Starting in yesterday's arrival town of Montargis, the peloton will travel 227.5km to a debute stage town in this year’s Tour, Gueugnon. Already famous among sports fans for its football team, “les Forgerons” (the Blacksmiths) who owe their nickname to the famous ironworks that brought wealth to the town before the slump in the iron and steel industry. Since then Gueugnon has also renewed its rural past at the heart of Bourgogne, home to Charolais cattle.
The longest stage of this year’s Tour on another hot day will be tough. Sheltered from any cooling winds by the forrest, in the foothills of the Morvan range, the stage is fairly flat. The heat will undoubtedly affect the outcome, with all hopes being pinned on how the teams can control of the race. While HTC-Columbia are no longer so thirsty for redemption, Cavendish is sure to want to take the victory if he can. Garmin however, will be looking for an opportunity to get Tyler Farrar back in to the race, after a few easy days following his fracture. Their dispair was evident yesterday, despite having stated that Farrar was not yet ready to vie for contention.
But as this Tour has already proven, nothing is certain, and every day the dice are thrown into the air. Where will they land today?
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