges, the Grande Casse (highest point of the Vanoise: 3,856 m) and the majestic Mont Blanc range on the horizon. An audio-guide enriches this experience.
Or why not simply enjoy a blueberry tart in one of the refuges accessible from the heart of the resort.
"Science is a tool for cheaters". An anonymous French PE teacher.
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Comments
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What's the weather going to be?It's only a bit of sport, Mun. Relax and enjoy the racing.0
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Didn't even realise Chaves is in the race!0
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Huh... neither did I!mrb123 said:Didn't even realise Chaves is in the race!
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Do we reckon Roglic will start tomorrow?0
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I think he'd be mad to. Thomas as well.mrb123 said:Do we reckon Roglic will start tomorrow?
It's only a bit of sport, Mun. Relax and enjoy the racing.0 -
One way to find out who is a team player, and who is not.The above may be fact, or fiction, I may be serious, I may be jesting.
I am not sure. You have no chance.Veronese68 wrote:PB is the most sensible person on here.0 -
He is? Blimeymrb123 said:Didn't even realise Chaves is in the race!
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Worse than today.salsiccia1 said:What's the weather going to be?
Plus there's a weather warning for the next 24 hours in the Savoie.
Tignes strikes again.
"Science is a tool for cheaters". An anonymous French PE teacher.0 -
It's a very fast descent off the top of the Roseland that becomes very twisty and technical mid way down. Then the climb from Tignes 1650 to Tignes 1800 is pretty steep before easing off to Le Lac and then pretty much flat to the finish.
Opportunity for someone to go long from the Col de Pre.0 -
blazing_saddles said:
Worse than today.salsiccia1 said:What's the weather going to be?
Plus there's a weather warning for the next 24 hours in the Savoie.
Tignes strikes again.
It's only a bit of sport, Mun. Relax and enjoy the racing.0 -
Every afternoon in the mountains in high summer has an 'Averses Orogeuses' warning! However, it doesn't look good for tomorrow.
Pog likes the cold, not the hot.0 -
Interesting to see how the teams respond to this. Today (st 8) they were all over the place - but now some major GC sorting maybe some more cohesion and control?0
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Surely anyone capable of doing so has to have a go and hope Pog went too deep today unless they are all looking at 2nd and 3rd now.0
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Only benefit would be if they can take it easy for a few days and hope to recover to be of use to team mates in the next mountains. No point them being there otherwise.salsiccia1 said:
I think he'd be mad to. Thomas as well.mrb123 said:Do we reckon Roglic will start tomorrow?
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Or nick a stage, if they're feeling really cocky. Hard to imagine either would be - both look screwed. There's a certain amount of pride at stake too though, and it might well depend on whether there's anything to reschedule for.Pross said:
Only benefit would be if they can take it easy for a few days and hope to recover to be of use to team mates in the next mountains. No point them being there otherwise.salsiccia1 said:
I think he'd be mad to. Thomas as well.mrb123 said:Do we reckon Roglic will start tomorrow?
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I don't know enough about Roglic but I would have thought Thomas would try to get round the Tour one way or another - hasn't past experience shown that?0
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It's not like Thomas would be guaranteed leadership for the Vuelta as I assume that Bernal and Yates are likely to be riding it.bobmcstuff said:I don't know enough about Roglic but I would have thought Thomas would try to get round the Tour one way or another - hasn't past experience shown that?
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He might just be resting up to be part of the train in the 3rd week.mrb123 said:
It's not like Thomas would be guaranteed leadership for the Vuelta as I assume that Bernal and Yates are likely to be riding it.bobmcstuff said:I don't know enough about Roglic but I would have thought Thomas would try to get round the Tour one way or another - hasn't past experience shown that?
Be a team player.The above may be fact, or fiction, I may be serious, I may be jesting.
I am not sure. You have no chance.Veronese68 wrote:PB is the most sensible person on here.0 -
He popped the first few km yesterday, can't see him back to form today. UAE to sit back, let others fight it out. Right now every stage is up for grabs unless Pogacar has an off or a bad day.0
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The trouble is that they all looked in a far worse state crossing the line, than Pogacar.Pross said:Surely anyone capable of doing so has to have a go and hope Pog went too deep today unless they are all looking at 2nd and 3rd now.
I reckon today will resemble the morning after a stag do."Science is a tool for cheaters". An anonymous French PE teacher.1 -
Roglic abandonsWarning No formatter is installed for the format0
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blazing_saddles said:
I reckon today will resemble the morning after a stag do.
Wasn't that yesterday? Pogacar obviously didn't drink.0 -
“New York has the haircuts, London has the trousers, but Belfast has the reason!0
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No_Ta_Doctor said:
Roglic abandons
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Pog looked under pressure on Friday and was saved time loss by Movistar then turned in that performance yesterday.0
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I'm not sure Pog was under pressure there, though his team was.Pross said:Pog looked under pressure on Friday and was saved time loss by Movistar then turned in that performance yesterday.
Warning No formatter is installed for the format0
