TDF 2023: Stage 7:- Mont de Marsan to Bordeaux, 170km ***Spoilers***
blazing_saddles
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Stage 7:- Mont de Marsan to Bordeaux, 170km
Friday, July 7
Start Time: 12-15pmBST.
The Tour visits Bordeaux for the 82nd time. Until recent times, it was one of the regular Tour towns. It’s the 57th time since 1947 that the biggest cycling contest in the world finishes in Bordeaux. However, the last time Bordeaux was a stage finish was in 2010 – and some guy called Mark Cavendish won it back then. Maybe a good omen for Tour stage win no. 35?
The 169.9 kilometres long race heads North and features one easy climb with almost 40 kilometres to go. The rest of the parcours of stage 7 is flat. So there's little doubt that the fast men will have it their way in the streets of Bordeaux.
Final Kms.
The two-kilometre finishing straight along the quayside will allow stage contenders to stake their claim for victory in the high-speed dash to the finish line near the Place des Quinconces, hailed by the people of Bordeaux as the biggest in France.
What to Expect.
A small, desperate breakaway, which will probably form inside the first couple of kms. Several sprinter teams will keep the gap to within a couple of minutes until the time comes for the GC teams to try to place their leaders at the head of the bunch and the dangerous stuff begins. After the 3km mark, the sprint trains will battle it out for the win.
Mont de Marsan
Stage ton for the 5th time
Population: 30,000
Mont-de-Marsan is a commune and capital of the Landes department, Nouvelle-Aquitaine, southwestern France. The Festival Arte Flamenco international festival was established 1989 in Mont-de-Marsan by the council of the Landes department and is the largest Flamenco festival outside of Spain.
MONT-DE-MARSAN AND CYCLING
For cycling fans, Mont-de-Marsan is above all linked to Luis Ocana, who revealed himself there at the beginning of his career and achieved his first successes in town. Son of Spanish emigrants settled in Gers, a department with which he kept links all his life, the young Luis became a citizen of Mont-de-Marsan in 1963 when, spotted by the president of the local club, Pierre Cescutti, he donned its yellow and black colours. He turned professional in 1968 with Spanish team Fagor and chose to keep his original nationality. His first successes came the following year and from 1970, when he won the Vuelta, he asserted himself as one of Eddy Merckx's main rivals. The 1971 Tour de France established his legend: Yellow Jersey after having relentlessly harassed the Cannibal, Luis Ocana was caught in a collective crash on the descent of the col de Menté and was forced to abandon. Bad luck was often part of his life, but the "Spaniard from Mont-de-Marsan" finally clinched his greatest victory in 1973 by winning the Tour in the absence of his Belgian rival.
Gastronomy.
Landes farm duck
The Landes farm duck is one of eight products to be awarded the Landes Quality label. It is raised in the open air for more than 102 days. Since April 2003 and for the first time, the Label Rouge has been extended to cooked products, a guarantee of quality processing. Fed on whole grain corn from the South-West, it is reared with the greatest respect for tradition and follows a very strict set of specifications. It can be eaten in a thousand different ways: duck breast, aiguillettes, foie gras, confits.
Pastis landais
Pastis landais is a traditional French pastry. It's made with a combination of eggs, butter, flour, yeast, and powdered sugar. The pastry is typically flavored with vanilla, rum, and orange blossom water. Once baked, pastis landais is golden yellow in color and its exterior is crunchy because it's sprinkled with large pieces of sugar on top.
Bordeaux
Stage town for the 82nd time
Population: 260,000 (994,000 in the urban area).
Prefecture of the Gironde. Prefecture of the New Aquitaine Region, Bordeaux is a port city on the Garonne River in southwestern France. It’s known for its Gothic Cathédrale Saint-André, 18th- to 19th-century mansions and notable art museums such as the Musée des Beaux-Arts de Bordeaux. Public gardens line the curving river quays.
Bordeaux is a world capital of wine: many castles and vineyards stand on the hillsides of the Gironde, and the city is home to the world's main wine fair, Vinexpo. Bordeaux is also one of the centers of gastronomy.
BORDEAUX AND CYCLING
With 81 stages, Bordeaux is, after Paris, the city that has hosted the Tour de France most often, but the race has shunned the capital of wine for thirteen years, since the last winner in town (a sprinter, as tradition dictates), was none other than the greatest of them all, Mark Cavendish. Before him, finishers like Rik van Looy, André Darrigade, Walter Godefroot, Marino Basso, Freddy Maertens, Jan Raas, Eric Vanderaerden, Jean-Paul van Poppel, Djamolidine Abdoujaparov, Tom Steels or Erik Zabel had also won here.
Gastronomy.
Entrecôte à la bordelaise
There are two ways to prepare a fine cut of steak Bordeaux style — as entrecôte bordelaise, without a wine sauce (the traditional way), and as entrecôte à la bordelaise, with a wine sauce (also known as entrecôte marchand de vin). The key to success is choosing an excellent cut of meat.
Bordeaux cannelé
The cannelé, also written canelé, is a small cake in the shape of a fluted cylinder, with a soft and tender pastry, flavoured with rum and vanilla, and baked in a mould originally made of copper, which gives it a thin caramelised crust.
Friday, July 7
Start Time: 12-15pmBST.
The Tour visits Bordeaux for the 82nd time. Until recent times, it was one of the regular Tour towns. It’s the 57th time since 1947 that the biggest cycling contest in the world finishes in Bordeaux. However, the last time Bordeaux was a stage finish was in 2010 – and some guy called Mark Cavendish won it back then. Maybe a good omen for Tour stage win no. 35?
The 169.9 kilometres long race heads North and features one easy climb with almost 40 kilometres to go. The rest of the parcours of stage 7 is flat. So there's little doubt that the fast men will have it their way in the streets of Bordeaux.
Final Kms.
The two-kilometre finishing straight along the quayside will allow stage contenders to stake their claim for victory in the high-speed dash to the finish line near the Place des Quinconces, hailed by the people of Bordeaux as the biggest in France.
What to Expect.
A small, desperate breakaway, which will probably form inside the first couple of kms. Several sprinter teams will keep the gap to within a couple of minutes until the time comes for the GC teams to try to place their leaders at the head of the bunch and the dangerous stuff begins. After the 3km mark, the sprint trains will battle it out for the win.
Mont de Marsan
Stage ton for the 5th time
Population: 30,000
Mont-de-Marsan is a commune and capital of the Landes department, Nouvelle-Aquitaine, southwestern France. The Festival Arte Flamenco international festival was established 1989 in Mont-de-Marsan by the council of the Landes department and is the largest Flamenco festival outside of Spain.
MONT-DE-MARSAN AND CYCLING
For cycling fans, Mont-de-Marsan is above all linked to Luis Ocana, who revealed himself there at the beginning of his career and achieved his first successes in town. Son of Spanish emigrants settled in Gers, a department with which he kept links all his life, the young Luis became a citizen of Mont-de-Marsan in 1963 when, spotted by the president of the local club, Pierre Cescutti, he donned its yellow and black colours. He turned professional in 1968 with Spanish team Fagor and chose to keep his original nationality. His first successes came the following year and from 1970, when he won the Vuelta, he asserted himself as one of Eddy Merckx's main rivals. The 1971 Tour de France established his legend: Yellow Jersey after having relentlessly harassed the Cannibal, Luis Ocana was caught in a collective crash on the descent of the col de Menté and was forced to abandon. Bad luck was often part of his life, but the "Spaniard from Mont-de-Marsan" finally clinched his greatest victory in 1973 by winning the Tour in the absence of his Belgian rival.
Gastronomy.
Landes farm duck
The Landes farm duck is one of eight products to be awarded the Landes Quality label. It is raised in the open air for more than 102 days. Since April 2003 and for the first time, the Label Rouge has been extended to cooked products, a guarantee of quality processing. Fed on whole grain corn from the South-West, it is reared with the greatest respect for tradition and follows a very strict set of specifications. It can be eaten in a thousand different ways: duck breast, aiguillettes, foie gras, confits.
Pastis landais
Pastis landais is a traditional French pastry. It's made with a combination of eggs, butter, flour, yeast, and powdered sugar. The pastry is typically flavored with vanilla, rum, and orange blossom water. Once baked, pastis landais is golden yellow in color and its exterior is crunchy because it's sprinkled with large pieces of sugar on top.
Bordeaux
Stage town for the 82nd time
Population: 260,000 (994,000 in the urban area).
Prefecture of the Gironde. Prefecture of the New Aquitaine Region, Bordeaux is a port city on the Garonne River in southwestern France. It’s known for its Gothic Cathédrale Saint-André, 18th- to 19th-century mansions and notable art museums such as the Musée des Beaux-Arts de Bordeaux. Public gardens line the curving river quays.
Bordeaux is a world capital of wine: many castles and vineyards stand on the hillsides of the Gironde, and the city is home to the world's main wine fair, Vinexpo. Bordeaux is also one of the centers of gastronomy.
BORDEAUX AND CYCLING
With 81 stages, Bordeaux is, after Paris, the city that has hosted the Tour de France most often, but the race has shunned the capital of wine for thirteen years, since the last winner in town (a sprinter, as tradition dictates), was none other than the greatest of them all, Mark Cavendish. Before him, finishers like Rik van Looy, André Darrigade, Walter Godefroot, Marino Basso, Freddy Maertens, Jan Raas, Eric Vanderaerden, Jean-Paul van Poppel, Djamolidine Abdoujaparov, Tom Steels or Erik Zabel had also won here.
Gastronomy.
Entrecôte à la bordelaise
There are two ways to prepare a fine cut of steak Bordeaux style — as entrecôte bordelaise, without a wine sauce (the traditional way), and as entrecôte à la bordelaise, with a wine sauce (also known as entrecôte marchand de vin). The key to success is choosing an excellent cut of meat.
Bordeaux cannelé
The cannelé, also written canelé, is a small cake in the shape of a fluted cylinder, with a soft and tender pastry, flavoured with rum and vanilla, and baked in a mould originally made of copper, which gives it a thin caramelised crust.
"Science is a tool for cheaters". An anonymous French PE teacher.
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Comments
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Can't believe it's been that long, it's crazy. It was always there.
Shame it's not the finish from back then though, Cav's crazy memory would have helpedWarning No formatter is installed for the format0 -
Dear Mr Saddles…
I’m a long time lurker on here and occasionally following during stages but have to say how mint your intros are.
Thank you
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Stop the cringe bus"If I was a 38 year old man, I definitely wouldn't be riding a bright yellow bike with Hello Kitty disc wheels, put it that way. What we're witnessing here is the world's most high profile mid-life crisis" Afx237vi Mon Jul 20, 2009 2:43 pm0
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4 riders off the front but one can't be bothered and sits up"If I was a 38 year old man, I definitely wouldn't be riding a bright yellow bike with Hello Kitty disc wheels, put it that way. What we're witnessing here is the world's most high profile mid-life crisis" Afx237vi Mon Jul 20, 2009 2:43 pm0
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Ooh that steak looks tasty!0
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Use the multi audio option.mididoctors said:Stop the cringe bus
They didn’t miss the start of the stage as no studio chin waggery."Science is a tool for cheaters". An anonymous French PE teacher.0 -
Break is so soft they all say up bar one from arkea"If I was a 38 year old man, I definitely wouldn't be riding a bright yellow bike with Hello Kitty disc wheels, put it that way. What we're witnessing here is the world's most high profile mid-life crisis" Afx237vi Mon Jul 20, 2009 2:43 pm0
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Almost a repeat of the last sprint stage.
Surely viewing figures will suffer on such stages. In which case, can we expect fewer in future editions?
4 breakaway riders now down to just one reluctant participant."Science is a tool for cheaters". An anonymous French PE teacher.0 -
Total dawdle"Science is a tool for cheaters". An anonymous French PE teacher.0
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I'm guessing a fairly quiet couple of stages before the MTF on Sunday. Handy really have loads of catching up to do with Ladies Giro and some MTBing0
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That would be like cutting out the middle of a football pitch because people only watch the goals...blazing_saddles said:
Surely viewing figures will suffer on such stages. In which case, can we expect fewer in future editions?.
(so, judging by the UCI...probably yes)We're in danger of confusing passion with incompetence
- @ddraver0 -
Depends what the point of these stages is. In my opinion, it's a necessary evil to allow riders a rest to then go hard on other days.blazing_saddles said:Almost a repeat of the last sprint stage.
Surely viewing figures will suffer on such stages. In which case, can we expect fewer in future editions?
4 breakaway riders now down to just one reluctant participant.
Do we get the 2 hard days in the Pyrenees if we don't have the de facto rest day to Nogaro?
See the Giro, which had very few flat days "off", but was derided for a lack of interest from the GC1 -
Here comes Carlton to list the potential winners...1
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Takes Kirby all of 2 minutes after arriving to start reading out the startlist of possible stage winners."Science is a tool for cheaters". An anonymous French PE teacher.2
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I don't know if we need quiet days to have hard days. If everyone is shattered does that mean boring conservative racing or are domestiques too fatigued to really control and we get chaotic open racing ?
I do think it's interesting that we aren't seeing small teams putting men in the break just for exposure - we were always told that was a big part of why they did it - and with longer coverage you'd think there would be more exposure now.[Castle Donington Ladies FC - going up in '22]0 -
Today's the day then for win #35!================
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2017 Cube Attain GTC Pro Disc 2016
2016 Voodoo Wazoo1 -
Flares are the new roundabouts for him recently.blazing_saddles said:Takes Kirby all of 2 minutes after arriving to start reading out the startlist of possible stage winners.
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Talk of possible crosswinds in about 7-8km.0
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The lone breakaway seeing an opportunity to get caught as the peloton wind up for the intermediate sprint. Lead down to 41”. Girmay showing some form ahead of tomorrow’s uphill finish.0
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These roads look horrible to race on, long straights and just draggy looking.0
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Anyone explain Latour and his mate trying to bridge to a doomed solo break? It’s not like they’ll even be in contention for combativity.0
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It's not a bad gamble compared to being in the days break ...lone guy goes out or smallish break . Sprinter teams still.have to ride all day .... Use the sprint to jump across slingshot by sprinters team who pause to regroup ... Bam your a min up the round with 2 fresh riders ...chance of success minimal but higher than attacking km 0Pross said:Anyone explain Latour and his mate trying to bridge to a doomed solo break? It’s not like they’ll even be in contention for combativity.
"If I was a 38 year old man, I definitely wouldn't be riding a bright yellow bike with Hello Kitty disc wheels, put it that way. What we're witnessing here is the world's most high profile mid-life crisis" Afx237vi Mon Jul 20, 2009 2:43 pm0 -
Got yo.takr me ailing mum to the health centre miss the end ... hopefully that will.mean.cab wins"If I was a 38 year old man, I definitely wouldn't be riding a bright yellow bike with Hello Kitty disc wheels, put it that way. What we're witnessing here is the world's most high profile mid-life crisis" Afx237vi Mon Jul 20, 2009 2:43 pm2
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We've got team radio on the forum now?mididoctors said:Got yo.takr me ailing mum to the health centre miss the end ... hopefully that will.mean.cab wins
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Right side of the roundaboutpoweredbyidris said:
We've got team radio on the forum now?mididoctors said:Got yo.takr me ailing mum to the health centre miss the end ... hopefully that will.mean.cab wins
"If I was a 38 year old man, I definitely wouldn't be riding a bright yellow bike with Hello Kitty disc wheels, put it that way. What we're witnessing here is the world's most high profile mid-life crisis" Afx237vi Mon Jul 20, 2009 2:43 pm1 -
Breakaway win with tailwind? Unlikely, but you never know, maybe...
That would really hurt if Cav won the bunch sprint for third!================
2020 Voodoo Marasa
2017 Cube Attain GTC Pro Disc 2016
2016 Voodoo Wazoo0 -
Cav Cav Cav Cav Cav Cav, Cav, Cav Cav.
Cav!0 -
ITV commentary highlighting the effect of the tailwind and the fact that sprinter teams are already having to use up domestiques, just to hold the break.
Meanwhile Kirby is reading out half the startlist as possible stage winners……for the third time this afternoon.
Ffs."Science is a tool for cheaters". An anonymous French PE teacher.0 -
I changed over and Millar is describing the u turn in the finish that Eurosport just told us had been taken out.blazing_saddles said:ITV commentary highlighting the effect of the tailwind and the fact that sprinter teams are already having to use up domestiques, just to hold the break.
Meanwhile Kirby is reading out half the startlist as possible stage winners……for the third time this afternoon.
Ffs.0
