TdF 2012
Saw this predicted route for the 2012 TdF this morning …
Prologue: Liege, 6.2 km
St1: Liege - Seraing
St2: Vise - Tournai
St3: Orchies (in France at last) - Boulogne
St4: Abbeville - Rouen
St5: Rouen – St Quentin
St6: Reims (likely) or Sedan (less likely) - Metz
St7: Tomblaine – Planches des Belles Filles (likely), or Gerardmer or Belfort (less likely)
St8: Belfort – Porrentruy (in Switzerland)
St9: Besancon – Macon, or Arc-et-Senans – Besancon (TTT)
Rest Day
St10: Villars-les-Dombes – Bellegarde, via the Col du Grand Colombier
St11: Albertville – La Toussuire
St12: St Jean de Maurienne - Annonay
St13: Valence (???) – Cap d’Agde (???)
St14: Foix – Tolosa (in Spain)
St15: Samatan – St. Lary Soulan/Pla d’Adet (likely) or Peyragudes (less likely)
Rest Day
St16: ??? - La Pierre St Martin
St17: ??? – Brive
St18: Lac du Vassiviere (TT)
St19: Bonneval (likely) or Dreux (less likely) – Chartres
St20: Chartres – Paris
I’d like to see the Planches des Belles Filles in the Tour. Although short, it’s a pretty stiff climb and used as the finish to the ‘Les Trois Ballons’ cyclosportive. But unless they do some tree-clearing there’s not a lot of free space at the top for all the logistic requirements of the Tour organisation, so I’d be surprised if it is eventually included.
Here’s a link showing the profile:
http://tinyurl.com/belles-filles
If included, Peyragudes would be in the TdF for the first time. The (used before) TT circuit is bumpy, with over 200 m of climbing in the last 12 km.
Prologue: Liege, 6.2 km
St1: Liege - Seraing
St2: Vise - Tournai
St3: Orchies (in France at last) - Boulogne
St4: Abbeville - Rouen
St5: Rouen – St Quentin
St6: Reims (likely) or Sedan (less likely) - Metz
St7: Tomblaine – Planches des Belles Filles (likely), or Gerardmer or Belfort (less likely)
St8: Belfort – Porrentruy (in Switzerland)
St9: Besancon – Macon, or Arc-et-Senans – Besancon (TTT)
Rest Day
St10: Villars-les-Dombes – Bellegarde, via the Col du Grand Colombier
St11: Albertville – La Toussuire
St12: St Jean de Maurienne - Annonay
St13: Valence (???) – Cap d’Agde (???)
St14: Foix – Tolosa (in Spain)
St15: Samatan – St. Lary Soulan/Pla d’Adet (likely) or Peyragudes (less likely)
Rest Day
St16: ??? - La Pierre St Martin
St17: ??? – Brive
St18: Lac du Vassiviere (TT)
St19: Bonneval (likely) or Dreux (less likely) – Chartres
St20: Chartres – Paris
I’d like to see the Planches des Belles Filles in the Tour. Although short, it’s a pretty stiff climb and used as the finish to the ‘Les Trois Ballons’ cyclosportive. But unless they do some tree-clearing there’s not a lot of free space at the top for all the logistic requirements of the Tour organisation, so I’d be surprised if it is eventually included.
Here’s a link showing the profile:
http://tinyurl.com/belles-filles
If included, Peyragudes would be in the TdF for the first time. The (used before) TT circuit is bumpy, with over 200 m of climbing in the last 12 km.
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TTT on stage 1 would be too far into the race...
A prologue, TTT and TT would certainly add something to the GC contendors who can TT
Another year escapes Andy Schleck then.
- @ddraver
Mountain roads have to be resurfaced regularly due to the damage down every winter by the cold weather. Any work being done at this time of year is more likely to aid the ski resorts than the Tour.
(I know it's not definitive, but the rest of the road looked in pretty decent knick and it's not like it's an uncommon stage. I was hoping for the classic Luchon, Peyresourde, Aspin, Tourmalet, Luz Ardiden stage for an etape - not that i'd ever actually get my ar*e into gear for that!)
- @ddraver
But I agree, it's highly likely the Peyresourde will be on the route.
Prologue of 6.2 kms? Yellow for Wiggins would be my tip.
If they aim to resurface before the Tour passes through they have their work cut out in Liege! Bits of it look like they were last done between the wars....
The suggested stage 8 will be a day of rolling hills, but it'll be a nice ride out to Porrentruy for me to watch them coming in.
The Moser
The VN
That route above would contain some interesting elements like Planche de Belles Filles and Grand Colobier, but would on the whole be pretty lame - just three proper mountain stages in Alps and Pyrenees combined (11, 15, 16)
I admit I might have also got it wrong that stage 9 is a TTT but I hope not as I fancy the idea of a TTT a bit more into the Tour rather than in the first few days - few teams are so depleted to not manage 5 riders, even if it will then be hard work for depleted teams. If not a TTT, I expect it will be a TT. They could make a stage through the Vosges, with the Belles Filles as finish, as difficult as many a proper mountain stage.
The Grand Colombier stage has a long downhill to the finish which seems to be a route type which is in favour with the organisers the last few years and there is a rumour stage 14 will be similar, i.e. up and down a few Pyrenee cols, then a long downhill to the finish (apparently the stage could also change to be Carcassonne-Foix, in which case the downhill to the finish would likely be short, like into Morzine in 2003)
I don't think Andy will ever win the Tour. This was his year, but he blew it in the first mountains. Dirty Bertie will be back in future years as well as some good talent coming through the ranks
https://pyreneesrental.bike
https://velopeloton.com/
It's not far from Bagneres du luchon though so it'll be a wandering route.
if thomas at velowire updates his site in line with it later today, i'd be positive that it's true.
(one change to come I think: a few of the stages will be reclassified as "accidentee" rather than "en ligne")
big question: what happened to the much publicised MTF at Pierre St Martin? its cancellation was rumoured last week, but it's a bit of a mystery.
www.dotcycling.com
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It's real! I screen grabbed it off the Le Tour website. It has now been removed.
I was looking at the 2011 site and wondered what I would see if I changed the url from 2011 to 2012. Non of the links worked so no details of the route. I think there must be a lot of shouting and swearing going on in Paris right now.
https://pyreneesrental.bike
https://velopeloton.com/
I only see 4 :shock: