Stage 17 and the Tour resumed from the final rest day for
184.5 km ride to the mountains from Berne to Finhaut-Emosson in Switzerland.
With another hot day forecast, Gabs prepared a cool and
refreshing cucumber and smoked trout terrine with some trout caught by Phil
that morning. To smoke the fish Phil improvised by converting the caravan of
commentary into a smoker by placing the time trial hot seat in there with some
cuckoo clock wood shavings.
No butter in the recipe and with only a handful of stages
remaining Gabs’ vow to make this Tour ‘the year of the butter’ is looking very
shaky indeed.
The rest day was largely a relaxed affair with the riders
cooling off with a dip in the Aare River that runs through Berne.
With the Olympics just around the corner it was time for
some riders to take stock and consider whether to push on to Paris. Mark
Cavendish answered the call from the British selectors to come home and Rohan
Dennis called it quits.
When we joined the caravan of commentary the race was well
and truly on. Warren Barguil was spotted sporting a torn-look jersey. Was he
making a fashion statement? No, turned out he was involved in a crash with
Borut Bozic, and Gorka Izagirre and the road surface, which acted like a grater
on breathable fabric and skin.
The scenery was incredible with many oohs and aahs from the
couch peloton. Switzerland, you hot mess of a country you!
If you thought the mountains were spectacular, the waterfalls
(or cascades) were equally impressive – just don’t go chasing them, save the
chasing for the breakaway. Oh yeah, whatever you do don’t go standing under La
Cascade de Pissevache...
With a big cat. 1 and hors categorie climbs ahead, Robbie
reflected on how difficult a mountain stage was in the final week of the Tour.
To Robbie it was like, “you look down at your legs and all you’ve got is two
barbecued sausages”. Now I’m not sure if he was referring to severe sunburn, legs
burning red hot with lactic acid or a hunger induced meat-o-vision hallucination
like in the cartoons.
Cooked
The Ps made their catch at 36 km to go and came across some very
impressive precision crop circles at Valais. Paul thought a farmer must have used
a GPS guided tractor. The Swiss are known for precision but the execution of
the lines and circles looked TOO precise for GPS.
Phil talked about his time when he encountered the famous
canine breed the Saint Bernard. He had difficulty controlling them, they kept
running away and rescuing people buried in snow and wouldn’t sit still long enough
for Phil to pour a brandy from the barrel under its chin.
The riders reached cat. 1 Col de la Forclaz. Tony Gallopin went
on the attack in the desperate hope he could try and get a French stage win. Alexey
Lutsenko went solo but Rafal Majka made it first to the summit hoovering up
more KOM points. Jarlinson Pantano was riding with the pride of Colombia on his
shoulders for their national day and went over the top with Majka.
Back in the GC group on the Forclaz, Tejay van Garderen was
dropped with all hope of a high finish in Paris gone. Post race he said he had
no excuses. Phil and Paul thought he was suffering what Paul calls a ‘strange
reaction’ to the rest day. Whatever it was in the end it was I beg your pardon,
I never promised you a van Garderen.
Vincenzo Nibali nursed his protégé Fabio Aru up the climbs
and I can’t seem to shake this disturbing image of a grown man attached to one
of Nibali’s nipples.
Diego Rosa played a role as a booster rocket for Aru but was
ejected when the job was done. Meanwhile Katusha rider Ilnur Zakarin was
rocketing up the final climb to Finhault-Emosson.
Riding for Colombian on its own wasn’t going to do it for Pantano.
Russian Zakarin has his bags packed for Rio but still doesn’t know if he’s
going.
Zakarin crossed the line to win his first stage at the Tour
and even I was exhausted just watching that uphill drag to the line in the
final couple of hundred metres.
Back in the GC group with van Garderen gone it was up to
Richie Porte to take the lead for BMC. Froome latched on to his wheel and Porte
was working for Froome. Again.
All eyes were on Nairo Quintana with time running out for a
Paris podium finish. CANtana do it? Adam Yates, Romain Bardet, Aru and Louis
Meintjes had other ideas and left Quintana in their wake. Adam Yates must have
been inspired by the ‘Yates You Can’ slogans that have been painted on the
roads throughout the Tour. Sadly, for Quintana this Tour is shaping up to be
CAN’Tana.
Froome increased his lead over Bauke Mollema to 02’ 27”. It’s
going to be tough for anyone to try and pare back that lead.
When you’re out of gas in the final week of the Tour it’s a
loooong walk to the next petrol station in the mountains.
