The 101kms of Stage 13 of the 2017 Tour de France will be another day in the mountains. That makes it one of the shortest non-TT stages in the Tour since half stages were stopped. That doesn’t mean it will be short on excitement. The intermediate sprint occurs very early on at 13.5kms in Seix. After that, the sprinters will surely than form the gruppetto as the race tilts uphill for three categorized climbs:
• Km 31.0 – Col de Latrape (5.6kms; 7.3%)- category 1
• Km 46.5 – Col d’Agnes (10kms; 8.2%)-category 1
• Km 74.0 – Mur de Péguère (9.3kms; 7.9%) )- category 1
Historically, the Peguere is remembered by Tour fans as the site of “Tack Gate” in 2012 when tacks were strewn about the road, leading to numerous punctures.
Thus far in this year’s Tour, it has seemed that the downhills have mattered more than the uphills. Opportunists, therefore, will sigh relief that the descent from the final climb is fast and relatively untechnical. So, who will use this opportunity to go for glory? Will Froome attack to get back yellow? How well will Astana defend the jersey?