showmethecakes Sun Jul 26, 2015 4:05 pm
The organisers had clearly hoped that this ride would prove to be decisive when it was planned the night before. Even at this stage with the end in sight Adrian just couldn't face another morning in the saddle and abandoned in the neutral zone. It was like Stevie Wonder leading Ray Charles around the traffic furniture at Churchill lights as the bunch headed off in about 3 different directions. A few lowly placed riders made a bid for glory up the Col de Roeberrow but were soon safely back in the bunch as the road climbed up to Shipham.
Nick suffered a puncture but, unlike the tour, everyone stopped to catch their breath, have a slash or just laugh at anything slightly immature or childish. A lesson to be learned there for next years tour I think.
After the category 19 climb out of Shipham was out of the way there was the usual fast descent into the home of the hard cheese. There then followed a rather technical stretch of road. For those people reading this who are not familiar with the life of a professional cyclist this is basically a bit of road with some bends in it. I have to say Phil, it wasn't like this in my day!
No - you're quite right Paul. I rode along a road once in 1946 and it was a good job there were no bends as my penny farthing wouldn't have handled the corners very well.
Quite right Phil. These days the kind of machines these professionals ride have inflatable tyres as well as steering. And when you think about the kind of speeds they set going along these roads they need every bit of advantage they can get to maintain 17 mph.
On the final climb of the day, okay - it was the only climb of the day, the bunch rapidly thinned out with the elite riders managing to drop everyone else on the climb. As the main protagonists battled it out some granny at the side of the road clearly spat at the yellow jersey resulting in loss of false teeth and her husband wishing he had never bought that yellow jumper.
The ride across the top of les Mendips resulted in bigger time gaps with a few more riders climbing into the back of their virtual team cars and heading for the nearest cafe. That left 10 to roll on to Clevedon. Ivan took maximum points at the intermediate sprint across Kenn Moor before a re-grouping and a steady ride into the feed zone. Again, something for the tour organisers to think about for next year. Have a proper feed zone with burger vans, kebab stalls and tables and chairs for a very civilised cup of coffee and a cake. It was also nice to see the podium girls serving up the refreshments.
The remaining riders faced a brisk headwind on the return leg through Kingston de Seymour and Yatton before slogging it out down the A370. Couldn't say who won the stage - don't even know where the finish line is. One last thought, it was funny to hear Paul Sherwin talk about not knowing how difficult it is to ride up Alpe-Duez until you tried and I thought it can't be that hard, even Ivan got up it.
OJC: don't know, not sad enough to bother counting anymore.
KFC: 6/10 (apart from that ridiculous sprint over Kenn Moor which goes into the HC category for flat pieces of road)
TTCR: 8/10, good food, bit pricey, but ggrreeeaatt service
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